This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 521: Floor B6 "Biological Laboratory" Open!

Chapter 521: Chapter 521: Floor B6 "Biological Laboratory" Open!

The day before the final countdown to the celebration.

The absorption proceeded unexpectedly smoothly, and it was completed in one night.

Xiaoyu, who stepped into the Lair, had integrated with the sea of slime fungus, becoming the new Queen who commanded this Lair.

That sea of slime fungus roiled as if boiling, with every cell cheering for their new master.

As the control of the Lair changed hands, the murderous crimson faded slightly, losing some of its bloodthirsty fierceness and gaining a few shades of a more likable pink.

That thing had contended with Shelter No. 404 for two hundred years, evolving extreme outer space survival abilities in an almost vacuum environment.

Given enough time and space, it could even take out the one in the center of Qingquan City and develop into the largest Lair on the Central Continent with the widest self-limiting scope.

But perhaps it knew in its heart that those humans would never let it out, even if it devoured the little one. All it would face was another round of assaults.

If one were to interpret the little one as a signal for "reconciliation," then perhaps it wasn’t unacceptable.

This war had already lasted for two centuries, and those short-lived creatures wouldn’t live very long, but their offspring were endless... They simply couldn’t be eradicated.

Then let’s coexist.

It was tired anyway...

...

"Yi wu!"

"Yi wu!"

At Shelter No. 404, Floor B6, the engine room door was filled with the noise of "yi wu yi wu."

Staring at a bunch of pale red "human-shaped slimes" crowding at the door, Falling Feather was dumbfounded, feeling his head buzz.

One, two, three... Good heavens, ten?!

He counted them in a circle and was completely dumbstruck.

Which one is Xiaoyu?

"In the strictest sense, they are all sub-entities of Xiaoyu," Seeing the confusion in his eyes, Heya, who stood beside him, explained succinctly, "The sub-entities do not have separate consciousness; all the slime fungus shares a unified consciousness. So, you could also understand that... they are all Xiaoyu."

Looking at the "Xiaoyus" continuously rubbing against him, Falling Feather patted their heads and asked Heya with a smile and a tear.

"So you’re saying... they share a consciousness as if they were avatars?"

"Yes, you could understand it that way."

"But then... how do they communicate?"

"Of course, it’s the same as us, by sound," Heya gave him an odd look, "Haven’t you always communicated with it that way?"

The slime fungus from the desert did not have the ability to release spores on a large scale; through a long period of evolution, it had abandoned that method of information exchange.

Instead, it communicated using sound, just like humans.

Falling Feather paused for a moment.

"But if they leave the range of sound, don’t they..."

"They would go into hibernation," Heya looked at him, "Isn’t the mother body in Lost Valley the same? Most of the time, the sub-entities are in hibernation, unless actively awakened by the mother body’s voice, and the two communicate through specific frequencies of sound."

"Outside the range of the sound waves, the sub-entities would likely continue to carry out the last command of the Lair. When all the commands are executed, the sub-entities either return to the side of the Lair to report, or they stay and hibernate on the spot."

Falling Feather carefully recalled the past.

It seemed accurate?

Although he had no memory from after the nuclear explosion, according to the description on the official "Wasteland OL" website by Si Si and others, that entity following Pigeon—now seen to likely be a sub-entity of the Lair—had indeed called out, summoning the Titan corroded by the slime fungus.

The aircraft Xiaoyu sent to help him also crashed not long after its mission was fulfilled...

But if that were the case, wouldn’t it mean Xiaoyu could only stay in the Shelter on Floor B6 for the rest of its life?

After all, sound couldn’t reach outside the Shelter—

"It’s easy," said Chu Guang, who had been silent, looking at the noisy little guys. "Just equip them with earphones and a mic."

He understood that Xiaoyu had completed its evolution with human assistance, so its functions were not perfect; it needed the help of humans as "hosts."

For example, to help them spread sound further.

This was actually a good thing.

If Xiaoyu didn’t need to rely on human tools and could complete all aspects of life on its own, the symbiotic relationship would be weakened.

After hearing Chu Guang’s words, Falling Feather was stunned on the spot.

Damn!

Could it really work like that?

This was probably the first time he felt that the NPCs had even wilder ideas than he did.

Elena looked at Chu Guang in surprise, approval gleaming in her eyes.

"Yup... This is indeed a good idea. If they can’t perform the radio to sound wave conversion on their own, they won’t go out of control from escaping our control."

Chu Guang nodded.

"The controlled evolution of the lair must be under our control, and we need to avoid as much as possible the emergence of new lairs, especially mutated ones."

Elena nodded thoughtfully.

"Indeed, so we need to control the number of offspring... How about ten?"

A lair typically emerged from tens of thousands of offspring by chance; by reducing the number of offspring, new lairs could be effectively prevented.

However, it wasn’t possible to completely stop the production of offspring.

Neither of the extreme options—letting them run wild or completely banning them—met the needs of the Alliance.

He needed Xiaoyu to replace other more aggressive slime molds with a finite number of offspring and deepen the symbiotic relationship with humans in the process—to find a mutually beneficial way.

Chu Guang planned to selectively involve some players in this endeavor within a limited scope.

"Let’s go with ten, any more and he won’t be able to handle it."

That incessant chirping would either drive someone mad or annoy them to death.

Chu Guang looked at Falling Feather.

"You go back first, I’ll arrange for surgery to fit them with headsets... That way they can be active outside the shelter."

Falling Feather spoke with a touched expression on her face.

"Thank you..."

Chu Guang’s face showed a smile like that of a proud father.

"No problem, and please continue taking good care of it."

Slime molds couldn’t possibly eradicate humans and vice versa.

Even the United Human of the Prosperity Epoch hadn’t been able to wipe out all the mosquitoes, flies, and cockroaches on the planet, let alone slime molds, which were far more troublesome.

The Post-War Reconstruction Committee had tried for half a century, and he had no need to step into a pit already proven by predecessors.

If it was objectively hard to eliminate, then the risk should be minimized as much as possible, ultimately rendering it harmless. This was a more materialistic approach.

The accidentally born Xiaoyu had the potential to be "domesticable" and "nearly harmless", which was like the brain slugs from Stars, a bit frightening to look at, but if properly utilized, it could become a nice buff.

The lair was located on Floor B6 of the shelter.

Even if any problems occurred, they could be controlled in the shortest time.

Chu Guang turned to Elena, who was standing nearby.

"I’ll leave the follow-up research to you."

Elena’s eyes sparkled with intense interest; this was exactly her field of interest.

"No problem! Leave it to me with confidence!"

...

"Wasteland OL" Official Website:

[Floor B6 "Biological Laboratory" Partial Area Opened: Now offering "Slime Mold Symbiote" Buff]

[Slime Mold Symbiote: "Slime Mold Symbiote" can be considered a special type of biological prosthesis, essentially an offspring of the lair on B6 Floor, without self-awareness. Players implanted with a symbiote will see a 100%~500% increase in regeneration ability, partial keratinization of body structure, and mutation capabilities, with a permanent duration. Upon death, the BUFF will be reset, and the used symbiote will be deleted, requiring reapplication.]

[Note 1: Since repairing wounds results in partial replacement of the injured area’s body cells with slime mold cells, the degree of "slime moldification" will increase with each injury, and it cannot be removed surgically. The speed of experience gain will decrease as the degree of slime moldification increases; no experience will be accumulated over 50% slime moldification, and the save function will be disabled. Also, to avoid making one’s own NPCs uncomfortable, those with over 50% slime moldification or extraordinary body mutations must wear full protective armor or clothing when entering public areas in the safe zone, as in the case of NPC Bachi.]

[Note 2: This BUFF is usually only open to players and requires a Contribution Level of Citizen and Sequence Level of Level 10 or higher.]

[Note 3: Slime molds have no concept of gender, Xiaoyu is still childlike, so when receiving the symbiote, please do not express strange wishes to it. Additionally, even if a direct communication cannot be established between the symbiote and the lair, please do not use it to do strange things.]

Tail: "!!! Wait a minute, so you’re saying... if you implant a symbiote, you could become a tentacle monster?!

Si Si: "Calm down, Ah Wei, you’re going to scare Meat Meat."

Meat Mountain Big Steamed Bun: "(Trembling)"

Haha Sesame Paste: "Ahaha... I think if it’s Ah Wei, even as a tentacle monster, it wouldn’t be too scary."

Tail: "Eh?! Why?! !!!∑(ﾟДﾟノ)ノ"

Haha Sesame Paste: "Because you don’t seem like the type to harm others... by the way, why do you seem a little disappointed? 0.0"

Si Si: "Emmm... based on what I know about Ah Wei, you might be the first one he pranks with it."

Haha Sesame Paste: "???"

Tail: "Ehehe!

Si Si: "Feeling a bit down. (side eye)"

Tail: "Wuuuuh, but it’s so hard to scare Si!"

Si Si: "Ah, how terrifying. I’m paralyzed with fear."

Meat Mountain Big Steamed Bun: "That’s too perfunctory!"

Tail: "Right? Even Meat Meat noticed it. It was bound to end up this way!"

Ahh Ahh Sesame Paste: "Ahaha... haha..."

There Are Really Mosquitoes in the WC: "Gahaha, the era of Goblin Technology has finally arrived! (evil grin)"

Night Ten: "If it were a Mosquito, it’d probably be caught by the guards on the spot. (funny face)"

There Are Really Mosquitoes in the WC: "Damn! You dare to look down on me! Just wait, I’ll become a Tentacle Monster and be the first to tie you up!"

Night Ten: "F*ck! Don’t mess around!"

Debt Giant Eye: "Bro, you play pretty extreme, huh. (funny face)"

Construction Site Boy with Brick: "Hahaha! I’ll take a picture for you!"

Spring Water Commander: "By the way, why does everyone assume it will definitely turn into a Tentacle Monster... I’m only curious about one thing now, would you still get attacked by other slime fungus spores after symbiosis?"

Midnight Chicken Killing: "If it doesn’t get attacked, wouldn’t it be possible to solo the city center?! (excited)"

Valley Escape Mole: "It should be, as ’Mutated Slime Fungus’ is just a general term. Different fungal communities prey on each other to absorb genetic material. Hasn’t that already been verified with Bachi?"

Spring Water Commander: "I see... It seems like exploiting a bug isn’t as easy as I thought, haha."

Fang Chang: "Even if it hadn’t been verified, logically speaking, I don’t think Chu Guang would let you exploit such an obvious BUG. (funny face)"

Edge Shoveling: "The symbiosis with the slime fungus leads to an experience penalty... Is this drawing from the Variant players’ setting?"

Fang Chang: "I feel it’s more like a reference to the bionics prosthetics. Wasn’t there a mention in the previous update announcement that excessive use of bionics would slow down the progression of the Gene Sequence, in other words, less experience. However, the statement about 50% seems a bit general. I think the impact should be different for different Sequences."

Wild Wind: "Hmm... Personally, I think the Intelligence System, when not paired with brain implants, not only doesn’t suffer from an experience debuff when using mechanical arms, but instead may get a slight Intelligence System experience bonus due to frequent neurological overloads. It’s probably similar for the slime fungus - if symbiosis doesn’t affect the brain, even if more than 50% is slime-transformed, even becoming like Bachi, the Sequence progress can still accumulate and be saved."

Quit Smoking: "F*ck! Intelligence System epic enhancement?!"

Wild Wind: "It’s only a theoretical enhancement, who knows in reality. Anyway, I can’t quite accept biological prosthetics... feels weird. (side eye)"

Fang Chang: "+1, I’m quite satisfied with my character now; no need for stacking buffs."

Night Ten: "You’re afraid of scaring your Dolly, right? (funny face)"

Fang Chang: "I won’t deny it. Although a symbiote is different from a typical offspring entity and doesn’t have real-time information exchange with the Lair, having something on you that’s not your own still feels weird. I’d suggest those in a relationship should consult their partners first. Ah, for single dogs, it doesn’t matter. (side eye)"

Night Ten: "MMP! You just had to rub it in, huh?!"

Gnome King Riches: "I’m gonna puke!"

Elena: "Am I the only one curious if it tastes good? (funny face)"

Falling Feather: "Blanch! What do you all think my Xiaoyu is? (angry)"

There Are Really Mosquitoes in the WC: "Hahaha! Xiaoyu is now everyone’s Xiaoyu! (evil grin)"

Falling Feather: "%￥#@!"

...

Research on the "Mutated Slime Fungus" was just one of the many tasks within the Alliance, and right now, there were more important matters waiting for Chu Guang to handle.

Like the issue of money.

There’s never been a war that didn’t burn through funds, especially when the opponent is the Army.

The Alliance’s supplies never stopped, not just because businesses helped with transportation, but also because the Alliance was willing to invest money into logistics.

During the war, the Alliance produced nearly three hundred first and second model tanks, almost a thousand "Electric Donkey" transport trucks, and dozens of "Dragonfly" transport planes and nearly a thousand W-2 Attack Aircraft.

And this is not even counting the ammunition consumed and the light weapons produced; just these vehicles alone could fit the entire population of the Alliance!

Producing these pieces of equipment consumed not just resources, but also a significant part of the Alliance’s financial budget.

As a result, the Alliance was now facing a staggeringly large budget deficit...

Having transferred some of the permissions for Shelter No. B6 to Heya, Chu Guang, following the schedule Xiao Qi had made for him, went to the conference room of the Alliance Administration Building and summoned Old Charlie, chairman of the Merchant Guild, as well as the Minister of Finance.

In a reform a while ago, the Alliance had established twelve departments including internal affairs, industry, economy, foreign affairs, and so forth.

The Ministry of Finance was one of them.

Like other departments, all the staff were recruited through examinations.

The objective questions were roughly the standard of high school mathematics, which is something taught in both full-time schools and night schools for workers.

As for the subjective questions, some were chosen from those online and voted on by players, the rest were copied from the internet by Chu Guang according to his own needs.

He didn’t need these people to be proficient; it was enough if they could perform well in mathematics, respect the natural sciences, have a materialist spirit, and possess general knowledge.

In fact, what was called the Ministry of Finance was actually just a single office at the moment, and even counting the clerks who organized the documents, there were less than ten people.

On one hand, there weren’t many within the Alliance who were capable of performing this work, and on the other hand, it wasn’t necessary to have that many people.

The work related to auditing, as well as the management of financial revenue and expenditures, budget reports of various departments, and so on, was mainly completed by AI. The staff of this department were primarily responsible for assisting Chu Guang in macroeconomic decision-making, refining decision details, and making some more specific adjustments based on his opinions.

Compared to decision-makers, the nature of the department’s work was closer to that of a secretary.

And indeed it was the case. Some specific decisions were even perfected with the help of Old Charlie, the chairman of the Merchant Guild.

Although the latter was not any expert in economics with rich experience, he had dealt with merchants in the Wasteland for so long, dabbling in storage, logistics, and industrial production, and was somewhat more professional than the novices who had been recruited through examinations.

If only the old man wasn’t ready to call it quits and was simply hoping to manage the Merchant Guild well before retirement, Chu Guang would have initially planned to appoint him as the Minister of Finance of the Alliance.

Watching Chu Guang enter the conference room, Minister Sun Ruicai’s expression became visibly tense. Clutching his manuscript, he stood up from his seat with a swoosh.

Compared to Old Charlie sitting next to him, he was undoubtedly much younger with much less experience, having previously worked only as a regular worker at the Mint.

Before he received the appointment letter, he hadn’t even considered that he would be chosen. He had simply tried because everyone else was taking the exam, and to his surprise, he ended up scoring first.

Because he had never had the experience working in a management position, he often worried that he would not be competent enough for the job and was thus very cautious in his work, fearing that he would let down the trust and cultivation of the Manager.

However, careful as he might have been, that did not change the deficit shown on the financial reports.

That figure was calculated automatically by AI, without even a little room for embellishment.

Before the meeting started, he had already prepared himself to be berated by the Manager.

Yet, to his surprise, the Manager didn’t blame him; instead, he gave him a comforting look.

"Sit down and talk. There’s no need to be so nervous. I have a rough idea of the financial situation... I’m here today to solve the problem."

"Yes... Sir."

Seeing Chu Guang with his refined and amiable expression, Sun Ruicai slightly relaxed, his grip on the manuscript loosened as he slowly settled back into his chair.

Seeing that the young man had regained his composure, Chu Guang continued.

"Let’s begin."

"Yes, sir!" Sun Ruicai quickly nodded and read from the manuscript, "According to the consolidated results of various departments, the Alliance’s fiscal deficit this year has reached 1.17 billion silver coins, of which military expenditures account for 900 million, comprising 76.9% of the total budget..."

1.17 billion!

For the Alliance, whose population totaled less than 200,000, this figure was actually quite terrifying.

It meant that every resident of the Alliance was burdened with a debt of 5,850 silver coins; spread over each month, it was 487.5, even exceeding the Alliance’s legal minimum monthly income of 360 silver coins!

Of course, the accounts couldn’t be calculated like that.

Chu Guang knew very well that at least 70% of this 1.17 billion silver coin fiscal deficit was compensation paid to players, and at least half of this compensation came back to his hands through "technology export."

This revenue was not included in the financial report because the "technology export" was conducted in the name of the collective shelter, with funds being temporarily stored in the collective account of Shelter No. 404.

The construction of player save points, the operating expenses of save points, and the salaries for NPCs working for players, etc., were all withdrawn from this account.

At the end of the year, when clearing the accounts, most of this money would enter the Alliance’s treasury in the name of a "donation from Shelter No. 404."

Even though it was left and right both his hands, using the Alliance’s treasury to seek benefits for the residents of the shelter was nevertheless somewhat improper.

Even if no one would say anything now, it could potentially cause problems in the future.

With the gradual increase in the size of the Alliance, many things that could previously be managed casually now have to be progressively formalized.

According to data provided by Xiao Qi, considering the reimbursements at the end of the year, the final deficit in the Alliance’s treasury was around 600 million.

That was not a small figure.

But it was still much smaller compared to 1.17 billion.

Watching Chu Guang lost in thought, Charlie coughed lightly and said.

"... The war has put too much strain on the finances. Although you have brought back many trophies from the front lines, those items are difficult to convert directly into money, especially such a large sum."

He paused for a bit before continuing.

"... And that’s just our internal debt, which actually isn’t too hard to deal with. We just need your word to start the printing press, but the foreign debt is more troublesome. Taking the debt of Giant Stone City as an example, the initial two billion chips borrowed from Giant Stone City alone will amount to five million by the year’s end, just in principal and interest."

"Plus, we’ve subsequently borrowed a series of medium to long-term debts, with the total scale of the debt now reaching five billion chips. The principal and interest due by the end of the year have already exceeded ten million chips."

When he reached this point, Charlie pressed the wrinkled brow on his forehead, his expression slightly distressed.

There were some things he had wanted to say a long time ago.

That was the Alliance was spending money too quickly!

In order to make this respected Manager realize the severity of the issue, he unconsciously emphasized his tone.

"If you don’t plan to completely default on this debt, or utilize our Cr reserves and trade chips with Giant Stone City Bank... I suggest that we adopt a more conservative fiscal policy from today onwards. At least for the next three years, we have to tighten our belts, and do everything possible to reduce the scale of debt until the industries in which we’ve invested produce sufficient returns."

"Otherwise, if we use all the foreign exchange earned from export trade to pay off debts, other than printing money and watching the value of silver coins plummet, I’m afraid we won’t be able to do anything else!"