Chapter 390.1: Ideal City

A red flash twinkled in the distance.

A meteor streaked across the sky, landing in the easternmost part of the central continent and heavily crashing into a field.

The dull thud was audible even hundreds of meters away, let alone to Wang Dashan who was working in the field with his tractor.

"What the hell was that?"

Startled by the noise, the unkempt man jumped down from the tractor, pulled out the shotgun hanging next to the driver's seat, and walked towards the source of the sound while loading a shell.

He was located at the edge of the Among Clouds Province and the most neglected northwest corner. No one would appear in the impoverished land and even traders found it too poor for the liking. They would rather try their luck in the neighboring provinces.

However... There were always exceptions.

Just a month ago, he saw several mutants running around. They were likely deserters scattered by an Enterprise patrol.

Even from a distance, those grotesque figures were enough to make one feel disgusted.

...

Where the supposed meteor fell, there was a crater about 10 meters wide, as if blasted out by a cannon.

Seeing his destroyed crops, Wang Dashan felt a pang of heartache but he still approached cautiously.

He seemed to notice something in the crater and as he glanced at the Geiger counter on his wrist to check the radiation levels, he noticed they were normal and went in for a closer look.

In the pit lay a silver-white metallic sphere, surrounded by wisps of steam. The intense heat even evaporated the moisture in the soil.

"What in the world is this?" Staring at the metallic sphere in the pit, Wang Dashan studied it for a long time but couldn't figure it out.

He pressed the communicator on his shoulder and reported the situation to the village guard.

Before long, a pair of headlights appeared at the edge of the field, and a guard wearing an exoskeleton jumped down from the vehicle and strode towards him.

"What happened?" As soon as he spoke, the guard noticed the crater. He shone his flashlight inside, and squinted slightly.

Standing nearby, Wang Dashan quickly explained, "I was working in the field earlier and I heard a loud noise. When I came over to look, I found this out in the field.”

The guard continued to inquire. "Did you see where it fell from?"

Wang Dashan pointed upward. "The sky."

"The sky?"

The guard revealed a look of shock. He looked up at the sky before turning to the metal sphere. He seemed to have remembered something as his eyes lit up with realization. "Stay here. I'll call the Enterprise..."

Before he could finish speaking, and before Wang Dashan even had a chance to respond, he saw a shadow coming from the distance.

It was an Enterprise aircraft.

The black body of the aircraft was about 10 meters wide, resembling a large bird. Its drum-like engines slowly rotated and emitting blue arcs behind before twisting to the ground.

The air blast flattened the wheat in the field as the plane smoothly landed.

As the hatch opened, six soldiers in exoskeletons stepped out of the cabin.

One of them, carrying a large box taller than his head, walked straight into the crater, picked up the silver sphere, and placed it inside the box.

"Hey, wait, you've ruined my...!" As the men began to leave with the item, Wang Dashan chased after them with his shotgun in hand. He barely mustered the courage to yell.

However, before he could finish his sentence, a banknote was stuffed into his hand, effectively silencing him.

The soldier in the exoskeleton glanced at him before asking, "Is that enough?"

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Yes, yes, it’s enough, hehe..."

Looking at the banknote in his hand, Wang Dashan's initially indignant expression quickly turned to one of cheerful gratitude as he politely watched the soldiers return to their plane.

That was 100CR.

Not to mention the trampled wheat... The amount could easily buy out all the crops in his field.

The guard gave him an envious look before turning to return to his vehicle.

If only he had discovered it sooner... He would have had a share of the money.

Working for the Enterprise was never a losing deal. It was a common understanding in the Among Cloud Province.

Although those people are not known for their generosity, they were never stingy with their compensation...

...

If there was a place in the wasteland where one could still see the last glimmers of the Federation Era, it would be the gem on the East Coast known as Ideal City.

Layers of concrete and steel skeletons stretched from the ground to the sky. Looking up from the ground, one couldn’t see the end.

The neon light pollution was the city's most iconic feature, projecting holographic images on the outer buildings visible from tens of kilometers away.

No matter how bustling the place one came from, anyone who entered Ideal City would look around wide-eyed like a country bumpkin, dazzled by the flickering lights and the sprawling transportation network.

Magnetic levitation trains shuttled between high-rises like fish weaving through seaweed.

Only a few big fish could swim to the highest levels to enjoy the first rays of the morning sun...

Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, the man quietly watched the world outside, as if admiring the fish tank in his living room.

He was called Luo Yong, a core member of the Silver Wing Corporate Group's board of directors, holding 17% of the shares.

"Emergency communication... It seems the Pioneer has indeed encountered trouble," said the guest sitting on the sofa, examining his wine glass with interest. He spoke nonchalantly.

His name was Kang Le, and he was a core member of the Health Luxury Corporate Group's board of directors.

Unlike the Silver Wing Corporate Group, which mainly dealt in heavy engineering equipment manufacturing, Health Luxury Corporate Group's business scope primarily included support equipment and medical devices.

Although the two men were drinking buddies, their discussions always revolved around topics unrelated to alcohol.

"Hmm."

"I heard that your son is on the Pioneer, no?”

"Yes."

Seeing how composed his friend was, Kang Le raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Aren't you worried?"

"You guys have a custom cloning service, just clone another one," Luo Yong said casually, his calm tone betraying no emotion.

Kang Le raised his eyebrows in surprise, shooting Luo Yong a few more glances, not expecting him to respond that way.

He shifted his gaze from the figure by the window and smiled faintly. "... We can clone cells, but we can't clone memories, let alone souls."

"Do you still believe in that stuff?"

"It's not about belief; it's just a metaphor. I think humans are a concept distinct from objects, and flesh is merely the container for this concept. Making containers is easy, we've been able to do that for a long time. In fact, we can even do it better than naturally made ones, but we still can't transfer abstract thoughts from one container to another..." Kang Le continued speaking, but Luo Yong, standing by the window, was not interested in listening.

In the distance, an Electric Manta transport aircraft slowly crossed the concrete towers before landing on the rooftop helipad.

He saw several soldiers carrying a box as they quickly entered the building.

Soon, the satellite in that box would be sent to a technical department for disassembly and data download.

Although he hadn't yet read the data stored in that satellite, Luo Yong could already guess what it contained. Only in the most critical moments would such emergency communication methods be used.

Since the satellite had left its orbit and fallen nearby, it already contained a lot of information...

"I'm not interested in your theories." Turning away from the window, Luo Yong interrupted Kang Le's monologue.

Staring at the man sitting on the sofa, he continued seriously, "Shelter 0 carries all the faith of Ideal City's residents. After two centuries, we've finally found it. If we can open that door, we can end all the chaos on this wasteland and return this land to the Prosperity Era."

Kang Le paused for a moment, then as if he heard a funny joke, he laughed out loud. He shook his head and placed his wine glass back on the table. "... You mock me for believing in souls, yet you believe in an even more unreliable legend."

Luo Yong corrected him. "It's not a legend but a conclusion reached through rigorous and precise calculations."

Kang Le's attitude did not change. "Calculations... Haha, if there really was such a technology to predict the future, wouldn't those lying in the graves have thought of this day?"

"What can be deduced is not the future, but probabilities, isn't our existence the best proof?"

Ideal City was built on top of Shelter 6. Everything was the result of the plan, ‘Fortress’.

Unable to refute his point, Kang Le fell silent for a while, then spoke softly, "... Let's assume for a moment that Shelter 0 really has that capability, to sweep away the chaos on this wasteland like a whirlwind. Who can guarantee it won't affect our current prosperity?"

If the Pioneer merely went out for a stroll, none of it would matter to him.

Whether it was for spreading the Enterprise’s ideology, sowing the seeds of civilization, or showcasing prosperity and strength... For the Enterprise, it was greatly beneficial.

After all, trading with a bunch of barbarians might get them a few shells or animal skins at best.

However, if they sold mining exoskeletons and drilling rigs to those wastelanders to show off the possibilities of Ideal City, by the time their caravans made their rounds again, just a few pieces of paper could be traded for a truckload of ore.