Wasteland for All: I Can Infinitely Upgrade My Vault

Although the loot from Red-Eroded Creatures is extremely scarce, the shelter killed so many monsters tonight that the loot is still very plentiful.

There are 165 portions of the 【Crimson Claws】, which are rare parts of the Crimson Creature that are free from corrosion and contamination, making them excellent weapon materials.

In this world, battles inevitably involve close-quarters combat with the enemy. As the sharpest part of a monster's body, the Crimson Claws can easily tear apart a monster's body when monsters are fighting each other. Therefore, many arms dealers and companies spend a lot of money to acquire this material to make advanced weapons.

In the wasteland, many bounty hunters and wild wanderers rely on hunting Crimson Creatures to collect Crimson Claws for rewards.

This stuff is only of little value to the shelter for the time being. Zhongli happily ordered Huowu to pack up these [Crimson Claws] and prepare to take them to the Dark Merchant's base to sell.

If it weren't for the Saintess's final, frenzied burst of damage, the number of [Crimson Claws] dropped could have been even greater.

Besides the scarlet claws, Hongluan also took out a bunch of blood-red flowers, saying, "This is the greatest gain from this battle: the Blood Orchid."

[Blood Orchid: When disaster strikes, willpower is humanity's first line of defense against danger. A flower of the wasteland, its crimson life inspires fearlessness. Consuming it grants +1 Courage.]

Courage +1!

This is an extremely important attribute; when faced with powerful corruption, courage determines a person's mental will.

Without immense courage, facing a malicious collective like the Devouring Spirit Cluster, one's mind would be corrupted and collapse without even fighting.

Zhong Li carefully examined the cluster of orchids in front of him, which resembled flames; there were a total of 23 blossoms.

If given to one person, it would be enough to reach the pinnacle of their current level.

This also shows how intense tonight's battle was. Without the ultimate strength of one's current level, it would be impossible to resist such a powerful invasion.

Even with two champion-level soldiers leading the team, the shelter couldn't actually hold on.

In the end, it was thanks to the saintess's intervention that the monster was reduced to ashes.

But it is precisely because of this that the explosion was so powerful that it was breathtaking.

Zhongli thought about it seriously for a moment, and said fairly to Hongluan, "These are the fruits of your bloody battles, so you can divide them among yourselves. Each of you will receive 5 Blood Orchids, and the extra 3 will go to the shelter. I plan to sell them and exchange them for Runes to build the [Statue of the Repentant Maiden], and further enhance the combat power of all the soldiers."

Courage +5 is almost equivalent to an elite soldier leveling up by 1.

Soldiers on the Elite template gain 4 free attribute points per level, while soldiers on the Champion template gain 5 free attribute points per level.

The four of them are the backbone of the shelter's fighting force, and strengthening their combat capabilities will be of great benefit to the upcoming battles.

Zhongli's own combat power enhancement mainly relies on the [Wildfire] system.

After dividing the blood orchids, Zhongli asked with concern, "What about the collapsed epiphyllum? Has it appeared?"

Hongluan nodded and took out a collapsed crystal key from behind her. Inside the azure transparent crystal bottle, a pure white epiphyllum flower, as bright as moonlight, bloomed quietly.

Zhongli scanned everyone and asked, "I plan to give this collapsed epiphyllum to Zhuque. Do you all have any objections?"

Huo Wu shook her head slightly, while Liu Lu smiled and said, "Manager, you are the manager of the shelter. You can make decisions directly without asking for our opinions."

Zhong Li was well aware of this, but he had always been a homebody and had never managed so many people before, let alone shouldered the lives and hopes of so many others.

Now everyone is eagerly watching you, listening to every word you say.

He inevitably felt a little out of place, but fortunately, the wasteland was the best place to temper a person. He quickly adjusted his mindset and made himself appear more confident and composed: "How many [Red Erosion Bubbles] have you collected?"

Hongluan replied, "Most of them have already been destroyed by the Holy Maiden. We collected a total of 756 [Crimson Erosion Bubbles]. Chongba and the guards have already escorted them to the depths of the air-raid shelter. Would you like to use them?"

Durian's face had turned deathly pale with fright, and she nervously gripped her sleeves. She regretted what she had just said; it seemed that a more democratic approach was better for the shelter.

If the administrator were to act arbitrarily again and throw the Red Corrosion Liquid into the Saintess's blood, attracting a large number of Red Corrosion Monsters, these soldiers, whose spiritual energy had been depleted, would have a slim chance of survival.

The speed at which psionic energy regenerates is related to the maximum psionic energy level, and it can basically be fully restored in a day. That means a soldier with 10 points of psionic energy will need two hours to recover 1 point of psionic energy.

The higher your psionic energy level, the faster it regenerates per hour.

But no matter what, she was already exhausted, both physically and mentally. She nervously tugged at her collar; if she continued fighting, her body would really break down.

Zhong Li also keenly noticed Liu Lu's tension and concealment, and asked, "Liu Lu, are you injured?"

Durian quickly shook her head: "No, no! How could that be? I haven't been in close combat at all, I'm perfectly fine."

"Why do I see some bloodstains under your collar?" A red spot in the middle of a fair neck was so obvious that it was hard for Zhong Li not to notice it.

Upon closer inspection, Zhong Li realized that it didn't seem to be blood; it looked more like a tattoo.

But Liu Lu is clearly not the type of girl who would get a tattoo. She is a typical clean and tidy girl with a crystal-clear mind, and there is no way she would get a tattoo.

Upon hearing this, Zhuque's expression suddenly changed, her face turning pale. Her subsequent actions surprised Zhongli greatly.

She rushed up to Liulu and, ignoring Liulu's fierce resistance, tore open Liulu's collar as if committing violence.

The sound of tearing cloth, accompanied by the sorrowful and desperate cries of the durian heron, echoed in the silent night sky.

Below the girl's fair and slender neck, a patch of scarlet veins was menacingly spread around her once beautiful collarbone.

The knight captain, Suzaku, who had forcefully torn open Liulu's clothes, was now even more sorrowful than the weeping Liulu, as if the scene before her had drained all her strength.

"When did this happen?" Suzaku asked, forcing himself to speak, his gaze sharp.

Liu Lu pursed her lips, remaining silent. Her once rosy lips were now pale from the effort she had put in.

Zhongli finally recovered from the shock of the dramatic change and asked, "What happened?"

No one spoke, but a thick, unyielding sadness seemed to hang over everything.

Zhong Li instantly felt a surge of anger rising to his head. He clearly sensed that something bad had happened, and couldn't help but raise his voice, shouting, "What happened?!"

In the silence, Ye Wei sighed softly and said, "The Liulu has been corroded by the Red Erosion."

Zhong Li's eyes widened instantly, filled with disbelief and shock: "How could she be corroded like that? What will happen after corrosion? Will Huo Wu turn into one of those red-corroded monsters?"

Huo Wu sighed heavily and said, "Yes. Under the corrosive influence of the crimson haze, everyone is susceptible to corruption. Once spiritual energy is depleted, the probability of corruption increases hundreds of times."

Is there any way to salvage this?

He was met with silence.

A moment later, Liu Lu wiped away her tears, forced a smile, and said, "It's alright. The corrosion isn't progressing very fast; I can hold on for a long time. If I can't hold on any longer, I'll just kill myself. Hasn't the monastery been doing this all these years?"

Zhong Li immediately and decisively shook his head. He couldn't accept it. He couldn't accept that the girl who loved to laugh the most in the shelter had been corrupted into an ugly monster.

She was the most boisterous, but also the most beautiful and cheerful person in the shelter; she shouldn't have ended up like this.

So Zhongli calmly said, "Don't lose heart, perhaps I have the ability to save you."