Chapter 7、Discovered by the mobs! The crisis is right around the corner!

[Current Exploration Tasks (Automatically Refreshed Daily)]

Material Collection: An E-Class exploration task that lasts 8 hours. It offers a chance to obtain random materials. Task rewards depend on talent ratings, talent levels, and task levels. One shelter talent is required.

Material Gathering: A D-Class exploration task that lasts 12 hours. It offers a chance to obtain materials for shelter upgrades. Task rewards depend on talent ratings, talent levels, and task levels. One shelter talent with a minimum of D-Class is required.

Medicine Collection: A D-Class exploration task that lasts 12 hours. It offers a chance to obtain medicine. Task rewards depend on talent ratings, talent levels, and task levels. One shelter talent is required.

Yi Bai examined the exploration tasks on the panel. There were only three options available, each with different objectives, but all required sending out a shelter talent.

"So, as long as I have enough talents in the shelter, I can gather survival materials without leaving home," Yi Bai thought to himself. "This is actually pretty safe. No need to go outside and take unnecessary risks. Even if food and water are scarce, I can send someone out to scavenge."

The appearance of exploration tasks was a huge benefit for Yi Bai, especially given his shelter talent's peculiar nature. He was bound to stay in the shelter, unable to venture out himself. He could never risk going out like others to gather supplies.

Though safe, this also meant Yi Bai had one less avenue for obtaining resources.

"With talents, though, I can stay at home and send them on expeditions. That way, I get both talent rewards and exploration rewards."

"Double rewards mean more materials!"

Yi Bai quickly made up his mind to try out the exploration task module. But the question remained: which task should he choose?

He needed all the rewards from these three tasks, but unfortunately, Lin Yue was his only available talent at the moment.

"Let's try the 8-hour task first," Yi Bai decided after a brief thought. "It takes less time, and the results will show sooner."

He hesitated slightly. He didn't want to send Lin Yue out for too long, especially with the threats lurking in the building. Who knew when the assailants might discover his room?

Yi Bai selected the task, and Lin Yue responded immediately.

"Chief! I've received the task and will make sure it's completed!"

She saluted sharply, but before she could turn to leave, Yi Bai called out to her.

"Wait!"

Yi Bai paused, looking at the crossbow in his hand. After a brief hesitation, he handed her a bundle of kitchen tools. "Choose something that might be useful to you."

He then handed her a heat-insulating coat. "And this—see if it fits."

"Also, take some food and two bottles of ice water. It's scorching out there. Don't get heatstroke."

Yi Bai had wanted to give Lin Yue the crossbow for better safety, but his instincts told him that the priority was his own safety. The risk of the assailants breaking in was still real, and he couldn't afford to sacrifice his own security for hers.

"Thank you, Chief," Lin Yue said as she accepted the coat. She picked out two fruit knives as backup weapons, patted her holster, and smiled confidently. "Don't worry, Chief. I'm very capable!"

Yi Bai nearly forgot—this woman had shown up with a gun.

"Is the ammunition sufficient?" he asked, concerned.

Lin Yue nodded. "Yes, Chief. It's a submachine gun with a 20-round capacity and three magazines. I have sixty rounds in total."

Yi Bai nodded, satisfied. "Go, then. Be careful. Don't take unnecessary risks with the materials."

"Understood, Chief!"

Lin Yue turned briskly and headed toward the door. But as she reached the threshold, she stopped and pointed at the pile of clutter blocking the door.

"Chief, this door..."

Yi Bai slapped his forehead, embarrassed. "Ah, I forgot! We used them to block the door for extra security."

Lin Yue smiled. "Smart move, Chief. I'll help clear it away."

She quickly cleared the debris from the door and, before stepping out, knelt down to adjust something.

"Chief, I've set up some simple defense traps and early warning devices," Lin Yue said as she worked. "If you hear anything unusual outside the door, stay alert and wait for me to come back for rescue."

With that, she straightened, gave Yi Bai one last look, and walked down the corridor, stepping into the oppressive heat outside.

Once Lin Yue was out of sight, Yi Bai immediately closed the door and moved the objects back into place, sealing himself in once more.

Sweating profusely and feeling lightheaded from the heat, Yi Bai quickly grabbed the crossbow and rushed to the bathroom. He splashed half a bottle of ice water on his face, drank the other half, and then stripped off his clothes, collapsing into the bathtub.

Only then did the heatstroke symptoms begin to subside a little.

"This heat is unbearable. It's almost enough to kill someone even indoors. I can't imagine what the situation outside is like."

Yi Bai thought of Lin Yue. "I really hope she stays safe. She's my only shelter talent."

He glanced toward the freezer. "The ice water from yesterday is gone. I've given Lin Yue two bottles and used one myself, leaving seven bottles. Should I trade them for something useful?"

Yi Bai opened the trading platform and browsed through the available items. He saw that there were more interesting items than yesterday, although most of them were food and water—things he really needed. The prices, however, were astronomical.

"Looks like it's not just my shelter talent that's useful. Other people's talents probably aren't bad either." Yi Bai mused as he scrolled through the options.

Though he didn't find anything particularly valuable, he decided to buy some storable food for the future. After all, the value of ice water would likely decrease over time as more goods became available.

"I'll hold onto the last four bottles of water for now. I'll see how things go by tonight."

The rest of the afternoon passed slowly. Yi Bai passed the time by reading and re-reading the comic books at home to stave off the boredom.

Around five o'clock in the afternoon, the sound of smashing and shouting from upstairs broke the silence again. This time, Yi Bai was more accustomed to it. He didn't panic as he once had. Instead, he listened attentively, checked the corners of his shelter to ensure everything was hidden and secured, and braced himself for the inevitable.

"How many people upstairs have those thugs hurt? How much longer before it's my turn?" Yi Bai wondered grimly.

"I have to deal with these thugs sooner or later," he thought. "But I need to be careful. If they find me, things could get messy."

He mulled over the possibilities: "I could send Lin Yue with a gun to deal with them... but it's not ideal. She's alone, and if anything goes wrong, I'll be in a lot of trouble. Plus, I don't know what kind of talents the assailants might have."

Yi Bai sighed deeply. "I'll have to wait. There's no use rushing into things. I'll stay low for now, continue building up my strength, and deal with it when the time is right."

The clock ticked on. At around six o'clock in the evening, Yi Bai heard the sound of footsteps upstairs, some muffled voices mixed with shouting and cursing.

"Damn, it's getting hotter and hotter. Brother... Can I get a little more ice water?"

"Wait until we're out. The guy who finds the most stuff gets a sip."

Yi Bai heard more muffled exchanges before the footsteps faded. He glanced out the window and saw a group of men dragging empty sacks out of the building.

"That's them," Yi Bai realized. The group led by Brother Li was back—now with even more members. Their numbers had grown to thirteen.

"Looks like I've been noticed," Yi Bai thought as he observed from his window. The soundproofing in the building was terrible, and Brother Li's group must have heard him summoning Lin Yue.

Yi Bai calculated quickly: "The building has eight floors, with four households per floor. That means there are at least 32 people here. If Brother Li and his crew are responsible for the assaults, then their group must be down to about 20 members."

His mind raced as he thought of the worst-case scenario. "I live on the sixth floor. They're probably on the seventh and eighth floors. If things go south, I'm next. They'll find me either tomorrow or the day after. Maybe even tonight."

"I don't have much time."

Yi Bai's sense of urgency sharpened. With the group growing in size, relying solely on Lin Yue might not be enough to fend off the attackers.

"I need to find a way to reinforce the shelter. If I can, I need to turn this place into a bunker."

His eyes lingered on the door. "Maybe I can have Lin Yue fortify the place... hold down the fort until reinforcements arrive."

As Yi Bai pondered his next move, a sudden, sharp knock at the door jolted him from his thoughts.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Yi Bai tensed. The sound of knocking echoed in the silence, a warning that he was no longer alone.