Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 105 Stupid and wicked, the power of the contribution system!

Towns finished speaking.

A brief silence fell over the office.

Logically speaking, the conversation between the two should not have escalated to this point today.

No one expected that the initial casual conversation would gradually change its nature as Cheng Ye's responses exceeded expectations time and time again.

It evolved into a tacit test between the two sides.

What's awkward is that the results of the trial revealed that the two people's ideas did not seem to conflict, but rather were highly compatible.

Wait, my philosophy aligns with that of the Western five-term inspectors and the duty station chief of the North Checkpoint?
Such a coincidence?
The moment Cheng Ye reached this conclusion, he was not delighted, but immediately realized that something was wrong.

When Cheng Wu, one of the first inspectors to establish the checkpoint, left with his men, Towns did not leave.

This shows that he does not agree with the original intention school's ideas.

Later, the idealists rose to power and fell from grace; some left, and some entered the inner city, but Towns, this generation of prosecutor, remained steadfast as ever.

This is further proof that he is not on the same page as the idealists.

Neither a proponent of original ideals nor a proponent of idealism, if Towns shared the same beliefs as him, he should have been ousted from the checkpoint by factional infighting long ago.

Even today, he remains firmly in his position as the station chief, and as he says, he can do whatever he wants without restraint, regardless of anyone's opinion.

That means that in Ding Yishan and Harlin's eyes, Towns is a completely harmless person.

Who wouldn't pose a threat? The answer is self-evident.

This guy is probably a clueless old crook who relies on seniority.

"Stationmaster Towns, thank you!"

Cheng Ye's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately stepped forward, picked up the badge on the table, and put it in his pocket.

When dealing with people, the worst thing you can do is to speak too intimately with someone you don't know well.

He asked himself if his relationship with Towns had reached that point yet, but Towns was acting so enthusiastically.

That's way too deliberate.

"Hmm, aren't you going to ask anything else?" Downs paused for a moment, then his smile deepened, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothed out.

"I already know enough today." Cheng Ye shook his head, his tone frank. "Asking any more questions would be beyond my current scope and would only cause unnecessary trouble."

"Good, it seems you've already made your choice."

Downs nodded approvingly, "Station Chief Ding is indeed insightful. He noticed your difference before I did. If you can get through your probationary period, don't always work at the checkpoint. Happiness City is becoming less and less suitable for someone like you."

“The appearance of every extraordinary person injects a kind of obsession into this sanctuary city, even if these obsessions are all positive, such as protection, construction, and order. But when countless obsessions intertwine and merge, they will eventually twist into invisible shackles, forming a series of rules and restrictions, leaving no chance for change.”

"Because these rules are their life."

"If you want to achieve your dreams and break these rules, it's like..."

Tangston paused, then swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue, letting out only a soft sigh.

"Go out and see the wilderness as much as possible, just like your grandfather, it's better if you don't come back."

"The buffer zone was cut off by the elders 13 years ago, turning it into an independent little world. But with only a wall separating it, who can guarantee that those chains won't quietly extend again?"

As he spoke, he turned to look at the gray sky outside the window, his voice so soft it was as if he were talking to himself, "Only outside is our territory as ordinary people. No matter how far the reach of the superhumans is, they are firmly locked in the city by their own obsessions and by us old-fashioned folks. Locked up, tightly!"

Push the door open and go out.

Cheng Ye couldn't help but turn his head and look again. Tang Si was still standing by the window, his gaze wistful.

He gently closed the door and looked into the distance in the direction Towns was looking.

Outside the checkpoint, in the desolate wilderness and on the distant horizon, rain was brewing again, with leaden clouds hanging low as if they might collapse at any moment.

But for no apparent reason, Cheng Ye did not feel oppressed; instead, he felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.

It seemed that the reason for Happiness City's unique structure was finally unfolding before his eyes.

"Inner city, buffer zone."

"So, the high walls protect not only the residents of the inner city, but also the obsessions of the extraordinary?"

Cheng Ye pondered silently as he descended the stairs step by step, considering the veracity of this claim.

The orderly appearance of the inner city in my memory now seems like a prison bound by countless rules.

There was no freedom whatsoever inside; the residents lived a peaceful life like puppets on strings.

There was no conflict, no quarrels, and even the distribution of benefits was arranged perfectly. They lived in an "ideal happiness" that outsiders envied.

Cheng Ye had been wondering why there was such a division, but now someone has finally answered his question.

Anyone who dares to shatter the happiness within or destroy the rules is tantamount to taking the lives of all the extraordinary beings.

However, this argument is somewhat extreme.

As Cheng Ye walked out of the North Checkpoint, he stopped and turned to look at the five-story station building.

Towns had somehow appeared at the end of the corridor, quietly watching him.

Their eyes met in mid-air, and the old man smiled slightly, raising his hand and waving gently, as if he truly regarded himself as a kind elder.

But is it really that simple to maintain one's position during two internal conflicts?

Cheng Ye nodded slightly, turned and walked towards the bus stop, but in his heart he subtly raised the level of Tang Si's threat to another level.

As expected of the station chief, he certainly has some skills.

He spouts a string of nonsensical platitudes, interspersed with carefully crafted conspiracy theories.

They portrayed the extraordinary as monstrous floods, depicted Sanctuary as prisons, and touted the wilderness as a paradise.

Hmm, this conspiracy theory might be enough to fool a naive young man like Wang Kang, or it might scare the simpleton into wanting to leave Happiness City tomorrow and head to the wilderness to seek opportunities.

But for a soul from modern society like him, upon closer examination, the logical flaws are so numerous that they cannot withstand scrutiny.

Going to the wilderness, escaping the sanctuary, and hiding from the superhumans—what problem does that solve?
Nothing can be solved!

When Towns said these words, he seemed to have completely forgotten what gave him the right to sit in the checkpoint and point fingers at the existing system.

They had no idea that they had left Happiness City and gone into the wilderness, just a roadside path.

They could have developed slowly with the support of Happiness City, but instead they insisted on going to snatch food from the mouths of scavengers.
Picture what?
One person hates Happiness City more than two; talking about change means leaving as soon as possible.

This mindset deliberately amplifies the constraints imposed by those with extraordinary abilities, while ignoring the peaceful environment they create.

The so-called chain of fear, in essence, is to kill the will and thoughts of the high-level superhumans with one blow.

The original owner had lived in the inner city for so many years. Although she had no freedom, she was able to grow up peacefully in this chaotic world, had the opportunity to learn poetry and songs, and did not have to worry about her next meal.

For many years, the four major factions in Happiness City have been fighting each other, with open and covert struggles never ceasing, yet Sanctuary City still stands firmly on this wasteland.

"Obsession... He probably doesn't even know what obsession really is. He's just guessing as an ordinary person, trying to instill in me the idea that superhumans and ordinary people are opposites. Little does he know that I can show him that I can become a superhuman right now!"

Thinking of this, Cheng Ye felt that Downs' theory was even more outrageous. At least the other theories used ideologies to divide factions, each with its own logic and advantages. Downs, on the other hand, directly divided people into ordinary people and extraordinary people.

This crude confrontation, coupled with the solution of escaping to the wilderness, suggests that Towns may have a self-consistent logic.

But he may have forgotten that for most people, simply surviving is difficult enough.

Even Cheng Ye, the prosecutor, had only just escaped the brink of death and had the means to survive.

Wang Kang, who lives next door, is only on his first day on duty and could die at any moment.

So-called ideals, camps, and freedom must ultimately be built on the foundation of survival.

Just like he could really pull everyone from Tianyuan Community outside, they would be free, but where would the initial resources come from?

Firearms and ammunition, daily necessities, infrastructure, and basic resources
None of these things can be missing; otherwise, going out rashly would be no different from him standing in his office talking theory on paper.

After all, in such a large city as Happiness, tens of thousands of people migrate away at any time.

Once he establishes his power, what will he rely on to attract these people to stay, and what will he rely on to protect them?

The only way is to stay in this buffer zone, rely on the power of Happiness City to block the dangers from the outside, and use the identity of the prosecutor to build up a team and quietly accumulate strength.

Only when the time is fully ripe will one be qualified to step out of the wilderness and seek true freedom.

Furthermore, the elders at least severed the outstretched chains, allocating 20,000 resources to support his development of the Tianyuan Community and the cultivation of his team, attempting to change the buffer zone.

But what about Towns?

With a few words, he persuaded him to venture into the wilderness, instead of letting him stay in the buffer zone to develop steadily.

If one's conviction is not strong enough, one might actually be misled by these words.

But Towns will never know that no matter what ideology he chooses, it will not affect his ability to gain superhuman power. And with this premise, does it matter whether he is on the same side?

Cheng Ye couldn't help but suspect that this guy might have wanted to leave with Cheng Wu back then, but was abandoned by Cheng Wu out of disgust.

Otherwise, why would she always act like a sarcastic, resentful woman whenever Cheng Wu is mentioned?

"However, we do need to go out and see the wilderness to understand the situation outside; we can't just work in isolation."

Got on the bus.

Cheng Ye took out his defense phone. It was already 5 p.m. Wang Kang had made a call at 4:30 p.m., but he was talking to Downs at the time and couldn't answer.

"Xiaokang?"

"Brother Cheng, I'm handing over my shift." Wang Kang's voice came through the receiver, carrying a hint of weariness from just having relieved himself of a heavy burden.

Cheng Ye leaned back in his bus seat, gazing at the darkening sky outside the window, and asked, "How was your first day?"

"I'm...I'm fine," Wang Kang said, trying to sound calm. But as soon as he started the second sentence, his voice broke down, trembling with barely suppressed sobs. Was he terrified by the infected?
"Where are you?"

"On my way home, almost at the intersection of the city streets."

"Then let's go home first."

Cheng Ye softened his tone, "Let's make some hot water, rest for a while, and then we can talk about going to the training ground."

After hanging up the phone, Cheng Ye couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the darkened screen of his phone.

After a day of maneuvering and reflection, even he felt physically and mentally exhausted, let alone Wang Kang, the trainee prosecutor on his first day of duty.

Sure enough, when he returned to the tenement building and knocked on the door, the first thing he saw was Wang Kang with a bruised and swollen face.

His left cheek was swollen high, and there was still some dried blood crust at the corner of his mouth. Even the corner of his eye was purplish-blue, making him look extremely disheveled.

"How?"

"When I encountered an infected person, I fought while running away, and that's when I fell and hurt myself."

Wang Kang kept his head down, his voice muffled, his eyes darting around, and his words were clearly hesitant, indicating that he was lying.

But Cheng Ye looked him up and down without asking for the truth.

As long as the person comes back alive, this injury is nothing serious.

Even if Wang Kang was bullied by other prosecutors, there's no need to dwell on it now.

He'll be on duty at the South checkpoint tomorrow. With him there, we can gradually find out what's going on and settle accounts.

"Go to my room, there's some liniment for bruises and sprains. Apply it and then we can continue training tonight."

"I'll take the first shift tomorrow. You stay home and rest until noon before coming."

Wang Kang nodded slightly, his lips moved, and in the end he only whispered, "Thank you, Brother Cheng."

Training Course.

With Miao Yang in charge of training, Cheng Ye sat on a bench by the field, opened his Defense Communicator, and looked through the newly granted permissions.

A checkpoint logo has appeared out of the corner of the screen, which is the emblem of the Central Checkpoint.

Once you click in, there's only one isolated function displayed at the top.

【contribute】

Cheng Ye tapped lightly, and the Defense Connect screen flashed twice, then jumped to the contribution module.

A prompt then appeared.

[The Jadeite has been successfully recycled; value: 18650 points]

Contribution points earned: 559

"Wow, that's incredibly efficient!"

In just half a day, the contribution from Bisheng Stone had already been settled.

Based on the 30% ratio, he should have received 5586 points, but only 559 contribution points were displayed at the top.

"A conversion ratio of 10 to 1?"

Cheng Ye nodded slightly, understanding the situation.

It seems that these contribution points are not directly equivalent to actual contribution points; they are a special currency circulating internally.

He continued scrolling down the interface and found that the layout of this contribution module was somewhat similar to that of the resource collection and sales area, with several major categories at the bottom as well. However, with his current permissions, he could only view the first three:

Vehicles, equipment, and medical supplies.

When you click on a vehicle, the screen pauses for a moment, then starts to lag, and only after four or five seconds does it slowly refresh rows of data.

The moment Cheng Ye saw the first line of text, he blinked sharply, instinctively thinking he was seeing things.

【Rhino Tank】

[Rental: 800 points/day]

Deposit: 8000 points

[Note: Tanks come with their own crew; no salaries are required.]

[Note: Each shell costs 100 points. You need to pay for 4 shells in advance to rent. The shells will be automatically refunded if not used.]

"Rhino tanks can be rented?"

Cheng Ye was completely stunned, his finger hovering above the screen, unable to move.

I first heard this name when I was on the phone with Liu Bi; there seemed to be more than twenty vehicles at the hydroelectric power station.

At the time, it was just considered a heavy weapon of the legion, and I never imagined that it would appear on the checkpoint's rental list so openly.

No, can this thing really be rented?
Moreover, judging from the notes, it's not just a decorative item; it can actually fire shells.

Cheng Ye was dumbfounded, his fingertips flying across the screen as the shock in his heart grew stronger.

Goodness, this contribution system is far more powerful than the supply collection and sales center!
He used to have a mountain of gold in his hands, but he went to scoop out garbage from the sewers!
As the data refreshed, more vehicles appeared one after another:
Sparrow Helicopter

[Rental fee: 500 points/day, deposit: 5000 points, note: limited to a 300km radius for task invocation]

Black Hawk helicopter

[Rental fee: 1200 points/day, deposit: 10000 points, note: requires approval from a Level 3 or higher inspector.]

Defender patrol armored vehicle

[Rental: 200 points/day, Deposit: 2000 points, Note: Heavy machine gun module can be installed (additional 10 points/day)]

[Sweeper Armored Personnel Carrier]

[Rental: 80 points/day, deposit 800 points, Note: Maximum capacity 12 people per trip, includes basic armor protection]

【.】

One by one, vehicle names popped up, from heavy land vehicles to air support, it was like flipping through the vehicle list of Morals and the Rule of Law 5, completely exceeding Cheng Ye's understanding of "checkpoint authority".

However, Cheng Ye had no specific knowledge of these vehicles, nor did he know whether their prices were cheap or expensive.

He continued swiping his finger, heading straight for the large golden cup. The information on the screen finally brought him back to reality:

[Brick Transport Vehicle]

[Range: 100kWh version, 650km]

[Rental: 15 points/day]

Deposit: 150 points

[Note: No driver provided. The inspector must bring their own driver, or hire one separately (2 points/day)]

[Note: In case of damage, the full deposit will be forfeited. If repairs are required, the cost will be borne by the inspection station.]

"You son of a bitch, Towns, you want me to go out and suffer, huh?"

Cheng Ye stared at the data for a few seconds, then scrolled up and down to make sure there were no errors. Suddenly, he felt that the shock he had just experienced was completely indescribable.

All I could do was slap my thigh and mentally curse Towns' entire family.

15 points?

What concept?
The 559 points he currently has are enough to rent this 100-kilowatt battery version, which is not available at the supply depot, and he can drive it around for a month with some left over.

Even if he breaks the car or drives it to a complete loss, he only needs to pay 150 points, which is enough to pay for more than three cars.

What does this mean?
This demonstrates that the checkpoint has sufficient trust and support for the inspectors within this contribution system!

Towns kept urging him to leave the buffer zone and wander aimlessly in the wilderness. Wasn't that just making him lose the big picture for small gains?

A moment.

Cheng Ye suddenly realized that Tang Si might really be treating him like one of those naive fools living in the inner city, trying to fool him, because such fools have one thing in common: they always have unfounded expectations of the outside world.

Just like Wang Kang, who was taken by Da Long to the shantytown before he was willing to believe how dangerous the outside world was.

its not right.

After thinking for a while, Cheng Ye realized that if nothing had happened on the day he arrived at the North Station, Tang Si's opinion would be understandable, because he had indeed acted like a reckless person and fired two shots inside the checkpoint.

A brainless brute is completely unsuitable for navigating checkpoints, and given that the Cheng family is inherently filled with hatred, running away might be a good option.

But now, Ding Yishan is openly trying to promote him. Given Towns' seniority, he should know the inside story, right? He shouldn't be treated like a fool.

Is it...

Cheng Ye suddenly thought of a possibility.

During his school years, he saw more than once online those "monsters" who clearly had high-paying, respectable jobs and were considered winners in life by others, yet always felt that the outside air was sweet.

After these monsters escaped at all costs, even if they ended up picking up trash on the streets, they didn't feel like they were suffering. Instead, they shouted that they had gained freedom and found their ideal life.

Could Towns really be that kind of person?
Do you genuinely feel that things are better outside?
"If you're not deliberately trying to fool me, then you're both stupid and malicious."

"This kind of person is not even as good as Li Matai, no, he is far inferior to Li Matai!"

"When I become the stationmaster someday, I will definitely send this guy to the wilderness to experience it properly, so that he can know how wonderful the outside world is and how attractive it is."

"Well, it would be best to throw him into Twin Moon Lake and let him experience firsthand what the wilderness is like!"

　P.S.: Early update delivered~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)