Spacious tent.
The man dressed in extravagant attire paced back and forth within the tent, a hint of seriousness etched between his brows, as if wrestling with sothing.
At that mont, footsteps were heard from outside.
He, upon hearing the motion, promptly put a radiant smile on his face and stepped forward to greet whoever was at the tent’s entrance.
Almost at the sa ti, Chu Guang appeared at the entrance of the tent.
"Xavier! A salesman from the Firestone Group! It’s a pleasure to et you, esteed Leader of the Alliance!" he introduced himself with an enthusiastic, even extravagant voice, while quietly scrutinizing the man who had just appeared at the door.
Just like the rumors described, the leader of the New Alliance had a pair of deep obsidian eyes, handso and young.
Most importantly, it was said that he had co from a shelter.
Such backgrounds weren’t rare in the Wasteland, although most leaders of Survivor Settlents were natives of the Wasteland; few of those settlents grew significantly large, populations exceeding ten thousand were unusual.
The real powers, such as corporations and academies, or even the Army in the west of the continent and the charlatans at the South Death Coast... their origins were more or less connected to shelters.
Yet what surprised him was that this man was an Awakener.
What had this guy been through?
"Chu Guang, Manager."
Chu Guang wasn’t particularly moved by Xavier’s enthusiasm, only giving a brief introduction of himself.
After all, he was an arms dealer who sold weapons to the Chewing Bone Tribe; it would be odd for him to show a jovial disposition.
Realizing his mistake in addressing him, Xavier’s expression turned a bit awkward.
However, being a seasoned businessman who had traded far and wide, his skin was naturally thick, and he quickly adjusted himself.
"Sorry, it was my mistake to rely on empiricism... Pleased to et you, Manager of the Alliance."
Chu Guang looked at him and went straight to the point.
"State your purpose."
Xavier bowed slightly.
"Our group’s leader, Mr. Sigma, entrusted to bring you congratulations, celebrating your triumph in this war and heralding an enlightened ruler for West State City!"
Congratulations were fine.
With one significant custor less, shouldn’t he be crying instead?
But the war was over, and now was the ti for developnt.
Chu Guang didn’t want any complications, so he refrained from teasing his northern neighbor and simply said, with a half-smile,
"Also, send my regards to him."
"I will convey your regards!" Relieved inside, Xavier cleared his throat and continued, "Furthermore, in addition to congratulating you on your victory, Mr. Sigma instructed before departure to redeem soone from you."
"Who?"
"Dylon, the Ten Thousand Leader from the 21st Ten Thousand Troops of the Army!"
"Oh, that one..." Chu Guang’s expression beca sowhat subtle as he recalled the na.
"Yes," not realizing anything had transpired, Xavier continued trying to persuade, "After all, the war has ended for you, and you have no direct grudges with the Army. That man is useless to you, so why not trade him for so ransom? We can pay... half a million dinars for him, what do you think?"
500,000 dinars.
It certainly wasn’t a small sum.
Chu Guang was quite surprised – he hadn’t expected that they would spend so much to redeem Dylon.
If that guy was still alive, he wouldn’t mind exchanging him for so ransom, but unfortunately...
"Unfortunately, I’m afraid I cannot comply with your request."
Xavier was taken aback, clearly not expecting Chu Guang to refuse, and said anxiously.
"Do you think it’s too little? According to the standard for a Ten Thousand Leader, this price is already very fair—"
"Because he’s already dead," Chu Guang interrupted him, speaking indifferently.
"Dead?!" Hearing this, Xavier was greatly shocked, his complexion changing again and again.
Chu Guang was unfazed.
"That’s right, on the battlefield bullets do not have eyes, anything can happen, isn’t that normal? Since he chose to squat in the sa trench with those Looters, he should have anticipated this day."
At this point, Chu Guang regarded Xavier with a scrutinizing gaze, "I’m quite curious as to why you would redeem him?"
"...That was Mr. Sigma’s order, he didn’t tell more details," Xavier said, feigning composure, but his nervous expression had already given him away.
It was clear that he wasn’t completely in the dark.
Chu Guang gave a faint smile and did not continue to press him.
If the other party didn’t want to talk, asking more would be futile. One couldn’t just capture and interrogate a ssenger.
That would be lacking in vision.
"If you’re here for Dylon, this trip is dood to have been in vain."
Xavier forced a strained smile onto his face.
"How could that be... just having the honor to et you in person ans this trip wasn’t in vain."
He paused, then continued.
"Mr. Sigma also instructed on a third matter, now that the trade routes between the north and south are restored..."
"We hope to sign a trade agreent with you!"
...
Outside the tent.
The visiting group’s resting area.
Button had gone to the nearby construction site, toured the drainage system of Dawn City, and had been shaking his head since he returned.
"...There’s a major problem with their construction plan. It might not be apparent now, but with the sumr rainfall in West State City from previous years, by July it’s bound to be a disaster!"
"...Is it really that serious? I’ve never heard about the Survivor Settlent in West State City getting flooded," Yuan Feng expressed with hesitant skepticism.
They were here to visit, not to nitpick soone else’s ho. Although he trusted Button’s professional expertise in environntal engineering, he did not approve of causing unnecessary issues.
"A settlent of five thousand or even ten thousand people can’t be compared to one with only two or three hundred, can it? Unless they plan on resigning themselves to soaking in water."
Eventually unable to hold back, Button slapped his thigh and stood up.
"I have to see their Manager again! I have to make this clear to them!"
Out of respect for the significant gift they had received, it would be both emotionally and rationally unacceptable to ignore what he had seen.
He could just spend a little ti helping them redesign the plan.
After all, it wouldn’t be that difficult.
Button headed toward the Manager’s tent, while the rest of the visiting group continued to discuss their findings in Dawn City.
The ability to erect 1000 ergency shelters in a single day was indeed a marvel of the New Alliance’s production efficiency.
However, strong production capacity did not equate to advanced productive forces.
Objectively speaking, there were considerable issues with the design and safety of those aluminum houses, which did not seem to be the work of a shelter.
The hills around West State City cut down the wind, so it would be fine for temporary use.
But over ti, problems would certainly erge.
The group debated vociferously, with only one "mascot" not participating.
The energetic Pai was now playing with her new toy, thoroughly enjoying herself in the barracks.
She quickly mastered the trick to controlling the drone and, using her portable tablet, programd a simple control interface to connect the drone to her VR glasses.
The thin, cicada-wing-like propellers trembled, and the silver-white sphere shot into the sky.
Through the perspective of the drone, Pai gazed down at the vast lands of West State City, her face filled with wonder and amazent.
"It’s unbelievable!"
Unfortunately, the Hummingbird drone had average endurance; given its fist-sized volu, one could imagine the limit of its battery capacity.
After bringing the drone down, Pai took off her glasses with a sense of longing still in her eyes and couldn’t help but harbor a touch of yearning.
"Tianqin, what do you think the City of Dawn will look like?"
Seated in the chair, Tianqin didn’t respond, as quiet as a wooden figure.
Pai stared at its cloak, suddenly struck by a thread of curiosity.
Co to think of it, she had never seen what it looked like.
When it erged from those giant doors, it was already draped in a cloak that covered its entire body, never interacting with anyone else.
Such a beautiful na it had too...
Pai whispered.
"May I take a look?"
Tianqin didn’t speak.
Pai continued in a low voice.
"...If you don’t say anything, I’ll take that as a yes."
Still no response.
Summoning her courage, Pai carefully reached out and gently lifted a corner of the thin cloak.
Contrary to its starry-sounding na, beneath the shadow lay a face plain and unremarkable, like a mannequin in a dilapidated shop window.
The only difference was that its eyes moved and were staring straight at her.
"Is there sothing you need?"
That was the first thing Tianqin had said since leaving the shelter.
Pai swallowed nervously, shook her head, and quickly withdrew her hand.
Looking at the face once again covered by the cloak, she said in a sowhat guilty whisper,
"I’m sorry..."
Tianqin looked at her, seemingly puzzled by sothing.
After a mont, it spoke earnestly,
"There is no need to apologize; you haven’t done anything that requires an apology."
At these words, Pai, who had been tense, relaxed and a happy smile spread across her face.
"I’m glad you’re not angry with ."
Angry?
Tianqin looked at her and said nothing.
Yet another thing it didn’t understand...
...
Elsewhere.
After eting with the representative of the Firestone Group, Chu Guang returned to his tent.
The negotiations with the Firestone Group were unsuccessful.
Although Chu Guang wasn’t opposed to putting aside conflicts for the ti being, the "trade agreent" proposed by the other party made him roll his eyes.
Zero tariffs, exploration rights, and mining rights.
As if they were living in a dream!
Just those three demands alone crossed his bottom line, and he saw no tangible benefits in the myriad of conditions and promises they offered.
To put it simply, what was there to gain from trading with the Bugra Free State?
A bunch of armants?
The New Alliance wasn’t short on weapons, to begin with, and there were no wars to fight recently.
The imdiate priority was to shift the surplus military production capacity to civilian use, ensuring the food supply and reserves for the settlent.
From this perspective, doing business with the farm owners to the south clearly made more sense than dealing with the arms dealers to the north.
"...As such, let’s discuss a more official trade agreent once we have built enough trust between us," Chu Guang flatly rejected Xavier’s request after hearing their demands.
And Xavier had no more to say, expressing regret before taking his leave.
Chu Guang could sense that the other party wasn’t very sincere about this trade agreent.
Especially after hearing of Dylon’s death, this feeling beca even more apparent.
The Ya Clan was destroyed, and the disintegration of the Chewing Bone Tribe was only a matter of ti.
However, too many mysteries still clung to this rotting corpse.
How could a looting group garner the support of both the Torch Church and the Army?
There were certainly secrets here that he did not yet understand.
Unfortunately, since Golden Tooth and Dylon were dead, he could only try to investigate through other prisoners of war...
At the entrance to the tent.
Chu Guang happened to see Button waiting there and quickly resud his friendly deanor, smiling warmly.
"What can I do for you, friend from Camp 101?"
The elderly man didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point.
"The drainage system in Dawn City needs to be redesigned; following the current construction plan, this place will undoubtedly turn into a pond by July!"
Turn into a pond?
Was that an exaggeration?
Upon hearing this, surprise crossed Chu Guang’s face, and he imdiately took it seriously.
"Could you elaborate?"
"I ca here precisely to discuss this matter with you!"
Button did not hold back and shared his findings with Chu Guang, including the past precipitation data for West State City and aspects of the drainage system’s design that had been overlooked.
After listening carefully to his suggestions, Chu Guang discreetly sent a task to the Alliance’s chief designer, "Spare people under the knife."
Much of the New Alliance’s city planning was done by players, and while 21st-century design concepts were sufficient for the Wasteland, it was inevitable that so mistakes would occur due to direct application.
Interacting more with the experts from the Wasteland would not only be greatly beneficial for the future developnt of the New Alliance but would also help the players in their personal growth.
"The design of the drainage system certainly can’t be neglected! Would you mind discussing the specific improvents with our designers?"
Unexpectedly honored by Chu Guang’s valuation of his opinion, Button’s face showed joy amidst the surprise, and he promptly assured, thumping his chest.
"No problem! I’ll stay here for the next few days. I’ll help you think of a way, see if we can improve the design plan."
Chu Guang was delighted at the offer.
"That would be fantastic, thank you so much for your help!"
Button grinned sheepishly, "It’s no trouble, just a small matter. As for the visiting delegation, I’ll have to trouble you to look after them!"
Chu Guang replied with a smile, "Of course! Leave that to !"
...
At the work site in Dawn City.
The sewer construction was halted.
Squatting on a concrete block, Spare people under the knife stared at the blueprint filled with circles and dots, so intently that he was nearly scratching his scalp raw.
He had just received a task; the Manager called him over and introduced an old man who was said to be a researcher in environntal engineering.
At first, Spare people under the knife didn’t take it seriously, thinking it was just another scene in the ga.
However, what he didn’t expect was, right after the Manager had introduced the old man to him, the old man started scrutinizing his blueprint, bombarding him with non-stop pointers and comnts.
VM solved the communication problem.
Soone critiquing his blueprint made Spare people under the knife imdiately displeased, and he quickly got into an argunt with the old man.
However, after arguing for a while, he suddenly began to realize that the other party might actually be making so sense.
And not just a little sense.
This was quite embarrassing...
Makabazi, passing by, couldn’t help but approach out of curiosity.
"What’s wrong, brother?"
Spare people under the knife sighed.
"I don’t get it..."
He recounted what had just happened to Makabazi.
Makabazi scratched his head, looking utterly puzzled as he said.
"So basically... an NPC thought there was sothing wrong with your design plan? And now the sewer construction has been halted?"
"Yes." Spare people under the knife nodded earnestly.
Makabazi was astonished.
"Holy shit, what does an NPC know?"
"Not... This NPC is different from the others, he said sothing substantial," sighed Spare people under the knife.
In the course of their conversation, he even felt as if he had gone back to his ti in the classroom.
Whether it was design concepts or design approaches, the academic and professional level displayed by the other party made him doubt whether the person standing in front of him was really an NPC, or a "professor" in disguise.
It made him nostalgic.
How many years had it been since he started working?
Although in the fields of civil and urban planning, he couldn’t exactly be called a master, and he hadn’t engaged in frontline work for so ti, there was absolutely no question about his experience.
The more Spare people under the knife thought about it, the more bewildered he felt.
A ga company.
Do they really need to be so professional, even about sothing so minor?
Makabazi scratched his head again.
"What do we do now?"
He had absolutely no clue about design or construction; he wasn’t even in this field in reality. As a Strength Type, all he knew was that great strength led to miracles.
Anyway, with so many gaming overlords around, he didn’t need to think about too much.
"Nothing much to do, let’s just modify it according to his thod for now," sighed Spare people under the knife, patting his trousers as he stood up. "Gather the heads of the support construction team for a eting."
"I have a new work assignnt."
...
The next morning, at dawn.
In the North Suburb of Qingquan City.
Amidst the drumbeat of the band and the cheers of the people, a train laden with victory and glory, trailing its long whistle, arrived at the station north of the City of Dawn.
People holding flower baskets tossed petals at the train, celebrating the triumphant return of the soldiers.
The boys chased each other around the edges of the crowd, laughing and playing, taking turns playing the noble Soldiers and the evil Looters in their war gas.
The roaring sound of the train made for a perfect accompanint.
Although the real battlefield was far crueler than any script they could imagine.
The girls mostly stood beside their parents, eyes full of curiosity and yearning as they watched the train.
Frost River, standing beside her father, tugged at Frost Snow’s sleeve and whispered, her mouth curving into a smile.
"... Do you feel your heartbeat speeding up?"
Frost Snow’s face turned red, and she glared at her sister, but her eyes did not stray from that train.
The youngest, Frost Night, blinked her eyes, not quite understanding what her elder sisters were discussing.
The guards of the City of Dawn ford a long line beside the railway, maintaining order at the scene, asking the crowd to keep a little distance from the tracks to prevent accidents.
However, this could not restrain the wave-like enthusiasm of the residents of the City of Dawn.
The war had ended!
It was undoubtedly an epic victory!
Those barbaric Barbarians could no longer threaten the peace and prosperity of the City of Dawn.
Praise the Alliance!
Praise the Manager!
Thanks to those brave warriors who ventured out, they cut down the evil with their swords—
Each and every one of them was a hero!
Standing in the train’s engine room, looking out at the joyful faces outside the window, Chu Guang couldn’t help but reveal a gratified smile on his face.
He gently patted the train driver’s chair.
"Slow it down a bit; let our soldiers enjoy the joy of victory a little longer."
The train driver nodded with a smile.
"Alright, sir!"
The prolonged whistle sounded, and the train gradually slowed down.
anwhile, in the other bustling carriages behind...
"Woohoo, is this the capital of the New Alliance?" Pai, pressing her face against the window, eyes brimming with excitent, wished she could stick her head out fully.
Seeing this, Yuan Feng quickly reached out to pull the restless girl back and scolded her.
"Behave yourself! Have you forgotten what your teacher told you? You represent the image of all residents of Camp 101... Do you want to embarrass everyone?"
Pai sulked, pouting her mouth, and sneakily glanced aside.
"It’s not just ..."
Indeed, it wasn’t just her.
Compared to the players’ behavior, she could already be considered relatively restrained.
For instance, a certain tail, not only pressed his face against the window, but even squished his nose out of shape.
"My Giao! Little Fish! Wah, my cute Little Fish, you must have missed Tail so much!"
Sitting nearby, Si Si sighed softly.
"Ah Wei, wake up, your Little Fish is obviously going to greet the Manager, right?"
"I don’t care! I just want to kiss Little Fish!" Tail yelled out.
Hearing this, White bear, sitting opposite the two, imdiately got upset, his eyebrows raised... although it wasn’t very obvious.
"Shut up! Little Fish is clearly mine!"
Tail was startled.
"Ew! You ungrateful at at, how could you do this to Teddy!?"
"What the heck is Teddy? Stop randomly pairing up, geez!"
"Stop fighting, guys... maybe split it half and half?"
The ill-at-ease cat overhead swayed as Sesa Paste tried to soothe the squabble between the human and the bear.
Sitting next to them, Si Si sighed, a look of helplessness on her face as she reminded them,
"... I get how you all feel, but going against an NPC’s wishes or harboring ill intentions toward them can get you kicked offline, you know."
At that mont, a gentle electronic sound filled the carriage.
It wasn’t United Human language.
It was Mandarin.
"Dear players, hello. The train is about to arrive. The residents of the New Alliance are eagerly waiting to welco our triumphant return. I hope everyone will be mindful of their words and actions, and avoid being too extravagant, as to not tarnish our group’s image."
"Due to the one account per person rule, accounts that have been socially death-knelled cannot be deregistered, so please try to act like a normal person, at least while you’re going through the story!
Imdiately, Tail stopped pressing his face against the train window.
"Eh? Was that the planner’s voice just now?"
Si Si glanced up at the speaker on the train’s ceiling.
"... Who knows."
The train arrived at the station.
Flowers.
Applause.
And cheers!
All surged forth like a tidal wave!
Feeling that effusive welcoming, the players who stepped out of the carriage montarily felt dazed.
It was as if...
They were real heroes.
No, it wasn’t as if, it was more like they truly were!
They had protected a part of the world!
That sense of honor and spiritual satisfaction, never felt before in any other ga, sprouted in their hearts like budding seeds.
This deep, soulful feeling of achievent was sothing cold numbers and the bland text of a ga completion notice couldn’t rival.
Staring at the flowers forcibly stuffed into their hands, the construction site lad and the brick-lover muttered in a daze,
"This ga is too realistic..."
"Thank you!"
Elena gratefully accepted the flowers from the little girl with a smile and a polite thanks.
Watching the blushing girl disappear into the crowd, he looked at the flowers in his hand before curiously sniffing one up close.
Ultimately, he couldn’t resist and plucked a petal to taste it.
Emmm...
Not bad?
Peeping this from the side, the mole who narrowly escaped the canyon gave Old Na a surprised look.
"Ew! Are you not letting even flowers go?"
As if it were only natural, Elena responded,
"What if it gives you a buff?"
How would you know if you never tried?
Isn’t that how they found out monster at gave Constitution buffs?
The mole couldn’t help but make a snarky comnt.
"There’s no freaking BUFF!"
That guy must be insane!
On the Flower-bordered train platform, Chu Guang erged with a smile on his face as he looked at Boss Xia, Little Fish, Yu Hu, Old Charlie, Luka, and everyone else.
"I’m back."
"Congratulations on your triumphant return, honorable Manager, We’ve prepared a banquet to celebrate your victory," Old Charlie said reverently.
"It’s good to see you safe and sound," Little Fish sighed with relief as she looked at the unscathed Chu Guang.
Clasping the pale-yellow flowers in her hand, the shy girl ultimately couldn’t bring herself to give them to him.
"Thank you."
Seeing the supportive crowd, Chu Guang smiled and nodded.
His hands were almost too full to hold any more, but he still reached out to gather everyone’s flowers.
He’d plant them near the sanatorium when he got back.
Observing the blue armor scattered with colorful petals, Xia Yan whispered,
"Don’t you get hot wearing that tal monstrosity every day? Sumr’s almost here."
Chu Guang smiled slightly, a bit smug as he said,
"That’s what you don’t get. This armor has built-in climate control, warm in winter, and cool in sumr. Want to try it on?"
Xia Yan’s face reddened.
"You... stop talking nonsense."
Chu Guang: "...?"
He racked his brain but couldn’t figure out what was wrong with that comnt.
The listener must be the one with the issue.
The triumph celebration continued from day into noon.
And the celebratory banquet and revelry lasted well into the evening.
The amount of fine wine and food consud today probably added up to tons.
Even Old Luka, a proponent of frugality, couldn’t say much on this occasion.
They were celebrating a shared victory.
After tonight, those gathered for survival would stand even more united than the day before.
As the night deepened, the enthusiastic players began to log off one by one.
But the lively atmosphere was far from over, it was simply transferred to the official forum online.
While they were enjoying themselves in the ga, those outside the ga were busy too.
The market for Silver coins had heated up.
Astonishing buy orders kept appearing, and mysterious big spenders, as if possessed, were throwing money around to buy up Silver coins from the hands of players.
Witnessing the price showing signs of irrationality, the ga officials finally intervened.
And they released not one, but two public announcents.
[Due to server network fluctuations, the Silver coin trading platform will temporarily close for one day]
[Special event: The special war trophy auction event officially begins!]
[(Details Link)]
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