Glitched again? Ruin intelligence!

Zhong Qingshu's voice is highly distinctive, especially when she is languid, which makes her sound even more like Jiangnan Woman.

As Su Mo approached, she, who had been leaning against a low shrub, gradually straightened up and said sarcastically.

"Stop, stop! I'm not buying that! Have you seen any signs of the ruins you mentioned appearing?"

Once the matter was settled, Zhong Qingshu immediately left the nearby bushes and beckoned Su Mo to take a few steps into the bushes, away from the noisy crowd.

They walked all the way to the inside before stopping.

"It's hard to say. The appearance of ruins is too unpredictable. So far, we haven't collected any information about the appearance or disappearance of ruins. It seems that people aren't avoiding the topic, but rather that no one has the resources to conduct observations and research."

"Of course, we can't rule out the possibility that someone knows but is keeping it hidden."

Shaking his head, Zhong Qingshu hid in a corner and shrewdly surveyed his surroundings. Then, with a wave of his hand, a small compass appeared in his hand.

"This compass is a reward I got from a previous mission. Based on my initial assessment, it has some reference value. Take a look!"

After saying that, Zhong Qingshu stretched out her jade-like hand, grasped the compass, and a magical scene appeared.

After Zhong Qingshu gave it a slight shake, the compass, which had been stable, seemed to be summoned by some force and began to spin wildly.

This frantic spinning state only occurs when a compass encounters a strong magnetic force.

"What is this?" With a puzzled look, Su Mo took the compass from him.

Without Zhong Qingshu needing to explain, Su Mo also felt a power that was slowly increasing, as if it was summoning something to come.

"It won't be long, maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after. In any case, the ruins will definitely reappear before the next disaster. That will be our last chance to enter before the next disaster!"

"The last chance?"

Even with access to World Channel and Area Channel for information while staying in their own shelters, Su Mo's information sources are still far too limited compared to these large-scale shelters.

A lot of information that could have been seen may be automatically filtered out by the system's big data filtering, causing you to miss important information.

This is also the first major problem that a lone wolf shelter will encounter in the post-apocalyptic wasteland!

"Let me put it this way. According to the information I've received, every time we survive a disaster, or are about to face the next one, the entrance to the ruins becomes weaker. At a certain moment, the node at that location can be opened, which is the entrance to the ruins that we see."

"Like disasters, each disaster corresponds to one entry into the ruins. Among these, Welfare Disaster, apart from accumulating disaster avoidance attempts to upgrade the shelter, do not have any other side effects like normal disasters."

"And strangely enough, this Welfare Disaster doesn't seem to be integrated into the world's overall disaster cycle system. It's as if it was artificially added, a half-finished product that hasn't been fully integrated."

Although he knew that he would receive countless useful messages after contacting others, Su Mo still felt greatly benefited from hearing Zhong Qingshu's words.

Su Mo has always had countless questions about the strange ruins that appear near the Underground Shelter.

In such a short time, I didn't encounter anyone else in the ruins, and there was no one to talk to! While being a king in a certain place may greatly increase one's sense of security, the effects of isolation will become more and more serious over time.

"So, you're saying that this disaster of ours happened because we hit a bug and borrowed the light from the next disaster?"

As a Humanoid Walking Bug Creator, Su Mo scratched his head, looking enlightened at the deduced facts.

"Yes, this disaster has essentially borrowed time from the next one. It seems the intervals between the appearances of the ruins have indeed shortened, but at the same time, we want to wait until the ruins reappear next time."

"At that time, the time span was too long. I had a feeling that if it was a flood, this disaster would probably last for months!"

Communicating with idiots is a waste of time.

Communicating with smart people is mentally taxing.

While they were talking, the compass needle had already started spinning faster than the naked eye could see.

Even the usually composed Su Mo couldn't help but become curious.

"Let's put aside the issue of how many times you can enter the ruins. By the way, what kind of quest did you receive last time you entered these ruins?"

"Is this task mandatory? Are there penalties for failing to complete it?"

While fiddling with the compass in his hand, Su Mo casually asked the question that had been weighing on his mind for a long time.

Despite being completely unfamiliar with the other ruins, Su Mo still chose the wisest approach: asking a question in return.

However, Zhong Qingshu didn't pay attention to this way of asking the question. Instead, she gestured for Su Mo to stand up again and walked until they reached the deepest part of the bushes before stopping.

"What? Is there something fishy about these mission ruins?"

Seeing Zhong Qingshu's demeanor, Su Mo immediately perked up.

Currently, quite a few people have entered the ruins on the World Channel, but apart from the Black Fog Ruins of the Underground Shelter, Su Mo only has a vague understanding of the ruins of other people.

Most of the intelligence we obtain can only be analyzed through fragments of information revealed by others.

This is the first time I've ever heard someone describe what other ruins are like in their entirety, like this.

"There's nothing strange about it, but if you haven't been inside, it's a bit hard to understand."

"The location where we complete our mission is in the wasteland, but in a parallel world's wasteland?"

"No, no, to be more specific, it's in the wasteland of the past tense?"

"Past?"

Seeing Zhong Qingshu's look of reminiscence, even though Su Mo suppressed his shock, he couldn't help but show a hint of surprise on his face.

"Yes, I don't know how to describe it, but anyway, after entering the ruins, you'll appear in the wasteland."

"The last time I entered the ruins was right after the acid rains."

"But strangely enough, after I entered the ruins, I was transported back to the time when I first arrived in the wasteland."

"The first day?"

Seeing Su Mo's serious expression, Zhong Qingshu nodded and recounted the events of the first day.

"During the mission selection, the ruins will offer three different missions."

"Of course, the rewards will be different too!"

"Within my options, the best reward is naturally Time Currency, and the worst is the martial arts I'll show you."

Seemingly regretting making the worst choice, Zhong Qingshu shook her head, then nodded at the last moment.

"To choose the hand-to-hand combat reward, you only need to kill 10 Mutated Creature within three days."

"But if you choose Time Currency, you'll have to..."

"Save the world!"

"Huh?" Su Mo, who was still sorting through the information conveyed by Zhong Qingshu's words, was stunned when he heard a term that only appeared in America science fiction blockbusters.

"Yes, that's exactly what it means, just like when you kill him." Pointing to the sky and mimicking the appearance of Tengu Pseudo-God, Zhong Qingshu continued, "You have to guarantee that after the first acid rain disaster, more than 95% of the people will survive."

"You think this is the only way to complete the mission? Doesn't it sound absurd? Damn it, I had the same expression when I first saw this mission."

Frustrated, Zhong Qingshu rubbed her hair and, seeing the dazed Su Mo, made a puzzled expression.

Then, Zhong Qingshu shook her head and stopped talking.

Based on the mortality rate of the first wasteland update, the casualty rate before the first human catastrophe was 89%.

It seems that the difference between 89% and 95% is not that great.

But once you consider the base of billions and the reasons for these people's deaths, you can see how insane this task is.

It's simple to keep these people alive and complete this mission.

As long as you can provide enough drinking water, allowing them to stay safely in their base, it's not difficult for them to survive for seven days with just water and no food.

But the problem is, there's no water in the wasteland!

This limits the possibility of ending the acid rain event on the first day unless some disaster is triggered that covers it.

Otherwise, there is no other way!

"Don't think about that. This time, the two of us going in will definitely be able to complete the other tasks."

"To complete this Time Currency task, unless you cheat and directly unlock Infinite Water Resource, there's really no other way."

Seeing that Su Mo was still sitting on the ground deep in thought, Zhong Qingshu waved her hand listlessly.

"Infinite Water Resource?"

Seeing Zhong Qingshu's beautiful profile, and thinking about the Shan Hai Painting cards in the Storage Space, Su Mo smiled and did not continue the topic.

There's always a way to complete a task.

However, the cost of this method must be far less than the reward for it to be worthwhile; otherwise...

Completely meaningless!

Sensing that Zhong Qingshu wanted to move on from the topic, Su Mo didn't press her for more information. Instead, they continued exchanging information about the ruins and the wasteland world.

After more than half an hour of conversation, feeling his brain was already issuing warnings, Su Mo "justifiably" ended today's enjoyable intelligence-gathering session.

"Alright, that's not a problem. If the ruins open, I'll come right away. It won't delay anything!"

Seeing Su Mo's "exhausted" appearance, Zhong Qingshu covered her mouth and chuckled a few times. Following the same path, the two returned to the edge of the field.

The experienced operator, with over ten years of excavator experience, is far superior to Su Mo's mediocre skills.

Five acres of land that hundreds of people couldn't finish in a day were transformed into a perfectly flat field after the experienced excavator operated it a few times, with fertile plain soil everywhere.

Hundreds of people lay prone in the mud, using shovels to remove as many plant roots as possible to prevent other plants from stealing nutrients from the crops during production and reducing the yield.

The stronger men worked hard to dig holes in the ground, while the weaker women stood on the hillside, crushing the snow into small balls and putting them into the holes to keep them moist.

Everyone was working enthusiastically, including the four prison guards, who all took off their clothes and joined the workforce.

Sweat dripped from their heads.

Gray and black hues appeared on their bodies.

No one complained of hardship or fatigue. Even the 17-year-olds followed the adults' example and worked diligently.

"It's wonderful. Such simple and genuine struggle is something only my father's generation has ever seen. I never imagined that I would witness it myself in this post-apocalyptic wasteland."

When talking about this, Zhong Qingshu's eyes were full of emotion.

"Su Mo, you really don't come from any big family. Besides, I've never heard of any super soldier king in China."

"I didn't, I'm not, don't talk nonsense!" Su Mo denied it three times in a row. Looking at Zhong Qingshu, who was like a curious child, Su Mo took off his mask and breathed out a breath.

"There are too many opportunities in the wasteland. What you see is just the tip of the iceberg. It is very likely that in some corner, something we cannot see is happening, and countless powerful people are rising. Every change is a reshuffling, and only those who survive are the ultimate winners."

"Including myself, I might be one of the luckier people in the wasteland. Of course, there are many ruthless characters who haven't shown their faces yet, lurking in the shadows."

Given the large population base, plus variables such as boxes, ruins, and special items, there are too many uncertain factors.

It's quite possible that someone will have a stroke of luck and find incredible items in an ordinary box, changing their destiny.

It's also possible that someone, like Zhong Qingshu, might discover something invisible to others within the ruins, thereby enhancing their strength and achieving a breakthrough.

In the early stages of the post-apocalyptic wasteland, survival may be the dominant theme.

But later on, those who survive will definitely pursue an ultimate goal: figuring out what this world really is! What do the Game Panel displayed to everyone represent! And how to get back to Earth!

"That's true, but there's no use thinking about it so much. We might not even survive the next disaster. If we don't handle it well, more than half of the people below could die."

Shrinking her head slightly, Zhong Qingshu playfully stuck out her tongue, then changed the subject, bringing up the problem facing everyone.

At the current rate, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the next flood will surely be enough to submerge all the land.

Su Mo's speech just now could boost the morale of ordinary people, but it was still a bit lacking for someone like Zhong Qingshu, who is both an academic star and has super strong combat capabilities.

"It depends on the extent of the flood. If it's 20 or 30 meters deep, then no one can escape. If it's 5 to 10 meters, there might be a chance."

"There's a small hill near my shelter, over twenty meters high. If all else fails, Candlelight Shelter can move there."

The hardness of the Iron Stone Mountain is considerable, so it should not be a problem to face a flood without impact.

Given the ample Iron Block reserves currently in the shelter, Su Mo has no immediate plans to exploit this resource point.

However, Zhong Qingshu heard another meaning in these words: "So what about you? Are you leaving to go find your sister?"

"Pretty much. If it's confirmed to be a flood, it'll make it easier for me to go out, saving me some trouble."

A journey of 20,000 li.

With the help of the Earth Tiger, it's uncertain how long it will take to reach the Tundra Shelter, but if there's a flood, things might change!

The ship can move in one direction 24 hours a day. Especially after the addition of an unmanned driving system, it can keep moving forward steadily even if Su Mo is asleep.

In less than a month, Su Mo will be able to complete this extremely long journey and reach the vicinity of the Tundra Shelter.

This is a catastrophe capable of annihilating all life on the wasteland, and also the best time to pick up my sister.

Seeing that Su Mo's mood had become depressed, Zhong Qingshu stood for a while, and then joined the group of refugees who were struggling below.

The sky was bright and clear.

The sky was cloudless.

They continued their journey until noon, when Su Mo generously laid out ten large flatbreads and instructed the cook to prepare an extra meal for everyone.

These simple, honest workers can be won over with just a simple meal.

They worked until sunset, and by then, more than fifty acres of farmland had been cleared from the Candlelight Plain.

It's absolutely stunning at first glance!