Chapter 5: 1-Star Firearm – Peregrine Falcon Assault Rifle

Li Ye frowned slightly after quickly reading through the five pieces of intel in front of him. Compared to the previous round of intel, this round was clearly much worse, with the highest value being just a single rare-grade piece. However, this also confirmed the rules of the system. He rubbed his eyes and refocused his attention to analyze the intel. Once again, the news was about the Azure. This Mobile City had regrouped and captured a monster-occupied minefield, and its lord had survived. What interested Li Ye the most were the fourth and fifth pieces of intel. Eight standard cannons, fourteen heavy machine guns, four convoys, ninety-six combat personnel, over 120 firearms of various types, and even two 1-star cannons! The armament scale of the Crimson Hound was staggering. With such firepower, it could easily destroy a town. “There’s actually a Mobile City with such combat power in the Wasteland Zone?” Li Ye was stunned. At the same time, a suspicion gradually grew in his heart. Why did the Crimson Hound have as many as ninety-six combat personnel? Did they perform labor on normal days, or were they solely focused on combat? If it was the latter, just how many slaves would be needed to support their daily living? Soon, a theory surfaced in his mind. The Crimson Hound might not have as many people as it seemed—most of its residents were likely combat personnel. Their main way of life was sustaining war with war. Killing monsters, attacking survivor towns, occupying resource points, even hunting other Mobile Cities... This method was much faster than farming or gathering resources. Such Mobile Cities were often referred to as “Predatory Cities.” For now, Li Ye could only secretly pray that they wouldn’t run into the Crimson Hound. Next, he looked at the fifth piece of intel. The morning after tomorrow, a kobold caravan would appear in Thunder Canyon. Monsters in the Wasteland were countless and usually hostile to humans, attacking on sight. Killing them might yield Crystal Coins, materials, weapons, tools, or even rare blueprints. Monster caravans were an extremely rare exception. The monsters in the caravan were neutral, and humans could freely trade and interact with them. The Intelligence System had clearly stated that handing over candles to the kobold caravan could result in a good trade. Li Ye nodded thoughtfully. This fifth piece of intel was probably the most valuable among the current batch. The warehouse on the Tomorrow happened to have two crates of candles. He wondered what he could get in exchange. After planning the Tomorrow’s next course of action, he slowly walked toward the cockpit. According to Li Ye’s arrangement, everyone took shifts standing guard. Since it was nighttime, visibility was poor, and the temporary lookout at the Watchtower had already gone to rest. The next shift would resume at dawn. As Li Ye descended the gangway, he glanced around, greeted only by pitch darkness. The only light came from the searchlights ahead and the few flickering lights on the Tomorrow. Inside the cockpit, Tang Fang was resting with his eyes closed, while Old Zhou stayed by his side. Upon seeing Li Ye approach, they quickly stood up. “Xiao Fang, turn the Tomorrow to the northeast and drive five kilometers,” Li Ye ordered. “Then we’ll head to Thunder Canyon.” Tang Fang and Old Zhou exchanged surprised glances. In their and the others’ eyes, ever since that morning, Li Ye seemed to have awakened some strange ability—able to know things in advance. But for them, who trusted Li Ye, this was not a bad thing. Not long after, under the searchlight’s beam, a clean freshwater lake came into view. With a series of operations on the control panel, a hatch on the Tomorrow opened, and a massive pipe extended into the lake. On the control panel, the freshwater quantity began to slowly rise. The drawn freshwater would be stored in the Tomorrow’s Water Tower, which currently had a capacity of 3,000 units. This was just an ordinary Water Tower. If it were a 1-star Water Tower, the storage capacity would be significantly greater. Unfortunately, Li Ye did not yet possess the blueprint for a 1-star Water Tower. Watching the rising water level, Tang Fang and Old Zhou felt much more at ease. Li Ye, meanwhile, opened the map and carefully marked the location of the freshwater lake. Though it was called a map, it was largely blank, with many unexplored areas. As the Water Tower filled, the three of them chatted idly. Then, they all turned their eyes to a particular spot on the control panel. 【Mobile City Energy Remaining: 11%】 “Don’t worry,” Li Ye reassured them. “We still have a lot of 1-star iron ore. If it comes to it, we can use that as fuel.” The energy supply for a Mobile City was quite miraculous. By adding coal, ores, oil, burnable wood and cloth, or even trash, energy could be replenished. Trash provided very little energy, while coal and oil gave a high return. Hearing this, Tang Fang immediately frowned. “Brother Li, can we not use the iron ore?” he said miserably. “That feels like such a waste.” Li Ye nodded in agreement. 1-star iron ore was essential for Mobile City upgrades and production. Using it as fuel really was wasteful. “We still have 11% energy—enough for a few more days,” he said. “If it really comes to it, then we’ll use the iron ore.” As he spoke, he lightly patted the two on the shoulders. “Get some good rest. We’ve got work to do tomorrow.” When dawn broke the next day, the Tomorrow arrived at Thunder Canyon. At the Watchtower, Li Ye picked up the binoculars and soon spotted the kobold caravan mentioned in the intel. He immediately used the speaking tube on the Watchtower to instruct Tang Fang to steer the Tomorrow toward the kobold caravan. As the distance closed, he could finally see the full appearance of the caravan. There were over a dozen kobold merchants, riding small horses and carrying bundles on their backs. What surprised Li Ye was the group of kobold cavalry guarding the caravan. “We’re so lucky, Brother Li! We actually found a monster caravan!” Tang Fang’s excited voice came through the speaking tube. Li Ye just smiled faintly in response. It wasn’t luck. Once the Tomorrow stopped, Li Ye and Old Zhou carried two crates of candles, along with a few companions, and slowly approached the kobold caravan. Initially wary, the kobold merchants were stunned when they saw the half crate of candles Li Ye held out. Then they gleefully jumped off their mounts and ran toward him. Li Ye pulled out one candle and waved it in front of them. “How much is this one candle worth?” A kobold merchant thought for a moment, then pulled out a pitch-black 1-star ore from its pack. “Is this... Shadow Ore?” Li Ye was taken aback. Shadow Ore was a rare resource, produced only from rare Shadow Ore Veins. A single piece could fetch a good price. He thought for a moment, then handed over the half crate of candles. “How about this?” Another kobold rummaged through its pack and pulled out something like a magic trick. 【Item Name: Caravan Portable Travel Fridge】 【Item Grade: 1-Star】 【Bonus Effect: -20% Energy Consumption】 “Half a crate of candles for a 1-star item?” Li Ye was shocked. Although the energy-saving fridge was nice, he didn’t need it for now. After thinking it over, he simply handed over both crates of candles. “How about this?” This time, the kobold merchants exploded with excitement, swarming around Li Ye and scrambling to pull out items from their packs for trade. Amidst the dazzling array, one item caught Li Ye’s eye. 【Peregrine Falcon Assault Rifle – Blueprint】 【Item Name: Peregrine Falcon Assault Rifle】 【Item Grade: 1-Star】 【Bonus Effects: 1. Accuracy +2% 2. Lethality +6%】 【Crafting Requirement: 50 units of Iron Ore (1-Star)】 “This one’s great!” His eyes lit up instantly.