Chapter 34
Su Jing had just finished retrieving the third ordinary core for Aunt Martha's neighbor, Old John, who lived in Metal House No. 5. The metallic coolness of the screwdriver still lingered on her fingertips when the system's electronic notification sound, accompanied by a clear electrical buzzing, rang in her mind, breaking the "click-clack" of the mechanical whirring in the room:
[Real-time ranking updates for dungeons (current time remaining: 65 hours and 32 minutes):]
1. I am the God of Wealth (China): 10 Ordinary Energy Cores (Mission Progress 100%)
2. Hunter (United States): 3 Common Energy Cores (Mission Progress 30%)
3. Sharp Blade (China): 2 Ordinary Energy Cores (Mission Progress 20%)
4. Nightingale (EU): Common Energy Core x1 (Mission Progress 10%)
5. Flying Swallow (China): Ordinary Energy Core x1 (Mission Progress 10%)
[Note: Currently, only one participant has completed the basic progress of the main quest. It is recommended to prioritize obtaining advanced/superior cores to improve your ranking and aim for the top 10 rewards.]
Su Jing held the blue core she had just taken out, her fingertips gently stroking the smooth metal casing—the core's surface shimmered with a faint blue light, and she could vaguely sense the energy flowing within. She placed the core into the EMP-proof metal box, which already contained nine identical cores neatly stacked inside. Adding the one in her hand, that made exactly ten, just enough to complete the basic requirements of the main quest. Old John stood beside her, watching the robot vacuum cleaner start up again. A smile spread across his wrinkled face as he took a small bag of synthetic jerky from the cabinet and handed it to her: "Thank you, young lady. If this robot had broken down, these old bones of mine wouldn't have been able to sweep the floor."
"You're too kind, it was nothing." Su Jing took the jerky and stuffed it into the side pocket of her backpack—synthetic jerky was a common food in the cyber world. Although it didn't taste as good as real meat, it could quickly replenish energy, which was perfect for emergencies in the dungeon. She said goodbye to Old John, turned around and walked out of Metal House No. 5. On the metal floor at the door, sunlight shone through the gaps in the airships on the aerial route, casting dappled pale blue spots of light. In the distance, she heard the rhythmic "thump, thump" of the mechanical guards, slower than before, indicating that they had reached a patrol break.
The alleyway in the residential area was a bit more lively than before. Several cleaning robots were sweeping the ground along a fixed route, their buzzing sounds mixed with the heating of synthetic food coming from inside the houses. Occasionally, some residents would come out of their houses, and when they saw Su Jing, their initial wariness was gone. Instead, some would take the initiative to nod and greet her—most of them were neighbors that Lina and Aunt Martha had introduced to them, knowing that she was "the little girl who helps repair robots and doesn't damage things."
Su Jing walked out of the alley, intending to leave the residential area first and go to the "high-level core area in the direction of the upper district" that the little boy had mentioned. Just as she reached the neon sign of "Convenience Supermarket", her wrist was suddenly gently pulled - the force was as light as when she met him in the alley before, with the slenderness unique to children. She turned around and saw the little boy in the patched coat, taking out a palm-sized silver piece from his coat pocket, his eyes full of seriousness.
"Sister, this is for you." The little boy handed Su Jing a thin silver sheet. The sheet was as thin as a piece of paper, with a slight stickiness on the surface and tiny circuit patterns printed on the edges. "This is an 'electromagnetic shielding sticker.' My dad secretly took it off when he was repairing the 'Metal Man.' He sticks it on the inside of your clothes to block the 'Metal Man's' scanning, making it difficult for them to detect you."
Su Jing held the shielding sticker, feeling a slight coolness emanating from it. She looked down at the little boy and asked, "Is your dad a robot repairman? Aren't you going to keep this sticker for yourself?"
“Dad’s gone. The ‘bad robot’ (rebellious robot) destroyed his factory.” The little boy’s voice lowered, but he quickly raised his head again, his eyes firm. “I have no use for it. Sister, you’re going to the ‘Upper City’, right? There are a lot of ‘metal men’ there. This can help you. Remember to stick it on the inside of your radiation protection suit. Don’t get it wet. It will last for 6 hours.”
As he spoke, he reached out and pressed the shielding sticker onto the inside of Su Jing's anti-radiation suit collar—it was very sticky, and once applied, it was almost imperceptible, with only the fingertips able to feel the fine texture. Su Jing felt a warmth in her heart and took out a large vacuum-packed piece of dried candied fruit from her backpack, bigger than the ones she had given her before, and handed it to the little boy: "Take this, it's sweeter than the previous ones, you can eat it as a snack. If you encounter any danger, hide in Metal House No. 3 and find Aunt Lina, she will help you."
The little boy took the dried fruit, carefully stuffed it into his arms, and then warned, "Sister, be careful of the 'bad robots' in the 'Central Tower'," before turning and running back into the alley. He quickly disappeared around the corner of the metal house, leaving only the shadow of his swaying patched coat.
Su Jing touched the shielding sticker inside her collar and brought up the system panel—sure enough, a new "Electromagnetic Shielding Sticker (Temporary)" icon had appeared in the "Items" section, with the description: "Effect: Shields mechanical guards from scanning and detecting (lasts 6 hours), cannot be stacked." Just as she was about to close the panel, private message notifications started ringing incessantly, and a series of new messages popped up on her screen, all requesting help to retrieve the core:
- From "Resident-Anna (New Los Angeles District 2)": "Aunt Lina said you can safely retrieve the core. I have two cooking robots at home, and the core is almost out of power. Can you come to District 2 to help me? The reward is a bag of synthetic rice and a new screwdriver."
- From "Resident-Tony (New Los Angeles District 4)": "Aunt Martha introduced me. I repair robots and know where to find cleaning robots that haven't been inspected by the 'Metal Men'. Can you come to District 4? Help me get 5 cores, and I'll give you 1 'Robot Fault Simulator' so that the 'Metal Men' will mistakenly think the robot is broken and won't inspect it."
- From "Resident - Lucy (New Los Angeles District 1)": "I saw you helping Old John fix his robot. The core of my robot vacuum is stuck and I can't get it out. Can you come and help? The reward is 2 small energy batteries to charge your little device."
Su Jing quickly browsed through her private messages, somewhat surprised—she hadn't expected that helping just a few households, like Lina and Aunt Martha, would spread so far to other neighborhoods. She replied to Anna and Lucy, saying she'd be back to help in 6 hours, and then to Tony, "Contact me after retrieving the cores; I want the 'Robot Malfunction Simulator'"—this item would be very useful for collecting cores later, reducing the risk of being discovered by the mechanical guards.
After dealing with her private messages, Su Jing walked along the metal fence surrounding the residential area towards "Upper District." Passing a side alley, she saw Chen Yang being stopped at the entrance by two local residents—a man in overalls holding a wrench, and an elderly woman blocking a cleaning robot, both speaking angrily. Chen Yang, holding a screwdriver, was flushed, but unable to communicate verbally, he could only gesture frantically, sweat beading on his forehead. Not far away, two silver mechanical guards were approaching, their red scanning eyes slowly rotating against the ground, the buzzing sound of their detection growing louder.
Su Jing didn't stop, quickly walking along the wall—she knew that without the trust of the natives and the correct method of extracting the core, even with tools, it would be difficult to obtain the core smoothly, let alone avoid the mechanical guards. She touched the electromagnetic shielding patch on her collar, feeling the faint energy emanating from it. The outline of the "Upper City" in the distance became clearer: metal buildings much taller than the slums, with reflective metal plates on the exterior walls, and more densely packed aircraft on the air routes. Occasionally, mechanical guards with red markings patrolled the building entrances, nearly half a meter taller than the guards in the slums, holding flashing stun batons.
Reaching the boundary between the "Upper District" and the slums, Su Jing stopped behind an abandoned metal billboard—the billboard read "New Luocheng Industrial Zone Job Opening," with the note "Industrial Zone Entrance: East Lane 3, Upper District," precisely the direction the little boy had mentioned for "Advanced Cores in the Industrial Zone." She pulled up a cybernetic map, which marked "Advanced Energy Core Distribution Area" in purple. These were mostly concentrated near generator rooms and large machinery in the industrial zone, guarded by 2-meter-tall heavy mechanical guards with a detection radius 3 meters larger than ordinary guards, and a danger level marked as "80."
Su Jing glanced at the remaining time displayed on the panel for the "electromagnetic shielding sticker"—5 hours and 48 minutes left.
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