Building 4, Unit 2, Apartnt 202.
Sunlight stread through the window, illuminating the room.
Zhang Bo sat with his back to the window. Across from him was Zou Jianghe.
Zou Jianghe leaned back against the sofa. "So, have you thought it over?"
Zhang Bo looked up, his voice filled with suppressed frustration. "Boss Zou, I understand what you’re trying to do. You want to help more residents of the Gated Community survive. I’m a kind person myself, you know. I often have similar thoughts, and I help others all the ti."
Hearing this, Zou Jianghe couldn’t help but chuckle and shake his head.
He pointed at Zhang Bo. "And by ’help,’ you an sneaking over to people’s places at night for so ’paid lessons’?"
Zhang Bo nearly leaped off the sofa. ’How could he know about sothing so secret?’
Zou Jianghe sat up straight, leaning forward with his hands clasped. "I’m not asking you to supply salt to everyone at this price. This is a special discounted price exclusively for our Alliance Mutual Aid Association. You can still sell to everyone else at your original price. That’s not a problem."
Zhang Bo gritted his teeth. "But Boss Zou, inside your Alliance Mutual Aid Association, it takes two catties of coarse salt to trade for one catty of at. My Salt Well’s daily output is limited. If all of you want to buy, my Salt Well won’t have nearly enough to sell."
Zou Jianghe’s expression cleared. "Oh, so that’s how it is. It seems I misunderstood you, Boss Zhang. In that case, how about this: you give us half of your daily production quota, and our Mutual Aid Association will purchase it collectively at this price."
Zhang Bo let out a long sigh and said with difficulty, "Alright. My Salt Well can only produce 20 catties of coarse salt a day. We’ll trade a quota of 10 catties, then."
Zou Jianghe replied slowly, "Boss Zhang, now you’re not being entirely honest. How is it that I rember your Salt Well can produce 40 catties of coarse salt a day?"
Zhang Bo’s expression froze, his fingers digging into his own flesh.
’Only a handful of people know about the Salt Well’s output. How does Zou Jianghe know? Did soone betray ?’
Zhang Bo’s gaze flickered to the n in black and white standing to his left and right.
Finally, Zhang Bo took a deep breath, suppressing his rage. "Fine. A quota of 20 catties a day. But Boss Zou, don’t you forget what you promised ."
The man in black suddenly spoke up, "Brother Zhang, I’m planning to join Boss Zou’s Hunting Team. I probably can’t be a helper at the Salt Well for the ti being."
...
The way down the mountain was faster than the climb up.
As dusk fell and the moon rose, Qin Ziwen, still on the mountainside, finally caught sight of the Gated Community below.
Qin Ziwen said, "We’re finally back. Let’s go to the mountain altar again tomorrow. Everyone’s contribution from this trip will be tallied up."
Zhao Pu nodded. "Okay."
Although they had no hunting spoils today, he touched the Function Card and heard the voice in his mind.
Moreover, according to Mr. Qin, he had earned a 1/4 share of the contribution this ti. He just needed to gather a full share to apply for the next Card from the altar.
This filled him with motivation.
Countless families in the Gated Community had yet to obtain a single Card.
But he just needed to go up the mountain four more tis, and he could get a Card of his own! And activate his own Ho!
As for food, thanks to the wild boar from the last hunt, his family wasn’t short on food at all right now.
The four of them headed upstairs together.
After Zhao Pu went ho,
the remaining three continued up another flight of stairs. It was then that Deng Guang said to Qin Ziwen, "Brother Qin, when I went to get the Card today, I noticed that altar was a little different from the one we saw before from the foot of the mountain."
"How was it different?"
Deng Guang said, "The altar was bigger, and it was round, not square. It was like one of those huge round tables in a restaurant that seats twenty people. After I climbed up, I still had to walk a few steps to reach the center."
Qin Ziwen mused, "Maybe there are different kinds of altars. The one we went to this ti was probably a higher-level one."
"Probably. When I ca out, the bats overhead were squeaking nonstop." Deng Guang gave a wry smile. "To be honest, it was still a bit nerve-wracking."
Qin Ziwen teased, "Haha, you were so bold back there, I thought you weren’t scared at all."
Deng Guang said, "We should wear helts when we go tomorrow to protect our heads. And wear gloves and a couple of extra layers of clothes."
"I’ll go find a couple of motorcycle helts later."
Back ho, the living room was pitch black.
He went to the expanded area behind the restroom, where a faint glow, similar to moonlight, spilled onto the ground.
In the Farmland not far away, rows of Gray Sweet Potatoes had already sprouted from the soil, and the vegetables looked much greener than before.
Light shone from the Blacksmith Shop’s window, and the sound of hamring iron ca from within.
He pushed open the door and was hit by a wave of heat.
Li Tieshan was drenched in sweat, hamring an Iron Ingot. He was overjoyed to see Qin Ziwen. "My lord! I tried the formula you gave and discovered a new type of iron ingot. It’s harder than the previous ones, and its toughness is not bad either."
He glanced at the small stack of Ferrous Iron Ingots on the table nearby.
"You’ve been busy working here all day."
Li Tieshan gave a simple-hearted laugh. "Well, I had nothing else to do, so I figured I’d work on my craft."
Qin Ziwen was very pleased with Li Tieshan’s work ethic.
But such high-intensity work also worried him a little. He couldn’t help but advise, "Rember to rest early. Your health is the number one priority. I need you to still be able to swing a hamr decades from now, not burn yourself out and damage your foundation in just a couple of months."
Hearing this, Li Tieshan was moved to tears of gratitude.
’My lord is too good to .’
After checking the Beast Cage and adding water, feed, and grass, he took out the Red Function Card.
The Function Card felt like warm, smooth jade and looked like a crimson crystal. An eye symbol was carved on its front.
Qin Ziwen silently willed it to be used.
The small orb of light representing his Ho appeared automatically. The Red Function Card shattered with a POP, breaking into a shower of red stars that rged into the small white orb.
[Function Activated: Level 1 Insight]
[New Function Activated. Authority Has Been Increased.]
[Current Authority: Level 1 Authority]
...
[Level 1 Insight: Can be used on Card buildings to perceive their basic rules.]
With a thought, Qin Ziwen looked at the nearest Beast Cage.
[Level 1 Beast Cage: Level 1 Reproduction Amplification, Level 1 Stable Taming]
He looked at the Farmland next.
[Level 1 Farmland: Level 1 Growth Acceleration, Level 1 Fertile]
He looked around, scanning every building in the area.
[Level 1 Restroom: Level 1 Cleaning, Level 1 Odor Control]
[Level 1 Blacksmith Shop: Level 1 Furnace High Temperature, Level 1 Quenching Amplification]
’No wonder the crops in the Farmland were growing abnormally fast, and the rabbits and field mice in the Beast Cage seed much tar than when they were first caught.’
’So the buildings really do have special effects.’
He had suspected it before, but now he was certain.
He ca out of the Restroom and returned to the master bedroom.
He looked at the cellar.
[Level 2 Cellar Grain Storage: Level 2 Low Temperature, Level 1 Ventilation, Level 1 Dehumidification]
’Does upgrading to Level 2 add an extra effect? And it seems like not all amplification effects get upgraded to Level 2 after leveling up.’
He looked away. There were too few reference points. Once he upgraded more buildings and had more examples, he would probably understand the pattern.
He went to the expanded area outside the balcony.
This ti, Qin Ziwen looked at the Tavern. He was determined to see what this thing was actually for.
[Level 1 Tavern: Level 1 Custor Attraction, Level 1 Recruitnt]
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