Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 292 [Retro Workbench]

After listening to Lu Tao's report, Zhai Da immediately stopped and checked his system interface.

As expected, he couldn't possibly miss the system notification for such an important piece of equipment as [Execute Old Elm]. There was nothing unusual in the equipment list, and the equipment effect was always off.

That scared the hell out of me! I thought I'd accidentally activated an equipment effect.
If that were the case, the people around No. 99 Luochuan Road would probably have gone completely mad.

But this matter still needs to be taken seriously.

Zhai Da thought for a moment, and realized it was Saturday. So he turned his car around and went back to the base, where he found Accountant Wang.

"Could you check if there are any plane tickets to Liancheng tonight?"

Accountant Wang glanced at her watch; it was already 5 p.m., and she figured it would be difficult to make it, but she still turned on her computer.

These days, there's no such thing as booking airline tickets through mobile apps; you have to go through the airline's website or call a ticket agent.

The ridiculous thing is that ticket agents are always cheaper than the official website. So, most enterprise users have one or two ticket agents they frequently work with.

Accountant Wang checked the computer, made another phone call, and finally replied to Zhai Da: "Brother Da, there's only one first-class flight left at six o'clock. You probably won't make it. There are only two flights a day to Liancheng."

Zhai Da thought for a moment and said, "Then let's schedule the early shift for tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll send you a message once I've locked in the ticketing information."

Back at the Shenzhou Mansion, Lu Wei was already busy in the kitchen, but Zhai Da didn't go to help with the cooking today. Instead, he went back to his desk in the bedroom and opened his laptop.

Search: Crow's learning ability.

As birds are known for their intelligence, there is a lot of information about them, and Zhai Da found it easily.

First, their intelligence level is around that of a 7-8 year old human child. If you don't have a concept of this, think of a second or third grade elementary school student.

In addition, it has strong cognitive abilities, can summarize patterns, pass the "mirror test", remember hundreds of human faces, and has a very long memory period. The longest observed record is 17 years, meaning it can remember people and events from 17 years ago.

Depending on the specific breed, their lifespan in the wild is around 7-15 years, while those in captivity can live up to 40 years.
They can learn new skills by observing and imitating the behavior of other animals, use or even "make" simple tools, or take advantage of the external environment.

Zhai Da stroked his chin. In other words, it was entirely possible that someone would imitate his actions after seeing him dig a pit to bury a corpse.

No, perhaps it shouldn't be called "imitation," but rather "learning." Perhaps they understand that they are providing nourishment to the old elm tree.
The reason I care so much about this matter, and even plan to go back for it, is ultimately because the "execution of Old Elm" is too demonic, and it does indeed have the ability to influence the mental state of the surrounding life forms.

The information reflected in the equipment list is actually quite simple: equipment description, location, and whether the effect is enabled. It's possible that the system is too lazy to provide notifications for some minor changes, or that the changes haven't yet reached a significant level.

After all, it was a living piece of equipment.

Just like before, even with the old elm tree's root system turned off, its roots still grew at an unbelievable speed, spreading tens of centimeters overnight and entangled a pig carcass. Didn't the system still not give any warning?
What kind of speed can a proper tree achieve?

However, it seems that the crows' strange behavior can still be explained by natural laws.

That's scientific, isn't it!
I closed my laptop, glanced at my phone, and sure enough, I received Wang's flight information—the earliest flight tomorrow.
We still need to go back and take a look. The previous strategy of thinking that everything would be fine once the effect was turned off and letting it "grow up first" is not very reliable now. This time, we'll put it in the "equipment bar" and bring it back.

The sizzling sound of stir-frying oil could be heard from the kitchen. The "Harbin Institute of Technology math genius girl" was preparing dinner for her boyfriend, and probably also a snack for him.
Zhai Da thought for a moment and decided to take a break today and wait to eat the food that was served to him.

He then took out the three newly acquired pieces of equipment from his backpack.

【The Toolbox That Isn't Worth Repairing】, 【The Witch Doll That Suffers the Consequences】, 【The Passport That Confused】.

The last simple one is to see if it can be integrated with the [Mechanical Core]. If not, it doesn't matter, as it will still be useful.

Of the first two, the only one that's somewhat useful is the "Not-So-Bad Repair Toolbox".

Repairing it would be a waste of time. It easily brings to mind "equipment modification".

But after Zhai Da opened it, he stared at the tools for a long time, then sighed and closed it.

There's not enough stuff.
Aside from a dozen or so screw heads, there was only a row of different sized hex screwdrivers, a small L-shaped iron rod, as well as pliers, electrician's shears, and a pocket wrench.
This kind of stuff might be enough to get by for ordinary people, but for a professional like him to use it to modify equipment, it's bound to be beyond his capabilities.

Zhai Da is unsure of the mechanism of action; if an external tool is used during the modification process, the modification might fail.

After a moment's hesitation, Zhai Da decided to try something that had no cost: whether there was a synthesis path.

With his eyes closed and leaning back in his seat, Zhai Da opened the equipment list and began the tedious "exhaustive search method," a task he had to perform every time he acquired new equipment, which became increasingly complicated as the number of items increased.

Not only should we try in pairs, but also in groups of three.

But this time, we found one very quickly!
【Toolbox for Repairing Tools】+【Homecoming Suitcase】.

Zhai Da's spirits lifted, but he didn't immediately synthesize the items. Instead, he continued to combine and arrange them, having obtained three pieces of equipment today. Surprisingly, he actually discovered a second synthesis path, though it had some conflicts.

【No-Waste Repair Tool Kit】+【Confusion Pass】.
Zhai Da frowned slightly. Did he have to choose one of the two?
After a moment, Zhai Da made a decision, got up and took out the retro and textured "Homecoming Suitcase" from the bottom of the wardrobe.

Beginning in 1948 or earlier
He still decided to choose this path.

While the synthesis of systems often brings surprises, the general outline can still be predicted. The materials, effects, and forms of the original equipment will all be reflected in the final result to some extent.

Combining the toolbox with the pass might result in a "toolbox that you can take anywhere," which functions similarly to a "ladder."

If it were reversed and transformed into a "pass" with tool-like attributes, its function might overlap with that of a "master key." After all, what can a pass be used for? At most, it can be used to unlock doors by swiping a card.

It's better to combine it with a leather suitcase; they're more compatible.

Although the 【Homecoming Suitcase】 is a white-grade item, both of its effects are quite good; it's just that he doesn't use it often.

"Equipment Effect 1: If you carry this box to 'home', you will have a slight increase in luck during your journey."

"Equipment Effect 2: The damage to items stored in this box over time is greatly reduced."

The former is not easily perceived, while the latter has been tested and can make food less prone to spoilage. The aging of non-food items should be the same over a longer timescale, but he doesn't have time to conduct experiments on a yearly basis.

Considering the considerable size of the "Homecoming Suitcase," and to prevent it from bursting the wardrobe, Zhai Da placed the two items on the floor, then drew the curtains and left the room.

Just then, Xiao Mutou came out carrying the dishes, and Zhai Da called out, "Wait for me for five minutes."

Lu Wei: "It's okay, there's still one more dish."

After Lu Wei returned to the kitchen, Zhai Da silently chanted, "Synthesize!"

"Environmental conditions detected, synthesis is about to begin. Please do not damage the environment or attempt to observe it without authorization."

"It's shielding off fluctuations, collapsing reality, and cleaning up traces."

"Synthesis complete."

In less than a second, it was all over, still in the familiar "tech-oriented system" style.

Zhai Da pushed the door open again, and there lay a suitcase in front of him, larger and thicker than the "Homecoming Suitcase".

Is it just a size too big?
"Congratulations, host, you have successfully synthesized the green equipment [Retro Workbench]."

Ownership: Owned, activated.

"Equipment Effect 1: This equipment and its internal tools will experience significantly less wear and tear during use. 'Ordinary tools' that can be stored inside will be treated as part of the equipment and can be replaced or added."

"Equipment Effect 2: Wearing this equipment slightly increases luck in technical work and increases the credibility of others' technical skills when observed."

"Special effect 'Retro is a feeling': Repairing and modifying items at this workbench (in unfolded state) will not damage them."

"Unblocking Quest: Repair 10 items for others on it (0/10)".

Note: "Please note that you still need the right knowledge and skills, not just randomly smashing it with a hammer, which will still break it."

Zhai Da picked it up. It was very heavy, at least 30 kilograms.
The overall color still follows the brown-red cowhide style of the "Homecoming Suitcase", and even the patina left by time is still there, only the scratches are gone.

It's as if it was carefully preserved from the moment it was produced, but then left unattended for 60 years.

Zhai Da curiously placed it flat on the ground and pushed the latch next to the handle.

Once the suitcase was opened, it contained a tightly fitted and complex set of mechanisms. The lid formed a structure resembling a staircase, which gradually extended out as it was opened.

It was covered with all sorts of tools: screwdrivers, screwdrivers, and pliers.

The two sides also magically unfold to the left and right into a staircase-like structure, with carving knives, tweezers, and rulers inserted inside.
After this transformation, a 30cm x 50cm working space was left in the center, made of orange-red rubber.
The operating space is relatively small, but it's not unusable. And it has a certain thickness.

Pull down the bottom, and you'll find a row of drawers, three rows with nine compartments, even though it's so compact. They're obviously for storing small parts, but they're empty right now.

The most interesting thing is that there is a stretchable single-sided magnifying glass in the corner that can be moved and hovered directly above, giving it a retro engineer vibe.

The ingenious design of the entire box is truly worthy of being a product of the system.

When Zhai Da picked it up earlier, there was no wobbling inside, which means that the inside is quite compact when closed.
Looking at the retro workbench in front of him, Zhai Da thought, "What engineer wouldn't like this? According to the system, it seems to be specifically designed for 'cultural relic restoration'?"
But for Zhai Da, the most important thing is
It seems to have perfectly solved the problem of "weakened equipment modification"!

(End of this chapter)