This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 183: Ark Plan

Chapter 183: Chapter 183: Ark Plan

Worldwide Announcement: Manager "Dawn" has taken over Shelter No.117, and the VM map now includes a new base "Shelter No.117."

"Map of Garden Street Subway Station" now available: The intertwined subway network was once a symbol of the prosperity of Spring City, but it has now become a breeding ground for Variants and sticky fungi. Eaters, Crawlers, Martyrs, and even the terrifying Tyrant, the barbarians living underground and the plague-spreading rat swarms... There is no concept of night and day here, only a unique ecosystem, with a danger level twice that of the surface! However, at the same time, this maze connected to the abyss may also hide unexpected treasures...

Heartwarming tips from Xia Yan: I once lost a leg here, so if you must explore this place, it’s best to bring your teammates along, at least you’ll have company when you hit the road.

About half an hour after the Manager had entered Shelter No.117, almost all the players with VMs received this series of notifications simultaneously.

"Holy crap! A new map opened!?"

"A labyrinth connected to the abyss... I didn’t feel that it was so dangerous here."

"That’s because all the Variants here have been cleared out. You think Brother Mole was busy here this week for nothing."

"What kind of trash can you find in the subway?"

"Maybe pre-war strategic reserves? But it’s been two centuries, I always feel like if there was such a thing, it would’ve been looted by now."

"Is there a fleet setting off? Body Constitution System looking for Perception."

"Set off my ass, what time is it! Tomorrow, man. Let me at least go back and save the game, earning experience isn’t easy."

"Damn, you die once, and you lose all the progress for the day, this death penalty is too freaking real!"

In the tunnel.

Watching as Fang Chang switched to the map page and found the icon for Shelter No.117, he pointed at it with his index finger.

When he saw the sub-page pop up on the screen, he was slightly taken aback.

[

Base Name: Shelter No.117

Base Level: Relic (LV0)

Prosperity: 0

Industrial Index: 0

Commercial Index: 0

Needs: None

Orientation: Exploration (Scavenging task rewards +10%), Hunting (Hunting task rewards +10%)

]

"The info card for Shelter No.117 actually updated..."

Hearing Brother Fang Chang’s voice, Night Ten was startled, quickly opened the map, and then a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"What the hell? A prosperity of 0 and there’s still an info card?"

If I’m not mistaken, shouldn’t the prosperity reach 100 points before it becomes a Survivor Base? This place doesn’t even have an NPC.

Wild Wind also noticed the change in the map, contemplated for a moment, and then offered a hypothesis.

"Maybe the shelter is a special case? Look at the level column, it says ’Relic.’"

Fang Chang nodded, agreeing with his analysis.

"Yeah, whether it’s Outpost Base or Long Endurance Farm, the label in the level column is ’Village.’ Maybe the growth trajectory for shelters is different from that of regular Survivor Bases."

Like, a save point for the entrance to the underground maze?

As for the specifics, we’ll only know when the official announcement comes out.

...

Keeping Shelter No.117 was a decision Chu Guang made after careful consideration.

Though Shelter No.117 was a bit small, it had everything a three-digit shelter should have, including a full-cycle life support system.

The reactor shutting down was an issue, but not a big one.

Even if he couldn’t utilize all the functions of this shelter, it would still make a great bridgehead for players to explore the underground world.

Spring City’s underground traffic network was extensive. It not only provided commuting to various districts of Spring City but was also connected to many civil defense facilities.

The only trouble was the Variants wandering in the subway tunnels.

However, the moment Chu Guang took the VM off the arm of the previous manager of Shelter No.117, he realized this concern was unnecessary.

Because soon, he received a task notification from the shelter system.

[Task: Refuel the nuclear fusion reactor of Shelter No.117]

[Reward: Maximum (Manager) authority of Shelter No.117]

Looking at the task popup that appeared in his field of view, Chu Guang couldn’t help but complain.

"Where the hell am I supposed to find fuel rods for the reactor?"

The fuel rods used by the shelter’s reactor were not the same size as those used by Pioneer.

In other words, hoping to recycle fuel rods from the carbon dioxide trap was out of the question.

Following behind Chu Guang, Wrench was stunned for a moment, confused by what the Manager suddenly said.

"Sir?"

"...Never mind."

Watching as the VM recovered from the previous manager of Shelter No.117 was put on himself and waited for a while until it regained some power.

VM booted up.

What entered his field of view was the original operating system of the vital signs monitor, pulling data saved in the black box, revealing that the previous Manager had died from an overdose of sleeping pills.

The desk was very clean, holding only three items: a pen holder with two pens, a brown-covered diary, and an empty wine glass.

Chu Guang searched his desk and quickly found a previously opened bottle of pills in the drawer.

Looking at the remains slumped in the office chair, Chu Guang could roughly reconstruct the scene: the former Manager sitting there, taking an overdose of sleeping pills, drinking a cup of alcohol, and quietly waiting for death.

His gaze landed on the diary on the table; Chu Guang reached out, picked it up, and opened the dust-covered cover.

The title page read—

"To the scavengers of the wasteland world, archaeologists of Utopian Ruins, the ones cleaning up the mess."

"Here lies Sven Vilard, the Manager of Shelter No. 117, the Grave Guard of Utopia."

"The most despairing tragedy is to witness the end of a great era. A year in the grave is no different from a hundred years; after my mission ended, I decided it was time to depart. If my bones still exist, please find a place to bury me; you can take whatever you want from here, I won’t need it anymore."

"What does ’after my mission ended’ mean?" His index finger traced the line lightly as Chu Guang fell into thought.

Perhaps due to the "Blood Hand Diary," whenever he saw a diary now, he couldn’t help but associate it with the First Generation Manager of Shelter No. 404.

The recording seemed to mention he was a pioneer of great routes, the most learned man of the old world.

Could this diary appearing here also be due to some arrangement from two centuries ago?

There were still some undeciphered data in the recovered VM, including this diary; Chu Guang planned to take it back for further study.

There were now three unresolved mysteries.

What exactly was the mission mentioned by the Manager of Shelter No. 117?

Where did the people here go?

And who exactly was Captain Pruitt’s employer?

The answers to the last two questions might be found in the first.

Gathering the clues, Chu Guang looked towards Wrench standing by.

"I’ll take off the exoskeleton in a bit, and you help me put it on."

Wrench paused slightly.

"And what about you?"

Looking at the power armor standing nearby, a slight smile curved Chu Guang’s lips.

"I have that."

...

Subway tunnel.

Entrance to Shelter No. 117.

When the Manager emerged through the Alloy Giant Door from Shelter No. 117, it caused quite a stir among the player community.

That deep blue paint, the sharp, defined lines, and the thick armor—it was overwhelming just to look at!

"Awesome! Our Manager has changed equipment again!"

"Holy moly... that power armor is too cool!"

"Naive question, are they prepping to stock power armor in the NPC store?"

"Strongly demand the official sale of the same model of power armor! I’m buying it all!"

"Forget about it, this kind of SSSR level equipment, even if they let you buy it, it’s mostly going to be in a gacha for you to pull."

"Waaaah, please speed up fixing the non-rechargeable BUG!"

Seeing the set of power armor on the Manager and then looking at his own shoddy version, Old White wore an envious expression.

To be fair, the armor he wore also wasn’t weak in defense; a 20mm steel plate was sufficient to withstand regular gunfire and was mostly adequate.

However, compared to what the Manager wore, it still was inferior by more than one class, whether in defense or mobility.

"Ah, just wondered when our Manager will change equipment again."

He had no other aspirations; he just depended on using the Manager’s outmoded equipment.

Hearing this, Night Ten felt intrigued and spoke up.

"Speaking of which, where is the Manager’s previous exoskeleton?"

Wild Wind glanced toward the entrance to Shelter No. 117 and said,

"It seems to be on the Captain of the Guard."

Old White: "Damn!"

Wasn’t it usually given to Boss Xia for auction?

Why was it directly issued for another NPC’s use this time!

That’s way too real!

Stopping in the tunnel, Chu Guang turned back to look at Wrench following behind him.

"I need you to pull two men from the guard team, set up a camp here, maintain order, and assign tasks to ’players.’"

"No problem, Lord," after a pause, Wrench cautiously said, "But... we might be running short on hands."

The guard team only had fifteen people.

These people not only needed to maintain the security of the Outpost Base but also had to manage the Long Endurance Farm and, with the recent establishment of a new gathering point, were already severely short-handed.

After hearing Wrench’s words, Chu Guang pondered for a moment before saying.

"After I get back, I’ll instruct Luka to recruit some newcomers from Bet Street and the Refugee Camp to gradually increase the guard team from the original 15 people to 45," Fang Chang instructed. "When the time comes, you’ll go along with him to ensure quality control."

Wrench respectfully responded.

"Yes, sir."

...

After returning to the Shelter.

Chu Guang, based on the user manual of the power armor, created a data card for his new equipment and updated it on the official online database.

It wasn’t to show off but rather to entice the players.

[Equipment: Power Armor

Model: "Order" P-10A Carlos Industries Security Powered Armor.

Durability: 100%

Armor: 100%

Energy: 79%

Shield: 0

Net Weight: 1100kg.

Left Arm: Basic Armor.

Right Arm: Basic Armor.

Chest: 70mm Lightweight Composite Steel/Ceramic Lined Curved Armor

Back: "Raptor-1" Enhanced Propulsion Thrusters X2

Left Leg: "Raptor-1" Enhanced Propulsion Thruster

Right Leg: "Raptor-1" Enhanced Propulsion Thruster

Energy Core: "Hippo-1" Portable Fusion Reactor

Paint: Klein Blue

Plugins: None

]

With a weight exceeding one ton, it was impossible to move in the shutdown state, as it consumed power just by being worn.

However, this suit of power armor had an energy-saving mode, allowing the wearer to provide some of the driving force through muscle power in exchange for reduced mobility, thus reducing the energy consumption of the power armor.

Chu Guang’s current strength attribute was 17, equivalent to 3.4 times the strength of a normal adult male, more than enough to carry 3.4 times his own weight.

Additionally, since the power armor was designed with features of a non-powered exoskeleton, it didn’t exhaust as much physical strength to move as one might imagine.

The added weight was merely considered physical training.

Of course, for Chu Guang, the achievements from the "Garden Street Metro Station operation" were not limited to this suit of power armor and the 200 reward points he received for completing the side mission.

There was also the black box that Doctor Principle entrusted to the Manager of Shelter No.117!

Yin Fang, with his hands touching the black box, excitedly looked at Chu Guang and said,

"S-level Relic!"

Chu Guang was momentarily stunned.

"S-level Relic? What does that mean?"

Yin Fang took a deep breath and continued,

"I should have mentioned before, to facilitate the recovery of pre-war technology, the Academy based on factors like technology reshaping difficulty, related project quantity, data volume, and application value, divided the ’Blueprints’ of projects awaiting recovery into seven grades FEDCBAS to ensure that high-priority projects receive larger budgets and more staff. This grading system is used not only for technology but also for grading pre-war civilization relics and ruins."

Looking back at the black briefcase, Yin Fang said with disbelief,

"Like this thing."

"The ’Black Box’ of the Ark Project is without a doubt an S-level Relic."

Chu Guang frowned, "The Ark Project is?"

"Another civilization preservation project parallel to the Shelter Project, assuming extreme conditions where social production is completely halted, and supply chains are destroyed, requiring a simple tool to utilize readily available raw materials to produce items we need."

"The ’black box’ is a product of the Ark Project, based on cutting-edge printing technology. By merely inputting the basic materials and electricity, it can generate specific products. For example, the most common type of black box, measuring roughly 30X30X20cm, needs only electric power and exposure to air to absorb carbon dioxide and water from the air and synthesize starch. A slightly advanced version can directly convert carbon dioxide and water into barbecue-flavored pizza and cakes."

Chu Guang was surprised, "Can it really do that?"

Yin Fang replied, "Of course, it is the crystallization of pre-war society technology, like an almighty wish machine! Although it’s not very efficient, it’s absolutely reliable. The only downside is its single functionality; what it can give you doesn’t depend on your wishes but on the functionalities imbued by its designers."

Chu Guang looked at the black box before him.

"So, what can I get from this black box?"

Yin Fang said, "I don’t know, the Academy has probably recovered hundreds of boxes over the last two centuries, and I’ve only encountered ones that synthesize cakes and pizza. But judging by the size of this box, it appears to be medium-sized... It’s unlikely to synthesize pizza or cake. Shall we open it? There’s usually a foolproof tutorial inside, said to be so simple that even an illiterate person could understand it. Just take a look."

Without replying, Chu Guang entered the password directly on the box.

[X1179]

He was very sensitive to numbers, generally able to remember them after seeing them just once, so it was unlikely he would make a mistake.

Accompanied by a light click sound, the lock was opened.

Yin Fang, more anxious than Chu Guang, opened the box eagerly.

Standing behind Yin Fang, Chu Guang noticed that the box’s structure was very simple. It contained only a few buttons, very simplistic, along with what appeared to be a power input socket and a drawer-like filler port.

The instruction manual was placed in a recess next to the buttons.

The manual had some simple, easy-to-understand sketches, just like Yin Fang had said, so that even the illiterate could easily read them.

It seemed the designers of the Ark Project had thought of the possibility that survivors after the war might become illiterate.

Flipping through the manual and looking at it twice, Yin Fang’s face lit up with interest, clicking his tongue in amazement.

"Neural connection unit! It’s integrated with a neural signal collector and a modem, incorporating three C-Class technologies and two D-Class technologies... This is some good stuff."

Chu Guang, "Do you know how to use it?"

"Of course! I’m an expert in this field!"

With a confident smile on his face, Yin Fang put down the manual and looked excitedly at Chu Guang.

"With this thing, we can make some simple exoskeletons and mechanical prostheses!"

...

Official Forum:

"Damn! Do newbies have no rights?"

"So tragic, I was just fighting monsters, and my screen just went black!"

"I’m dizzy. I thought it was a bug! Turns out I was ambushed!"

"Exactly, having to resurrect takes three days—that’s just too much!"

Complaining about the resurrection CD has become a daily thread on the forum.

The server has been busier recently, with one or two unlucky fellows each day, either getting their necks nibbled in the Elm District hunting grounds or being dragged into the water while fishing by the lake.

Almost every newbie who dies for the first time complains about the severe death penalties in Wasteland OL, though this time fifteen died at once, which is a bit more than usual.

As for the veteran players and the backseat drivers on the forum, they’re used to such uninteresting posts.

Three days, that’s nothing.

That’s so typical!

The last time there was a bug in the expansion, they didn’t log in for the entire expansion!

Tomato and Eggs: "This game is just like this, no way around it. At least it’s not a bug, be thankful."

Elena: "+1, realism is one of the selling points of Wasteland OL. The planners not making you reincarnate is already pretty good, if you don’t like it, don’t play. (funny)"

Night Ten: "You newbies, this time it’s at least a plot-related death, they spared us the fine, and you’re still complaining! Do you know how much we used to get fined? 500 Contribution points! Crow Boss even cried from the penalty. (funny)"

Crow: "That’s not true! Stop talking nonsense! ヾ(｡｀Д´｡)ﾉ彡"

Gnome King Riches: "I testify! It wasn’t crab, but leeches. (funny)"

Crow: "(╯°Д°)╯︵┻━┻"

...

Cow and Horse Group.

As usual, it was bustling only early in the morning, because at night, the group leader and the dog manager were playing the game.

But just then, a message suddenly popped up in the group.

Old White: "I was just trying to log into the game, why can’t I get on all of a sudden????"

The group leader can’t get into the game?

This is big news.

While boasting with group friends, Night Ten quickly typed to ask,

"Can’t get on? What’s going on?!"

"The helmet shows ’character anomaly,’ and it doesn’t give a specific time," said Old White anxiously, "Damn, could it be a violation?"

Impossible.

He’s been very careful while playing, not to mention attacking NPCs, he’s been friendly as hell!

Wild Wind: "I just tried it, I can still log on."

Night Ten: "+1, me too."

Old White: "Damn, it’s weird, could it be a bug?"

WC Really Has Mosquitoes: "I’ll tag Brother Guang for you! @光"

Ah Guang was probably working overtime, no reply.

This brother didn’t use QQ much, he always logged in on his computer, with a chance of showing up between 8 and 10 in the morning.

The group started suggesting some weird ideas for Old White.

One group member suggested soaking the helmet in water to see if that would help.

Just then, Fang Chang had an idea, digging into the details,

"Old White, how much was your experience bar before you logged out?"

Old White: "Experience bar? Wait, let me check the official site."

It didn’t take long for Old White to come back.

"Solved it."

Night Ten immediately typed to ask,

"What? What did you solve?!"

Old White: "Hehe, I just checked, my character is level 10 now!"