Kingdom of Corrosion
Chapter 248 - 155 Frost and Snow Seal the City_2

Chapter 248: Chapter 155 Frost and Snow Seal the City_2

After winter began, the daily consumption was 7 food rations while only 5 were provided; the deficit was two per day, which meant the main base could hold out for 14 days.

Maya said, "After discussing with Stone, we think we should make a trip to the secondary base and bring you a food pack." Of course, not having food didn’t mean immediate death. The first day would bring hunger, the second severe hunger, and only on the third day would death occur. If one didn’t eat by 8 AM on the first day, they would enter a state of hunger. By 8 AM on the second day, they reached severe hunger. By the third day at 8 AM, death would ensue. In reality, there were only 48 hours.

Lin Wu said, "Relax, if the blizzard doesn’t stop on the last day, Shana and I will take the risk to venture through the sewer once."

Maya agreed, "Alright." Maya wanted to go to the secondary base, after all, it had a library. But she could only carry one food pack; the supermarket base couldn’t support four people.

After ending the call, Nightmare said, "Don’t you all think this is a gamble? Dawn preys on human greed and bets against the players. It’s called a bet, but Dawn is the dealer; it decides how many days the blizzard lasts."

Lin Wu replied, "Don’t talk nonsensically. We’re all grasshoppers on the same string right now."

Nightmare disagreed, saying, "I’m not afraid to die, but you all are."

Lin Wu was taken aback, realizing that Nightmare was right.

Nightmare suggested, "I advise you all to go to the shelter. There’s no need to gamble your attributes and skills for such little points."

"We all go to the shelter and you survive alone for 27 days?" Lin Wu looked at Shana, who nodded resolutely. Lin Wu added, "We are all brothers; if we die, we die together."

Nightmare said, "Then I wish us all good luck."

Lin Wu asked before wishing luck, "Do you have any more Tailoring Skill Books?"

Nightmare, being Shana’s husband in name, of course knew about Shana’s death, and said, "I do, but my condition for a trade is a free mission help from you in the future." She had recognized Lin Wu’s capabilities.

Lin Wu asked, "Did you bring it with you?"

Nightmare replied, "Of course not."

Lin Wu wondered, "Where do you store your stuff?"

Nightmare said, "We have an Exclusive Fortress Storage Box. We can use some points to have the Fortress airdrop whatever we need."

Lin Wu nodded, "Let’s talk about it after the blizzard is over. Who knows, I might be dead and unable to help you."

Nightmare replied, "Okay."

Lin Wu contemplated privately that there were nearly a hundred homes near the church on the mountaintop. If the main base put in the effort, they might be able to obtain enough materials to create a hacker’s computer. Then he could go straight to the safe house to get it. Nightmare had said her supplies were in the Cloud Warehouse, and he was headed to a cowshed to retrieve goods, so these items definitely were not Nightmare’s.

...

At eight o’clock in the evening, the system broadcast, "A total of over 128,000 players have participated in the blizzard challenge, and first, Homeland pays tribute to the courage of these players. Everyone is certainly concerned about when the blizzard will end. Next, we will hold the first round of voting. The voting starts with three days and the number can be infinitely large. If more than 40% of players vote for a number, that number will be the duration of the blizzard. If in the first round of voting no day exceeds 40%, a second round will take place after three days. Thank you, everyone, and I wish you all well in everything."

Lin Wu asked, "How many days should we choose?"

"It’s meaningless for us to choose any number of days," Shana analyzed. "Those who can stay should have food supplies for more than three days, so not many people will choose three days. Other than three days, no other number has any significance. Most will enter the duration that their food supplies can last them. Therefore, in the first round of voting, no number is likely to exceed 40%."

Shana continued, "According to Dawn’s gameplay, more than half of the 120,000 players will die. Those who are willing to stay and take on the challenge should be fairly strong players. This blizzard event will significantly weaken the overall strength of the players. If I’m not mistaken, Dawn is probably plotting to make some moves after winter."

Lin Wu wondered, "What’s the purpose?"

Shana shook her head, while Nightmare spoke, "The purpose is to select and eliminate. If all players were just scraping by for two years, how would you distinguish and analyze each person’s character and abilities? By creating constant disasters, they are looking for those with courage, will, wisdom, and an understanding of the bigger picture. This is said to be due to the disaster on Blue Star."

After migrating to Blue Star, humans did not unite to achieve utopia. Instead, due to cultural, religious, background, educational, and various other differences, they formed cliques and engaged in party conflict. In the first ten years after the migration, despite the small population, humans still engaged in two wars. These wars deepened the animosity between groups, who consciously began to band together through governance and focused on developing military power.

Eventually, it was Fortress Company that threatened to cut off energy supplies, along with the intervention of the Dawn Guard, that got all groups to sit down and establish the Blue Star Human Alliance.

"And then?"

Nightmare said, "And then? There was no ’then.’ I’m just a carbon-based life form, how could I possibly know what an AI that has evolved for a thousand years is thinking. If I were to develop a game that millions must play, I definitely wouldn’t want everyone to live a peaceful and secure life without any hardships."

Shana said, "When I was working at Fortress Company, I accidentally heard some rumors. Rumors that there are still zombies on Earth, and even many animals have mutated into terrifying species. Could the super-cities merely be shelters and quarantine zones? In addition to the migration, do humans also have to find a way to improve Earth’s ecological environment?"

Lin Wu had a moment of realization: "So this is a zombie game, at the very least we’ve all learned to use guns, to drive."

Shana and Nightmare did not answer, as neither of them knew the specifics. Shana added some charcoal to the fire and unfolded a book she had borrowed from the library, quietly flipping through the pages. Lin Wu and Nightmare each pondered for a while without any leads and began to read their books as well.

At some point, Shana uttered an "Ah," startling the others. She put down her book and said, "Resources. Even a simple piece of clothing requires processes like spinning and clothes making, which in turn involves related industries. If Dawn only gave us a super-city, how would it replenish the consumption of materials? There should be supporting farms, factories, and so on around the city." Real life is not a game, where items can appear out of nowhere. Transport ships take four years to travel back and forth between Earth and Blue Star, so it’s unrealistic to rely on Blue Star for resupplying materials.

Lin Wu said, "After we get to Earth, even if we have a high score, life won’t be very prosperous, will it?"

Shana said, "Score can be used to buy industries, to develop one’s own industries. Initially, there may only be essential goods for simple living. If you want to drive, either you need to trade with Blue Star, which takes years each way, or Earth’s industries need to mature to start manufacturing cars. Many raw materials for manufacturing have to be provided by nature. Humans need to explore the outside world and search for resources."

The three of them paused their conversation again and continued reading and thinking.

...

On the second day of the blizzard, Lin Wu was already feeling bored. Climbing the direct elevator to the roof, he was nearly toppled by the gale that faced him, and it took a good deal of effort to climb over to the watchtower. Being a system building, the watchtower offered respite from the blizzard, and its steps were free of any snow accumulation. From the top of the watchtower, visibility was less than 10 meters. In just that short time, Lin Wu had already gotten frostbite. With no choice, he had to return inside the base.

Zombies still spawned inside the supermarket, but the screaming and howling inside didn’t attract the zombies from outside the market. Shana speculated that there were either no zombies outdoors or they were hibernating in the snow. Shana also ventured out into the blizzard and came back to tell Lin Wu that it was impossible to safely reach the sewer entrance 700 meters away at the county mark.

The zombies that spawned inside the supermarket base became the best pastime for the three of them. They couldn’t bear to kill each of them, trying to extend the zombies’ lives with the least amount of harm possible.

At first, it was Lin Wu who played, with Nightmare and Shana watching. After watching for a while, Shana asked to join, and shamelessly, they taped the zombie’s mouth shut and bound its hands before playing boxing games with it. Nightmare couldn’t stand watching anymore and stepped up to teach the two, who only knew Monkey Fist, what Straight Punch and Hook Fist were.

Next, Nightmare used a captured zombie to practice the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Throat Lock, with Lin Wu and Shana causing each other harm while learning. Although it was boring, the day finally passed. They made some meat soup at night, drinking and reading by the fire. Throughout the evening, Nightmare talked more, starting to engage in conversation more proactively.