Chapter 20 - 16: Day 4 Settlement
"You have successfully survived for a fourth day in the wilderness. You caught five fish, the largest being a silver carp, 81cm long and weighing 10.54 kilograms. Through a trade, you obtained a pair of juvenile mountain hares to raise. Comprehensive Score: 9 points."
"You have received the following rewards: Resource Card: Level 1 Spring Eye, Solar-powered Flashlight x1."
Qin Ziwen was taken aback by today’s rewards.
It was the first time he had ever seen this type of Card.
’I can actually install a spring eye in my home? But my apartment is on the fifth floor! Then again, even pocket dimensions have appeared, so creating a spring eye out of thin air doesn’t seem that unbelievable.’
’I just wonder how big this spring eye will be and how much water it can provide each day.’
He summoned the Card, and a silver card with a black border appeared in his hand. The center of the Card depicted a spring eye.
It required him to select a circular 3x3 meter area, and upon activation, it would create a Level 1 Spring Eye within that space.
Qin Ziwen pondered for a moment. A 3x3 meter area wasn’t huge, but there weren’t many places in his apartment that could accommodate it.
First was the living room, followed by the master and secondary bedrooms, and finally, the new area created by the Expansion Card.
’The living room is definitely out. The master and secondary bedrooms both have beds and wardrobes, and I need them for sleeping. So the only option is the new area from the Expansion Card.’
Qin Ziwen was glad he had built the animal pen to the left of the entrance.
’Considering there might be other livestock in the pen in the future, it’s best to keep some distance from the spring eye to prevent contamination.’
So, he went to the upper-right corner, diagonally opposite the pen.
The pen was in the lower-left corner just inside the entrance. Qin Ziwen walked to the upper-right corner and silently willed the card to activate.
The Card in his hand turned into a ray of light that sank into the floor.
When the light faded, a three-meter-diameter rock formation jutting up from the floor came into view.
The edges of the rock formation were irregular, and it stood nearly a meter high. Its inner walls, however, were relatively smooth, like a natural bowl carved from stone.
But...
’Where’s the water?’
Qin Ziwen summoned the flashlight. It was a bit heavy and had a solar panel on its handle.
He pressed the switch, and a bright beam instantly illuminated the entire room.
The flashlight even had a small display showing the battery percentage, which was a thoughtful touch.
It had four settings. The first was about as bright as a small pocket flashlight, but the fourth setting was intense—a full ten thousand lumens, casting a wide and extremely bright beam.
He climbed into the spring and, bracing himself with both hands on the bottom, leaned in for a closer look.
Finally, he spotted a patch of stone at the bottom of the basin that was gradually darkening.
As time passed, a very shallow film of moisture coated the bottom. A single wipe of his finger was enough to make it completely dry again.
The water was seeping out from cracks in the stone.
...
’I know it’s a Level 1 Spring Eye, so I didn’t get my hopes up too high.’
’But this is a little underwhelming, isn’t it?’
’How much water can this possibly produce in a full day?!’
Qin Ziwen shook his head. "Forget it, I’ll check on it tomorrow morning."
The next day, bright and early, Qin Ziwen went to the spring eye. A small puddle had collected at the bottom of the stone basin.
The puddle was very shallow, only about half a finger deep.
Qin Ziwen estimated it was about seven or eight liters.
It should be able to produce twenty to thirty liters of water over the course of a day.
He gently cupped some water in his hands and took a small sip.
The spring water was sweet and crisp. As long as he was frugal, his home’s water supply should be sufficient from now on.
’No more exhausting trips to haul water from the river. It will save so much energy. The trek from the river back to the Gated Community, followed by lugging it up to the fifth floor, was exhausting.’
’If the Gated Community had been transported to a desert or the Gobi Desert, this spring eye would be many times more valuable.’
After returning last night, Qin Ziwen had told Old Deng about the plan to hunt the crocodile.
As a result, Old Deng came knocking on his door bright and early.
Looking at the fully-armored Old Deng, Qin Ziwen couldn’t help but tease, "Whoa, look at that getup."
Old Deng wore a motorcycle helmet and a thick down jacket. He even had several magazines duct-taped to his legs and was holding a sharpened wooden stick.
Clearly, the events from two days ago had left a deep impression on him.
"You’re going out just like that?" Old Deng asked, seeing that both Qin Ziwen and Qin Ziwu were only wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants, with no other special protection.
"Wearing too much would restrict our movement."
Qin Ziwen smiled. "It’s better to be agile. If you get bitten, a little extra padding isn’t going to make much of a difference."
Old Deng, feeling safer in his thick layers, chuckled and followed the Qin brothers to the meeting point.
On the way, Old Deng proudly showed off his leg guards. "My wife helped me tape these on. They’re my daughter’s old elementary school textbooks."
Qin Ziwen gave him a thumbs-up. "Nice."
The main gate of the Gated Community was already bustling with people. At a glance, they had split into at least seven or eight different teams.
"Over here!" Zheng Yuan waved at him.
As he got closer, Zheng Yuan introduced the man beside him. "Zou Sheng, my downstairs neighbor. A professional fitness enthusiast."
Zou Sheng wasn’t very tall, about 175cm, but he was lean and muscular. He had a buzz cut and a broad, toothy smile.
Zou Sheng extended his hand. "I’ve been hearing all about you from Zheng Yuan. He couldn’t stop talking about you on our way down, saying your spear throw was crucial during the crocodile hunt two days ago. I’ll be counting on you later."
Qin Ziwen shook his hand. "No need for that, we’re all in this together. Crocodiles are incredibly fast in short bursts, so we just all need to stay vigilant."
Time passed as they chatted, and the air gradually grew warmer.
Zheng Yuan frowned. "Why isn’t everyone here yet? The other teams have already left."
He walked over to find Huang Tao.
The two of them spoke in low voices for a moment before Zheng Yuan returned.
Qin Ziwu quickly asked, "Brother Zheng, what’s the word?"
Zheng Yuan said, "Huang Tao sent someone to check. Apparently, one person from Building 7 isn’t here yet. Probably overslept."
Soon after, someone came jogging out from the south gate and whispered something in Huang Tao’s ear. Huang Tao froze for a second, his expression turning ugly.
He took a deep breath and clapped his hands. "Alright, everyone! We’re all here and the tools are ready. Let’s head out!"
Someone called out, "Weren’t there supposed to be twenty of us? Why are there only nineteen?"
Huang Tao hesitated for a moment before admitting, "One member of our team can’t make it. His family was worried and thinks hunting the crocodile is too dangerous. But it doesn’t matter. There’s really no difference between nineteen and twenty people. Plus, it’s one less person to split the meat with."
Hearing this, the group erupted in outrage.
"Shit, who was it?"
"If he wasn’t coming, he should have said something earlier! Bailing at the last minute leaves us a man short."
"What a selfish jerk. Scared of this, scared of that... he should just stay home and starve!"
Someone suddenly spoke up, "Is it the guy from Building 4, Unit 2, Apartment 302? Damn it, he and his wife came to see me last night, going on and on about how dangerous the crocodile hunt is and how there are no safety guarantees. They even asked if I was still coming tomorrow. I thought it was strange at the time. Turns out he just wanted to bail and was trying to drag me down with him."
Qin Ziwu was also annoyed. "If he wasn’t coming, he should’ve just said so. He made us wait all this time."
Huang Tao calmed the crowd while he and the security guards distributed the pre-prepared tools, most notably a large net.
"Where’d this net come from? It looks really familiar."
"I think it’s the climbing net from the kids’ playground. Looks like he took it."
"What a genius. I was wondering where all the ropes and nets from the play area had gone. So they’re the ones who took them."
...
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