Searching for the Nonexistent

The three players ate something in the base, then excitedly pushed their carts and left, looking like they were moving.

Cheng Shaofeng clicked his tongue inwardly.

"The base will definitely need more transportation in the future. I need to buy two more wheeled carts when I go to Salt Well Town next time."

"Let the players collect more supplies, and I'll use them to exchange for money."

"That's right, if I save up 300 yuan, I can get a gun from the Colossus City merchants."

Although he now had equipment dropped by the [Loot Generator] and high-quality weapons crafted by Xiao Xiao, there was still a huge gap in power compared to firearms.

After all, the famous seven-step theory was there, and you had to believe it.

As long as they were still mortal, they couldn't fight against firearms for a long time.

Unless the base could lead him to mechanical ascension.

Thinking of this, Cheng Shaofeng had a flash of inspiration.

"Zero, you mentioned before that the base's energy was too low, so only a few functions could be used, and the robots could only mobilize low-level Nano Engineers. Now that my energy has increased, shouldn't the functions of the Calamity Base be updated?"

Zero: "Your current energy is only 1.49%, which does not meet the minimum requirement to unlock new functions. The next stage will be unlocked when the base energy reaches 5%."

"Then what are the functions after the base is unlocked? Are there any nanobots that can kill people invisibly just by me sneezing?"

Zero: "You will have to check after you unlock it. My memory function is restricted, and I cannot know in advance."

"Okay."

Cheng Shaofeng didn't get the information about the base's future functions, but at least he knew the key point of 5%.

"I still need to get the players to work harder! If you don't work hard, how can I get stronger?"

"I just received 3 sets of Electronic Components, plus the Prey the players handed in today. As long as I ensure those few players have the ability to revive, I should be able to summon new players tomorrow."

Players, as creatures, were naturally better the more controllable they were.

Especially since players needed to fight monsters and level up to get stronger slowly, the sooner they were summoned, the faster the Calamity Base's strength would grow.

"Although no Raiders or other forces have discovered us settling here yet, who knows about the future... I must increase our combat power before other forces find us."

While Cheng Shaofeng was planning for the base's future, Forgiveness Hat returned.

He had a large burlap bag on his back, filled with various mushrooms and fruits.

Among them, the most numerous were the half-red, half-blue Icefire Mushrooms.

"Lord, here are the Icefire Mushrooms you asked for. I found 21 of them!"

Cheng Shaofeng: (⊙⊙)

21 of them!!!

Happiness came too suddenly. Cheng Shaofeng used his calculus knowledge from failing the exam three times in his previous life to calculate.

The calculation was complex!

But he still calculated it in his head.

21 * 30 = 630.

These Icefire Mushrooms could be sold for 630 yuan!

A wheeled cart only cost 30 yuan, and a whole Mutated Hyena cost no more than 80 yuan! 300 yuan could get him a gun from the Colossus City merchants!

If these mushrooms were exchanged for Beans, he could get a full 525 pounds of Beans, which, if stored properly, could feed one person for an entire year.

Outrageous!

Completely outrageous!

Thin Dog and the other three worked themselves to death fighting and killing, but it wasn't as valuable as the mushrooms Forgiveness Hat casually picked.

"Forgiveness Hat Wholesaler... you did very well. These mushrooms are a high-quality material, and I can exchange them with merchants from large settlements for resources used by our Calamity Base. You've earned merit, and I will reward you with an additional 200 Merit Points!"

[Quest 'Collect Icefire Mushrooms' completed]

[Due to collecting quantity exceeding quest requirements, the Lord grants an additional reward.]

[Received 21 Iron Coins, 400 Merit Points]

Forgiveness Hat looked at his watch and smiled with satisfaction.

"Thank you, Lord! It is my honor to serve you!"

Cheng Shaofeng immediately said, "Icefire Mushrooms are an important resource, and I need more. If you can collect them, I will give you more rewards."

[Ding~ New quest received: Collect Icefire Mushrooms II]

[Quest requirements: Collect 30 Icefire Mushrooms.]

[Current progress: 0/30]

[Quest rewards: 30 Iron Coins, 300 Merit Points.]

[Collecting more Icefire Mushrooms will earn additional rewards from the Lord.]

"Huh? A series of quests? Then I'll have to look for them again."

"Oh, right, Lord, can I borrow the base's little handcart?"

Cheng Shaofeng: "You need the cart too?"

"Uh, did Thin Dog and them borrow it?"

Cheng Shaofeng nodded.

The Forgiveness Hat had no choice but to pat Cheng Shaofeng's head before leaving.

He muttered to himself, "How am I supposed to haul iron ore without the cart? I'll just wait until Thin Dog and them get back. I'll go back into the mine and look for more mushrooms."

Listening to the Forgiveness Hat's words, Cheng Shaofeng pondered for a moment.

"Soldiers, follow me to Salt Well Town. We're going to procure some necessary supplies."

He had been planning to purchase a batch of supplies for the players for a while. Previously, he lacked valuable resources, but now with these 23 Icefire Mushrooms, he could buy many items they desperately needed.

Actually, if he wanted to purchase supplies in large quantities, the merchant caravans from Colossus City were the best trading partners. They visited Four Mountains every half month, but unfortunately, they had just left yesterday, so he would have to wait another half month.

In Cheng Shaofeng's memory, there were a few human settlements in the Four Mountains region where trading was possible, but none were as safe as the route to Salt Well Town.

This was a route he traveled frequently, and its biggest advantage was: no Raiders.

"There really aren't many Raiders."

Thin Dog observed from behind a large rock near Raider Camp 1.

Just as the Demonic Fox had predicted, the main force of the Raiders here had also gone out, leaving only 4 behind.

Lin Tang stared for a moment, and his anger surged.

"Damn it! These are the four little monsters that dismembered me last time! Thirty years east, thirty years west, don't bully the poor young man! No one can stop me today, I! Lin Tang! Will go on a killing spree!"

The other two: "..."

The Demonic Fox pondered for a moment: "Actually... we can go on a killing spree today, since everyone's equipment has been updated. But dealing with all four at once is a bit dangerous, and we don't know if they have Raiders hidden in their cellar either. How about this, for safety's sake, let's find someone to lure away a few of them first. Let's vote on it."

Lin Tang: ?

Three minutes later, Lin Tang walked out, grumbling, and yelled at the four stunned Raiders, "Your grandpa has revived again! Come catch me!"

Instantly, the four Raiders were startled.

Then they chased after Lin Tang.

However, vaguely, the four not-so-intelligent Raiders felt that this scene... was familiar.

They felt like they had dreamed of this scene before, and the humans they were chasing were the same as the humans running ahead.

After Lin Tang lured the Raiders away, Thin Dog and the Demonic Fox entered the cellar again.

This time, they were familiar with the process.

There were no guarding Raiders inside, nor any captured humans, only three empty prison cells.

Thin Dog pointed to the innermost one and said, "This is where we found the Lord..."

"Go in and take a good look."

The Demonic Fox picked up a torch from the wall and walked into the dungeon. Without changing expression, she pushed aside the rotten corpses on the ground, searching for any traces of human presence.

As the two were searching, two balls of crimson light lit up behind them.

A Skeleton... stood up.

Ahem, we have a saying here that it's still daytime before 12 AM, how about you?