ATIGIBTC Chapter 11

«The loyalty of the whole city is off the charts»

Through this experience of assigning tasks to NPCs, He Fang noticed some interesting characteristics. He opened the attributes panel of the old man, who was now sitting contentedly under the tree, and for the first time seriously examined the loyalty value displayed there. The old man’s loyalty was an astounding 3,372%, far above the average. Such a high loyalty level ensured absolute compliance with He Fang’s commands.

At the same time, as He Fang untied Min Zhizhou’s ropes, he took the opportunity to glance at Min Zhizhou’s attributes. He noticed that Min Zhizhou’s loyalty was only 60%. By comparing the two, He Fang realized that this loyalty value was likely a usable parameter rather than a bug, as he had previously assumed. It was a genuine gameplay mechanic requiring careful consideration.

Reflecting on the GM’s earlier responses, He Fang began to grasp that “Ruins Without Restart”, despite its apocalyptic backdrop, was fundamentally a simulation management game. He had the ability to direct the NPCs within his city to achieve his desired objectives.

“How many people do you think are still out there right now?” He Fang asked Min Zhizhou, attempting to extract some general data from this information-focused NPC.

Min Zhizhou shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“Has it really reached the point where even the population can’t be estimated anymore?”

“Accurate information exchange is impossible. Each mobile city operates independently. The population it can support depends on the abundance of its resources and the level of its technological development,” Min Zhizhou replied with a faint, helpless smile. “The legendary era of billions of humans on Earth… I fear that such a scene will never be seen again.”

He Fang pondered this. Humans, like cockroaches, have a tenacious will to survive. Through their creativity, they always find ways to evade danger. So, the remaining population must still be significant.

With no knowledge of the outside world, He Fang could only infer from Min Zhizhou’s information. A mobile city could house anywhere from 3,000 to tens of thousands of people. Compared to his painstakingly built city of just 20,000 residents, this was a massive disparity. And then there were the city alliances—those must have even greater populations.

He Fang hesitated. His citizens lived peacefully, basking in the sunlight and walking in tranquility, completely unprepared for the chaos of a post-apocalyptic world. If they suddenly realized the truth of the apocalypse, widespread panic would be inevitable. Fear and anxiety among the citizens were the last things He Fang wanted to see.

With no laws or information exchange, conflicts could erupt at any moment. Other cities could raid his too easily.

He needed defenses. He needed to build defenses!

He Fang bent down to inspect the shattered remnants of the armor. “Can this still be used?”

Min Zhizhou’s expression turned bitter. “There are too many cracks now. I’m afraid it’s no longer functional as protective armor.”

“…” He Fang felt a pang of guilt. “I’m sorry. I got here too late.”

“It’s fine,” Min Zhizhou replied, turning to look at the vast piles of garbage behind him. “Compared to a single piece of armor, these readily available resources are far more valuable.”

Seeing that Min Zhizhou didn’t seem the least bit upset, He Fang squinted at him. “You’re not secretly falling for that girl who’s been feeding you, are you?”

Min Zhizhou’s face flushed. “No, of course not! She’s so young!”

He Fang gave him a skeptical look. The girl was indeed very young—practically young enough to be Min Zhizhou’s daughter. He Fang half-squinted, still doubtful. Min Zhizhou didn’t seem like the type to act recklessly, but then again, he did look like a lifelong bachelor.

“So, this armor is mine now?” He Fang asked, shifting the subject. If he could fully understand how the armor resisted the Nightmare Beast seeds, he’d spend all his stored funds to equip every citizen with one!

“I’m happy it can still be of use,” Min Zhizhou said, his expression filled with relief.

“Of course it’s useful. It carried you through the Nightmare Beast Forest.” He Fang thought of the vast blackened zones surrounding his city, with no clear paths leading outward. He asked, “Considering how dangerous you said the Nightmare Beast Forest is, it’s a miracle you made it through.”

Min Zhizhou let out a bitter laugh. “At the time, I was prepared to die. Maybe I used up all my luck in that moment.”

But then he shook his head. “No, maybe my luck is only just beginning.”

He Fang paused and immediately understood Min Zhizhou’s meaning. “Makes sense. You’re the kind of person who thinks eating a radish is a lucky event.”

“Heh,” Min Zhizhou chuckled awkwardly. “They’ve been feeding me a lot of delicious food lately—things I never even dreamed of tasting: porridge, rice, vegetables, meat, flatbread, steamed buns…”

As Min Zhizhou recounted the meals he’d been fed while tied to the tree, He Fang couldn’t help but wonder if this guy actually enjoyed being tied up.

“If I couldn’t hold it in and had a biological need, as long as I made the request…”

He Fang’s heart skipped a beat. What biological need? Did he make some inappropriate request to that young girl, and she actually fulfilled it?!

However, Min Zhizhou’s face lit up with happiness, his smile pure and full of joy. “They even let me use an intelligent toilet—the kind you only see in expansion packs. The water in the flush felt unlimited. I wanted to save every drop of it!”

He Fang sighed in relief. “There’s… no need to go that far.”

But now he was truly curious—what kind of environment had Min Zhizhou been living in before this?

With a mix of curiosity and apprehension, He Fang asked cautiously, “Just a question, purely out of curiosity… how do you usually handle, uh, bathroom needs in your daily life?”

Min Zhizhou blinked, then answered, “Normally, we just take care of it on the spot. If we’re in a mobile city with designated facilities, waste undergoes processing. Anything unusable is discharged directly onto the ground.”

He Fang drew in a sharp breath. So mobile cities just leave a trail of waste behind them as they move?!

Noticing He Fang’s shock, Min Zhizhou quickly explained, “Once waste comes into contact with Nightmare Beast seeds, they parasitize and consume it. It’s part of their biological activity. Besides, truly unusable waste is minimal—most of it is recycled.”

He Fang’s expression turned even more horrified. His mind conjured a terrifying image of parasitized waste transforming into running, infectious waste piles, spreading chaos everywhere.

“We need defenses! We need stronger defenses! Not a single Nightmare Beast seed should ever enter my city! Ahhhhhhh!!!”

Min Zhizhou, seeming to guess He Fang’s frantic thoughts, quickly offered an explanation. “While Nightmare Beast seeds can parasitize waste, they cannot control non-living objects. Even if they manage to attach to immobile plants, they can’t manipulate them. They can only truly control living organisms capable of movement.”

He Fang paused. “…Oh.”

Seeing He Fang calm down after his explanation, Min Zhizhou let out a sigh of relief.

Then He Fang asked, “So… could I theoretically use Nightmare Beast seeds to dispose of garbage?”

Min Zhizhou’s expression turned complicated. This was clearly a line of thinking he had never considered.

“I strongly advise against taking such risks. If even one seed successfully parasitizes something, the chance of your city being destroyed is one hundred percent,” Min Zhizhou warned immediately.

“I was just thinking out loud,” He Fang mumbled, shifting his gaze guiltily.

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Moonlit: Imagine poop running around—Oh damn! HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA