Transcendent?
That blue shell fragment that blew up the black striped fish king actually came from a transcendent creature?
Cheng Ye was stunned for a full two or three seconds before suddenly snapping back to reality, his gaze quickly moving downward.
[Whirlpool Turtle (Transcendent Creature)]
[Description]: Legend has it that a Whirlpool Turtle that controls water currents inhabits the depths hundreds of meters below the Linjiang River. It normally hides in river mud, only revealing its traces with dark whirlpools when heavy rains stir up surging river waves (Please try to collect more information)
[Currently Recorded Traits]:
Whirlpool Water (Transcendent**; 1.17%)
[Note]: Traits marked with double '*', when exchanged for skills, if the Collector does not possess the corresponding special power, will automatically acquire that special power (this special power is only rudimentary, sufficient to support normal skill operation)
"Ah, so the fish king's ability to part the fish schools wasn't its own intimidation, but a transcendent ability?"
Cheng Ye was stunned, scenes from earlier by the river instantly flashing through his mind.When the fish king swam through the school of fish, it was surrounded by an invisible barrier, water waves automatically parting, other fish fleeing in terror.
So it wasn't any kingly aura at all, but rather a transcendent ability granted by this Whirlpool Turtle shell fragment?
However, the ability inherited from the shell fragment was obviously extremely weak, with the trait progress accumulating only just over 1%.
This also explained why the fish king was majestic in water but became a helpless sitting duck once it jumped out.
It hadn't truly mastered the power within the shell fragment and could only use it passively in water.
"The bottom of Linjiang River..."
Cheng Ye's gaze returned to the description.
The description in the catalog should come from the information he had collected. He didn't know which person had provided information about the Whirlpool Turtle, but they had probably died during the Stand-In Starfish outbreak that night and couldn't continue investigating.
However, based on his experience finding the Heart-Protecting Fire, if he could gather enough traits to exchange for a skill, he should be able to gain another transcendent symbiotic state and incidentally possess a... Whirlpool Turtle?
But as soon as this thought emerged, Cheng Ye couldn't help but shake his head.
Although Linjiang's natural depth was only 103 meters, it meandered through all of Shi Province and connected to four other provinces. Many places had artificial depths exceeding 200 meters, with a frighteningly vast watershed.
Finding a turtle hiding in river mud across such a vast area would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"I can only hope first that Happiness City has research methods for this shell fragment, or wait until I'm stationed in Dapo Town and things stabilize, then carefully search the upstream and downstream of Baishui River to see if I can find more wild shell fragments."
Cheng Ye calculated silently. He didn't need too many, just a hundred fragments would be enough to accumulate the Whirlpool Turtle's trait.
Moreover, paying more attention to such large-sized fish with water-parting abilities was also a path for accumulation.
Thinking of this, he finally reined in his wandering thoughts, his heart increasingly convinced of his earlier understanding.
The perilous wasteland was indeed a place where opportunities and risks coexisted.
This was still just the "safe zone" around Happiness City that had been scavenged countless times. If it were those untrodden wastelands, or even the high-danger sectors marked in red on maps, perhaps there could be even more amazing discoveries?
But having said that, Cheng Ye quickly calmed down.
The current priority was still to continue nurturing Fire Sprout and let the Flame Eagle grow larger.
With Fire Sprout by his side, just the two abilities of helping him keep watch at night and detect prying gazes could already help him eliminate half the risks in the wild.
There would always be more transcendent creatures in the future when his strength increased.
Closing the panel, Cheng Ye turned his gaze to outside the car.
Soon, he noticed an obvious difference between the county road and yesterday. The road surface was now covered with a thin layer of snow.
The vines and weeds that had originally sprawled across the roadside looked as if they had been chopped and cleared, creating nearly half a meter of blank space.
Although the road surface was still bumpy, there were no longer those plants that entangled wheels, making driving much smoother.
Seeing him staring out the window thoughtfully, Jiang Chuan explained, "The county road should have been cleared by the Works Department yesterday."
"Really fast."
Cheng Ye couldn't help but sigh.
The contract zones had just been established the day before yesterday, yesterday it was still pouring rain, yet Happiness City had already begun preliminary preparations.
But thinking about it, this was reasonable. The migrants gathered outside the buffer zone already exceeded 500,000. They had to quickly open satellite cities for population distribution. If population growth continued unchecked, once danger or conflicts arose, major chaos would inevitably break out.
However, this weather...
Snow in July, fortunately it was just a temporary phenomenon under the influence of Void Mist.
If it continued to be this cold going forward, with frozen ground difficult to thaw and construction materials hard to transport, the satellite city construction plan would probably have to be completely shelved.
The car bumped along the county road for a while before finally reaching the national highway, and both men visibly relaxed.
With this comparison, even though this section of national highway leading to Wenlu County was far less smooth than the section leading to the industrial district, they could still sense Happiness City's maintenance efforts over the years.
Indeed, they shouldn't expect this place to be built too well. After all, in the wasteland, segments that generated no revenue didn't warrant wasting resources.
As the massive ruins of Chuan City gradually revealed themselves in the snowy day.
Jiang Chuan also seemed to emerge from the tense state from earlier when catching the fish king, the seriousness on his face fading considerably.
"Inspector Cheng, how does it feel going out into the wasteland for the first time?"
"Really not easy."
Cheng Ye shook his head, his tone full of emotion, "Only after actually staying in the wasteland do you appreciate the stability of sanctuary cities. Even in the buffer zone, at least when I close my door at night, I can sleep soundly."
"What about Dapo Town? What do you think?" Jiang Chuan asked again, his tone carrying obvious probing.
"Pretty good, it has fish and hydroelectric power. It's a good place."
Cheng Ye changed the subject with a smile, steering the conversation elsewhere, "Speaking of which, I still need to finish answering questions when I get back. Yesterday's test paper isn't finished yet. Can't delay the evaluation."
He was clear in his heart that eighty percent of what he said to Jiang Chuan would reach Ding Yishan's ears.
So regarding whether to choose Dapo Town, he still hadn't committed definitively.
He needed to first see what his two competitors were doing. If Ding Yishan wanted to force him to partner with one of them, things would get troublesome.
The best outcome would be if Ding Yishan was willing to delegate authority and let him manage Dapo Town entirely on his own.
If this requirement was too special and really wouldn't work, he'd bring Wang Kang in as a deputy.
Although Wang Kang was also a trainee like him, they knew each other well. At least he wouldn't interfere with his planning.
In any case, he didn't want outsiders meddling in Dapo Town's development. Otherwise, those future resource plans in his head couldn't be implemented at all.
Jiang Chuan heard the reservation in his words and didn't ask further, just smiled, "Alright, then my monitoring task is also coming to an end."
The car continued traveling on the national highway.
As time passed eight o'clock, the sun climbed up from the horizon. The snow gradually became smaller, changing from the previous fine powder to sporadic falling snowflakes, and the wind became much gentler.
A hazy layer of warm air faintly rose from the horizon. As the distance closed, Happiness City's outline became increasingly clear in their field of vision.
This sanctuary city surrounded by high walls now looked so welcoming.
Cheng Ye smacked his lips, having to admit he really did have a feeling of coming home now!
Continuing forward, when the car rushed down the previous uphill ramp exit, Cheng Ye finally saw clearly that the place where warm air was rising was precisely the refugee camp in front of Central Station.
Looking from afar, the camp was orderly without the expected chaos. Obviously Happiness City had long been prepared for the temperature drop.
He suddenly realized, perhaps he had been too influenced by disaster films from the old era, always subconsciously thinking order could easily collapse.
Thinking that perhaps a small natural disaster could trigger even greater human-caused disasters but reality was, he had underestimated the resilience humans in the wasteland era had developed through natural and human disasters.
The car gradually left the refugee camp behind. South Station's outline was getting closer and closer.
Cheng Ye turned his head and asked thoughtfully, "Are such people hard to manage?"
"Hm?" Jiang Chuan was stunned, then smiled bitterly, "Yes, indeed very difficult to manage."
"Most of these migrants are residents from small and medium-sized settlements, long accustomed to making their own decisions, with plenty of wilderness survival experience. If Inspector Cheng wants to build Dapo Town, you'll need to be particularly careful when selecting people. If you encounter 'tough nuts,' they might not completely follow your instructions."
He paused, then added, "But conversely, if you pick the right people, construction difficulty will be cut in half. For many things, you just need to give one instruction. Without hand-holding teaching, they can handle things efficiently themselves. Even if initial conditions are harsh, as long as you let them see future prospects, they won't complain much."
"Clear."
Cheng Ye nodded, hearing Jiang Chuan's implied meaning.
Wasn't this just about painting rosy pictures?
However, giving refugees expectations that were too high and then failing to deliver would instead trigger greater dissatisfaction.
More crucially, these people had their own survival common sense and independent thinking. They might not accept his plans that violated wasteland common sense.
For example, prioritizing repair of the infrastructure route to the power station rather than strengthening Dapo Town's overall defenses.
Or investing resources in fishing and opening food markets rather than quickly building shelter.
Even though these things, from a future perspective, were precisely the keys to Dapo Town's long-term development.
"Are there complete families in the refugee camp?" Cheng Ye suddenly changed topics.
"Yes, quite a few. After being influenced by the Walker, many came with their whole families, including elderly and children. I heard there are even elderly people from the old era in their sixties, still robust and able to help with construction and guide planning."
"Mm."
Cheng Ye responded, having a clearer idea in his mind.
Compared to simply recruiting able-bodied young people, he was more inclined to select complete families.
This could quickly form stable social structures and ensure different industries like fish processing, material management, and basic construction all had people to take over, avoiding gaps of "emphasizing heavy labor while neglecting logistics."
But how would other inspectors competing for contract zones choose?
Would they prioritize grabbing young adults, people who could build satellite cities, or would they also value family units for establishing foundations?
It was still uncertain. He could only take it step by step and adapt to circumstances.
Additionally, he needed to prepare for the possibility that Dapo Town wouldn't be on the first batch of satellite city startup lists.
But Cheng Ye was already prepared for this.
Construction didn't necessarily have to begin by leaving the city first. He could very well make plans in the buffer zone first, then find Elder Song in the community to borrow some personnel for advance training, setting up the foundation teams for fish processing and basic construction.
Once he obtained official contract qualifications, the entire plan could immediately unfold. It might even be more effective than hastily joining the first construction batch.
Besides this, the construction of Tianyuan Community's pedestrian street was also top priority.
This was a task assigned by the Elder, more important than satellite cities by weight.
As demolition entered its final phase, he needed to personally oversee the upcoming construction and control progress.
Only by building the pedestrian street well could Dapo Town's future fish catches and processed products be sold there openly, forming a complete chain of "production, transportation, sales."
Cheng Ye already had preliminary ideas about the logic of these links. Once the evaluation ended and he had free time, he could organize them into a closed-loop plan on paper.
Lost in thought, the pickup had already reached South Station's entrance.
Speaking of which, this was Cheng Ye's first time being inspected. According to regulations, he had to enter through Gate D.
However, the two weren't in a rush. Not until Qin Feng called to confirm he was already waiting inside the station did they slowly drive the car into Zone D's passage.
"Oh, Inspector Dong?" Cheng Ye had just rolled down the car window when he saw a familiar figure behind the inspection desk and couldn't help being stunned.
"Inspector Cheng?" Dong Xing also recognized him, his face full of confusion, "How are you coming back from outside? Did you go on external duty?"
Dong Xing obviously didn't yet know about the inspector contract system.
Cheng Ye subsequently realized that with Dong Xing's heaven-defying bad luck, he indeed wasn't suitable for contracting.
If he were put in charge of an area, an infection tide might immediately arrive.
Moreover, the inspection station's daily operations also needed inspectors like Dong Xing who didn't cause problems.
"Inspector Dong, it's a station task that required Inspector Cheng's cooperation for external reconnaissance."
Before Cheng Ye could speak, Jiang Chuan got out of the car first and explained the situation in a few sentences.
As a trusted aide beside Ding Yishan, Dong Xing naturally wouldn't inquire further.
After submitting external duty procedures and task reports according to regulations, Dong Xing didn't go through cumbersome procedures either.
After measuring the data, he indicated clearance but just then, Qin Feng came rushing from the rear of Zone D with his old team, wearing familiar protective suits.
From far away, Cheng Ye could see Qin Feng grinning like a rotten apricot, his mouth corners almost reaching his ears.
"This is?"
"Oh, we found a suspected unknown infection source in the wasteland that needs Researcher Qin and his team to contain and test."
Hearing this, Dong Xing immediately turned to open the nearby isolation door and deliberately moved aside to make room.
This awareness of "not causing trouble" was no wonder that even though he couldn't pass external duty evaluations, everyone was still willing to vote for his promotion in the end.
"Inspector Cheng, where is it?" Qin Feng walked to the car in a few steps, his eyes bright as if glowing.
"There, we've already put it in a containment box!"
Cheng Ye pointed toward the back seat. The rest didn't require their involvement.
Qin Feng immediately assumed a professional stance, first having his assistant set up isolation barriers around the car while he wore double-layer gloves and carefully opened the back seat door.
First, he scanned the containment box three times with a detector, then sprayed transparent disinfectant on the box body before slowly lifting the box out and placing it on a temporarily set up testing table.
The moment he opened the box lid, Qin Feng's breathing obviously paused.
The blue shell fragment shimmered with faint flowing light under illumination, the whirlpool patterns on its surface clearly visible.
Even without instruments, one could vaguely sense a special fluctuation.
He took out several differently colored reagents and dropped them on the shell fragment's surface, observing the reagents' color-change reactions.
Meanwhile, his assistant held instruments Cheng Ye couldn't understand, with screens showing dense streams of data.
Throughout the process, no one spoke, only the "beeping" of instruments and clinking of reagent bottles.
In any case, professionalism was everything.
After more than ten minutes, Qin Feng finally straightened up, leaving the follow-up cleanup work to his assistant while he quickly walked over, still carrying undissipated excitement on his face.
"Is it an unknown infection source?" Cheng Ye asked first.
"Doesn't seem like it." Qin Feng shook his head, looking thoughtful, "Its state is very stable, without any active fluctuations common to infection sources. Instead, it's more like some creature's shed shell. The energy response is very weak, but there are indeed special fluctuations. What exactly it is needs to be taken back to the research institute for instrumental analysis. We can't make direct conclusions now."
"However, we can be certain this thing has never been seen before, and no one has discovered it."
"Thank you, Researcher Qin."
"Where's the trouble in that? I should be thanking you properly!" Qin Feng said, indicating he should leave the inspection area to talk in the back.
"I'll handle the car cleaning. Inspector Cheng can go ahead." Jiang Chuan smiled indifferently.
"Good."
The two came to the rear isolation area. Qin Feng removed the huge helmet of his protective suit and took a long, deep breath.
Then he smiled, "Inspector Cheng, the Corrupt Vine you discovered last time was a great help. After Station Chief Ding and Director Liu discussed it, they've decided to build an independent infection source research institute based on our inspection station. We'll definitely need to trouble you inspectors then."
Qin Feng spoke vaguely, only saying the vine had been a great help.
But Cheng Ye's thoughts turned, immediately recalling how Liu Kun had specifically left the city to search for Corrupt Vine, wanting to use it to enhance his abilities.
Could it be that the Corrupt Vine samples he had submitted were seen by Liu Kun, prompting the idea to build a research institute?
"Ah, then congratulations to Researcher Qin!"
Cheng Ye couldn't think it through in time and quickly offered congratulations following the conversation.
Qin Feng smiled even more happily, suddenly changing topics, "I heard that during the Void Mist outbreak, you went to Xinghuo Sanctuary City?"
"Yes, went once." Cheng Ye nodded.
"Don't worry, whatever equipment Xinghuo Sanctuary City has, our inspection station will have in the future too."
As Qin Feng spoke, his eyes were full of confidence. He deliberately used "our" to clearly draw them closer.
Cheng Ye understood and smiled in agreement, "Then I'll be waiting to benefit from Researcher Qin's success!"
The two exchanged compliments, creating an incredibly harmonious atmosphere.
Before the team finished containment and left, Qin Feng specifically mentioned the shell fragment, "As soon as there are preliminary analysis results, I'll call you immediately. If this thing really has special value, the research institute will also give you rewards according to regulations. We absolutely won't let you work for nothing."
"Good."
This was precisely the result Cheng Ye wanted. Happiness City's right to inform discoverers could indeed make exceptions.
Like the Walker, he had naturally become a chess player through discoverer privileges.
As for the inspection station building a research institute?
If Dapo Town could stabilize in the future, he'd need to build a dedicated research room too.
After all, with the catalog's help analyzing source-track technology, there would definitely be more and more discoveries in the future.
"Sigh, truly the more you see, the greater your ambitions become."
"This contracting doesn't even have its first stroke written, and I'm already thinking about major construction outside?"
Cheng Ye shook his head. After seeing Qin Feng off, he found Jiang Chuan watching staff disinfect and quarantine the pickup and fish catch.
He simply found a place and pulled out the unfinished evaluation test paper, beginning to write furiously.
By noon at twelve o'clock, when the pickup's disinfection was finally complete and Jiang Chuan came to call him, Cheng Ye was still buried in writing.
This time, what he wrote wasn't just basic planning proposals, but included more in-depth data.
Including material lists needed for power station repair, construction requirements for fish processing plants, and even estimates for power transmission and distribution line construction.
He was confident these contents were things other inspectors absolutely couldn't produce.
After all, not everyone had the thinking to convert planar terrain into 3D planning diagrams, much less immediately produce such systematic proposals after visiting Dapo Town just once.
In other words, he was standing on the "shoulders of giants" of modern knowledge, using nearly ten years of accumulated learning to plan Dapo Town, rather than acting merely on experience fumbled out in the wasteland.
In terms of comprehensiveness and systematicness, he was confident he wouldn't lose to anyone.
As for the final judgment results, it would depend on whether Dapo Town itself could deliver!