"I wished for a steady job, sure, but I never said it had to be in the Wasteland!"
How had I ended up in another world?
At his graduate school graduation party, 26-year-old Cheng Ye had jokingly made a wish after his friends egged him on: he wanted to find a high-paying, stable job as soon as possible.
Who could have guessed that he'd wake up in a Wasteland sanctuary city called Xingfu City?
His predecessor's father had been an inspector in Xingfu City, but had died on a Field Mission.
By the rules, the original owner, who'd grown up in the Inner City, had to leave the High Wall and come to the Quarantine Zone to follow in his father's footsteps. But after just one day, he'd been so terrified that he took pills and killed himself.
By the time Cheng Ye woke up, he'd become the third-generation heir to the position of "inspector."
Fortunately, being an inspector really did count as a steady job.
As long as he didn't go on Field Missions during his three-month probationary period, and didn't go looking for trouble, the odds of him dying were pretty low.
"I've got a Field Mission in half a month. I have to... get used to seeing this sort of thing, fast."
Watching Edmund gradually stop twitching, Cheng Ye let out a heavy sigh and finally forced the nausea churning in his stomach back down.
"Also... activate!"
Cheng Ye raised a hand and gripped the Star Pendant on his chest. A flash appeared before his eyes, and an Illusory Interface only he could see popped up.
[Civilization Collector]
[Current Activation Progress: 97.4%]
The interface shimmered with a faint blue light, rippling gently like waves. Its motion soothed Cheng Ye's unease a little.
The pendant was one of the heirlooms left behind by his predecessor's father.
Unfortunately, his predecessor had been too terrified to discover its secret. Cheng Ye only found out by accident while searching through his Belongings: he knocked the pendant down, and it slipped into a Power Strip. That was when he discovered it could absorb electricity and activate this mysterious interface.
"I hope this thing's useful once it's activated. Otherwise, I'm in trouble."
Cheng Ye prayed silently.
For a modern person who'd lived through an explosion of knowledge, eliciting information from people while guarding a gate wasn't difficult. But if he had to fight an Infected head-on, he really wasn't confident.
After all, the Infected in this world weren't like the zombies in American movies, which relied on blood and growling to make an impression. They only posed a threat in a horde; alone, they could even be taken out easily by an adult.
In this Wasteland, even the most ordinary Infection Source could bring a dead human back to life. The tentacle that had just been shot in the head by a Sentinel was one such example.
As long as no one pointed out that they were dead, these infected corpses could walk and talk like normal people, living among human society until the Infection Source inside them built up enough strength to trigger a second major outbreak.
Stronger Infection Sources, like "dandelions," released Spores that spread across a two-kilometer radius as soon as they died. Even if humans inhaled only a tiny amount, they would become Infected.
Compared with that, if he had a choice, Cheng Ye would much rather have a brainless cheat like "Hundredfold Reward" or "Sign-in To Get Divine Skill." Failing that, "Two Realms Gate" or "Infinite Upgrade System" would do.
But reality was cruel. "Civilization Collector," the name of what seemed to be his cheat, sounded downright plain.
Speaking of plain...
Footsteps came from the distance. Four Cleanup Crew members with bare chests seemed to embody the word even better.
They had no Protective Suits, let alone weapons—only a Body Bag, a shovel, and an Isolation Box for containing the Infection Source.
Laughing and chatting, the four opened the cage first. One of them used the shovel to swiftly finish off Edmund, who was still twitching. Then they grabbed the suction-cup-covered tentacle with their bare hands and carelessly stuffed it into the Isolation Box.
Once they'd finished containment, the other three set about cleaning the Isolation Cage. The man leading the group turned and smiled. "Inspector Cheng, the Contribution Points reward will be the same as usual. It'll be deposited into your personal account once the Infected Stage has been determined."
"Sounds good. Please buy the guys a drink for me."
Cheng Ye nodded and took two Bottle Cap Sized Coins from his pocket, tossing them over.
The man caught them, his smile growing brighter, though he still said, "You shouldn't have!"
"Flynn, no need to be so polite with me. Just get here faster next time you clean up."
"Leave it to me. I'll get here right away, and won't hold up the inspector's work."
Flynn patted his chest, completely unconcerned that Edmund's blood was smeared across it.
That rough-and-ready "plainness" made Cheng Ye's eyelids twitch. It took him a while to calm down.
For the rest of the afternoon...
Perhaps Edmund's case had put people off. The number of survivors choosing Conveyor Belt 8 dropped sharply.
After half an hour without anyone showing up, Cheng Ye simply packed up his table and clocked out early.
What did it mean to have a steady job?
As an inspector, he could never enter the Inner City again, but he'd gained plenty of privileges in exchange.
Compared with inheriting the job from his father, slacking off at work, leaving early, and accepting bribes... ahem, those were just appetizers.
Since he'd dealt with an Infection Source, Cheng Ye made sure to follow the rules and report his health when passing through the Checkpoint.
It took only a few minutes for the Checkpoint's chief, Ding Yishan, to take notice of the young man.
"Not bad. Cheng Ye really takes after his father—decisive, efficient, and knows how to use his head to solve problems."
"Yeah. Most importantly, he follows the rules!"
"It's just a shame his Combat Talent is so poor, and he's not very brave. I wonder if he'll survive his first Field Mission." Deputy Station Chief Halin shook his head.
He was in charge of combat training, and out of all the new recruits he'd trained, Cheng Ye was among the worst.
Sometimes, Halin even thought Cheng Ye seemed like a person from the Old Era. He actually startled himself when he fired a gun.
"His Combat Talent is poor? Isn't Liu Bi giving him special training?"
Ding Yishan frowned, displeased with Halin's attitude. "How many times have I told you to be more patient with newcomers? Here's what you'll do: go tell Liu Bi that until Cheng Ye goes on a Field Mission, he gets a free training allowance of one hundred bullets a day. The Checkpoint will cover the cost."
"Yes, sir."
Halin agreed at once, but when he turned away, he curled his lip, a flash of unconcealed disdain in his eyes.
The Checkpoint was divided into the East and West Factions. Ever since Cheng Ye's father, Cheng Long, had died on a Field Mission, the East Faction had lost one of its leading figures, and its influence had gradually waned.
Ding Yishan had clearly lost his head. In his desperation, he was actually thinking of propping up a greenhorn like Cheng Ye.
With talent like his?
Forget a hundred bullets. Even if they gave him ten thousand, they'd be wasted.
So Halin didn't bother stopping it.
It was public expense, after all. Let him use them. Was Xingfu City's High Level really short on bullets?
He crossed the Quarantine Zone and entered the Buffer Zone.
The old residential blocks lining the narrow roads, the Pedestrian Street packed with vagrants, and the shopping mall converted into a temporary shelter...
Compared with the Inner City's dazzling lights and neon signs, this place still looked like the Old Era. Yet it gave Cheng Ye a familiar, comforting feeling, as if he'd returned to the modern world.
After crossing several alleys, Cheng Ye sniffed the air and arrived at his home in the Wasteland.
"Chaoyang Electronics Factory Staff Residential Area."
The name might not sound like much, but it was one of the Buffer Zone's bona fide luxury residences.
With a whopping twelve square meters of living space per person, Cheng Ye could exercise right in his room. He didn't have to worry about squeezing into a toilet-sized space with four or five other Ordinary Residents, where getting up at night meant bumping his head.
There were also three shops at the entrance to the Staff Residential Area.
From left to right, they were Uncle Dong's Convenience Store, Big Meat Canteen, and the Resource Trading Station.
The first two were privately owned. The last was one of the Buffer Zone's official shops, responsible for buying and selling rare resources.
"Uncle Dong, two packs of Nutrient Paste, and a pack of Malt Bar Candy."
Cheng Ye called out as he entered the convenience store, as familiar as ever.
"Also, my Defense Communicator's out of power. I'm not going straight home later, so can I charge it here for a while?"
"Sure. It's Flood Season, so they've suspended electricity bills for now anyway."
Xingfu City got its power from a Hydroelectric Station. Since it was the summer Flood Season and electricity was plentiful, the High Level had decided to offer a bit of relief and temporarily waive electricity fees.
Cheng Ye took out a Defense Communicator that looked like a brick phone and plugged it into the Power Strip. Then, without drawing attention, he removed his pendant and tucked it into a socket, holding it in place with the Defense Communicator.
It had been more than two months since he'd discovered the pendant. Based on its charge level and his calculations, it needed two thousand kilowatt-hours to activate.
Only Xingfu City had the resources for that. In another Sanctuary City, it would probably take a year or two just to gather that much power.
To avoid anyone noticing the huge amount of electricity he was using, Cheng Ye was careful. At first, he'd charged it at home the whole time. After that, he'd started using the Defense Communicator as an excuse to charge it at convenience stores, quietly "stealing" electricity for the pendant.
The convenience store's wiring was mostly 2.5 square millimeters thick, and the pendant could charge at about two kilowatt-hours an hour. The efficiency was pretty good.
There were only 50 kilowatt-hours left before activation. If he charged it at home tonight, he should meet the conditions by tomorrow morning.
"Here you go: two packs of Nutrient Paste and a pack of Board Candy. Xiao Cheng, that'll be three Happiness Coins."
Uncle Dong was an old soldier in Xingfu City, around fifty-five years old. After injuring his right arm and losing his ability to hold a gun, he'd chosen to retire.
"How could I do that? They're selling for at least five outside now. Even if you were close with my dad, you should still make a profit."
Cheng Ye took the blood-like Nutrient Paste, twisted it open and drank as he pulled out the money to pay.
Happiness Coins were Xingfu City's currency, used for everyday needs like meals and rent. They were different from the scarce Contribution Points. When his father died, he'd left behind nearly five thousand Happiness Coins—more than enough for Cheng Ye to spend freely on his own.
Besides, inspectors earned five hundred coins a month. He couldn't possibly spend it all by himself!
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