CHAPTER 182: CHAPTER 182: THE MORE PRIVATE THE DETAILS, THE BETTER

On the way to the center of the island.

The terrain was extremely harsh.

The central area was full of craters and rubble.

Ten minutes later, the Jeep reached the east side of a small lake in the canyon. Across the lake was a small town, but it looked like it had been reduced to ruins.

The Jeep did not approach the town, but accelerated southward. The further south they went, the flatter the terrain became.

Soon, they arrived at—

The city occupied by the Zombie General!

This is a satellite city in the suburbs of a large metropolis, with skyscrapers and tall buildings visible in the distance.

This city seemed relatively intact, with little visible destruction, and its architectural style was impressive.

Many buildings resembled Chinese pagodas, but were constructed of white stone, or perhaps some kind of composite material, but definitely not cement.

Whoever built this city loved carving stone pillars and statues, and there wasn’t a billboard or poster in sight.

Thus, this was a neat and clean city without any superfluous elements...

At least that’s how Lin Yi felt while observing through the binoculars. It seemed like a combination of Asian and ancient Greek architecture.

"There are a lot of zombies in there..."

After observing the city, Lin Yi summarized and then looked towards the suburbs.

"The zombies seem to be able to use the forest to circle around to the edge... Anyway, I think I understand, let’s head west and then return to base."

"Yes, boss!"

The terrain to the west was even harsher than the east.

In addition to hills, there was an almost completely destroyed mountain range, which now formed a huge crater.

Near the Central Mountain Range, they also found a large quarry, fully equipped with machinery.

The uniquely designed stone-cutting machines there remained intact. Hubert speculated that they could cut out stone blocks weighing several tons from the cliff walls.

"Alpha, please respond if you copy, this is Gamma, I’ve detected movement in the southern forest, it’s zombies!"

Just then, a scout in the Jeep received a tip from a lookout and immediately reported.

"Boss, Commander, zombies are attacking!"

"Retreat!" Lin Yi said decisively.

The zombies indeed tried to encircle the vehicles, but they couldn’t keep up with the military Jeeps, so all six vehicles safely returned to base.

Lin Yi never delayed and immediately convened a tactical meeting.

He sat at a table covered with maps drawn by scouts, took a sip of tea, and was the first to speak.

"What are we facing? Complex terrain! But this also offers many tactical possibilities."

"Yes, boss! You’re absolutely right! I suggest burning the forest to ashes. It sounds stupid, but the zombies are clearly using guerrilla tactics against us."

Hubert’s eyes gleamed.

"We’re going to emulate the Vietnam War by burning the forest along with the guerrillas, I’m talking about the entire forest!"

"I agree with your idea."

Lin Yi nodded but added a few points.

"Burning is just the first point! Secondly, we need to set up some mobile observation towers, ones that we wouldn’t be too concerned about losing. We need our people to station there, and if there’s trouble, they can pull out quickly."

Hubert nodded immediately in response.

Lin Yi pointed at the map and continued speaking.

"We need to set up observation towers all over the island, like here, on this hill... we’ll call it Observation Tower 1, shortening it to W1.

It will monitor the small town by the lake and everything to the northeast.

The second observation tower, W2, needs to be built on this central mountain, requiring more personnel as it’s a large area to monitor, right?

We have canyons, the entire western region... the terrain is rugged there, but the view is excellent.

The next one, W3, should be built between the lake and the Central Mountain Range. It will monitor the southern city and the southwest.

Finally, W4, will be responsible for monitoring our rear and retreat route..."

At this point, Lord Terghai the Beastman seemed confused and asked.

"Aren’t we setting up an observation tower in the southwest?"

"It’s too close to the city and forest there, very likely it would be destroyed before it could report anything."

Hubert explained.

Lin Yi nodded, appreciating the seasoned strategist’s perspective, and began issuing orders.

"Hubert, I want you to annihilate the island’s enemies thoroughly, but without taking any unnecessary risks."

"Yes, sir."

"How are your warriors, Terghai?"

"Hungering for battle!" the burly beastman lord grinned widely.

After issuing the final set of orders.

Lin Yi went home and took a shower again.

Over the past few hours, more dead skin had peeled off his body, and his face... looked more handsome...

His arms were also growing faster now, with his elbows starting to take shape.

The feeling was extremely uncomfortable...

After his shower, he had a sumptuous lunch and then rested for a while.

Lunchtime was quiet, everyone had a lot of work to do and was very tired.

Especially Orianna, who had to manage the new six-acre orchard.

The little girl Natasha, veteran Hubert, and the old rascal Louis, came around 4 p.m. to design a prototype for an observation tower together.

But they couldn’t make it both mobile and compact; to achieve that, they’d need more time and resources.

So, they made it modular.

It could be assembled quickly, but required a truck for transport.

After creating the prototype, they attempted to disassemble and reassemble it, then recycle it again.

After numerous modifications, they finally completed a full version by sunset.

The tower was first assembled on the ground and then hoisted upright with ropes and trucks.

Ultimately, a ten-meter-tall watchtower capable of accommodating four people was built.

They also decided to form a construction crew for professionally assembling and dismantling watchtowers, steel walls, and other architectural structures in the future.

After being constructed, the four watchtowers were dismantled again, each costing about 5000 Coins.

That night, everyone enjoyed a sumptuous dinner, with Giselle preparing grilled fish and potatoes.

The blue salmon Lin Yi received as a reward for upgrading the shelter tasted delicious, just like everything else produced by the shelter.

Lin Yi always preferred red fish, thinking it was the tastiest, but that never stopped him from catching river fish or lake fish for fish soup.

In addition to grilled fish, there were also fried fish cakes, surprisingly made by the lively Annie.

But the most surprising of all, this dish actually tasted quite good.

After everyone had their fill.

Mary’s "torment" began.

The girls wanted to know the details, the kind you’d find in orc tales, the more private, the better.

Old Shaman Teruo, just back from the orc camp, had spent a long time studying the tribe’s archives.

He had been researching those ancient records, which recount the era when the "gods" first descended on the Taru’s home planet.

Their clans also experienced trials, their world reached a level 2 difficulty.

It was the beginning of the end, and those orcs who barely survived gradually retreated in the struggle against the Undead Race, eventually fleeing to the Ark.

However, unlike Lin Yi’s experiences in the Trial Dungeon, the orcs received more notable rewards: rare equipment and special skills!

"Teruo, I heard you can heal others, could you use your healing skill to check on me?"

"Sorry, my healing only works on orcs and might even cause you damage, but your regeneration ability is already working at full capacity!"

"Alright..."

"By the way, this fish is so delicious, I’m sure it would taste even better raw."

"Hey, you’re welcome to buy some, or you could use your daily wage to get some at a discount?"

"I’m afraid my income isn’t enough to support even part of the tribe... But... I could make a suggestion, you haven’t tried Space-Time Fishing yet, have you?"

The old beastman chuckled slyly, meeting the greedy gaze of his boss.

Lin Yi also laughed.

"I was about to start, but you know, something fun happened later on."

Lin Yi raised his half arm and shook it.

Teruo nodded and put the fish aside.

"Four hundred years ago, I tried Space-Time Fishing on the Great Ark of our ancestors."

"And then?"

"I can become your Space-Time Fisherman, in return, I want to keep one-tenth of what I catch!"

"I’m already paying you a thousand Coins per day, this is getting too expensive..."

"Boss, you’re really wicked, then I’ll forgo the daily wage and only ask for ten percent of what I catch each day!"

The old shaman said expressionlessly.

"I can also be your navigator, I taught space-time navigation to every lord on the Great Ark."

"Alright, you can take ten percent, but deductions will be made for any damage to the shelter. The shelter warns that you could catch some very tricky things..."

Lin Yi offered him a piece of grilled rabbit meat.

"You can be the navigator, but you must follow commands during major military operations and teach me space-time navigation."

"Sure, I agree! But I get to decide how to calculate my share!"

"As long as it’s reasonable."

...

Lin Yi spent the rest of the evening carefully negotiating this new contract with Teruo.

The girls’ lively conversation.

Their talk had completely gotten out of control, as Mary had kicked all the men, except Lin Yi and the old shaman, out of the dining area while she talked about those things.

They also adjusted the frequency on the old shaman’s translator so only Lin Yi could hear.

They chatted happily and carelessly!

...

Lin Yi and Teruo, along with his apprentices, sat by the lake with fishing rods.

The shaman shared his wisdom slowly, while Lin Yi taught the shaman the theory behind fishing.

"They say the Sea of Space-Time is endless, but that’s not true. It’s just expanding so fast that no one can reach its edge."

The old shaman watched his float quiver slightly, then sharply yanked the fishing rod, but at the end of the hook—

There was neither fish nor bait!

"Snapped again..."

"That’s because you’re using too much dough, you need to knead it into a ball just big enough to cover the hook."

There were no bugs in the shelter, so they had to use simple dough as a substitute.

But the old shaman objected.

"But the bigger the bait, the more attractive it is."

"A big bait is also easier to steal."

Lin Yi grinned slyly, as he had already caught two large salmon by now.

The old beastman looked at his boss, thought for a moment, and followed his advice.

He cast the line and then continued...