He fetched a bowl of chilly snow and rubbed it over his face a couple of times before adding in some precipitated snow water.
After washing his face and hair, Su Mo felt a lot more relaxed.
The lethargic fatigue from staying up all night also disappeared instantly.
The hot oil noodles that he had rushed to produce yesterday had been kept in the storage space. It was a little cold when he took it out but, fortunately, the noodles had not clumped together.
Waking Moore up, the one adult and four little ones hastily took care of breakfast.
There was no concept of time in the wasteland. All individuals were driven forward only by their ‘dreams’ and ‘sense of initiative’.
After eating, seeing that Moore had begun to habitually wash the dishes, Su Mo patted Moore on the back before he slowly walked up to the first floor.
The diesel reserves in the shelter were running low, and they had just enough for their current usage.
If there was excess expenditure, he was bound to have to spend points to purchase it on the market, which was an extremely uneconomical way of going about it.
Thus, adhering to the principle of saving costs wherever he could, it was necessary to drive both rotary tillers at once to save the most fuel.
There were no traffic police in the wasteland. After studying the structure of the rotary tiller, Su Mo boldly started to modify it ‘illegally’.
The first step was to remove the front iron plate on the back of the rotary tiller and weld on a hook.
Then, Su Mo returned to the workbench. According to the image in his mind, Su Mo took about 20 minutes to produce an iron chain about the size of his arm.
He tried to hang one end of the iron chain on the hook and tied the other end to the rear of the rotary tiller in front, and the two rotary tillers were thus simply connected together.
Releasing the handbrake on the machine in the rear and stepping on the accelerator of the machine in front, Su Mo drove back and forth three or four laps. After confirming that the chain between the two machines was joined stably, Su Mo finally relaxed.
“Knowledge from Earth is a form of wealth on the wasteland. By relying on the path of our predecessors, I can also restore civilization to its technological heights more rapidly!”
He thought of the basin surrounding the Underground Shelter that had been barren just one month ago.
Then he looked at the ‘new’ shelter that was now lush and green, with a shelter made of heavy boulders and where three big steel beasts were parked.
If there was an achievement for construction, the list of honors engraved on Su Mo’s record would have been dazzling!
“After today and tomorrow, the shelter will be completely free from worries regarding food supplies. When I pick my sister up, I’ll be able to research how to break the cage set by this world!”
Historically, be it Ming Taizu who became an emperor from his humble beginnings as a beggar, or Han Gaozu who started as a street punk before becoming an emperor, like these great figures recorded in Chinese history, Su Mo had also evolved from a small-time employee, only wanting to live in peace, to his current mentality of wanting to delve deeper into the secrets of this world.
Moreover, this change occurred over the short period of one month!
“I can only grow under pressure. In the wasteland, the fiercer and more aggressive I become, the better I can protect my family and search for the truth!”
Looking at Oreo, who scampered into the backseat, and Moore who closed the gate behind him and sat on the rotary tiller, Su Mo’s fighting spirit flashed in his eyes. He no longer longed for a peaceful life.
“Moore, the two machines are connected. Be careful to drive slowly and don’t crash either one!”
After giving out instructions, Su Mo watched as Moore nodded cleverly and tugged at the chain behind him with a curious face. Su Mo turned around, released Earth Tiger’s handbrake, and gradually drove forward.
From Big Spark and Little Spark, it could be seen that the intelligence of wasteland creatures would increase after the long-term consumption of psychic energy water.
This phenomenon was also fully verified in Moore’s situation.
Under Su Mo’s deliberate or unintentional guidance, the lightning bear warrior’s mind not only learned how to farm, but also learned how to drive various vehicles.
In this regard, Moore could even drive a vehicle a little better than Su Mo, a veteran driver on Earth.
They traveled along that same familiar road.
Along the way, he stared aimlessly at the road that had been marked from being well-traveled. When Su Mo finally awoke from his daze, the field cleared up by the Candlelight Shelter had already appeared at the end of his field of vision.
Compared to the previous black and gray, the field was now orange and yellow, and looked gratifying.
Rolling down the car window, the scent of wheat drifted into the car with the wind, bringing with it the smell of a ‘good harvest’.
It was already 10 in the morning. All the refugees in the Candlelight Shelter had completed the harvest of the first cycle of crops and had quickly scrambled back to the shelter to catch up on some sleep.
Human stamina was limited. Relying on human strength alone for farming, even with the terrifying growth rate of the excellent-quality seeds, they could barely sow three rounds of seeds in three days.
Now, looking at the two rotary tillers in his rearview mirror, and looking at the few alert refugees shouting below, the corners of Su Mo’s mouth curved up slightly into a smile.
The appearance of the rotary tillers was undoubtedly a great addition to the group’s farming efforts.
In line with Su Mo’s request, several veteran drivers started to exchange shifts.
After a hasty handover, the two rotary tillers started to turn the soil according to the established routes. Not only were the people of the Candlelight Shelter relieved, but the sense of urgency that Su Mo had felt on the way here was finally lifted.
The bodies of the refugees in Candlelight Shelter were not enhanced yet, and getting enough rest put them out of commission for at least four to six hours.
After strolling around the quiet Candlelight Shelter and seeing Zhong Qingshu curled up and sleeping in the corner of a room, a trace of warmth welled up in Su Mo’s heart.
“The people in the Candlelight Shelter are all pitiful people, or rather… most of the people who came to doomsday wasteland are all good people!”
“Villains like Huang Biao and Kento Maeda are still the minority after all!”
Coming to the doomsday wasteland, everyone was akin to a lonely individual, eager to be embraced.
That included Zhong Qingshu. Whether in the main world, or in the ruins of time, this person was as stubborn as hell.
No matter how Su Mo asked, Zhong Qingshu chose to keep her mouth shut about her family.
In desperation, Su Mo had no choice but to give up his thoughts of further pursuit.
After strolling and looking around, Su Mo walked to the kitchen of the Candlelight Shelter at the end of the village. Su Mo thought for a moment and once again took out the enhanced psychic energy water and added a full liter in proportion to everyone’s portions.
These refugees from the Candlelight Shelter who had experienced hardship and suffering, yet still maintained kind hearts, were hard to come by.
If these people could survive the flood in the future and persevere until Su Mo picked up his sister and returned to the place where the ‘dream began’, these people would inevitably become the first indigenous people of the basin surrounding the Underground Shelter.
In the future, be it to manage the farms, troubleshoot the environment of the basin, or gradually build the first city on the wasteland from scratch, and slowly restore civilization, these people would be the best source of productive power.
“The greater the number of people, the better my shelter would be able to resist risks and challenges that come my way.”
“If I can restore technology to Earth’s heyday, I wouldn’t need to be afraid of something like this flood at all.”
Sitting on the ridge overlooking the field, and observing the two rotary tillers busily working below, Su Mo felt quite touched.
As time ticked by, passing 11 in the morning, the refugees in the Candlelight Shelter began to wake up in batches, one after the other.
After a simple lunch, no one urged or shouted.
All the refugees spontaneously picked up their farming tools and rushed to the farmland with great enthusiasm.
Of course, every refugee passing by would cast a reverent glance at Su Mo when they saw him.
When they received Su Mo’s friendly smile in return, these people became even more motivated. After finding their own areas, the sounds of hoes clattered about.
Reality proved that Su Mo had a good eye for choosing people.
Under Chen Shen’s arrangement, all the refugees in the Candlelight Shelter were rostered methodically and rigorously.
Those plowing at the forefront could go to bed early after last night’s harvest. Subsequently, after getting five to six hours of sleep, they had to get up early to get back to work.
It just so happened that, when these people were at work, the rotary tiller had just turned over the land in front of them for these people to continue planting after some minor adjustments.
By the time the people who slept late last night woke up, the rotary tiller would also finish turning over the rest of the land according to its current progress, ensuring that no time was lost in between.
Scientific and efficient management was combined with the enthusiasm of refugees and the assistance of farming machinery.
Sitting on the ridge overlooking the field, Su Mo just stared blankly ahead, not going anywhere, like a statue standing over the field.
However…
Not only did the efficiency in the fields below not slow down because of the longer working hours, but the refugees also became more and more energetic.
With Su Mo around, they were absolutely safe.
While farming, no danger would touch them, and all potential threats would be reduced to ‘zero’!
It was like being back on Earth where everyone just needed to do their job well and be rewarded as needed.
Even some ‘young women’ who felt tired from work would feel strength emerging from within just by looking at the handsome and heroic face of Su Mo standing there.
Under such circumstances, even the scorching sun above felt a tad better.
Of course, what these people did not know was that the energy brimming in their bodies was not purely psychological in nature. The drinking water they received with the added psychic energy water was also one of the main reasons for their perseverance.
In the afternoon, Moore, who stood aside as a security guard, also could not resist the urge to ‘farm’. With a roar, he rushed down to the field to help the refugees with the farm work.
Initially, the ferocious lightning bear warrior naturally scared everyone, but after accepting his setting as Su Mo’s pet, everyone suddenly became enthusiastic.
Su Mo was the god of protection for everyone, so how could his pet go crazy and hurt them?
Seeing the lighting bear warrior rely on his ‘intelligence’ to quickly lower down the IQ level of the others, and also rely on his workmanship to conquer all the refugees, Su Mo could not help but laugh.
“Not bad, Almighty Su. After such a long time, this is the first time I’ve seen you laughing!”
“No way, I’m just an ordinary person who’s been deified by them.”
Su Mo waved his hand and looked at Zhong Qingshu, who walked over with sweat on her forehead after patrolling with a spear in hand, and felt a little emotional.
In the entire Candlelight Shelter, only Zhong Qingshu dared to approach him and crack jokes.
Others would either be extremely awed like Chen Shen, or stare at him as if he was a god like the other ordinary refugees.
Only next to Zhong Qingshu would Su Mo shed his disguise and behave like a normal person.
While standing up and looking at the busy scene below, Su Mo simply followed Zhong Qingshu and shouldered the patrol work around the fields.
The two talked about astronomy and geography for a while before talking about sailing at sea.
From how to develop a large shelter, whether to use above-ground buildings or underground structures, to after building a shelter, what would be the first thing to construct.
Like the perspectives between arts and science students colliding, many sparks flew.
At the same time, during the conversation, Su Mo also found many points that he had overlooked before.
“You’re right, if I were to build a small boat, perhaps I can go out to sea alone. With Moore’s help, it will be more than enough.”
“However, in that case, the boat’s resilience and ability to overcome risks associated with the flood will suffer, and will likely be capsized by a large wave.”
“However, if we built a large ship without the assistance of a computer, it’s almost impossible to control and operate with just the two of us. This is certainly a difficult problem!”
A previously overlooked point was accidentally spotted by Zhong Qingshu. Even Su Mo felt he was faced with a dilemma.
