Tang Yan: "I'll add one more at most."
Bai Cheng: "Deal!"
This time, Bai Cheng didn't try to play any tricks. She honestly shared the information since none of it was particularly useful.
Of course, she remained firm on the claim that two pieces of scrap iron were needed to smelt one iron ingot.
Otherwise, what if this guy exposed her?
Bai Cheng wasn't stupid!
After receiving the information, Tang Yan resumed his aloof act and stopped replying.
Looking at the two employee cards sent via mail, Bai Cheng smiled in satisfaction.
Although they were just a rat and a weasel, both bottom-tier employees you would find on the roadside, they were crucial for her.
Bai Cheng immediately checked all her employee cards. Currently, she had ten white cards and one green card, which meant that she was only four cards away from synthesizing a gold one!
"Should I… fully upgrade the employee card today?"
After all, the Book of Cheng could now switch the upgrade target.
And ever since Lin Qiuyue mentioned that employees could help pull the cart, Bai Cheng no longer wanted to exhaust herself traveling.
But then again, employees were random. What if the gold employee couldn't pull the cart?
Bai Cheng shook her head. "The employee card will definitely reach gold before the safety period ends. No need to rush."
Frequently switching the Book of Cheng's upgrade target would only reduce her margin for error.
Although the pulley drive system seemed like a half-baked solution, Bai Cheng believed that it alone could get her to Station One.
"For now, I'll keep upgrading the drive system. If I really can't get more employee cards, I'll use iron ingots to trade for them."
Having made up her mind, Bai Cheng focused on traveling.
Hours passed in a flash. Through the chat channel, Bai Cheng confirmed her suspicions.
Outside, the rain had stopped, leaving the world damp and pitch-black.
The screen displayed the words [The Silent Night Descends!], even though it was only 4 PM.
"Seems like the danger level has increased again." Bai Cheng raised an eyebrow.
Only when she felt resistance while moving did she finally stop to rest.
"The safe zone must be down to just one meter now."
Holding the lantern, Bai Cheng cautiously stepped out, her body pressed against the edge of the rail cart.
After igniting the black slime in front of the cart, she looked around at the dark forest.
Countless pairs of crimson eyes lurked in the shadows. Even the treetops were occupied by unnamed giant birds, their gazes locked onto her.
The forest was eerily silent. There were none of the rustling sounds from previous nights.
"These beasts are getting smarter." Bai Cheng concluded.
They were no longer foolish enough to blindly attack and hand free kills to survivors.
"By tomorrow night, the safe zone might only cover the cart itself."
She withdrew her gaze and retreated into the cabin.
During the day, Bai Cheng had focused on traveling while managing the furnace. Thanks to the upgraded pulley transmission system, efficiency had greatly improved.
She had traveled 66 kilometers in total.
[Distance to Next Station: 387 km]
"Daytime is getting shorter. I don't have much time left for full-speed travel."
But now, her rail cart's top speed had reached nearly 30 km/h, meaning she could easily reach the station within two days.
If not for the storm and having to tend to the furnace, Bai Cheng could have gone even farther today.
Of course, the pulley transmission system had upgraded once more, becoming a blue quality rare device.
[Name: Manual Piston-Pressurized Drive System]
[Grade: Rare]
[Description: Powerful drive force. A special mechanical assist system saves significant physical effort.]
[Evaluation: Still half-baked, but at least there's some hope.]
[Manual Piston-Pressurized Drive System: 37/200]
Compared to before, the manual piston drive system had undergone a massive transformation.
Complex interlocking gears connected to a control lever at the bottom. Although it had reverted to hand-driven manual operation and required more strength, Bai Cheng could clearly feel the rapid acceleration once the cart moved. It was just that the initial push was strenuous.
Another downside was that the drive system had grown larger, taking up nearly one square meter of space and making the already cramped cabin even more cramped.
"This thing… doesn't look like it's meant to be manually-powered, does it?"
Bai Cheng guessed that the next upgrade would bring a qualitative change to the drive system.
If so, she would reach Station One even faster.
For now, she ignored these thoughts. After lighting the slime, she prepared dinner while waiting.
As she ate roasted meat, she submitted all the iron ingots she had produced into the train system.
[Advancement Requirements: 50/50 Fine Leather, 100/100 Fine Wood, 10/200 Iron Ingots, 0/1 Steam Engine.]
This was her first time submitting iron ingots.
For over three hours during the day, Bai Cheng had smelted 60 ingots, plus the 10 from earlier experiments, all of which she used for trading.
And now, her backpack held 200 pieces of scrap iron!
Once she smelted them all, the hardest-to-collect requirement of iron ingots would be complete.
"I've got enough scrap iron now." Bai Cheng smirked. "Being a profiteer really is the best way to make money!"
"It's time to reduce trade offers. Otherwise, I won't have time to smelt my own ingots."
While eating, she noticed people in the chat channel complaining about her lack of new orders. She opened the channel and explained:
"Guys, future orders might slow down. I'm running low on fuel. But don't worry, every half an hour, I'll burn roadblocks for coal and keep supplying you."
The moment she said this, many panicked and replied:
"Out of fuel? Two coal pieces should be enough to smelt two scrap iron, right? Since they're useless otherwise, I'll just send them to you!"
Some even immediately initiated trades without another word.
Bai Cheng was stunned. "What the hell? They're this desperate?"
Unfortunately, the furnace was a blueprint structure that could only be built once. Otherwise, she would've opened a factory right then.
More importantly, her resources were already saturated. She hadn't even finished smelting her own iron ingots, how could she keep supplying everyone else?
Production was fixed, so reducing trade volume was inevitable. But she decided to humor these people for now.
After all, who would complain about having too many resources?
Just then, Lin Qiuyue sent her a private message.
Lin Qiuyue: "I've already collected half the scrap iron! When can you help me smelt some ingots, sis?" (Begging)
Since Lin Qiuyue had sold her four employee cards at a low price and shared valuable intel, Bai Cheng owed her a favor. She had no reason to refuse.
And even if three of those cards were trash, the rhino employee card was genuinely something useful.
Bai Cheng's head throbbed. It felt like the entire regional chat's scrap iron was flowing into her hands.
Unable to refuse, she could only agree.
But before she could reply, Lin Qiuyue sent another message:
"Sister, look! Someone else just got a furnace!"
Bai Cheng's heart dropped.
Damn. My profiteering is about to be exposed!
"Welp, time to become public enemy number one."
The chat channel erupted once again. The new furnace owner, of course, wouldn't miss this money-making opportunity and announced:
"Scrap iron's purity is really insufficient! My prices are the same as Bai Cheng's. If you're in a hurry, send fuel to help me smelt faster!"
Bai Cheng: ???