Wasteland Development Diary

Blackie used a beam to dissect the wrinkled body of the Blackthorn, extracting a chicken-egg-sized nut from within.

This object's surface was covered in grooves and纹理, somewhat resembling a large walnut.

After Niger was summoned, he picked up the large nut and examined it from left to right for a while, then exclaimed, "It's a Thousand Machine Seed! A good thing!"

He explained to Zhou Yi: "Chairman, the Thousand Machine Fruit is a type of plant cultivated by the naturalists of the Tree Department. It is very valuable and a crucial core tool for the Mud Tree People."

"The Thousand Machine Seed is planted using Light Amber. Once it sprouts, it can be transplanted onto the Canopy Tree, similar to grafting techniques here, and enters a period of rapid growth."

"Its growth cycle is similar to that of the Dead Sea Fruit, possibly bearing fruit in just two months. The fruit comes in two colors, red and green. The red fruit is the most valuable and the rarest, and that's the Thousand Machine Fruit."

"The characteristic of the Thousand Machine Fruit is that it can enhance existing abilities. For example, my Exploration Vine has 'Blind Spot,' 'Recognition,' and 'Feeding.' If I feed it a Thousand Machine Fruit, all three abilities will experience a significant boost in a short period."

"In our area, Thousand Machine Fruit is widely used. The size of the fruit determines the extent of the enhancement and the duration. High-grade Thousand Machine Fruit can allow a certain ability to directly break through the current level, briefly possessing a qualitative change effect."

Zhou Yi's heart stirred upon hearing this.

It was actually a natural supplement that increased skill intensity.

"How long does the effect of the Thousand Machine Fruit last?"

Niger thought for a moment: "At least 30 minutes, but no more than 1 hour."

Zhou Yi then asked: "Can humans consume it?"

"Yes. But we usually feed it to our symbiotic plants because our abilities are all on them. Also, the fruit itself tastes average, not very delicious."

Niger squeezed the seed in his hand: "The warriors of the Mud Department use this for hunting and fighting Dead Sea monsters. The naturalists of the Tree Department also use this fruit to improve the precision and acuity of their symbiotic plants."

"Dead Sea monsters often climb trees to steal our Thousand Machine Fruit. This can enhance their combat power, so we have to send out Mud Department guards to deal with them."

Zhou Yi thought to himself.

It seemed there were no problems with the Lightborn using the Thousand Machine Fruit.

He said: "Are there any side effects?"

"There are no other effects, except that you can't use too much at once. In a short period, you can only use three Thousand Machine Fruits. The first time is the best, the second is secondary, and the third is the worst. Continuing to eat it will have no effect."

"Long-term consumption of Thousand Machine Fruit will gradually weaken its effect until it eventually becomes completely ineffective. The limit for Thousand Machine Fruit is 3000. Eating it up to this amount will render it useless."

Niger continued, "However, the naturalists of the Tree Department have researched many such fruits. We usually mix several fruits to avoid this complete loss of effectiveness."

Zhou Yi immediately understood.

This was a natural drug, and excessive consumption would lead to drug resistance.

If he could further cultivate Thousand Machine Fruit, he could sell it to the Lightborn cities, creating another good source of stable income.

Various thoughts flashed through his mind, and he asked: "Then what about the green fruit?"

"Green fruit is useless."

Niger waved his hand: "Green fruit is called the Hundred Transformation Fruit. It's not poisonous to eat, but it's sour, somewhat like an underdeveloped Thousand Machine Fruit, but its abilities are completely different."

"They only have one characteristic, which is that they can trigger a random ability, but it only lasts for three days, after which it expires."

"It's completely unpredictable what ability you'll get. It's hard enough to master the basic usage, and then it's gone. It's very impractical. After it expires, you'll have aches all over your body. It's not good. The monsters there… even the Lightborn don't eat it."

Zhou Yi thought of this: "Some of the Dead Sea Fruit we cultivated before had similar characteristics. Is there a connection between the two?"

"There is a connection."

Niger touched a strand of his pointed hair: "Many fruits are related to each other. It's through the hybridization of various fruits that we have mature and usable tool categories."

"It is estimated that the Hundred Transformation Fruit and the Dead Sea Fruit should have some common origin."

Zhou Yi nodded.

The top priority was to cultivate it first.

"Leave the cultivation of Thousand Machine Fruit to your Mud Tree Civilization Department. Niger, you and Ye Qing will do this."

"Yes, Chairman."

Niger revealed a flattering smile: "But can you allocate some Light Seeds to me? Whether it's my Exploration Vine, or the Pan Tree, or the Blackthorn, they all need Light Seeds very much. This form of energy is more advanced and efficient than what we have there. The plants like it very much, and they grow faster by directly absorbing Light Seeds."

The Mud Tree Person took the Lightborn Box, happily caressing it left and right.

...

The Thousand Machine Fruit was buried in Light Amber, and it only took less than a week for green sprouts and branches to grow.

This was thanks to Niger's great effort, directly giving 10,000 Light Seeds to the Thousand Machine Seed, making its growth rapid.

The Tree Spirits grafted the branches onto the Pan Tree. Except for the slightly reddish color of the branches, it was no different from the surrounding branches.

Just as Zhou Yi was paying attention to the Thousand Machine Fruit, Yuan Tong brought the Lin Chi to the roof of Emerald City.

This one-eyed minister got straight to the point: "Chairman, the Manufacturing Department wants to jointly establish a plastic product factory with Plastic Island."

"Since starting cooperation with Plastic Island, we have purchased a large amount of recycled plastic from there. This material has a very wide range of applications."

"For example, our most basic Light Ash Dam, the拼命机 inside has been improved to the third generation. Many of the parts are wooden products. Because they are stretched and rotated up and down in the Dead Sea for a long time, the wear and tear is very large. Replacing them with plastic and rubber will make them last longer. It is also convenient to replace them when they are damaged."

"Then there are our refrigeration box shells, the crash-resistant structure of gliders, the nacelle outer walls of airships, and the outer shells and insulation layers of electrical equipment, all of which are gradually being replaced with plastic materials."

"We have developed many fields for the utilization of plastics."

Yuan Tong enumerated as if listing family treasures, "Like the containers needed for daily life, such as plastic kettles, plastic bottles, plastic water tanks, plastic storage boxes, plastic tables and chairs, sealing tape, fuel tanks... Also in the agricultural field, Old Zheng uses plastic to make agricultural film, and the demand for greenhouses is very large. In addition, there are plastic pipes needed for drainage systems."

"The entire plastics industry can play a significant role in the company's system."

"In order to better produce the molds and cable insulation layers we need in the long term, Chairman, we are applying to co-establish a plastic products factory with Plastic Island."

"This way, we can use the extrusion process to encapsulate copper wires and metal equipment at the plastic production site, reducing a lot of work processes and resource waste."

Zhou Yi listened carefully.

Even if he hadn't seen a pig run, he had always eaten pork.

Plastic was everywhere in the lives of the old humans.

It is indeed an economical and durable high-quality material, which is very much in line with the company's emphasis on cost performance and practicality.

"I think it's feasible."

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Zhou Yi then looked at Lin Chihao next to him: "What are your thoughts on Plastic Island?"

Lin Chihao said: "Mr. Zhou, Plastic Island is very happy to jointly operate this production plant with your company."

"If this plastic factory were completely self-operated by Plastic Island, it would be a burden for us. Because the city itself may be turbulent, the political system may change at any time, and the current external environment is changing far more than in any previous period."

"Previously, the city was managed by legal principles, but now it is governed by electro-mechanical knights. In the future, it may become like other electro-mechanical cities, operating the city by hiring external mayors."

"Changes and adjustments in different systems can also cause changes in many policies, and the factory may be shut down next year."

"Changing to a joint venture factory can instead continue the stable operation of this industry."

"Therefore, regarding this joint venture factory, our municipal department hopes that your company will hold more than 51% of the shares. The factory can provide stable employment for the residents of Plastic Island, and we are willing to provide a four-year tax exemption."

Plastic Island took the initiative to give up its status as a major shareholder to attract investment to the company.

Zhou Yi immediately asked: "Old Yuan, what is the scale of this joint venture factory, and how much money do we need to invest?"

Seeing that there was a chance, Yuan Tong immediately said actively: "Chairman, we plan to build a small and medium-sized plastic processing plant first, with a daily output of about 0.5-3 tons and an annual output of about 200-1000 tons, depending on demand."

"The equipment needed to build the factory includes injection molding machines, extruders, blow molding machines, crushers, mixing machines, cooling systems, etc. It is estimated that 10-20 electromechanical workers will be involved, working in two shifts, starting work throughout the year, and the workers' wages will refer to market standards, with a preliminary annual salary of 12 Light Seeds."

"There are three main production lines in the factory, corresponding to three types of goods."

"The first is daily necessities, such as plastic basins, buckets, clothes racks, tableware, etc. The second is packaging materials, such as plastic bottles, boxes, films, etc. The third is industrial accessories, such as plastic pipes, cable insulation layers, various equipment shells, etc."

"The factory will first meet the company's needs and develop internal orders for the alliance, and will not be open to the public for the time being."

"In summary, including equipment, personnel, site, and various other expenses in the early stage, Lin Chihao and I have calculated, and Hong隼 has also done the accounting. The final estimate is 50,000 Light Seeds. Converted into a 51% investment share for our side, it requires an investment of 25,500 Light Seeds."

Zhou Yi's hanging heart was finally relieved.

That's all?

Opening a factory is much cheaper than planting trees.

Zhou Yi waved his hand: "The company will provide it."

Yuan Tong immediately became energetic: "Plastic Island has an existing factory that can be directly改造. With the addition of mold casting and parameter testing, it is expected to be officially put into production within a month."

Zhou Yi said: "Don't rush, quality is important for the things we use ourselves."

"Understood, please rest assured about this."

The Minister of Manufacturing said confidently: "Our company's original quality control was very strict. Plastic Island is an electromechanical city, and the process requirements for each link are very clear. Non-standard products cannot leave the factory."

Zhou Yi nodded.

When it comes to processing and manufacturing, electromechanical life is indeed superior to the group.

He raised a question that he was more puzzled about: "Lin Chihao, you said that the political system of electromechanical cities is changing frequently now... What is the matter with that externally hired mayor?"

The drone replied: "Mr. Zhou, just like our Plastic Island, many electromechanical cities have changed after Clockwork City was destroyed."

"Among the small and medium-sized electromechanical cities adjacent to the Development Alliance, 11 have already followed our Plastic Island's example and switched to electromechanical knights managing the city, and legal principles have become auxiliary programs."

"This can reduce military spending, avoid the continued increase in city debt due to excessive burdens, and escape from the war clouds of the legal principles front..."

"Through our experiments, we have found that the municipal department's leadership of the city does not cause any harm. Because the legal principles program is still running, it provides various analyses and suggestions, and we ultimately decide whether to use it or not."

"In some electromechanical cities, electromechanical knights have promoted another urban governance method, that is, publicly recruiting mayors to govern. They usually offer higher salaries, such as annual salaries ranging from 10,000 to 30,000, and some even have profit-sharing agreements. This trend is becoming popular."

"Externally hired mayors need to have many years of experience in town management or experience in managing large groups."

"This part of professional talent is extremely scarce for electromechanical cities and is difficult to cultivate on their own."

Lin Chihao said: "Like the former Lord of the Seas of Turning Cloud City, Duke Turning Cloud, was hired as the mayor of Mechanical Bay. This large electromechanical city was also the first large city to carry out institutional reforms."

"After officially taking office, Duke Turning Cloud cut a large number of security drones used for patrols in Mechanical Bay and transformed them into agricultural and commercial use. He sold all the electromechanical thugs imprisoned in the city to Motorcycle City as workers, избавился from this burdensome group, and also obtained additional revenue."

"In Mechanical Bay, Duke Turning Cloud is now highly praised and has extremely high approval ratings."

Zhou Yi was shocked.

This person who cashed out Turning Cloud City and ran to an electromechanical city to be the mayor!