Apocalypse Survival: Starting with a Shelter

By the time the engineering robot returned from Heavy Knight's bunker, the model for the geothermal generators was nearly complete.

After a moment's thought, Su Wu decided not to contact Ye Luoshuang immediately. Instead, he instructed the construction robot to unload Heavy Knight's battery packs for charging and transport the packaged 20 kilograms of smokeless powder to the mechanical manufacturing center.

"New task: Manufacture one assault rifle and 500 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition."

With the acquisition of the critical smokeless powder, the mechanical manufacturing center—equipped with engineering robots and ample metal reserves—was now capable of producing military-grade firearms and ammunition.

Given the need for security while transporting goods, Su Wu opted to produce a fully automatic assault rifle.

"This transaction with the officials is worth a staggering seven million credits," Su Wu mused. "For any individual or small to medium-sized bunker, that's a fortune too big to ignore. I can't rule out the possibility of bandits attempting an ambush. The assault rifle will serve as a last resort—though I hope I won't have to use it."

Manufacturing the weapon was relatively straightforward.

Just over half an hour later, Su Wu held a pristine assault rifle and two boxes of ammunition, each containing 100 rounds.

Not waiting for the remaining ammunition to finish production, Su Wu directed a construction robot to take the rifle and ammunition to the surface for testing. Satisfied with the performance, he placed them in the truck's cab before reversing the vehicle to the bunker's first-level entrance to load the upgraded geothermal generators.

However, a new problem arose.

The medium-sized truck's cargo hold, after loading one geothermal generator, lacked space for a second.

"Upgrade the truck."

After some deliberation, Su Wu chose the simplest solution—spend survival points.

He upgraded the medium truck to a large truck and added heat insulation as an extra feature.

"Temperatures will only get more extreme in the future, and trade between bunkers won't stop. Upgrading the transport vehicle early will pay off in the long run."

The upgraded large truck could carry up to 20 tons. Its size had increased significantly, with a longer cargo hold that nearly filled the sloped exit tunnel, leaving just enough room for it to navigate.

After the construction robots loaded both geothermal generators into the cargo hold, the large truck emitted a low hum as it started, autonomously climbing the exit ramp to the surface.

"Departure. Destination: District North, Bunker Nine."

Back in the control center on the second underground level, Su Wu opened the electronic map and located the address Ye Luoshuang had provided. He sent the departure command to the fully loaded truck.

Under the dim sky, the desolate rocky landscape of the outskirts was once again illuminated by the truck's glaring headlights.

The massive steel truck, towing the drilling rig behind it, rumbled silently over ash-covered roads, heading toward the city.

Half an hour later, the truck passed through a fire-scorched wasteland and stopped in front of a metro station.

A group of young men and women in military uniforms, who had been waiting there, approached the truck.

"Ye Luoshuang?" Su Wu operated the construction robot in the driver's seat, having it disembark to greet a striking young woman leading the group.

"That's me," the woman replied with a smile. "My real name is Ye Xi."

She glanced at the robot's rugged exterior with a hint of disappointment.

"I was hoping to meet you in person, but I see you've sent a robot instead."

"As long as it gets the job done," Su Wu replied indifferently. His gaze swept over the group, noting portable cooling devices strapped to their waists. While somewhat effective, the sweat trickling down their foreheads suggested the devices weren't living up to expectations.

"You should head inside; I'll unload the goods."

"Need help?" Ye Xi offered.

"No need," Su Wu said casually.

The construction robots accompanying the truck could easily manage the geothermal generators and drilling rig, all equipped with universal wheels for mobility. The only potential issue was whether the official bunker had enough space to accommodate the massive drilling rig.

"Alright, thanks for your hard work," Ye Xi said, not insisting. Truthfully, she was eager to get out of the oppressive heat; standing outside was already unbearable.

Before leaving, she seemed to remember something and provided Su Wu with a code.

"By the way, this is the wireless network password for our bunker. Make sure to switch over; otherwise, you might lose contact with your robot underground."

Su Wu raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You don't have direct internet access in the bunker?"

"This is important," she explained. "Only management and external liaisons have access to the internet. The rest of us use a local intranet for internal calls, announcements, and public resources."

Her explanation made sense.

However, as a bead of sweat slid into her eye, Ye Xi winced and wiped it away before hastily heading into the metro station.

"That's all for now. We'll be waiting below."

"Got it," Su Wu replied, watching her retreating figure thoughtfully. He tagged her as a pampered rich girl, given her demeanor and privileged background.

He quickly brushed off the thought, turning his attention back to the task at hand.

With the unloading left to the artificial intelligence, Su Wu took the opportunity to pour himself a glass of ice-cold soda.

The fizzy, chilled drink invigorated him as it went down.

Having seen enough of the bleak, scorching outside world, even the air-conditioned comfort of the control center couldn't enti

rely dispel the oppressive mood. Su Wu needed this brief distraction to lift his spirits.