34: Chapter 34: Upgrade your RV to Level 10, and unlock the ultimate charm blind box!

The wind deep in the canyon was sliced into fragments by the towering rock walls, letting out sharp whistling sounds.

Chen Chen sat on the metal anti-slip netting in the corner of the compartment, pouring out the contents of his storage backpack.

Fragmented primary vehicle core shards piled up into a small hill that emitted a faint shimmer.

Most of these shards, stained with dried blood, came from the legacy of those Juehu Convoys.

To gain an advantage, those people had crushed countless solo players along the way; the wealth they had accumulated through murder and robbery had now all become Chen Chen's spoils of war.

The law of the jungle in the wasteland was displayed to the fullest.

Chen Chen used the Power of Rules to pull these shards together, causing them to attract and fuse with one another.

After removing the impurities, fourteen dark blue intermediate vehicle cores lay quietly in his palm.

The energy patterns inside the crystals were complex and precise, exuding a strange Beauty that combined the industrial with the supernatural.

He had enough chips now.

Chen Chen pulled up the vehicle control panel and decisively invested all fourteen intermediate cores.

The upgrade command was issued.

Platinum-gold light wove into a massive net, completely enveloping the eleven-ton mobile heavy fortress.

The sound of metal restructuring echoed through the canyon.

The steel beams of the chassis thickened, and the thickness of the composite laminated armor plates increased manifold.

The most eye-catching change occurred on the roof—amidst the grinding sound of interlocking mechanical gears, the roof armor slid to both sides.

An independent second-story structure, equipped with one-way bulletproof glass, rose from the ground.

Crossing the threshold of Lv.9, it reached Lv.10!

Brand-new panel data unfolded across his retina.

[Vehicle: mobile heavy fortress (Lv.10)]

[Defense: 2000 (Multi-layer composite laminated armor + inner buffer layer; ignores physical attacks from level 13 and below elite Aberrants)]

[Magic Resistance: 150 (Can resist some mental pollution)]

[Durability: 2500/2500 (Military-grade structural strength)]

[Tonnage: 13.6 tons]

[Space: First floor 60 cubic meters (Cockpit + Living quarters + Weapon maintenance station + Storage area); Second floor 25 cubic meters (Independent rest area / High-altitude observation post / Sniper nest)]

[Fuel Consumption: 42L/100km (Turbocharged fuel optimization rate offsets some tonnage penalties)]

[Fuel: 128L/200L]

[External Equipment: B-grade All-terrain Self-healing Armored Tires *6, C-grade Turbocharger Kit, Enhanced Heavy-duty Serrated Anti-collision Bumper]

[Vehicle-mounted Weapons: C-grade Twin-mounted Heavy Machine Guns *2 (Second-floor rooftop retractable bay; supports dual-mode shooting: cockpit remote control or second-floor manual control)]

[Radar Warning: Detection radius of 8 km; automatically marks threat levels; supports terrain scanning]

[Life Support System: Advanced Air Circulation + Constant Temperature Control (12-30°C) + Intermediate Water Purification Module (Daily output of 12L drinking water) + Waste Disposal + Basic Medical Disinfection Module]

[Special: Four-sided one-way bulletproof glass on the second floor (360-degree field of vision), Soundproofing Grade B, Independent temperature control.]

With the hardware maxed out, it was time to deal with the soft rewards.

Chen Chen fished out the high-grade attribute blind box dropped by the Black-Robed Apostle he had killed.

It had a black background with gold patterns, made of a material that was neither metal nor wood.

"Shen Wanxing, come here and get to work."

Shen Wanxing walked across the metal floor barefoot and squatted obediently beside him.

First, she habitually rubbed her hands together, then placed her fair, tender palms against the blind box's casing.

Her exclusive talent, "Lucky Critical," was activated.

Gold and purple halos swirled frantically on the surface of the blind box.

Probability theory completely failed in the presence of this woman.

The rare one-percent chance of advancement was accurately triggered!

The dull casing peeled away, and the blind box underwent a qualitative change, transforming into a crystal flowing with a pink-gold luster.

[Exquisite Charm Blind Box]

[Usage Effect: Directly increases charm attribute by 100 points!]

Chen Chen looked at this line of description, his brow furrowing deeply.

In wasteland survival, physical defense and firepower output are the foundations of existence.

Strength can crush a zombie's cervical vertebrae, and perception can help avoid fatal traps.

What's the point of adding 100 points of charm?

To go and throw flirtatious glances at pustule-covered Aberrants?

Utterly ridiculous!

It was worth noting that since the system gave it the "Exquisite" prefix, this attribute could never be junk.

Deducing from the mechanism of Beauty binding, a high charm value would likely accelerate the causal binding of top-tier Beauties and might even have a special effect on certain unknown intelligent NPCs.

He closed his fingers, crushing the crystal.

Pink-gold specks of light seeped into his body through his pores; there was no discomfort, nor was there any sense of fullness from a sudden surge of power.

To verify the effect, Chen Chen stood up and walked half a circle in front of the three women.

"See any changes in me?"

Jiang Yanxue held her newly acquired Shadow Instant-Kill Blade, her gaze scanning him up and down twice.

This young miss of the Black Dragon Society was an honest person, and her answer was extremely blunt: "You didn't grow an extra hand, and you're not carrying an extra gun. No change."

Shen Wanbing pushed up her non-existent glasses, adopting the rigorous attitude of a billionaire CEO evaluating a project:

"From a biological perspective, your muscle density and skeletal structure remain consistent with three minutes ago. If I had to find a difference, your current behavioral logic has departed from your usual pragmatic style."

Chen Chen turned his gaze toward Shen Wanxing.

Shen Wanxing's cheeks flushed with a layer of crimson. She twisted the hem of her windbreaker with her fingers and muttered softly:

"I think Brother Chen Chen... you've always been very attractive."

These words were pleasant to hear, but their reference value was zero.

Chen Chen reached a conclusion in his heart: these 100 points of charm had no effect on the women in the vehicle.

The underlying logic of the system issuing this item was hidden quite deeply.

This was a variable to be verified in the future.

Shen Wanbing put on the concentration ice heart necklace.

The light blue rhombic gem rested against her snow-white collarbone, emitting a cool energy.

Her mental power recovery speed increased visibly, and the side effects left from forcibly probing the Tyrant Core were quickly smoothed over.

She closed her eyes, and her radar talent reactivated. The flow of information restructured in her mind.

"Fifty kilometers ahead, coordinates (412, 889)."

Shen Wanbing opened her eyes and reported the data.

"There is a special energy field. It's emitting the green light characteristic of a safe zone, identified by the system as the 'Midnight Tavern.' The rules state that survivors can conduct barter trades inside."

Safe zone.

These two words were more precious than gold in the wasteland.

"Safe zones play the role of trading hubs in the wasteland's economic system."

Shen Wanbing's voice was objective and calm. "At this stage, the resources stockpiled by players are extremely unbalanced. Some lack water, others lack weapons. The appearance of the Midnight Tavern will inevitably form a regional black market. We have a serious surplus of basic materials; by utilizing the information and resource gaps, we can complete an initial accumulation of capital there."

Chen Chen strongly agreed with this proposal.

Leave professional matters to professional people; with a billionaire CEO acting as his financial manager, this business was guaranteed to be profitable.

There were quite a few redundant materials in his backpack. The canned meat and basic materials left by the Juehu Convoy took up too many slots, so it was the perfect time to trade them for some rare blueprints and high-grade materials.