Chapter 128: LV10, Second Stage of Awakening
Night.
Chu Guang had a nightmare.
In his nightmare, he was covered with fur and had turned into a bear. In order to avoid hunters, he ran desperately in the forest, tearing a Creeper with both claws along the way, slapping a Crackleclaw Crab to death, and finally knocking out a real bear with one punch...
Wait, I can even defeat the Crackleclaw Crab, so why do I need to run away from hunters?
The next moment, Chu Guang woke up from his dream.
The first thing he did after waking up was to check his body. He found that he had not changed. The only problem was that he was covered in perspiration.
Chu Guang heaved a sigh of relief.
So close!
Propping up his body with both hands, Chu Guang was about to sit up from the bed. But for some reason, he failed to control his strength. He actually landed on the ground after pushing off the bed.
Moreover, because of the inertia, he had to make two steps forward before he could stand still. Before he realized what was going on, the bones around his body popped with the movement of his limbs.After stretching his body, he felt comfortable all over like never before, as if every pore around his body was breathing.
Not only that, Chu Guang also felt that both his mind and his vision was clearer than ever before. It didn’t look like he had just woken up at all. Instead, he felt like he was on steroids!
What shocked Chu Guang in particular was that, standing beside the bed, he could actually see the texture printed on the doorknob!
Immediately realizing what was going on, Chu Guang didn’t stay in the room for a moment. He went to the residents’ lobby quickly, and used the medical equipment placed there to give himself a full body scan.
As he expected, he leveled up again after waking up!
[ID: Chu Guang]
[Genetic sequence: Administrator (Second Stage)]
[Level: LV9→LV10]
[Attributes]
[Strength: 11→16]
[Agility: 6→11]
[Constitution: 8→13]
[Perception: 7→12]
[Intelligence: 7→12]
[Talent]
[Wild Instinct]
[Mind Deterrence: Exert psychological pressure effect on the target that is weaker than the user, weakening their will to resist.]
The second stage!
And all his attributes increased by 5 points!
"Holy shit, this is incredible."
I can even level up while lying down!
Looking at the medical examination results on the VM screen, Chu Guang couldn’t stop himself from smiling.
Sure enough, as he guessed, LV10 was a bottleneck. Once the development progress of the genetic sequence broke through, they would experience a qualitative leap in strength!
"All attributes increased by 5 points, and an extra talent...Is this what the native people in the wasteland call the awakening?" Chu Guang still remembered that he first heard this word from Hein from Red River Town.
In his fight with Bear, Bear, who had been forced into desperate straits underwent something similar to mutation. If what he guessed was correct, that should have been an awakening.
Shelter 404, however, seemed to call this phenomenon the second stage of the genetic sequence.
Unlike Bear, who awakened naturally, his appearance and traits did not change significantly due to his awakening.
The only change that could be felt was that he became stronger, his thinking became faster, his perception of the surrounding environment turned more sensitive, his increased reaction speed, and his greater immunity and resilience.
Chu Guang roughly speculated that the bonuses provided by the second stage of different sequences should be different, and the talents that would be unlocked should also be different. For example, the strength type would grow stronger and develop something related to it, while agility types would have faster reaction speeds.
However, that was all just speculation.
At present, in the entire shelter, he was the only person to reach the second stage. The players in the Bull and Horse Squad, the fastest leveling group, were only at the peak of LV7.
As for what the other sequences were like, he could only know when they got to LV10.
Anyway, Chu Guang was quite satisfied with the second stage of the Administrator genetic sequence he held.
With all his attributes increased by 5 points, Chu Guang directly changed into a mighty warrior whose stats were extremely well balanced. Coupled with the skill that "strikes fear into the enemy’s heart," he felt that he was already invincible!
At this moment, footsteps came from the corridor on the side.
Yawning, Xia Yan, who had just woken up, walked out of the room with a cane between her arms.
Looking at Chu Guang who was giggling with VM in his arms, she was stunned for a moment, and muttered softly, "What are you looking at? And why are you smiling like this?"
The smile on Chu Guang’s face quickly disappeared. He raised his head, looked towards Xia Yan, and stared into her eyes.
The two looked at each other.
The air was quiet for a few seconds.
Xia Yan’s pale cheeks gradually turned red.
"Psy-Psycho." Xia Yan turned her head and walked away with a cane.
Watching Xia Yan slowly walk towards the airlock room, Chu Guang stroked his chin and thought for a moment. Then he suddenly looked at the bin squatting in the corner who was charging.
"Little Seven."
The signal light above the robot’s head lit up, and Little Seven raised its camera. "Yes, Master."
Chu Guang continued, "Is she scared?"
Little Seven seemed to be stunned for a moment, and after a few seconds, it said weakly, "Although her blood pressure, heart rate, and heat dissipation increased slightly, Little Seven felt that... Weren’t you expecting the effects?”
"..."
Okay.
Maybe I’m too handsome, so I don’t look so intimidating.
In this case, this skill seems to be a bit useless.
…
Baker Street.
The square in front of the castle was crowded with people.
The residents of Baker Street were called over early in the morning, and many of them had just woken up, with blank or curious looks on their faces.
For the residents living on Baker Street, many had never been here in their entire lives.
The old town mayor’s family didn’t like to see the poor people, so every time they got closer, they would be chased away by the guards patrolling nearby.
But it was different now, the old town mayor’s family had been driven away!
Although a new town mayor had just come to power, at least he was someone they knew! He was always more cordial than the vampire they had never met.
Facing the many gazes, Old Charlie took out a signed and dated piece of paper from his arms, cleared his throat, and declared. "Starting today, Baker Street’s first legislation will come into force! It will protect the legitimate rights and interests of all Baker Street residents."
"The laws are very simple. Those who commit murder intentionally will be hanged; those who cause minor injuries in a fight will be sentenced to imprisonment for more than one year and hard labor, and those who cause serious injuries in a fight will be sentenced to imprisonment for more than three years and hard labor. Those who steal and destroy the property of others will be sentenced to imprisonment, hard labor and caning depending on the amount involved..."
Old Charlie read about twenty or so rules, but most people could understand only a dozen or so.
The people in the square looked at each other.
Legislation?
Many of them heard the strange word for the first time.
Although Baker Street also had guards before, but the guards never dealt with the disputes of the residents. They were only responsible for the security of the castle and the walls.
Over the years, there had been no murders, but fights often happened; however, no one had ever been seriously injured before.
After all, life was already very difficult, and no one wanted to offend others easily. Even if it was not out of moral constraints, everyone would weigh the pros and cons of the consequences of disrupting the order.
As for stealing...
Was digging up shofar potatoes from someone else’s door considered stealing?
What kind of punishment would they receive?
Seeing that the residents were looking at each other, Old Charlie knew what they were thinking, but he didn’t give any explanation.
There was no need to explain. After all, they would not be able to understand things that were too difficult.
Something like the law was meaningless on paper. Only after it was strictly enforced once, would people naturally weigh the consequences of breaking it.
After a pause, Old Charlie continued. "Starting today, Baker Street’s official currency will be silver coins and copper coins, which can be used to buy food, daily necessities, clothes and other supplies at grocery stores operated by the Subdistrict Office. Chips can still be used, but only for food and salt purchases. In addition, scavenging and hunting rewards will no longer be paid with chips. The current exchange rate of chips and silver coins is temporarily set to one chip for one silver coin, and after one month, one chip can only be exchanged for 5 copper coins. "
As soon as the voice fell, discussions filled the square.
"Chips don’t work anymore?"
"Why are we changing to silver coins and copper coins..."
"Yeah! I’ve never heard of silver coins and copper coins."
"Do you want to use silver or copper coins?"
"No!"
"Only a fool will change currencies!"
When saying this, many people were secretly observing the expression on Old Charlie’s face.
They thought Old Charlie was going to panic. However, to the disappointment of those people, Old Charlie didn’t take their complaints to heart at all, and still had that calm face, as if he hadn’t heard it at all.
On the other hand, Yu Hu, who was standing in the crowd, was even more anxious than Old Charlie.
Unlike other residents of Baker Street, he has seen those silver coins and copper coins. The blue coats in the wetland park also used these coins to buy things, and they could be used to buy a lot of good things.
Now that some people said that only fools would use chips to exchange for those silver coins, how could he bear it?
However, just when he was about to explain, Yu Xiong, who was standing beside him, immediately stopped him.
"Elder Brother, what are you stopping me for?"
Yu Xiong said in a serious tone, looking at the angry younger brother and shaking his head. "What’s the point of telling them apart from getting into an argument?"
Yu Hu looked worried. "But…"
"There are no buts here. You think Big Brother Chu wouldn’t know how they would react? Since he made this decision, he must have his thoughts and plans. As for us, we just need to do our part well. Otherwise, you might end up causing a lot of trouble instead of helping him!”
After being reprimanded by his elder brother, Yu Hu finally calmed down.
He didn’t realize it before, but after hearing what Yu Xiong said, it seemed to make sense.
How would a smart person like Chu Guang not know how they would react?
Having figured this out, Yu Hu suddenly relaxed. Looking at the troublemakers who were yelling that they would not exchange their chips for silver coins no matter what, he thought that they were fools.
Hehe.
Just you wait!
When I go back, I will replace all the chips at home with silver coins. We will see who will suffer losses in the end.
The old man of Yu Hu and Yu Xiong was silent, but he obviously had his own idea in mind.
"There’s no hurry to change the chips." Using the index finger to tap the eldest son’s arm, Old Yu said in a low voice.
"If some people choose to exchange for silver coins but change their minds later, we can exchange the chips with them... In that way, we should be able to trade for more."
Yu Xiong was dazed for a moment, immediately understood what his father meant, and nodded.
"Okay!"
After leaving enough time for the surrounding residents to discuss, Old Charlie spoke slowly and continued to talk about other arrangements.
For example, there was the matter of the guards.
Although the original guard was disbanded, Baker Street could not be left unguarded.
Yu Xiong, the eldest son of the Yu Family, was temporarily appointed as the captain of the guards. At the same time, 15 young people under the age of 35 and over 14 were openly recruited to form a new guard team.
The daily job of the guard was to patrol and stand along the walls of Baker Street. They would also be required to do some training.
The work intensity was not high, and they didn’t have to risk their lives. At least standing behind the safety of the wall was safer than going to the ruins to scavenge waste and hunting.
As for the reward, in addition to food and accommodation, the Subdistrict Office would also pay each guard a monthly salary.
Currently, they would be paid 50 silver coins and the number may rise in the future.
Although there was no specific concept of the purchasing power of silver coins, according to Old Charlie, at the grocery store operated by the Subdistrict Office, one silver coin could be exchanged for half a kilogram of shofar potatoes or green wheat.
50 silver coins a month would mean that they could get their hands on 25 kilograms of food.
Part of the money could also be exchanged for salt at the grocery store, or other daily necessities, which was completely enough for one family!
After Old Charlie was done talking, many people showed eager expressions on their faces, planning to sign up later.
If selected, they won’t have to worry about starving all winter long!
"... In addition, Baker Street Central Castle will open a welfare school, currently offering two courses in literacy and numeracy."
"All kids over the age of 6 and under the age of 14 must complete two semesters of the course. During this period, the school will provide a free lunch to the enrolled students."
“Young people older than 14 can sign up for the adult class from 7:00 to 9:00 pm without any charge. Anyone who is able to graduate from those two courses will be eligible for employment in the Subdistrict Office."
Compared to the recruitment of the guards, obviously, the vast majority of Baker Street residents were not very interested in the so-called school, and didn’t see it as a benefit.
Whatever the case, things like free meals were still very attractive. Even if they only provided meals to children, it would save every family some food for the winter.
Whether or not the residents of Baker Street were interested in literacy and numeracy, literacy rate must be increased.
Establishing order was the first step, getting rid of ignorance was the second. Only after these two steps had been well taken care of can the foundation be laid for further work.
Looking at the survivors with ignorance written on their faces, Old Charlie sighed softly in his heart.
There is still a long way to go.
After all the arrangements were explained, Old Charlie immediately announced the dismissal of the meeting.
Except for those who were planning to sign up to be the guards, the rest of the residents went back to their homes.
Many people had to go out hunting later, and before it was completely dawn, they hurried home to pack up their equipment.
On their way home, Wang Defu, the third son of the Wang family, complained angrily. "Why should someone from the Yu Family be the captain of the guards? There are only two men in their family, why!"
Not only was he dissatisfied, but his two older brothers were obviously not very happy either.
Especially his big brother Wang Biao.
Until Old Charlie opened his mouth to announce the selection of the captain of the guards, he had a gleeful look on his face.
After all, he thought he was Old Charlie’s confidant.
However, when Old Charlie announced the selection of the captain of the guards, he felt that the whole world turned dark in an instant. His expression became even more ugly than eating poo-poo.
Why?
Obviously, he was the one who risked his life to deliver the letter to the Bloodhand Clan, and he was clearly the one who kept his mouth shut and kept the secret that Bloodhand Clan had been destroyed for Old Charlie.
In the end, the captain of the guards was actually given to a member of the Yu Family.
After hearing this arrangement, he felt that the few chips in his pocket were no longer that valuable...