Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 248: Unexpected Harvest, Inner City Construction Team!

The so-called Alloy Prosthetic was fully named the Autonomous Intelligent Body, which was also a rare imported good.It came from Mech-Soul Shelter City, located nearly 15,000 kilometers away from Happiness City. Setting aside the price of the finished product, the transportation cost alone reached up to 400 Contribution Points per limb.

Of course, its functionality was well worth the price. It could essentially replace 90% of human bodily functions and could even be equipped with various rare modules, such as weapons and thrusters.

There were even rumors that many people in Mech-Soul Shelter City voluntarily amputated their limbs just to install these Alloy Prosthetics to increase their strength.

While the rumors claimed as much, he did not believe anyone would be stupid enough to willingly swap for a mechanical body. Looking at Luo Kuke's current state, it was obvious how agonizing it felt to lose one's flesh and blood.

"Get some good rest. Call me when you are discharged."

After finishing the cleaning, Cheng Ye reached out and patted Luo Kuke on the shoulder.

According to the transplant requirements for the Alloy Prosthetic, Luo Kuke would have to stay in Revival Medical for another half a month until his vital signs completely stabilized before the implantation surgery could take place.

After the two exchanged communication numbers, Cheng Ye glanced at the unfinished fruit on the table and simply grabbed a plastic bag to pack it all up.

He was going to look for Wang Kang later, which meant inevitably visiting his house. Now he would not even need to prepare a gift.

However, when it was time to leave the Revival Medical space, four Guards dressed in law enforcement uniforms approached the Large Golden Minivan assigned to escort him out.

The captain leading them spoke respectfully, "Inspector Cheng, according to the Inner City Execution Rules, Inspectors below the fifth stage do not have the right to move freely within the Inner City. You must report your destination and be escorted by us. However, the Elder has specially approved Inner City walking privileges for both you and Inspector Wang. Every time you enter the city, as long as you conceal your face, you can move around freely without restrictions."

The words sounded polite and accommodating, but Cheng Ye did not let himself get swept away by them.

On the surface, this was the same treatment as a High-Tier Inspector, but the core issue lay in the privilege of "entering the Inner City" itself.

"Did the Elder specifically approve my entry into the Inner City?"

As his voice fell, an invisible sense of oppression spread out. Cold sweat instantly beaded on the captain's forehead, and he bowed even lower. "Y-Yes! The Elder has specifically granted you entry privileges twice every half year. Because every entry and exit consumes the Red Tiger's Vitality, the standard quota is set this way. If you have additional needs, you can submit an application to the Inspection Station."

"How do I conceal my face?" Cheng Ye gave a slight nod.

Twice every half year meant four times a year. This quota was reasonably fair.

Inner City safety was no longer a major perk to him now, but "having the privilege" itself was proof of a shift in power. Whether he used it or not was one thing; having it was another.

Seeing Cheng Ye's attitude soften, the captain sighed in relief. He turned and retrieved a device resembling a lapel microphone from the vehicle. "You just need to wear this."

Cheng Ye clipped it onto his collar as instructed. A flash of blue light swept over him. He did not feel anything special, but when he looked into the mirror the captain handed him, he found that the proportions of his facial features had been subtly altered.

It was not a complete transformation, but at the very least, he could not be recognized at first glance.

'What a good item,' he praised inwardly.

"Before you enter the city each time, you just need to pair this with a Face-Concealing Cloak. There is no time limit for your stay in the Inner City," the captain added.

"A Face-Concealing Cloak..."

Cheng Ye got into the vehicle and instructed, "Take me to Happy Garden."

After leaving Revival Medical, the Large Golden Minivan drove into the Spiral Passage once again.

The details he had not been able to see clearly before were finally apparent now. The car windows suddenly turned dark—not because of some special tint, but because the passage was expanding and contracting with a strange Black Substance.

The Large Golden Minivan was able to ascend so smoothly entirely because this Black Substance formed a soft cushion underneath, steadily supporting the vehicle. The entire journey felt like walking on level ground, without the slightest bump.

"What is this Black Substance?" Cheng Ye asked curiously.

"This is the Black Tiger..." the captain replied, then scratched his head. "We do not know exactly what it is either. Like the Red Tiger, it is an entity that guards Happy Space."

"Tiger..." Cheng Ye grew thoughtful.

'Could it be a Transcendent Immortal Item cultivated by Humans, just like that red climbing ivy?'

'Could the crooked path that Happiness City took be their endless research into these kinds of entities?'

It was not until the Large Golden Minivan was lifted out of the underground space and its motor restarted to move forward that he reeled in his thoughts.

Finally, he had returned to the world of human activity!

No matter how safe the underground was, and no matter how perfectly Revival Medical simulated light and wind, that artificial environment was ultimately too far detached from reality.

Cheng Ye rolled down the window and greedily breathed in the air. The scent was unchanged, but it held the sense of freedom he craved.

This kind of shackled safety was never what he wanted.

Compared to the Medical Clinic in the buffer zone, his eleven days in Revival Medical made him miss his doghouse in the buffer zone even more.

As the vehicle drove out of the Administrative District, Cheng Ye examined his surroundings like a newcomer. Everything felt novel.

The trees lining the main road stretched out their branches and leaves. Fine, fragmented light filtered through the gaps in the foliage, casting dappled shadows onto the sidewalk.

It was currently rush hour. Men and women wearing various work uniforms and carrying canvas bags walked with brisk steps, relaxed smiles playing on their lips.

The door to the corner grocery store was wide open. Wooden shelves were stacked with daily necessities. The proprietress sat behind the counter, tallying accounts using her Defense Terminal's calculator, occasionally looking up to chat with acquaintances. The scene was brimming with the vibrant hustle and bustle of life.

Especially when the Large Golden Minivan stopped at an intersection to wait for the traffic lights, Cheng Ye suddenly had the illusion that he had time-traveled back to the old era.

It was simply too blissful here!

Compared to life in the Wasteland Wilderness, this place was practically Paradise!

It felt far more reassuring than the satellite towns of Kindling Shelter City.

The light turned green, and the vehicle continued forward. It soon drove into the Inner City West Residential Area, stopping in front of a large community complex containing twelve western-style apartment buildings.

The iron gates at the main entrance were wide open, and the neon sign bearing the stylized words "Happy Garden" was still blinking.

This was considered one of the earliest communities in the Inner City, and it was also the place where his predecessor and Wang Kang had grown up.

After getting out of the car, Cheng Ye's gaze subconsciously swept across the buildings. The lights were on in the sixth-floor apartment where his predecessor used to live. It had likely been reassigned to someone else after he left to become an Inspector.

He then looked toward the side of the neighborhood. The spot where the Happy Flower Shop was supposed to be in his memories had now been changed into the Knitted Handicraft Clothing Store.

The girl who worked at the flower shop and had fallen in love with his predecessor was also long gone.

"Now, even the last traceable fragment of memory is gone."

Cheng Ye sighed softly.

Even though this was the place where his predecessor had lived for over a decade, he felt absolutely no sense of familiarity coming here, as if he had never set foot in it before.

That fleeting wisp of memory was like an unreal dream—giving him a vague sense of familiarity, yet leaving him completely estranged.

Carrying the bag of fruit, Cheng Ye followed the route in his memories toward Building Four, Unit One.

Public security in the Inner City was excellent, so there were not even basic security fixtures on the ground floor. He walked all the way up to the third floor, stopped in front of door 301, and knocked lightly on the door.

At the sound of the knocking, a string of hurried footsteps echoed from within.

Cheng Ye could not help but pull his lips into a slight smile, but when the door opened, the unfamiliar face that appeared made him freeze.

It was a middle-aged man around forty years old, wearing black-framed glasses, a pristine white shirt, and cargo pants. He looked capable yet somewhat reserved.

"Who are you?"

"Who are you?" Both men spoke in unison.

Cheng Ye peeked past him to confirm the house number and asked, "Where is Wang Kang?"

"You are..."

The man was stunned at first, but then he saw Cheng Ye press his collar. His facial features subtly shifted back to their original appearance, and the man immediately realized, "You are Inspector Cheng?"

"You know me?" Cheng Ye frowned slightly.

The man swallowed hard and nodded hastily. "I am Lin Xu, an Architect from the Inner City's Public Works Department. Please, come in. Inspector Wang just stepped out and should be back very soon."

While he was speaking, a woman in her forties walked out from inside the apartment.

Seeing Cheng Ye, she was initially taken aback before speaking in disbelief, "Ye?"

"It is me, Aunt Su."

Cheng Ye smiled and pulled the door open a bit further. With his current physique, he nearly filled the entire doorframe. Like a composed behemoth, he naturally exuded a sense of oppression.

Even though he deliberately restrained himself, Wang Kang's mother, Su Xiu, was still startled. "How did you get so muscular?"

"I trained while on duty outside. The Wilderness is dangerous, after all, so I need to have Stamina," Cheng Ye replied in a genial tone.

Lin Xu was the first to recover. He hurriedly took the bag of fruit from Cheng Ye's hands. "Inspector Cheng, please have a seat. I was just about to cook. You came at the perfect time to taste my cooking today."

"Cook?"

This unfamiliar term caused Cheng Ye to pause in slight astonishment, but after following them into the house, he noticed a large pile of vegetables on the floor, along with two bags of flour and two bags of rice.

"Xiao Kang brought all of this back. He said that fresh foods like these are going to be popularized in the future, starting with the Inner City, so we don't have to always drink nutrient paste."

Su Xiu said with a smile, her eyes curving into crescents brimming with joy, "I thought that when you two went out, you would be just like his father, only coming back once every few years. I never expected we'd see each other again in just a few months."

"It is just good luck. We were appreciated by our superiors, so we'll be able to come in and see you often from now on."

Cheng Ye looked around. Wang Kang's house hadn't changed much; it was still a two-bedroom, two-living-room layout. However, the old, broken chandelier and worn-out sofa had been replaced, and the flooring had been redone. The whole place exuded a thriving, lively atmosphere.

"Ah, Ye, you boys still need to prioritize your work. You cannot always be thinking about coming back."

Su Xiu lectured him with feigned strictness. "Xiao Kang's father was a Fourth-Stage Inspector, yet he couldn't even manage to come in to see us once in four or five years. You boys haven't even passed your Probationary Period yet. You absolutely must not get arrogant just because you are favored by your leaders."

Yet, the more she said this, the more Cheng Ye felt that the Inspectors who had hung around Cheng Long were truly ruthless.

It was practically abandoning their wives and children. None of them cared about their families; they solely strived in the outside world for the sake of their own goals.

"But you've grown quite a bit taller. The clothes Auntie knitted for you before probably won't fit anymore."

Su Xiu suddenly remembered something. She turned and went into the bedroom, carrying out a large bag and dumping out four sweaters of different colors.

These were clearly knitted according to his previous physique, the yarn possessing a fine, delicate texture.

"This yarn was shipped back from Sha Province. The quality is incredibly good. I originally planned to finish knitting them before winter and have Uncle Lin ask someone to bring them to you. The clothes in the buffer zone are both expensive and poor in quality."

She pulled Cheng Ye to his feet and held a sweater that was a size too small against his body to measure. "You can wear this red one for the New Year; it'll make you look vibrant. Wear the brown one when meeting your superiors; it's dignified... Don't worry. Auntie will take your measurements in a bit and unravel them at the store tomorrow to re-knit them. I guarantee they'll be resized before winter, so you'll have a change of clothes."

Su Xiu rambled on, occasionally comparing colors and adjusting the position of the neckline. She did not act the least bit distant because of Cheng Ye's current status or the changes in his physique.

Cheng Ye cooperated with her measuring, looking at himself in the mirror. The last trace of hostility lingering in his eyes from high-intensity training gradually dissipated, becoming exceptionally gentle.

After sizing him up, Su Xiu fetched a measuring tape to check his current height, shoulder width, and waistline.

"Oh my, you're already 1.91 meters tall. This is almost catching up to your father's height."

"Aunt Su, that Knitted Handicraft Clothing Store by the entrance is run by you, right? Did you take over the flower shop that was there before?" Cheng Ye asked suddenly.

"Ah, you saw it?" Su Xiu nodded eagerly. "I took it over less than a month ago. The previous flower shop owner was too unlucky. During the Decoy Starfish Disaster, Infected Bodies barged in, and the shop couldn't stay open after that."

"What about Lü Xin?" Cheng Ye asked again.

"She's fine," Su Xiu paused for a moment and forced a smile. "After the flower shop closed, I wanted to hire her to help out, but she went to apply for a job at the broadcasting station instead. I heard she's doing quite well now and is about to become a permanent employee soon."

"Oh." Cheng Ye nodded, understanding in his heart.

He had no attachments to his predecessor's feelings, but he simply had not expected things to end this way.

Just as they were talking, footsteps echoed from the stairwell, followed by the sound of a key turning in the lock.

Wang Kang strode in. When he saw Cheng Ye in the living room, his face instantly lit up with joy. "Hey, Brother Cheng, you're finally dis..."

"You finally finished your mission!"

He spoke so hastily that he almost let the word "discharged" slip. Fortunately, Cheng Ye gave him a subtle glare, prompting him to hastily correct himself.

"Xiao Ye, you two chat. I'll go check on the kitchen." Su Xiu tactfully gave them space, turning and walking into the kitchen.

Wang Kang, however, pulled Cheng Ye into another bedroom. Shutting the door, he anxiously asked, "Brother Cheng, is your body okay? You didn't suffer these past few days, did you?"

"I am perfectly fine. I am in better condition than you."

Cheng Ye leaned against the headboard and casually picked up a comic book nearby, flipping through it. "Why didn't you wait for me so we could be discharged together?"

"Don't even mention it. Lying in the hospital ward every day felt like being in prison. I was bored to death."

Wang Kang pulled over a stool and sat down with a look of disdain. "There were so many people hovering around taking care of me, whatever I wanted to eat was available, and there was even entertainment. But I just couldn't sit still."

"Isn't a peaceful life good?" Cheng Ye raised an eyebrow.

"No! I was going crazy with anxiety!" Wang Kang curled his lips. "My head is full of thoughts about Dabo Town right now. I don't know how those residents are doing. I asked for days but couldn't get any solid news."

"Relax, they have all been arranged to be treated at the Medical Clinic. They were just driven mentally unstable by the influence of the Transcendent Immortal Item. They'll be fine after a period of rest. It is not the same for them as it is for us," Cheng Ye said softly.

Watching Wang Kang look so eager to go "adventuring," he suddenly felt a bit moved.

Times had truly changed. He never expected that even a "Trainee Inspector" like Wang Kang would find peaceful days boring.

This made him think of a certain saying: the journey of life was an adventure in itself.

A tranquil life was like copying and pasting the previous day—it was indeed no longer suitable for Inspectors like them.

Cheng Ye picked up the water cup on the bedside table and took a sip. Suddenly remembering something, he asked:

"That... Lin Xu?"

"He is my stepdad!" Wang Kang chimed in without hesitation. Appearing quite satisfied with the shock plastered across Cheng Ye's face, he added with a touch of smugness, "My mom found a new partner. He's a pretty good guy, right? He takes excellent care of my mom."

"Cough... cough... Your dad?" Cheng Ye almost spat out his mouthful of water.

"Yeah! My mom is only forty-five. She still has decades ahead of her. She can't possibly spend them all alone."

Wang Kang explained seriously, "Uncle Lin is an Architect from the Inner City's Public Works Department. His job is stable, and he is exceptionally considerate. If nothing else, he certainly knows how to take care of a person better than my biological father, Wang Cheng, who vanished for four or five years at a time."

When mentioning Wang Cheng, his tone inevitably carried a hint of resentment.

Cheng Ye stayed silent for a moment before nodding lightly, offering no further judgment on the matter.

Wang Cheng was already dead. There was no need for Su Xiu to cling to the past for the rest of her life. Finding someone who could mutually take care of her was perfectly reasonable.

He changed the subject. "Aunt Su mentioned that Lü Xin went to the broadcasting station. Is that true?"

"Uh..." Wang Kang froze, his expression suddenly darkening as his voice dropped. "Brother Cheng, she didn't make it. She's gone."

"Was it during the Decoy Starfish Disaster?"

"Yeah. Too many Fusion Entities charged in that night. Over a hundred people died in the Inner City. She and the flower shop owner couldn't hide in time. It was a completely unprovoked tragedy."

Cheng Ye paused. In the end, he let out a sigh, summing it up with four words: "Time and fate dictate."

Death is like the extinguishing of a lamp.

Matters of life and death were nothing new in the wasteland. He did not bring up the topic of going to pay respects.

Perhaps from the day his predecessor stepped out of Happiness City's gates, both of them had silently accepted that they would likely never meet again in this lifetime. Dwelling on the past now would simply be superfluous.

Let the past remain thoroughly in the past.

Seeing Cheng Ye looking a bit down, Wang Kang hastily changed the topic. "Are we leaving the city tomorrow to head back to Dabo Town?"

"We'll go in the afternoon. I need to make a trip to the Research Institute in the morning. There's something I need to take care of."

Cheng Ye nodded. The two of them naturally bypassed the heavy topic and began discussing future plans for Dabo Town.

Hearing that they would be partnering with Luo Kuke to guard the town, Wang Kang showed no sign of dissatisfaction. Instead, he nodded in excitement. "That's fantastic! Having a Third-stage Inspector hold the fort will relieve so much of my pressure!"

"Don't you want to run around the Wilderness with me?"

"I'm not going!" Wang Kang shook his head, his tone very practical. "I'm really too weak right now. Going would only hold you back, and seeing the world wouldn't do me any good. Hall Master Miao said I should wait until I develop my Martial Body and master the Tiger. Only with those two can I be considered capable of walking the Wilderness alone."

Cheng Ye was slightly surprised. He hadn't expected Wang Kang to possess such clear self-awareness. He was far more mature than Cheng Ye had anticipated.

"Alright. This trip out won't take me too long anyway. Including travel time, it should only be two months."

Just then, Su Xiu's voice drifted in from the living room:

"Xiao Kang, Xiao Ye, dinner is ready! Come wash your hands and eat!"

"Coming!" The two stood up and went to the bathroom to wash their hands with Soap. Lin Xu had already brought the dishes to the table.

There were two home-cooked dishes: a cold potato shred salad and garlic chives with chopped peppers. Alongside them was a steaming pot of braised noodles. Just the smell of it carried the distinct warmth of home.

"I'm originally from Guang Province and only settled in Happiness City a few years ago. I only know how to make some simple home-style meals, so please don't mind." Lin Xu smiled as he passed over a jar of chili oil and a bottle of vinegar.

Cheng Ye picked up a mouthful of braised noodles with his chopsticks. The taste was just right; there was no need to add any extra seasoning.

He had to admit that after eating the refined meals at Revival Medical for a few days, eating this home-cooked food felt remarkably comforting.

If Happiness City could universally provide meals like this to its residents in the future, even if it took more time to cook, the sense of happiness it brought would far outstrip drinking nutrient paste.

Cheng Ye restrained himself after eating two bowls of braised noodles and put down his chopsticks.

Su Xiu went to clear the dishes, while Lin Xu walked over carrying a stack of documents. He sat down on the sofa. "Inspector Cheng, Xiao Kang told me about your plan to repair the Dabo Town Hydroelectric Station. I spent the past few days reviewing the relevant data and numbers, and I've drafted a complete repair plan. Take a look."

"Hmm?"

A bit surprised, Cheng Ye took the documents and flipped through them.

Good heavens, this was truly professional.

This twenty-two-page document was practically a comprehensive construction manual. Everything from the materials list to the scheduling of work procedures was laid out clearly.

As long as the materials and manpower were in place, the work could be completed in ten days at most.

Yet, before he could say a word, Lin Xu handed over another stack of documents, this one over a hundred pages long. "Xiao Kang also mentioned that you plan to develop Dabo Town. I had my team create a sandbox simulation and Basic Architectural Blueprints. Please take a look at this as well."

Cheng Ye didn't immediately flip through it. Instead, he asked casually, "Uncle Lin, you probably didn't do this all by yourself, right?"

"My team helped. There are twelve of us in total, all colleagues from the Public Works Department. We stayed back and worked overtime for a few days to get this out." Lin Xu pushed up his glasses, unable to conceal the confidence gleaming in his eyes.

Cheng Ye gave a slight nod, but his tone became even calmer. "Once you go out there, you won't be able to just return to the Inner City whenever you please."

"Inspector Cheng, I am very well aware of that," Lin Xu immediately replied. "Xiao Kang's mother doesn't understand these things, but I know what it's like on the outside. I figured that once Dabo Town is built up, I could head out there and be of some help."

Cheng Ye instantly looked at Wang Kang. Wang Kang smiled and added, "Once Dabo Town is properly developed, I plan to have my mom move out there so it's easier to look after her. When Uncle Lin heard about this, he volunteered to go along as well."

'At least he didn't say "my dad,"' Cheng Ye grumbled internally. He did not respond right away, but instead earnestly flipped through the architectural blueprints, pondering in his heart.

'Lin Xu wants to go out with us? Is it really just because he heard Wang Kang's plans for Dabo Town and saw potential in it?'

'Or does he understand the true value of the privileges held by two Trainee Inspectors who can return to the Inner City at will?'

As for Transcendent Immortal Items, Cheng Ye did not think that such matters could be known by an Inner City Architect.

He read through the documents very carefully, even proactively asking questions whenever he stumbled upon certain issues.

Lin Xu's expression shifted from his initial refined politeness to a gradual cautiousness, before finally becoming completely engrossed. He even unbuttoned his shirt collar, grabbed a drawing board and a pen, and sketched while explaining.

The team he led had proposed an architectural layout similar to that of Happiness City.

Leveraging Dabo Town's geographical advantages, they would centralize the vital facilities in the water divergence area, then isolate it with a perimeter wall to forge a secure core zone, much like the Inner City.

This way, those living inside would be "protected" by the residents living on the outside.

"This is a solid concept, but a few things need adjusting."

Cheng Ye set down the blueprints and spoke with firm resolve. "I do not want a safe zone that shrinks inward. Instead, I want to cast a wide net and lay down a massive scale for the entirety of Dabo Town!"

"Massive scale..." Lin Xu bit his lip and immediately began calculating costs. "If we spread out the construction, the amount of building materials, equipment, and manpower required will multiply by several times at least. The costs will skyrocket."

"Budget is not an issue. I have plenty of money."

Cheng Ye flashed a rare smile. Taking the pen from Lin Xu's hand, he drew a heavy, large circle on the blueprint.

Using the existing Dabo Town as the center, he circled an area spanning a four-kilometer radius, encompassing a massive total of 50 square kilometers.

Not only was the Hydroelectric Station perfectly enclosed within it, but more importantly, this four-kilometer radius also included the coastal banks of the Huangshui River!

"We will build according to this scope. Dabo Town has only one core objective: I want to firmly grip both the White Water River and the Huangshui River in my own hands, under my direct supervision and management!"

Cheng Ye tapped his fingertip on the two rivers depicted on the map, his gaze exceedingly determined.

"In the future, no matter who comes looking for these two rivers—even if it is the city lords of neighboring shelter cities—they will have to get my permission first!"