Kingdom of Corrosion
Chapter 164 - 122 Switching Cars_2

Chapter 164: Chapter 122 Switching Cars_2

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Peanut was on duty in the watchtower of Invincible Base when he saw a drone fly before him. To his immense surprise, he witnessed a banner hanging from the drone stating, "Shadow Lin Ma will arrive at the base in 30 seconds."

Peanut laughed and then cursed, incredulous that there were drones now? Shadow’s crew had really changed their ways. Peanut descended the watchtower, contacted Invincible to request Emerald Feather, who had followed on duty, to return momentarily.

Upon greeting the two outside the base and having a conversation, Peanut was furious...

Not at Lin Wu and Maya, but internally. As the Deputy Commander, he was clearly in the base, yet the person who received Stone’s radio communication had not informed him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have had to call Emerald Feather back in a rush.

To Maya’s surprise, Invincible Base had not downsized but rather recruited even more players, now totaling twelve. Among the twelve players were six veterans and six new ones. Of the six newcomers, three possessed the Fishing Skill. These three could contribute eight food items daily, becoming a major source of sustenance for the base. Invincible had set up logistical and field operation departments, with seven people in the field ops split into shifts and five in logistics, not going on duty, plus an additional Deputy Commander to oversee logistics.

With more people came the formation of cliques and factions. A few days earlier, a logistics member had gotten drunk and caused a scene. Luckily, all weaponry was stored away, but they still managed to injure someone with their fists. Game injuries were commonplace, but getting injured by a colleague was a blow to one’s pride. That, coupled with the alcohol, led to a factional fight of three against three.

By the time Peanut and his group returned, Invincible had already taken control of the situation. After understanding what happened, Peanut insisted on expelling the member who caused the incident. The other Deputy Commander thought it was no big deal and that the troublemaker should just apologize to the involved party once sober. Peanut believed that this violated the fundamental rules of the base, and thus argued with the other Deputy Commander. It was only after Invincible mediated that conflict was averted.

Invincible hadn’t mentioned the incident to Shana during their daily communication but did express his opinion about Peanut, thinking Peanut lacked vision.

After the game update, several logistics players fished daily to obtain food, showing diligence for their contribution had alleviated Invincible Base’s food worries. Following Invincible’s plan, there was an intent to recruit two more intermediate-level Fishing players. Given that fishing was the best source of food, and several North Town players had reached intermediate-level fishing, recruitment wouldn’t be difficult.

Peanut thought that if these players were willing to be poached, it reflected a low level of commitment to their own bases and brothers. Adding such individuals to Invincible Base could lead to a lack of cohesion. Invincible told Peanut that infighting is inevitable in a successful enterprise; conflicts will exist, and what management should focus on is value creation, not fostering brotherly bonds.

The only supporter of Peanut was a player named Raccoon Cat. Emerald Feather lacked clear judgment skills, feeling that both sides made sense. Perhaps this was her strength; she did not support Peanut wholeheartedly just because she was closest to him. To avoid overly close factional relationships, Invincible switched Emerald Feather to his shift and replaced her with an old player who got along well with Peanut.

Peanut said, "We’ve practically exhausted the resources nearby, and to some extent, I can accept Invincible’s methods. The base faces a dire situation when wintering, and food is more important than a fighter. Sometimes, I feel I should leave the base, as that would save one food item for the base."

Lin Wu shared his perspective, "When a company is barely surviving, or when a family is struggling for basic necessities, life and work lose their meaning."

Maya warned, "Don’t talk nonsense." Invincible was a decent person after all, and the relationship between the two bases was amicable. People from Shadow shouldn’t get involved in these matters.

Peanut also felt discussing such topics was inappropriate and shifted the conversation, asking, "How can you ride motorcycles in such cold weather?"

Lin Wu sighed, "That’s because we have no car."

Peanut laughed, "How is a car a problem?" Invincible Base could produce repair kits at an extremely low cost. There were quite a few drivable cars in North Town; the problem for most wasn’t driving but affording repairs. Driving risked vehicle durability, leading to frequent incidents where one would drive out but walk back home.

At the recent market, Invincible Base traded repair kits for a lot of food. Regrettably, cars were too large to fit in backpacks and thus couldn’t be directly traded at the market.

Maya, mindful of maintaining Shadow’s image, stated, "He’s joking; we have vehicles. Riding motorcycles is because of passing the sentry card during the day."

Peanut responded, "I can’t make promises, but I believe Invincible wouldn’t be stingy with a car. Speaking of which, we need to thank you. The serum you brought has become a lifesaving item for us since the game updated."

Adding fuel to the fire, Lin Wu announced, "Stone has arranged for us to deliver another five bottles of serum this time."

Peanut quickly replied, "How could we impose?"

Lin Wu said, "Peanut, we’re friends. If you run out of serum and get infected, you can still come to us privately."

"Then, I thank you in advance." Ever since the addition of Blood Plague zombies, which carried a 20% infection rate, they could only resort to using crossbows and pistols for ranged kills to avoid infection. Nevertheless, infections happened easily, and after getting infected, one had to consume a bottle of serum. Peanut said, "You guys have some tea first; I’ll check with Invincible to see if Emerald Feather has returned yet?"

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