Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 280: The Happiness Alliance, Fully Operational!

'Has Yu Yong been modified by the Elders? To think he can absolutely control the power of the Ghost Shadow Spider...'Cheng Ye was astonished. This was somewhat similar to the blessing Tan Ming had given him, but the difference lay in the fact that Tan Ming's blessing was much more thorough. As long as he didn't actively use it, there wouldn't be any negative side effects.

Furthermore, he wouldn't need to rely on regular exposure to two types of light to suppress the fusion rate of the Infection Source in his body.

However, one was a Benign Infection Source and the other was a Malignant Infection Source. Being able to suppress the latter to such an extent was enough to prove that the Elder's methods were far from ordinary.

"Once we reach Dabo Town, I do not want you using this ability again without my permission."

Cheng Ye paused, his tone growing stern. "If you repeatedly use it without authorization, I will apply directly to the Elders to have you sent back to the Containment Room to reflect on your actions."

"Relax, I was just giving you a demonstration," Yu Yong said, raising a hand to tap his forehead. "Compared to my brain, this kind of power isn't even worth mentioning."

'Oh?'

'Quite confident, isn't he?'

Cheng Ye subconsciously opened his interface and glanced at Yu Yong's Cooperation Level.

Unfortunately, despite this guy's pretty words, his Cooperation Level had unconsciously dropped back down to four percent.

'Is it because he entered a state of absolute rationality after suppressing the Mother Source that he appears so distant?'

'Or is it that Yu Yong still hasn't completely lowered his guard around me yet?'

Fortunately, regardless of the situation, as long as Yu Yong stayed by his side, there would be plenty of opportunities to search for clues.

Cheng Ye wasn't in a hurry. The two left the Research Institute and headed straight for the Buffer Zone without wandering around the Inner City.

Along the way, Yu Yong appeared exceptionally curious, constantly observing the Inner City's architecture and pedestrians. But the moment they stepped through the Happy Gate and entered the Buffer Zone, his expression immediately cooled.

"What, does this place disappoint you?"

"It's alright. It's just about the development level of a Xinghuo E-Class District. I've seen plenty like it." Yu Yong hesitated, ultimately choosing not to mention that during his fusion state, he had once attempted to infect everyone in the Buffer Zone.

It was only because the group of Drifters that came later had piqued the Ghost Shadow Spider's interest that he chose to change his target.

He never expected that this very change of target would alert Happiness City, ultimately leading to Yu Erlan hunting him down.

He narrowed his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the dense crowds and antique architecture of the Buffer Zone, before abruptly changing the subject. "Your satellite town should be about the same as this place, right?"

"Uh..." Cheng Ye paused. Following his line of sight, he replied vaguely, "Probably about the same?"

The foot traffic was indeed comparable. Having three thousand people crammed into a single area in Dabo Town made it quite lively, too.

"That's good," Yu Yong nodded in relief. "If you can provide me with a suitable research environment, I might be able to leave you with a few technologies capable of generating some revenue. Your Happiness City's technological development is far too slow, especially when it comes to civilian tech. It's even more archaic than the Old Era."

"I've already applied for a batch of equipment from the Research Institute. It will be delivered to Dabo Town in shipments. I imagine it should be enough for your use," Cheng Ye quickly agreed.

He didn't expect Yu Yong to come up with any groundbreaking technological breakthroughs, but if he could bring one or two new technologies to solve their employment issues, that would be more than enough.

After crossing the blocks and returning to the B-7 District, Cheng Ye kept a low profile. He made a direct call to Lin Xu, telling him to bring the construction crew out to meet on the street.

A total of seven engineers arrived; two brought their families, while the rest were single.

More than half of Lin Xu's team had been unwilling to follow them out. This was completely normal. Not everyone was willing to abandon the stability of the Inner City to chase after some vague, unsubstantiated opportunity in a satellite town.

For the majority of people, their lifelong goal was to grind on the outside so they could eventually enter the Inner City and enjoy a comfortable life.

Now that they had finally achieved their dreams, voluntarily leaving would be putting the cart before the horse.

"Uncle Lin, you all head to the South Inspection Station and wait for me. I need to swing by the Central Station to pick someone up," Cheng Ye instructed.

"Understood!" Lin Xu nodded immediately, then remembered something and added, "Our tools haven't been sent out from the Inner City yet..."

"Don't worry, the common tools are already prepared over in Dabo Town. If anything is missing, just make a list for me, and I'll go to the industrial zone to purchase them," Cheng Ye promised.

With that assurance, Lin Xu finally felt at ease to lead his people away.

Cheng Ye then hurried non-stop to the Central Inspection Station. From a distance, he spotted Luo Kuke waiting at the entrance.

Seeing the thin, gaunt Yu Yong behind him, Luo Kuke stared blankly for a moment before asking in confusion, "And who might this be?"

"Yu Yong. He used to be a researcher for Kindling, but now he works with me," Cheng Ye introduced truthfully.

He could visibly feel that the moment those words were spoken, Yu Yong's tense body suddenly relaxed a fraction. The faint trace of panic lingering around him dissipated, as if he had quietly stripped away a layer of armor.

Cheng Ye opened his interface for another quick glance. Sure enough, his Cooperation Level had doubled, reaching eight percent.

'Good lord, did he really have that little trust in Inspector Cheng?'

This was getting interesting. Yu Yong was both a Kindling Fourth-Level Researcher and a Source-Binder. He definitely hid plenty of excellent skills, leaving plenty of room for conquest.

"Oh?" Luo Kuke's face filled with surprise as he looked Yu Yong up and down. He couldn't help but say, "How long has it been since Researcher Yu had a proper meal? Shouldn't you take him to get some hot food and a shower first?"

"Well, we're already at the Inspection Station. It's both convenient and free here," Cheng Ye laughed, tilting his chin toward the building.

Just like the north and south stations, the Central Inspection Station was equipped with shower rooms.

He arranged for Yu Yong to wash up and had the staff find him a fresh set of clothes.

Cheng Ye then went around to the Logistics Department to ask some questions. A Core Inspector's authority was equivalent to a Fourth-Stage Inspector, meaning his corresponding Defense Terminal also needed to be upgraded. He was swapping his standard public model for an advanced version. Aside from the exterior shell remaining identical to the old model, the internal components were entirely imported.

"Inspector Cheng, your Advanced Defense Communicator was finished yesterday. We were actually planning to send someone to deliver it to Dabo Town today." The Logistics staff member opened a safe and pulled out a heavy black device, handing it over.

"This Defense Terminal has a standby time of fourteen days, and it comes with two backup power options: solar charging and a hand-crank generator," the staff member explained while demonstrating. "As long as you're within the Kindling Alliance's signal coverage, you can connect directly to Happiness City's Core Communication System via the network. Even if you go out of signal range, it can still function as a Radio Transceiver to maintain contact with nearby teams without issue."

Cheng Ye tapped his Identity Badge against the Defense Terminal's sensor area. The screen quickly lit up with the words 'Activation Successful'.

Just like the Kindling Terminal, the activation time lasted for a solid 168 hours. It made him half-suspect that this was just a Kindling Terminal wearing a new shell, with the exact same functions inside.

"If I go over to Dabo Town, will it activate normally?"

"Of course. The signal network has already been laid out to Wenlu County; the transmission speed will just be a bit slower."

"That's fine. I can just take my time downloading things once I'm there," Cheng Ye said, handing back his old Defense Terminal.

Seeing him walk out with the new Defense Terminal, Luo Kuke blinked but didn't crowd around curiously to inspect it.

Cheng Ye was momentarily stunned before quickly catching on. He asked, "You wouldn't happen to be getting promoted to the Fourth-Stage, would you?"

"Soon, soon."

Luo Kuke smiled, his tone carrying a hint of anticipation. "Speaking of which, I really ought to thank Zhou Changhai for taking his people and defecting. That conveniently freed up a Fourth-Stage position. There are still a lot of people at the station waiting for a quota. Given the requirements for the Fourth-Stage, if no one else completes an Extinction-level mission, that spot will most likely fall into my lap."

"Congratulations!" Cheng Ye said sincerely.

For Luo Kuke, this was practically an Instant Ascent. He was originally doomed to be stuck at the Third-Stage for the rest of his life, but now he had a chance to be directly promoted to the Fourth-Stage. Furthermore, starting from the Fourth-Stage, climbing even higher was actually less difficult than progressing through the Third-Stage.

Besides, even though the Third-Stage was already considered a High-Tier Inspector, the Fourth-Stage offered far more authority and better benefits. It was a major leap for anyone.

By the time Yu Yong finished his shower and emerged in fresh clothes, it was already past one in the afternoon.

Cheng Ye didn't breathe a sigh of relief until they arrived at the South Station, left the Buffer Zone, and arranged for everyone to board the Public Bus.

Sitting in the back seat of the pickup truck, Yu Yong watched the South Inspection Station fade into the distance through the rearview mirror. He glanced at Cheng Ye's visibly relaxed expression and thoughtfully spoke up, "Time has long since proven that Kindling's Satellite City Model is a failure."

"Oh?" Luo Kuke, who had been staring out the window, couldn't help but turn back in surprise. "What makes you say that?"

"The core flaw of the Satellite City Model lies in its fragmentation and imbalance," Yu Yong explained. "When Kindling first planned it out, they wanted to use the core city to project influence onto the surrounding satellite towns, diverting population and industries. But they forgot that the siphon effect of resources is far more stubborn than anticipated. Satellite towns can only take on low-end manufacturing and residential functions, while the vital industries, technology, and resources are all hoarded in the core city. Over time, the satellite towns become resource depressions, while the core city grows increasingly bloated. This model seems to disperse the pressure, but in reality, it just creates a new form of fragmentation."

"Spatial fragmentation, resource allocation fragmentation, and even the fragmentation of the people's will. Even more fatally, this imbalance breeds endless power struggles. Kindling thought they could replicate the successful experiences of the Old Era, but they ignored the need for 'synergy' in the current age. That's why, right before I left Kindling, they were already researching a new model for the next era."

"Synergy..." Luo Kuke caught onto the key word, muttering it repeatedly before gently shaking his head. "Even without satellite towns, we haven't achieved 'synergy' right now either."

"Almost all of our industries are piled up in the industrial zone. The Buffer Zone is exactly like Kindling's satellite towns—it only handles the most basic, low-end manufacturing and residential functions."

"That's because your scale isn't large enough yet," Yu Yong said bluntly. "You don't even have a population of one million, so how can you even talk about synergy? On the contrary, you need centralized management even more in order to increase manufacturing efficiency."

'I didn't expect this guy to have such a poisonous tongue... well, more like low emotional intelligence.'

Seeing Luo Kuke's awkward expression through the central rearview mirror, Cheng Ye quickly spoke up to smooth things over. "This synergy you mentioned, does it mean moving the industries down from Tinder Rail Mountain and letting them develop in the local satellite towns?"

"More or less," Yu Yong nodded. "Resources are too heavily concentrated on Tinder Rail Mountain and the frontline satellite towns. The satellite towns in the rear have absolutely no room to develop. They're no different from dead weight, which effectively suffocates their potential."

"But if the industries are actually relocated, wouldn't they be completely destroyed in the event of an Infection Source crisis?" Cheng Ye countered.

As soon as he said that, Yu Yong immediately shut his mouth, freezing with a complicated expression.

As a researcher who spent year-round in an absolutely safe environment, he had clearly overlooked this crucial issue. It was precisely because of the "safety barrier" provided by Tinder Rail Mountain that the core industries were guaranteed to be safe from Infection Source threats.

It was just like when C35 was destroyed. The entire city's population turned into Infected Bodies of the Ghost Shadow Spider, yet from the overarching perspective of Kindling Shelter City, it couldn't even be considered a major flesh wound. As long as the pollution was cleared out, they could quickly arrange for new residents to move in and take over those low-end manufacturing jobs.

"Eat rice one mouthful at a time, walk roads one step at a time," Cheng Ye said slowly, pointing out the reality. "The Satellite City Model is currently the most secure choice. Rashly promoting a new model requires adapting to local conditions. This isn't research; you can't just brainstorm and experiment on a whim. As a decision-maker, every single idea has to be considered from the perspective of the shelter city, while also keeping the citizens in mind. Only then can you ensure your ideas are grounded in reality and not just a castle in the air."

The confusion in Luo Kuke's eyes gradually faded, while Yu Yong furrowed his brows and fell deep into thought.

"Then what about your Dabo Town?"

"Happiness City did indeed draw inspiration from the Satellite City Model, but we didn't just copy it wholesale. We made adaptations suited to our local conditions."

Cheng Ye explained, "Right now, all the satellite towns are being built and pushed forward by Inspectors. My Dabo Town happens to be a link in these adaptations."

In preparation for the massive wave of satellite town construction, the Inspection Station had already dispatched all of its forces.

Only by securing a dominant position in the satellite towns first would the Inspection Station have the qualifications to contend with the Transcendent Faction.

Ding Yishan clearly understood this point, which was exactly why he completely barred Cheng Ye from returning to the Buffer Zone to meddle in internal affairs. He only wanted him to focus on developing satellite towns like Dabo Town.

Once the satellite towns gained enough traction, the pressure from the Integrity Supervision Department would naturally collapse on its own. The Inspection Station would then be able to rise again, returning to its place among Happiness City's three major factions alongside the industrial zone and the military legion.

"Adaptations..." Yu Yong was still pondering the word when he suddenly looked up and asked, "Could it be that you don't just want simple satellite towns, but are trying to forge an alliance of shelter cities like the Kindling Alliance?"

"Heh..." Cheng Ye chuckled noncommittally and didn't answer.

In truth, the key to understanding this layer of adaptation was something he had figured out during his nightly review after being pestered by Qin Zhaoye that day.

No shelter city would be willing to permanently rely on an alliance established by others.

The Kindling Alliance was certainly a massive force, but the shelter cities within it would always be subjected to numerous restrictions. They were entirely unable to step up and formulate the rules themselves.

If Happiness City truly wanted to develop and grow stronger, it ultimately had to take the same path as Guanghong.

If the Guanghong Alliance could exist, why couldn't there be a Happiness Alliance?

The satellite town construction they were currently pushing with all their might was, in fact, a test of this model's feasibility.

And precisely because of this, Happiness City was willing to hemorrhage money at any cost, frantically distributing construction materials to every single satellite town.

If it were truly as Yu Yong said, that satellite towns only needed to take on low-end industries and residential functions, then just building a few more areas similar to the Buffer Zone would be enough. There would be absolutely no need to pour all their efforts into establishing independent satellite towns.

The vehicle drove steadily toward Wenlu County. Yu Yong didn't speak again; he merely lowered his head, deeply contemplating the differences between the two models.

It was clear to see that he truly possessed an incredibly strong Obsession with "walking down a clear, traversable path."

Whether it was during their previous conversation, his chat with Elder Zeng, or right now.

In his eyes, a path that could be successfully traversed and had a visible finish line was far more important than blindly fumbling through trial and error.

Cheng Ye couldn't judge whether this extreme mindset was right or wrong.

After all, to become a Fourth-Level Researcher in Kindling Shelter City, that level of ability would be more than enough to serve as the director of a Research Institute in any lower-tier large shelter city.

Geniuses often harbored extreme notions that ordinary people found difficult to understand. It was precisely these notions that supported them in achieving things ordinary people could never do.

However, on second thought, Cheng Ye could roughly guess the origins of this extreme mentality.

Atop the distorted Mount Everest, there was that green stairway to heaven, as well as the mysterious Starship.

If anyone had witnessed these things that defied Cognition in their youth, and had reverse-engineered one or two unimaginable technologies, they would inevitably begin to doubt their current step-by-step efforts:

Was the path they were walking right now wrong? Was it completely contradictory to the Starship's technology? If they could just find a "thoroughfare," could it multiply the results of their efforts by ten or a hundred times?

This kind of psychological deviation required a long time to mend, to make him realize that any down-to-earth effort held meaning.

But clearly, Kindling hadn't noticed this trait in Yu Yong before, and thus failed to guide him in time.

The vehicle drove past the Wenlu County intersection, turning onto the Township Road leading to Dabo Town.

Seeing that the road to the town had already been decently constructed, Luo Kuke immediately sat up straight, his face filled with pleasant surprise. "The road is almost finished this quickly? Haven't we only been gone for a month?"

"A month is hardly short. The roads in other places were finished ages ago!" Cheng Ye was quite satisfied with this astonishment.

However, when the pickup drove into Dabo Town, seeing the unconcealable shock on Yu Yong's face still inevitably made him feel a bit awkward.

The car locks popped open, and Yu Yong pushed the door open and stepped out. He scanned his surroundings, his face completely blank.

Before his eyes was an endless expanse of plains and Wilderness. Within the town, only a single, bare Government Building remained. No matter how he looked at it, there wasn't the slightest trace of a Research Institute.

Looking further around, a few recently erected prefabricated houses were obviously meant as residences, accompanied by a smattering of colorful tents. The level of dilapidation in Dabo Town completely exceeded his imagination.

Even the worst developed F-Class district in Kindling—which was effectively a slum—seemed more sound than this place.

He walked over blankly, scratching his head. With a confused tone, he asked, "Uh... where am I supposed to work?"

"Uh..." Cheng Ye was at a loss for words for a moment, but then he confidently declared, "Your task is to be in charge of building the Research Institute! How about it? That's quite an important objective, isn't it?"

"I... build... the Research Institute?"

Yu Yong repeated the words, his eyes filled with sheer disbelief.

He looked around before turning back to stare at Cheng Ye, answering honestly. "I'm sorry, but I don't know how to construct buildings. My major is in electrical engineering. I have never dabbled in the field of architecture. If you can provide me with some books on architecture, I can try to make up for my lack of knowledge, but it might not necessarily work out."

"That's easily handled!" Cheng Ye immediately waved his hand. Lin Xu, who had been looking around not far away, walked over upon hearing the call.

"Engineer Lin, this is Yu Yong. He's the researcher we hired. His task is to build a Research Institute in Dabo Town, but he doesn't know anything about architecture. Please take him under your wing and help complete the overall planning for the Research Institute. There shouldn't be any problems with that, right?"

"Easy enough!" Lin Xu agreed readily. His gaze swept over the flattened foundations nearby as he added, "The engineering blueprints already mapped out a location for the Research Institute, but are we starting construction right now?"

"Inspector Cheng, I have to make a suggestion. It's best if the Research Institute is set in the outskirts so it'll be easier to expand later on. If we plan it within the town center from the start, we'll either have to demolish surrounding buildings to expand later, or we'll have to dig deep underground. Compared to planning it correctly from the get-go, it would not only take a lot of time and effort but also cost a massive sum of money."

"How about building it up there?"

Yu Yong suddenly interjected, pointing his hand toward the Diversion Island situated between the White Water River and the Huangshui River. "That place is isolated from the current town area, and it has plenty of space. No matter how much it needs to expand in the future, it'll be easy."

"Hmm..." Cheng Ye looked in the direction he pointed, his brows furrowing slightly as he hesitated for a few seconds.

The Diversion Island certainly offered an independent location and ample space. However, choosing to build the Research Institute there meant the construction difficulty and subsequent water and power planning would likely be much more complex than on the mainland.

But as the old saying goes, don't put all your eggs in one basket.

If they concentrated all their core facilities in one place, they'd be in massive trouble if they ever encountered another explosive Infection Source like the one in Wenlu County.

Moreover, the location of the Diversion Island Yu Yong pointed out was actually quite fitting. Beneath the island was a Rongdong that could be utilized.

But the prerequisite was solving the issue of material transportation. If they were to start construction right now, they would have to rely on boats ferrying materials back and forth to the island.

Furthermore, during the summer flood season every year, the majority of the Diversion Island would be submerged. The Research Institute might end up suffering for it.

Cheng Ye found these professional planning problems somewhat difficult to grasp, so he turned to look at Lin Xu. "Engineer Lin, is it possible to realize this plan of building the Research Institute on the Diversion Island?"

"It is, it's just going to cost a lot more money," Lin Xu replied immediately, logically analyzing the situation. "First, we have to modify the river channel to ensure the Water Flow during flood season doesn't submerge the island. Secondly, the security of the Diversion Island requires extra attention to guard against whatever might emerge from the water. Then there's the geological issue of the island itself. We need to take on-site samples to analyze the soil's load-bearing capacity and the rock layer's stability, and investigate whether fluctuations in water levels will trigger collapse risks..."

He rattled off a barrage of professional jargon in one breath. Clearly, he had long since thoroughly researched the situation surrounding Dabo Town, even going so far as to complete a full analysis of the geological conditions.

Even Cheng Ye, a civil engineering graduate student himself, was left slightly dazed by it all.

It couldn't be helped. He primarily studied architectural design planning and finalized execution plans, whereas Lin Xu possessed mastery over an entire system of engineering frameworks. Whether it was unilateral knowledge reserves or overall comprehensiveness, Lin Xu was far superior to him as he currently was.

'Looks like I need to brush up on my professional knowledge again. It's a shame Xi Yan got swept away by Zhou Changhai...'

Cheng Ye cursed internally before directly hammering out an agreement with Lin Xu's planning direction.

Lin Xu's words sounded convoluted, but the Core issue boiled down to one thing.

Money!

As long as they had enough Contribution Points, whether it was modifying the river channel or reinforcing the geology, they could solve it all by throwing money at the problem.

And only he was qualified to handle this crucial issue.

After assigning Lin Xu to take Yu Yong for the preliminary preparations, only Luo Kuke remained standing by the car, gazing at the scene before him with a look of deep emotion.

When Cheng Ye approached, Luo Kuke snapped back to reality and lowered his voice to ask, "This Researcher Yu... his identity isn't simple, is it?"

"Indeed, it's far from simple. He's hiding a few secrets. This is a task handed down from above; I have to keep him with me," Cheng Ye nodded, admitting the truth.

Luo Kuke let out a sound of admiration. "You're amazing. Still, the vibe this guy gives me... it feels like he's used an Infection Source."

"Hm? You can sense even that?" Cheng Ye chuckled. "You wouldn't happen to be looking at special people like us through colored lenses, would you?"

"Inspector Cheng, please don't wrong me like that," Luo Kuke hurriedly waved his hands, rubbing them together. "You should just hurry up and introduce the new additions to me. If I viewed even you through colored lenses, wouldn't the people under your command skin me alive?"

Perhaps his expectations for Dabo Town had been too low to begin with, but seeing its entirely renewed appearance now thoroughly dispelled the last shred of gloom in Luo Kuke's heart.

Even though his combat strength had plummeted after his amputation and transplant, crushing his spirits and making him unable to go out on missions anymore...

Remaining in Dabo Town to participate in the construction of a new satellite town—or even a future shelter city—was just another way to live his life.

"Are you ready?"

"Of course!" Luo Kuke's gaze turned resolute. "Inspector Luo Kuke, whether now or in the future, will protect every blade of grass and every tree in this place!"