This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 364: Affordability is One of the Advantages of Our Weapons

Chapter 364: Chapter 364: Affordability is One of the Advantages of Our Weapons

"...a corporate expedition team appeared in the ’North Suburb’?"

Boulder Military Industrial Building, Chairman’s office.

Seated behind the desk, Yibers, having heard the report from his subordinates, was filled with surprise.

Unlike Melvin and Duron, he certainly didn’t need something like the Survivor’s Daily to get information about the ’North Suburb’. He had learned the previous evening from spies disguised as mercenaries and caravan guards that a group suspected of being from Ideal City had appeared there.

After a night of investigation, he was now certain that these people were professional soldiers of the corporation.

"...why would corporate people show up here?" A hint of apprehension flashed in Yibers’ eyes.

Unlike the nobles of the Inner City, his attitude towards the corporation was more of respectful distance.

Based on past experience, getting involved with that behemoth was unlikely to bring anything good.

Especially since last year, when the corporation and the Army had clashed in the ’North Suburb’, heaven knows why they had come this time.

Standing next to him, the old secretary seemed to have reached the same conclusion, speaking slowly.

"Could it be related to last year’s Pioneer incident?"

"That’s what I was thinking."

Rubbing his forehead with his index finger, Yibers pondered for a long time before suddenly speaking.

"Anyway, we need to find out what they are here for."

The old secretary asked.

"Do we need to report this to the city lord?"

Yibers replied concisely.

"Just make a routine report."

Whether to report or not didn’t really make a difference.

He had his own intelligence network, and the enlightened and imposing city lord certainly had his.

However, as the most loyal servant to that lord, it was his duty to report this information as soon as he was aware of it.

Regardless of whether the city lord was already aware or not.

It was his duty...

...

As the news of the corporation’s "visiting delegation" spread, the entire Qingquan City was buzzing with excitement.

Especially the shop owners of Giant Stone City, factory owners, and the nobles of the Inner City, who cast envious and even jealous glances towards the ’North Suburb’.

Why should those damned country bumpkins gain the fellowship of the corporation?

Of course, more than envy, what really mattered to them was the business opportunity hidden in this news.

That was a delegation from Ideal City!

Even a single commodity brought here could fetch an unimaginably high price.

The civilians of Giant Stone City might not have the purchasing power, but the nobles of the Inner City definitely had money.

Their industries spread throughout Giant Stone City, they were not lacking money to spend, only places to spend it.

Whether it was bionic prostheses to enhance physical abilities or serums to delay aging, both were enough to drive the entire Inner City mad...

While Qingquan City was lively, West State City, a hundred kilometers away, was just as bustling.

However, the nature of the excitement was completely different...

Next to a crudely constructed platform, piles of supplies in boxes and bundles formed small mountains.

Looking at that mountain-like pile of supplies, whether it was the work team leaders or the survivors from Dawn City, everyone had an expression of surprise written all over their faces.

"170 tons of grain, 81 tons of ’ramshorn’ potatoes, 1000 cotton work clothes, 1000 pairs of rubber-soled boots, 11 boxes of medical gauze and alcohol..."

Holding the cargo list handed over by the train conductor, Rudi, murmuring softly, had a face full of surprise, unable to believe his own eyes.

The supplies listed were exactly what they needed the most.

Especially, the work clothes and waterproof shoes.

It had been raining continuously for several days before, and the terrain of the northern construction site was lower, almost soaked in puddles.

Without pumps to remove water, the workers could only descend into the pit carrying iron buckets.

Ordinary straw shoes, wooden shoes, and shoes made from tree bark were not waterproof at all, and the number of plastic waterproof shoes was limited, causing many people’s feet to be soaked and ruined.

Not to mention, medical gauze and alcohol were essential for a construction site where bumps and bruises were common.

Without disinfectant and bandages, even a small wound could become inflamed and septic, turning into a serious problem.

As for food, it was always precious on the Wasteland at any time.

One might endure a shortage of other things, but not working on an empty stomach.

Dawn City had 30,000 people; 251 tons of grain, along with the game and fish caught by the residents of the shelter, would be enough for two weeks’ expenses!

After a while, he swallowed and said,

"... Did we find some pre-war reserves?"

Before becoming the captain of the reconstruction team, he had been a Centurion under Vanus, following the Army for several years in campaigns to the north and south. In his memory, such abundant supplies were hard to come by even in some of the wealthier survivor settlements.

Perhaps the New Alliance could produce such supplies, but definitely not in such a short period of time.

Watching Rudi, who looked stunned, the train manager said with a smile,

"What found them? We bought these from Giant Stone City! Oh, and please tell the people in the storeroom for me that there will be another batch of supplies arriving in three days. Tell them it’s best to expand the warehouse to avoid a rush then."

Rudi, coming back to his senses, nodded seriously,

"I’ll go and tell them right away!"

As the supplies were stored,

news of the shipment also spread among the survivors.

Lunchtime.

A few foremen and workers from the reconstruction team squatted together, holding bowls and eating while gossiping about the rumors they had heard from others.

"... I heard! The supplies were imported from Giant Stone City!"

"Not just living supplies, but also generators and distribution devices... probably for setting up electric grids!"

"That must cost a lot of coins, right?"

"That’s for sure... at least a few hundred thousand."

"Hundreds of thousands? More like a few million!"

Hearing that these supplies cost so much money, many showed a contemplative expression, momentarily lost in thought.

Especially those survivors who had grown up in Clear Spring City.

Itinerants had little concept of the purchasing power of coins, but they knew what those coins could buy.

Let alone hundreds of thousands of coins, a triple-digit number of coins was already a staggering amount to them, and a five-digit amount was simply beyond the reach of ordinary people.

In their minds, only the former town mayor of Bet Street and Old Brown from the Brown Farm could afford such amounts of coins.

But those miserly cheapskates would never spend coins on others.

They would rather clasp every coin tightly in their hands, not even willing to spend a bit more on themselves.

For them, the biggest ambition in life was to save enough coins to move into the Giant Barrier, push their way into high society there, and spend their latter years in luxury and wealth.

If all else failed, buying a few buildings on the fringes of the Inner City to become a landlord wasn’t a bad choice either.

They could only think of that benevolent Manager who would willingly spend coins generously on ordinary people like them...

...

Meanwhile, in the East District of West State City, on an abandoned street,

a group of survivors methodically moved their belongings out of a collapsed subway station, piling them in the open space not far from the station.

A little farther away, over thirty container houses stood, and several camps extracted from underground tunnels.

The construction site the reconstruction team was in charge of included not only Dawn City but also Camp 101 located in the East District of West State City.

With the Chewing Bone Tribe now extinct, West State City had regained its former tranquility, and the residents of Camp 101 were moving back to the surface, handing back the buffer zone at the shelter’s entrance to the "Pioneers."

Chu Guang had promised to help the residents of Camp 101 rebuild their homes.

A week earlier, the Alliance’s workers had arrived here.

There were 200 personnel involved in the construction.

Among them, 20 were foremen from City of Dawn, and the other 180 were survivors from Dawn City.

In addition, there was a patrol team from the 2nd Army, responsible for the security around the camp.

After all, mutated hyenas, rats, cockroaches, flies as big as washbasins, and blood-sucking worms longer than one’s arm—the endlessly emerging Variants, would not leave with the Looters.

Especially since the onset of summer, the activity of Variants in the ruins had more than doubled compared to two months earlier.

Fortunately, a group of enthusiastic players had turned them into food ingredients, preventing these Variants from becoming overwhelmingly unbearable...

Considering their future, after consulting Chu Guang’s advice, Camp 101 finally decided to build the new camp near the old site of West State University, close to Shelter 101.

The area was relatively flat.

Though the buildings were heavily damaged, it was actually an advantage; at least it wouldn’t be too difficult to demolish.

On the Wasteland, demolishing buildings was much more troublesome than constructing them.

Some buildings appeared to be on the verge of collapse, as if a push could bring them down, but in reality, they could withstand a few 100kg aerial bombs and remain unscathed.

Especially in "Wasteland OL", destroyed buildings would not turn into ash and disappear like in other RTS games; they were likely to lie across the ground forming a wall.

Large building debris simply couldn’t be moved and had to be broken into smaller pieces for transport.

This was also why City of Dawn and Dawn City were both built in suburbs with lower building densities.

According to the planned blueprint, the first phase of Camp 101 covered an area of 30 acres, centered on the old site of the West State University Library and spreading outward.

After all phases of the construction were complete, the entire camp would essentially cover the core area of the former Western Province University, spanning an astonishing 500 acres.

Although the camp’s mayor, Hoene, couldn’t help but laugh and cry, saying that they didn’t need that much space, Chu Guang still generously mapped out this grand vision.

Not needed?

He, of course, knew that this small village of only two or three hundred people didn’t need so much land.

But he and Hoene were considering different problems.

In Chu Guang’s view, that place was the future "National University" of the Alliance, a sacred land for academic exchanges and technological research.

A mere 500 acres.

He even thought it was too small!

However, you have to eat your rice one bite at a time.

For now, the number of students Camp 101 could accommodate was around three to five hundred, which was about the limit.

The thirty acres planned for the first phase were completely sufficient, and building two five-story classroom buildings would be fine.

After nearly a week of construction, this brand-new camp had already begun to take shape.

Although the classroom buildings were nowhere in sight, rows of square barracks stood tall in the open space.

The space here was much more spacious than underground—they didn’t need to squeeze all the buildings together, and each barracks could afford a not-insignificant area as private space.

Children were frolicking, chasing each other around the camp.

Not far away, the construction site was bustling, and a concrete building, whose purpose was unknown, was already half-built.

To prevent Variants from breaking into the camp, an outer wall of wire mesh had been pulled up and reinforced with steel bars driven into the ground.

Standing at the entrance of the brand-new camp, Pai’s eyes widened in surprise, her mouth agape as if she could fit an egg in it.

She had been away from home for less than two weeks, yet everyone had already moved from underground to above ground!

That was too fast!

"Pai?"

Seeing the little girl standing at the camp entrance, Terri showed a gentle smile, "You’re back?"

Hearing the "Doorkeeper’s" voice, Pai immediately snapped back from her surprise, her face also displaying a proud expression as she puffed out her chest and said,

"Yeah! Mission successfully completed!"

Although her face was full of pride, those big eyes couldn’t help but curiously look around.

"So this is our new home?"

Terri nodded and said with a smile,

"Yes, originally we planned to take two months to move from underground to above ground, but the progress was smoother than expected. Thanks to those kind-hearted people, we managed to do so much in just one week."

Of course, they were also thankful for defeating that group of bloodthirsty Looters.

No one liked to huddle underground, enduring the dampness, darkness, and hard-to-swallow food.

For him, there was nothing more pleasing than watching the children run in the sunshine.

As he spoke, Terri noticed the thirty young people behind Pai and said with a smile,

"You must be students from the New Alliance?"

Walking at the front of the group, Xia Yan nodded crisply and said,

"Yes, the Manager sent us to find a teacher named Aven. Could you tell us where he is?"

Although that’s what she said, she didn’t look like any student at the moment; she was completely dressed like a Wasteland Mercenary.

Wearing a resistant leather jacket over her shirt, her pockets stuffed with bulging magazines, and an LD-47 assault rifle hanging on her back.

Terri wasn’t bothered.

Being used to dealing with Wasteland Wanderers, he wasn’t surprised at all and maintained his mild expression.

"Aven is still underground, organizing materials in the document library. He’ll probably come up in a few days. He is Pai’s teacher, and I think Pai could take you to him."

Pai enthusiastically nodded, giving Xia Yan and Little Fish a reassuring look.

"Yeah! Leave it to me! I have to go underground anyway!"

She hadn’t forgotten her agreement with Chu Guang to negotiate the borrowing of a VM with the manager of Shelter 101.

Terri nodded with a smile,

"I’ll leave it to you then."

"But before you go underground, you might want to settle your luggage first."

"We’ve prepared dormitories for you next to the campus in the camp... Please follow me."

...

Though Camp 101 had barely started construction less than two weeks ago, and, despite it already being inhabitable, conditions were still somewhat simple.

Even so, the local residents still prepared dormitories for two people per room for these students from the New Alliance.

The relationship between the two was in the honeymoon phase, and the New Alliance was not stingy with their support; naturally, they were also not stingy with the care they could provide within their capabilities.

While Boss Xia and his group were busy packing their luggage, Chu Guang in City of Dawn was also busy.

First was the addition of production lines for ammunition, weapons, and accessories.

Although this was primarily the responsibility of the industrial district’s workforce and the industrial department’s officials, introducing the support team to them and arranging work still took time.

After these tasks were completed, Chu Guang then took Yun Song to the shooting range to demonstrate the Alliance’s weapons.

Including the LD series assault rifles, the 20mm light cavalry gun, the 37mm heavy cavalry gun, and the 60mm mortar, among others.

And the easy-to-carry and versatile RPG Rocket Launcher!

Especially the latter, although it struggled against heavy vehicles and lacked automatic tracking and laser guidance—allowing only for visual targeting—it was completely sufficient to deal with light to medium armor and vehicles at medium to close range!

Switching to fragmentation high-explosive grenades, it was perfect against unarmored infantry!

After testing a few shots, Yun Song immediately joyfully purchased 120 launchers, along with 500 armor-piercing rounds and 700 high-explosive grenades!

Although chemical armor-piercing rounds have significantly less penetration compared to plasma rounds and railguns, they didn’t always encounter foes that warranted the use of plasma armor-piercing rounds.

And as Chu Guang said, a sufficient quantity is also an advantage.

With this batch of weapons, a platoon of his light infantry was instantly transformed into an "anti-tank platoon"!

With the help of exoskeletons, carrying a few more high-explosive grenades was not an issue at all!

Of course, the biggest reason for Yun Song’s prompt order was that all these weapons were priced in silver coins, and his logistic officer had secured a good price with the trade goods they brought.

Therefore, he didn’t feel a bit of pain while purchasing.

Looking at the smoke spewing from the launcher and the targets shattered into pieces in the distance, Yun Song said with a delighted expression on his face.

"Is it really okay to sell these to us for 100 silver coins each? Isn’t that too cheap?"

Chu Guang met someone who thought his products were too cheap for the first time and couldn’t help but laugh and said,

"Being affordable is one of the strengths of our weapons."

Seeing his friend finally appreciate the charm of Goblin technology, Chu Guang sincerely felt happy for him.

The vast stockpile of weapons produced by the Northern Expedition had finally found someone to take them off his hands.

But speaking of which.

Wearing this technologically loaded power armor, yet carrying an antiquated rocket launcher on the shoulder.

This combination looked quite peculiar.

Looking at the launcher he carried on his shoulder, Chu Guang said somewhat regretfully,

"It’s a pity we don’t have uranium or plutonium... otherwise, we could make some more powerful tactical nuclear bombs."

Power armor paired with a tactical nuclear bomb launcher.

That would make more sense!

However, the fellow carrying the launcher hadn’t thought that much.

Compared to the style, what mattered more to him was its utility.

Clearly, he found this weapon to his liking.

"Ha ha, there’s no need for that! For general threats, conventional weapons are powerful enough," Yun Song looked at Chu Guang and said with a laugh, "Thanks, brother! I really like your weapons!"

"Don’t mention it, we’ve also gained quite a bit," Chu Guang smiled and said.

Just the Miner I model exoskeletons equipped with metallic hydrogen batteries, retailing for 4000 CR, he had purchased a full 100 sets.

Not only that, but also two hundred one-kilogram metallic hydrogen batteries; this stuff was excellent whether used for storing energy or as explosives.

Purchasing these goods, Chu Guang spent less than 1 million silver coins in total.

Even if transported to Giant Stone City, these goods were worth far more than 1 million chips!

Besides these typical items, there was also a bunch of items that weren’t so easy to acquire.

For example, a bionic kidney produced by Ideal City.

Just one of those could sell for 500,000 chips in Giant Stone City!

And Chu Guang only spent 270,000 silver coins, negotiated the trade price with He Ding, and directly purchased five from the refuge’s officials.

Although he didn’t necessarily need them, as trade goods to resell to the merchants coming from Giant Stone City to the North Suburb, they were quite excellent.

Apart from the goods from Ideal City, there were also the spoils of war obtained by the soldiers along the way.

Honestly, Chu Guang didn’t have high hopes for those spoils of war initially.

After all, the situation in the Eastern Provinces wasn’t much better than in River Valley Province—who could expect anything good?

Yet, reality turned out to be beyond his expectations...

-

(The latter half has not been finished... today’s short, I’ll admit to that mistake T.T)