Chapter 58: Night in the Wasteland! Exploration Continues!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The night in the wasteland was filled with a different kind of beauty.
Even the world of the wasteland, whose environment was so different from planet earth, had its own sun, moon and stars.
Under the picturesque night sky, it almost seemed unfathomable that, in just ten days, an impending blizzard loomed.
After having his fill, Su Mo put on his equipment, took Oreo, and headed outside the shelter.
With the additional information revealed by the Kobold Mage, a heavier sense of urgency weighed upon Su Mo’s heart.
According to the Kobold Mage, the kobolds were also placed into this world at the same time as the humans.
However, it was different from the forced transfer of the humans.
The Kobold race was summoned and descended of their own accord.
Moreover, the most crucial point was that when the kobolds arrived, they already carried over a large quant.i.ty of supplies with them; completely sufficient for them to establish themselves in the wasteland.
The two-person squad he encountered in the ruins earlier, as well as the six-person squad after, were scouts sent by the kobolds.
They were responsible for scouting for resources and reporting back to the main group.
Unfortunately, the two teams that were sent in this direction both encountered Su Mo.
Exploring where the kobolds’ camp was located, as well as finding out where they were digging for saltpeter, had to be put on the agenda quickly.
Especially since, according to the Kobold Mage’s description, the estimated distance between the two locations was about 60 kilometers.
The team walked for almost a day before reaching the vicinity of Su Mo’s shelter.
Taking into account a regular human’s walking capacity, it was impossible to make a round trip within a day covering that distance.
Therefore…
All hope could only be pinned on the buggy in shelter number two!
With this buggy, not to mention 60 kilometers, even if it was 100 kilometers, Su Mo was confident that he could complete the round trip within the same day.
After closing the door of the shelter, Su Mo turned and left.
The night sky sparkled with stars, adding a touch of radiance to the atmosphere.
“It’s so beautiful! But how many humans can enjoy this starry sky?”
Su Mo’s hands silently fiddled with the electric crossbow that was emitting a cold light. He lifted it toward the night sky and saw a few stars and a full moon hanging over the horizon.
“Let’s explore the ruins tonight. If I can fix the buggy and drive it out, I’ll explore the saltpeter mine tomorrow!”
After adjusting the raincoat and ceramic plate armor on his body, Su Mo closed the door and walked forward resolutely.
Oreo also immediately entered its battle state and started to guard the surrounding 100-meter perimeter; a two-person surveillance strategy taught to it by Su Mo.
Night in the wasteland was originally feared by mankind, much like how one would fear a tiger. However, with Su Mo’s current combat abilities, the level of threat it posed had been greatly reduced.
With the electric crossbow and Oreo’s surveillance skills, unless the wasteland creature had extremely powerful individual strength, it would not make it past the 100-meter mark.
Along the way, the stars continued to glow.
Su Mo’s attention was highly focused; walking for 15 minutes before stopping to rest for five minutes to recover strength.
The strong endurance of the husky ensured that Oreo could patrol the area uninterrupted, providing Su Mo with a safe resting environment.
The distance of 3.5 kilometers did not take long to cover.
After walking for almost an hour, Su Mo saw the sprawling shelter number two from a distance.
“It seems that, over time, there will be fewer mutant beasts and the disasters that humans may face will become even more terrifying.”
Along the way, he did not encounter even one mutant beast.
Not only was Su Mo not relieved, but rather he became even more worried.
Even the powerful wasteland creatures could not withstand such frequent disasters, and those that could were undoubtedly the strongest among the monsters.
By that time, with fewer wasteland creatures around, mankind would lose the important development path of hunting and obtaining treasure chests to replenish their supplies.
Farming?
Su Mo shook his head.
In about ten days, they would be faced with the extreme weather conditions brought about by a -20 degrees blizzard.
What kind of food crops could survive under such extreme conditions?
Woof!
Oreo tentatively scouted ahead and signaled the absence of any enemies.
Under a day’s exposure to the sun, the stagnant water near shelter number two had reduced considerably and even Oreo could wade through while wearing a raincoat.
At the garage door where the buggy was parked, the ground had become dry and hard due to the terrain, making it suitable for driving.
Signaling Oreo to patrol the area, Su Mo once again checked the electric crossbow in his hand to make sure that it was switched on and ready to fire before walking forward cautiously.
Under the radiance of the full moon, the road conditions were clearly visible even without a flashlight.
Last time, it had taken over 20 minutes to traverse the muddy road. Now, it took Su Mo less than five minutes to reach the gap that had been blasted open by the kobold.
From the storage s.p.a.ce, he took out the flashlight and switched it on. Su Mo first observed the fabricated crime scene that he had previously left.
At the area near the footprints left by the kobold, Su Mo had deliberately glued on several feline hairs. Even now, there were still two hairs sticking up.
There was no trace of the second set of footprints.
Looking inside the ruins, there were also no differences between the furnis.h.i.+ngs inside and those in his memory.
Near the black blood spewed out by the kobold on the ground, there were no traces of any other living creatures having pa.s.sed by.
Pitter-patter.
After Oreo finished patrolling, it came to the pit and looked inside curiously.
“Is there no trace of the enemy?”
Hearing Su Mo’s question, Oreo nodded, indicating that nothing had been found around the area.
“Okay, continue to patrol the area. If you see someone, alert me immediately!”
Through the raincoat, he stroked Oreo’s head and asked it to guard the surrounding area. Su Mo then took out the hemp rope he had woven in the shelter.
The previous hemp rope had been used to tie up the kobold mage. This one had been specially prepared by Su Mo before he started this trip.
Moreover, this hemp rope was different from the previous one; it was a climbing rope that Su Mo had built using the workbench!
[Hooked Rope (Good)]
Description: A climbing rope woven by the beginner ‘Su Mo’ consisting of a hook and rope. Has good stability and is an excellent tool for the home and wilderness exploration.
Function: The rope is 4.8m long with resilient characteristics. It will not break unless subjected to weights higher than 300kg.
Evaluation: It seems to be a novice prop based on a certain ‘survival at sea’ novel.
Su Mo took out a nail and fastened the hook firmly to the ground, giving it a few tugs. After confirming its strength, Su Mo descended the rope to explore.
With this not being his first experience, the downward exploration this time went extremely smoothly.
In just three to five seconds, with the help of the new rope, Su Mo slid onto the floor of shelter number two.
The moment he landed, Su Mo immediately took out his electric crossbow and stood on alert.
“I remember that the angle of this bone should be about 35 degrees. No problem here.”
“The nail that I put here specifically has not been stepped on either.”
“The footprints on the ground have been covered by a layer of dust. For the time being, no signs of creature activity have been found.”
Holding the flashlight in his left hand, Su Mo quickly swept through the traces he left behind. At the same time, the index finger of his right hand hovered over the trigger to ensure that it could be fired at any time.
“Fortunately it’s 60 kilometers. Given the kobolds’ walking capacity, it would take a lot of effort for them to get here!”
After scanning the area one more time to make sure it was safe, Su Mo placed the crossbow back into the storage s.p.a.ce and relaxed.
The head of the miserable old man was still lying quietly on the ground inside, looking silently at Su Mo.
Pa.s.sing by the dried blood on the ground, Su Mo approached the railing that had been blasted apart by the Kobold Mage.
The railing, which was about 10cm in diameter, had pieces littered haphazardly on the ground; all the way down to the first-floor bas.e.m.e.nt.
“This power… really mighty!”
Picking it up off the ground carefully, Su Mo felt a chill on his back as he looked at it.
The solid iron bar had been blasted into two. If this was to hit a human body, it would be left with a large hole in a matter of seconds.
He s.h.i.+fted away the broken iron bars on the ground with his feet and slowly descended the stairs.
The orange buggy that he had been thinking of reappeared in Su Mo’s sight.