Lv.2 Talent, Iron Physique!

Chapter 43: Lv.2 Talent, Iron Physique!

Compatibility.

Perfect!

A prompt for searching sounded in his ears.

Cheng Ye had never found these two words so pleasing, so wonderful.

It was like a stripped screw suddenly finding its bite, slowly turning in a rusted nut, each rotation accompanied by a crisp metallic friction sound that sent shivers down his spine!!

"Wait for me a moment, I need to adjust the instrument."

After calming Dai Zun, Cheng Ye looked at the scanner, but in reality, he used his thought to click on search.

Illusory text flashed across the panel.

Five seconds later, it combined into an information panel that Cheng Ye could read.

[Dai Zun]

[Lv.1 Skill]: Lock On

[Lv.2 Skill]:

Talent: Iron Physique (Rare, Pain Reduction, increased body toughness, can resist a small portion of non-fatal injuries)

Talent: Firearm Affinity (Common, slightly increases control over firearms)

Skill: Crusader Standard Slash Technique (Common), Crusader Standard Shooting Technique (Common)

[Lv.3 Skill]: Lock On

"?"

"There are even levels?"

Cheng Ye was stunned. When searching for Lv.1 skills, the panel would list all skills at once, making it overwhelming and difficult to choose.

But the Lv.2 interface before him was completely different. Not only were talents and skills categorized separately, but there were also quality tiers, making it clear which was stronger and which was weaker.

For example, both were talents, but Iron Physique was now emitting a faint purple glow, with the remark column stating [Rare].

Firearm Affinity was also a talent, but it had a white glow, marked as [Common].

"This is much more intuitive now. I don't have to guess their effects based on their names anymore."

Perhaps because Dai Zun was too young, he hadn't mastered many Lv.2 skills. Only two Crusader Standard skills were listed on the panel.

Cheng Ye didn't hesitate, directly focusing his Thought on the highest-level 'Iron Physique'.

Searching beyond his level had only a 25% success rate.

But for some reason, he felt he was bound to succeed this time.

It was because Dai Zun on the ground wasn't cooperating out of fear or dread of him, but genuinely wanted to survive and believed in him from the bottom of his heart.

A faint purple dyed the entire interface.

The panel began to flash.

One second later.

The Civilization Collector did not disappoint!

[Search Successful]

[Civilization Collector has successfully recorded: Iron Physique (lv.2; Talent)]

"It actually worked?!"

The panel automatically switched. The Iron Physique in Dai Zun's skill bar glowed faintly, flickered, and was copied to the equipable skill bar.

Uncontrollable ecstasy exploded in his chest.

Cheng Ye felt his mind freeze at that moment, the overflowing joy almost bursting out.

Even though he had a premonition before the search, that premonition was nothing compared to the excitement of seeing Iron Physique appear in his equipable skill bar with his own eyes on his personal panel!

"Inspector?"

Dai Zun was confused. Seeing Cheng Ye's slightly trembling back, he became nervous. "Is there a problem with the instrument?"

"It's fine, wait for me a moment longer. The instrument is starting up."

He suppressed his joy and replied.

Cheng Ye closed the panel, took two deep breaths, and then calmed his surging emotions.

Whether Dai Zun was infected or not no longer needed to be detected by the instrument.

However, the quarantine procedure could not afford the slightest oversight, and skipping it would inevitably arouse suspicion.

Cheng Ye still followed the standard procedure. Besides, he had to cut off a piece of flesh to send for testing.

About ten minutes later, Raven returned, bringing the expected news.

"Alright, you've passed!"

Cheng Ye ripped off his rubber gloves and tossed them into the quarantine zone's trash bin like a basketball shot. He walked over with a smile.

"Huh?"

Dai Zun froze, suspecting he'd misheard. It wasn't until Cheng Ye repeated himself a second time that Dai Zun's eyes widened, his expression management instantly overwhelmed by ecstatic joy.

Outside the quarantine door, Wu Rui's spine stiffened. His tower-like body first trembled, then his rough palm fiercely swept across his face before he slammed it hard against the quarantine net, producing a dull thud.

He had been tense for so long.

His heart had been in his throat.

Thankfully, thankfully, the final result hadn't been a disappointment!

"Captain Wu, I'm also from the Inner City. I'm off duty, so I'll take him. Is that okay?"

Cheng Ye asked by the door. Wu Rui only froze for a moment before nodding heavily.

"No problem. I'll communicate it now. Take him to the Happiness Gate, and someone will meet you there."

"Mm."

One more person meant one more round of inspection procedures. Cheng Ye turned to leave, but a voice called from behind him.

"May I ask the Inspector's surname?"

"Cheng."

"Cheng... May I ask if Cheng Long is your...?"

"My father."

A flicker of surprise crossed Wu Rui's face, quickly replaced by a look of expected recognition.

No way, Cheng Long is famous even in the Crusader ranks?

Cheng Ye paused but didn't stop walking. He instructed Owl and Raven to lift the stretcher and follow him.

They left along the quarantine passage, Dai Zun's pale face still holding a daze of having survived a disaster.

Upon reaching the exit, Cheng Ye hesitated before finally dialing Station Chief Towns' number.

Logically, requisitioning a vehicle in a special circumstance was within an inspector's authority, but this was North Station, Xiren's territory, after all.

"Station Chief, the situation is like this..."

Cheng Ye briefly explained Dai Zun's condition and was about to explain the necessity of requisitioning a vehicle when hurried footsteps suddenly came from the receiver.

No one had expected Towns to rush down from his office directly.

Normally, it wouldn't be strange for the Station Chief to personally show up, but a duty Station Chief had just sacrificed their life at noon today. Rashly contacting someone whose infection risk hadn't been completely ruled out was clearly not a wise choice.

"Director Downs, you... maybe you should stand further away?"

When they were still more than ten paces apart, Cheng Ye called out a reminder.

Who would have thought Director Downs would curl his lips and speed up with disdain, muttering, "When the Checkpoint was founded, your Grandfather and I personally cut the ribbon. Do you think I'm like He Fei?"

Checkpoint founded?

Cheng Ye didn't pay attention to Director Downs' bragging, but he did catch an important piece of information.

His Previous Body's Grandfather was actually an old-timer from the Checkpoint's founding period?

That impressive?

"Alright, he's not parasitized. I'll approve a vehicle for you. Hurry up and take him for treatment."

Director Downs squatted down and examined the wound, speaking with certainty. Then, he cast an odd glance at Cheng Ye.

"This is only the first day, and you've caused a stir at the Station, taken down an Infected, and now you've saved someone from the Crusaders. Cheng Long... Cheng Long wasn't as capable as you back then."

"Uh..."

Cheng Ye couldn't deny it, taking it as praise.

But he also understood that Director Downs was warning him that he had been too high-profile today.

As the saying goes, extreme prosperity must be followed by decline. Continuing to shine would inevitably attract some unnecessary attention.

However, it had to be said, although Director Downs considered it, he hadn't thought about it from Cheng Ye's perspective.

"I'd like to keep a low profile, but if I'm too low-profile, I'll die."

The Dajinbei roared out of the Checkpoint, its tires leaving a distinct black mark on the ground.

Dai Zun coughed repeatedly from the jolting, a bit of blood foam seeping from the corner of his mouth.

"Brother, slow down. We have an injured person here."

Cheng Ye couldn't help but remind him. The driver then eased up on the accelerator, showing a sheepish smile.

It was only for urgent official business like this that the higher-ups wouldn't scrutinize electricity consumption.

For regular official business, there were strict standards. Exceeding the electricity consumption limit would result in a deduction of pay at best, or direct dismissal at worst, similar to how in the Old Era, housewives who exceeded the average fuel consumption on the road would be kicked out of the group.

"Buddy, can you still talk?"

"Yes."

"I have something to ask you. It won't violate your Crusader regulations, will it?"

"Inspector, please speak freely."

Dai Zun was actually a little curious about the Inspector, who was younger than himself.

Cheng Ye's demeanor was nothing like the old hands at the checkpoints, always afraid of responsibility, always afraid of danger, and always carrying a suffocating sense of formalism.

You could say he was a young calf fearing no tiger.

But what was strange was that his style of doing things was exceptionally steady, without the awkwardness and immaturity of a newcomer.

Even Captain Wu Rui was ordered around by him, without feeling any discomfort from being suppressed by his aura.

"My elder brother, Liu Bi, is also an Inspector. He went to support the hydroelectric station with the Inner City engineering team the day before yesterday. Do you have any news of him?"

"Liu Bi."

Dai Zun thought for a moment, then shook his head. "The Crusader Legion is responsible for guarding the entire industrial zone, which has eight sectors. The hydroelectric station is in Zone B, and we guard Zone F. They are separated by more than ten kilometers. But you don't need to worry, at least not before noon today, the hydroelectric station has not been invaded by Infected."

After speaking, realizing that Cheng Ye was not familiar with the industrial zone, Dai Zun briefly introduced the general situation.

Because the energy supply of the hydroelectric station is intermittent, Xingfu City must operate at full capacity from early Summer to mid-Autumn to accumulate enough supplies for its own use and trade throughout the entire Winter and Spring.

Therefore, every mid-Spring, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands, are recruited on a large scale in the Buffer Zone and brought into the industrial zone.

When the power supply decreases in mid-Autumn, the workers are dismissed back to the Buffer Zone to prepare for winter.

And such a large-scale change in personnel naturally attracts the attention of the surrounding Infected, who continuously come to harass and attack the industrial zone.

"Unfortunately, by the time I transmigrated, the Spring recruitment had already ended. I didn't get to see this grand occasion."

Cheng Ye couldn't help but sigh.

Every Sanctuary City has its own survival strategy tailored to its local conditions. Xingfu City's "migratory bird production model" is particularly ingenious, with a concept far surpassing other Sanctuary Cities.

It not only perfectly overcomes the challenges of long-distance power transmission to infrastructure but also cleverly resolves the dilemma of defending residential areas and industrial zones.

Summer and Autumn are the peak seasons for Survivor migration.

The industrial zone actively attracts the attention of surrounding Infected, precisely avoiding the risk of an Infected Tide caused by the gathering of people.

And when the migration tide of Winter and Spring ends, the personnel in the industrial zone withdraw to the Buffer Zone, and everyone stays in one place, maximizing the survival rate against the Infected Tide.

"There is no absolute good or bad, only pros and cons. It's peaceful if you don't encounter an Infected Tide outbreak, but like this year."

Dai Zun sighed. "Since the beginning of the year, the frequency of Infected Tide outbreaks has more than tripled. I don't know what level of Infected Tide will surge towards our Xingfu City this winter!"

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