Wasteland Development Diary

A month after the pirate incident.

Zhou Yi continued his resource collection work under the Dead Sea.

Warrior Crabs were born warriors, but their intelligence in other aspects was questionable. They could only do simple carrying and house dismantling work, while screening and command relied entirely on Zhou Yi.

The residential buildings in the nameless community were all six-story buildings with two households per floor, and there wasn't much unopened food and drink.

Zhou Yi's attention quickly shifted to other items.

Like books.

In the past, his eyelids would grow heavy as soon as he opened a book, but in the wasteland era, these books sealed with oil film had become a means of passing the time and entertainment.

Zhou Yi basically emptied the books in this community, putting some into containers for collection, and keeping some interesting ones in his Emerald City house for personal reading.

Then there were the appliances.

Unfortunately, Emerald City clearly stated that it could not connect to and use those ancient devices. Its lighting, temperature control, and partial modifications within the building were essentially adjustments to its own body.

In the end, Zhou Yi only took away a few mobile phones and two computers, placing them in the house as souvenirs and decorations.

Apart from these, the biggest gains were medicines and daily necessities.

Every household would have some medicine, various cold capsules and powders, amoxicillin, digestive tablets, iodine, and so on.

Then there was body lotion, sunscreen, facial cleanser, razors, combs, toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, shower gel, shampoo, air freshener, various quilts and bedding...

Zhou Yi wouldn't even look at these things in the past because they took up too much package space. The White Suanni body didn't absorb external impurities much, and he mostly used wet wipes for cleaning.

But now that Emerald City was established as the main base, of course, everything had to be packed and taken away.

It could be used for sale or as welfare for employees.

The only problem was the frequent appearance of long-necked crocodiles nearby.

They divided the Chu and Han territories, not interfering with each other and preying on bubble fish living in higher altitude areas.

There was still no sign of the Spine Hunter.

However, Red Falcon warned: "Zhou, winter is coming, you need to be careful."

"Most low-level Photonates have the habit of winter hibernation to reduce the risk of being hunted. The duration of daylight is greatly shortened in winter, and the length of the night increases. Deadlight uses natural light as an energy transfer medium. Therefore, the increased proportion of night in a day has a huge impact on Photonate life."

"Winter is a season of chaos."

Zhou Yi had been in the seabed for many years and knew that Bone Fish would periodically dive deep into the mud layer, and high-level monsters would occasionally dive into the bottom area to hunt at this time, but he didn't know that this was directly related to seasonal changes.

He asked, "How long will winter last?"

"According to data from the past 20 years, the winter time is about 5-6 months."

Zhou Yi frowned.

Half a year.

Red Falcon stated in a cold, mechanical voice: "With the arrival of winter, except for the top-level Skywalkers and Territory Lords, the middle and lower-level Photonates will become hungry and irritable due to their inability to obtain enough daylight. They will frequently hunt other weaker Photonates to obtain Light Seeds."

"A large number of violent conflicts will erupt, not limited to hunting and killing between Photonates. Territory Lords in various places will also take the opportunity to launch wars, encourage killing and expansion, in order to expand their territories and further打击敌对竞争者."

If peacetime was a stable season of restraint from all parties, winter was the war-torn season of the wasteland era.

Zhou Yi didn't dare to take any chances.

Even with Emerald City and the Warrior Crab Legion stationed there, he still had to prepare for external shocks.

……

Inside Emerald City, the Wasteland Development Company held its first formal meeting to address the challenges of the coming winter.

Attendees included Night Claw, A Jin, Gong Zheng, A Feng, and Yuan Tong. Bone Man Sun Chonglai was absent due to an accidental fracture of his leg bone.

Zhou Yi asked, "What was winter like here in the past?"

Gong Zheng was the first to respond: "Chairman, taking Maogu Town as an example, usually enough fuel needs to be stored before winter. Mushrooms can be grown inside the cave, so sleeping as much as possible and reducing activities can make it possible to get through a day with less food."

"The biggest threats are fuel and warmth. The townspeople mainly rely on branches as firewood. But to keep the fire burning continuously, or to maintain the temperature after it goes out, requires a considerable amount of firewood."

"The trees in the oasis are constantly decreasing, and the fuel gap is getting bigger and bigger. In the past two years, several people in Maogu Town have been sleeping in one cave, sharing a fire. In addition, there is also the problem of insufficient warm blankets and straw mats."

"Another thing is that the piled-up branches will produce a lot of smoke after being lit due to the humid environment inside the cave, which cannot all be discharged in time through the exhaust hole on the fire. There is no big problem with burning the dry firewood picked up at ordinary times, but in winter, old firewood that has been accumulated is used, and this smoke will sometimes make people faint, or get a cough, and even risk dying in their sleep."

Gong Zheng thought for a while and added: "Finally, there is water. Everyone doesn't dare to go out much in winter. The monsters will go crazy, killing each other with red eyes, regardless of day or night. So, you can only use groundwater. That water can be drunk after being filtered, but it will make your teeth bleed and your stomach hurt. This is what I know."

"A Jin should know more about the situation outside."

Zhou Yi nodded as he listened.

The survival of the fittest prevails in Maogu Town, and those with weak bodies couldn't survive long ago. The people who are left are all survivors who have adapted to the harsh environment.

"A Jin."

Zhou Yi looked at the boy.

After being named, A Jin, who was yawning, sat up straight with a jolt.

"Well, Chairman... outside, outside is that the monsters will start fighting each other. Big monsters will eat small monsters, and monsters that didn't appear before will also come to the ground. They will produce a lot of feces, and some skins, bones, and rotten meat. From the perspective of scavengers, winter is the easiest time to harvest."

“不过两年前冬兽来了后，大伙儿就不敢出去了。”

"However, after the Winter Beast came two years ago, everyone didn't dare to go out."

A Jin rubbed the back of his nose with his finger, revealing a regretful expression: "The Winter Beast is very big, and it may be the most terrifying monster here. It is very tall and looks like a bird without feathers."

"No one here dares to provoke it, whether it's Claw Boar or Thorn Antlion, they are all eaten by it."

"The Winter Beast will hang its prey on trees or ice cones. It will tear out the bones of its prey, leaving only a layer of soft flesh, allowing blood to flow everywhere. It is a very terrifying and brutal monster."

The boy frowned, trying hard to recall: "The Winter Beast not only kills monsters, but also kills people. As long as it is a living animal, it likes to tear it apart and dig out its bones."

"After a few scavengers died, no one dared to go out in winter anymore. Anyway, the Winter Beast will come to us in winter, and it will leave after winter."

Due to the arrival of the Winter Beast, the monsters near Maogu Town were very well-behaved in winter. The Claw Boars hid in the north, the Thorn Antlions shrank underground, and the mushrooms were also trembling with fear.

Humans and monsters were all shivering equally.

Due to the lack of relevant information, the Red Falcon was unable to determine what kind of species the Winter Beast was.

A Jin suddenly changed the subject at the end: "Chairman, there really is something under the Desert of Death. I found a large number of neatly arranged stones, and some dried mushrooms. These must be sacrifices!"

"Can the entire sand dune be excavated?"

Zhou Yi directly rejected this proposal.

Winter is coming, and it is very risky to start large-scale construction now.

Zhou Yi said: "A Jin, stop what you are doing for now. After winter is over, if you find more evidence, I will launch an excavation operation."

"Yes, Chairman."

A Jin immediately became happy.

Just as the meeting was being held, Zhou Yi suddenly received a message.

"Commissioner, I have completed 100% charging."

Emerald City's voice went directly into his mind.

"Now, my body has produced an unprecedented impulse. I suspect this may be the 'skill' you told me about."

"But I don't know what it is. I need to use it to determine it, which requires a lot of energy."

"Am I allowed to use this ability?"

Zhou Yi was overjoyed.

Emerald City has returned to its full glory!

And another skill after 'Flying House Bombing'.

Zhou Yi ordered: "Allow usage. Let me see your ability!"