Chief, There's Not Enough Money to Spend!

Fifth Ring Road, northern outskirts of Qingquan City. On the twentieth floor of an office building perched at the edge of the elevated ring road, crooked corridors were overgrown with dark-green slime mold and corroded moss. Amber tracer rounds wove a web across the hallway, the scorching air currents nearly charring the atmosphere. At the focal point of the concentrated fire was a three-meter-tall humanoid beast. Its skin was completely keratinized, knotted muscles pitch-black. With both arms shielding its head, it actually managed to force its way two steps forward against the barrage of electromagnetically accelerated mass driver slugs. Yet two steps were all it got— "Roar—!" Letting out half a roar of indignant fury, the three-meter-tall Tyrant finally crashed heavily to the floor under the concentrated fire of the Gauss rifles. Five suits of power armor clashing against it in terrain like this had no reason to lose. Lu Yang gave a crisp hand signal. The squad members clad in power armor moved forward, advancing along the slime-covered corridor until they reached a heavy alloy door. One squad member stepped in front of the door, drew a thumb-thick cable from his forearm armor, and connected it beside the touch screen on the right side of the door. "Key obtained... successfully entered safe mode." "Open the door." "Copy that. Opening now." The doors shuddered and slowly slid apart to either side. A wave of stale, decrepit air rolled out. Looking at the dust on the floor, Lu Yang felt a surge of joy. Leaving two squad members to guard the doorway, he brought the other two inside. He glanced left and right, the excitement on his face growing more pronounced. "Comparison matches..." "We found it!" A carbon dioxide scrubber! One of the indispensable public infrastructure facilities for high-density urban clusters. During the Era of Prosperity, when population and industry were densely concentrated, carbon emissions had reached terrifying levels. Relying on conventional vegetation to absorb the excess carbon dioxide was clearly insufficient; even if the entire city were blanketed in greenery, it could never absorb that volume of greenhouse gases, and hypoxia would have become another major developmental crisis following the urban heat island effect. After entering the mid-Era of Prosperity, the Human Alliance widely adopted a solution proven in space operations: carbon self-sustaining technology. Specifically, carbon dioxide processing units were installed on designated floors of high-rise buildings. Through multiple complex chemical processes, carbon dioxide was converted into other carbon-bearing compounds, keeping the area's air quality habitable while producing useful industrial raw materials. It was said that just half a floor of space like this could process enough carbon dioxide in a year to rival an entire virgin forest or a vast stretch of marine algae. The group searched the facility thoroughly and soon located a shutdown backup thermonuclear fusion generator. After entering the Wasteland Era, carbon emissions across the Human Alliance plummeted drastically, sinking even below pre-industrial revolution levels. Naturally, the carbon scrubbers ceased operation, and the thermonuclear fusion reactors powering them shut down in turn. Because of this, carbon dioxide scrubbers were among the few post-war facilities where thermonuclear fusion fuel rods could reliably be salvaged. Lu Yang led his marines in carefully dismounting the fuel rod containing liquid helium-3. "Done!" "How much energy is left?" "Ninety-three percent." "That's enough to last us a long time!" Helium-3 was a stable isotope with a negligible half-life. While thermonuclear fusion could not be turned on and off on a whim like cold fusion, its advantage was that when shut down, one hardly had to worry about fuel loss. In this regard, cold fusion batteries could not compare at all. Carefully securing the fuel rod inside a metal cylinder, the marine who completed the operation glanced around at the various crates and storage tanks of all sizes. "Sir, what do we do with the stuff here?" Lu Yang swept his gaze across the surroundings. "Leave it here." "Our allies should be able to use it." ... At the same time, over twenty kilometers away on the Pioneer, in the Logistics Division office. Sitting in his office chair, Li De stared at the spreadsheet displayed on his flexible screen, complete disbelief written across his face. It was the production report from the past week. The most eye-catching figure was that last week, they had actually salvaged 1,872 tons of scrap, reaching 255 percent of expected efficiency! Those bluecoats were ruthless beyond belief. Their daily salvage average hit an astounding 267.4 tons, averaging 1.3 tons per person per day—even more astonishing than before the great battle! If this work had been left to the natives, achieving even a third of that efficiency would have been cause for celebration. And all they had spent in extra payout was a mere 9,360 CR. Li De could hardly believe his eyes. If his secretary hadn't handed him the report in person, he would have suspected an error in the numbers. Were they robots?! No, they were better than machines! Even now, a full week after the great battle against the Legion, a somber mood still hung over the Pioneer. Many crew members remained mired in grief over lost comrades, their morale low and their productivity sluggish. Yet these bluecoats were different. They had clearly suffered far heavier casualties, yet adversity had not broken them. Instead, they channeled their sorrow and fury into drive, living each day with boundless optimism. Just what kind of unshakable conviction and faith was this! In any case, thanks to the industry of those bluecoats, they had virtually emptied out the entire underground parking garage, plus two abandoned factory workshops storing cobalt- and nickel-bearing industrial waste. From this total of 1,872 tons of scrap, they successfully recovered 941.4 tons of metal and machined it into the necessary parts. There was even a surplus. Just as Li De was marveling inwardly, his secretary, Wang Jie, who was standing before the desk, spoke up. "By the way, there's one more thing." Rolling up the flexible tablet like a scroll until it was the size of a pen and tossing it into a drawer, Li De looked up at his secretary in high spirits, speaking pleasantly. "What is it?" Wang Jie looked somewhat awkward, but spoke nonetheless. "It's about the front-line engineers' demands... They're asking for their field allowance to be increased from ten CR per hour to fifteen CR per hour." "...?" Li De was utterly baffled. What the hell?? Weren't those lazy bums complaining a few months ago that they had more cash in their pockets than they knew what to do with, scoffing that his stack of scrap paper was just a trick to get them out working? How come they were complaining about the allowance being too small now? Still looking awkward, Wang Jie talked rapidly. "Perhaps... the survivor settlements we encountered before were simply too poor, and the benefits on the Pioneer are too generous, so there really was nowhere to spend the money in their pockets. I don't know quite how to put it, but lately our crew has indeed been spending rather extravagantly... I think we ought to impose some restrictions." Li De slammed his hand on the desk, his face red and veins bulging on his neck. "The question is, what the hell are they spending it on?! Are they using it to wipe their asses? How can buying a few steamed buns cost so much?!" Wang Jie said, "It's certainly not just steamed buns. There are also dumplings with various fillings, sweet glutinous rice balls, soy milk, fried dough sticks, and... cough. I think it's necessary for us to upgrade our mobile kitchen. Those bluecoats take our raw ingredients, process them slightly, sell them back to us, and rake in huge sums of cash from our hands." Li De: "..." Wang Jie swallowed hard and continued, "And aside from food, they've recently started selling clothing, scarves, and various small novelties—especially a type of silk textile that's extremely popular with female crew members. They call it devil silk, apparently a specialty of the central region. Surprisingly, this thread has extraordinary tensile strength, almost on par with the flame-resistant fibers we use in ballistic vests... Nature's power is truly wondrous, to be honest; even I was surprised. Our technicians spent half a day analyzing it and managed to figure out its composition, but they still haven't cracked how to synthesize it industrially." Li De rubbed his brow. "Is that all?" He didn't care about silk from devil moths, nor did he care what clothes or trinkets the female crew were buying. He only wanted to know how many credits they had squandered into the hands of those bluecoats. Those bills weren't cafeteria meal tabs. They had to be redeemed on the spot! "Uh, there are also some specialty ingredients, like black truffles... They sell them very cheaply over there, just one CR per gram." Li De snapped his head up. "One CR per gram?! Are there any left???" Wang Jie looked at the section chief in astonishment and nodded blankly. "There should be. The guy selling mushrooms sets up a stall at the operational camp every evening around six... Chief?" Immediately realizing he had lost his composure, Li De quickly pulled himself together. After clearing his throat, he put on a serious face and continued, "I was just a bit surprised. I didn't expect them to have such refined tastes... By the way, has that magnetically confined plasma CNC machine tool been repaired?" Wang Jie nodded. "Repaired. Our warehouse staff just handed it over to them. In a little while, it will probably reach their outpost on the surface." Thinking of that machine tool, Li De felt a pang of regret. Emotions had gotten the better of him back then; the decision had been made too hastily. Otherwise, that machine tool alone could have recouped a hundred thousand CR for them. He shouldn't have given it away for free! Still, those bluecoats had indeed done them a massive favor. They hadn't asked the bluecoats to support their war, but they had stepped in anyway, charging forward with their guns without hesitation when the fighting was at its fiercest. Honestly, without them, it was hard to say what the final casualty count would have been. Perhaps they would have had to drop a second tactical nuke, and perhaps far more than three people would have died that day... Li De reflected that if he had to make the decision again, he probably would have chosen the same thing. Sighing softly, he said, "Well, as long as it's delivered. In a few more days, it'll be time for us to leave too." Dragging things out indefinitely was no solution. The longer they delayed, the harder the road ahead would be. If they hadn't broken down unexpectedly, they wouldn't have needed to fight this battle against the Legion in the first place. Wang Jie asked, "Then about the pay raise..." Li De said without hesitation, "Tell those lazy bums... I mean, those engineers, that the pay raise proposal will be raised at the end-of-month regular meeting. That's standard procedure. Besides, I'll figure something out about the mobile kitchen and have the technicians see if we can add a few ingredient-processing functions." Of course, if that worked out, Li De planned to charge for it. What was that phrase again? Right, extra value-added services! The moment he heard the pay raise issue was being deferred to the end of the month, Wang Jie immediately understood his chief's intention and couldn't help a helpless look. "Alright, I'll let them know." By the end of the month, those people would have nowhere to spend their money again. Naturally, they wouldn't clamor for a raise anymore. ... The repaired machine tool was still en route, and it would likely be some time before the delivery arrived. Fearing that the players might damage the delicate equipment by jolting it on rough roads, Chu Guang had deliberately arranged two light trucks for transport. An empty truck with a snowplow mounted on its bumper led the way, while the truck carrying the machine tool followed behind. If they hit an obstacle or a hidden ditch, the lead truck would spot it in time, allowing the trailing truck to steer clear. To ensure absolute safety, Chu Guang had also sent the steady and dependable Old Luka along in the cab. The road conditions on the wasteland were atrocious. The stretch heading out of town was marginally better, but deep in the city, many roads were impassable even for four-legged beasts of burden, to say nothing of wheeled vehicles. Chu Guang intended to build a road soon to connect the outpost and the operational camp. From now on, wherever the players of Vault 404 planted their flag, the road would follow. How did the old saying go? "Want to get rich? Build roads first." Pulling off such a project on the wasteland was no small feat, but it was unquestionably worth it. While waiting for the machine tool to arrive, Chu Guang didn't sit idle. Sitting in the vault's resident hall, he turned on his computer and took a look at the official website forum. After fermenting through an entire night, the players who were locked out from logging in and working had finally vented all their grievances. The forum's atmosphere had returned to normal, and the discussion topics had shifted from "Let's all raid Ah Guang together" to "What exactly did Alpha 0.8 update?" It was as though nothing had happened. Overall, the players who had already experienced the new version online were very interested in this unique stronghold mechanic and regional reputation system. Especially once they learned that "donating supplies grants Regional Reputation" and "once the operational camp's prosperity reaches 100, it can grow into a survivor settlement," they threw themselves into their work with noticeably greater vigor. In other MMORPGs, NPC towns were just clusters of static textures. But in Wasteland OL, survivor settlements were built by the players themselves, hauling bricks and pouring concrete with their own hands, and the settlements grew alongside the players through their in-game actions. This was practically a perfect blend of RPG and SLG—doubling the joy in a single game. An absolute steal! The players had a blast, and it hadn't taken Chu Guang much effort either. For him, it was merely taking last month's report, compiling a few simple formulas, and having Xiao Qi format them into data cards resembling "stat screens." Whether Alpha 0.8 had been updated or not, he compiled monthly reports regardless; now, he simply displayed them to the players in the form of "progress bars." As for their purpose? Mainly, it was to share the joy of watching a small sapling grow into a towering tree. After all, if he merely told the players that their hard work had made the vault immensely awesome, they would probably be bewildered. But if all that effort was quantified into visible progress bars, who could say that a grand vision was useless? Just look at Boss Xia's weapon shop—you contributed a brick to it! Thinking about it that way, didn't hauling bricks feel so much more motivating? Never mind how miserable the players who couldn't respawn due to the bug were; the ones still online and those registered for reservations were already hyping it to the skies. Completely reassured, Chu Guang casually copied down a few decent terrible ideas into his notebook, then stretched and leaned back into his computer chair. "The delivery still has an hour before it gets here. What should I do in the meantime?" Oh, right. He could open blind boxes again. Chu Guang's eyes lit up. He sat bolt upright in his chair, popped open the Administrator System, and switched to the [Administrator Allowance] subpage. These past few days, the players' activities had been relatively monotonous, mostly revolving around resource gathering at the operational camp. Daily active task completion was fairly mediocre, leaving a bunch unfulfilled every day. Even so, over the course of the week, Chu Guang had still amassed 33 reward points. According to the usual routine, that meant three Intermediate Blind Boxes and three Basic Blind Boxes. Yet just as Chu Guang was about to crack them open, a thought struck him. Wait. Since it was gambling anyway, why not go big and try opening 33 Basic Blind Boxes all at once? What if a Basic Blind Box yielded an Intermediate or even Advanced reward? Wouldn't that be a massive jackpot? Besides, having so many herbal plasters and healing injections was useless to him anyway. With that thought, Chu Guang hesitated no longer and immediately staked all the reward points in his account onto the leftmost icon. "System, give your daddy thirty-three Basic Blind Boxes!" "Open!"