Chapter 32: I Have a Mount!

Wooden Planks → Eco-Friendly Combustion Pellets. Wooden Planks + Eco-Friendly Combustion Pellets → Solid Carbon. Solid Carbon + Mineral Life Water → High-Concentration Liquid Carbon Fuel Canister.

Ten minutes later, a black object the size of a soda can appeared on the production platform.

Alright, the only thing left was Tiedan.

Upgrading Tiedan, thankfully, didn't require too many materials. After feeding them in, he pressed the red button. This time, however, the upgrade would take half an hour, much faster than before.

Of course, Chen Yuan didn't stay idle while he waited. After his experience of being besieged by zombies, he felt that his bow and arrows also needed a major upgrade. Against zombies that felt no pain, simple metal arrowheads were no longer sufficient. What he needed now were high-explosive incendiary arrowheads on high-strength carbon fiber shafts.

He could just imagine it. Firing one of those would be like launching a small bomb. Even if it didn't hit the head or spine, a simple body shot that exploded would be enough to cause a fatal wound. As long as the zombies lost their ability to move, the problem was solved.

Arrows were consumables. The materials needed were mainly gunpowder, metal, and carbon fiber. The recipe wasn't complex, but the sheer quantity required was daunting. Every arrow fired was a cost. Before, Chen Yuan wouldn't have dared to play like this because he lacked the materials. But after emptying out the research institute's supply depot, he suddenly felt like he had hit the jackpot.

A little bit of luxury now and then couldn't hurt, right?

Time passed slowly. By the time he had prepared a large pile of materials, Tiedan reappeared on the production platform.

Its physical size hadn't changed, but the insertion port, which had been on the back of its neck, had moved to the rib area on both sides of its chest.

Chen Yuan took the high-concentration liquid carbon fuel canister and the nano-biochemical fuel cell he had prepared and, following the diagram, inserted them into their respective ports.

Psssssh... Psssssh...

With the sound of two pressure-release valves, the covers on both sides automatically closed.

But this time, Tiedan activated on its own.

Its silvery-gray body instantly began to radiate waves of heat. The surface color was no longer a light red but had shifted to a deep black.

Chen Yuan rubbed his chin. Black is definitely cooler.

「Master, Tiedan has returned.」

Tiedan extended its four limbs and leaped down from the production platform. Its movements were nimble and light. As it landed, its limbs bent slightly, absorbing most of the force. This display left Chen Yuan completely stunned.

"It seems... its speed and agility have both improved?" he muttered to himself, feeling that this upgrade was absolutely worth it.

He looked back at the production platform, where an instruction manual had appeared. Good grief. Previously, its maximum load-bearing weight was 50kg and its maximum towing weight was 80kg. Now, both stats had tripled.

Incredible! To think that just changing the fuel system could also provide such a boost was an unexpected bonus for Chen Yuan.

He eagerly had Tiedan go outside and bring Tieniu (Iron Bull) in. Looking at this brute, which was twice the size of Tiedan, a deep smile spread across his face.

Upgrade! Immediate upgrade!

He began to stuff materials into the Apocalypse Store's insertion port as if they were free. The fuel cell, the fuel—Chen Yuan was a seasoned pro at this now. Soon, when the two components were ready, he eagerly tossed Tieniu into the machine.

This time, in addition to upgrading Tieniu's fuel system, he also added two bull-horn-like ramming weapons. It was called Iron Bull; how could it not have horns? Of course, the main reason for this was that the battle in the office building had shown him Tieniu's shortcomings. Upgrading it with mechanical arms wasn't suitable. As a tank-type unit, it needed to charge head-on to display its greatest strength. Besides, Tiedan was a semi-melee fighter, while Tieniu was for getting in the enemy's face. Their upgrade paths were different.

「Material insertion successful. Robot dog upgrade: Biochemical fuel supply system, ramming attack weapons, armor reinforcement.」 「Upgrade time: 2 hours.」

Two hours, four times longer than Tiedan's upgrade. Chen Yuan guessed that the armor reinforcement must be the most time-consuming part.

While waiting for Tieniu to upgrade, he went into the Apocalypse Store's blueprint section to plan Tieqiong's (Iron Dome's) upgrade path. As he swiped through the options, his finger suddenly stopped on one particular module.

"Anti-Gravity Thruster... This is the good stuff!!!"

「Anti-Gravity Thruster: Thruster angle can be freely adjusted to achieve aerial flight.」

Chen Yuan swallowed hard, his eyes filled with envy. Tieqiong, Iron Dome... if it can't fly, how can it be a 'Dome'? This is a custom-made upgrade for it!

What's more, Tieqiong had an image transmission system. If he upgraded it with thrusters, he could sit at home and pilot it to gather intelligence. It would be just like flying an FPV drone! In this icy, snow-covered environment, ground reconnaissance was somewhat inefficient. If he could circle in the sky, what could possibly escape his eyes?

However, when Chen Yuan saw the list of strange and complex materials required, his face immediately fell. The materials for the Anti-Gravity Thruster weren't simple metals or other basic components. Like the liquid carbon fuel, it required semi-processed materials. In other words, he needed to produce the components step by step, then throw them all back in to synthesize the final product.

He scratched his head. This felt a lot like a video game. Basic materials could only produce basic tools. If you wanted the awesome stuff, you had to use composite materials from secondary processing.

Time passed, second by second. When Tieniu reappeared on the production platform, Chen Yuan thought it really did look like a small calf now. He inserted the battery and fuel, and Tieniu activated on its own.

「Master, Tieniu has returned.」

"Er, you should probably get down on your own." Chen Yuan took two steps back, afraid the beast would step on his foot.

Hearing the command, Tieniu's four limbs extended slightly, and it landed on the ground. This landing was much heavier than its first time. Even though the tent's floor didn't crack, Chen Yuan still felt a powerful sense of oppression, as if he were facing down a large elephant by himself.

Soon, a set of adapted mounting baskets and an instruction manual appeared on the platform.

「Indestructible attack horns combined with impenetrable armor, capable of trampling everything.」 「Load-bearing capacity increased from 80kg to 240kg. Towing capacity increased from 110kg to 330kg.」

Looking at the stats on the manual, Chen Yuan swallowed silently. No wonder it was two sizes larger than before. It had basically become a land tank!

Perfect. A-plus. Two thumbs up!

Chen Yuan had the urge to pick Tieniu up and give it a kiss. Hmm, he tried. It would be a miracle if he could lift this thing.

After installing the new mounting baskets, Chen Yuan felt like he was floating.

From now on, Tieniu was his personal mount!