Chapter 93 - 89: Day 18 Settlement
Qin Ziwu had a strange look on his face. "This style of speech... it feels oddly familiar."
Zhao Pu observed the expressions of the elderly people around them. "In this environment, many of the elderly are an absolutely vulnerable group. They have no advantage in terms of stamina or strength. Now that someone has stepped up to represent them, his voice will be amplified indefinitely."
Qin Ziwen glanced around and saw that many of the elderly people below the stage were staring intently at the man on it.
Qin Ziwen said, "If he’s truly selfless and working for the public good, then this is indeed a good thing for these old folks."
On stage, the man in the suit suddenly lowered his voice. "My dear uncles and aunts, brothers and sisters, why do you find it so hard to get food? Because you’re fighting alone! One person gathering food, one person chopping firewood, one person farming, one person hunting!
"What can one person accomplish, huh?" The man’s voice grew more fervent. "You all have too much to do every day! Why can’t we pull together as one? The woodcutters will focus on cutting wood, the fishers on fishing, the trappers on setting traps! We’ll pool all the resources we gather each day and then distribute them evenly, so everyone has meat to eat and everyone has wood to burn! *That’s* what you call resource sharing! *That’s* what you call not leaving anyone behind!"
Someone in the crowd asked, "But I’m old. What if I can’t do manual labor?"
"That’s an excellent question, sir! Everyone has their use. I promise you all, our Mutual Aid Association will have dedicated resource registrars. Every contribution you make will be recorded. If you have spare tools or supplies at home, you can contribute them. Right now, our Alliance Mutual Aid Association is in its founding stages. If you join now, you’ll be the future veterans..."
Hearing this, Qin Ziwen turned to leave. "Let’s go."
"Cough... cough cough..."
Behind him, sporadic coughing could be heard from the crowd of onlookers.
Back at home, the speech downstairs continued until it was dark. The crowd didn’t begin to disperse until after eight o’clock.
...
[You have successfully survived in the wilderness for a total of 18 days. You obtained a Card from the altar, hunted a Black Falcon, acquired some crop seeds, and drew a simple map to the Advanced Altar... Overall Score: 120 points]
[You have received the following rewards: [Expansion Card] Small-sized blank expansion card x1, [Building Card] Level 1 Blacksmith Shop x1, [Enhancement Card] Animal Constitution Enhancement Card (One Star) x1, [Building Card] Level 1 Farmland x1]
「The next morning.」
The first thing he did after waking up was check yesterday’s settlement.
The rewards from his score were a dazzling array.
It was his first time getting a Small-sized blank expansion card. A Small-sized blank expansion card added an area of 20x20m, the same as the sand plot.
He needed to build an Advanced Building, so this Expansion Card came at the perfect time. As long as he got one more small-sized expansion card or two micro-sized ones, he could build the Celestial Star Arrow Gallery.
Besides that, the other two Building Cards happened to overlap with his existing buildings.
He could upgrade his Blacksmith Shop and Farmland.
He went to the expanded area behind the bathroom and stood at the entrance of the Level 1 Blacksmith Shop. Holding another identical Card in his hand, he chose to use it.
As a bright light enveloped the entire structure, its area expanded slightly. When the light faded, the original Level 1 Blacksmith Shop had changed drastically.
The outer walls were still made of rammed yellow mud, but the inner layer was now mixed with a good amount of crushed stone.
The thatched roof had become a mixed structure of wooden shingles and thatch, and the wooden door in the middle was now clad in a sheet of iron.
The biggest change was the interior space. The floor was now paved with a layer of blue-gray bricks.
The original furnace was not only a size larger but had also been rebuilt into a round furnace with firebricks. The bellows on the side was now a double-rod model and had doubled in size; its wind power was likely much greater than before.
A row of tools hung on the wall: files, iron chisels, whetstones, wide-jaw pliers, needle-nose pliers...
"Iron Mountain should really like this." Qin Ziwen surveyed the place and nodded in satisfaction.
[Level 2 Blacksmith Shop: Level 2 Furnace High Temperature, Level 1 Quenching Amplification, Level 1 Enthusiasm]
He pushed the door open and went to the farmland.
He used the Card on the Level 1 Farmland.
Light enveloped the entire plot of farmland. When it faded, the biggest change was that the soil had turned black, looking very fertile.
[Level 2 Farmland: Level 2 Growth Acceleration, Level 2 Fertility]
’Huh, no new properties appeared. Instead, the two original properties were both upgraded to Level 2.’
’Still, this is good. For crops, having these two properties is excellent.’
Finally, he took out the [Enhancement Card]. This particular Enhancement Card was specifically for use on animals.
Unlike the Human Physique Enhancement Card he had used before, this Enhancement Card was a deeper color, almost a dark green.
The only pet at home was the Beaked Eagle, so it was the only one he could use it on.
Back in the master bedroom, the Beaked Eagle was still lying asleep in its nest.
Hearing familiar footsteps, the Beaked Eagle’s eyelids twitched, but it didn’t open its eyes.
Qin Ziwen walked up to it and slapped the Enhancement Card directly onto its body.
The Beaked Eagle awoke with a start, its eyes still hazy with confusion as it was engulfed by light.
𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎
When the light faded, the Beaked Eagle’s body was a full three sizes larger than before.
Previously, its height was just over a meter. Now, after being enhanced, it had grown by nearly half, surpassing 1.5 meters.
Just standing there, it was taller than a small child.
When it spread its wings, its wingspan reached a staggering three meters.
Not only that, but all of its injuries had also completely healed.
The only downside was that the small backpack he had sewn for it had been burst open.
’The change from a One Star enhancement is actually this dramatic.’
’Does this mean that in this world, the gap between the upper and lower limits for the Beaked Eagle species is huge?’
At breakfast that morning, the others saw the dramatically changed Beaked Eagle.
Qin Ziwu reached out his hand. The Beaked Eagle turned its head. His hand paused in mid-air for a moment, but when the eagle didn’t react, he finally lowered it and gently rubbed its head.
"Maybe it’s because it got bigger, but its eyes look even fiercer now," said Qin Ziwu.
After breakfast, the five of them gathered downstairs, ready to set off for the Bat Cave again.
Up ahead and to the side, an old man was clutching his chest, coughing violently, his stooped back bent almost into the shape of a bow.
"A lot of people in the Gated Community have been coughing lately. The contagiousness of a common cold..." Zhao Pu didn’t finish his sentence.
Up ahead, the old man, in the middle of a coughing fit, suddenly let out a retching sound—WAAH—and violently spat out a large mouthful of viscous, dark red, clotted blood.
The five of them stopped in their tracks simultaneously.
Zhao Pu’s face instantly turned deathly pale. He connected this to the frequent coughing in the Gated Community recently. "Those aren’t the symptoms of a cold. It’s some kind of infectious disease."
He had never heard of these symptoms before, so it was highly likely to be some unknown virus native to this world.
He thought of his son, Zhao Shuhuan, who had been in the Gated Community these past few days. He could have been infected, or maybe the disease was in its incubation period.
Deng Guang’s body trembled, his face turning ghostly white.
Both of their hearts were thrown into a panic.
...
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