Chapter 203 - 180: Desert Ruins
"Sister Qiu, Cao Biansheng is over there. Aren’t you going to say hi?" Tingting gently nudged Sister Qiu’s arm.
Sister Qiu hesitated for a moment before walking over. "Old Cao," she said, her expression calm, "you looked pretty cool when you were killing that worm earlier."
"HAHAHAHA, of course!" Cao Biansheng laughed heartily, hands on his hips. "I’m Cao Biansheng, after all."
Looking at the young man before her, Zheng Qiu smiled. "You’re just like you were in high school. It feels like you haven’t changed a bit."
"No, I have changed," Cao Biansheng said, raising an eyebrow. "I’m much stronger now than I used to be!"
"..." Zheng Qiu gave a wry smile. "Alright then. You look busy, so I won’t bother you any longer."
After Zheng Qiu had walked away, Qin Ziwu sidled up to him. "I couldn’t even stand to listen anymore. You’re completely clueless, man. A girl came to talk to you first and everything."
Cao Biansheng didn’t explain. He just glanced at Qin Ziwu. "If you’re the one with romance on the brain and have your eye on a girl, I can help introduce you."
Qin Ziwu was dumbfounded. "So you did get it! I really thought you had no idea."
Cao Biansheng shook his head. "I just don’t have the time for that right now. I want to survive and help more people survive. I’m in no mood to think about things like that. Besides, I think the Chairman feels the same way."
As he spoke, he glanced at Qin Ziwu. ’He’s the only one who gets to be protected by his brother.’
’Doesn’t have to worry about so much all day long.’
...
When the corpse of the Desert Giant Worm was dragged back to the Gated Community, it attracted a crowd of onlookers.
Although the menacing corpse had already been partially butchered, its terrifying maw and enormous body still filled the surrounding residents with a mixture of fear and excitement.
When Zou Jianghe learned that the Giant Beast had been killed by the Car-Mounted Crossbow, he made a special trip to inspect it.
Seeing the gruesome wounds, his opinion of the Car-Mounted Crossbow grew even higher.
’A weapon’s true strength lies in its practical application. Stats can be deceiving, but a combat record doesn’t lie.’
"Chairman Qin, when will you have some in stock to sell?"
Qin Ziwen said, "It’ll be a while. Production is too low right now; we only have these two ourselves."
Although Zou Jianghe was disappointed, he nodded in understanding.
After the dismantled corpse of the Desert Giant Worm was brought back, Jia Liangcai stroked the mangled remains and murmured to himself, "Truly a wondrous beast."
Qin Ziwen summoned Chen Pi and asked if the Desert Giant Worm’s outer shell could be made into armor.
Chen Pi took a piece of the cut-off shell and, a moment later, said excitedly, "Sir, it can be done! This is a natural Marvel, born of this hot, arid land. Its carapace is hard and requires little processing. It just needs to be dried and the inner membrane scraped off to be usable. Furthermore, the shell is light, so the Leather Armor made from it should be very lightweight."
"How long would it take to make a finished piece?"
Chen Pi replied, "I can have a finished set ready by tomorrow for your inspection, Sir."
That evening, after a flurry of activity, the rest of the materials were all processed.
The highly corrosive acid from the acid sacs was stored in several large glass jars.
The liquid with anesthetic properties was also bottled in a separate, clear container.
The dense rows of sharp teeth in its mouth were knocked out by Li Tieshan. He was very interested in these long, straight fangs, thinking the light yet hard teeth could be used as material for Arrows.
Besides that, the rest of the flesh and blood was also cleaned and processed.
The flesh was scraped off the surface, and the remaining shell was scoured clean with fine sand, then wiped with a damp cloth.
Back in his room, Qin Ziwen finally had a rare moment to rest.
He took out three Cards.
’I’ll save the Blacksmith Shop Card for now. Next is the Building Enhancement Card. It’s random and can grant any building a random special effect.’
’Currently, any given building can only have one special effect.’
’But because it’s random, I might get a useless effect.’
After much hesitation.
Qin Ziwen finally decided to use it on the Leather Armor Workshop.
The yellow Building Enhancement Card dissolved into light and merged into the courtyard of the Level 2 Leather Armor Workshop.
It enveloped the entire building.
Finally, the light dissipated.
[Level 2 Leather Armor Workshop: Level 2 Leather Armor Defense Enhancement, Level 1 Leather Armor Toughness Enhancement, Level 1 Leather Armor Crafting Speed Enhancement] (Special Effect: Temperature Regulation - Leather Armor produced by the workshop insulates against temperature, keeping the wearer warm in winter and cool in summer.)
’This effect is pretty good. The weather in the Gobi Desert is scorching. Leather Armor isn’t breathable, which is fine in the cold, but in a hot environment, it traps sweat and can get unbearably stuffy.’
’At least this will be a significant improvement to the comfort of the Leather Armor we produce.’
Next was the [Advanced Resource Card]: Level 1 Water Dew Fruit Tree Forest.
’This resource point only requires a 10x10 meter area, just one hundred square meters.’
’Compared to the Nan Bamboo Forest, the required area is much smaller.’
’This indirectly proves that the Water Dew Fruit is more valuable.’
He cleared an empty space next to the Nan Bamboo Forest and then used the Water Dew Fruit Tree Forest Card.
On the empty plot, rows of low-lying, dark brown fruit trees appeared. They had a strange appearance, with many fist-sized holes in their trunks.
For someone with trypophobia, the Water Dew Fruit trees would be quite unsettling.
These holes covered the trunks, like the cells of a honeycomb.
Beneath the thick branches dangled white fruits that looked like balloons.
Qin Ziwen picked one of the fruits.
The fruit was lightweight, about the size of a coconut. When he shook it gently, he could feel water sloshing inside.
He pried open a hole in it and poured the liquid inside into a bowl.
A slightly viscous, clear liquid flowed out, with small, milky-white flecks floating within.
It had a faint, fruity aroma.
Qin Ziwen wasn’t sure what to make of it, so he used Insight on the two plant-based resource points nearby.
[Level 1 Water Dew Fruit Tree Forest: Level 2 Growth Acceleration, Level 1 Taste Enhancement, Level 1 Nutrient Richness] (Special Effect: The shell of the Water Dew Fruit possesses some detoxifying properties.)