245: City Construction Order

"Tang Ping, this is the man." Beside He Zhixin, a gaunt, dark-skinned Middle-aged Man in his forties or fifties, with graying hair and hands crisscrossed with deep and shallow scars, stepped forward. He was likely a farmer or migrant worker, and at this moment, he approached timidly.

"What do you plan to use to trade for my bloodline? I hope what you offer can truly satisfy me." Tang Ping observed the man, unable to fathom what valuable item he could possibly produce. He suddenly felt he had been a bit reckless.

"Sir, sir, this item of mine, you will absolutely be satisfied with it. This is what I got from the first treasure chest I found when the apocalypse first descended." The gaunt Middle-aged Man quickly spoke, his body hunched, carefully taking out an item: "I want to use this to get a bloodline for my son. With this bloodline, he will no longer be inherently inferior to others, and even my grandchildren and great-grandchildren will not be. If I give him this, he shouldn't blame me for bringing him into this world. My son dropped out of school at sixteen and hasn't returned home in ten years, but just now, he contacted me and gave me many things: food, water, clothes, blankets, some miscellaneous items, and a few experience stones. I knew then that he was about to die."

The gaunt Middle-aged Man was already in tears, his hand trembling as he held up a token: "This thing is very precious, very precious. I originally planned to keep it, perhaps for when I found my son and he might need it. I didn't expect that as soon as I found him, it would actually be used. I beg you, besides trading for a bloodline, also trade for a life potion. An F-rank one is enough, an F-rank life potion is enough. My son is also an F-rank..."

At this moment, upon seeing the token, Tang Ping's hand instantly clenched, almost wanting to kill for the treasure. But remembering that the other party had come to trade with him, he suppressed his killing intent and, with an excited tone, quickly took the token: "Alright, I agree to this trade. As for the life potion, it's not that an F-rank Talent User uses an F-rank life potion; it depends on the injury. Your son is almost dead, so an F-rank life potion definitely won't work. I won't take advantage of you. This is a bottle of A-rank life potion, and also a bottle of King Worm pupa fluid. Even if he's missing limbs, or has shattered bones, with enough pupa fluid, he can recover. However, this stuff is very precious, so I can only give you one bottle."

"Truly, thank you, thank you so much, sir." The gaunt Middle-aged Man still wanted to kneel, but Tang Ping shook his head and helped him up: "It's just a trade; there's no need for this. Moreover, this item is very important to me. If you ever need any help in the future, you can come find me."

Communicating with Zhang Xile in the base, he retrieved some more items: "These are two F-rank experience stones upgraded to Level Three, and two E-rank talent upgrade stones. Consider them a small bonus."

Although for Tang Ping, these were just a small bonus, for the gaunt Middle-aged Man, they were precious items sufficient to truly establish himself in the apocalypse. After all, at present, Talent Users who could reach Level Three were truly few and far between.

"No, this won't do. This isn't within the scope of our trade." The gaunt Middle-aged Man shook his head.

"Take it. For him, this isn't even a drop in the bucket." He Zhixin had been to the Heavenly Mansion Base and knew its resources too well. This was truly less than a drop in the ocean. At the same time, he was curious about what the token was that made Tang Ping treat it with such importance.

"Thank you, thank you." The gaunt Middle-aged Man bowed repeatedly.

"As for the bloodline, I have two here, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. You can choose one." Two bloodlines appeared in Tang Ping's palm: the Ancient Tree Cang Worm Bloodline and the Ancient Azure Cloud Grass bloodline.

The Ancient Tree Cang Worm Bloodline had much higher recovery power and more health than the Azure Cloud Grass bloodline.

But the Azure Cloud Grass bloodline had stronger attack power, and its destructive force was terrifying, as Tang Ping had personally experienced.

The gaunt Middle-aged Man hesitated for a while between the two bloodlines, finally choosing the Ancient Azure Cloud Grass bloodline: "I choose this one!"

"Good, then a pleasant transaction." Tang Ping, holding the token, threw out a Shelter and immediately entered.

The gaunt Middle-aged Man also hastily contacted his son. Fortunately, his son's avatar hadn't dimmed yet. As for what happened afterward, Tang Ping had no interest in following up.

At this moment, the token appeared in his hand.

The token was entirely black, as if forged from profound iron, with two large characters clearly carved on its front: "City Founding!"

【city founding token

Effect: Possessing a city founding token grants a one-square-kilometer city foundation, and a ten-kilometer radius will be enveloped by a barrier. Entry is impossible without a pass token, and when the barrier is attacked, all those with pass tokens can replenish the barrier's energy through their pass tokens; the barrier needs to be bound to a Shelter, which will then transform into that foundation and also serve as the barrier's power source. It can absorb energy from the world to convert into barrier power. The higher the Shelter's level, the stronger the barrier, the higher the efficiency of converting barrier power, and the more barrier power stored; when operating normally, the barrier can easily block creatures corresponding to the Shelter's level. The barrier's power conversion efficiency is equivalent to the full output of one thousand A-rank Pollution Beasts of the same level as the Shelter. Below this output, the barrier's conversion power is greater than its consumption, requiring no replenishment, and can easily block invaders.

Note: Once a Shelter is bound to a city founding token and settled, it cannot be moved; the Shelter's characteristics will be retained, and a exclusive building will be generated.

】

The city founding token, this was what Tang Ping had acquired from this trade. Its preciousness was self-evident.

But Tang Ping was now considering whether to use the location of his second Shelter to bind the city founding token, or to let Zhang Xile's Shelter bind it.

If he bound it himself, this barrier city would be directly under his control.

But if Zhang Xile bound it, it would also be indirectly under his control due to the servant contract between them. Moreover, once Zhang Xile's Shelter was bound, then the twenty-four-fold manor... Tang Ping finally made his decision: Zhang Xile's Shelter would bind it. His own mobile Shelter was out of the question, and even his second Shelter, he was unwilling to permanently place in one location. A barrier city was certainly precious, but it was ultimately an external possession. He had to prioritize; a portable Shelter would bring him immense help.

As for the so-called bases and Safe Zones, they were originally meant to gather resources and help him grow stronger, not for some grand mission to save all humanity.

Opening his friends list, Tang Ping contacted Zhang Xile again.

Half an hour later.

Zhang Xile held a token in his hand. At this moment, everyone in the base had made preparations under his command.

"A city founding token, truly incredible. Heavenly Mansion is really going to become Heavenly Mansion."