Chapter 338.1: Even Lucky Bastards Have Their Unlucky Moments...

"Oh my god! Why the hell is this a second-hand item?!"

Adjacent to the Daybreak City military camp, near the arsenal.

Spring Water Commander finally got the jackpot he had drawn and was immediately dumbfounded.

The stout gun barrel emitted an eerie chill. However, no matter how he looked at it, it seemed like it had just been repainted.

It wasn't just the barrel; other parts of the exoskeleton were the same. Despite repairs, visible bullet marks remained on the jet-black exoskeleton.

The battery module and ammunition rack had clearly been replaced. The helmet was a complete knockoff, probably remade using aluminum alloy.

God damn it! Not just second-hand. It is also a heavily repaired battle-worn version!

Realizing this, Spring Water Commander's good mood instantly evaporated.

The only slight consolation was that the 120mm mortar and automatic loading system still functioned. It was fortunate because otherwise, he'd have to bring along an assistant to help with loading. It would be truly unfortunate if that was really the case.

Seeing Spring Water Commander's expression of despair, the players around him, who were ready to absorb some luck, burst into laughter instantly.

"Hahaha!"

"This is hilarious!"

"Poor Spring Water Commander, couldn't escape the nerf that came straight at him in the end."

𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

"NOICE, thanks to the developers! Finally, they've nerfed this cheat!"

"#%@&!" With a flushed face and muttering curses, Spring Water Commander pulled the Battlefield Cheerleader and Darkest, who were holding back laughter, to test-fire the weapon in the forest.

Although the marauders in West Continent City had been dealt with, there were still many mutants lurking in the forest.

These mutants reproduced rapidly and might have spread from other areas.

Usually, when there were many people around, these mutants hardly ventured close, often keeping a safe distance.

But once they spotted someone alone, they would creep closer, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

The First and Second Corps regularly patrolled to prevent mutants from attacking survivors at construction sites or the lumberjacks who were sent out.

However, relying solely on these 2 corps to safeguard the safety of 5,000 to 6,000 people was obviously insufficient.

Early in the morning, the quartermaster issued a large number of hunting missions, encompassing almost all possible mutants in the vicinity of Daybreak City.

Including monsters, Multi-Legged Beasts, mutant brown bears, Deathclaws, Crackleclaw Crabs, Battleship Prawns, Blackwater Snakes, and so on.

On the one hand, they could reduce the population of those creatures by hunting them down.

On the other hand, it could also provide meat, improving everyone's diet a little.

One of New Alliance's greatest contributions to the wasteland was, perhaps, introducing cooking methods from another world.

Many mutants that were previously inedible or tasted bad had now become delicious dishes.

Near Daybreak City, they could get some wild game. However, when they reached Dawn City, mutants of a larger size were almost non-existent.

As the 3 players walked through the woods, Darkest suddenly stopped and raised his right hand, gesturing for his teammates to halt.

Seeing this, Spring Water Commander asked eagerly, "What's up?"

Darkest furrowed his brow, closing his eyes and waiting for a while before speaking softly. "About 500 meters from us... A bit eastward. Looks like it's a monster."

Spring Water Commander couldn't resist a sarcastic remark, "What do you mean 'looks like'? You're an ability user, can't you report a bit more precisely?"

“Screw you! I'm not a radar!" Darkest complained softly.

Spring Water Commander turned to Battlefield Cheerleader beside him. "Battlefield, go take a look, but don't act yet. I'll cover you with a barrage first before you engage."

Battlefield Cheerleader looked speechless. "Do we really need a barrage for just 1 monster? Does it warrant artillery?"

Could he even earn back the cost of the artillery shells with the money from the mission? 120mm mortar shells had to be more expensive than 88mm ones, right?

"You don't understand! This is called being cautious!" Spring Water Commander explained confidently.

Rolling his eyes, Battlefield Cheerleader shouldered his rifle and cautiously moved forward to scout.

Spring Water Commander propped himself up with both hands, driving the spades into the ground, arching his back, and elevating the mortar barrel.

Watching nearby, Darkest had a strange expression. Whether it was his illusion or not, he couldn't shake off the feeling that Spring Water Commander resembled a

Blastoise

.

This thought almost made him burst into laughter again. He had a low threshold for laughter after all. "

Pffft

..."

Ignoring his reaction, Spring Water Commander kept his eyes fixed on the dropped VM. After a short wait, a message appeared on the screen.

Battlefield Cheerleader: It's a monster, an adult one, looks like it weighs 600 to 700 kilograms.

As soon as the message arrived, the monster's coordinates appeared on the map.

Seeing the message, Spring Water Commander became excited. He adjusted the mortar behind him and exclaimed excitedly to himself, “North-northeast 32 degrees, straight-line distance of 671 meters... Fire!”

As the words fell, the long barrel of the cannon let out a resounding bang, propelling the massive shell high into the air before it came crashing down heavily.

Before the first explosion ended, Spring Water Commander quickly followed up with 2 more shots.

Boom!

The shells landed, and 3 consecutive blasts of the heavy artillery echoed through the forest, unleashing roaring flames.

Before the monster could even react to what was happening, it was engulfed by the explosions' shrapnel and flames.

"Holy shit..." Darkest beside him was wearing an astonished expression.

Despite being 500 meters away and unable to see the explosion directly, he could feel the shockwave created by it rippling through the nearby forest.

Sensing the tremors of the earth and the heat-carrying breeze, Spring Water Commander felt exhilarated.

Such power!

It was mind-blowing!

"If only there's a drone! Oh right, I'm an intelligence type, how could I forget to bring a drone!"

Curses echoed over the communication channel at this moment.

"... WHAT THE FUCK! Could you inform me before you fire? Luckily, I dodged quickly; I almost got wiped out along with it!"

Spring Water Commander roared with laughter, "Hahaha! Brothers, is this equipment cool or what? Wait for me. I'll come over and check the blast radius."

Battlefield Cheerleader continued to yell through their communication channel, "Are you even listening to me?!”

Retracting the spades from the ground, Spring Water Commander picked up the VM from the ground. Brimming with excitement, he walked towards the bombing coordinates.

Judging from the shrapnel embedded in the surrounding trees, the blast radius of the mortar shell was nearly 30 meters!

The monster closest to the explosion center not only had an arm blown off but was also riddled with holes from the shrapnel; it couldn't be more dead!

As Battlefield Cheerleader approached to take a look, he realized there wasn't even a need for a finishing blow.

Clicking his tongue and filled with astonishment, he couldn't help but feel a touch of envy.

The exoskeleton truly possessed extraordinary power!

...

While the trio was testing their new equipment in the forest, a group from Camp 101, departing from the southern outskirts of West Continent City, happened to hear the explosions from the forest.

"What was that sound just now?" An old man over 50 years old raised his head, showing a hint of surprise.

His name was Butan, an environmental engineer specializing in hydraulic engineering.

Upon learning that New Alliance intended to build a dam in the 4th New District to control West Continent Lake's flooding problem, he promptly applied to join this visiting group.

If they could solve the flooding issue of West Continent Lake, the large black-soiled land northeast of West Continent Lake could be cultivated into fertile farmland.