24: Chapter 24 Fortress Upgrade

"System, confirm material consumption, upgrade Cloud Top Fortress!"

Zhou An took a deep breath and pressed the orange upgrade button on the main console without hesitation.

[Ding! Materials successfully deducted!]

[Consumed: Level 3 Steel x 15,000, Level 3 Composite Rubber x 10,000, Rare Conductive Gel x 2,000, High-Density Energy Core x 5,000, Sky Island Core Crystal x 10.]

[Cloud Top Fortress is beginning its advancement to LV3. Estimated time: 8 hours. Please remain calm, Host and crew.]

As soon as the voice fell, an extremely dazzling orange-gold beam of light erupted from the fortress's core control hub, instantly enveloping the entire aircraft into a massive cocoon of light.

The roaring sound of metal tearing and restructuring echoed within the light cocoon.

After eight long hours of waiting.

As the cocoon shattered like eggshells, dissolving into specks of starlight, a true aerial fortress revealed itself above the boundless sea of clouds.

"My heavens..."

Luo Ning stood in the brand-new living area.

The original 50-square-meter single-story cabin had now expanded to 100 square meters per floor and had extended upwards, becoming an incredibly luxurious two-story structure! The total area reached an astonishing 200 square meters!

The first floor was automatically designated by the system as the living area, while the second floor housed the panoramic main cockpit, the fire control center, and a spacious external takeoff and landing deck!

Zhou An strode up the metal spiral staircase connecting the two floors, arrived in front of the brand-new main console on the second floor, and impatiently pulled up the vehicle panel.

[Name: Cloud Top Fortress · Advanced Version (LV3)]

[Area: 200 square meters (Two-story)]

[Maximum Speed: 120 km/h]

[External Armor: Tier 3 Composite Energy Shield (Charge status: 100%)]

[Current Status: Little Giant Hextech in effect (Durability and energy recover 5% per hour)]

[Installed Modules:]

[Green Shade Water Purifier (Green)]: Produces 500ml of purified water per hour.

[High-Efficiency Photovoltaic Solar Panel (Green)]: Stores energy during the day, maintaining the fortress's internal circulating power.

[Basic Kitchen Module (Green)]: Includes stainless steel sink, induction cooktop, and cooking stat bonuses.

[Integrated Automatic Bathroom (Green)]: Water recycling, SAN value recovery bonus.

[Multifunctional Ergonomic Recovery Bed (Green) * 2]: Stamina recovery increased by %, SAN value recovery +1/hour.

[Upgraded Weapon Modules:]

[storm twin-linked autocannon array (LV2)]: Caliber increased, fire rate increased by 30%, includes armor-piercing incendiary effect.

[high-frequency tracking cutting ray (LV2)]: Cutting distance extended to one kilometer, energy efficiency loss reduced.

[Available Optional Modules (Requires materials to construct):]

Auxiliary Module Slots (3): [Wide-Area Life Radar], [Automated Repair Robotic Arm], [Secondary Energy Booster Pump].

Heavy Weapon Slots (2): [Electromagnetic Rail Main Cannon], [Plasma Bombardment Matrix].

Carrier Aircraft Dock Slot (1): [A70 Fighter] can be mounted at the rear of the fortress, capable of detaching from the mothership at any time for independent aerial combat and reconnaissance.

"Cannons! And a carrier-based mini airship!"

Luo Ning followed him up to the second floor, looking at the optional modules on the panel, rubbing her hands in excitement.

"Adults don't make choices; I want them all."

Zhou An snorted with the confidence of the wealthy. His warehouse was currently overflowing with high-tier materials, and while the cost of these optional modules wasn't cheap, in his eyes, it was just a number.

"System, install all optional modules, fully equipped!"

[Ding! Materials successfully deducted.]

[Loading all modules... Estimated time: 3 hours.]

Countless robotic arms extended from the exterior of the fortress once again, beginning the final armed modifications to the hull.

The thick barrel of the electromagnetic main cannon slowly extended from the front of the second-deck, and a streamlined black mini combat airship was firmly mounted at the rear of the fortress.

Just as Zhou An was admiring the modification process of his invincible fortress, that system notification sound that made his heart race exploded in his mind without warning.

[Notification: Detected that the Host has successfully advanced the vehicle to LV3.]

[Hextech system triggered, currently drawing reinforcement options for you...]

"Here we go again!"

Zhou An perked up.

The roulette wheel spun, and a colorful ball emerged.

This time, he still didn't hesitate in the slightest, reaching directly for the glowing ball in the center that radiated a dazzling light.

The light shattered and merged into Zhou An's body.

[Hextech Enhancement: War Treasure III (Prismatic)]

[Effect: Your kills will be richly rewarded. Any monster killed by you or your vehicle and affiliated units will have a very high 40% probability of directly dropping a Loot Blind Box or treasure chests of various tiers. The quality of the drop depends on the monster's level!]

[Note: Stop scavenging for junk everywhere. Pick up your gun; all the monsters in the sky are your mobile vault!]

"Monsters drop treasure chests upon death? And the probability is as high as forty percent?!"

Zhou An looked at this newly acquired Hextech and couldn't help but gasp.

You have to understand, under normal system rules, killing monsters mainly drops materials and flesh; the probability of getting a treasure chest is extremely low, generally only dropping stably when killing boss-level monsters. But now, in his eyes, even ordinary mobs had nearly a fifty percent chance of dropping a treasure chest!

Combined with his current LV3 aerial fortress, and the terrifying AOE clearing ability of those two cannons and the autocannon array...

"As long as I encounter a massive beast tide, wouldn't a single full salvo from me cause chests to rain down all over the screen?!"

Plus, with his [Level Up!] ability that can synthesize treasure chests, this is practically the perfect perpetual motion machine!

"Boss, you're laughing so creepily..."

Luo Ning watched from the side as Zhou An stared into the void and laughed maniacally, silently taking a half-step back.

Zhou An reined in his laughter, and in a great mood, pulled up his current final personal attribute panel to examine it carefully.

[Personal Core Panel]

[Survivor: Zhou An]

[Personal Combat Tier: Tier 2]

[Vehicle Status:]

Cloud Top Fortress (LV3)

Status: Fully armed, includes carrier airship, Tier 3 shield protection.

[Core Equipment:]

[micro-nuclear battle armor (Purple)]: Forged from liquid memory metal, built-in nuclear fusion core, infinite endurance, provides terrifying defense and physical strength bonuses.

[storm energy pulse submachine gun (Purple)]: 120-round energy magazine, high-frequency pulse, ignores Tier 2 defense, currently lent to teammate Luo Ning.

[Exclusive Hextech Enhancement Pool:]

[Smallest Giant (Prismatic)]: Vehicle, personal stamina, and mental SAN value automatically recover 5% per hour.

[Compound Interest (Prismatic)]: Settled daily, all basic materials and supplies automatically accrue 1% interest.

[Level Up! (Prismatic)]: Can synthesize materials and even treasure chests upwards according to a specific ratio.

[War Treasure III (Prismatic)]: Killing any monster has a 40% probability of forcing a drop of a treasure chest or Loot Blind Box.