Translator: AnubisTL
In addition to the four, they had also seized a considerable amount of equipment.
A batch of rifles.
The problem was, these rifles used live ammunition.
On Blue Star, these were the kind of proper firearms that required loading bullets.
But here, they had seen many mechanical race weapons that didn't use live ammunition at all, relying instead on light bullets.
These weapons worked by inserting an energy cartridge into the gun, which would then fire light bullets until the energy was depleted.
This system greatly increased ammunition capacity, enhanced firing speed, and reduced the risk of jamming.
The only drawback was that energy itself was cheap.
However, the machines that compressed energy into small blocks and the energy cartridges that held these blocks were extremely expensive.
As a result, purchasing an energy cartridge cost more than the weapon itself.
To maintain high-intensity combat, one had to carry several spare energy cartridges, which placed a significant financial strain on resources.
Alternatively, one could wait for the energy in the cartridge to regenerate automatically, but this process was excruciatingly slow.
Especially the energy cartridges that came with one-star weapons—their regeneration rate was so sluggish it was infuriating.
Energy weapons, powered by energy cartridges, were undoubtedly superior to firearms that used solid ammunition. Even in terms of weight and ammunition capacity alone, they far surpassed their counterparts.
Moreover, energy weapons often came equipped with advanced technologies, such as automatic proximity alerts, auto-aiming systems, and firing assistance.
After a moment's contemplation, Chen Jiang looked up at Scar Dog and said in a low voice, "Didn't we seize a million credit points from the Cold Wolf Gang?"
"Tomorrow morning, we'll head to City 18 to purchase two energy weapons that suit us. Then, we'll use these rifles to enhance the energy weapons we acquire."
"After all, constantly reloading these firearms is too cumbersome, especially with our dwindling ammunition reserves."
"Alright," Scar Dog nodded in agreement. "But... energy weapons are expensive, right?"
"With the million credit points from the Cold Wolf Gang, we'll have more than enough."
"As long as we avoid killing or fighting in City 18, our identities as human players won't be exposed."
"I know that."
Scar Dog hesitated, then said, "I'm just a little worried. What if we run into the Cold Wolf Gang again?"
"After all, they mistook us for nightwalker assassins, forced a million credit points into our hands, and ordered us to kill someone for them."
"Now... the real nightwalker assassins must have met the Cold Wolf Gang by now, right?"
"And when they realize we're just a bunch of con artists, and then we run into them again in City 18, with both factions hunting us down... we'll never escape."
Hiss…
Chen Jiang couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath, his teeth aching slightly. He forced himself to speak, "What are the chances of that happening? Besides, now that we have a million federal points, we can consider buying some energy stones."
"That way, whether we use them for Ma Zi's armored off-road vehicle or to activate your innate ability to escape in a pinch, we'll have plenty of leeway."
"Those things aren't like firearms. To buy them, you need identity authentication from the mechanical race."
"They scan your information."
"We don't have any of that bullshit identity authentication."
"I know."
Chen Jiang shrugged casually. "We'll just buy them on the black market in City 18. It'll cost extra, but it's worth it."
"Do you think the mechanical race is unaware that human players might conceal their identities and sell items dropped by mutated beasts they kill in the wilderness at City 18 for credit points, then use those points to buy weapons from their gun shops?"
"They know everything."
"While these weapons might kill some of their kind, the sheer volume of items human players bring to their cities to sell for credit points brings them far greater benefits."
"The only thing they strictly control is energy stones."
"Let's get some sleep."
"Tomorrow, we'll buy two decent weapons, stock up on energy stones, and then we can spend our days driving into the wilderness to hunt mutated beasts and our nights scavenging for salvageable items in the wasteland."
Scar Dog licked his lips, grinning foolishly. "I've been looking forward to mounting a turret on the car and charging into the wilderness for ages!"
"Hmm."
Chen Jiang shrugged casually, smiling along. "Sounds pretty good, actually."
The night passed quickly.
After a hasty wash, Chen Jiang and Scar Dog changed into their barely clean clothes and slipped out of the wasteland, heading toward City 18.
They really did wash up hastily.
After all, no one would run a water pipe into their cramped shipping container dwelling.
Freshwater resources were precious, so they used filtered river water for washing.
The filtration process was simple: several layers of sand and gravel, mixed together, would do the trick.
Whether using heavily metallic-tasting river water for washing, even after filtration, would harm their health was beyond doubt. It certainly would.
But during those first three months, when survival was already a struggle, having even marginally clean water for washing was a luxury. They had no time to worry about long-term health risks.
As long as it didn't kill them, it wasn't harmful.
Their clothes had to be kept clean, at least to avoid looking like obvious vagrants. Otherwise, they'd attract unwanted attention in City 18, greatly increasing their chances of being exposed.
"Phew!"
Scar Dog pulled a pack of cigarettes from his shirt pocket, lit one, and observed the scene in City 18 through the swirling smoke. He murmured, "Brother Jiang, there doesn't seem to be much reaction to yesterday's shop robbery. It's just like any other day."
"Normal."
Chen Jiang casually adjusted the brim of his hat, pressing it down slightly. "Two people died, and some items were stolen from a shop. It's not a particularly serious or heinous crime, so naturally, it won't have much impact."
"But now I think I understand why the mechanical race launched such a massive slaughter against us when we first arrived in this world."
"Could it be that the mechanical race already knew all alien races were enemies?"
Scar Dog nodded thoughtfully. "If that's the case, it seems like the mechanical race knows more than we do?"
"Maybe." Chen Jiang shook his head. "But we can't afford to dwell on these questions right now."
He glanced at a nearby gun shop that had already opened for business and unconsciously rubbed his nose. "This one looks good. Let's go in and pick out a couple of decent weapons."
"Alright."
Scar Dog casually tossed his cigarette butt on the ground, stomped it out, and then picked it up to throw it in a nearby trash can.
He clapped his hands, strode after Brother Jiang toward the shop, muttering to himself.
"This feeling of actually paying for things with money... it's kind of strange."
"Without realizing it, I've gotten used to getting everything for free."
(End of the Chapter)
📖Read [MCC3KM] ahead on Pa.treon@AnubisTL upto c54. [+2]
🎁All [3] Novels can be accessed for just $6/mo.
🔥Translated [1.1k+] Chapters and [2.46M+] Words.