Chapter 42: A Fundamental Shift
Inside the wooden cabin, Chen Fan sat by the stove, watching the drizzle patter against the window. Back when resources were scarce, he’d kept the core area within the camp’s walls compact. But as the settlement grew, space was running out fast. Even the Arrow Towers now felt cramped. In a few days, he’d have no choice but to expand again.
Only then did he turn his attention to tallying last night’s spoils.
A handful of Ghost Materials—Monkey Hide, Mantis Arm, and the like.
A total of 478 Ghoststones.
Among them, the Female Ghostbeast had yielded ten Level 2 Ghoststones, each worth a hundred ordinary stones.
Three Unique Treasures.
Building blueprints were among the rarest of all Unique Treasures. The one he held now, thin as a cicada’s wing, was a brand new Building Blueprint.
—
Unique Treasure Name: Altar
Unique Treasure Grade: White
Unique Treasure Effect: Allows construction of an Altar. The Altar can heal injuries.
—
“Heal injuries?”
Chen Fan nodded thoughtfully. A practical structure—and one the camp currently lacked. Fortunately, no one had been injured last night.
Only Zhou Mo and the Ghostbeasts had truly exchanged blows, leaving Zhou Mo with some bloodied knuckles. Nothing serious.
And the construction cost? Not high at all. Just ten Ghoststones.
He’d build it inside the walls later.
But the camp was running out of space at an alarming rate. The wooden cabin, Watchtower, Sacrificial Tower—and now an Altar. Soon, he’d have to upgrade the Ghostfire, expand the Safe Zone, and push the walls further out.
But…
That would cost a fortune.
He needed to finish testing the cart as soon as possible, then send Zhou Mo to scour the abandoned Waystations in the Wasteland for any Ghoststones left behind.
He turned his attention to the two remaining Unique Treasures in his hand.
—
Unique Treasure Name: Torch
Unique Treasure Grade: White
Unique Treasure Effect: Single-use. Once lit, burns for six hours, providing Level 1 Ghostfire protection within a one-meter radius.
—
A portable Ghostfire.
Useful enough outside of the Rainy Season, but of little use once the rains arrived.
During the Rainy Season, Ghostbeasts could rampage straight through a Ghostfire Safe Zone.
The last Unique Treasure was the most valuable—a drop from the Female Ghostbeast, and a Green Grade item.
A piece of skin.
—
Unique Treasure Name: Ghostskin
Unique Treasure Grade: Green
Unique Treasure Effect: A special Ghostskin. Must be watered with “Blood Ghostflower” to reveal its properties.
—
“…”
Chen Fan frowned, turning the palm-sized Ghostskin over in his hand. The hide felt ancient, as if it had absorbed the weight of centuries. He had no idea what a Blood Ghostflower was, let alone where to find one.
For now, he could only stow it away and hope for a clue someday.
Once the Rainy Season ended, he’d have to make a trip to Jiangbei City. Staying isolated out here in the Wasteland simply wasn’t sustainable.
But…
A Builder’s power only counted for much within his own camp.
The moment he stepped into someone else’s Domain…
Physically, he was no match for seasoned Practitioners.
As for his external means—
He could throw up a few Arrow Towers in an instant, and Practitioners would struggle to break through a Builder’s fortifications—unless they utterly outclassed him. Even Zhou Mo, a Level 2 Practitioner, could be killed in a heartbeat by a single bolt from a Level 1 Arrow Tower.
But hastily built Arrow Towers were no match for the entrenched defenses of another’s Domain.
If he wanted to reach Jiangbei City safely, he’d need a solid plan. For now, surviving the Rainy Season came first.
Drowsiness crept in.
He lay back on his wooden bed and drifted into sleep.
Boom… boom…
The distant sound of flowing water echoed faintly—the 2.0 Heating System working outside the walls. It was damp and chilly out there, but inside, the cabin was warm and dry.
…
Three hours before the Eternal Night descended.
Chen Fan awoke.
After a quick wash, he stretched and stepped outside, ready to strengthen the camp’s defenses once more.
He now had 795 Ghoststones.
First, he went to inspect the Ghostfire at the heart of the camp and checked last night’s fuel consumption. When he’d upgraded the Ghostfire to Level 2, he’d chosen an effect that reduced the operating cost of defensive structures within the camp.
Seventeen Ghoststones had been consumed overnight.
Most of it had gone into the Arrow Rain Storm skill.
He took another seventeen Ghoststones and topped the Ghostfire’s reserves up to fifty.
Then, setting aside another fifty Ghoststones, he upgraded the Ghostfire to Level 3.
A moment later—
A System Panel appeared.
—
Ghostfire has been upgraded to Level 3. Safe Zone expanded to a 50-meter diameter. Intimidation effect on Ghostbeasts enhanced.
Please select an Upgrade Path:
1. Expand Safe Zone to a 100-meter diameter.
2. Further increase intimidation effect on Ghostbeasts.
3. Qualitative Shift: All building construction within camp costs 1 less Ghoststone. This effect can be used 10,000 times per day. (Rare)
—
“…”
Chen Fan stared at the System Panel in surprise. Until now, upgrade choices had always been plain black text on a white background.
But this time, the third option flashed with rainbow colors—impossible to miss.
If he understood correctly, this third Upgrade Path wasn’t guaranteed to appear with every Level 3 Ghostfire. It was a rare, random effect—a slim chance at a true Qualitative Shift.
This was it: a fundamental transformation.
His breath quickened as he fixed his gaze on the third option.
All building construction within the camp now cost one less Ghoststone.
At first glance, it didn’t seem especially impressive.
After all, a meter of wall cost twenty Ghoststones—saving one meant nineteen per meter. Not exactly game-changing.
But for items like Beast Traps, which cost two Ghoststones to make, the cost would be cut in half.
The real breakthrough, though—
Copper Pipe.
That Building Module cost only one Ghoststone per meter.
With this effect, it would be free.
Ten thousand meters of Copper Pipe, built every day at zero cost.
He didn’t hesitate—he selected the third Upgrade Path. This single choice would elevate the camp’s strength to an entirely new level.
…
On the wall.
Chen Fan leaned against the battlements, surveying the Safe Zone, now expanded to fifty meters. The rain chilled the air, but his eyes burned with ambition. He couldn’t help but smile.
He already had several ideas for using Copper Pipe.
One of them: extending the Safe Zone. With Copper Pipes, Ghostfire could spread further, pushing the boundaries outward. Before, he’d thought it would take ages to fully realize this effect—too many Ghoststones required.
But now—
He had a new plan.
The straight-line distance from Pingcheng to Jiangbei City was 170 kilometers.
During the dry season, countless trade caravans, Practitioners, and hunters journeyed between the two cities, riding camels and horses.
They traveled by day.
At night, they camped at the nearest Waystation.
It took several days to cross the Wasteland.