108: Chapter 106 Exchange

Chapter 106: Exchange

Using a carrot-and-stick approach, Wang Ting completely subdued Researcher Huoling.

However, Wang Ting also understood that getting a woman like Researcher Huoling to submit completely would be quite difficult. She carried deep hatred in her heart and trusted no one, making her like a wasteland version of Nico Robin.

Of course, Wang Ting didn't need her loyalty. Forced fruit might not be sweet, but it could still quench thirst.

He only needed her to obey orders and refine large quantities of extraordinary potions and enhancement potions for the Outpost Camp.

As for other matters, they were beyond his concern.

Over the next few days, Xiang Nan, Xu Yan, Qu Ling, and the others who had received the enhancement potions completed their injections one after another.

Their physical fitness was already good to begin with, so with the enhancement potion stimulating their body cells, they smoothly broke through to become Tier 1 Limit-Breaker Warriors.

With their first limit break, the overall strength of the Guard Team increased significantly.

Xiang Nan, Xu Yan, and the others each began leading teams to carry out various tasks for the Outpost Camp, showing a trend of rapid, simultaneous progress.

Ren Chuan reassigned Xu Yan to assist him personally.

He was already extremely busy, having to manage the camp's resource allocation on one hand—from supplies gathered during exploration in Vine Town to stripping materials from killed monsters, to external trade—every aspect required his oversight.

On top of that, he had to constantly coordinate the operations of the Machinery Factory, especially after the generators were put in place over the past few days. Setting up power lines again, adjusting lathes and other machinery, and preparing to try operating them to produce farming tools for land reclamation kept him busy to the extreme.

Getting the Machinery Factory to function normally was by no means simple; going from initial debugging to establishing a complete assembly line would likely take much longer than just a week or two.

With a careful and meticulous person like Xu Yan helping, the speed would undoubtedly be greatly accelerated.

Feng Bo also transferred Qu Ling to help him, primarily taking charge of land reclamation and monster hunting.

The captives from the Three Wolves Gang were all clearing land. Brimming with brute force, their land reclamation speed was far from slow. However, as captives, getting them to truly behave would require continuous discipline.

In terms of sheer physical fitness alone, these captives were actually stronger than some members of the Guard Team, especially a few squad leaders who were still internally dissatisfied with Qu Ling and the others.

After all, Qu Ling and his group hadn't even achieved a single limit break before. While they didn't dare resist Wang Ting, they still held the thought that if they were placed in the Guard Team instead, they would be stronger than Qu Ling and his peers.

But once the Outpost Camp acquired heavy machine guns, everyone became well-behaved. Before heavy machine guns, all men were equal; no matter how dissatisfied they were internally, they had to suppress it.

Even Bai Shou, who had broken his limit twice, had to obediently grab a shovel to clear land the moment he saw the heavy machine guns.

As Qu Ling and the others made their breakthroughs, seeing this made the captives even more docile and work much harder. If the Outpost Camp could make Qu Ling stronger, perhaps they too would have a chance to grow stronger if they joined the Guard Team.

Outside Vine Town, the Outpost Camp was intensively building houses made of mud bricks and wooden beams, line after line, neatly arranged like square boxes.

Within the entire Outpost Camp, there were already twenty to thirty such houses, all row bungalows replacing the previously pitched tents everywhere. Although they still slept on communal bunks, it was enough to accommodate one to two hundred people.

"Chief, we are running out of manpower."

Dong Hu came to find Wang Ting early in the morning. While in charge of camp defense, he was also organizing the camp's residents to build up the camp.

He had personally arranged the construction of the houses. Before the camp started expanding in multiple directions, three hundred residents were barely enough, but now that Feng Bo, Ren Chuan, and the others all needed manpower, they were short-handed again.

Furthermore, he discovered that the camp built earlier was more than enough for defense but lacked space for expansion, unable to accommodate a larger population, requiring further expansion.

However, expansion would require even more manpower and material resources.

He vented his grievances: "Feng Bo's side processes dozens of Parasitic Fungus Vines or Vine Parasite Corpses every day, and handling monster corpses requires manpower. Building houses, logging, and clearing land all need manpower. Next, we also need to expand the camp outward; the current area is too small to hold several thousand people. With just two to three hundred workers, even if we pull Bai Shou and his gang over as hard labor, it still won't be enough."

"Is the quarantine zone built?"

"It's built. On the corner near the gate, two quarantine camps, which can accommodate roughly two to three hundred people."

"Then go bring people from the settlements on the wasteland—whether it's Wild Dog Valley or other settlements, just capture all those wanderers. Clear out the surrounding areas first, and if the numbers still aren't enough, find a way to buy some slaves. We have money now."

Although Researcher Huoling hadn't officially started work due to missing equipment, Feng Bo, Xu Yan, and the others were already thinking of ways, continuously searching the Hospital and corresponding areas to find useful equipment to hand over to her.

Even if the equipment was old or damaged, having something was better than nothing. With Researcher Huoling's skills, once the materials for extraordinary potions and enhancement potions were gathered, she could quickly begin crafting them.

As long as they had these two items in hand, they would have plenty of ways to trade for massive amounts of food, enough to feed even more people.

Dong Hu's expression wasn't great as he spoke in a raspy voice, "But I heard the unrest in Huangyan Town hasn't been handled yet, and the black market hasn't reopened. Trading might not be that convenient."

Wang Ting was extremely bold: "Just because the black market is down doesn't mean we can't trade. Potato Town, Bullet Town, Chechang Town—we have contact methods for all these small towns. It's just a matter of distance, but as long as we get in touch, there will be plenty of food."

Wang Ting continued to ask, "How is your physical conditioning coming along?"

Hearing Wang Ting's question, Dong Hu grinned: "The medicinal power of the blood vine fruit is absorbed much faster than an enhancement potion. I've almost finished digesting that previous blood vine fruit, and my Tier 1 Limit-Breaker stage is fully stabilized. In terms of strength alone, it has stabilized at around 600 kg

or so."

A strength output of 600 kg wasn't far off from the starting baseline of 800 kg for a Tier 2 Limit-Breaker Warrior.

Wang Ting said, "Before going out to gather people this time, go exchange for a second blood vine fruit yourself. After breaking through to a Tier 2 Limit-Breaker Warrior, do your best to solidify your physical strength, and then choose an Extraordinary Pathway for yourself."

Dong Hu's body shuddered, and joy washed over his face: "Thank you, Boss."

This kind of treatment clearly came from Wang Ting's favor; otherwise, based on his contribution points, he would probably need to save up for quite a while to reach that amount.

Allowing him to go into debt was a favor in itself.

"Go prepare first. You break through first, then Feng Bo and the others. I'll only feel at ease if the camp has at least a few Tier 2 Limit-Breaker Warriors. Help me call Ren Chuan over."

Dong Hu backed out, and soon after, Ren Chuan entered the room: "Boss, you were looking for me?"

"How is Researcher Huoling performing on her end?"

"Quiet and calm, not making much noise. She asked for body materials from abnormal monsters like Parasitic Fungus Vines, Vine Parasite Corpses, Vine Skulls, and Thorn Vine Beasts to study. We're missing quite a bit of equipment—what we salvaged from the Hospital is just microscopes and the like. To complete the research, we'll probably need to look for more. But even with incomplete equipment, Researcher Huoling should have ways. She mentioned this to me before."

"Are both of her apprentices with her?"

"Liu Ying and Jiang Qi are both over there, assisting her."

Researcher Huoling was an extremely smart and sensible person. Once she realized Wang Ting had personally witnessed her instigate the black market riot and successfully escape, she knew Wang Ting had figured out her background.

Knowing her so well, Wang Ting would definitely never let her leave this place easily.

Wang Ting's ruthless methods were no less brutal than Huang Yanwu or Liao Shan's.

Therefore, Researcher Huoling had indeed behaved herself for now. At least until she saw hope, she would remain absolutely obedient.

"Organize a team and go to Fisherman Town to trade for some fresh fish with them."

Ren Chuan paused slightly: "Like Silver-Scaled Perch-Toothed Fish? Do you want Water Ghosts as well?"

"Both. I want one living specimen of every monster type; you can negotiate the price with them. Also, talk to them about supplying fresh fish meat. Didn't the black market just get destroyed? Let them sell their goods to us instead."

Wang Ting mused as he spoke, "Besides Fisherman Town, try communicating with other small towns too. The more monsters, the better."

Ren Chuan nodded heavily: "Understood, I'll go arrange it right away."

"Take another blood vine fruit to boost your physical conditioning further, just to avoid any accidents."

Ren Chuan had taken the blood vine fruit a bit later than Dong Hu, so logically speaking, the potion's power in his body hadn't been fully digested yet.

However, since he also had an excursion mission, he might as well take an extra blood vine fruit like Dong Hu and raise his strength first.

[Collector: Wang Ting]

[Life Tier: Tier 1]

[monster points: 827 pts]

[Recorded Monsters: Scarecrow — Night Demon, Giant Claw Night Demon, Silver-Scaled Perch-Toothed Fish (25%)]

"827 monster points are enough to exchange for the Vine Spider Nurse and Giant Claw Night Demon, but still a bit short for the Grafted Mother Vine."

From the perspective of exchanging for Servant Beasts, the Grafted Mother Vine already possessed the power of an Extraordinary; as a Leader-class individual, its strength was superior, offering the greatest help to Wang Ting.

But that didn't mean the Giant Claw Night Demon and Vine Spider Nurse were of little help.

Although both were Elite-class individuals, the combat power they displayed was noticeably stronger than an ordinary Tier 2 Limit-Breaker Warrior.

If they fought in coordination, or if Wang Ting outfitted them with outer armor, their combat power would undoubtedly skyrocket, making it not impossible to battle a Leader-class individual.

Wang Ting pondered carefully: "Ren Chuan is going to trade for monsters with other settlements. When he returns, the harvested monsters will surely be plentiful, so there's no need to worry about monster points. However, if I want to go to Zombie Town to hunt more zombie monsters, I'll need some helpers."

Whether it was Zombie Town or the Jungle Ruins, the projection area there was massive.

It didn't just occupy large swathes of the real world; at its core stood one or even multiple Infinite Buildings, and the number of floors was far more than just one or two.

"According to Researcher Huoling, the ideal Extraordinary Core for a Tier 1 painless potion is made from Tyrant cells. The Tier 2 Blood Warrior potion requires the spine of a Tier 2 monster, the Blood Rager. If I want to follow the Painless Pathway, a trip to Zombie Town is definitely mandatory."

Wang Ting could also fuse extraordinary potions himself. Between the Gardener Pathway and the Painless Pathway, he had already decided to take the Painless Pathway.

Granted, the Gardener Pathway was more developed in Jumu City, allowing one to complete at least Tier 3.

But just as Researcher Huoling said, Jumu City's Tier 4 potion had not been fully researched yet. Even though materials for the Gardener Pathway were easier to obtain, it was a path with a short end.

The Painless Pathway, however, was clearly more long-term, lasting from the Old Civilization era all the way to the present. From starting with zombies and similar monsters as core materials, to the apocalypse era where high-intensity flesh-and-blood monsters' extraordinary materials could be crafted into higher advanced potions.

The known Painless Pathway could reach at least Tier 6. Though there might be different pathway variants for Tier 4, 5, and 6 down the line, the road was clear and open.

The only drawback might be that the formulas were not held by Jumu City, requiring one to seek and explore among even larger, more ancient Sanctuary Cities.

This was destined to be a difficult process requiring long periods of searching; with bad luck, one might not even find the potion formula for a Tier 3 Tyrant.

But for Wang Ting, it was different. He could fuse the characteristics of various abnormal bodies himself and possessed numerous skills and creations.

He had plenty of confidence to grow stronger, and the Painless Pathway merely provided him with an extra choice and an auxiliary means to boost his power.

Thinking this through, Wang Ting had his answer.

"Exchange for Giant Claw Night Demon and Vine Spider Nurse."

As Wang Ting's monster points decreased, two figures gradually surfaced deep within his consciousness. On one side stood the dark-bodied Giant Claw Night Demon with gruesome talons; on the other stood the Vine Spider Nurse, its spider legs sharp as spears and its body covered in vines.

In the sea of consciousness, they were isolated by a bubble-like membrane, arms hanging naturally as if asleep.

He found an open space and, with a thought, the two giant behemoths instantly appeared before him.

He only felt the light before him dim as something blocked the light.

"This size doesn't seem right."

Wang Ting took just one glance, realizing both monsters were a full head taller than what he remembered.

The Giant Claw Night Demon on the left stood fully ten feet tall, with blade-like spiky protrusions at its joints. Its body was covered in black, cowhide-like soft carapace, with a hideous face and reverse claws sharp as blades, exuding a powerful aura.

The Giant Claw Night Demon he had encountered in Silent Desolate Town was only a bit over two meters tall, whereas the one in front of him was a full 3 meters—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a miniature tank.

Turning to the Vine Spider Nurse beside it: the original Vine Spider Nurse already looked ten feet tall due to its slender, spear-like spider legs, but this one reached 4 meters, nearly 5 meters in height. The hair extending from its back was as thick as a forearm, and 6 slender spider bristles pierced into the ground as if they could easily puncture steel plates.

The two monsters let out low growls. Though controlled by Wang Ting, they were still living creatures brimming with killing instincts.

With a thought, Wang Ting immediately controlled the Giant Claw Night Demon to reach out its massive arm and push against him.

The Giant Claw Night Demon exerted force. Wang Ting reached out both hands to press against its giant palm, and as the two locked in a contest of strength, a terrifying force immediately surged from the monster, feeling like a compact car revving at full power.

"At least 2,000 kg."

Wang Ting's eyes lit up. Although his estimate might be rough, a powerful pushing force of 2,000 kg was already stronger than an average Elite-class individual.

His heart filled with joy, and a smile appeared on his face.

"In other words, the monsters I exchange for are inherently among the absolute top of their species."

Normally, Night Demons and Vine Spider Nurses were already on the stronger side among Elite-class individuals. If they were top-tier even among their kind, then even if they weren't Extraordinaries, working together they could still go toe-to-toe with one.

Wang Ting verified his hypothesis, continuously controlling the Giant Claw Night Demon and Vine Spider Nurse.

Though neither possessed high intelligence, they were living creatures; thus, as long as Wang Ting issued corresponding commands, they could act freely. Commands like slaughtering, hunting, defending, or driving away monsters were all within their comprehension.

To use a fitting metaphor, it was like commanding a well-trained hound. Of course, they were probably slightly smarter than a hound.

Wang Ting controlled the two monsters to take a lap around Vine Town, and the Parasitic Fungus Vines that lunged at them were completely no match for them.

The Giant Claw Night Demon's talons were like blades; every stroke severed countless tentacles of Parasitic Fungus Vines.

The Vine Spider Nurse brandished its tentacles, flipping over the Parasitic Fungus Vines ahead with every sweep.

Working in concert, a spree of slaughter left nearly a hundred Parasitic Fungus Vines butchered—a battle result that naturally left Wang Ting immensely satisfied.

What satisfied him even more was that in the original exchange box for the Giant Claw Night Demon and Vine Spider Nurse, only a single option was now displayed: Resurrect.

[Giant Claw Night Demon: 40 monster points required for resurrection (7-day cooldown)]

[Vine Spider Nurse: 40 monster points required for resurrection (7-day cooldown)]

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