Chapter 69 - 65: Day 13 Settlement
’A red Card...’
Qin Ziwen walked to the window, gazing toward the mountainside.
The Beaked Eagle could fly, but on its journey, it had already been attacked by three different kinds of creatures: bats from a cave, a flock of black birds from the vast forest, and a giant bird circling in the sky.
And on the ground, within that dense, sprawling forest, who knew how many other dangers were lurking.
WHOOSH...
A downpour started outside.
Fat drops of rain splattered against the windowpane.
The world outside blurred, a tapestry of a thousand silver threads connecting heaven and earth.
THUD.
He shut the window.
He pulled his arm back inside, dripping with rain.
Qin Ziwen said worriedly, "This is a serious downpour. I hope no accidents happen."
Qin Ziwu asked, "There’s a river right beside us, and we’re in a valley. Brother, you don’t think we’ll get a flash flood, do you?"
"Don’t jinx it." Qin Ziwen walked out onto the balcony. He used to be able to see a corner of the riverbed down the slope from here, looking past the retaining wall.
But now the heavy downpour had drastically reduced visibility.
He turned and entered the expanded space behind the bathroom.
The storm outside did not pass through the hazy canopy overhead to enter this expanded space.
The light overhead had simply grown dim and gray, mirroring the world outside.
Inside the Blacksmith Shop, Li Tieshan hammered iron ore into chunks. He then ground some of the chunks into powder, smelting it at a high temperature to remove impurities and extract refined iron.
The crimson glow of the forge fire illuminated his face.
Li Tieshan used a pair of tongs to grip a flattened piece of a wok, hammering and folding it over. He sprinkled the iron powder into the seams, then placed the whole thing back into the furnace to be heated at high temperature.
There was a unique charm to such sweaty, primitive, and rugged work.
While smithing, Li Tieshan was like a different man—focused, silent, like a piece of refined steel that had been hammered a thousand times over.
"Sir!" Li Tieshan noticed Qin Ziwen, who had entered at some point, and his honest, simple smile returned to his face.
Qin Ziwen asked, "How’s it coming along?"
Speaking of his craft, Li Tieshan’s spirits lifted. "Sir, the steel in this cleaver and wok is quite good. I plan to use the cleaver as the core, forge-weld the wok around it with the iron powder, and that should make a decent Spearhead. The only problem is the shaft. Making it from solid iron would be too heavy and time-consuming, and we don’t have any suitable wood for it yet."
"It’s fine. Just focus on the Spearhead for now, I’ll figure something out for the shaft... Try forging it from wrought iron first. Don’t make it too thick; you could even try making it hollow."
"Yes, sir."
Night fell, but the rain outside showed no intention of stopping.
At the entrance to the parking garage, a group of people under umbrellas stacked emergency sandbags.
The water flowing into the garage slowed to a trickle before stopping completely.
Huang Tao looked up at the downpour. "I hope this rain stops tonight. If not, we’re in real trouble."
BEEP BEEP.
A car horn blared from further down the garage ramp.
A driver leaned out of his window. "Why is the entrance blocked?"
Huang Tao stepped forward to explain, "We put down sandbags."
"What if the sandbags don’t hold? My car will be completely flooded."
"What damn good are these sandbags? If a real flood comes, they’ll just be swept away. I’d be safer parking on higher ground outside. Move them!" another driver shouted from a car behind.
Resigned, Huang Tao had no choice but to move the sandbags.
Car after car drove through the downpour. Fortunately, many of the trees and shrubs around the Gated Community had been cleared in recent days, leaving the roads relatively open.
The residents scrambled to park their cars on the higher ground of the hillside. Some cars with low clearance couldn’t make it up the rough, undeveloped slopes and had to be left at the bottom.
The Gated Community, paradoxically, grew lively amidst the downpour.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.
Deng Guang shouted from outside the door, "Old Qin! We’re moving our cars up the hill! If you have one, you should park it outside too. The garage is likely to flood."
Qin Ziwen opened the door. Deng Guang stood outside, his hair sopping wet.
Qin Ziwen advised, "Go dry off and warm up by a fire. Don’t catch a cold."
"Right. I’ve got some firewood stored at my place. You have enough?"
"Enough. I have some." Qin Ziwen nodded. ’With a coal mine in the Home, fuel is definitely not a problem.’
Deng Guang nodded. "Alright. We should probably go warn the other neighbors in our building. This whole Gated Community is on low ground. If a flash flood does happen, the garage will be the first to go."
After a moment’s thought, Qin Ziwen said, "Alright, I’ll go with you."
The two of them paired up and went door to door, starting from the tenth floor and working their way down to warn their neighbors.
Some neighbors, once they understood the situation, thanked them profusely and hurried downstairs to move their cars.
Others, however, were unconcerned, believing the rain would stop soon. They didn’t think it was worth the trouble, especially with how hard it was raining outside.
As night deepened, the rain continued to fall.
Lulled by the sound of the rain, Qin Ziwen gradually fell asleep.
[You have safely survived in the wilderness for a thirteenth day. You successfully ambushed and killed a malicious intruder, and you obtained a tool for opening doors. You fed the livestock in the cages. Overall Score: 83]
[You have received your rewards: Human Physique Enhancement Card (One Star), one Strong Beast Trap Blueprint, one Blank Expansion Card (Small), and one Solar Charging Panel.]
The moment he woke up, Qin Ziwen checked his daily settlement.
His attention went straight to the Enhancement Card.
He mentally commanded, ’Retrieve.’
An emerald-green Card appeared in his palm.
The front of the Card depicted a flexing muscle.
As soon as he held the Card, its purpose flooded into Qin Ziwen’s mind.
The Card could be used on any designated human unit, including but not limited to recruited ones.
This was a single-use Card. After use, it would raise the target unit’s physical attributes by a 1-star standard. The Card could increase a constitution up to a maximum of 5 stars, but could not push it beyond normal physiological limits.
The small orb of light representing his Home suddenly appeared before him, and a stream of information flowed from it into his mind.
Qin Ziwen now understood what the Star Level meant.
According to the Home’s rating system, a normal human’s physical attributes are graded on a scale from One Star to Five Stars.
Five Stars represents the peak physical limit of a normal adult human.
Qin Ziwen asked the Home, "So what Star Level am I?"
The Home replied: [Corresponding functional module not activated. Please obtain the appropriate Function Card.]
Qin Ziwen frowned. ’A Function Card...’
’What’s that? Yet another type of Card I’ve never seen before.’
Five Stars was the peak for a normal human, and Qin Ziwen felt he was still a long way from that goal.
So, without hesitation, he used the Card on himself.
The Enhancement Card dissolved into green light and flowed into his body.
He could feel his heart thumping powerfully, like an engine being upgraded.
Blood surged through his veins. Every inch of his muscles seemed to hum with joy, as if he had just completed a long and arduous training session, yet the change had happened in the blink of an eye.
He let out a long, cloudy breath.
Qin Ziwen clenched his fists, walked over to the "bird’s nest," and picked up the Beaked Eagle. The drowsy creature was lifted with ease, still too dazed to fully wake up.
He held the Beaked Eagle in one hand and easily did a few curls. His strength was definitely much greater now.
It had felt a little heavy to hold with one hand before, but now it was effortless.
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