Chapter 7: Purchasing Supplies, Recruiting Troops

What made Li Ye even more helpless was that he had less than 100 crystal coins on hand. Crystal coins were the universal currency used in the wastelands, appearing as translucent pale blue coins. One crystal coin could buy a small bag of coarse food. Three crystal coins could purchase an old chair. Ten crystal coins could be exchanged for a liter of gasoline, or a small bag of vegetables and fruits. The crystal coins Li Ye had were simply not enough to purchase much in the way of supplies. When he inadvertently turned his head and saw the Water Tower on the Tomorrow, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "Are you in need of fresh water? Although I don't have many crystal coins, I can trade fresh water for your supplies." To his surprise, Field Town happened to be facing a shortage of fresh water. In recent days, several people had been injured or even killed while searching for fresh water outside. The arrival of the Tomorrow had alleviated Field Town's urgent crisis. Before long, a crowd had gathered in front of Li Ye. After some bargaining, Li Ye traded 1000 units of fresh water and received a mountain of supplies in return. Eighty-two units of fuel, 126 units of coal. These were the resources Li Ye was able to trade for after visiting every corner of the market. As the fuel and coal were added one by one, the Tomorrow's energy level rose from 11% to 27%. Although it hadn't reached the safe threshold of 60%, managing to gather this much was already decent. In addition, Li Ye had acquired over three hundred steamed buns, two sacks of potatoes and corn, a bag of flour, and a dozen or so bags of homemade biscuits from the residents. As for candles, he managed to buy two boxes. The only regret was that Li Ye hadn’t managed to buy saltpeter, and therefore couldn’t make artillery shells. After instructing Old Zhou and the others to bring the supplies back to the Tomorrow, Li Ye rubbed his hands together and began his plan to recruit people. As he expected, Field Town didn’t have the professional personnel he was looking for, like gunners or mechanics. However, three people volunteered to become ordinary residents. After all, for survivors, it was safer to live in a Mobile City than in a town with minimal defenses. "Just this few? That’s nowhere near enough." Li Ye sighed. Then he patiently explained to the three what their daily tasks would be, and how much supplies they would receive each day. During the conversation, one person asked curiously. "Is your Tomorrow short on slaves?" Li Ye frowned slightly upon hearing that. To someone who had experienced life as a slave and had risked his life with his brothers to rebel against that rule, the word felt a bit harsh. "No, I’m not asking you to be slaves," he said in a low voice. "I promise you that you’ll become part of the Tomorrow, and you won’t be subjected to any inhumane treatment or servitude." The crowd stirred upon hearing this, and a few more people stepped forward. After another round of discussion, Li Ye recruited six more people. As he was about to return to the Tomorrow with these nine people, a calm voice suddenly rose from the crowd. "I think I can take the position of mechanic on the Tomorrow." Li Ye turned his head in surprise and saw the speaker. It was a black-haired young man with glasses sitting in a wheelchair. His appearance was ordinary, his complexion pale and unhealthy. It seemed that he wasn’t just physically disabled—he was also afflicted by illness. A little girl, around eight or nine years old, was pushing his wheelchair from behind. Her expression was timid; she seemed to be his younger sister. "You’re a mechanic?" Li Ye asked in surprise. The young man with glasses shook his head slightly. "No, I’ve never worked in a Mobile City. But I’ve read many books about mechanics and believe that hands-on operation shouldn’t be too difficult," he replied. "Besides, compared to ordinary residents, mechanics should receive better treatment, right?" "I hope to bring this little girl along. She needs to receive a daily quota of supplies, and she won’t participate in any work on the Mobile City." "Additionally, I’ll need you to assign someone to assist me in the daily maintenance of the Mobile City..." Before he could finish, Li Ye slowly shook his head. "Sorry, I can’t agree to that." In truth, even if the young man with glasses wasn’t a real mechanic, Li Ye was willing to give him a chance. After all, it was hard to find talents like mechanics in the wastelands. The Tomorrow had just started out, and the benefits it could offer were limited. Being able to recruit even a trainee was already a blessing. But the man was not only disabled and sickly, he also wanted to bring in a little girl and have someone assigned to help him. That meant Li Ye would need to allocate food and water for two people every day, and give up a laborer. The young man thought for a moment, then spoke again. "I can also double as a helmsman." Li Ye was stunned when he heard that and looked at him with delight. If this young man could indeed serve as both mechanic and helmsman, then the offered treatment could be justified. Sensing Li Ye’s thoughts, the young man added. "I’ve never served as a helmsman either, but I’ve read many books on piloting Mobile Cities. I believe hands-on operation shouldn’t be difficult either." "......" After a long hesitation, Li Ye nodded. After all, the Tomorrow was just getting started and was in urgent need of various talents. And with the current treatment it could offer, experienced mechanics and helmsmen might not even be willing to come. Having someone barely qualified was already fortunate. "Alright then," he sighed helplessly. "By the way, what’s your name?" The young man with glasses adjusted his glasses. "Lin Wu." After carefully observing Li Ye, he spoke softly. "Mr. Li, if I'm not mistaken, were you once a slave?" Li Ye was taken aback. "Why?" he asked. "Judging from your reaction when you heard the word 'slave', you seem very averse to that identity. Plus, there was the promise you made earlier... But those two points alone aren't enough to prove my guess." "The main reason is that, when you were walking just now, you kept reaching back to tug at your shirt. That’s probably because, during your time as a slave, your back was often whipped by lords and thugs, leaving many scars." "Although you just changed into new clothes and no marks are visible on your back, those scars likely haven’t fully healed, so when your clothes touch them, they itch and hurt." Li Ye slowly nodded. He hadn't expected Lin Wu’s observation skills to be so sharp. "Alright, pack your things and come with me," he waved his hand. Lin Wu nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Li..." Li Ye cut him off with a wave of his hand. "Call me Lord. You're now a member of the Tomorrow." ... After entering the Tomorrow via the lift platform, Lin Wu breathed a light sigh of relief, feeling more at ease. His legs were already impaired, plagued by illness, and he had a child with him, making life especially difficult. What was worse, life in Field Town offered no sense of security. The wasteland was filled with monsters, and Field Town had no heavy machine guns or cannons. The defensive structures were weak, and if a Zombie Swarm attacked, it would surely fall. When Li Ye began recruiting, Lin Wu had joined with only a tentative mindset—he hadn’t expected to actually succeed. This explained why so many survivors in the wasteland would rather become slaves just to enter a Mobile City. At the very least, Mobile Cities were much safer than towns, and often equipped with cannons and machine guns. Even as slaves, some Mobile Cities still offered paths to promotion. "I’ll meet all your conditions, but if you can’t do your job, I really will throw both of you off the Tomorrow," Li Ye said calmly from behind him. Lin Wu nodded. "Don’t worry, I’ll prove my worth," he said as he gently patted the little girl pushing his wheelchair on the head. "Also, we’re not siblings." "What?" "Her name is Xiao Yao, and she’s my best friend’s younger sister." Lin Wu spoke softly, as a light breeze ruffled his bangs, making it hard to see his lowered eyes. "My best friend always took care of me, and in the end, died saving me. Before he died, he entrusted his sister to me and asked me to take care of her." ... Lin Wu and the newcomers who had just joined the Tomorrow were each assigned their own rooms, along with fresh water and food. Seeing the rooms, joy appeared in the eyes of the newcomers. They had initially thought they were coming to the Tomorrow to be slaves and were prepared to endure. Compared to living in a poorly defended town, being a slave in a Mobile City at least felt safer. But the treatment Li Ye gave them far exceeded expectations. Not only did everyone have their own room, but they also had enough to eat and drink each day, and the assigned work wasn’t overly tiring. At that moment, Li Ye was frowning in the cockpit. "We still don’t have enough people." This time, he had only recruited eleven newcomers. These people needed to handle farming, resource gathering, and daily cleaning of the Tomorrow. Lin Wu was only responsible for maintenance, and his friend’s sister didn’t work at all, effectively reducing the labor force by two. Also, what Li Ye had said when recruiting in Field Town had been sincere. In this world, slaves were common in Mobile Cities, and many newcomers joined with the expectation of becoming slaves. But what he wanted to recruit were not slaves, but residents. Slaves worked mindlessly, while residents felt a sense of belonging to their Mobile City and were more willing to work for it. A Mobile City was like a lone boat sailing across land—only if everyone on board worked together could it travel further. Then he opened the system and eagerly looked at the Intelligence panel. This time, the system’s cooldown had reset. 【Time until next intelligence refresh: 2 days 23 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds】 【Intelligence Count: 6】 This time, the refresh interval was much longer than before—it would take a full three days. In return, there was one more piece of intelligence this time, so its value was likely higher. There might even be an epic-grade intel like the first time. Suppressing his excitement, Li Ye rubbed his chin in thought. "I can’t just sit around these next few days. I still need to find ways to gather resources." With the number of people on the Tomorrow increasing, the daily consumption of food and water had risen significantly. Added to the city’s energy consumption, going a day without gains meant a day wasted. Just then, Old Zhou’s voice came from outside. "Ah Li, come out for a moment, something’s up!" Li Ye’s heart skipped a beat, and he quickly hurried out of the production workshop. "What is it?" he asked. "Are we under attack?" Old Zhou shook his head and quickly explained the situation. It turned out that a lookout had spotted a mine, located about 800 meters northwest of the Tomorrow. Li Ye waved his hand. "Let’s go, we’re heading up to the Watchtower."