Around three in the afternoon.
Chu Guang returned to the outpost above Shelter No. 404 with Night Ten and the game they had caught while hunting.
This expedition's haul was quite satisfactory; the two mutated hyenas looked a bit lean but each weighed around forty to fifty kilograms.
As one of the main sources of meat for the survivors on the Wasteland, the mutated hyena was one of the most cost-effective quarries. They provided meat tenfold that of a mutated rat, were not scarce, often appeared in groups of three to five, and crucially, the risk of food poisoning was relatively low.
However, it was relatively harder for scavengers to overcome these group-oriented Variants with melee weapons, especially without guns.
"Two mutated hyenas, and... one piece of good news and one piece of bad news," Chu Guang said, dropping the game at the entrance of the sanatorium, addressing the players who approached.
Old White asked first.
"What's the good news?"
Chu Guang replied.
"The good news is that to the northeast of Wetland Park, following the highway out of the city northward, there's an unfinished construction site. We found a large quantity of limestone there, presumably the kind that's been treated for sulfur removal. Plus, there are some abandoned hand carts that could be used after some repairs."
Joy spread across Old White's face as he clenched his fists excitedly.
"That's great!"
He had been worrying about finding the raw materials for making calcium carbonate cement, and now the problem had been resolved so quickly.
And it was already processed material!
However, Fang Chang, who stood next to him, felt that things were not so simple.
"What about the bad news?"
Chu Guang continued.
"At the eastern gate of Wetland Park, if you proceed along Street No.76, you will find the camp of the Mutants. A rough estimate puts their number above twenty."
The three players exchanged glances, failing to grasp the significance of his words.
Seeing his companions' confusion, Night Ten quickly added an explanation.
"Mutants are hostile forces! They are formidable in combat and, most critically, they are cannibals. We must be cautious!"
Chu Guang nodded.
"That's the idea."
After hearing this, the players were not frightened but rather seemed eager to try their luck. However, Chu Guang quickly dampened their enthusiasm.
"Those Mutants are not something we can handle right now; their levels are at least 10 and above. Rash contact would not only be fruitless but also reveal our location."
"From now on, everyone is forbidden from getting close to Street No.76 and from leaving through the east gate of Wetland Park until the threat is eliminated!"
...
The players were quite obedient.
Although they were curious about what Mutants looked like, since the Manager, who had GM authority, had commanded it, they didn't dare to disobey.
Being locked in a little black room was a minor issue.
Losing the favorability they had worked so hard to build—that would truly be grievous.
The players seemed to be keeping well in line, needing no further concern from him.
After a brief inspection of the morning's labor results, Chu Guang focused on how to deal with the fresh game.
Although he had eaten this type of meat before, he had only ever bought it from the barbecue stalls on Bet Street; he had never processed such a thing by himself.
Chu Guang had heard that freshly caught game needed immediate bleeding to avoid the meat from going gamey and spoiling, but as for the specifics of how to bleed and what to do after bleeding, he was not very clear.
For the past five months, he had mainly relied on picking up trash to earn chips, and his hunting experience was not very extensive.
After all, hunting was too dangerous for a lone wolf.
In any case, after killing his prey, he had slit the animal's major arteries, but he still felt that the blood wasn't completely drained.
While Chu Guang was pondering over this, Wild Wind approached him.
"Respected Manager."
"What is it?"
"May I have some of the game's blood?"
"Blood? What do you need that for?" Chu Guang asked.
Wild Wind explained.
"I want to verify some hypotheses, and I need it for that."
Chu Guang didn't give it much thought, he took out his dagger and chopped off one of the mutated hyena's forelegs, tossing it to Wild Wind.
"Take it."
"Thank you!"
After expressing his gratitude, Wild Wind walked away with an air of mystery.
Chu Guang was curious but chose not to ask any further.
By early evening, all the players had returned to the sanatorium, and from the expression on Old White's face, Chu Guang knew that they must have had a rewarding day.
Chu Guang wanted to ask about their day but before he could speak, Old White eagerly began.
"Respected Manager, under your wise guidance, the cement kiln at the outpost is nearly completed. Once the cement dries tomorrow, we can start test production of the first batch of cement!"
"Very good."
Chu Guang nodded in approval and encouraged.
"Thanks to you all, we have taken another step toward the grand goal of rebuilding the United Human. I hope you continue your efforts; the organization will remember your contributions."
Chu Guang felt he was getting better at making promises.
Yet it appeared the players were indifferent to whether he was making empty promises, seemingly finding new pleasure in the labor of rebuilding their home.
After all, isn't that what a sandbox game is all about?
Watching their home improve bit by bit was part of the fun too. Having the opportunity to experience such cutting-edge immersive virtual reality technology was fortunate in itself.
Of course, Chu Guang was happy that the players found joy in their involvement.
Shelter No. 404 is really too poor right now, Chu Guang couldn't come up with any substantial rewards for them; he could only start by making empty promises and handing out some Air coin for now.
...
After logging off.
The Niubull Club was buzzing once again.
Lately, many of the night owls had switched to daytime schedules.
With "Quit smoking" as their leader, people who didn't sleep until it was light out now hit the sack at exactly ten at night and got up promptly at five in the morning, all just to see the Dog Management "creating spectacle."
Night Ten: [Mutants! New power update! Manager encountered a Mutant tribe on Street No.76! It's confirmed that Mutants are a hostile force!]
Night Ten, who was the first to log off, couldn't wait to be the first to break the news, igniting the group's passion for gossip.
[Mutants?! What do they look like?]
[How come it's not updated on the official website yet?]
[Niubi! There are hostile forces now; the closed beta must be close!]
[Damn, I really want to play!]
A series of messages exploded one after another.
Night Ten continued to type.
[I don't know exactly what they look like, I haven't seen them myself! But everyone, don't panic, the official website will definitely update the information about the Mutants; I'm also waiting for news here!]
Quit smoking: [What about the other three? How come only you logged on today?]
Night Ten: [No idea! The boss seems to have gone off to research concrete, Wild Wind probably had classes this morning, Fang Chang, I don't know, that guy has always been pretty secretive.]
(The mortal enemy of all girls, Night Ten, has been muted by the group owner for 1 hour.)
Old White: [Try calling me boss again and see! (Rage)]
Spare people under the knife: [Hahaha, good mute!]
WC actually has Mosquitoes: [Excited... Just two more days and I'll be partaking in the tests!]
Tomato Scrambled Eggs: [+1 (funny.jpg)]
Quit smoking: [Damn it! Mute these two showing-off dogs too! So hateful! I was the one who reserved it first! T.T]
Grandpa Ao: [Sigh, it's hopeless, truly hopeless.]
Even now, this guy called "Grandpa Ao" still didn't believe the nonsense of the "fully immersive virtual reality Game," let alone something "one hundred percent real."
He and his followers still firmly believed that Dog Management had concocted a grand deception, feeding rumors upon rumors.
"Long Days Ahead" didn't bubble up in the group chat today, but instead updated his play-test experience on the official Forum—
Or rather, he hand-recorded the Game's live situation.
[Today is the third day of the closed beta. The charcoal kiln has provided us with a large supply of charcoal and with the successful production of grass ash cement, under the leadership of the boss, we built a bigger cement kiln. If tomorrow's trial firing is successful, we will have a more reliable building material to construct our home.]
[I have to praise the production team; this Game has provided me with an experience that no other game on the market has ever given. Especially at the moment the cement kiln was completed, the resulting sense of achievement made it impossible to stop; I was hooked!]
[The content tested today wasn't much, mainly focused on testing the Game's sandbox system.]
[However, it's worth noting that today the Manager revealed that there's a Mutant tribe at the end of Street No.76, identified as a hostile force. All players need to be cautious but the Manager has not disclosed more information about the Mutants, and as of now, their photos haven't been updated on the official website—perhaps the plot hasn't reached that point yet.]
[If there's new information, I'll update it in the post at the first opportunity, so all Wasteland friends looking forward to the public beta, please keep an eye on this thread!]
"Wasteland friends" is a self-designated term by the players who have reserved the Game.
Although there are only about forty people, all of them are active—even fervent users; they buried the thread under dozens of layers of comments in no time.
Chu Guang quietly lurked and didn't join the players' discussion.
Still, as usual, he took notes on some of the good suggestions, and he marked the particularly thoughtful players in the backend.
If there was a new recruitment plan for players, these users with high loyalty were the top priority, while those who liked to be argumentative or cause a stir would be put on hold. Rather than letting them inside to create chaos, it was better to keep them on the net to spice up the atmosphere.
To put it bluntly, if you're here to cause trouble, why should I let you in?
Just because you run your mouth off and act brainless?
At this stage of the closed beta, Wasteland OL was actually more like a private server—and moreover, a private server for friends of the Manager, with no chance given to troublemakers. By gradually increasing the barriers to entry, those who had Game qualifications really treasured the opportunity in their hands.
As for the public beta stage well, that's an easier story.
The public beta had its own way of doing things.
By then, an area would be roped off as Novice Village, and unless one had a certain level or title of honor, they wouldn't even get to see his face.
Chu Guang found himself becoming more and more scheming without realizing it.
When had that started exactly?
Forget it.
There's no point in thinking about such things.
Shutting down the Computer, Chu Guang opened the System to check the rewards for today's daily task.
[Task: Cut down ten trees, Reward: 1 reward point]
[Task: Kill one Variant, Reward: 3 reward points]
"Didn't complete many tasks today."
In total, only 4 points.
Chu Guang struggled internally, but in the end, he couldn't resist. He opened the Manager's allowance and threw all 4 reward points at the basic Blind Box.
The alloy door opened.
The conveyor belt rolled.
Watching the four lollipops lying at the end of the conveyor belt, Chu Guang almost couldn't stop himself from blurting out a heartfelt curse.
However, just at that moment, over one of the light golden wrapped lollipops, a translucent holographic popup suddenly appeared.
Like a label—
[Enriched Chocolate-flavored Lollipop: Strength boost +10%, duration 10 hours.]
Chu Guang: "?"
What?