Kingdom of Corrosion
Chapter 81 - 80 Bai Ban’s Routine

Chapter 81: Chapter 80 Bai Ban’s Routine

Following that little episode, the work pace of Group A dropped instantly. Snow Egg and Maya, following Lin Wu’s example, started rummaging through each new room, only beginning the demolition work if there was truly nothing to be found. The trio also boiled a pot of water with scrap wood to make tea, a convenience for drinking while reading. Unfortunately, after finishing all the books in 16 rooms across four floors, they did not find any more specialized books. Instead, they found two recipe cards for Horse Soul.

With the day’s work over and a break in the thunderstorm, everyone returned to the base. A lot of food ingredients had been gathered today, so Horse Soul immediately went to the kitchen to get busy. Learning how to cook was just the first step; producing the dishes was the only way to increase one’s maximum health by 1 point.

Due to the thunderstorm weather, everyone set up tables and chairs in the main hall of the church. Facing the oppressive darkness outside, everyone felt blessed to have electricity. After three dishes were served, Maya shared the day’s events with everyone, which made the main strategist Stone see hope. He would soon transform into a Hexagon Warrior, master thousands of skills, and become invincible...

Luckily, Stone was an old man and could content himself with a little daydreaming, keeping his thoughts to himself since he knew it was unrealistic. Even if he had the luck to learn a few Powerful Skills, would Stone dare to venture out? With his slow reflexes, a zombie might eat his brain one day.

Everyone gathered in the warehouse and took all the collected magazines, novels, and newspapers to the table for a night of reading by lamplight. After going through dozens of pounds of paper materials, not a single professional handbook was found. The passion rose quickly and left just as fast, and Little Knife suggested playing a zombie version of the game "Werewolf Killing" that she had developed. Everyone agreed enthusiastically.

An incident occurred in the middle of this; a player requested to join the base at the gate was refused by Stone. However, Stone agreed to let them rest for one night inside the base. Non-base players entering the base’s safety zone could not take any items from the base, and their weapon skills would be locked and could not be activated.

The next morning, under Stone’s guidance, the player headed to North Town. Little Knife was puzzled by this; the player had a good attitude and did not show dissatisfaction at not being taken in by the base, instead expressing gratitude for the overnight stay. Stone explained to Little Knife that, in contrast, the person was a great actor with not a shred of sincerity, skilled at flattery and playing up to others, a toxic presence for the team.

Still puzzled, Little Knife turned to Lin Wu, who asked, "If you had to flatter Stone every day, would you feel uncomfortable inside?"

Little Knife looked at Stone for a moment and nodded.

Ignoring Stone’s angry gaze, Lin Wu said, "You would take out that discomfort on others, on those you consider beneath you. A person who flatters has a very strong concept of hierarchy."

Maya’s voice came through, "We’ll depart in ten minutes. Snow Egg, you drive; Shana, you ride. Factory 2. Everyone may apply for materials and equipment." Factory 2 was the last area near Mountain Top Church Base that had not been scavenged. Once the scavenging operation at Factory 2 was completed, only the Blood Plague-infested Apartment Building 2 would be left.

...

The amount of work scavenging in the factory area was significant, mainly because dismantling large machinery and lathes produced loud noises that attracted nearby zombies. Therefore, Maya had arranged for Lin Wu, herself, and Shana to guard the three doors. This setup served two purposes: the first was to shoot Screeching Zombies on sight, and the second was to inform Frenzy. The rest were assigned to swing hammers inside the factory.

At this moment, the advantages of Snow Egg’s twin attribute points became apparent. His stamina was also 100 points, but his natural recovery rate was three times that of others, allowing him to dismantle continuously for 5 minutes on a single point of stamina. However, his twin attribute didn’t perform well in combat: Snow Egg would be exhausted after two sweeps with his hammer.

Currently, Snow Egg held three sole distinctions within the base. He was the only one without a clear combat role. The advantage of the twin attributes was increased carrying capacity, making Snow Egg the only one in the base who would wear bite-proof gear weighing tens of kilograms when going out. Lastly, he was the only one at the base who hadn’t learned any Life Skills.

Inside the factory area, Lin Wu wrestled with Frenzy, Little Knife trampled mercilessly, Maya danced with blade and sword, Shana’s arrows ensured headshots. The only one who could be considered in the same boat as Snow Egg was Horse Soul. However, with his side occupation as a chef, Horse Soul was destined to grow into a meat shield warrior with a high health pool. Seeing this, Snow Egg, who was eager to grind for kills, felt somewhat inferior.

Unable to help Snow Egg, Shana became his confidant when he approached her to discuss his future direction. Shana advised Snow Egg to hang in there, believing that heavy soldiers also had their own advantageous skills. Just as Maya utilized Sharp Blade and was able to comprehend swordsmanship through reading after accumulating enough experience, perhaps heavy soldiers might be able to learn skills through other means after reaching certain experience levels.

Shana understood how Snow Egg felt, having experienced similar sentiments herself. Watching others progress while standing still gave her a sense of being left behind by the group. Fortunately, she had a stable mentality and, feeling a bond with him, she temporarily played the role of a psychologist.

While they chatted about the future on one side, Little Knife and Lin Wu were competing for kills on the other. After a Frenzy’s head got trapped in a Beast Trap, it was like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered. Little Knife used his strength to push Lin Wu aside, then stepped on the Beast Trap, crushing both the trap and the Frenzy’s head. This infuriated Lin Wu, who accused him of being childish.

This is perhaps a case of joy for some and sorrow for others.

Stone’s voice came through the walkie-talkie, "Calling Maya."

Maya, "Received, go ahead."

Stone said, "Just got a message from Invincible Base, Invincible Base is expected to break through seven-star threat level by tomorrow afternoon."

Maya, "Continue."

Stone said, "The Boss of Invincible didn’t say it explicitly, but I got what he meant. See if you can send a few people over to join Invincible Base temporarily."

Maya said, "I haven’t dealt with six-star or seven-star base defense. Considering the difficulty difference between four-star and five-star defenses, there’s no doubt that seven-star is hellishly difficult. If it’s a Seven-Star Siege, I’d suggest they abandon the base. For now, I recommend they immediately start building watchtowers and dispatch personnel to keep watch and reduce the threat level. In the future, watchtowers will become an indispensable building unit for all bases."

Shadow Base is the first small to medium-sized base in Left and Right County to develop successfully. Wanderers and Invincible Base have drawn on the development experience of Shadow Base, and have not set up watchtowers in their bases. The primary reason is the scarcity of large outdoor spaces, and a secondary reason is that watchtowers consume ammunition resources daily.

Stone replied, "If they were to build watchtowers, they’d have to dismantle the garden, and after that, they won’t even have enough food for tomorrow morning. You know, the garage base is very remote, and there’s a lack of concentrated resource scavenging points around."

Maya, "What are you suggesting?"

Stone, "I want to send them some food packages."

Stone had certain ambitions. He hoped to join forces with Invincible Base and move into Left County after the winter. Whether merging into a large base or supporting each other as strategic points, the prerequisite was that Invincible had to withstand the winter. Invincible’s biggest challenge at the moment was, of course, the pressure of base defense.

Maya said, "Lin Wu and I will deliver food to them and temporarily join their base. But let me be clear; we’re not going to help them hold the base to the death."

Stone, "You want to know the siege intensity?"

Maya replied, "Hmm, sooner or later we’ll have to face high-star challenges."

Stone, "But the thunderstorm won’t end until 10 o’clock tonight."

Maya answered, "The roads going to Invincible Base are mostly small mountain paths; the threat is not significant."

Stone, "Alright then, you and Lin Wu come back, pack up, and set off."

Maya put away the walkie-talkie and called out, "Gather around, we’re going to have a brief meeting."