26
Tao Sai suddenly jumped out of bed and glanced at the time. It was 4:30 in the morning. Because Tao Sai had previously told everyone about the urgency of the matter, the others in the rest cabin also got up one after another.
On the monitor of the [Command and Control Center - Primary], all the insects in the city revived almost at the same time. The insects were in an unprecedentedly active state, and the insect tide continued to wreak havoc on the rest of Whale City.
[Command and Control Center·Primary] calculated that the next wave of blue bugs would arrive near the fortifications in 40 minutes.
Time was short and the task was heavy, so Tao Sai immediately began to deploy. Although the orthopedic medical staff were not members of the refugee ship, the atmosphere had been set here, and they felt embarrassed to stay out of it, so they unanimously decided to join the battle to eliminate the insects.
Coupled with the [Captain] buff of the refuge ship, they are willing to obey Tao Sai's unified command under the influence of the halo.
Due to limited funds, the weapons everyone got were cold weapons including spring blades, machetes, and triangular knives.
The conditions are naturally much more difficult at the beginning, and the efficiency of monster hunting is not high. You can only use cold weapons to stab the insects to death one by one.
The same is true in the game, which follows a game logic of starting from nothing and growing from weak to strong. However, once enough bugs are eliminated and gold coins are accumulated, everyone can be equipped with better weapons and equipment.
The refuge ship's newly installed attack system—the electro-optical cannon—naturally needed to be fully utilized. Mounted at the stern of the refuge ship, it required human control of the muzzle. Tao Sai assigned its operation to Zhou Ning. Zhou Ning possessed high intelligence, and Tao Sai only taught her a few simple techniques before she mastered them, accurately adjusting the muzzle and aiming at the approaching insect swarm.
The electric cannon has a limited range, slow firing rate, and limited power, but it is one of the few AOE damages she can bring out.
Another AOE is the explosive bomb. At this point, Tao Sai will no longer be stingy with her gold coins. Except for the necessary physical potions, she directly took out all her gold coins to purchase weapons.
Tao Sai used most of his gold coins to buy grenades, a total of 120. He used the remaining gold coins to buy two lightning submachine guns, which were sold in the [Mall] for 1,500 gold coins each.
The magazine for this submachine gun could be removed and charged independently, and a fully charged magazine could fire 5,000 rounds at a time. Tao Sai bought five additional submachine gun magazines and rotated them on the ship's battery to charge. She and An Nan each had one gun.
At this time, it was still dark, and the searchlights of the refugee ship were still illuminating the fortifications. All personnel took their weapons, disembarked, and took up their positions.
Tao Sai suddenly noticed Liang Yuanzhou's car parked on the side of the road. The SUV looked about 70% new, with only a few kilometers on it. But if the insects came, it would definitely be gone. It would be gone anyway, so it might as well be broken down into its own materials.
When Tao Sai conveyed her idea to Liang Yuanzhou, although the other party did not show much expression on his face, he was unusually generous and transparent and gave up the ownership of the car.
After scanning the vehicle and disassembling it, Tao Sai obtained a total of 89 units of various materials.
Time ticked by, and from afar, a faint, incessant chirping of insects could be heard, causing everyone to hold their breath. The sky was still dark, and the pitch-black tide began to roll and surge endlessly at the edge of their sight, a truly astonishing sight.
The insect swarm is coming!
Under Tao Sai's command, everyone took their positions, put on disposable surgical gloves, and gripped their weapons tightly.
When the insects reached the opening of the fortification, some of them moved in the opposite direction due to their repulsion of water, while the other part rushed into the maze constructed by the water tank as Tao Sai had imagined.
The insect swarm after the diversion was far less terrifying and dense than outside the fortifications. Everyone paid close attention to the direction of the insects' flow and waited quietly for the insects to move to their own points.
Liang Yuanzhou's position was at the front, and he was the first to face the insects after the diversion. He had experienced many storms in his life, but this was the first time he saw such a strange-shaped insect at such a close distance with his naked eyes, and his scalp tightened slightly.
This insect has many similar appearances to Earth creatures, but when its parts are put together, there is an indescribable sense of incongruity and awkwardness.
He looked at the insect in front of him that had crawled to his feet, frowned, raised the spring knife and stabbed it hard!
He had many years of surgical experience, and his movements were swift, accurate, and ruthless. His first cut precisely pierced the center of the insect's head, where Tao Sai had mentioned it. The insect, pierced through the vitals, struggled twice before completely losing its life and ceased to struggle.
Liang Yuanzhou breathed a sigh of relief, peeled off the insect's body with his bare hands, and threw it outside the fortifications.
"Oh my God, Dr. Liang, don't you feel sick?"
Guo Xiaoming, who was standing behind Liang Yuanzhou, noticed his actions. It was their first time to come into close contact with insects. Just seeing these insects with many legs gave her goose bumps all over her body, which was more uncomfortable than cutting out necrotic tissue.
Liang Yuanzhou shook his head and continued to repeat the same task, stabbing another insect.
For the entire day, he'd been mired in self-blame. He'd insisted on the surgery, and he'd promised the patient at her bedside that he'd do his utmost to alleviate her pain. He still remembered the patient holding his hand with hope before the surgery. She couldn't utter a complete sentence, but her eyes were filled with hope.
However, this natural disaster came too suddenly and unexpectedly. He was not prepared at all, and all his plans were disrupted in an instant. If it weren't for these insects...
"This damn bug!"
Liang Yuanzhou roared inwardly, raised his sharp knife, and stabbed it even harder. Every time he killed a bug, it felt like a brick on his heart was pulled away.
He seemed to have found a good way to vent his emotions, and his eyes gradually turned red.
Lin Yan took a deep breath at the bugs crawling towards her and subconsciously looked away. She felt that she would never be able to look directly at these bugs.
But when I looked up, I saw a black mass of insects, countless insects sweeping over me. It was foreseeable that these insects would be humanity's greatest enemy for a long time to come. Fear of insects meant they would be driven away, and the human living environment was infinitely compressed.
No! We can't be defeated by bugs!
Lin Yan gripped the long-handled triangular knife and turned her gaze back, but when she saw the pitch-black insect again, with hair growing on its tentacles and sharp mouthparts biting, it continuously secreted a sticky liquid. Especially the pair of strange patterns on the back of the insect that looked like eyes, she felt creepy.
After just two seconds, Lin Yan couldn't help but close his eyes, and the triangular knife in his hand couldn't stab forward.
"Yan Yan, raise your eyes a little, look at the water surface in the sink, and use your peripheral vision to look at the insects. Don't pay too much attention to what the insects look like, and distract yourself." Lan Xiaojia behind her shared her experience.
She was initially frightened by the insects' appearance, but after using this method, she stopped paying attention to their appearance and actually became braver. It was just like what Sister Sai had said to them: while an insect swarm might be terrifying, a single insect posed less of a threat to humans than a crayfish.
Lin Yan also thought of what Sister Sai had said to her at this time. Yes! Crayfish! She had peeled eight pounds of shrimp by herself just to eat spicy crayfish before!
Lin Yan looked up at the others again. Everyone had already gotten into the game, so no matter what she said, she couldn't hold them back.
Raising the triangular knife again, Lin Yan aimed at the insect closest to her, which was about 10 centimeters long. She shifted her focus slightly and successfully imagined the crawling black insect as a crayfish, stabbing it down with force.
The tip of the knife pierced the insect's head right away, and some brown liquid splashed onto her white surgical gloves. The insect struggled desperately twice, and soon its legs stopped moving.
That's considered death.
She successfully killed a bug!
A small sense of accomplishment arose in her heart, and the insects didn't seem as scary as she had imagined.
After Lin Yan confirmed herself, she used a long branch she had prepared in advance to peel off the insect's body, and then looked at the next insect crawling towards her.
After stabbing a dozen insects to death in a row, her movements began to become smoother and her efficiency gradually improved.
"Hiss!" Lan Xiaojia struggled and shook her hand. She didn't notice that when she was dealing with the insect stuck on the blade, another insect that crawled up bit her finger.
Lan Xiaojia immediately stopped and removed her surgical gloves to examine the wound. Despite the gloves, the bite on her right pinky finger still caused bleeding. The insect's mouthparts secrete acidic venom, which, if left untreated, can spread through the wound and damage human physiological functions.
Lin Yan, who was standing by, quickly took out baking soda from her bag. Sister Sai said it was a magic tool for detoxification.
Lin Yan pinched the back of Lan Xiaojia's hand. The area around the insect bite quickly swelled up. She quickly applied baking soda to the wound. The soda and the acidic venom came into contact with the wound, quickly neutralizing it.
Lan Xiaojia clenched her teeth tightly. At first, the unbearable stinging sensation in the wound reached her brain, like a needle prick. But soon, the stinging sensation gradually subsided, along with the burning sensation in her hand. The wound became ice-cold, and the swelling around it slowly subsided.
Lin Yan poured disinfectant on the wound to rinse it, and finally wrapped a Band-Aid tightly around her wound.
Lan Xiaojia moved her hands. It was a little painful when her fingers were bent, but it didn't affect her from bending down and continuing to kill the insects.
In addition to stabbing the insects one by one in the fortifications, Tao Sai and An Nan stood in a relatively high position. They held electric submachine guns, aimed at the mature seeds flying in the air near the fortifications, and pulled the trigger to protect everyone.
Flying insects can easily land on the inside of the tank if you're not careful. If they're not cleaned up quickly, once they've gathered enough, the tank's defenses will crumble from the inside. Furthermore, mature insects are large, so a bite from them can be a real nuisance.
The density of flying insects in the air was not low. Tao Saishang raised the gun, took aim slightly, and pulled the trigger. The electric bullets were fired out like special effects in a game.
The Lightning Charge gun didn't have a long range, but it could fire bullets rapidly, and if the bullets hit the right spot, it could almost kill the insect with one shot. However, even if the shot missed, only hitting the insect's wings or other parts, someone at the point would quickly catch up and finish it off after it fell.
After briefly clearing out the insects above the fortifications, Tao Sai and An Nan would choose to attack those on the ground. Thermal weapons were far more effective than cold weapons. Given the density of the insects on the ground, aiming was almost unnecessary; a single shot of electron beam bullets could sever most of an insect's body.
Unfortunately, only two electric assault rifles can be purchased. Tao Sai hopes that each of her team members will be equipped with an electric assault rifle and sufficient magazines. When the time comes, everyone will stand in a row and fire their guns, and they will be able to divert the insect swarm without the need for fortifications and fight the insect swarm head-on.
While taking care of the flying insects above everyone's heads, Tao Sai would occasionally run a few steps on the peninsula platform, sprint, and use inertia to throw a grenade into a depression not far away.
With a loud bang, the insects piled up in the depression were instantly hit by the shock wave, and the insect remains flew all over the sky. The explosion made Willows very satisfied.
Tao Sai kept an eye on the size of the insects in the depression. Once the number reached her psychological expectation, she would throw a grenade in and listen for the sound of the grenade exploding.
Zhou Ning, aboard the refugee ship, was unwilling to be left behind. He aimed the electro-optical cannon at the shore and fired resolutely. The beam of the cannonball struck the insects on the ground, blasting a circular area with a radius of about one meter. All the insects within the blast radius were wiped out, with a power comparable to that of a grenade.
However, each time the electro-optical cannon is fired, it needs half a minute to charge. The magazine of the electro-optical cannon is connected to the power supply on the ship, which consumes a lot of electricity.
Fortunately, the battery was fully charged before, and although the sun had not yet risen and the photovoltaic panels could not generate electricity, the river breeze was still strong. The blades of the wind turbine were constantly turning under the drive of the wind, and the battery was charged, so the power of the electro-optical cannon would not be easily exhausted.
"Everyone, work harder!" Tao Sai shouted as he changed the magazine of his submachine gun. "Our shelter ship will be upgraded soon!"
"Okay!"
“Come on, come on!”
“Charge!”
"I'll fight you to the death, bug!"
“…”
Everyone responded to Tao Sai and worked harder. When they couldn't keep up with their physical strength, they took physical strength potions, and when they were injured, they used baking soda to clean the venom from the wound.
Yin Wen felt like he had probably experienced the most labor-intensive day of his life, the second-worst being digging the water trough the previous night. He was already sweating profusely, and he couldn't even remember how many insects he had killed. The brown fluid spurting from their bodies had stained his clothes to a pulp.
Logically speaking, he'd reached his breaking point physically, and he'd always find excuses to slack off. But for some reason today, after hearing the shout from this girl named Tao Sai, his fatigue instantly vanished. Her words seemed incredibly powerful!
As the sky gradually brightened, the fishing boat turned off the searchlight and used all the energy in the battery to charge the electric cannon and electric submachine gun.
Before he knew it, Tao Sai had already consumed ten bottles of Stamina potion. Every time the bugs in the depression were killed by a grenade, new bugs would gather in about five minutes. Tao Sai kept throwing grenades in, and explosions echoed everywhere.
Countless bugs were dispatched at various points by various weapons, only to be replaced by new ones. Kill the bugs, they respawn, and the cycle repeats itself, like a machine. But everyone seemed to be working together, working harder and achieving twice the result with half the effort.
But Tao Sai knew very well that apart from the limitations of everyone's physical strength, they couldn't kill monsters here for long.
As the number of insects increases, the first thing they cannot do is to deal with the mature insects flying overhead. In fact, the fortifications on the ground will be conquered by the insects, and sooner or later the insects will crawl out from the point where they are standing by the sink.
Therefore, they must kill more monsters within the limited time, even if it means using more stamina potions.
"Bugs!" Feng Bi suddenly exclaimed, and everyone looked towards her point.
She just felt something moving under her feet. She lifted her foot and saw that the long tentacles of an insect first emerged from the ground at the place where her foot had just stepped, followed by a complete insect in its growth stage crawling out of the small hole.
Feng Bi hesitated for a moment, then quickly raised her spring knife and stabbed the insect's head. But just as she peeled off the insect's body, she suddenly realized that there was still a steady stream of insects crawling out of the hole. This hole was clearly connected to the insect swarm outside.
"I have bugs here too!" Mi Hanqing raised his hand to indicate his location.
Five minutes later, Liang Yuanzhou raised his hand.
Ten minutes later, An Nan also discovered the hole that appeared out of nowhere under her feet. She adjusted the muzzle of her submachine gun and aimed it at the hole and fired a burst of shots, but soon the insects deeper in the hole pushed the dead bodies out.
The fortifications seemed to be in danger. Tao Sai had a clear mind and understood that the safety of the crew members should be the first priority at all times. Monsters could spawn at any time, and it was not worth it to risk the lives of the crew members in order to spawn more monsters.
So she quickly gave the order: "We will kill the bugs here, everyone take turns to get on the boat."
With the halo of the refuge ship, Tao Sai's orders were very authoritative. Everyone obeyed his orders and quickly stopped what they were doing, stood up, and climbed onto the ship one after another.
Tao Sai was walking at the end with a lightning submachine gun in her hand. After she ran out of bullets, she threw two hand grenades in succession, then turned around and quickly climbed up the ladder to the deck of the fishing boat.
Ten minutes later, countless insects crawled out from the ground they had stepped on, and the fortifications disappeared in an instant.
But it doesn't matter anymore. Tao Sai has a feeling that they have earned enough experience points and gold coins.
After untying the ropes, Zhou Ning steered the fishing boat towards the center. After leaving the battle, everyone on board felt their strength drain away. They either collapsed on the spot or lay on the deck, breathing with despair.
Grandma Zhou had prepared drinking water and food for everyone and distributed them to everyone one by one.
Tao Sai lay on the side of the ship and opened the system panel.
After leaving the combat state, subtitles of battle results kept appearing in front of her.
Tao Sai widened his eyes and looked at the numbers in amazement. These dozen people, using not-so-powerful weapons, killed a total of 47,232 insects in more than four hours!
A total of 76,214 gold coins and corresponding experience points were earned.
Tao Sai had expected a lot of bugs to spawn, but not so many! She couldn't help but rub her hands together excitedly. This was the power of the collective. The power of the collective really couldn't be ignored! She'd definitely do this again if she had the chance!
The experience and gold coins gained are more than enough to upgrade the shelter ship.
Without hesitation, Tao Sai activated the system interface and began injecting sufficient experience points into the refuge ship. The experience bar jumped rapidly, soon reaching the full limit of 12,800. She then clicked [Upgrade].
The fishing boat sailing downstream of the Yangtze River was instantly enveloped by a beam of red light. The hull shook slightly, and the bow was covered by the flowing light spots. The hull was still magically changing and transforming, constantly getting higher and wider.
A few minutes later, the transformation extended from bow to stern. The blip vanished, and the small fishing boat was transformed into a brand-new, large vessel. The radar antenna of the command and control system mounted atop the cockpit continued to rotate, the electro-optical cannon at the stern remained intact, and the solar panels and wind turbines were installed in their corresponding positions atop the cabin.
[Shelter ship upgraded successfully (Lv2→Lv3)! ]
[Refuge Ship: Deep Sea Fish
Level: 3
Full load displacement: 654 tons
Maximum speed: 20 knots
Comfort level: 10
Crew: 8
Refugees: 5
Early warning system: Not installed
Attack system: [Electric Light Cannon]
Defense system: Not installed
Command and Control System: [Command and Control Center·Primary]
Special effects:
①[Captain]: You are the absolute authority on the refugee ship and all members must obey your orders.
②[Blurred Perception]: When you use the shelter ship system, all supernatural operations you complete will not be perceived by the crew members on board.
③[Insect Blood Detection]: The refuge ship will automatically detect the location of insect blood with a detection radius of 5 kilometers.
④[Danger Alert]: When a refugee ship or crew member is about to encounter a threat, an early warning will be issued with a warning radius of 1 km.
The cramped fishing boat was successfully upgraded into a spacious and majestic ironclad boat. Everyone on board was quite surprised. After quickly eating all their food and drinking enough water, they excitedly toured around the boat.
After finishing her bread, Tao Sai stood up from the ground. Although she was already familiar with the overall structure of the Level 3 shelter ship while playing games, she was still curious enough to come into contact with such a large ship in person. She couldn't help but check out various areas on the ship.
This is the size of an ocean-going ship, with three floors from top to bottom.
The top floor houses the cockpit, the highest compartment on board and the brains of the Deep Sea Fish. Directly in front of the cockpit is a 150-degree curved windshield, providing excellent visibility and allowing the helmsman to observe the route in all directions. The command and control center (Primary) screen is clearly projected onto the right side of the cockpit, allowing the commander to operate without obstructing his field of vision. In emergencies or when manpower is insufficient, the commander can operate the command and control system (Primary) while simultaneously steering the refuge boat.
A door behind the cockpit led to the spacious captain's cabin. It consisted of a sofa on the left and a large bed on the right, separated by a storage cabinet. Tao Sai had decided to use this as a lounge for her and Zhou Ning.
The middle level was the deck. Mounted at the tip of the deck was the ship's only attack system—the electro-optical cannon. The muzzle pointed upward at a 45-degree angle, like a solemn guard.
The front deck was spacious and well-lit, easily enough to accommodate all the plastic storage boxes, as well as the supermarket shelves purchased according to Lan Xiaojia's suggestion. Tao Sai roughly estimated the area and concluded that 50 sets of shelves would be sufficient. Each set of shelves could then be planted with five layers of shorter vegetables and grains, yielding a substantial harvest.
Aft of the deck is an open utility room, with both the upper and lower staircases within. When conditions permit, Towse plans to install several large refrigerators here to refrigerate or freeze food. The utility room is large enough that Towse plans to designate a section for an open galley, where the refrigerator and freezer will be easily accessible.
Beyond the utility room was a massive empty space, fully enclosed front and back, and semi-enclosed left and right, allowing for easy ventilation. Tao Sai was particularly fond of this large space. It could serve as a leisure and entertainment area for the crew, allowing dozens of people to gather without feeling crowded. The entertainment equipment Zhou Ning had prepared would be perfectly put to good use. With foldable tables and chairs, it could even serve as a makeshift mess hall. If the refugee ship encountered a storm at sea, the large empty space could be cleared and the deck shelves and storage boxes could be moved here to protect the crops from the harsh sea winds and storms.
Beyond the large empty compartment is the stern, with a bathroom on one side and a shower on the other. Atop the bathroom and shower is a large water tank, constructed entirely of metal, with only a long, transparent slit on the side to indicate the water level. However, the tank is currently empty, connecting only to the bathroom and shower below. If you wish to connect the water tank to the galley via pipes, you will need to install this yourself, and you will also need to provide your own filtration system.
Below the deck level is the rest area. Stairs lead down to the lower level, next to a small, enclosed storage room. Beyond that, there are eight equally sized rooms, four on each side, with a long corridor running down the middle. Each room has two bunk beds, for a total of 32 beds.
Walking through the long corridor to the rear, there is a gate. Pushing open the gate, you will find a small semi-open-air platform. There are two rooms on each side, which are the bathroom and the fishing gear room. The small platform can also be used as a rest area, where you can fish and cast your net.
Tao Sai was also busy inspecting the refugee ship. As she arrived at each cabin, she unloaded the items stored in the "warehouse" and placed them in their proper places. She placed the fishing rods, nets, floaties, and life jackets in the tackle room, bedding and pillows in the spare room, paper towels, shower gel, and shampoo in the bathroom and shower, kitchen appliances, pots and pans, and daily necessities in the unfinished open kitchen, and long-term food in the enclosed storage room. She also promptly unloaded all 190 storage boxes filled with soil and placed them on deck. Of course, the sooner crops are planted, the sooner they can be harvested.
After a night of fighting, everyone was exhausted, and the first thing to do was find sleep. Everyone entered and selected their own rooms and beds. There were eight crew members and five refugees on board, so there were enough beds, but the bedding wasn't quite right. Tao Sai arranged everything, and the men, after all, had to bear with the bare beds for a while. It was summer, after all, and the nights weren't cold, and they could still cover themselves with clothes. It wouldn't be a problem for them to hold out.
After solving the housing problem, Tao Sai next considered the energy issue. All the equipment on board, big and small, required electricity: lighting, cooking in the kitchen, and even charging the weapon system's electro-optical cannons. Therefore, the wind turbine generators and solar photovoltaic panels had to be installed as quickly as possible.
Fortunately, Tao Sai had complete tools and sufficient manpower. Zhou Weixing led Mi Hanqing from the orthopedics department as a group, and Liang Yuanzhou and Yin Wen as another group. They climbed to the top of the large empty warehouse and successfully installed two sets of power generation equipment under the command of Zhou Ning.
The sun shines on the photovoltaic panels, and the blades rotate against the wind, gradually increasing in speed, while the battery hanging on the wall of the large empty warehouse shows that the power is gradually filling up.
Zhou Ning accidentally discovered that the other side of the large empty warehouse was a whole white wall. Since Taotao said that she wanted to use the large empty warehouse as an entertainment and leisure area, the projector she bought could come in handy!
Tao Sai agreed with her idea and took the still-unpacked equipment from the warehouse. Zhou Ning unpacked it, generously contributed his own projector, and began setting it up.
An Nan and the others were of course very excited when they heard about it. They quickly put down their work and went over to help Zhou Ning fiddle with the projector equipment. Lan Xiaojia and An Nan adjusted the direction of the screen, while Zhou Ning and Lin Yan squatted on the ground and meticulously assemble the projector and connect the power supply. They were very busy.
At the other end of the large empty warehouse, Tao Sai leaned against the railing unsociably, not yet fully recovered from his fatigue.
At this time, new system subtitles popped up in front of her.
[The refuge ship has reached level 3, and the player novice protection has been closed! ]
【[Interaction] function has been unlocked! 】
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