Achievement Unlocked: The Other Side of the District (Rare)

[Major progress detected on the Fish Abyss Shelter Title Path!]

[Player title—Street Rat—has been strengthened.]

[Achievement Unlocked: The Other Side of the District (Rare)]

[Achievement Points gained: 200]

[Evaluating shelter ranking... Development potential increased, risk resistance increased, regional influence increased, achievement bonus increased...]

[Current shelter ranking updated: 9,499 (↑360)]

A mechanical notification sounded in Yu Yuan's ear. The wild joy that had filled him gave way to calm.

He stared at the ranking on the Virtual Light Screen, let out a long breath, and smiled.

"Looks like... I made the right move!"

What had been a vague idea in his mind came into focus after his sudden realization and the system's confirmation.

Of course!

Everyone knew the city was a treasure trove. So why did players avoid it at all costs?

There was only one answer: thugs.

All kinds of Thug Factions occupied the city streets, making every step dangerous.

But everything had another side. Cities were no exception.

If everything cast a shadow, what was a city's shadow?

Not its subway tunnels, basements, or parking garages, but its sewers—the place people were quickest to overlook and despise.

A city could exist without a subway, basements, or parking garages.

But it could never exist without sewers.

Everyone knew sewers were foul-smelling, filthy, and dark.

Yet they were the other side of a city. There was no denying it.

Now, thanks to the Positioning Watch and the East City District Sewer Shelter System Master Map, the situation had changed.

If the streets belonged to the thugs, then Yu Yuan had gained access to the city's other side.

Yu Yuan's thoughts had never been clearer.

All he needed to do now was develop the untouched territory beneath the streets.

He had taken all the Blueprints, so there was no reason to stay in the archives.

But he could still explore the Water Services Center.

Leaving the archives, he followed the signs past the Pipe Maintenance Division, the Sewage Supervision Office, and the Water Quality Testing Room.

Every room was a wreck, with trash and dried blood everywhere.

He didn't mind. He searched them one by one for useful supplies.

He removed two sets of security door locks to upgrade his Security door and stuffed them into his backpack.

He took down ten energy-saving light bulbs and listed them on Taotao Cave. He would need them when he upgraded it later.

Notebooks, thermometers, water cups, tape measures, blankets... He took whatever he found.

The thugs saw no value in any of it. To Yu Yuan, every piece was something he could sell.

If he couldn't find valuable supplies, scavenging junk was good enough.

Hadn't the veteran players been longing for city supplies?

They had Survival Points, and Yu Yuan had goods. Everyone won.

He had brought along a slightly worn canvas shoulder bag, too.

It mostly held odds and ends—until he reached the director's office. Footprints and signs of a violent search covered its metal door, yet it was still locked. Surprise gave way to delight.

He took out his lockpicks. Barely ten seconds later, the metal door sprang open. Gripping his Kukri, he entered and carefully closed the door behind him.

He looked around. The room still appeared much as it had before the Wasteland descended.

A thick layer of dust covered the desk. Unfinished work remained there, with documents seemingly still awaiting approval.

Yu Yuan made a guess.

"Did the Wasteland descend after everyone went home the day before?"

But he had no interest in finding out what had happened. Supplies were what mattered.

When he passed the pantry cupboard, its contents made his eyes light up.

Whoa—

It was packed with coffee, drinks, biscuits, and snacks.

There were vacuum-packed coffee beans, tins of instant coffee, black coffee powder, creamers, sugar cubes, condensed milk, cocoa powder, powdered milk, and more.

There wasn't much of any one item, and some were past their expiration dates, but Yu Yuan didn't mind at all.

Other players would snap them up even if they were expired.

He immediately emptied his backpack and packed the drinks first.

Coffee held a strategic value in the Wasteland much like cigarettes.

Besides providing plenty of calories, its caffeine could sharpen the mind and drive away fatigue. It also helped stabilize one's mental state to some extent.

He wouldn't regret taking it all back.

Yu Yuan listed the water heater and grinder on Taotao Cave as well.

Once he built a Generator, these things would be key to improving his quality of life.

Even if he ended up dismantling them, the materials inside would fetch a good price.

Yu Yuan picked through the room, repeatedly swapping out what he carried and what he listed on Taotao Cave. Only the most valuable items earned a place in his backpack.

Under the desk, he found two cartons of Marlboro Cigarettes and several bottles of expensive liquor.

After a moment's thought, Yu Yuan listed three packs of Marlboro Cigarettes at 1,000 Survival Points each.

He hadn't picked that price at random. Based on the previous night's trades, he judged it to be reasonable.

He opened another pack to sell the cigarettes individually, listing them at 100 Survival Points for two.

Sure enough, every cigarette sold out in under a minute.

The 4,000 Survival Points arrived. He spent 2,000 to raise his Taotao Cave Access Level to level two, increasing the number of products he could list at once from fifteen to twenty-five. Then he listed all the bulky items he couldn't carry.

He closed the Virtual Light Screen.

In the end, only a safe remained unopened.

The safe was built into the desk, and its lock was beyond his Lockpicking ability. He worked at it for more than ten minutes without success.

Yu Yuan had wanted to list the whole safe on Taotao Cave and unlock it at his leisure back home.

But he couldn't list it, so he had to give up on that idea.

In the end, he forced himself to keep going. He ate some of the biscuits he had just found, then returned to the lock.

After what he had found in the metal cabinet in Room 506 of Phoenix Tree Apartments, he took locked cabinets seriously.

He had a feeling there might be something good inside.

The harder the lock, the greater the possible reward.

He kept telling himself that, over and over.

Two hours later, Yu Yuan's eyes were lowered and his head tilted slightly. As he felt the resistance of the springs through his lockpicks, he listened closely for tiny differences in the clicks.

Click.

Yu Yuan's eyes flew open, delight rising in them.

It's open!

The safe door sprang open, revealing its contents.

[Ding...]

[Excellent Grade lock successfully picked. Lockpicking skill gained a large amount of proficiency and leveled up ↑. Current skill grade: Excellent.]