CH 27

Yan Hongyu, with the girls, hid behind the door.

The door was being attacked by ability users outside, but the girls’ fear and hesitation dissipated upon seeing the determination in each other’s eyes.

Yan Hongyu turned back to look at the girls behind her, relieved to see their resolute expressions. She whispered, ‘When they come in, we block the door. For every one of them that enters, we fight them. Anyone who tries to break in has it coming.’

The girls nodded in agreement.

Yan Hongyu, however, couldn’t help but think about what they saw in the weapons room earlier – the process of weapon production.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Inside the ‘weapons room’ was an automated printer that looked like a 3D printer. The silver machine was labeled ‘basic,’ and there was a slot at the top for materials. At the time the weapons room was opened, fifty boxes of basic materials were already placed next to the printer.

The silver basic materials were faintly shiny, but there was a mysterious feeling to them that didn’t feel like anything from this world. With just a brief look, Yan Hongyu was stunned. The slightly cold materials looked more like a special kind of crystal, but once they were put into the printer, the speed and quality of the output were far more advanced than any technology from the pre-apocalyptic world.

Who is the big boss?

How could she have such advanced technology?

These were questions that lingered in Yan Hongyu’s mind, but suddenly, there was a loud ‘bang’ from the door in front of them. A small hole only big enough for one person to enter or exit appeared on the door. Before the intruders outside could react, Yan Hongyu heard the internal system of the base announce, ‘Intruders detected. Guard robots are now in position.’

The two objects on either side of the door, which they initially thought were two cylinders that resembled two large trash cans with rounded tops, suddenly stood up with a bang. They opened their chests and reached out their hands to the two girls at the back of the group.

‘Controllers: Li Ling and Zhao Hong. Please take your positions.’

As soon as the two girls climbed into the robots’ chests, there was a ‘beep,’ and two robots were combat ready. With the robots’ hands flickering with flame, and combined with Yan Hongyu’s fireball, they aimlessly attacked the intruders’ heads!

Shen Cheng felt extremely satisfied as she watched on her phone.

She used to play very few games that required killing. She originally thought that this game would be like most simulation management games, where she could just watch the enemies attack the city after preparing logistics for the little people. But Shen Cheng discovered that this game actually gave players a high level of control and a strong sense of impact!

After the system displayed “The enemy attack on the base has officially begun,” a new prompt appeared in front of Shen Cheng:

“Do you want to activate the base’s internal defense machinery? (Please note that this operation may cause machinery loss. The rental price for two machines is 1G per minute. If damaged, repairs will be charged separately): Y/N”

Shen Cheng compared the two sides.

The residents of the base were stuck in place and were currently in a “high morale” state, but compared to the group of thugs outside, they had no crushing advantages in terms of weapons, equipment, or strength.

If they continued at this pace, although the little people would win, there would likely be losses.

The girls in the base were all from humble backgrounds, and Shen Cheng couldn’t help but think of herself when she looked at them. She couldn’t bring herself to press the “N” key. She didn’t know if it was just her when playing games, even in single-player games, it didn’t matter if one teammate died, she would just quit the game and reload.

There were some of her own projections on the girls in this game, so Shen Cheng didn’t want to see any of them lying in a pool of blood.

Alright, alright, let’s just spend the money! Let’s end the battle quickly and try to minimize the damage to mother’s wallet!

In games, how can they make money without cheating the pay-to-win players?

Shen Cheng gritted her teeth and pressed “Y,” thinking that she had to go out and make money quickly. On the screen, the two mechanical monsters, which looked like giant bumblebees, had already “swallowed” the two little people with the highest strength that she had selected.

As she watched the team leader Yan Hongyu start throwing fireballs, and with only a small hole in the door that one person could pass through, the two girls controlling the machines on the left and right were stuck in place. The mechanical “boom” punched into the crowd, causing a small cloud of smoke to rise.

As the field of view became chaotic, the formation fell apart. With a roar, the ground trembled as a huge fist struck. The unruly crowd outside immediately began to disperse.

They were already lacking unity, and now they saw that the underground base was not a pushover. The moment the gate was smashed open, they were met with a fireball from a fire-type ability user. Then they saw two robots that were over two meters tall. If it weren’t for the wind-type ability users outside, they would have been turned into meat pulp under the mechanical fists.

If the base only had these people, it would be fine. But as they looked around, they saw that the corridors were filled with women wielding various weapons resisting them.

The man who had incited them was not the first to rush in. The first one to smash open the door and rush in was a power-type ability user. However, even a tall and strong man like him could only withstand three punches from the robot’s strikes!

Then he retreated step by step, spat out a mouthful of blood, and fell to the ground, unconscious.

The few people who had incited them suddenly felt that the steel monster’s originally inorganic eyes were fixed firmly on their direction—not just a feeling, but an actual fixation!

In those cold eyes was written all the anger of being deceived, humiliated, and betrayed!

Although they were all red colored avatars, there were a few with different titles. Watching the girls beat the invaders, Shen Cheng clicked on the enemy’s avatar and saw several people with almost identical names. Their names all had the code “Thunder *198,” “Thunder *204,” “Thunder 212,” and so on.

There were six of these people in total.

Shen Cheng immediately marked them with a “special” tag, allowing the machines to target them first.

The names of this group of people all had “Thunder” and a three-digit numerical code. Shen Cheng guessed that “Thunder” was definitely an organization that had been inciting and agitating others in the apocalypse, and their numbers were not less than three digits. It was likely that the previous zombie attacks on bases were also related to this group “Thunder.”

As soon as she marked them, the machines immediately prompted the two girls controlling them:

“The key enemy has been marked. Do you want to use tracking mode?”

Li Ling and Zhao Hong’s hearts skipped a beat, and they immediately knew that the red “X” mark displayed in their field of vision was the object their big boss wanted them to remove first. Without hesitation, the two girls manipulated their machines and charged forward!

In just a few minutes, the battle was over.

In front of Shen Cheng, as soon as these red-colored avatars with the name “Thunder” fell, the remaining people immediately received a “debuff” of “50% battle power reduction” on their heads, and not long after, the remaining girls in the base cleaned them up.

According to the system calculation, it took about 10 minutes, equivalent to 10G or 10 “soft sister coins”. Fortunately, the machines were almost undamaged, and these people had probably never seen such high-tech equipment like Transformers before. They never thought that the women in the base would dare to resist and fight them face-to-face.

Looking at the two round and cute things that had obediently shrunk back to the door of the base and were standing quietly like two trash cans, no one dared to underestimate the base anymore.

The system flashed a reminder: “Noah Base’s reputation level is 1, somewhat famous,” as the battle ended.

The girls sat or stood there, sweating profusely. Although the battle only lasted for a short ten minutes, being able to defend their own home with their own hands was almost equivalent to a rebirth for them. This told them that even as women, as long as they were in Noah Base, they were a part of this base and could use their own hands to defend their own rights! They were not cowards to be slaughtered at will! This small battle boosted their morale!

Yan Hongyu even shed tears inexplicably.

“Sister Yan!” Li Ling, who had just punched one little avatar after another with one of the robots, hugged her and cried bitterly. However, the tears were no longer filled with sadness and pain, but with joy of welcoming a new life.

Yan Hongyu patted her back, looked up at the empty space with tears in her eyes, and mouthed a “thank you”. The next second, she looked at everyone inside the room and said loudly, “Girls, don’t forget who gave you all of this!”

“Noah!” The rest of the group shouted in unison. Shen Cheng looked at the girls in the room and the little hearts that popped up above their heads, feeling her eyes moisten.

Ah, the ten dollars was worth it.

【The first enemy siege has ended.】

A new message popped up on the system.

【Please choose how to deal with remaining hostile people:

A. Kill them all, leave none alive.

B. Exile them far away, not allowing them to approach Noah.

C. Forgive them.

Please note: This is a decision of great significance, please choose carefully!】

Shen Cheng’s mood had not yet recovered from the touching scene just now, when she saw these three choices. She frowned slightly, and her finger moved among the three options for a long time. But after a while, she still couldn’t make a decision.

Option A seemed to be a satisfying revenge, but in fact, there were people in this group who had not lifted a hand from beginning to end. Shen Cheng even saw a father with a very young child. If this person was killed, the child would probably not survive either.

Moreover, although there were no laws in the apocalypse, human life was still precious. While some of Noah’s enemies were human, there were more non-human threats to fight against.

Therefore, Shen Cheng really didn’t want to kill hundreds of people like this.

But option C was even worse than A. No matter what, these people had set a precedent for attacking Noah’s base. If she chose C, and forgave them without any punishment, wouldn’t others treat her as a saint?

Then in the future, people wanting to take advantage of Noah’s base would come in droves. Shen Cheng’s concern now was that if something happened when she was not online, she would be powerless to do anything about it.

As for B, it’s nice to see him being exiled from afar, but it doesn’t really feel like punishment!

Shen Cheng hesitated for more than twenty seconds, and then a new option suddenly appeared at the bottom of the list:

D. Develop a “prison labor room” where they can only do activities in the room until they have redeemed themselves.

“!!” Shen Cheng looked and indeed, a new room appeared in the base.

This room is called the “Prison Labor Room,” and its purchase price is surprisingly “0,” with a very rough introduction next to it:

[If you hate someone, lock them up in this room. Guaranteed to change their ways.]

And the room is nothing but a bed and a hamster wheel!

Shen Cheng couldn’t help but burst out laughing when she saw this. She clicked on the “hamster wheel,” and another line of words appeared above it: [End-of-the-world green energy, you deserve to have it!]

“…” Hahaha!

This game is so awesome!

Shen Cheng laughed for a while and guessed that the reason why the purchase price of this room was “0” was probably because it could be considered one of the rewards for the siege, and it was especially easy to overlook once the ABC options were chosen in the early stages, so the price was so cheap?

She bought the “Prison Labor Room” and happily watched as the girls tied the captured “hamsters” into a ball and threw them into the room one by one.

Hamsters generate electricity, LET’s GO!

Making these bastards do labor reform by running around in circles is the most correct way to reform criminals!

**

That night, Shen Cheng went to the night market as planned.

Most of the vendors in this night market are residents of their community. Since Shen Cheng intends to set up a stall to get rich, she naturally needs to first survey the market.

The best location in the night market has already been taken by several small food carts. Shen Cheng took a look and found that they mainly sell food with a strong flavor of smoke. About half of the people eating at the stalls were sitting down, while the other half were taking their food to go.

In the hot summer, people who eat a lot and sweat a lot usually drink a bottle of beer or a bottle of cola, then burp and go home feeling full.

However, Shen Cheng also saw some girls who seemed to want to sit down and eat, but the drinks at the stall did not suit their taste. After hesitating for a while, they eventually chose to take their food home.

After conducting her market research, Shen Cheng had a rough idea in her mind.

When she returned home, the neighbors were still noisy, but Shen Cheng’s heart had already calmed down. She knew how she was going to do her fruit business.

The reason why she chose fruit was not because it had the highest profit margin, but because she couldn’t afford to take risks. Sister Ma told her that she would help her digest any excess inventory. Small items such as phone cases and socks required capital investment. If she lost money, she wouldn’t be able to make ends meet. Moreover, she noticed that most of the stalls in the night market were food-related. The few stalls selling socks mainly followed a strategy of low profit and high sales.

When she was at the night market earlier, she saw several farmers selling apples and pears from their trucks. She couldn’t compete with their supply source, and couldn’t find goods cheaper than theirs. She also didn’t want to conflict with the older uncles. As a result, younger and more trendy fruits became a relatively better choice.

Shen Cheng conducted a survey online and finally narrowed down her product line to several types of fruits. She placed an order on Taobao before going to bed.

Although fruit has a fast turnover, it still involves an investment. Shen Cheng was still quite nervous in her heart, and her poor mental state the next day was visible to the naked eye. When she went to work, Sister Ma caught her and asked, “Cheng, why do you look so listless?”

Shen Cheng smiled awkwardly and replied, “I bought fruits on Taobao yesterday and I’m really anxious that I might lose money.”

Upon hearing this, Sister Ma burst out laughing.

She had been keeping an eye on the young girl, wondering why she had been silent for two days, and had been a little upset, thinking that she was just playing around. In business, it’s important to take a sip of water and wait for the right time to strike. If you try to seize the market too soon, when others have already established their customers, it will be even harder. This girl is alone, even if she wants to compete, she can’t compete with the locals. Sister Ma thought that she had backed out after thinking it over, but now that she heard the girl speak, she smiled and asked, “What kind of fruit did you buy? I’ll help you post it on my WeChat Moments later.”

Shen Cheng smiled and counted, “Avocado, yogurt, pineapple, watermelon…”

“These are not light!” Sister Ma was surprised when she heard it. She looked at Shen Cheng’s small figure and asked, “Can you move them all by yourself?”

“En, and I calculated it,” Shen Cheng smiled and said, “I can make at least ten yuan in profit for a cup of avocado juice, and more than ten yuan for a portion of pineapple. Watermelon earns a little less, but if the earlier sales are not good, I can also sell watermelon juice instead…”

As Sister Ma listened to her explain her pricing and profit clearly, she couldn’t help but feel moved. She looked at the young and fair-skinned girl and said with a smile, “Okay, I’ll give you a ride for a few days.”

“Huh? Sister Ma?” Shen Cheng widened her eyes. If she said “ride,” the other party might have to wait with her for half the night. This would make her indebted to Sister Ma!

Shen Cheng shook her head shyly and said, “I didn’t plan on making it too big at first. I was going to borrow a small cart from our community management. How can I trouble you for transportation?”

“I said I’ll do it, so I’ll do it. Don’t be polite with me. I’ll consider it an exercise, and I can even help you out when I’m there,” Sister Ma laughed heartily, “Okay, I encouraged you to set up a stall in the first place, so I’ll help you until you get started.”

Shen Cheng slowly became emotional, and her eyes turned red with excitement.

Li Weilan stood on the balcony, looking down at the spacious streets of Tenglong Base. However, all he could hear were the noisy sounds of people arguing and fighting. Workers in Tenglong uniforms were dragging a man from the street like a dead dog, while blood dripped from his arm.

Many ability users surrounded them, but they remained silent.

Despite the quietness, Li Weilan could sense the suppressed anger and invisible resistance that made the workers tremble. He tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table, expressionless as he watched the scene.

Xi Nan spoke softly behind him, “Brother Li, this is the third time since we started buying grain.”

“It’s the third time we’ve seen it,” Li Weilan corrected him in his mind.

It was the third time that ability users had rebelled and been suppressed.

Li Weilan had proposed to purchase low-pollution grain, and as the purchase progressed, he had successfully traded several times here. Li Mo, who had earned half of his 100,000 credit points, clearly strengthened his progress in buying grain in the base. Now, even if there was only a small amount of grain left in the hands of individual sellers, he refused to let it go.

Food is the most important thing for people, and the ability users in Tenglong Base received their salaries “in name only” this month. They were supposed to get low-pollution grain, but what they received was of medium pollution. Eating this grain increased the risk of their abilities going berserk. Those who rebelled against this were those who refused to be taken advantage of.

“Not enough,” Li Weilan’s eyes flickered with shrewdness. “The fire needs more fuel.”

“???” Xi Nan asked, “What are you going to do, Brother Li?”

“Wait a little longer,” Li Weilan turned around and said to Xi Nan, “When Tenglong Base exiles all these abilities far away, give them a map and let them go to Noah on their own.”

“Yes.” This was already the third time Xi Nan had done this.

He hesitated for a moment and finally asked, “Brother Li, when will we go find my earth-type ability user friend?”

“Wait a little longer.” Li Weilan had just said this, but his mouth suddenly curved into a gentle arc, and he smiled slightly towards the empty space, saying, “You’re here?”

When his clothes were lightly tugged, he knew she had arrived.

These days she had obviously become busy, Li Weilan didn’t know what she was busy with, but she hadn’t paid much attention to him other than harvesting crops. There was a hint of sourness in Li Weilan’s heart.

He didn’t plan to share this precious and rare time with Xi Nan.

He waved his hand to indicate he was done speaking, and Xi Nan turned around. The small person on Shen Cheng’s phone screen clearly showed a white-eyed expression and black lines almost covered his entire eye.

Huh? Xi Nan rolled his eyes so much…

Shen Cheng didn’t have time to think much, and her cub was already smiling at her, asking like it was a casual conversation, “Have you been busy lately?”

“???” Did he infer that she was busy in the 3D world because she has been appearing in the game world a bit less lately?

Shen Cheng was puzzled for a moment: Although she had just started preparing for the stall these past few days, she hadn’t been late for any of the crop harvests!

The reason why there wasn’t much interaction with the cub was also because it seemed that new tasks wouldn’t refresh in the “Characters” column until she had stored 4000 units of food!

But if the cub said so, could it be that there were hidden “interaction” and “friendliness” options in the game, but they were hidden and couldn’t be seen?

Then maybe reducing the time spent with the cub would make him feel disappointed!

Shen Cheng tugged on Li Weilan’s hand and squeezed it twice to indicate that she was indeed busy.

Li Weilan’s gaze darkened.

He had never longed to hear her voice as much as he did at that moment.

He really hoped to hear her say what she was busy with, even if she was lying to him.

Didn’t she speak before?

Why hadn’t she made a sound since then?

Disappointment filled his chest, and Li Weilan slowly lowered his head, his face full of disappointment.

In Shen Cheng’s eyes and the eyes of the little character, it was almost as if there were stars rolling around.

Huh? Mother doesn’t allow the cub to show such a sad expression!

Cub, what’s wrong with you?

【The game’s voice interaction package has been updated. Do you want to purchase the voice package and AI interaction system? Y/N】

At this moment, the whole game suddenly stopped, and a new system prompt appeared in front of Shen Cheng.

“???” Shen Cheng glanced at the price and almost jumped up.

188!

Just for this one voice pack, she didn’t know if the interaction was similar to SIRI, but it was asking for 188!

Shen Cheng stared at the little person on the screen, who was showing a sad expression towards her, and the same sad expression was also seen on her own face. “It’s so expensive, cub!”

But then she saw a small horn button behind this message, with “Listen to Voice Pack” written on it. Shen Cheng hesitated for a moment, but she couldn’t resist her itchy hands and pressed it.

A clear male voice immediately rang out in the room.

“Can I… listen to your voice?”

“Ah ah ah!” Shen Cheng felt like her blood was drained!

The little person tilted his head thoughtfully, and a thought bubble appeared above his head at the same time. Shen Cheng suddenly felt that the 188 yuan voice pack wasn’t so expensive after all!

Buy, buy, buy!

She didn’t know who the game’s voice actor was, but the sentence was spoken with a hesitant and expectant tone, with a hint of a seductive atmosphere. It was like the expectation and charm that a beautiful but cold man would only show to you. Simply…

Shen Cheng secretly cursed herself for trying to listen, but her hand couldn’t stop herself from paying for it.