Chapter 27
Su Jing stood by the metal fence of the villa's courtyard, her feet glistening with morning dew. She held a roll of yellow lime powder in her hand, bending down to draw a continuous white line one meter outside the fence—this was the boundary of the trench, to be encircled around the entire villa, forming a closed defensive line. Behind her, two robots had switched to "digging mode," their shovels extended to their maximum angle, their silver-gray bodies positioned close to the edge of the white line, green indicator lights flashing in their "eyes," awaiting instructions.
"Dig along the white line, 2 meters deep and 1 meter wide. Break any rocks you encounter. Pile the soil inside the trench for easy backfilling and reinforcement later." Su Jing straightened up, brushed the lime powder off her hands, and gave the instructions to the robot. As soon as she finished speaking, the robot on the left inserted its shovel into the soil. The sharp blade easily cut through the layer of decaying leaves and disappeared into the soft black soil. Although the "1x strength boost" from the sweet grass roots was applied to Su Jing, the robot's digging force was already set to "heavy mode." In less than 10 seconds, it dug up a shovelful of soil, and the mechanical arm turned inward, steadily piling the soil into a half-meter-high mound.
The robot on the right followed closely behind, the two machines maintaining a 1-meter distance, digging synchronously along the white line. Su Jing walked around the courtyard, occasionally squatting down to measure the trench depth with her tape measure—when she dug to 1.5 meters, the shovel hit a fist-sized rock. The robot's "eyes" flashed yellow instantly, the mechanical arm slightly adjusted its angle, the shovel aimed at the edge of the rock, and with a sudden burst of force, "crack!" the rock was split in two, then scooped up and thrown into a nearby pile of dirt. "So much faster than manually," Su Jing thought to herself. In her previous life, digging trenches in the apocalypse relied entirely on manpower, and digging such a long defensive line would take at least two days. Now, with the robot's assistance, it could be completed in half a day.
At 10 a.m., the closed trench was finally dug. The trench, 2 meters deep and 1 meter wide, circled the villa. The mounds of earth on the inner side were so neat they looked deliberately piled up. Sunlight shone into the bottom of the trench, revealing the damp soil glistening slightly, with a few earthworms occasionally burrowing into the soil. Su Jing took out a 20-liter gasoline can from her spatial storage, unscrewed the cap—a strong smell of gasoline instantly filled the air. She pointed the can at the robot's "supply handling port": "Pour a can of gasoline every 5 meters. After pouring, cover the can opening with soil, leaving only 10 centimeters sticking out for easy ignition later."
The robot's robotic arm gripped the gasoline cans, precisely suspending them above the trench. A valve at the bottom of the can opened automatically, allowing the transparent gasoline to slowly flow down the trench wall, accumulating in a thin layer at the bottom. After emptying one can, the robot gently covered the can with nearby soil, leaving only the metal cap exposed, like concealed "fuel piles." There were 50 cans of 1000 liters of gasoline, placed exactly one every 5 meters around the trench. Su Jing checked the trench to ensure no cans were missed before confidently storing the remaining gasoline cans in her spatial storage—this was the first line of defense against monsters. When monsters approached, the gasoline would ignite, creating a ring of fire to prevent them from reaching the villa.
After digging the trenches, Su Jing turned to work on the solar panels. She took out 10 solar panels she had bought online—each 1.2 meters long and 0.6 meters wide, with a protective film on the black photovoltaic panels and an aluminum alloy frame, lightweight yet sturdy. "First install the brackets, then fix the panels. The wiring must be hidden under the roof's waterproof layer to avoid corrosion from rainwater." Su Jing climbed onto the roof using a folding ladder. The roof was a sloping design, and the south-facing side was perfect for installing the solar panels to maximize sunlight exposure.
The robot also climbed onto the roof—its omnidirectional wheels switched to "adhesive mode," firmly adhering to the roof tiles without slipping. The robot on the left was responsible for installing the metal brackets; its robotic arm, holding a screwdriver, tightened the bracket's fixing feet onto the roof's wooden beams with just the right amount of force—not enough to puncture the tiles, yet secure enough. The robot on the right was responsible for removing the protective film from the solar panels, then lifting the panels onto the brackets and securing them with clips. Su Jing squatted in the center of the roof, holding a wiring diagram, guiding the robot to connect the photovoltaic wires: "Positive to positive, negative to negative, finally connecting to the inverter, and then to the generator's spare interface."
At noon, all 10 solar panels were installed and neatly arranged on the south-facing roof, their black photovoltaic panels gleaming in the sunlight. Su Jing took out the inverter from her spatial storage, connected the wires, and pressed the switch—the inverter's indicator light changed from red to green, and the screen displayed "Current power generation: 800W." "That's enough." She breathed a sigh of relief. The total power consumption of the villa's lighting, surveillance, and small appliances (such as electric heaters) was less than 500W. Even on cloudy days, the solar panels' power generation could meet basic needs. In case of extreme weather and power outages, it could switch to generator power, providing double protection against power outages.
After installing the solar panels, Su Jing paused the robot's work, took out 1 kilogram of coal from its storage space, and put it into the robot's charging port. The digging and installation had consumed a lot of electricity, and after the coal was sucked in, the robot's battery level quickly recovered from 60% to 100%. "Next, set up the patrol mode." Su Jing walked to the villa's entrance, opened the robot's control panel, and selected "Automatic Villa Patrol" in "Security Settings": "Patrol range: 50 meters around the villa; patrol route: clockwise circle; warning upon encountering a moving object, then issuing an electric shock deterrent; if the threat continues to approach, trigger an alarm and send its location to my phone."
The robot's "eyes" flashed blue, confirming successful setup, before it slid off the roof and began patrolling around the villa. Su Jing stood at the doorway, watching the robot's figure disappear at the edge of the woods, then looked up at the solar panels on the roof—trenches, power supply, patrols—the villa's basic security measures were in place. She touched her phone in her pocket; the system notification indicated that the "Cyber World" instance would open in 10 days. During this time, she needed to quickly test the generator and heating equipment to ensure they would function properly in the extreme cold, while also keeping the robot in optimal condition so that the villa would be safe once she entered the instance.
As evening fell, Su Jing took out the two gasoline generators from her spatial storage and placed them under the rain shelter in the corner of the courtyard—she still had over 800 liters of the 1000 liters of gasoline she had collected, enough to keep the generators running for a long time. She connected the generators to the villa's wiring and pressed the start button—the generators hummed to life, the noise significantly reduced by the soundproofing cover. The lights in the house instantly turned on, and the monitoring app displayed "Current power source: Gasoline generator." Su Jing nodded in satisfaction, then took an electric heater from her spatial storage and plugged it into a socket in the house—soon, warm air blew from the heater, and the temperature in the house began to rise steadily.
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