radicalducati Chapter 499, Serial Number 000
Chapter 499, Serial Number 000
As the steamed bun is chewed in the mouth, the sweetness of maltose melts on the tip of the tongue, and the soft, elastic gluten is crushed between the teeth, releasing more and richer wheat aroma.
That's a taste from deep within my memory.
It was the smell that wafted out when he squatted by the stove as a child, waiting for his grandmother to lift the lid of the steamer.
It was the taste he had savored as a boy, squeezing through the crowd in the cafeteria with an enamel basin in his hand.
It was the smell that greeted him every time he came home and opened the door after he grew up.
Those memories were crushed into fragments by the apocalypse, scattered among ruins and wastelands, covered layer by layer by time, and thought they would never be found again.
But now, a steamed bun has brought them all back to life.
"Brother Shan? I have more!" Xiao Luo handed half a steamed bun to Ta Shan.
He was from the South, and although he also found steamed buns delicious, he didn't have the unique attachment that Tashan had.
If it were a bowl of rice, he definitely wouldn't waste a single grain.
Watching the survival base gradually get on track, and watching the World Tree grow bigger and bigger.
Xu Si felt extremely conflicted; perhaps things wouldn't be so bad if things stayed this way.
On the morning of the third day after the wheat harvest, Fu Xiaojian stood at the gate of the city lord's mansion, clutching a stack of cards made by Wang Hu from the leaves of the World Tree.
Actually, he initially wanted to issue something similar to banknotes, but after thinking about it, he cancelled the idea.
Issuing banknotes is easy, but subsequent supervision is extremely difficult. Moreover, the population of the "City of Fire" is too small, leaving no fertile ground for the banknotes to survive.
It's easy to imagine that people have the lowest level of trust in banknotes.
At this moment, Wang Hu told him some good news: ever since Fu Xiaojian discussed the matter of the Fire Point with him, he had been searching for materials that could perfectly inscribe the Fire Point.
The materials not only need to be highly durable, but also need to be available in sufficient quantities.
First of all, rare items are ruled out, as there are basically no two rare items that are exactly the same, so they are unlikely to serve as a tool for recording the source of the torch.
The requirements for the Torch Card are more numerous. First, it is unique, as each leaf of the World Tree is different, making it suitable as a symbol of each person's identity.
Secondly, the leaves of the World Tree are not easily damaged, making them the best material.
Furthermore, leaves possessing the characteristics of the ancient tree race will automatically repair themselves if damaged, although this requires the loss of some sequence energy.
Furthermore, these leaves, after being processed by Wang Hu, possessed some perfect writing and recording functions. Although they were not rare objects, they could do some rather special things.
For example, adding or deducting points.
The World Tree Leaf, which already possesses some of the functions of a pre-apocalyptic debit card, now basically meets the needs of the Torch Point trading system.
Therefore, the sixth department of the City of Fire was established.
The Firewood Tower – where tasks are assigned, Firewood Points are recorded, and resources are exchanged.
The poster is Qian Duoduo, the Sequence 3 steward, and the witness is Mu Qingqing.
The era of the "iron rice bowl" system for wage train teams has officially come to an end.
On the day the Firewood Tower was officially inaugurated, the blood-red sun was obscured by a thin layer of clouds, and the light was as soft as a rainy day before the apocalypse.
Qian Duoduo stood in front of the building, holding a stack of torch cards made of leaves from the World Tree.
The leaves have a warm, jade-like feel, with a faint fluorescent green glow at the edges. Wang Hu used a special process to brand the center with numbers—from 0001 to 0068, corresponding to each member of the team.
"Line up, one by one. From now on, you'll need Fire Points to exchange for anything in the Inner Treasury!" Qian Duoduo's voice carried a cautious solemnity.
He was still somewhat apprehensive about taking on this heavy responsibility.
Especially during this period, Fu Xiaojian has stored a lot of good things in the City Lord's Mansion's inner warehouse.
For example, medicines, rare items, food, etc.
The first to step forward was Tashan.
He took the leaf that belonged to him, bound it with sequence energy, and examined it several times, his thick fingers stroking the smooth surface of the leaf, as if to confirm whether the thing was reliable or not.
"How many dots are there on this?" he asked.
Qian Duoduo used sequence energy to check Tashan's cards.
"Basic Fire Points - 500. Participating in city construction grants an additional 300. Defeating and turning in loot dropped by monsters adds 120 points. Total: 920 points."
"More than nine hundred?" Tashan's eyes lit up, unsure whether it was a lot or a little.
"What can I exchange it for?"
"The items currently stored in the internal inventory include—"
Qian Duoduo turned around and pointed to the stone slab embedded in the wall behind her, on which the exchange list was engraved in sharp handwriting.
"Sequence Enhancement Potion (Tier 3), 300 points. Sequence Enhancement Potion (Tier 4), 900 points. Mysterious Drop (Tier 4), ranging from 100 to 300 points. Mysterious Drop (Tier 5), ranging from 500 to 1000 points. Rare Item..."
Tashan's gaze lingered on the line "Sequence Enhancement Potion (Tier 4)" for a few moments, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly. He actually really needed this stuff.
He's not far from Sequence 5 now.
Perhaps he could temporarily join the hunting team to hone his skills; that would be more worthwhile than using enhancement potions.
There were only a little over nine hundred torches in total, and he couldn't bear to spend them on that.
"Next."
Zhou Wan is standing behind Ta Shan.
"Zhou Wan, Minister of Agriculture, basic starting points: 500. Crop cultivation and grain production, cumulative reward: 1,000 points. Total: 1,500 points."
This number sparked a murmur of discussion within the group.
One thousand five hundred points is currently the highest among all players.
But no one felt it was unfair.
Those vegetables and grains that grow from the black soil are what everyone actually eats.
Zhou Wan squats in the field before dawn every day and doesn't go back until it's completely dark. Everyone can see how hard she works.
"I want to switch to the enhancement potion?" Zhou Wan asked.
"Sure. Sequence Enhancement Potion (Tier 1), 50 Fire Points! How many do you want to exchange for?"
Tier 1 enhancement potions are relatively cheap. Fu Xiaojian priced them this way so that all the Sequence 1 extraordinary beings could rise quickly and solidify the team's underlying strength.
"Two, please!" Although she had heard about the pain of the enhancement potion, her desire for a higher sequence became her motivation to move forward.
She wanted to cultivate more land, grow more crops, and feed more people.
Qian Duoduo looked up at her, then lightly scratched the back of the leaf.
The fluorescent green light flickered slightly, and the number on the front of the leaf changed from "1500" to "1400".
As for the rest, she hasn't decided how to spend it yet.
Beside the World Tree, Fu Xiaojian also walked towards Xu Si, holding a card.
This is card number 000.
It was naturally prepared for Xu Si.
This card is different from the cards Fu Xiaojian already possesses. The main difference is that this card has greater privileges, such as the key to open the inner treasury and the ability to pass through all the barriers within the city.
"There are no basic starting points, no cumulative rewards, and I don't think you need them anyway." The contributions Xu Si has made would probably be enough to repay even if the entire fleet were emptied.
So Fu Xiaojian had no choice but to give him an unlimited card.