This Is Way Too Criminal

Chu Guang was a man of principles. Naturally, he would not exploit the players for free labor.

Although the shelter was still poor, and contribution points could not buy anything except "revival coins," he still paid Teng Teng for her work.

Fifty contribution points for every piece of clothing she made.

The requirements were not high. It just had to be wearable and warm.

Once the "shop system" went online, he planned to price these clothes according to quality, from 100 to 500 contribution points, and sell them to the other players.

Come to think of it, he would also need an NPC to serve as a merchant.

He had heard that Brown Farm next door sold off some slaves with bad legs every winter to save food and fuel, then bought a new batch of cheap labor from slave traders once spring arrived.

Perhaps he should go there and try his luck.

"Respected Administrator, when are we leaving?"

Seeing Chu Guang emerge from the sanatorium, Garbage Lord came up to him, his lizard tail swaying as he impatiently pressed for an answer.

"No rush. I need to find you a suitable weapon first... Come with me."

Outside the sanatorium walls stood a small wooden cabin built by Damn, There Really Are Mosquitoes. It was currently being used as a carpentry workshop.

The outpost was currently short on tools, especially reliable steel tools. Many things could only be replaced with wood.

But people could always find a way.

By combining industrial scrap scavenged from the wasteland with wood, this player skilled in carpentry had actually made quite a few post-apocalyptic-style tools.

For example, the crossbow leaning against the wall was one of them.

Its wooden stock, stainless steel parts, simple mechanical assembly, and hinges had been pieced together by hand. The bowstring was made from specially treated mutant hyena sinews.

As for the arrowheads, they were sharpened metal scraps.

His iron pipe rifle did not have much ammunition left, only about twenty rounds. He had to conserve them. If prey could be killed with a crossbow, it was better to use a crossbow whenever possible.

Watching the Administrator pick up the crossbow, Garbage Lord assumed the treasure was being given to him. He hurriedly reached out to take it, only to have his hand slapped away.

"Your weapon is that."

Chu Guang pointed to several javelins in the corner, their spearheads made from sharpened metal scraps. A carrying strap for convenient storage sat beside them.

"Your starting Strength is 8. As long as you master throwing techniques, you can kill prey in a single strike within ten meters."

Garbage Lord pulled a long face.

"But, Respected Administrator, I still think... if I had a ranged weapon, my hunting efficiency would be higher."

Chu Guang glanced at his two-meter-tall frame.

With a body that big, why not charge ahead and tank instead of hiding in the back to snipe?

Was he even a man?

"Javelins are a fundamental hunting skill. Whether in close combat or a mid-range encounter, they will keep you from falling into a passive position."

"Today, I will only teach you hunting techniques. As for what weapon you choose to fight with afterward, that will be up to you."

So it was part of the storyline.

Garbage Lord nodded as though he understood, then shut his mouth.

As they spoke, the player Damn, There Really Are Mosquitoes pushed open the cabin door and walked out carrying two glass bottles.

When he saw Chu Guang, his eyes lit up.

"Respected Administrator, I was just looking for you! This is the acetone I mentioned! It can be used as a solvent to make smokeless powder."

As he spoke, he imitated an alchemist and shook the bottle in his right hand. The motion startled both Chu Guang and Garbage Lord, and they instinctively took a step back.

"It's fine, hehe. As long as it doesn't encounter an open flame, it'll be okay. Hehehehe."

Mosquitoes looked utterly excited as he spoke.

He would only dare do something like this in a game. He absolutely would not dare try it in his little workshop back home.

He just had not expected this game to be so realistic that he could actually make this stuff.

At that moment, he suddenly noticed the lizardman beside the Administrator, and his excited expression visibly froze for a moment.

"This is...?"

Chu Guang gave a light cough.

"He is a newly arrived resident. ID: Junk Collector Level 99."

"Oh, oh, a newcomer."

Mosquitoes looked at him with envy.

A hidden class right from the start.

That was way too awesome!

"Tell me about the stuff in your hands," Chu Guang said, glancing at the glass bottle he held. "This thing... how did you make it?"

"The method is simple. It's basically the dry distillation of wood. You heat wood in a sealed metal container, lead the vapor out through a tube, condense it in a bucket of cold water, and the collected condensate can easily be separated into a watery solution and a thick tar-like residue... A simple fractional distillation process will do."

"The watery portion is wood vinegar, mainly composed of acetic acid, acetone, and methanol. Their different boiling points allow for further fractional distillation. Acetic acid can react with alkali metal compounds to produce salts with various uses, while acetone is this bottle in my right hand... Its uses are incredible."

At that point, Mosquitoes sighed regretfully.

"Tch, if only we could get sulfuric acid. With sulfuric acid, we could make hydrogen peroxide. Mix hydrogen peroxide with acetone and we could make triacetone triperoxide... TATP, commonly known as entropy explosive."

Garbage Lord listened from the side with his eyes wide, unable to stop himself from swallowing.

What exactly did this guy do in real life?

This was way too criminal!

Chu Guang was also shocked by the guy.

He subconsciously looked at the little wooden cabin in front of him, unable to connect it with a chemistry laboratory no matter how hard he tried.

Only players would dare do something so reckless.

Steadying himself, Chu Guang looked at him and continued.

"I'll keep an eye out for chemical plants around this area, so... are you saying we can't make explosives yet?"

"We can't make high-performance ones, but black powder is pretty easy. Give me some more time. I'm working on other methods, but... sometimes you don't necessarily need explosives to achieve a destructive effect." Mosquitoes shook the glass bottle in his left hand and chuckled. "This contains a mixture of pine oil and acetone. I also added a little plant fiber. Light the cotton strip at the mouth of the bottle and throw it, and it'll burn for a long time."

A Molotov cocktail?!

This was a good thing!

Chu Guang's eyes lit up. He took the glass bottle from his hand and weighed it in his palm.

"Have you tested its power?"

"Uh... there are trees everywhere nearby. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to put the fire out," Mosquitoes said awkwardly.

Not bad.

It seemed this guy still had some sense.

"I'll take it outside and test it for you later."

Chu Guang calmly put away the glass bottle and continued looking at him.

"Doing chemical experiments in this environment is still rather dangerous, and the shelter does not currently have the conditions to store hazardous materials like this. I will give you the reward you deserve, but I cannot encourage you to expand production."

After a brief pause, Chu Guang changed tack.

"However... I would suggest that you try to find ways for these chemical products to be useful in the outpost's production and construction, creating value that we need."

"Creating value that we need..." Mosquitoes looked as though he half understood. He silently repeated the words to himself and fell into thought.

"Yes, think about it carefully." Chu Guang nodded and continued, "Of course, I would recommend talking to the other shelter residents as well. Ask them whether they have any good ideas."

"You might find something unexpected."

Thanks to "Little Li" for the alliance leader donation~~~~~~ If anything in this chapter reads awkwardly, it was probably because the review process deleted some words. In short, acetone was made through the dry distillation of wood. I have no idea why that would be sensitive; it's even in high school textbooks, isn't it?