Chapter 62 - 58: Twelfth Day Settlement
A tea tray with a tea set was on the coffee table.
The room stank, a smell emanating from the kitchen trash can. The garbage inside hadn’t been thrown out in ages and was teeming with small insects.
Qin Ziwen tied the trash bag shut and lifted it out.
The kitchen was very clean, and the refrigerator was mostly empty. There was only one item in a plastic bag on the top shelf.
He took it out. It was vacuum-packed and looked like some kind of dried animal penis.
A strange look crossed Qin Ziwen’s face.
’But judging by the packaging, the contents should still be fine.’
He searched some more and found a box of dried goji berries in a drawer beneath the TV stand.
In a chest of drawers inside the bedroom wardrobe, he also found a black handbag. Inside the bag were three stacks of red bills.
But the most valuable finds were the dozen or so lighters scattered in a coffee table drawer, most of them the cheap, one-or-two-yuan kind.
Beyond that, there were pots and pans in the kitchen, one cleaver, one paring knife, various appliances and furniture, assorted clothing and bedding, and two keys to the front door.
In a drawer in the master bedroom, there was also a new, unopened box of Okamoto condoms.
He pocketed the keys.
He picked up the kitchen trash bag.
He left everything else for the time being.
Back home.
Qin Ziwu chuckled. "We even helped him take out his trash. He should be thanking us."
Qin Ziwen nodded. "Yes. We can use this as a backup base from now on. By the way, when you crossed over, was it easy to get from balcony to balcony?"
At the mention of this, Qin Ziwu shook his head. "It wasn’t that easy. The balconies are close, but there’s a gap between them and no footholds nearby. If you miss your grip during the jump, you’ll fall. Honestly, I think it would be easier to rappel down from the floor above than to cross over from next door."
"The floor above?"
Qin Ziwu said, "Right. Tie a rope around your waist and jump down from the balcony above. It might actually be easier."
Qin Ziwen walked to the edge of his balcony and looked toward the one for 501. Visually, the distance didn’t seem that great.
This had to do with the Gated Community’s location. Public safety in Jiang City had always been excellent, and the Riverside Gated Community was located downtown, with a police station just diagonally across from it.
Combined with the facial recognition system used by the property management and the mandatory registration for entry, security was well-assured. Because of this, the building’s design prioritized aesthetics.
But now, that same aesthetic appeal had become a security liability.
As of yet, there hadn’t been any reports of theft or break-ins in the Gated Community.
’Of course, it’s possible they’ve already happened, and we just haven’t heard about it.’
Night fell, and the moon began its ascent outside the window.
The three of them took turns standing watch. Li Tieshan took the first shift, Qin Ziwen the middle one, and Qin Ziwu the last.
At midnight, Li Tieshan shook Qin Ziwen awake. "My Lord, it’s time."
Qin Ziwen opened his eyes. "Anything happen on your watch?"
Li Tieshan shook his head. "Nothing."
Qin Ziwen sat up in bed. "Alright, you go get some rest."
After Li Tieshan left, Qin Ziwen turned his attention to the daily settlement.
[You have safely survived in the wilderness for a twelfth day. You discovered a mysterious altar and obtained a Card from it. Overall Score: 50 points]
[You have received a reward: Sand Expansion Card (Small) x1]
’A new type of Expansion Card. A Sand Expansion Card. As the name implied, its purpose was easy to guess.’
With a flick of his wrist, a white Card—made of a material that was neither gold nor jade—appeared at his fingertips. Unlike the Blank Expansion Card, this Sand Expansion Card featured a brownish-yellow desert landscape in its center.
It could be used to expand any area within the Home, creating a 20x20 meter patch of sand terrain.
’Sand...’
Qin Ziwen had initially planned to use it on the area behind the bathroom, but he suddenly realized that the existing 400m² space was needed to support the coal and iron mines. Mining them would inevitably kick up a lot of dust.
It would inevitably interfere with the spring.
’If this area here is the residential zone, then there should be a designated mining zone as well.’
With this in mind, he went directly to the guest bedroom across from the bathroom.
Li Tieshan had just returned to the guest bedroom and was preparing to rest when he saw his Lord walk in.
He quickly got up from the bed, worried he’d done something wrong. "My Lord."
"It’s fine. Stay put," Qin Ziwen said, and immediately used the card on the guest bedroom window.
The Sand Expansion Card in his hand dissolved into light that flowed into the window.
The window vanished, replaced by a stretch of sand extending into the distance.
Overhead, moonlight shone down, illuminating the surface of the sand.
The temperature and light were identical to the outside world.
He stepped onto the sand. ’In terms of real-world space, I must be "floating" in mid-air inside the Gated Community,’ he mused.
He then went to the balcony and looked back toward the guest bedroom. Aside from the missing window, everything appeared normal from the outside. The sandy expanse was its own independent, folded space.
’The number of secrets in this apartment is growing. To stop any would-be thieves from sneaking in, I’ll need to use Expansion Cards on the balcony, kitchen, and master bedroom windows, too. That way, our place will be sealed up tight, and the balcony will no longer be a weak point.’
’I’ll leave the front door as the only connection to the outside. And not just that—I’ll add another iron door behind it for extra protection.’
’As for arousing suspicion... more and more people in the Gated Community are getting Cards now. It’s impossible to hide everything completely.’
’People aren’t that stupid.’
’It’s better to reveal some things while concealing others.’
Back on the sand, he took out two Resource Cards. Both the coal mine and the iron mine required a 10x10 area.
He walked to the far end of the sandy area and, facing the two corners, used the Level 1 Coal Mine Card on the left and the Level 1 Iron Ore Card on the right.
The Cards transformed into two streaks of light, each sinking into its respective side.
When the light faded, a black coal seam nearly a meter high had risen out of thin air from the sand on the left, emitting the faint smell of coal smoke. He squatted down, and a single grab yielded a handful of crushed coal.
It was a true open-pit mine; you could just pick the coal right off the ground.
On the right side, a reddish-brown vein of rock had appeared. From a distance, it looked like a great "red slab" embedded in the sand. In the middle of the vein was a semi-open mine entrance, shored up with wooden beams and rocks.
Walking closer, he saw fine, iron-brown particles piled on the ground at the mine’s entrance. Inside, angular chunks of protruding ore glinted with a faint metallic sheen.
(Image: Iron Mine)
"Li Tieshan."
Qin Ziwen called Li Tieshan over. Pointing at the two mines, he asked, "Well? Can we use this coal and iron?"
Li Tieshan went forward to inspect the coal and iron. "My Lord, we can use it! This is good coal and good iron, both are top-quality raw materials. Any tools forged from this will be incredibly durable."
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