41: Chapter 41 Missing Person Notice from Blackrock City-State

The male voice from the radio cut through the heavy static, yet every word was crystal clear.

"Repeating, Black Rock City-State Public Affairs, official announcement."

"The City-State is now notifying all public frequencies: Our City-State is searching for a runaway resident. Name: Lin Wan. Gender: Female. Age: Twenty."

Lu Chen's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Occupation: Senior Botanist. Carrying one City-State grade a seed vault."

He didn't look back at Lin Wan.

"If any individual or power has information regarding the whereabouts of the aforementioned person, please contact the Black Rock City-State Civil Management Committee via the following frequencies."

"Upon verification, The City-State will provide a generous reward of resources."

The broadcast paused for a second here.

Then, the announcer's tone underwent a subtle change.

"Additionally, the Civil Management Committee makes a special statement: The internal City-State disputes involving Lin Wan prior to her departure have been properly resolved recently, and the relevant factional issues have been settled."

"The City-State Ecological Restoration Research Group, which Lin Wan supported, won a majority of votes in the latest City-State Council session."

"The City-State officially promises that if Lin Wan returns, she and the seed vault she carries will receive the highest level of security and resource support."

"The above broadcast will be played on a loop across public frequencies. Black Rock City-State Civil Management Committee."

Sizzle.

Static noise once again covered the channel.

A strange silence fell inside the cabin.

Lu Chen sat in the driver's seat, his fingers still resting on the radio's knob.

He didn't turn around, but Lin Wan had already heard everything.

The faint, rustling sounds that had been coming from the planting area had completely vanished.

"Lin Wan."

It took two seconds for a response.

"Yes."

Her voice came from behind him, very soft and filled with complex emotions.

"Come here."

Footsteps sounded behind him.

Lin Wan walked to the entrance of the cockpit and stopped.

Her face wore an expression Lu Chen had never seen before.

Excitement and hesitation were tangled together, while panic and guilt surfaced in turns.

"Lord City Lord, I..."

"Explain things clearly first."

Lu Chen's voice was devoid of any inflection.

"What exactly was the reason you escaped back then? Tell me from the beginning."

Lin Wan bit her lip.

After standing for a few seconds, she sat down in the seat opposite Lu Chen.

"There are two main factions within the Black Rock City-State."

Her voice dropped, attaining a steadiness only achieved through repeated self-restraint.

"One is the Military Hawks, who advocate for using most of The City-State's resources to expand military power and conduct external looting."

She paused, clutching the fabric on her knees.

"In their eyes, only those with the biggest fists on the wasteland are qualified to live."

"The other is the Ecological Restoration Faction, which is the faction I belong to."

"We advocate for shifting a portion of military resources toward agriculture and ecological research."

"Although The City-State is large, internal food supply has always been its biggest weakness. Relying on looting for food is not a long-term solution after all."

"Before I left, the Military Hawks had the upper hand in the City-State Council."

"They didn't just cut our research group's funding; someone even spread word that they were going to confiscate the grade a seed vault to trade for weapons."

Lin Wan's fingers tightened further, the veins on the back of her hands becoming visible.

"That seed vault is the result of twenty years of hard work from our entire research group."

"Those seeds carry the last bits of green on the Blue Planet. How could they be traded for guns and cannons?"

"So, I ran away with it."

Lu Chen listened to this and didn't say a word.

"What about your research group leader? You ran away alone?"

"The leader and my brother, Lin Xiao, told me to run."

Lin Wan's eyes grew red around the edges.

"He said he was too old to run and told me to take the seed vault and the atlas to find a safe place to preserve them."

"My brother was responsible for directly confronting the Military Hawks, and he was afraid that if they failed, I would be trapped."

"Other researchers also had their own tasks; some were responsible for transferring data, others for distracting the Military Hawks."

"I was the only one who came out with the physical seed vault."

"I encountered the Snow Shard Gang on the road. Everyone protecting me died."

"And then I met you, Lord City Lord... and you saved me."

Lu Chen nodded.

"The broadcast said your faction won."

"Yes."

Lin Wan became uncontrollably excited.

"The Civil Management Committee issued a notice saying the City-State Council voted and the Ecological Restoration Group gained majority support."

"This means the Military Hawks have been suppressed."

"The leader and my brother, they succeeded."

"They are looking for me to come back."

After saying this, she looked up at Lu Chen.

In addition to excitement, there was an indescribable struggle in her eyes.

"City Lord."

"Yeah?"

"I... I won't go back."

When Lin Wan said this, her voice was trembling.

But she emphasized every word heavily.

"I promised you that both I and the seed vault belong to Polaris."

"I am not the kind of person who goes back on her word."

"And..."

Her gaze swept over the hundred-plus square meters of warm space behind her.

Six cultivation boxes glowing with purple light, a cold storage filled with meat bricks.

Air kept at a constant twenty degrees, and heating pipes that radiated warmth evenly.

"Even if Black Rock City-State gave me the best laboratory, it wouldn't compare to what you've given me."

"There, I was just a tool dragged along by factional struggles."

"Here, I can grow things in peace."

Lu Chen looked at her.

He watched her for three seconds without saying a word.

Then he turned back and turned down the volume knob on the radio, but he didn't turn it off.

"Don't be so quick to jump to conclusions."

"Black Rock City-State's missing persons notice isn't necessarily sincere; it might just be a trap."

"A trap?"

"You took the most valuable thing in the entire City-State. Now that your side has won, they naturally want to get the seed vault back."

"As for whether they'll still recognize you as a hero once it's back, that's another matter."

The color drained completely from Lin Wan's face.

"The City Lord means?"

"I'm just stating the objective situation."

Lu Chen picked up his thermos and took a sip of water.

"There's no rush. Let the bullet fly for a bit."

"Just focus on growing your vegetables first."

He set down the cup, his gaze returning to the pale ice field outside the window.

"Compared to the mess in Black Rock City-State, I care more about those damn wasps."

"Nine days left."

Lu Chen's voice was very low.

"In nine days, the radiation mark on my body will naturally dissipate."

"If the main force of the Snow Shard Gang comes knocking within these nine days,"

His right hand had already moved to the fire control joystick.

"Then that's perfect. Let them see if a Lv.2 Polaris is qualified to crush them into scrap metal."

Lin Wan looked at the hard, cold lines of Lu Chen's profile and swallowed the words about Black Rock City-State that were on the tip of her tongue.

Now was not the time to dwell on that issue.

"City Lord."

"What now?"

"I'll go warm up a bowl of cabbage and meat soup for you."

"Mm, use less salt. We don't have much of that coarse salt left."

Lin Wan gave an affirmative response and walked toward the iron pot by the boiler.

Silence returned to the cabin.

The missing persons notice on the radio played on a loop every fifteen minutes; Lu Chen did not turn it off.

He needed more information.

Why did Black Rock City-State choose to broadcast at this specific time?

Did they know Lin Wan was in the Pale Shoals?

How far did The City-State's sphere of influence extend?

There were no answers to these questions for now, but Lu Chen was in no hurry.

He had the Lv.2 Polaris, the heavy machine guns, the manganese steel ram, and the mechanical arm.

In these Pale Shoals, there were few things that could make him feel threatened.

Except for the main fleet of the Snow Shard Gang.

Lu Chen took the cabbage and meat soup Lin Wan handed him and took a slow sip.

The savory broth, mixed with the unique sweetness of the cabbage, slid down his esophagus.

"Tomorrow, we continue scavenging."

He set down the bowl.

"One can never have too many Truth Points, too much ammunition, or too many coal crystals."

"Before the Snow Shard Gang arrives, I'm going to arm Polaris to the point where they have nightmares."