Chapter 31: Service Area For Vehicle Modification
Yu Jiang hadn’t been gone long when she saw someone talking on the public screen.
One Monkey: 【Too tragic. I just saw a flipped small car roadside, like it got punched. The shell is done for, and the frame inside seems broken too.】
Player3421: 【Steering with your foot? Flipping on such a flat road.】
Great River Flows East: 【I saw it too. It seemed to be waving to stop cars for a repair card. I didn’t dare stop.】
Red Bean Paste Done!: 【Not stopping was right. Last time I was kind-hearted, suddenly two foot-picking big men jumped out from the rear of the van. If I hadn’t run fast, I’d have been robbed!】
With the Wind220: 【Flipping in a storm is already tragic enough. Passing by without helping is one thing, but you’re also saying sarcastic things.】
Red Bean Paste Done!: 【What are you pretending to be every day? Go help yourself!】
At this moment, the small car driver, soaked like a drowned rat, looked at the words on the public screen, held back for a long time, and in impotent rage typed one word: grass, a plant.
He didn’t dare ask for help on the public screen, afraid of exposing his location and information.
Before, he had deliberately crashed into others’ vehicles, and hadn’t hidden his information back then.
The previous people either couldn’t out-argue him, couldn’t catch up to him, or were relatively easygoing.
Today he met a madman who crashed his car so badly. He only had two repair cards!
Still short one to repair the engine. He couldn’t move at all right now.
The wind was strong and the rain heavy. He was already drenched. Over an hour passed with no one on the road willing to stop and help. Only two people lowered their windows and quoted prices.
No different from looting in a fire.
He had never regretted it so much. If he’d known, he wouldn’t have stopped to see who was driving the pickup truck. Running straight away might not have been so bad.
Yu Jiang arrived near the destination around 12:30 noon. There was a service area there, right before the culvert.
A simple single-story building, with a row of white two-story wooden houses behind it, like a motel.
The orange sign was unclear in the rain. After swiping the parking card to enter, she discovered this service area actually covered quite a few functions.
On the left, a rundown sign read: Auto Repair, Parts.
Open hours: Works only one day a week, 10 AM to 2:30 PM, specific day depends on mood.
Another sign: Poor Ghosts not allowed, scavenging prohibited!
Yu Jiang coughed dryly and put away her crowbar. This was blatant targeting!
So what about scavenging! She scavenged and was proud of it!
Thanks to scavenging, she had accumulated 50 iron blocks and 20 steel blocks! Cleared two abandoned cars blocking traffic.
When Yu Jiang entered the auto repair shop, an electronic clock on the wall showed not the time, but a two-hour closing countdown.
The NPCs here had such relaxed work hours? As a former worker bee, Yu Jiang was broken.
“Welcome, not happy to serve you. What do you need?”
The boss wore a linen-colored woolen hat, was short and slightly chubby, with a mechanical eye in one eye.
He dressed plainly, but wore a gem ring the size of a pigeon’s egg on his hand.
“What can I buy here?” Yu Jiang glanced around at the things placed in the shop.
Surprisingly, all the more important parts were here! Snow tires too, and some parts she couldn’t identify.
The boss glanced at her car parked outside, rubbed his thumb and index finger together. “Depends on whether you can afford it.”
“Your car won’t do, too fragile. I can modify the frame material and engine upgrade for 2 thousand crystal coins.
Or just add some corrosion resistant material, make the car front sturdier, add an attack device on the bumper.
Charged per project: 500, 300, 300 respectively. But your vehicle level isn’t high enough, so the improvement from the attack device won’t be much.”
Yu Jiang showed her poor smile again in the service area.
She wanted every one, but her crystal coins added up to only 565, saved from opening boxes and killing monsters these past few days.
Since everyone knew the importance of crystal coins, they wouldn’t trade them unless desperate. Hard to collect, so she sold medicine and got a few dozen crystal coins.
This instance only opens at 8 AM. Earliest was tomorrow. Tonight, either pay 100 crystal coins parking fee from now, or 120 for the motel, no parking fee, plus a sugar water late-night snack, vending machine 9.8% off.
She had to save for parking fee. Otherwise, kicked out of the service area, with more players coming later, easy to get robbed outside at night.
One cent stumps a hero, let alone hundreds short.
Missing this service area that could modify vehicles, who knows when she’d find another.
Modify, she must modify!
“Wait for me, I’ll try to earn some money now.” Yu Jiang flashed a sincere smile.
Opened the public screen and posted: 【Instance mission intermediate healing potion final sales 2 portions, 100 crystal coins each. Primary healing potion 5 portions, 40 crystal coins each. Wind-cold powder also 40 crystal coins, only two portions. Good price, first come first served, no bargaining!】
This was the most she could spare before entering the instance.
She still had steel blocks, which were valuable, but upgrading to level four vehicle needed 150.
Medicine could be crafted anytime with materials, so Yu Jiang kept plenty for herself.
Responses on the public screen came quick, but many were still bargaining.
【100 crystal coins? Too expensive? Just heals 30 health points. Killing zombies for 100 crystal coins takes several. Two grabs do more than 30 health points.】
Kuang Kuang Kuang: 【Isn’t it possible this is for people who don’t struggle killing zombies and want to compete on the leaderboard in the instance? Last instance group ranking had crystal coins rewards. This one’s harder, rewards won’t be few. Still think it’s expensive?】
Lightning Mage King: 【Can’t beat zombies? Suggest running straight, don’t risk it. Big shot, give me more healing potions.】
Kuang Kuang Kuang was also private chatting Yu Jiang. She wanted to buy that intermediate healing potion. Last time third place, this time she aimed for group first.
12-hour instance, healing potion 1-hour cooldown. Who could complain about too many.
Yu Jiang asked her first, “What position are you at? Heading to the instance entrance?”
“Just started tracking, estimated to arrive around 5 PM. Not thinking of entering the instance today anyway. What’s up?”
Yu Jiang didn’t hide it. To form a team, needed some rapport and trust.
Profiting off information gap with others was fine, but doing it to team members she favored wasn’t right.
“On the parallel road outside the instance, I found a service area. Needs crystal coins for vehicle mods, can add defense, corrosion resistant material too. Rare opportunity.
But this auto repair shop closes in over an hour, open only one day a week. Not sure if you’ll hit the same shop when you arrive at the service area, so asking.
“Think it over, no problem if you don’t buy. Last time’s fifth and eighth are also private chatting me.”
Yu Jiang sent this directly in their chat channel, so everyone inside could see.
Kuang Kuang Kuang: “I get it. Thanks big shot for telling me this important message. Probably too late by the time I arrive. I’ll buy first.”
“Good.”
Yu Jiang just replied when Purple Butt Can Do It spoke up,
“Wait @Kuang Kuang Kuang. Anyway I didn’t sign up. I collected some crystal coins before. I’ll cover this 100 crystal coins, as an investment. If you get leaderboard rewards with a crafting scroll, give me the crafting scroll.”
