Chapter 360.1: This Is A Precious Mission Item!

East gate of Boulder Town.

Next to the unloading point of the trading station, piles of goods were stacked into small mountains.

Standing next to a pile of grains, a shirtless cargo worker flicked a dirty rag onto his shoulder. He extended his hand to push the sturdy hemp sacks and was surprised by what he saw.

"Is this the batch from yesterday?" Henry remembered it very clearly.

Yesterday morning, he just unloaded this batch from the backs of the two-headed oxen, and now he was surprised to see it being loaded back so soon.

A fellow worker nearby grumbled, showing his teeth. "Yeah, it's the wheat from the farms in the south. Smells as good as freshly dried clothes."

After entering June, the weather here was getting hotter and hotter. It would be great to have a chilled Nuka Cola, but with their income, they couldn’t afford such luxury.

"Where are these goods going?" a dark-skinned teenager approached and asked curiously.

Henry remembered his name, it seemed to be Hang, and he lived in the nearby slums. He was either 12 or 13 years old, but regardless, he was not very old.

Unlike other places, many employees here came from the slums outside the giant wall.

It was said that these people were willing to accept lower wages than them, getting only 1 chip and 2 scoops of sticky nutrient cream per day.

Honestly, Henry didn’t like those slum kids very much because some were willing to endure lower living standards, causing their wages to keep decreasing.

A chip might be enough for a person, but he had a whole family to support!

"They’re going to our neighbors," Henry said with an indifferent tone.

The nearby worker couldn’t help complaining, "Damn it... Why won't those greedy bastards sell us these grains a bit cheaper?"

If a kilogram of bread only cost only 1 chip, they could afford it, but usually, they could only afford a hard and stone-like green wheat cake.

At this moment, the overseer of the trading station walked over, overhearing the complaints of these poor workers. Without hesitation, he rolled his eyes. "What the hell are you daydreaming about! Do you expect the grains grown in the fields to be as cheap as nutrient cream? Stop the nonsense, and get back to work. If you don't work hard, you won't even be able to afford nutrient cream!"

Under the overseer's urging, the complaining workers quickly disperse, burying their heads in work, not daring to speak again, despite their resentment and dissatisfaction.

Although filled with grievances, finding a job was not easy. If they got fired, their whole family would suffer from hunger...

...

Not only grain needed to be transported, but also bundled cotton, parts and tools needed for construction, as well as lighting equipment and generators.

The total value of these goods was up to 500,000 chips, weighing a whopping 450 tons.

If they could make 10 trips like this in a month, the trade volume would be 5 million, and over a year, it would be 60 million.

Considering the transportation costs, 200 million chips may not be that much...

At the same time, not far from the trading station, several fully armed players had assembled.

Old White, wearing exoskeletons and carrying rifles on their backs, glanced in the direction of the slums.

It was calm over there.

Faces with lifeless eyes looked ordinary, and it was hard to believe that a murder had occurred a few days ago.

There was also no sense that someone was casting malicious glances in their direction.

Old White breathed a sigh of relief.

As he expected, the Dagger Gang didn't dare to cause trouble for them.

Their alliance was young, younger than the leading Boulder Town by 200 years, and far less influential than the Arms Industry and Mayor of Boulder Town.

But in front of a few marauder gangs, they were still elephants. They were not on the same level at all.

The other party was naturally aware of it and wouldn't cause trouble for the sake of a little henchman's life.

Of course, it was also possible that he was overthinking, perhaps there was simply no follow-up to that plot in the game.

While Old White was lost in his thoughts, a security NPC from the office walked over and stopped in front of him. "The trading station is loading goods onto the vehicles; we'll have to wait for a while."

Old White wasn't very good at the federation language but nodded and answered succinctly, "No problem, we can wait."

Not far from them, the trading station was a hive of activity.

Shirtless cargo workers shuttled back and forth between the piles and the caravans, loading goods onto the backs of the two-headed oxen.

These two-headed oxen, had gentle temperaments and were robust. Normally ones would weigh at least 500 to 600 kilograms, and mutated ones would even reach an astonishing weight of a ton, resembling a huge hippopotamus.

Most importantly, these animals were not picky eaters. With stomachs comparable to mutated hyenas, they grew quickly, making them widely used as transportation in the wasteland.

Places where tires and treads couldn't go, they could traverse easily.

Although not fast, they were stable and could even serve as cover during fights.

Players were not unfamiliar with these two-headed oxen; Frost Spear Ranch in the northern suburbs also had some.

What surprised the players this time was that the two-headed oxen they saw now were different from before. Not only were they larger in size, but they also wore metallic apparatus on their bodies.

𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

It looked like exoskeletons.

"Damn... Even animals have exoskeletons now?" Peepo, looking at the caravan not far away, expressed his astonishment.

Looking in the same direction, Doggo stared at the oxen for a while before saying, "Those are non-powered exoskeletons."

"What's a non-powered exoskeleton?" Peepo asked curiously.

Kidney Warrior, standing nearby, explained, "It means there's no power source or motor. It functions like a cart with wheels, allowing you to unload part of the cargo weight on the ground."

"Why not just use mechanical vehicles then?"

"Why not just use rockets for transportation?" Doggo rolled his eyes.

Kidney Warrior casually remarked, "Because the transportation cost of the mechanical ox is not just a handful of grass per 100 kilometers. You also need to replace worn-out parts and regularly add oil... At least, that's my guess."

This statement might be acceptable to the Peepo, although equipping the two-headed oxen with non-powered exoskeletons took the concept of making the most out of something to the extreme.

Loading the cargo didn't take too long.

Old White raised his arm and glanced at the VM screen, where a pop-up window appeared.

The escort mission was initiated. They had 48 hours to deliver the cargo to the northern suburbs and ensure the safety of personnel and supplies.

"The cargo is loaded."

"Where's Ample Time?" Peepo looked around and noticed someone was missing.

Old White casually replied, "He has something to take care of and needs to stay here for a while. Let's hit the road."

Doggo let out a howl. "Damn it, this guy is keeping a hidden mission to himself again!"

"Exactly! He's been playing solo every day lately, he’s definitely up to no good!"

Hearing the complaints from his teammates, Old White laughed heartily. "Alright, alright. He has his own matters to attend to. He'll come back when he's done."

Watching the caravan behind him, he waved his hands forward. "Let's go!"

The team started moving.

Escorting over 200 two-headed ox and hundreds of tons of supplies, the group set off on the journey to the northern suburbs, attracting the attention of wasteland passersby.

The escort team included not only a few Burning Corps players but also 2 local mercenary groups from Boulder Town, totaling over 100 people.

For marauders, encountering such a caravan usually prompted them to keep their distance.

Not to mention coming over to probe, these bullies who picked on the weak and feared the strong wouldn't even dare to glance in this direction.

It was said that the New Alliance planned to renovate the subway tunnel from Boulder Town to the northern suburbs, sealing off all the junctions. This way, they could shorten the original 2 day journey to something that took a day or less.

If they laid cables and arranged a few electric cars to shuttle back and forth in the tunnel, it might take only 2 or 3 hours for a round trip!

The straight-line distance from Boulder Town to Baker Street was only about 10 kilometers, extending to the Linghu Lake Wetland Park, it was around 14 or 15 kilometers.

However... The project wasn’t finalized.

Boulder Town's City Hall was not very willing to spend the money, and Dulong's reasons were quite valid. They couldn't spend the tax money of the people outside the outer wall.

Although the New Alliance said they could handle the tunnel's construction and operation themselves, such a massive project would come with astronomical costs.

With the New Alliance's current financial situation, they wouldn’t be able to afford it. They would only borrow from Boulder Town's bank.

Even though the Bank President Malvern said he welcomed the New Alliance to borrow another billion, deep down, he felt a little uneasy. After throwing out 200 million chips, he hadn't seen the results yet and wanted to wait and see before deciding.

Chu Guang didn’t urge them either. Fleecing a wealthy client was a long-term affair.

The perfect outcome would be that after he spent the first batch of chips he borrowed, Boulder Town would experience its first round of inflation. The prices of commodities priced in chips would start to skyrocket.

But if he overdrew the opponent's production capacity, what would shrink would not be his debt but the money he just borrowed...

...