Shelter Upgrade

John's core had yielded significantly more supplies than the other three, nearly filling the ten square meters of expanded space. Liam spotted three large bags of biscuits, weighing around five or six kilograms. He tried one and nodded in satisfaction. They tasted almost as good as the packaged biscuits.

Thanks to the storage space's refrigeration function, the items inside were in a state of suspended animation, only materializing when Liam observed them.

After putting away the biscuits, Liam noticed two large barrels in the corner. He walked over and grinned. It was a perfect match – along with the generator, John had also been carrying two 200-liter barrels of diesel.

"I was expecting to have to make bio-diesel, but this is even better!" Liam exclaimed.

Homemade bio-diesel could damage the generator, but with the system, any damage could be easily repaired with a few survival points. Still, having diesel to get through the initial stages was a huge advantage. He could always trade for more later.

After spending two hours sorting through the items and burying the unwanted ones, Liam opened the chat channel and found a contact who had died. He started listing his loot:

"One generator, two hundred liters of diesel. Six kilograms of biscuits, two kilograms of bread, unopened purified water, 2.5 liters, 800 grams of beef jerky, seven cartons of milk, three corn dogs, one yogurt, two bottles of Pepsi, two bags of chips. A bag of opened salt (confirmed non-toxic), a small bag of unopened chili oil. One rechargeable flashlight (fully charged), one extremely heavy mace, one pair of unworn sneakers (size 43). Fifteen units of wood, nineteen units of plant fiber, thirty units of stone, three units of iron blocks, one unit of copper blocks. And a map that seems to show the surrounding terrain (important)."

Just looking at the list filled Liam with a sense of satisfaction. He celebrated by taking out two corn dogs, taking a big bite out of one, and tossing the other to Oreo, who was drooling beside him.

"Alright, buddy, I'm taking care of you now, so you better work hard for me later!" Liam joked.

Oreo, his mouth full of food, let out a happy howl in response. With his spirits high, Liam called up the game panel to see how to upgrade his shelter.

Absorbing the four damaged safe house cores had triggered the upgrade system. The shelter, which previously had no displayed level, now showed its current level.

"[Personal Shelter]

Level: Lv1

Description: A stone-built shelter, exceptionally sturdy, with good security, and excellent moisture insulation and thermal properties.

Space: 140 square meters (height 4.2 meters)

Integrity: 100%

Facilities: Iron stove, bed, large vegetable cultivation base, M-energy well water extractor, dining table...

Currently available permissions: Restructure the shelter layout, automatically generate partition walls (once, please adjust carefully)." 

"I can finally build partitions! Now this is a proper shelter, this is starting to feel like a home!" Liam's eyes lit up at the notification.

The current shelter was just one big open space. As soon as you entered, the first thing you saw were the dark corners that the light couldn't reach. It was fine during the day, but at night, it was a bit creepy.

Liam was still buzzing from his recent haul. He had only killed a few bandits and received so many rewards! He was almost tempted to turn on the live broadcast again to attract more "donations."

"I can only restructure once at level one, so I have to plan carefully," he thought as he looked at the layout on the panel.

With a thought, a 3D model of the shelter popped up, complete with the floor, stone walls, and all the dimensions. Liam quickly familiarized himself with the controls and then closed the interface, switching to the chat.

After the night's battle, Liam had a change of heart about interacting with others. In this chaotic wasteland, the more you tried to stay out of things, the more trapped you became. Completely isolating himself and turning his shelter into a lonely island was the most foolish thing he could do.

Different people had different strengths. The architectural style and overall structure of the Sunrise Shelter he had seen during the day were incredibly ingenious. There had to be an expert behind it.

Liam decided to outsource this kind of professional design work to maximize the use of his shelter space. This was a precious opportunity to restructure, and he was dissatisfied with the current layout but didn't know where to start.

Firstly, the entrance was just a long staircase. This was fine normally, but if someone broke through the door, it would become a free-for-all with no security. He needed to add a second, maybe even a third buffer zone.

Secondly, the 30-square-meter cultivation base was placed right in the center of the shelter, taking up space and hindering future development.

Besides the interior, Liam also wanted to build a buffer zone above ground. After tonight's encounter, he realized that if someone managed to block the entrance to an underground shelter, getting out would require a risky attack. This could work once or twice, but it was too dangerous in the long run.

He couldn't completely neglect ground defenses just because he had an underground shelter.

With his mind made up, Liam found the private message function and initiated contact with the Sunrise Shelter. The contact person was the same young woman who had spoken on behalf of the shelter that day - Lily Liu.

Liam typed out his message: "[Hello, I'm Liam. I'd like to trade with your shelter, if possible.]"

It wasn't long before he received three urgent messages in response. Before he could even read them, a video call request came through.

After a moment's hesitation, Liam accepted. He had already shown his face to the world, there was no need to hide now.

The call connected, and Lily Liu's face appeared on the screen.

"Hello, Liam, I'm the head of publicity for the 13th Army's 79th Disaster Relief Unit. We agree to your trade request. What kind of trade are you interested in?" Lily asked, trying her best to maintain her composure.

The first thing she saw was the generator and the two barrels of diesel behind Liam. Then there were the luxury items: cola, bread, biscuits... and in the corner of her vision, she even spotted a corner of the cultivation base.

The abundance of supplies in Liam's shelter was a shock to Lily. As for Liam's handsome face, it only added to the mystery, set against the backdrop of all those supplies.

"I'd like to commission someone to design the layout of my underground shelter. Ideally, I'd like a blueprint," Liam said.

Lily nodded quickly. "We have a renowned designer in our shelter, Dr. Mark Liu, who also happens to be my uncle. Would it be alright if I asked him to design it for you?"

"Of course, of course. You should be familiar with the structure of underground shelters, right? I need..." Liam was a little surprised to hear that it was Dr. Mark Liu, but he agreed without hesitation and began to explain his requirements.

Lily immediately called for her uncle, allowing Liam to communicate directly with him.

It didn't take long for the two to finalize the details.

"Alright, we understand your needs. I'll have the blueprint ready for you by the day after tomorrow at the latest. You can rest assured, I'll adhere to wartime regulations and strictly abide by the confidentiality agreement!" Mark Liu was a man of few words. After discussing the requirements, he picked up his straw raincoat and left.

Liam had heard of this doctor before. He was the one who designed many of the country's superstructures, including the 840-meter tower. Designing a shelter would be a piece of cake for him.

After Mark left, Lily returned to the screen.

"Dr. Liu didn't mention a price. I wonder how many supplies it would take for such a design?" Liam asked, seeing Lily's hesitation.

He trusted that Lily wouldn't overcharge him. From the very beginning, when she didn't ask him too many questions, Liam knew that the Sunrise Shelter was approaching this with sincerity.

However, Lily's next words surprised him.

"Mr. Liam, this design doesn't require any materials. Consider it a gesture of goodwill for our first trade. The Sunrise Shelter hopes that you can help those in need, to the best of your ability. Even in this wasteland, we must support each other and persevere. Of course, as for those bandits tonight, Mr. Liam, you have every right to defend yourself. We fully support your actions..."