Chapter 668.1: MEGALOOT |
“Recently, the Bull and Horse Cargo Airship from Dawn City successfully arrived in the eastern Baiyue Strait and established an exploration outpost on the northern shore.”
“Over 300 residents from Shelter 404 are currently stationed at the outpost. The construction team on-site has dug a one-meter-wide trench and built a three-meter-high earthen wall outlining the camp’s perimeter, with watchtowers and machine-gun nests set up along each section of the wall to ensure security.”
“In addition, the search teams formed by the residents have expanded their operational range from five kilometers inland to ten, including the ruins of Old Shilong City near the coast within their search perimeter, looking for possible shelters or survivor communities.”
“Residents of Shelter 404 stated in interviews that they plan to search for survivors and pre-war relics, radiating outward from the coastal outpost to restore civilization and order in the region.”
“If all goes well, this will become the first Restoration Zone of the restoration of humanity in the Baiyue Province. The administrator has expressed high praise for this progress and has dispatched the Jungle Corps and the Burning Corps to support the reconstruction and development work on-site.”
“Meanwhile, upon unanimous vote from the exploration team, the outpost has been officially named French Fry Harbor.”
“The Southern Archipelago Federation in the Southern Sea sent a congratulatory telegram. While conveying sincere greetings to the New Alliance’s Administrator, President Mongo of the Federation also expressed his earnest hope that the New Alliance would establish more ports and settlements in the region. Residents of French Fry Harbor responded, saying they would live up to the expectations of our neighbors!”
“Stay tuned for more from Dawn City News.”
Three days after the Federation’s presidential office replied to the telegram, the same message was carried back to Dawn City aboard the returning airship.
A group of passengers with luggage gathered in front of the screen, listening to the anchor’s report with astonished expressions.
The New Alliance had built another settlement, this time over 2,000 kilometers away, in Baiyue Province!
Although players had been discussing it on the forums for days, it was still breaking news for the ordinary citizens of Dawn City.
Especially for the survivors who had just returned from other settlements, gossip spread quickly.
“French Fry Harbor?”
“As in… fries that come with cola?”
“Incredible… Baiyue Province, if I remember right, that’s a tropical jungle!”
“You’ve been there?”
“No… but I once passed by it on a ship.”
“Wow, someone’s actually been that far?”
“Yeah, I was sailing to the Poro Province to buy spices and animal hides to ship to the coastal settlements of the Among Cloud Province. If you go by land, you’d have to cross a huge wasteland, so I took a merchant ship from Silvermoon Bay instead. All east-west trade routes pass through that strait.”
“Strange there’s never been a settlement there before.”
“A settlement? Hah! There weren’t even living people there!”
“The whole Baiyue region’s a dead zone. The nearest settlements are in the Southern Sea or the Ocean Edge Province. There used to be a few along the Death Coast, but ever since the Torch Church took over the Ocean Edge Province, nobody’s heard from them again.”
At the mention of the Torch Church, many of the travelers’ curious faces turned wary, even fearful.
Quite a few Dawn City residents had fled from the Brocade River Province, and merchants who once traded there had personally witnessed the atrocities the Torch Church committed in every parish.
Ordinary raiders were just evil, but the Torch Church’s zealots were fanatically insane. Few ever understood their motives. Most only realized too late, when they had already become fertilizer for the Torch Church’s fields.
Baiyue Province lay uncomfortably close to Torch Church’s territory. If they decided to attack French Fry Harbor, the New Alliance might not even have time to send reinforcements.
Even so, merchants were optimistic about its economic prospects.
Rumor had it that the industrial zones of Dawn City, Daybreak City, and Boulder Town had made a fortune fulfilling contracts from the Bull and Horse Squad. Factory 81 stripped tank chassis of armor plating and welded on mechanical arms from Boulder Town Arms Industry to make excavators. Goblin Technology stuck floats on old Mosquito planes and turned them into seaplanes.
These sold like hotcakes in French Fry Harbor.
Besides heavy machinery, there was also a demand for engineering shovels, fishing nets, diving tanks, and more. Beyond short-term profits, if the New Alliance managed to open a maritime trade route linking the east and west coasts of the Central Continent, the economic potential would be immeasurable.
Currently, only one airship line, operated by the Bull and Horse Squad, flew between Dawn City and French Fry Harbor. But airship transport had limited capacity and efficiency. It would eventually be replaced by faster trade routes.
Enterprising merchants were already plotting, looking east to the Spur Province or west to the Sunset Province for opportunities to open new trade lines.
For example, if Oasis No.4 could be connected to the New Alliance’s railway network, goods produced in Dawn City’s industrial district could be shipped to Silvermoon Bay, loaded onto vessels, and carried along Baiyue Province’s western coast to the New Alliance port in the strait.
Rail and sea transport were far cheaper and far higher in capacity than airships.
While travelers chattered excitedly in the station, the airship refueling station outside Dawn City was equally lively.
A similar scene had happened a few days earlier, when crowds of players had jammed the ticket counters to head for the new map. Now, the place was packed again, but this time with street vendors shouting to sell their wares.
“Come take a look! Fresh seafood straight from the Baiyue Strait! Air-shipped on cold chain, guaranteed to be fresh!” A player dressed like a fisherman sat on a stool beside rows of foam boxes packed with ice and glistening marine catch.
The pungent smell of fish made some passersby avoid the area, but plenty of others gathered eagerly.
The airship had brought back not only friendly greetings from the Southern Sea survivors, but also treasures from the ocean and strange creatures from the shore.
The live specimens were sent to Dawn City’s zoo or to Shelter 79, which specialized in wasteland species research. The dead ones, whether killed in transit or not captured alive, ended up on the city’s dinner tables.
Pushing through the crowd, little Frost Night squatted curiously beside a stall, poking a frozen, rock-hard starfish with her finger. “Boss! What’s this?”
Seeing a customer, the vendor perked up. “Starfish! My buddy, Uncle Quit Bullshit, caught it himself!”
Frost Night remembered that Quit Bullshit often fished by Ling Lake and sometimes shared his catch with the locals. She looked around but didn’t see him. “Where’s Uncle Quit Bullshit? Why isn’t he here?”
The fisherman coughed awkwardly. “Uh, he’s back in the shelter to rest. He probably won’t come out till tomorrow. He asked me to sell the stock for him.”