"Wooo, Master, you finally came looking for me."
The earlier wooo had been the sound of wheels rolling over the concrete floor.
After returning to the surface, Chu Guang first went to the third floor of the sanatorium.
He had planned to ask Xiao Qi about the situation, but before he even reached the window, he saw the wastebasket pitifully roll toward him.
Chu Guang stared at it in confusion, having no idea what was wrong with it again.
"What's going on with you?"
"Xiao Qi only has one bar of power left."
Oh.
He had thought it was something serious.
Wait...
Chu Guang said, "Where am I supposed to find somewhere to charge you?"
Xiao Qi said, "I have a wireless charging interface! I just need to stay in the Vault for a while!"
Chu Guang said, "..."
No wonder he had not seen a single outlet in the Vault, and the computer on the desk without a tower never seemed to run out of power. So it was all high-tech.
Though wireless charging was not exactly advanced technology.
Carrying the wastebasket-shaped robot, Chu Guang headed downstairs.
Xiao Qi obediently retracted the wheels underneath it, then suddenly spoke up.
"Oh, right, Master."
"What now?"
"I suddenly remembered that the Vault's power system seems to use a nuclear fusion reactor core."
"Nuclear fusion?"
"Mm, so the electricity in there can last a very, very long time."
"Oh, that's a good thing." Chu Guang was already considering how to siphon some of that electricity out.
Xiao Qi continued.
"Although... that might not actually be a good thing."
Its words interrupted his train of thought. Chu Guang stopped halfway down the stairs.
"What do you mean?"
"Because it is already the year 2340 now. Compared to when the Vault was built, that is already a very, very long time later..."
What?!
Chu Guang hurriedly asked.
"What happens if the power runs out?"
However, Xiao Qi's answer nearly made him cough up blood.
"I don't know."
"You don't know???"
You actually didn't know something this important?!
Was there no emergency contingency plan at all???
Xiao Qi said cautiously.
"Because according to the plan... this Vault should have opened a hundred years ago. But for some reason, it was delayed by an entire century."
Chu Guang said, "..."
Seeing that Chu Guang said nothing, Xiao Qi continued in a soft, comforting voice.
"Actually, you do not need to be too pessimistic. Vault 404's power room should be on the third level of the Vault. As long as you unlock that level, you can replace the fuel rods in time and everything will be OK."
Chu Guang nearly spat.
"Where the hell am I supposed to get nuclear fusion fuel rods?!"
This was already the 211th year of the Wasteland Era.
Xiao Qi said, "Uh, there will always be a way, right?"
Chu Guang said, "..."
No matter what, he could not take his anger out on an electronic product.
That would be beneath him.
Chu Guang set Xiao Qi down beside the elevator and watched the wastebasket robot rumble away.
He was feeling a little irritated.
Still, Chu Guang knew that panicking would not help. Problems had to be solved one at a time.
The power supply should not pose much of a problem in the short term. Even if the Vault had opened a century late, it had not been operating during that century. It should have been running in power-saving mode. For all he knew, the remaining power might still last for decades.
Compared to that, the approaching winter was what truly warranted his concern.
He did not have much time left to prepare...
Leaving the sanatorium.
Chu Guang came to the cement kilns and found the players busily at work, already starting on a second cement kiln.
Beside them, eight neat mounds for making charcoal had also been piled up.
Were they planning to skip the agricultural age and leap straight into industrialization?!
Chu Guang was delighted.
It was all thanks to his masterful leadership and excellent village management!
Seeing the Administrator approaching, Old White wiped the dust and mud from his face. He was so excited that, rather than an adult in his twenties or thirties, he looked like a child as he rose to his feet and said.
"Administrator, you're here!"
"Mm, I just went down for a while... Was this your idea?" Chu Guang asked, looking at the earthen cement kiln behind him.
"It was everyone's achievement!"
"No need to be modest. I have seen everything, and the organization will remember your contributions!"
Old White's face lit up with excitement.
Wasn't that exactly what he had been waiting to hear?!
Especially the second half.
"...In addition, on behalf of the organization, I will award each of you 1,000 contribution points in recognition of unlocking cement construction materials. And from now on, you are the construction captain of the Vault 404 outpost!"
"You may freely apply your creativity to design and build our outpost base within the planned boundaries."
It would have been great if a system notification had chimed right then.
That would have been really cool.
Or perhaps reward notification windows could have appeared in the players' vision.
But unfortunately, neither happened.
Even so, even a verbal promise and commendation like this made Old White so excited that his face flushed red.
Merit!
A position!
And favorability!
It seemed this game's hidden systems were even more extensive than he had imagined!
"Respected Administrator! I will do everything in my power and give my all to build our home!"
The other three players looked at him with envy.
Everyone had received contribution points, but Old White, who had obtained the position of "construction captain," was clearly the one who had truly struck it rich.
Being able to freely design and construct facilities—what construction captain was this? He was obviously the director of the planning office in Wasteland OL!
This was awesome!
Looking at the energetic Old White, Chu Guang nodded approvingly and said.
"Very good. Now, I need you to tell me your plan."
"Yes!"
Old White stood ramrod straight and began his report.
According to Old White, after logging off yesterday, he had investigated real-world cement factories and asked the workers there. He learned that mixing iron powder into cement could produce stronger, more durable cement.
Discussing things outside the game while in the game seemed to be automatically ignored by NPCs. Seeing no reaction from the Administrator, Old White went straight to the point.
Considering that rusted steel was everywhere in the wasteland, he had mixed the collected rust with charcoal, using the latter as a reducing agent. He planned to smelt iron through calcination, then calcine the resulting iron slag together with wood ash cement.
This would seemingly increase the production cost of cement, but the cement produced this way could be used to make more durable, heat-resistant cement kilns with greater output.
"It's impossible to produce cement in large quantities with just these earthen kilns, so I plan to invest all the cement we produce early on into building production facilities, further increasing cement output!"
Chu Guang nodded approvingly.
"That's a good idea, but... how much cement can we produce using nothing but tree bark?"
Chu Guang had already noticed earlier that not only had they stripped the bark from the logs cut down on the ground, but nearly every tree around the sanatorium had been stripped bare by these survivors.
They had not even spared the stumps!
Old White had clearly already considered this issue and answered confidently.
"That is precisely why we need more professional cement kilns... the kind that can reach 1,450 degrees! Then we can produce calcium carbonate cement by firing limestone and clay, completely replacing wood ash as our raw material!"
Wood ash cement containing potassium and sodium was not the ideal building material. It was merely a substitute when circumstances left no alternative.
After being appointed construction captain, Old White suddenly developed greater ambitions.
He no longer saw only a single wall or one sanatorium building.
He saw the entire wasteland.
He wanted to remake this world into the way he envisioned it!
"You have considered things thoroughly. Do it according to your plan."
Chu Guang nodded, then looked at the other three players.
"Two newcomers will be finishing their hibernation soon and joining our expedition team. I intend to hold a small feast to welcome them, so we need to bring back some game... We can't exactly invite them to drink porridge."
After a pause, Chu Guang continued.
"Who is willing to go hunting with me?"
The moment his words fell, four hands shot up.
Chu Guang froze.
Good lord, even the construction captain he had just appointed raised his hand!
"Ahem, I won't need that many people... Ye Shi, you come. You're from the Perception type."
"Yes, Administrator!"
Ye Shi saluted excitedly. Under the envious glares of the other three players, he strode proudly to the Administrator's side.
Chu Guang looked at the other three players and said sternly.
"Your task is also crucial. Cement is the top priority for the outpost's development. We have enough wood for now, so logging can be put on hold. I need you to devote yourselves fully to producing cement. Can you do it?"
Though disappointed that they could not go hunting with the Administrator, the three players obediently accepted his arrangements.
"We guarantee that we will complete the mission!"
Very good.
As expected of the players I personally selected!
Chu Guang nodded in satisfaction and led the grinning Ye Shi toward the woods south of the sanatorium...
Before you continue