Chapter 17 – Surprise Harvest

After the first stop, many people had obtained axes, and while some of their axes were likely already scrapped, a portion of them probably still had some durability left.

So why not gather these axes at a small cost? Among them, there were bound to be some with qualities higher than Common, and he could use his Talent to upgrade those axes with qualities above Common. After upgrading, they would become brand-new axes with full durability!

An axe with full durability and its level increased by one would instantly be worth dozens of times more than the original worn-out axe.

The potential profit was so immense that even Xiao Wuwang couldn’t help but be moved.

As for how to handle the upgraded axes, of course, he would sell them!

If he didn’t want to reveal his identity and let others speculate about his Talent, he could simply list them for sale anonymously in the Trading House.

If Level 1 axes kept appearing for sale, at most, people would mistakenly think that someone in the Server Zone had obtained a Blueprint for forging Level 1 axes and could produce them in batches.

Of course, he also needed to disguise his intentions when collecting the axes.

With this in mind, he opened the Trading House and set up two trading options.

Two portions of food in exchange for an Iron Axe or Iron Pickaxe, and one portion of food for a scrapped Iron Axe or Iron Pickaxe.

The latter option was purely to make people think he wanted to reclaim these scrapped or damaged tools at a low price to smelt them down for Materials.

At the moment, he didn’t have much food on hand: 21 catties of rice, with one catty counting as one portion; two packs of dried noodles, each containing four bundles, with each bundle counting as one portion; one pork floss bun counting as one portion; six sausages, with two counting as one portion; one pack of dried bean curd sticks weighing 2 catties, with half a catty counting as one portion; three packs of beef balls, with each pack counting as one portion; five self-heating hot pots, each counting as one portion; and 32 catties of Beast Meat, with half a catty counting as one portion.

This was all the food he had.

He kept 10 catties of rice, one pack of dried noodles, two packs of beef balls, and two catties of Beast Meat for himself, along with six boxes of milk, one apple, and five oranges. The rest he listed in the Trading House. By this calculation, he had a total of 89 portions of food available for exchange.

Of these, 70 portions were for acquiring Iron Axes or Iron Pickaxes that weren’t scrapped, and the remaining 19 portions were for acquiring scrapped Iron Axes or Iron Pickaxes.

After setting this up, Xiao Wuwang sent a message in the Chat Group.

Wuwang Kuangzun: [Food in exchange for damaged, broken, or scrapped Iron Axes and Iron Pickaxes. Already listed in the Trading House. Train Conductors who have reached Level 1 can trade at any time.]

Zhanlang: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, my Iron Axe is almost scrapped. I never thought I could still exchange it for two portions of food with you. Thank you!]

Si Shui Liu Nian: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, Ah~ I got too absorbed in chopping trees and accidentally scrapped my axe. Now I can only exchange it for one portion of food!]

Eastern Spider: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, Are you here to do charity? My scrapped Iron Axe can actually get me a meal. Supporting the Big Shot!]

Farmer’s Three Punches: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, Already traded!]

Yun Feifei: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, my Iron Axe has several chips and is on the verge of being scrapped. I never thought it could still be exchanged for two portions of food. Thank you for your generosity, Big Shot!]

Wangzai Little Brat: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, Thank you, Big Brother Wuwang! I’ll head to the Trading House right now to exchange my nearly scrapped Iron Axe for food. My stomach is growling with hunger!]

These were the people who had interacted with Xiao Wuwang before and traded with him directly without asking any questions.

Alongside these relatively friendly individuals, there were naturally even more people trying to extract information or take advantage.

Rice Bowl Hero: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, Big Shot, do you have some method to repair these broken tools? Share it with everyone, so our tools can last longer.]

Cat-Eating Fish: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, as the most powerful Big Shot in our zone, you surely wouldn’t keep secrets. Everyone is struggling to survive right now; good methods should be shared.]

May the Lord’s Light Fill the World: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, we are all on the same path of survival. Helping each other is the only way to go further.]

Brightest Star in the Night Sky: [@Wuwang Kuangzun, Big Shot, you have so much food on hand. Could you lend me some? I’ll definitely repay you double once I find more supplies later!]

Xiao Wuwang ignored all the messages in the group. At that moment, he had already immersed himself in mining.

What followed would be a relatively prolonged physical labor.

He took out that bottle of cooling oil and applied a little to both temples.

A refreshing sensation spread, and he gained a buff—Fatigue Points consumption speed reduced by 10%.

Xiao Wuwang checked the remaining amount of cooling oil and estimated it could still be used about ten more times!

Additionally, the mining pick had a Trait of “mining stamina consumption reduced by 12%,” and combined with the Crimson Flame Bear blood’s effect of accelerating Fatigue Points recovery, even if he mined at full strength, his Fatigue Points would not drop quickly.

Without delay, Xiao Wuwang swung the mining pick at the ore, and within a few strikes, a piece of ore was knocked loose.

Using the mining pick, the mining speed was far higher than with an axe.

One piece after another of ore was successfully knocked loose, then stored in his Portable Space, and subsequently Broken Down.

[Ore has been Broken Down, obtained Copper*3.]

[Ore has been Broken Down, obtained Copper*2.]

[Ore has been Broken Down, obtained Rare Metal*1.]

[Ore has been Broken Down, obtained Copper*2.]

…

Most of the ore was Copper, but occasionally one or two units of Rare Metal would appear.

Each system notification was like a pleasant note, making Xiao Wuwang feel not the slightest bit tired.

However, as time passed, the sky gradually darkened.

While mining, Xiao Wuwang suddenly felt a chill rise abruptly, instantly startling him. He instinctively jumped backward.

At the same time, a dull “Bang” suddenly sounded in his ears.

Xiao Wuwang looked up and suddenly saw the ferocious and terrifying face of a Bone Demon reflected on the Train Protective Shield!

“So close!” Xiao Wuwang thought to himself, feeling fortunate.

While mining earlier, he had unconsciously entered the mist!

He looked back and realized he had dug a large pit around himself. All the ore within the safe zone had been completely mined out; ahead lay the mist zone.

With no more ore to mine here, Xiao Wuwang couldn’t help but feel a slight regret. He didn’t know when he might encounter a wild mineral deposit again.

After sighing, he gathered his thoughts and hurried back to the train.

As the train started moving, Xiao Wuwang began taking stock of his gains.

From this mining trip, Xiao Wuwang obtained a total of 180 units of Copper and 26 units of Rare Metal!

This was truly a pleasant surprise.

With so much Copper and Rare Metal acquired at once, he estimated that these relatively valuable metals wouldn’t trouble him in the short term.

The minerals were sufficient. Xiao Wuwang placed 10 units of iron, 2 units of copper, and 1 unit of rare metal into the Crafting Station. Then, he selected the QBU-191 Precision Rifle (Modified) from the production list and clicked “Produce.”

The Crafting Station began operating on its own.

Xiao Wuwang checked the production list again. Producing one QBU-191 Precision Rifle (Modified) required 20 minutes.

He would check its attributes later, once the QBU-191 Precision Rifle (Modified) was finished.

It was already 7:30 PM, time to start preparing dinner.