Chapter 334.1: Construction Machine

Just as the Bull and Horse Squad followed in the footsteps of Tris, making their way towards Camp 101 located deep underground, the construction of the new settlement was in full swing.

With wooden boards bearing the words ‘Daybreak City’ hung on the partially collapsed concrete pier, the construction for New Alliance's second survivor settlement officially began!

Even before the Pinewood Forest Valley battle began, the logistics department of the New Alliance, under the direction of the administrator, had prepared a blueprint for the development of the new settlement.

A large quantity of aid materials had already been sent to the warehouse in Bluestone County via the railway, and almost immediately after Chu Guang announced the victory of the war, these materials were loaded onto trucks and transported from the rear to the front lines while it was still early morning. These materials included 2,000 steel axes, 1,600 shovels, and many human-powered transportation tools, such as hand-pulled carts, tricycles, and two-wheeled carts.

Arriving at the same time with this batch of materials were over 300 construction workers. Many of them were NPCs who had participated in the early construction of the Outpost Base, and some were Lifestyle Profession players with relevant work experience. Having contributed greatly to the construction of Dawn City, they possessed rich construction experience that had been tested through practical work.

Although land reclamation was a tough job, they arrived here without hesitation when the Alliance needed them.

This might be due to their loyalty to the New Alliance, or perhaps it was simply the instruction of a mission...

...

A truck stopped at the entrance to the camp.

Before the vehicle even came to a complete stop, Sword Execution jumped off the truck and yelled, "Get off the truck! It's time to get to work, brothers! The expansion pack ends tonight, so let's earn some points while we still can. Everyone, make the most of your time!"

"Let's go!" The group responded enthusiastically. The strength type players were the first to jump off the truck and head those with supplies.

Led by Sword Execution, they unloaded the materials from the trucks and organized them into categories, preparing for the distribution of tools later on.

Even though in real life, none of them would want to do any labor work, in the game, each and every one of them turned into Aryan superhumans, working as if they had the strength of 2 bulls.

Especially when they learned that completing the construction mission would unlock achievements, and the names of the players meeting the requirements would even be etched onto the city monument, forever remembered as heroes of Daybreak City, alongside those players who had excelled on the battlefield, the strength type players instantly became overwhelmed with excitement.

Were they tired?

Not at all.

This darn game could make them sweat, make them pant, make their arms stiff, and even make them sluggish, but one thing that they wouldn't be able to feel was discomfort.

Excessive pain would be blocked, and fatigue was not a big issue as long as it didn't reach the point that players would pass out.

Under the command of Sword Execution, the group of players worked tirelessly.

The NPCs nearby, upon witnessing the scene, felt admiration in their hearts and were also inevitably inspired. Even the privileged blue coats were also putting in so much effort, so what excuse did they have to not work hard? And how would they dare to slack off?

With that in mind, everyone worked as hard as they could.

A total of 50 trucks were quickly unloaded in less than half an hour thanks to the collective efforts of the group.

The trucks then continued their journey towards Bluestone County for the second trip.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the construction site, Ma Ban, the acting Daybreak City Mayor, met with the leader of the construction team next to the wreckage of the Elevated Highway bridge and explained the situation to him. "There are 5,731 registered residents, and we also expect nearly 10,000 newly liberated slaves to arrive soon."

"Our top priority now is to prepare enough housing for these people."

The leader of the construction team was named Rudy. He used to be a squad leader under Vanus and had been released early for his good performance in the labor reform program.

After regaining his freedom, this former Army officer didn't return home but chose to stay, dedicating himself to a greater cause and ideal, and began a new life as a New Alliance resident.

Rudy asked, "What about the prisoners of war?"

Ma Ban looked to the side and replied, "They are still in the city."

There were over 20,000 prisoners of war, which would take time to process them all. Additionally, they needed to be organized to build a prisoner of war camp; so in the short term, those people wouldn't be able to play any helpful roles.

After learning the situation, Rudy looked at the map for a while before muttering, "I now have a rough understanding of the situation here. The construction materials will be delivered before noon. What we need to do now is to clear out a construction site as quickly as possible. How many people can we mobilize right now?"

Ma Ban responded meticulously, "Excluding the wounded, sick, pregnant women, and children under 12... We can mobilize around 4,000 people."

Rudy nodded. "That's enough. I need them to assemble here immediately. I will assign specific tasks to them."

"Leave it to me!" After saying these words, Ma Ban quickly found Wu Chengyi and others and, with the help of the former leadership of the resistance organization, mobilized the survivors.

The crowd gradually gathered in the open space next to the remnants of the Elevated Highway. Among them were soldiers from the Third Corps, young people with backpacks, and even children with innocent faces, as well as elderly individuals with stooped postures.

Almost everyone in the crowd had a sallow complexion, indicating malnutrition, but they looked much better than a month ago. While they couldn't be described as energetic, at least there was no longer any sign of confusion or despair.

Looking at the sea of people before him, Rudy picked up a megaphone and spoke with a resounding voice, "Time is precious, so I'll keep it short. We need to prepare 1,000 emergency houses before nightfall! I need you to lend me your strength!"

Upon hearing his cry, the people exchanged puzzled glances.

Prepare 1,000 houses before nightfall? Is this guy serious?

In the face of this seemingly unrealistic idea, almost all survivors were filled with doubts and began whispering to each other.

Without explaining further, Rudy gave a brief mobilization speech and immediately assigned missions to everyone. The 4,000 individuals were divided into over 300 small groups of varying sizes, each led by a supervisor, and assigned with a role in the construction of the settlement.

With everyone working together, the survivors of Daybreak City quickly cleared the land around the trench, using vehicles like carts and tricycles to transport concrete debris and large pieces of garbage outside the camp.

As the open space was cleared out, aluminum plates and aluminum alloy supports were brought in on tricycles and carts.

"What are these?" Looking at the materials and tools piled up in the open space, a skinny man named Liu Dali had a bewildered expression on his face.

He used to be a farmer before the Bonechewer Clan arrived. Later, after losing his home and family in a fire, he joined the guerrilla resistance force. Now, he was a soldier in the New Alliance's Third Corps. But it wasn't just him who didn't understand what these things were for. Several other survivors standing nearby were equally puzzled, exchanging confused glances.

At this moment, a supervisor from the construction team walked up to them and answered their confusion, "These are construction materials for building houses. Our mission is to build 4 of them. I'll teach you how to do it shortly. It's very easy."

"Construction materials?" Liu Dali was dazed for a moment. His fellow townsfolk standing beside him expressed the same confusion, saying, "These things can be used to build houses?"

Even if it's building shacks, aluminum alloy plates alone aren't enough.

Faced with the perplexed gazes of everyone, the supervisor smiled slightly and said, "This thing is not only for building houses; it has many other uses. Let's not waste any more time; we need to hurry up."

With that, he tossed gloves to everyone and cautioned, "Remember to wear these when working, so you don't injure yourself. Our mission is to build four houses. Let's work hard and try to finish them before 6:00 in the evening. Our captain said that if we can complete our mission before then, everyone on the team will receive a reward!"

As soon as everyone heard about a reward, they became curious. "What's the reward?"

"Crab cakes! One each!"

Meat!

Upon hearing about this reward, everyone instantly became excited. Without a second thought, they quickly donned their gloves and began working under the supervisor's guidance.

The same reward, if offered in Dawn City, probably wouldn't have interested many. But here, in the famine-stricken West Continent City, even a piece of green wheat cake was considered a delicacy. The prospect of having meat to eat made everyone's eyes practically gleam with anticipation; they all wished they could have more hands so they could finish their mission faster.

2 aluminum plates were first erected upright on the ground with a vertical support in the middle, and the connection points were secured with screws and nuts.

Then came the third piece of the aluminium plate, the fourth piece...

As the aluminum plates were pieced together one by one, Liu Dali soon discovered with astonishment that a large square-shaped container had silently appeared in front of everyone.

The ‘container’ was not small, occupying an area of about 20 square meters and towering over 3 meters in height. It had a door and windows, and 3 bunk beds inside, yet it didn't feel crowded at all. In fact, the space inside was quite spacious, even somewhat wasteful.

As Liu Dali gazed at the fruits of their labor, he suddenly felt something stirring in his heart.

Ever since his home was destroyed, and he lost his loved ones, he had been living aimlessly, taking each day as it came.

However, now, as he looked at the building in front of him, he felt a long-lost emotion welling up inside him.

He didn't know how to describe that feeling, and where it came from, but he could sense its genuine presence.

It was as if...