Kingdom of Corrosion

Lin Wu said, "This has nothing to do with love or necessity, it’s purely about responsibility and morality. In practical terms, it certainly is a burden, but can I abandon it?"

Lin Meng fell into contemplation, "Your topic is very profound; it leaves me unsure of what to say."

Lin Wu said, "You’re the one who’s profound. It’s normal for Chen Shimei not to love Qin Xianglian, as people change, and it’s not just about others; he himself can’t control who he falls for, but his failure to marry Qin Xianglian was his mistake."

Lin Meng asked, "Can a horse be put on a card?"

"Shouldn’t it be?" The horse card is a package, right?

Lin Meng said, "After going back, I’ll go to the airport secret service reception to inquire clearly. Secret agents might also own mounts, and the secret agents’ mounts should be able to move freely in Leimeng Town without the system’s threat."

Lin Wu looked at Lin Meng, "If you manage this, I promise I won’t pick on you ever again."

Lin Meng shook her head, "I don’t believe you."

Lin Wu said, "If it doesn’t work out, I’ll pick on you every day."

Lin Meng replied, "That I believe." Humph!

Lin Wu feigned concern and asked, "How’s your body holding up?"

Lin Meng replied, "Fractured left arm and left ribs, as long as I don’t do anything too strenuous, it won’t hurt. But I think this is a good thing."

Lin Wu said admiringly, "I seldom hear such a perspective."

Lin Meng said, "I’m not joking. After the two fractures, the pain controlled my range of motion. Whenever I move too much, they remind me: take it easy. Now my killing efficiency is very high."

Lin Wu said, "But it will hurt, and the pain will last for a while."

Lin Meng said, "It’s just pain. If it hurts, just cry out, and then it won’t hurt as much."

Lin Wu reached out and yanked a few strands of hair near Lin Meng’s ear, causing Lin Meng to cry out at once, "Ouch, that hurts."

"And then it doesn’t hurt as much."

Lin Meng said, "But this pain doesn’t enhance my abilities."

Lin Wu said, "But it does provide me with a few strands of hair."

Lin Meng thought for two seconds, then said, "As long as it makes you happy, I can tolerate it."

Lin Wu was dumbstruck for a long while, speechless, and asked, "What if I were a bad person? Like a real-life bad person, would you say, ’As long as it makes you happy, I can tolerate it?’"

This time, it was Lin Meng who was stunned. After a long while, she said, "I thought we were already friends."

"Right, right, right," Lin Wu quickly said, "Of course, we are friends." The damn girl sure knew how to talk, hitting hard without bloodshed, with blows that were lethal.

Lin Meng said, "Even the worst of people have friends, right?"

If I agree, then I admit I’m a bad person. If I disagree, then I fall into the trap again. But Lin Meng’s expression didn’t seem deceitful, as if it was just simple conversation without any ulterior motive.

Lin Wu said, "I don’t know any bad people, and a good person like me definitely has friends."

Lin Meng flashed a toothy smile, "Lin Wu, you really have no shame."

Lin Wu was left speechless once more; he really couldn’t debate with Lin Meng about his character.

Lin Meng stood up, "Rest early. We’ll have instant noodles for breakfast tomorrow."

"Good night."

"Good night."

After sitting for a while longer, Lin Wu got up and patted Phantom’s neck before he and Wai entered the tent. They wrapped themselves in their bedding by the campfire to sleep.

The two girls had chatted for who knows how long inside the dormitory, and the next morning, both looked sleep-deprived. Lin Wu joked, "It’s the first time I’ve seen dark circles being contagious."

Lin Meng’s imagination was beyond Lin Wu’s expectations. Instead of arguing with Lin Wu alongside Little Knife, she actually started discussing with Little Knife who had infected whom. Little Knife was led astray by her, and the topic lasted through the entire breakfast.

Using the building materials in stock, Lin Wu had constructed a kitchen yesterday. Although the food it produced couldn’t compare to his own cooking, it was undeniably fast and convenient.

On the 23rd, they continued to farm for Blood Plague. It had to be said that Lin Meng’s improvement was clear to see; not only was she aiming for the head with every move, but she also had a good grasp of the distance. Lin Wu was only concerned about the Blood Ferocious Ma, leaving the accompanying Blood Zombies for them to deal with. As before, the Blood Ferocious Ma were very cooperative, with an average of one Serum dropping per every three killed.

Meanwhile, the base command was participating in an auction. The auction started at eight in the morning, and by 8:30, a trump card appeared: the Albatross Twin-wing Twin-seat Propeller Training Aircraft. This was an early model airplane from World War I, with a top speed of nearly two hundred kilometers per hour. Its combat effectiveness varied with the player; it required two crew members, with one handling the flight controls and the other responsible for dropping things and shooting downwards.

In practical terms, it was quite average. A gunner on the plane would likely be hit by ground targets before they could hit their own targets. Its main highlight was fuel consumption, about 20 liters per hundred kilometers, plus it didn’t require much in terms of terrain for take-offs and landings. As a means of transportation, the Albatross was definitely at the top.

This auction item was provided by the system, so its starting bid was displayed, which was 300 pistol bullets. After deducting the commission, it would take 330 bullets to have a chance of buying it.

In the end, the Albatross went unsold without any suspense.

At nine o’clock, the first Sentry Card of the day’s auction appeared. Within 10 seconds of bidding, the price of the Sentry Card shot past 100 bullets, and it kept rising rapidly. In 20 seconds, the price had reached 150 bullets. This pricing drove Maya mad; her personality was not suited for auctions, but luckily she had Shana by her side.

Shana confidently told Maya that if the first card’s auction was intense, its price was likely to be lower than the second card’s. As for the reasons, they included various factors. Maya didn’t have the time to listen; she was prepared to bid up to 160 bullets. Shana stopped her, "Add one bullet, no matter how much the others bid, just add one bullet." Either make a thunderous bid with substantial funds or stick to the pestering dogfight tactic. The latter would make the opponent uneasy; if he added ten bullets each time, while you added just one, he had to think each time, and you didn’t. Of course, the most annoying scenario was when both bidders nickel and dimed their way higher.

"Stop," Shana called out when the price soared to 180, "Last 3 seconds to bid. This is to warn the other party that if he bids again, we will stop bidding." The opponent would think that 180 was already our psychological bottom line and, considering another Sentry Card was available, they would have to consider whether their own higher bid might be too much.

Maya placed a bid in the last seconds, as Shana had directed, and asked, "What if the other side adds 10 bullets in the last three seconds?"

"From 160 bullets onwards, there were only two competitors left. If the other party bids 190, you can let them have the card. Because the 30-bullet difference between 160 and 190 is significant, I believe we can secure the second card within 190. However, if there are multiple parties entangled up to 190, we must hold firm, because the next Sentry Card will surely exceed 190."

Quietly waiting for ten seconds, as the auction ended, the final price of the Sentry Card settled at 181 bullets, with Shadow winning the card.

Shana said, "If I were the owner of the second Sentry Card, I would try to contact my allies, transfer my bullets to them, and have them drive the price over 190, even boldly up to 220. Because no one knows if more Sentry Cards will be available in the future, and the opponent’s fierce bidding clearly shows their urgency for the card."

Shana added, "The most important point is that today’s auction is the last one of the season, because we’re about to enter the event dungeon. It’s difficult to predict how prices will fluctuate then. There’s also a possibility that points earned from the event could directly purchase Sentry Cards, which would devalue them and make us the big losers."

The two didn’t discuss the situation of Lin Wu not returning by eight in the evening. Knowing him as they did, they trusted that as long as there was no trouble, Lin Wu would definitely stick to the time.

...

After farming a dozen more waves and packing up, they loaded up the pickup and left. A small incident: Lin Meng was carried to the passenger seat by Little Knife because she had broken her own left leg. While she could still walk, it was slow and lopsided.

When Little Knife inquired about the treatment, Lin Meng replied, "I can go to the hospital at the airport for treatment, which is actually just a clinic. Besides Leimeng Town, the Fortress has established 20 logistic support points in ten cities."

Little Knife asked, "Does it cost points?"

"Yes," Lin Meng said, "For my condition, it would likely require around 300 points."

Little Knife: "But you don’t have 300 points."

Lin Meng said, "Have you forgotten I can sell weapons? Remember the Bending Gun I got last time? It can be sold for 400 points." Buy for 1200, sell for 400. The Fortress’s store sells most weapons and likewise buys back the majority of them.

Lin Wu said, "Don’t play so pitiful. Once you’re back at the base, go find Shana and see if there’s any extra junk in storage that can be sold."

Lin Meng: "I’m not pitiful." Annoyed, where was the pity?

Lin Wu: "If you like the Bending Gun, keep it. Shadow isn’t so hard up that you need to sell your favorite things to survive."

Lin Meng: "Oh." Even though they were quite familiar and had openly declared their friendship, Lin Meng still didn’t dare to contradict Lin Wu’s words because his authority still loomed large.

Little Knife couldn’t bear to watch: "She didn’t say anything."

Lin Wu said, "I don’t like that she doesn’t see us as her own. When you have a problem, you should speak up instead of thinking about selling your favorite things."

Lin Meng: "Got it, I’ll talk about it when I get back, loudly."