Stone, having dozed off throughout the night, had replenished his sleep. Seeing Lin Wu come up, he gestured for Lin Wu to take a seat near the radio: "Let's discuss."
As Lin Wu sat down, Stone grabbed an iron kettle from one side and brewed a cup of tea for Lin Wu. The tea was a cheap bag of black tea, and the iron kettle was salvaged trash. There was a well within the base, and Stone, without using the system, had crafted a stove with his own hands.
Although the cup of tea had no benefits for the human body, it could make one feel happy and comfortable. Lin Wu took the cup and said, "I thought you were a pragmatist; I didn't expect you to brew tea?"
"When in a good mood, everything is enjoyable; when in a bad mood, nothing is. A pleasant mood is the secret to improving work efficiency," Stone said, sitting down. "Our small base has four units. One has been made into a medical office and another into a dormitory. For the remaining two units, I'm considering constructing a workbench and a storage. The workbench can be used to repair and manufacture weapons and craft various handheld items, including generators."
Lin Wu asked, "Why the need for a storage?"
Stone explained, "You know there are five types of resources in the base. Since we are a small base, our storage limit is 15 units. Constructing a storage will increase that to 25. This is only a temporary base, and we definitely won't stay too long; we need to stockpile enough resources first."
Lin Wu nodded, "I have no objections."
"Good! Next, we have a few things to do. First, we need a vehicle, any kind will do, there's no rush. Second, we need a new base, one suitable for development. Third, we need a lot of basic packs. Fourth, we need Skill Books in agriculture, medicine, mechanics, and so on," Stone continued.
"An hour ago, two new bases were established in North Town, one with three and the other with four people. We are severely understaffed and need more people. Developing a decent base likely also requires a certain number of people. So your first task today is to scout the new bases. Once I have the new base information, I will negotiate with the people from these two bases to see if we can form a medium-small long-term base together," Stone explained.
Stone produced a map, which Little Knife had obtained from a zombie's body in the early hours: "I've looked at it for a while and found two medium-small bases that might be suitable. The first potential base is a mountaintop church, five kilometers away, ten kilometers from Left County in North City. If we settle here, we can not only secure North Town but also gradually plan for Left County. The downside is that the area is dense with buildings—residential, factories, apartments—so the zombie density must be very high."
"The second potential base is seven kilometers away, a roadside repair shop. Its advantage is that there are hardly any other buildings nearby, so the zombie density is very low. I think the repair shop can also provide automobile assistance. Its disadvantage is remoteness, twenty kilometers away from Left County and eight kilometers from the commercial center of North Town."
"The church base is suitable for resource collection and expansion, but it's riskier. The repair shop is safer but far from resource points. It seems the repair shop has no advantages, but I have an idea: what if we use the low-risk area to level up? Your Agility is at two stars, and Little Knife's strength is now also at two stars. Should we develop our Combat Skills? At the same time, I'm worried the other two bases might form an Alliance and occupy the mountaintop church first," Stone speculated.
"I want to hear your thoughts now," Stone said.
"Definitely the mountaintop church. More zombies, faster leveling up." How much is 39 times 93? Lin Wu instantly replied, "It's 21212." Whether it's correct or not, I don't know, but he calculated quickly. Lin Wu's Full Power Value in decisiveness was not just for show.
"But the risk is also very high," Stone hesitated. "You already know about the death penalty—once dead, it's basically certain that we won't meet again anytime soon."
Lin Wu said, "It took two years just to begin the first day, if I'm going to die, I'd rather die now instead of a month later, half a year later, or even a year later."
Stone felt that Lin Wu's reasoning made sense, and took out a small package from his own bag to give to Lin Wu, "This is a medical kit I received when the newcomer supplies were distributed, it can heal any injury or illness except infection. Little Knife needs to recuperate, I need to guard the base, so it has to be you going alone."
Lin Wu took the medical kit and put it in his backpack, "No problem, wait for my news. And don't forget to check the graveyard from time to time, maybe I'll move over there."
"Haha." Stone handed a water pipe to Lin Wu for him to use as a secondary weapon, then walked Lin Wu to the door and instructed him, "Don't be greedy for kills, don't be greedy for loot, adapt to the situation, everything can be lost, but your life is the most important."
"Got it." Lin Wu and Stone clasped hands.
...
North Town was shrouded in high mountain fog, surrounded on all sides by mountains. There was only one way to Left County, through Highway 119—if not following the highway, one would have to cross over the mountains. The Homeland game had no invisible walls, but crossing two mountains without the help of a compass was not something ordinary people could accomplish.
The mountaintop church that Stone mentioned was part of North Town, strictly speaking, and was considered a suburban area of Left County. To drive from North Town to the mountaintop church, one had to pass through a stretch of Highway 119 known as the Death Zone. Less than a kilometer of the road was littered with a large number of scrapped cars, and signs proclaiming "Death Zone" were erected at both the entrance and the exit.
Lin Wu stood on high ground and surveyed the scene for a long while; he concluded that he could navigate the car through the snake-like passage left by the system, but it was impossible to pick up speed. The highway had been turned into a maze by the wreckage, with the left side seemingly open but leading to a dead end, while the only way through was a narrow path on the right that barely allowed a car to pass. The complicated twists and turns required slow progress and frequent reversing to change routes.
The real danger was that there were many zombies within the Death Zone. Unless players organized to clear the Death Zone, it was impossible for cars to reach Left County from either North Town or North Down Town.
One could take a detour without a car; to the left of the Death Zone was a cliff, and to the right was a sheer wall over ten meters high, the top of which was a relatively flat area covered with weeds. Without vehicle transport like cars, moving house would be a difficult task.
This flat area was a gentle slope shaped like a rugby ball, with the Death Zone constructed around one side of the "rugby ball." According to the map and roadside markings, this place was known as Olive Manor. Looking up towards the top of the slope, one could vaguely see buildings.
Olive Manor was overgrown with weeds, full of dangers, and those damned zombies liked to sleep in concealed areas and wander in open spaces. Lin Wu hadn't walked 20 meters before he encountered two zombies, each time within a distance of two meters. If Lin Wu hadn't been careful and nimble in dodging, he would have been bitten several times by now. Then, instead of scouting, he'd have to return to base to wait in line for a hospital bed.
One of the zombies that Lin Wu took down had been hiding in a ditch, with reeds on both sides growing as tall as a person, completely obscuring the zombie inside. If it had been someone else, they would have stayed far away from the ditch after an ambush, but Lin Wu was strong in self-directed action. He walked along the edge of the ditch, assuming zombies could be hiding anywhere. If all went well, he could cross Olive Manor in 20 minutes and reach the other end of the Death Zone.
Suddenly, there was a noise from the ditch, and a zombie crawled out—Lin Wu had been expecting this. He stomped on the zombie's face, sending it crashing back into the water with the sound of a splash. After stepping on it, Lin Wu felt something was wrong; what he had stepped on didn't seem to be the ragged remains of a zombie.