Chapter 108
The entrance to the shelter in the south of the city is hidden behind the main gate of the abandoned machine factory; the original steel gate has long been replaced by a half-meter-thick ice wall.
It was formed by an ice-type ability user, its surface covered with sharp ice shards, like a cold and hard barrier. Two guards stood on each side of the ice wall, wearing faded blue protective suits with frayed cuffs, holding rusty iron rods in their hands, and with obvious bloodshot eyes, clearly having stayed up many nights.
Su Jing had just walked about 5 meters away from the ice wall when a guard on her left raised his hand to stop her: "Stop! What are you doing? Show your identification!"
She stopped, not revealing her purpose directly, but instead raised her hand and pressed the collar of her protective suit, revealing the light blue "China" logo embroidered inside.
This is an identity badge issued by the system after the previous dungeon run. All Chinese players who complete the missions have one, which is enough to prove that they are not outsiders.
“I’m an explorer from nearby. I heard this is the South City Shelter, so I’m here to exchange some information about supplies.” Su Jing’s tone was calm, but her gaze subtly swept over the guard’s boots: half of the crampons on the soles were broken, and snow was seeping in through the gaps, making the guard stomp his feet from time to time, clearly indicating that his equipment was in short supply.
"Exchange supplies?" The guard on the right frowned, took the ID card from Su Jing, and scanned it against the old terminal in his hand. The terminal screen flashed a few times and displayed a message: "Chinese mission participant, no criminal record."
He looked up at Su Jing, then glanced at the bulging backpack on her back, and hesitated for a few seconds: "Come with me. The director is inside handling matters. Whether we can communicate depends on him."
As he spoke, he turned around and pushed open a small door about half a person's height on the side of the ice wall. Behind the door was a narrow passage, with several yellowed slogans pasted on the wall that read "Conserve resources and overcome difficulties together." Faint coughing sounds came from the end of the passage.
Su Jing followed the guard inside, and as soon as she turned the corner, the interior of the shelter was fully revealed—
This was converted from an abandoned machinery factory. Most of the skylights in the roof were broken and barely covered with plastic sheeting and snow. Sunlight filtered through the gaps, casting dappled patterns on the ground. The air was thick with the smell of coal smoke and disinfectant, and the temperature was only about 8 degrees Celsius, more than ten degrees lower than inside the villa.
She could see many people wrapped in thick cotton-padded clothes, sitting in the corner with their shoulders hunched, holding steaming enamel mugs in their hands. The liquid in the mugs looked very thin, probably porridge mixed with water.
"Wait here for a moment, I'll go get the director." The guard led her to an iron table in the center of the factory, then turned and headed towards a small room in the corner. Su Jing didn't sit down, but instead, under the guise of "observing the surroundings," slowly walked around—
To the left of the factory building was the living area, with small cubicles partitioned off by canvas. Each cubicle was crammed with three or four people, covered with straw and old bedding. Some cubicles had signs that read "Wounded Area" on the door, and you could see people lying inside with blood-soaked bandages wrapped around their arms. The bandages were dark in color and obviously hadn't been changed in a long time.
On the right is the supplies area, where several bags of rice and flour are piled up, with the words "relief food" printed on them. There are also several empty coal barrels next to them, with only the innermost barrel containing a little less than half a barrel of smokeless coal.
The medical area was located towards the back of the middle, with two makeshift hospital beds. A woman in a white coat was changing the dressings of a wounded soldier. She had only a few disinfectant wipes left, and after that, she would have to use burnt cotton cloth instead.
"Is that you?" A familiar voice came from behind. Su Jing turned around and saw Li Yang walking over with an empty backpack. His protective suit was covered in snow, and he looked tired. The side pocket of his backpack contained wild vegetables that he had dug up earlier, which had already frozen solid.
"Why are you here?" Li Yang was clearly surprised. He approached and lowered his voice. "Our shelter has been having a tough time lately. We're not getting enough heating, and we're almost out of medicine. If you're here to exchange supplies, there's probably not much we can give you."
Su Jing looked at his ears, which were red from the cold, and instead of directly mentioning support, she asked, "Are there many wounded? The medical area seems quite strained."
“That’s right,” Li Yang sighed, pointing in the direction of the “wounded area”. “Last time we went to the valley to dig for ice, several brothers were cut by icicles, and two of them got infected. We are severely lacking in medicine, and the director is almost worried to death.”
Heating is also inadequate; there are only a few small coal stoves, which can only prevent the medical and accommodation areas from freezing over, so you have to wear all your clothes to sleep at night.
As they were talking, a middle-aged man wearing a dark gray jacket walked over. He had gray hair, several light scars on his face, and was holding an old notebook. He was probably the director of the shelter.
"I'm Old Chen, the director here. I heard you're here to exchange information about supplies?" Old Chen's voice was a little hoarse. He reached out and shook hands with Su Jing. His palms were rough and calloused. "The only things we can offer right now are some frozen wild vegetables and a few old, useless parts. If you need any of these, just let me know."
Seeing the weariness in Old Chen's eyes, Su Jing knew the time was right. Without beating around the bush, she took out a prepared list of supplies from her backpack and handed it over: "Director Chen, I'm not here to exchange supplies. I accumulated some extra supplies while exploring outside. I heard the situation here is bad, so I thought I'd help if I could. The items on the list are things I don't need, but I hope they can help everyone."
Old Chen paused for a moment, then took the list, his eyes growing brighter as he looked at it—the list read "500 kg of iron ore, 200 healing pills, 100 cotton pads for disinfection, 5 rolls of bandages, 100 kg of rice, and 50 kg of compressed biscuits," each item being exactly what they urgently needed.
"This...this is too much." Old Chen's hands trembled slightly as he looked up at Su Jing. "What do you want in return? We may be poor, but we'll give you whatever we have!"
"No need for anything in return." Su Jing shook her head, her tone sincere. "We're all Chinese, it's only right that we help each other. These supplies are just extras from my personal reserves, they're just sitting there anyway, so I might as well give them to those who need them more."
She paused, deliberately avoiding the topic of her address, "I usually explore the area nearby, which makes it easier to gather supplies. If I have any extras later, I'll contact you."
Before Old Chen could say anything more, Su Jing had already turned and walked towards the door: "I put the supplies next to the iron table earlier. They're all packed in moisture-proof bags. Remember to use the iron ore in batches; it burns very efficiently, so don't put too much in at once. Give the healing pills to the seriously wounded first; the instructions are in the box. I have other things to do, so I'll be leaving now."
"Wait!" Old Chen quickly caught up, holding something wrapped in cloth in his hand, and stuffed it into Su Jing's hand. "This is some frozen jerky we made ourselves. It's not much, but it's a token of our appreciation. If you encounter any danger, come here anytime. Although there are few of us, we can still help."
Su Jing squeezed the cloth bag; the dried meat inside was hard, but it carried a warm sentiment. She didn't refuse and nodded, "Thank you, Director Chen, I will."
After saying that, she turned and walked out of the shelter. The guard at the door saw her and his eyes showed a hint of gratitude. He took the initiative to push open the small door in the ice wall for her.
Stepping out of the shelter, a cold wind blew, carrying snowflakes, but Su Jing didn't feel cold. She touched the dried meat in her arms, knowing that this support was just the beginning—next, she needed to return to the villa as soon as possible to manage the planting and breeding in the space, and if she still had the energy after the dungeon ended, she would help more people in need.
The countdown timer for the dungeon was still ticking on the communicator. She quickened her pace and headed towards the villa, her figure quickly disappearing into the snow and mist.
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