Kingdom of Corrosion

Lin Wu, unconvinced, stopped Stone who was passing by, "Stone, you're so lacking in distinctive features, what did you do before?"

Stone angrily responded, "Do you know that what you're saying is very hurtful?"

Lin Wu chuckled and offered an apologetic smile, "I'm just curious, what was your profession?"

Stone straightened his clothes, answered proudly, "Boss." and walked away.

Oh, Su Shi and Lin Wu nodded together, this answer was expected.

Su Shi asked Tangtang, who was passing by the door, "Tangtang, what was your profession on Blue Star?"

Tangtang was stunned for a while before answering, "Criminal."

"Damn." That's badass.

"What's wrong?" Tangtang looked puzzled, "The prison food is good, life is stable, no need to work, and the people come from all over with a multitude of talents, what's not to like?"

Lin Wu cautiously asked, "Did you commit a crime on purpose?"

Tangtang shook her head, "Not exactly on purpose."

"Then what was it?"

Tangtang explained, "After graduating from university, I took out a mortgage to buy an apartment, but when I couldn't repay the mortgage and the apartment was auctioned off, I still owed the bank money. The bank said, either pay the money or go to jail."

Su Shi gave a thumbs up, "Daring to take out a mortgage to buy a house, I admire that." Tough guy, not everyone dares to tie themselves to a house for the next thirty years.

As the conversation turned to this topic, Tangtang called Cotton, who was nearby, and asked, "Cotton, what did you do on Blue Star?"

"Police." Cotton was the person who spoke the least in the base, went to the outside of the production room, and said, "Su Shi, lock-picking tools."

"I made a batch, they're in the warehouse."

"Good."

Although it felt somewhat incongruous for a police officer to be taking lock-picking tools, Cotton was the most normal among those queried so far.

Su Shi told Lin Wu that Horse Soul was a chef on Blue Star. By now, except for Maya and Little Knife, Lin Wu had learned everyone's professions. Lin Wu wasn't interested in Little Knife's profession, he was curious about Maya's. Su Shi and Lin Wu asked several people but no one knew. Everyone found Maya somewhat unapproachable yet acknowledged her organizational abilities.

While the two gossiped, a battered old red pickup was driven back to the base by Maya, and everyone gathered in the church parking lot to check out the base's first vehicle. The main concern was the vehicle's transportation capacity. The system showed that this red pickup truck had six basic pack spaces. The trunk could transport whole furniture and home appliances, but it could not transport small items like rags or wine bottles that could fit into a backpack.

The maximum carrying capacity is five people. The overall integrity is 30%, which can be repaired using car repair tools. Those with relevant automotive expertise can utilize 100% of the repair tools' efficiency; otherwise, only 50% can be exploited.

Having a vehicle is comfortable, not only freeing your legs, but most importantly, greatly improving efficiency. Bai Ban's five people would take 10 minutes to go back and forth on foot, only able to carry back 5 basic packs. By vehicle, it takes 5 minutes for the round trip, with the capacity for 6 basic packs, and each person can carry 1 basic pack, bringing back 11 basic packs in total per trip.

...

Maya numbered all the buildings, and Lin Wu's work order was to search buildings 1-5 on the commercial street, with the goal of finding any valuable items as meticulously as possible. In front of the commercial street lay a highway with four lanes traveling in the same direction, divided by a green belt, and lit by a dozen dim streetlamps. Beyond the back end of the commercial street lay a riverside park, stretching all the way to the factory area.

Opposite the commercial street stood five 7-story apartment buildings, with an unfinished construction site at their rear. The most eye-catching among all buildings was Apartment No. 2. Apartment No. 2 was entirely filled with Blood Zombies and covered with a thin layer of Blood Mist on its surface. Maya speculated that entering the Blood Mist area without a gas mask would lead to infection.

Therefore, tonight Lin Wu had a sideline task: after finishing scavenging and preparing to dispose of the trash on the way home, if he was in good condition, he had to sneak into the Blood Mist-covered area as a guinea pig.

Maya categorized the scavenged items into four types. The first category was valuables, which were hidden more deeply the more precious they were. The second category was basic packs, which were relatively obvious and easier to find. The third category consisted of intact small items, such as screwdrivers and jelly, among other things. The fourth category included junk, such as plastic, metal, torn cloth, and electronic parts obtained from dismantling.

Before setting out, Maya specifically summoned two night scavengers to explain the particulars of scavenging, which made Lin Wu wonder if he had missed some good items at the navy memorabilia store where he had obtained two handguns.

Shop No. 1 was an office supply store that offered copying and printing services and also sold small office supplies. Lin Wu searched around and found mostly bits and pieces. Two boxes of thumbtacks, one box of paper clips, one box of staples, two packs of A4 paper. Following Maya's hint, Lin Wu moved the computer desk and found a safe hidden underground. The safe required a 6-digit password, and there was a post-it note beside it: "Boss, I've changed the password. You can find the new one in the usual spot inside the shop."

Riddles too? Damn it!

That wasn't all. While searching for the password, Lin Wu inadvertently discovered a hollow wall. After slowly chiseling through it with a steak knife, he found a metal box embedded in the wall with a button on it. Pressing the button, an interface with an 8x8 Sliding Tile Puzzle appeared. He had to rearrange the scrambled numbers in order to open the metal box.

System Notification: Intelligence affects difficulty.

Damn it, that's two!

And for the third "damn it," it was the ceiling. After removing each tile, Lin Wu found a Skill Book: Electronics. The "damn it" stemmed from the fact that, just like Maya said, the good stuff was hidden very deep, and Lin Wu continued to suspect he missed out on good items in the navy memorabilia store.

After tossing the book into his backpack, Lin Wu left Shop No. 1. He'd need professional intellects to crack both the safe and the Sliding Tile Puzzle. Shop No. 2 was locked, but Lin Wu took out his lock-picking tool, tinkered for a moment, and opened it. Just as he was about to push the door open, a chilling 'gugu' sound came from the direction of Apartment No. 2.

Because only the streetlights provided illumination, Lin Wu couldn't see the situation across the street at the apartments. Considering the distance, he decided not to bother with it anymore and slipped into Shop No. 2. The system was an old trickster; Shop No. 2 had hidden four zombies. One under the shelf, waiting for a player to pass and grab their leg for a meal. One behind the counter, standing in a blind spot, sleeping. One perched on the edge above the ceiling, ready to drop when a player passes by. The last one was lying in a cabinet beneath the cashier's counter.

Shop No. 1 only had two zombies lying on the ground asleep, which successfully lulled Lin Wu into a false sense of security. The unorthodox method of hiding the zombies in Shop No. 2 resulted in Lin Wu, whose guard was down, getting his shoulder firmly grabbed. Fortunately, Wind Stinger activated in time, causing the zombie's subsequent bite to miss. However, the impact from Wind Stinger knocked down many items, making a lot of noise.

After dealing with the zombie in front of him, Lin Wu quickly slipped out of Shop No. 2 and dove back into Shop No. 1, shutting the door. Soon he saw several zombies shamble pass the window of Shop No. 1 into Shop No. 2. To make matters worse, a Screeching Zombie was standing seven meters from the entrance of Shop No. 1.

Lin Wu weighed whether he could rush the Screeching Zombie and take it down before it screamed if he opened the door, but that would surely draw the attention of the nearby zombies. He had two choices: either take down this group of zombies or leave the commercial street with them in tow. Neither option was bad, but the 'gugu' sound still haunted him, and his intuition told him that stirring up trouble now was not a good thing.

After waiting for about five minutes, the zombies gradually dispersed, and Lin Wu took care of the Screeching Zombie before returning to the base.