Chapter 333.1: Fuel Rod Hidden In The Basement

The gunfire and explosions in the underground garage finally subsided.

A man clothed in animal skins with a string of teeth hanging from his neck was being dragged out of the garage entrance by the players, one on each side. Even though he was covered in blood and his hands were tied, he was still yelling furiously. Unfortunately, his actions were doomed to be in vain; the players around him couldn't make head or tail of what he was shouting about.

As a war criminal, he was to be sent to Dawn City and tried under the laws of the New Alliance. And after that, the Gallows of Justice awaited him.

Except for Fox Fang, a total of 282 resisting marauders had been killed. It was not that no one had wanted to surrender; they just hadn’t had the chance to. Brutal urban warfare was like a rolling meat grinder, especially in a dark environment like an underground garage. It was hard enough not to accidentally injure allied troops, let alone take any prisoner. No one there would be pulling punches.

Whether it was the Death Corps or Ape Fang’s men who served as the vanguard, both suffered heavy casualties.

Looking at his battered subordinates coming out of the underground garage, Ape Fang had distress written all over his face. In the brutal urban warfare just now, his men had been reduced by at least 20%, leaving behind 200 corpses...

Yet, when he witnessed Fox Fang's tragic end, the distress in his heart suddenly vanished.

This was a necessary sacrifice.

It was all worth it...

Unlike Ape Fang, who grappled with inner turmoil, and the cannon fodders who had survived the disaster, the players emerging from the underground garage, despite suffering notable casualties, exhibited an entirely different atmosphere.

“Shotguns are the GOAT!”

"Indeed! It's too powerful for urban warfare!"

"The LD 47 seems a bit weak in close combat, as it goes through non-armored marauders too easily.”

"Actually, that’s not so bad, is it? In any case, if you shoot a whole bunch, if one shot doesn’t kill them, two shots will."

“Later on, ask that asshat, Mosquito, to make some shotguns. Damn, it's too difficult to replenish ammunition for the captured gear!”

"I second that."

The surviving players excitedly exchanged their battlefield experiences and quickly reached a consensus. The New Alliance needed to add a shotgun to its standard equipment for clearing trenches and underground bunkers!

And also... They made Chlorine Bombs. Although the weapon was not very humane, it didn't matter that much in games. For players, naturally, they would use anything as long as they were effective. What's more, without them, their gas masks would become completely decorative and useless.

Just when the players were bragging, Jungle Corps' Piltover Paratrooper came over, snatched a fellow and asked, "Where's Eye Owe Money? Why didn't he come out with you?"

As soon as they heard his name, everyone couldn't hold back anymore.

"Eye?"

"Hahaha!"

"Are you talking about the dumbass who roasted himself? Hahahaha, I can't, let me laugh for a while."

Looking at Construction Boy squatting on the ground guffawing, Piltover Paratrooper was stunned for a moment, then, his expression immediately changed.

"Fuck!"

"My flamethrower!"

The players who had been barely holding back their laughter burst out loud after hearing this...

While Piltover Paratrooper was mourning over his flamethrower, the soldiers of the Second Corps were busy moving the loot and slaves from the 4th New District to the southern part of the city.

After seeing the photo sent by Chu Guang, Yin Fang only told him to instruct players not to touch anything and rushed over from Shelter 404. Since there was no direct transportation, he first took a train, then caught a truck transporting building materials in Bluestone County, and finally arrived at West Continent before dark.

On the edge of the 4th New District, the only entrance to the villa area remained unflooded by the lake. Before the raft could dock, Yin Fang jumped off it hurriedly.

The air was pervaded by a rotten smell, with flies buzzing by the roadside. The whole area was like spoiled meat soaked in a smelly ditch. Seeing the bloody graffiti and totems made of human bones around him, Yin Fang shivered unconsciously and couldn't help but grouse, "... Can people really live in this kind of place?"

"It's not like you've never seen a marauder before." Chu Guang, standing next to him, had turned on the air circulation device of the exoframe, completely ignoring the unpleasant stink around him.

"I have indeed seen them, but now I’m gaining a whole new understanding..." Glancing at Chu Guang's exoframe with envy, Yin Fang cleared his throat and continued, "Where is that thing you took a picture of?"

"Follow me." With that, Chu Guang strode ahead, bringing Yin Fang back to Gold Fang’s villa, all the way to the basement warehouse. The spoils inside the villa had already been moved away, but the underground warehouse remained untouched. A large number of parts were scattered in the warehouse, and inside, partially disassembled bionic robots and some peculiar little gadgets could be seen.

The most eye-catching thing was the device that looked like a gas tank smack dab in the center of the warehouse. Its shell was orange, and it was hard to tell what material it was made of. Chu Guang had taken forever studying it and still couldn't figure out what it had been used for.

However, Yin Fang’s eyes lit up at the sight of it.

"A fuel rod’s gas-tank! As I expected! Thank heavens you haven’t touched it!"

Fuel rod’s gas-tank?!

Upon hearing this, Chu Guang was a little taken aback and immediately asked, "Will it explode?"

"Explode? What are you thinking? It's not that easy to trigger a fusion reaction, not to mention... This is a fuel rod of a third-generation reactor. It is safe however you look at it... Of course, extremely valuable, too."

Yin Fang advanced, squatted down in front of the gas-tank-like device, located the interface, and connected the VM-modified touchpad to it. After pressing some buttons, the screen lit up.

"103.9 kilograms... Unbelievable!" Looking at the figures and numbers displayed on the touch panel, Yin Fang was so thrilled that his voice trembled.

"103 kilograms of what?" Chu Guang asked reflexively.

"Helium-3! 103 kilograms of Helium-3!" Yin Fang leaped to his feet and turned to Chu Guang. "We’re rich!"

Hearing Yin Fang’s words, Chu Guang held his breath instinctively.

Although he had no frame of reference for more than 100 kilograms of Helium-3, he understood Yin Fang excitement. After swallowing, he pressed, "100 kilograms of Helium-3... What does it mean?"

"What does it mean?" Yin Fang took a deep breath, trying to collect himself, and explained, "Let's put it this way, in a slightly better reactor, 1 kilogram of Helium-3 can generate about 1 billion kWh of electricity! What do you think it means?"

"1 billion?!"

A ton of coal could generate approximately 3,000 kWh of electricity. So, 1 billion kWh of electricity... 330,000 tons of coal? 100 kilograms of Helium-3 was equivalent to roughly 33 million tons of coal?

Of course, that was certainly not exact and could only be used as a reference for easy illustration.

Looking at the gas tank in front of him... No... The fuel rod... Chu Guang felt a little dazed.

Happiness came too abruptly.

For a minute, he didn't know how to express himself.

The same went for Yin Fang, who reached out and touched the gas tank, spellbound.

"This is the first time I have seen such rich and pure Helium-3 in all my years as an explorer. It is really difficult to get Helium-3. Earth-to-moon flights have been suspended for more than 200 years... This fine stuff hasn’t been seen since. Where did they get it?” As he spoke, Yin Fang looked at Chu Guang expectantly, expression showcasing obvious hope to get an answer.

Unfortunately, Chu Guang didn't know how to answer him.

"... There’s no point asking me, I also want to know where it came from." When saying this, Chu Guang's face was marked with a peculiar expression.

According to intelligence collected from prisoners, the Fang Clan's main trade partner was the Bugra Free State. It rested against the Great Rift Valley and was located in the transportation hub of the River Valley Province’s northern plain. In theory, anyone could do business there, making it difficult to pinpoint a specific merchant.

But then again, what kind of trouble would a group of marauders want to buy something like this?

At this precise moment, Chu Guang suddenly noticed the booklets scattered aside, so he reached out and picked one up. There was a line written on the cover of the booklet.

‘Vying for Galactic Supremacy’

What is this?

After reading the title, Chu Guang was baffled for a moment. He then opened it, brows lightly furrowed.

"..."

A comic?

It’s mecha-themed as well.

Glancing around the android parts scattered on the ground and the iron shelf leaning against the wall, something suddenly dawned on Chu Guang, and the expression on his face turned to one of disbelief.

Oh damn.

Were they trying to build a Gundam?!

Looking closely, Chu Guang noticed that it was not some sort of container on the iron shelf; they were clearly a mechanical leg and arm lying to the side.

However, the workmanship was so abstract that he hadn’t recognized it instantly.

At the thought of this, Chu Guang couldn't help forming a strange image in mind.

In the image, a disheveled man, holding a comic book from the pre-war era, was standing in front of an unevolved baboon, promoting some crap he had picked up from who-knows-where...

‘Brother, I see you’re someone of excellent aptitude. Here is a book of martial arts secrets. Since you and I have been bound by fate, I’ll sell it to you for 1,000,000 Dinar.’

[1]

One was willing to sell, and one was willing to believe.

"What's wrong?" Yin Fang curiously asked, seeing Chu Guang staring fixedly at the wall corner.

Chu Guang shook his head. "Nothing."

1. FUCKING KUNG FU HUSTLE ☜