Chapter 15: Chapter 15: Search
Long Ming took a deep breath, fighting back his nausea as he walked over to the decapitated ghoul’s corpse.
This game was a bit strange. Monsters didn’t drop any loot when killed; they only left their corpses behind.
It was completely different from the games he used to play.
Long Ming squatted down and reached out to touch the ghoul’s corpse. The sensation was incredibly real.
’If I’m not mistaken, the corpse itself must be the loot.’
For a moment, Long Ming felt a sense of disorientation. ’Is this the real world, or just an illusion?’
However, Long Ming suddenly noticed a gray metal ring on the index finger of the ghoul’s malformed claw.
He reached out, took off the gray metal ring, and examined it closely. The ring’s material was unusual, cool to the touch. It had patterns etched on its surface and looked quite valuable.
Long Ming scanned it with his wristband.
Unknown Ring
Grade: Blue
Value: ???
After reading the information displayed by the wristband, Long Ming thought for a few seconds, then used the wristband to scan the ring and store it in his safe.
Although he didn’t know what the ring did, it looked like it was probably worth a lot.
Long Ming carefully inspected the decapitated ghoul from head to toe, hoping for more finds, but unfortunately, he didn’t discover anything else of value.
He then turned and continued searching deeper into the warehouse. He soon reached the inner section.
There, Long Ming found a headless skeleton lying in a corner.
The skeleton was clutching a gun, its clothes in tattered rags.
Long Ming immediately walked over, squatted down, and reached for the gun.
However, when he picked it up, the gun broke in two. The chamber was empty as well.
A feeling of helplessness washed over Long Ming. He had no choice but to toss the broken gun aside, his gaze falling back on the skeleton.
He then noticed that the skeleton seemed to be wearing a pair of old training shoes on its feet.
Long Ming reached out and pulled off the shoes. A musty smell mixed with dust immediately wafted up.
BLEGH~
The smell nearly made Long Ming pass out, but just then, his wristband displayed the corresponding information.
Worn-out Black Training Shoes.
Durability: 12/100
...
Long Ming glanced at the wristband’s notification and tossed the shoes away in disgust.
Not only did the shoes reek, but their durability was nearly gone. ’No matter how small, every bit counts, but that doesn’t mean I have to take actual garbage.’
Long Ming continued to search the skeleton and soon found an old-fashioned metal pocket watch.
He flipped open the watch’s cover and saw that its hands were no longer moving. He couldn’t tell if it was broken.
Still, Long Ming tossed the pocket watch into his backpack and then resumed his search of the warehouse.
Ten minutes later, Long Ming walked out of the warehouse. Although there were quite a few items inside, most weren’t very valuable. They were also extremely heavy, impossible to carry out, so he had to leave them behind.
Just then, Gu Yi and Chen Wei came out of a nearby building, and the three of them regrouped.
"Bro, there doesn’t seem to be anything valuable over here."
"Then let’s go search the upper level!" Long Ming said after hearing what they had to say.
"Alright."
The two of them nodded.
The three of them then headed for the stairs.
Soon, they reached the upper level, where there were also many steel buildings.
From the outside, these buildings were smaller than the ones below, but they also looked more refined.
Long Ming turned his head, scanning the surrounding structures. His gaze landed on a tall building that resembled a gun turret.
A thought struck him. ’I might be able to find a weapon in that turret.’ He turned to the other two and said,
"I’ll go search that turret on the left."
"Then we’ll search on the right."
Gu Yi and Chen Wei nodded.
"Okay, be careful!"
Long Ming added a word of caution, then cautiously made his way toward the turret.
「A few moments later.」
Long Ming reached the base of the turret without incident.
The base of the turret was a metal cylinder, with a rusted iron ladder spiraling around it up to a platform at the top.
Gripping his axe, Long Ming carefully climbed the iron ladder.
CLANG, CLANG~
As Long Ming climbed higher, his view opened up dramatically. The entire mobile fortress and the vast desert came into sight.
A cool breeze drifted past.
Long Ming stared, momentarily stunned by the breathtaking night view. His pace on the ladder slowed unconsciously.
To be honest, the scenery was truly refreshing, but he was in no mood to appreciate it now. He quickened his pace and continued climbing.
Soon, Long Ming reached the platform. He scanned the area.
On the platform sat an iron hut.
When Long Ming reached the door of the iron hut, he found it secured with an old, rusted iron lock.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he raised his axe and swung it at the rusty lock.
CRACK!
The rusted lock was instantly smashed off.
Long Ming reached out with his left hand and cautiously pushed the door open. After scanning the interior and seeing no danger, he stepped inside.
The room was very narrow. An old cannon was embedded in the wall, with an iron ammunition box beside it. On the other side of the room was a dust-covered table and an iron bed.
Long Ming was taken aback. He hadn’t expected to actually find a cannon up here. But it was far too big to carry away.
Just then, his gaze fell on the ammunition box.
Inside were rows of round cannonballs.
Long Ming looked at the cannonballs with fascination. He’d only ever seen such ancient weapons in the military museum on Mountain City Mountain.
He reached out and tried to lift one, but it was incredibly heavy.
’If I put this in my backpack, the rest of the journey will be a real pain.’
Thinking of this, he tried scanning one with his wristband. A yellow notification immediately popped up.
"Unable to store. Requires a 2x2 space. Please upgrade your safe!"
Seeing this, Long Ming pretty much understood. His 1x1x1 safe could only hold small items like jewelry; anything even slightly larger wouldn’t fit.
He gave up on the cannonballs and walked toward the table in the corner.
As Long Ming approached the table, the corners of his mouth lifted into a smile.
Lying on the table was an old-fashioned single-shot rifle. Next to it was a small box containing five bullets.
In addition, there was a dust-covered map on the table.
Long Ming picked up the old single-shot rifle, and his wristband immediately displayed a notification.
Dukap K1 Single-Shot Rifle
Durability: 67/100
Ammunition: 5 rounds.
...
Long Ming wiped the single-shot rifle with his hand, blowing off the dust.
He tried pulling the bolt and dry-firing it to check the gun’s condition. It would be terrible if it failed on him when he needed it most.
Although it was his first time using this model of firearm, he had handled guns plenty of times before, so he got the hang of it quickly.
In fact, the advanced academy Long Ming had graduated from was run with a semi-military administration. All students had to undergo rigorous training, which was one of the reasons why graduates from that academy were so highly regarded.
