Big Is Justice!

"Yaya is certain this bottle of milk isn't poisoned!" Staring at the plastic bottle for a good while, Yaya stroked her chin with a crafty, knowing look and delivered her definitive conclusion. Chu Guang nodded and took back the bottle. "Thanks." Yaya asked curiously, "By the way, what kind of milk is this? Does it taste good?" Chu Guang replied offhandedly, "Probably cow's milk. Want a sip?" "Yes!" While saying this, Yaya kept sneaking glances at the VM on her arm. She had heard from Tengteng that there would be a prompt if a quest was triggered. Strange, why wasn't there any reaction at all? Chu Guang didn't notice her little scheme. He merely poured a bit into the bottle cap and handed it to Yaya. Taking it carefully, Yaya leaned in and sniffed it, a complicated expression instantly appearing on her face. "Smells weird. Is this really cow's milk?" "Maybe it's camel milk." "?" What did he mean by *maybe*?! Regardless, for the sake of affinity and hidden quests, Yaya pinched her nose and drank it anyway. Maybe it really was camel milk. In any case, the flavor was hard to describe, certainly not good. She had a feeling she had tasted it before, but couldn't remember when. Seeing that she had no adverse reactions, Chu Guang turned and walked away, reassured. Watching the Administrator's retreating figure, Yaya stood frozen in place for a long time. It wasn't until his back vanished past the gate that she blinked. Wait, where was the quest reward? Did he forget to give it again? The other players nearby had noticed what was going on long ago. Seeing the Administrator walk away, they immediately began clamoring. "Ooooh, what did I just see?!" "Pass it on! The Administrator fed Yaya milk!" "Passing it on, passing it on! Yaya fed the Administrator milk!" "What?! Boss Ya got—by the Administrator?!" "Are you guys looking to die?!" Her rage meter overflowing, Yaya grabbed a huge mushroom and hurled it. The player hit by the mushroom snatched it up and bolted. ... Official Website Announcement: [Recently, our outpost welcomed a group of nomads from the wasteland who settled near us out of admiration for civilization. Please treat them with kindness, everyone, so that more NPCs will join us. Remember: your every word and action will affect how the world views you.] [NPC Settlement Updated: Nomads] Forum: Big Eye in Debt: "666!" WC Really Has Mosquitoes: "The planner is awesome! (voice cracks)" Xiao Xiao Xiao Bookworm: "Where's Alpha 0.6? We need Alpha 0.6!!" Elaina: "Be careful or the planner will slap a version number on it right now, and the friendly reminder you just saw will become the version update notes. (doge)" Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes: "One can't, or at least shouldn't." Elven King Fugui: "Bros, what was the deal with dungeon diving yesterday? Find anything in the department store?" Elaina: "Find jack shit. There was actually a Crawler inside! Luckily my reflexes were fast. Fang Chang says a shelter might be hidden there. We plan to spend some time cracking it open." Mole on the Run from the Canyon: "A shelter?!" Elaina: "Not a massive shelter like ours, probably just a small fallout shelter or something similar. Plus, an accident likely occurred there. Hard to say if there's anything left inside, we'll have to see." Construction Boy and Bricks: "Occupying a supermarket early in the apocalypse—very reasonable." Tengteng: "Does anyone understand textiles? My eyes are going blurry. (dizzy)" Ye Shi: "The bros on the forum only study things that are legally hazardous. Expecting them to figure this out is truly asking too much. (doge)" ... He put the milk into the refrigerator. After returning to the shelter, Chu Guang first went down to Floor B2 to take a shower, then returned to the resident hall on Floor B1. Sitting before the computer, he began doing what a game planner should do. Today, the official website was as lively as ever. The hottest thread was still by Brother Ample Time Ahead. Only this time, it wasn't a strategy guide, but about a piece of equipment. At a time when the average player didn't even have a hundred silver coins in savings, being able to shell out 200 silver coins to win a bow at auction was beyond just being called filthy rich. After all, in the early game, everyone spent their money on equipment, ammunition, and supplies. How could anyone save up that much? Living up to the forum bros' expectations, Fang Chang shared his user experience with the mechanical compound bow, and even gave it a flashy name: "Daybreak". "Everything about this 'Daybreak' is great, except its draw weight is way too absurd!" "Especially the charged shot—regular wooden arrows can't handle it at all. After reaching full draw, holding down the switch on the riser activates the electric motor connected to the gears, powering the limbs so it doesn't feel hard to hold. But the moment you release, it feels like at least a hundred pounds! A fully charged shot probably tops two hundred! One arrow shot over, and a Gnawer's head exploded completely!" WC Really Has Mosquitoes: "What the fuck are you shooting, artillery shells?" Elven King Fugui: "Crying from envy!" Proud Grandpa What Can You Do: "Lol, look how you're hyping up 200 pounds. My ancestors were from the steppes. A 500-pound bow was the bare minimum. If it wasn't over a thousand, you'd be embarrassed to call yourself a man." Elaina: "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Bragging doesn't cost tax, after all. (doge)" Xiao Xiao Xiao Bookworm: "This gear is too unbalanced! It hits harder than a gun! Is it really reasonable not to nerf it?!" Seeing people clamoring for a nerf, Fang Chang panicked immediately and explained: "What's unreasonable about it? The setting is near-future, is 200 pounds that crazy? Not crazy at all! Have you played Crysis? The compound bow in that game even has electromagnetic acceleration!" "Besides, this thing burns through arrows like crazy. A quiver only holds twenty, and arrows shot at full charge basically can't be recovered. Unless I run into a really tough big guy, I wouldn't dare use this move normally!" Mole on the Run from the Canyon: "I suspect you're fucking humblebragging! (table flip)" Elven King Fugui: "Exactly! Pure humblebrag!" Fang Chang: "..." In the long run, spending 200 silver coins on this bow was definitely worth it. Currency would inflate, but equipment in Wasteland OL would not. Gear produced by Shelter 404 was always top-tier. An awesome weapon would stay awesome until the servers shut down. Of course, that was provided the weapon didn't break or get lost. The death penalty in this game was far more severe than just losing some contribution points. As players' gear grew more and more expensive, dying also brought the cost of dropping equipment. This was especially unfriendly to solo players. Levels and EXP could be saved, but equipment couldn't. If one unfortunately kicked the bucket without good buddies to help retrieve their gear and VM, their only option was to ask for help on the forum or post a bounty. Aside from Brother Fang Chang humblebragging, many players on the forum were also discussing internal combustion engines and steam engines. The catalyst was the help thread posted by Miss Tengteng. These grown men didn't know anything about textiles and didn't care about the OP's question in the slightest; they just wanted a place to shoot the breeze. The topic quickly deviated from the Spinning Jenny to the most advanced non-woven fabrics and meltblown processes. Chu Guang had to hand it to them for digging up info just to show off. Still, a couple of genuine experts occasionally popped up in the thread. Given the outpost's current conditions, building an internal combustion engine would probably be difficult; after all, the steel mill was still researching seamless steel pipes. To forge an engine block capable of enduring sustained high-temperature, high-pressure gases, they would at least need to unlock cold-rolling technology first. Then again, who the hell used an internal combustion engine to weave cloth? Talk about overcomplicating things. On the contrary, a steam engine was a good idea. A continuously burning boiler released energy relatively gently, had lower requirements for material strength, and most importantly, was not picky about fuel. Whether used for power generation or industrial production, it was a solid choice. Tengteng took notes furiously while reading the forum, diligently posting questions and trying to steer the derailed thread back on track. It looked like she intended to model after the ancient Spinning Jenny and create a steam-powered spinning frame. The players on the forum—whether combat or production classes—were all remarkably outstanding. Watching these little leeks thrive, Chu Guang's heart swelled with the joy of an old father. Wonderful. ... Snow had fallen all through the night. The next morning, thick snow covered the ground once again. At the east gate of the outpost, three elderly men wearing animal skins, looking around forty or fifty years old, lingered near the entrance. They seemed to want to come over, yet didn't dare get too close. Sensing that they had something on their minds, Chu Guang called them over. "What are you doing here?" Fearing they might offend this ruler, the elders bowed their heads tremblingly. "My Lord, we mean no harm. We only wanted to see if there is anywhere you need help." "We want to find some work." "We are old and cannot chase down prey, but we can still carry things, repair houses, and mend clothes." Looking for work. Chu Guang's heart stirred slightly, and he spoke. "The snow on the outpost's roads needs clearing. Two silver coins per person per day. If you want the job, go find Luka." The warehouse and granary had already been handed over to newly trained warehouse clerks, with Old Luka serving as their foreman. He was responsible for communicating with other NPCs, including trading with Bet Street survivors and conveying the outpost's 'edicts' to the refugees. His role was somewhat akin to a steward. Hearing Chu Guang's words, the three elders' eyes instantly lit up. Two silver coins could be exchanged for two kilograms of ram horn potatoes. For the three of them combined, that was six kilograms of ram horn potatoes! No player would be willing to work for such low pay; after all, players' 'hourly wage' was at least 1 silver coin or more. Any less wouldn't be worth the grind. But for the refugees, this wage was already very generous. "Thank you, My Lord!" "Bless your generosity!" "Leave it to us, you can rest assured!" The warehouse had brooms made of tree branches, as well as dustpans and shovels for snow clearing. Shoveling the snow into handcarts and wheeling it outside the outpost to dump was all it took. However, aside from the handcarts, the refugees didn't use the tools from the warehouse. Instead, they returned to their village to fetch their own work implements and set to work vigorously around the camp. Chu Guang instructed Xiao Qi to keep an eye on them, then left the matter behind and strolled toward the industrial zone alone. When he stepped into the industrial zone, Chu Guang noticed two players, [WC Really Has Mosquitoes] and [Ya'er I Wanna Go to the Restroom], standing outside Tengteng Cottage. They were measuring with a ruler while gesturing and discussing something. Out of curiosity, Chu Guang walked over and asked, "What are you doing?" Hearing the Administrator's voice, the two immediately halted their work and said excitedly: "Respected Administrator, we are designing a steam boiler!" "That's right! This is a new job taken on by our steel mill!" "And a new job for Goblin Technology!" A steam engine. They had only been discussing it on the forum a few hours ago, yet they were already putting it to use. Quite efficient. "How do you plan to do it? Burning firewood?" Ya'er I Wanna Go to the Restroom: "Firewood isn't intense enough. Our preliminary plan is to model it after the generator you bought and make a wood gasifier! While firing the boiler, the heat generated by the boiler can conveniently be used to gasify wood!" WC Really Has Mosquitoes: "Actually, I originally planned to use biogas. Our septic tank is packed with feces, but that stuff is a bit hard to collect, and in winter there doesn't seem to be enough heat in the dung heap. We can only study that when spring comes next year." Chu Guang: "Mm, figure it out." Manual spinning and weaving was too slow. The outpost didn't possess such immense manpower. The cocoons of devil moths were already piled like a small mountain outside the warehouse, and without surprise, a second mountain would soon rise. If a textile industry could be developed before spring arrived next year, not only would the players' defense jump up a tier, but the outpost could also earn a sizable amount of 'foreign exchange' by trading devil silk cloth, using the earned foreign currency to develop more advanced industries. Conveniently, female workers could be recruited from the refugee camp. When the time came, the textile mill could be set up at the east gate, making that area the light industrial zone from then on. Passing by the steel mill, Chu Guang spotted [Who Will Smell My Athlete's Foot]. This brother wasn't brainstorming the steam engine with his buddies. Instead, he was pushing a handcart bearing a glowing-red "large iron canister," jogging out of the workshop and rolling it into a snowdrift. A loud *sizzle* rang out. White steam billowed up, instantly cooling the red-hot iron canister, while more than half of the snowbank melted into steaming water. "What is this?" Chu Guang asked curiously, watching Brother Levin scoop up handfuls of snow to pour over the large iron canister. Brother Levin turned his head and grinned. "A 107mm mortar, My Lord!" What? Chu Guang stared at the contraption for a moment and couldn't help asking: "...You call this thing an artillery piece?" "Sort of, though it's just a barrel," Brother Levin chuckled and continued. "The stamping process still needs a little time, and our budget is pretty much exhausted, so we had to take on some new work to cope with the emergency." "Conveniently, Goblin Technology placed an order. Brother Mosquito said size is justice, and justice is an explosion. He wanted us to make him a barrel that's thick enough and big enough—even a cast barrel would do. He'll figure out a way to file the rifling himself, and if he can't, so be it. I figured this job wasn't too hard, so I made one for him... Heh heh, a big order of 200 silver coins." For a moment, Chu Guang didn't even know where to begin roasting him. Still... This thing ought to be more reliable than a rocket, right? Probably.