Fleecing Capitalism

He watched the I-beam smelting in the furnace without blinking. Ten seconds flew by, and the I-beam in the upper slot disappeared, replaced by three brand-new iron ingots.

"It gave me this many! No, I've got to find a way to get out there and bring back more."

After some thought, Yang Bo shelved the idea of visiting the construction site during the day. There were guards there, too. If he took too much, he would definitely attract the attention of certain authorities.

He mulled it over until inspiration suddenly struck.

"Doesn't New York have abandoned subway stations? I could borrow some rails! I'll wait until Leo and the others get here tonight. They're locals, so maybe they'll have a better idea!"

As for whether the three punks would return, he wasn't particularly worried. People came and went for profit, and none of those three looked remotely wealthy. After tasting the rewards last night, they would definitely come looking for him today.

He didn't know anyone or his way around New York. Having those three guide him would make things much easier. Besides, anything money could solve wasn't much of a problem.

First, he chopped down all the oak trees that had grown and replanted the saplings. The wheat in the growing area had sprouted considerably, but it wasn't ripe yet. Yang Bo merely glanced at it before jogging over to the Vampire Hunter.

He opened the Hunter's upgrade interface.

He placed the five bottles of [Vampire Blood] from his inventory into it and clicked the training button.

"That's it?"

Although Yang Bo had been prepared for this, he still felt a little disappointed when clicking the training button produced no noticeable change in his body.

"Come on, at least give me some special effects. I'm not asking for mountains to crumble or the earth to split, but couldn't you at least give me a flash of golden light?"

After grumbling a little, Yang Bo opened the Hunter skill menu to take a look. The skill points in the upper-right corner had gone from -1 to 1. He rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

"What? Two skill points per level? Doesn't that make me unbeatable?"

Normally, Hunters received one skill point each time they leveled up. The maximum level was 15, giving them a total of 15 skill points, while the Hunter's skills required 25 points altogether. Usually, Hunter players could only choose one or two skill paths.

But now Yang Bo could get two skill points per level. Once he reached level 13, he could unlock every skill and become a Hunter specializing in all three paths.

The Hunter's first skill was [Basic Use of the Stake], which allowed the user to kill vampire creatures with less than 35% health in a single strike with a Stake.

After spending a skill point to activate it, Yang Bo nodded in satisfaction.

"Killing vampires will be much easier now. But the next upgrade needs ten bottles of vampire blood. Looks like I'll have to put in some serious work!"

Now that he had iron ingots, Yang Bo took out the flint he had obtained while expanding his home and crafted Flint and Steel. He walked over to the "trash," aimed at the ground, and mentally commanded it to activate.

With a click, a flame sprang into existence. All the "trash" that touched it vanished in the fire.

Yang Bo was very pleased with the result. Fire and lava in Minecraft could dispose of useless junk, and they were environmentally friendly, too, leaving no trace.

He organized his belongings, took out a map of New York he had bought at a newsstand, and found his location.

"The nearest subway line is to the north... Ugh, I have no idea how far it actually is. I'll start digging and see!"

Yang Bo planned to use his free time to dig an exit leading into a subway tunnel. Even a crafty rabbit had three burrows. If some freakishly powerful superhero or supervillain cornered him at home, he would be in trouble. Better to prepare in advance.

He took out his tools, aimed at the northern wall, and began digging rapidly. To prevent a cave-in, Yang Bo also replaced the blocks overhead as he went.

"It's about time to head up. I wonder if Leo and the others are here yet!"

Yang Bo sat up on the comfortable sofa and stretched lazily. After an afternoon of work, his home could finally be said to have exits in every direction.

Not only had he finished digging the exit into the subway tunnel to the north, but he had also deliberately created an exit in a lake in Central Park. Thanks to the wooden door, the power of Minecraft's rules held the lake water back, preventing it from flowing through the entrance.

Following the original tunnel, Yang Bo climbed up through the new passage to the surface. It opened into a tangled patch of shrubs that almost nobody visited, making it much safer than the old entrance.

After leaving home, he raised his wrist to check the time. It was already eight in the evening. He took out a cigarette and tossed it into his mouth, imitating Crow, then lit it with the kerosene lighter he had acquired that day. He slowly walked toward the place where he had parted with the three that morning.

After walking for just over ten minutes, Yang Bo spotted the car parked at the entrance to the park. Its flashy appearance wasn't something just anyone could pull off.

Leo, who had been watching for him, immediately opened the car door and got out when he saw Yang Bo.

"Sir, you're here!"

Yang Bo smiled and nodded. "No need to be so formal. Since you're willing to fight those monsters with me, we're friends. You can just call me by my name. All this 'sir' business sounds a little awkward!"

"Did you get enough rest today? You'll be all right tonight?"

Yang Bo followed Leo into the car. Hearing his words, Leo looked excited. Becoming friends with someone who had special abilities like Yang Bo was enough to make him secretly rejoice.

"The three of us rested all day. We'll definitely be fine, and we've prepared some things specifically for dealing with those monsters!"

Leo turned to the young Black man in the back seat and said:

"Kerry, take out the bat!"

Kerry immediately picked up a wooden baseball bat from beside his feet. Silvery-white chains were wrapped around it. A closer look made it clear that they were several silver necklaces linked together. Nails had also been driven into the bat to keep the chains from slipping off.

Yang Bo took the bat and praised him in surprise. "Leo, you're a genius!"

Their goal was to restrain the vampires so they could rob... ahem, collect loot, which was why they had chosen a baseball bat. If they wanted to kill vampires outright, a silver-plated blade would have been the best choice.

Leo smiled. "We can't afford custom-made silver bullets, but I've ordered some silver crossbow bolts. They'll take a little time, though!"

"You've done a great job. Leo, we need to cover a wider area tonight, or visit places with more homeless people. I think we'll find more there!"

Yang Bo couldn't help remembering his own experience. Homeless people were the ideal targets for these vampires, because their deaths or disappearances wouldn't cause much of a stir.