Skills for Picking Up Garbage

When Feng Xue emerged from the Locker Room, he was already wearing a set of canvas clothes. This outfit, which cost one hundred Tower currency and a Temporary Locker, wasn't comfortable, but it was durable and resistant to dirt, making it perfect for picking up garbage.

Wearing a pair of Work Gloves, Feng Xue returned to the plaza and saw Old Li standing in front of someone dressed in strange attire, explaining something.

Seeing the situation, he didn't approach further, but instead quietly shifted his gaze to the giant clock at the entrance of the Garbage Dump.

6:56.

There were still two hours until the Garbage Dump officially opened.

"Did I come a bit too early?" Feng Xue yawned widely, feeling like a student who got to school at 5:30 AM for a 7:30 AM class, the kind who's overly eager (or maybe just rushing to finish homework). However, looking at the growing crowd around him, he suddenly felt that perhaps this feeling was the norm.

After all, the garbage that appeared in the Garbage Dump was finite. Out of hundreds of thousands of people in the Landfill Area, less than one-tenth had professions. The rest relied on the Garbage Dump for survival. Arriving a little earlier meant getting closer to the front when entering, possibly allowing them to pick up more, thus increasing their chances of survival.

It was important to know that, according to Old Li, tens of thousands of Transmigrators arrived at this Garbage Dump every Garbage Day. This week, Feng Xue estimated the number of deaths to be around two thousand. Even if he included the days before he took office, the total deaths over these ten days wouldn't exceed four thousand. In other words, for the Landfill Area to maintain a stable population of hundreds of thousands, at least six to seven thousand people had to die every Garbage Day.

Just as Feng Xue was contemplating whether to find a place to sit for a while, a piercing hum suddenly came from above. Feng Xue's gaze instinctively shot towards the sky, his eyes widening in surprise--

The clear sky, which had seemed unaffected by weather changes since his transmigration, was now covered by Dark Clouds. Yet, just a minute before, the sky had been as clear and blue as a calm lake.

Within the thick Dark Clouds, which seemed poised to drag the sky back into night, flashing blue and red Lightning continuously intertwined. Something that was difficult to call a depression was forming in the center of the Dark Clouds.

The Dark Clouds seemed to be transforming from a ball of cotton candy into a donut. Amidst the flashes of two-colored Lightning, the depression slowly turned into a void, a blackness where an invisible Storm seemed to be brewing.

Then, a large amount—no, a massive quantity of matter rained down from the Dark Clouds.

Among them were humans, as well as Plants and Trees; large chunks of Soil, Sand and Stone; and man-made objects like Refrigerators and Televisions. Occasionally, one could even see a Truck falling from the sky. But these weren't the most astonishing things. In fact, Feng Xue even saw a section of an Apartment Building, about five or six stories tall, plummeting down with them.

Logically, objects falling from thousands, even tens of thousands, of meters high would cause immense impact upon hitting the ground. However, unexpectedly, even after more than ten minutes, as the Dark Clouds completely dispersed, those outside the Garbage Dump felt no tremor whatsoever.

"Wasn't that spectacular?" Old Li's voice suddenly sounded. But Feng Xue was in no mood to dwell on such things. He merely gazed at the now clear, cloudless sky and murmured, "Did I fall down like that too?"

"Yes, you could say everyone did." Old Li, pulling out a cigarette from somewhere but not lighting it, just held it in his mouth and said with a slightly weathered tone, "In the Infinite City, human lives are this cheap. No matter how many die, they'll be replenished soon enough. After all, this is the Garbage Dump for countless worlds, and to those vast worlds, humans are truly like trash."

"Tsk..." Feng Xue clicked his tongue. Although he had understood that the population here was replenished, seeing it firsthand still made him feel a sense of unreality.

Just then, the Gate of the Garbage Dump suddenly opened, and the surrounding crowd immediately became restless. However, apart from a few reckless individuals, no one rushed towards the Gate. Those few who dared to step forward were subdued before they even reached it.

Gang members in uniform split some of their personnel to tie up those who dared to break the rules on the execution platform outside the Garbage Dump. The rest proceeded in an orderly fashion, slowly disappearing into the Garbage Dump.

"Bang!" With a dull clang of metal, the Gate of the Garbage Dump closed again. Old Li, who had suddenly fallen silent, finally spoke, "These gang members will first sort through the garbage, collecting the vast majority of the True Things. Only then will it be our turn to enter."

Listening to Old Li's words, Feng Xue wasn't surprised. He simply asked, "Speaking of which, what kind of garbage is more valuable?"

This question wasn't really important to Feng Xue, as he was no longer among those who needed to survive by picking up garbage. However, considering he needed a large amount of materials for reforging, it was better to ask—after all, taking items out of the Garbage Dump required paying 1.5 times their appraised value.

Hearing Feng Xue's question, Old Li once again revealed his shrewd merchant-like smile. Before Feng Xue could say anything further, he directly quoted a price, "1000 Tower currency."

"No problem." Feng Xue didn't hesitate. He directly drew a thousand Tower currency Paper Money from his Work Card and handed it to Old Li. Old Li took the money and smiled with satisfaction, "Actually, value is quite simple. True Things are definitely the most valuable, but there are the fewest loopholes, and even if you get them, it's more profitable to absorb them directly than to hand them over to the gangs.

"Next are items with complete functionality, like Bicycles or Electric Ovens. As long as they are fully functional, their appraised value is usually based on market price. However, this is a matter of luck, and many appliances can't be fully tested for their condition on the spot, requiring professional judgment and luck.

"If you want to guarantee income, picking Metal Garbage is always a safe bet. The price is stable, and it's basically easy to sell, but don't expect to make a fortune."

"I see." Feng Xue recalled the old Television he had exchanged for five Bricks during his transmigration. It must have benefited from its complete functionality. Thinking this way, should he be choosing items that looked more damaged? But would that affect the reforging effect?

While Feng Xue was deep in thought, Old Li suddenly seemed to remember something and reminded him, "Oh, and one last thing. Regardless of whether Supernatural Abilities existed in your original world, anything with magical power here will become a useless item. Unless it can become a Phantom. But Phantoms are virtually impossible to find in the Garbage Dump, as those gang members aren't fools. For True Things, they might occasionally miss a few with low reserves, but they'll definitely miss none of the Phantoms."