Chapter 30: This feels too jailable

Light Chu was a principled person and wouldn't exploit gamers' labor for free.

Although the sanctuary was currently poor and contribution points could only be used to buy "resurrection coins," he still decided to pay VV for her work.

For every piece of clothing she made, she would receive 50 contribution points.

The requirements were not high, as long as the clothes were wearable and warm.

When the "Shop System" went online, he planned to price these clothes based on their quality, ranging from 100 to 500 contribution points, and sell them to other gamers.

In that case, he would need to find an NPC to act as a merchant.

He heard that the neighboring Brown's Farm sold some clumsy farm slaves every winter to save food and fuel. They would then buy a batch of cheap goods from slave traders when spring arrived next year.

Perhaps he should try his luck there.

"Respected Governor, when do we depart?"

As Light Chu emerged from the sanatorium, Trash-kun, swinging his lizard tail, eagerly approached him and asked impatiently.

"No rush, I need to find a suitable weapon for you... Follow me."

On the outside of the sanatorium's walls, there was a small wooden house built by Mosquito. It was currently being used as a carpentry workshop.

The outpost lacked tools, especially reliable steel tools. Many things had to be substituted with wood.

But where there's a will, there's a way.

By combining some industrial junk salvaged from the wasteland with wood, this gamer who was skilled in woodworking, had actually made quite a few post-apocalyptic tools.

One of them was the crossbow leaning against the wall.

Wooden crossbow frame, simple mechanical structure, and hinges made from stainless steel parts, combined with the bowstring made from the specially treated tendons of a mutated hyena.

As for the arrowheads, they were sharpened metal pieces.

Light Chu's supply of bullets for his steel pipe rifle was running low, with only about twenty rounds left. He had to use them sparingly. It would be better to use the crossbow for hunting whenever possible.

Seeing the Governor pick up the crossbow, Trash-kun thought he was going to give it to him and hurriedly reached out to take it, but was slapped away.

"Your weapon is that."

Light Chu pointed to several javelins with sharpened metal tips in the corner, along with a convenient strap for carrying.

"With your initial strength of 8 points, as long as you master throwing skills, you can easily kill the game within ten meters."

Trash-kun wore a bitter expression.

"But, my dear governor, I still think... if I had a ranged weapon, my hunting efficiency would be higher."

Light Chu glanced at his towering two-meter-tall figure.

Does it make sense for someone this big to not charge in front but hide in the back and snipe?

Is he not a man?

"Javelins are the foundation of hunting. Whether in close combat or encounters at medium range, they will prevent you from being in a passive position."

"Today, I will only teach you hunting skills. As for what kind of weapon you choose for future battles, it's up to you."

So it's part of the storyline.

Trash-kun nodded in a half-understanding manner and closed his mouth, not saying anything.

While they were talking, Mosquito pushed open the door of the wooden house and walked out, carrying two glass bottles.

Upon seeing Light Chu, his eyes lit up and he said, "Respected Governor, I was just looking for you! Here is the acetone I mentioned! It can be used as a solvent to make smokeless gunpowder."

As he spoke, he imitated the gestures of an alchemist and shook the bottle in his right hand. This action startled Light Chu and Trash-kun causing them to instinctively step back.

"It's alright, hehe. As long as there's no open flame, it's fine. Hehehehe."

As he spoke, Mosquito had an excited expression.

He could only do such things in the game, he would never dare to do it in his own workshop.

However, he didn't expect the game to be so realistic that he could actually make these things.

At this moment, he suddenly noticed the lizardman next to the governor, and his excited expression visibly paused.

"Who is this..."

Light Chu coughed lightly and said, "He is a new resident, ID: [Level_99_trashpicker]."

"Ah, a newbie"

Mosquito looked at him with envy.

Starting with a hidden profession, that's too cool!

"Tell me about the things in your hands," Light Chu glanced at the glass bottle in his hand. "How did you make this thing?"

"The method is simple, it's actually the dry distillation of wood. You put the wood in a sealed metal container, heat it, and use a tube to extract the gas, which is then cooled in a cold water bucket to collect the condensate. The collected condensate can be easily separated into an aqueous solution and a thick, tar-like residue through simple fractional distillation.

The aqueous part is wood vinegar, mainly composed of acetic acid, acetone, and methanol. By utilizing their different boiling points, further distillation can be performed. Ethanoic acid can react with alkali metal compounds to produce various useful salts, while the acetone in my right hand is... quite extraordinary."

As he spoke, Mosquito sighed wistfully.

"Tsk, if only we could get sulfuric acid. With sulfuric acid, we can produce hydrogen peroxide. Mixing hydrogen peroxide with acetone can create triacetone triperoxide... also known as TATP, commonly known as entropy explosive."

Trash-kun, who had been listening beside them, was dumbfounded and couldn't help but swallow his saliva.

What does this guy do in real life?

This feels too jailable!

Light Chu was also shocked by this guy.

Subconsciously, he glanced at the small wooden house in front of him. There was no way he could associate this thing with a chemistry lab.

Only gamers could do such fearless things.

Regaining his composure, Light Chu looked at him and continued, "I will keep an eye out for nearby chemical factories, so... you mean that we currently can't get explosives?"

"High-performance explosives are hard to come by, but black powder is quite easy to make. Give me some more time, I'm thinking of other ways. However... sometimes you don't necessarily need explosives to achieve a destructive effect," Mosquito shook the glass bottle in his left hand and chuckled, "This is a mixture of turpentine and acetone, with a bit of plant fiber added. Lighting the cotton wick at the mouth of the bottle and throwing it can create a long-lasting fire."

A Molotov cocktail?!

This thing is gonna be really useful!

Light Chu's eyes lit up as he took the glass bottle from Mosquito's hand and weighed it.

"Have you tested its power?"

"Um... there are trees around here, and I'm afraid the fire won't go out," Mosquito said awkwardly.

True.

It seems this guy still has some limits.

"I'll take it outside later and give it a try for you."

Light Chu calmly put away the glass bottle and continued, "Doing chemical experiments in this environment is still somewhat dangerous, and the sanctuary currently doesn't have the conditions to store such dangerous items. I will give you the rewards you deserve, but I can't encourage you to expand production."

After a pause, Light Chu changed the topic.

"However... I suggest you try to make these chemical products useful in the construction of the outpost base, creating the value we need."

"Creating the value we need..." Mosquito seemed to understand but also seemed puzzled. He silently pondered over these words.

"Well, you can think about it," Light Chu nodded and continued, "Of course, I also suggest that you talk to other residents of the sanctuary and ask if they have any good suggestions."

"There might be unexpected gains."