Global Fog Survival

Chapter 115: Contradictory Rewards

On the ground lay a chaotic pile of long and short firearms, ranging from pistols and light machine guns to heavy machine guns and cannons.

[You recognize an AK, an M16, a Gatling gun.]

[You realize they seem to have undergone some optimization and modification, but there’s no doubt they are weapons from Earth’s civilization.]

“You even issue these things?” Colin was dumbfounded. He had thought the primary difference between the sides was in terms of skills, special talents, and food. He hadn’t expected it to include firearms as well.

“Heh, never seen these before? They’re weapons randomly given on the tenth day of signing in. Though they look small, they pack quite a punch. I was also shocked by their power at first,” Russell bragged. “Not sure which civilization invented these, but they’re quite handy. They use something called ‘bullets’ which can unleash immense power. You wouldn’t believe how powerful a single ‘bullet’ is. If the system hadn’t stopped issuing ‘bullets,’ we might’ve held out a bit longer. With these, especially paired with some special ‘bullets,’ we could suppress or even execute lord-level mutants.”

“I recall you also got similar weapons from the system, right? Though they seem cruder than mine. Let me introduce you to my favorite.”

Initially, Russell had approached Colin, considering him an insider, because only “Gondor” people used firearms and cannons. However, before he could continue, Colin interrupted, “This is a large-caliber revolver modified from the ‘Smith 500’, using 12.7mm caliber bullets.”

“Hey, I’d forgotten what it was called. How do you know that?” Russell suddenly slapped his forehead, “Oh, I forgot. I can’t access item information panels anymore, but it seems you can.”

As he spoke, he remembered something and frowned, “Wait a minute, did you use a skill? I recall accessing item information requires touching the item. Plus, your item descriptions… tsk.”

For them, the trigger conditions were the same; they had to touch the item to get detailed information. So, he quickly guessed Colin had used a skill. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have known this.

“I don’t know if the boss used a skill, but these things…” Li Chou, nearby, looked as if he’d seen a ghost, “These are the treasures of our culture!”

Russell was also stunned, dropping the gun in his hand with a “clink.” After a few seconds of silence, he bent down to pick up the revolver, his expression awkward, “Your culture’s treasures?”

Recalling his earlier words, he felt inexplicably embarrassed, his face burning and scalp itching.

“Yeah.” Li Chou scratched his head, “Why is it that you’re so familiar with these things that should be ours?”

Even items he hadn’t used were being handled expertly by others. And these things should have been theirs!

Meanwhile, Colin suddenly noticed a detail. The rewards for the previous generation’s quests all seemed to be Earth items like canned meat, dark chocolate, and entrenching tools. In contrast, their generation received items unrelated to them, from a different civilization entirely. Suddenly, Colin had an epiphany and interrupted their conversation, “Could it be that each generation of survivors gets items from other civilizations? Our items have been swapped?”

“Possible,” Russell agreed, recalling that the rewards given to them were all unfamiliar items. Though unfamiliar, they were quite useful, and the food tasted good, especially something called “self-heating hotpot.”

“If that’s the case, then who did we swap with?” Li Chou asked, causing everyone to look at Russell.

“Don’t look at me. I don’t recognize the things you’re getting now. Our civilization’s staple food is a mixed insect cookie, which isn’t bad in taste and nutrition,” Russell shook his head. “Our civilization is not weak either. We use ‘plasma’ as our main weapon, with a shorter range but greater power and area, more suited for this place. Also, you didn’t get any of our civilization’s unique ‘gene mutation potions,’ so it’s definitely not us.”

If not you, then who? Colin and the others fell into deep thought. If this guess is correct, then this civilization must be quite poor—issuing nothing but hard, sour black bread!

[You realize there might be some unknown coincidence at play.]

A coincidence, a cryptic hint, basically useless. Forget it; no point in overthinking since it won’t lead anywhere. Colin rubbed his forehead and stopped pondering. Knowing wouldn’t yield results anyway. And the guess likely isn’t accurate because, if true, potatoes couldn’t be explained.

Better to uncover the mystery later if the chance arises. Now, Colin looked at the pile of weapons on the ground, deciding to send them back to the base. Though they lacked bullets, these optimized weapons might inspire the territory’s people.

“Let’s rest now, eat something, and clean up. Oh, some rooms in the level 5 territory have bathtubs or small baths. You can take a bath and clean up a bit,” Colin suggested, rubbing his forehead. After days without a bath and intense activity, they were far from clean. Only Sanna could use her skills to look relatively clean, while the others were dirty and emitting a foul odor. Of course, after a while, you don’t mind much. The world was filled with the stench of decay, making sweat smell less significant.

Russell added, “By the way, friends, the water’s almost out. If you want a bath, remember to pay the water fee, about three fog points per ton. Otherwise, the ‘water tower’ won’t supply water. With so many people, pay extra. Heh, I haven’t had a proper bath in a long time either.”

With that, Russell left with his three maidservants, leaving only their backs.

“Uh…”

Seeing this, Colin felt somewhat tricked. “Three fog points per ton of water, probably ‘level three’ water. It’s a good deal. At least the water issue is solved,” he thought.

Soon, after enjoying some food, finding a room to clean up, and having a long-awaited bath, Colin lay down, closed his eyes, cleared his mind, and fell asleep.

The night was extraordinarily calm, unsettlingly so. After nine hours of sleep, Colin suddenly sat up in bed, eyes wide open.