At the mining base, Bai Wen sat in the command chair of the main control room, chin resting on one hand, brows tightly furrowed.
How could he not be worried?! He currently had 645 Crystal points, but no Vespene Gas. No Gas meant he couldn't build a Tech Lab, which meant no access to more powerful units! Things like Marauders and Reapers were out of reach.
Not to mention the War Factory and Starport—without High-energy Gas, those were impossible to construct.
And he didn't even know what High-energy Gas was! How was he supposed to find it?
Just as he was stewing in frustration, the SCV suddenly spoke up: "Commander, Earth has abundant Vespene Gas deposits."
"What? Where?" Bai Wen straightened abruptly.
The SCV replied calmly, "Vespene Gas is commonly known as coal gas, liquefied petroleum gas, or natural gas. However, the purity of gas on this planet is extremely low compared to High-energy Gas—about a 100:1 ratio. Meaning, 100 units of this planet's gas would yield only 1 unit of High-energy Gas."
"..."
Bai Wen's mind went blank. Vespene Gas was... household gas? Coal gas? Natural gas?
"Recommendation: Commander should locate coal mines and natural gas fields. We can construct a Gas Refinery to increase gas purity," the SCV suggested.
Bai Wen nodded. It seemed his next trip to Pi County would involve hunting for natural gas supply stations—they'd surely have pipeline maps. Following those would lead him straight to the gas fields.
With his 645 Crystal points, he first had the Adjutant fabricate a custom-fitted set of CMC Armor and a C14 Rifle for himself, costing 45 points. Then he constructed an Engineering Station and two Bunkers—125 points for the Engineering Station and 100 points each for the Bunkers, totaling 325 points. That left him with 275.
Next, he produced five more Marine Corpsmen, leaving just 25 points remaining.
Taking stock of his current Star Hegemony assets:
Control Center ×1
Supply Depot ×3
Barracks ×1
Engineering Station ×1
Bunker ×2
SCV ×2
Marine Corpsmen ×12
This was everything he had at the moment. But as he continued eliminating Zombies, he was confident he'd soon build a formidable Star Hegemony army.
Leading the newly produced Marines aboveground, he had them relieve the sentries on duty so those could rest. Returning to the prefab housing, he planned to recharge—tomorrow he'd make another trip to Pi County. While hunting Zombies, he'd also track down those natural gas fields.
But just as he reached the door, a Marine came running up to report: "Commander, we've spotted suspicious figures outside. Not Zombies—two humans."
"Humans?" Bai Wen's brows knitted. Could they be remnants of Wu Gang's group?
"Our integrated radio systems intercepted their conversation. They seem to be returning to S City to report. Should we detain them?"
Bai Wen's eyes narrowed momentarily before he shook his head with a smile. "Let them go. We'll have work to do tomorrow."
"Understood!"
In the darkness, two figures sprinted away. Once sufficiently distant from the mining site, they uncovered a motorcycle hidden beneath leaves and kickstarted it. One of them laughed triumphantly: "We actually found it! There are several beautiful women holed up there—we're going to be rewarded for this!"
"That's right! Once we report this news to Second Boss, he'll surely reward us handsomely!"
"Vroom vroom~" The motorcycles roared as they sped down the highway toward S City.
Meanwhile, Bai Wen had gathered Yun Fei Wu and the others, instructing them to take shelter in the bunker for safety. He then led all the Marine Corpsmen to ambush both sides of the highway leading to S City. If the enemy dared come, Bai Wen would ensure none returned alive!
Sure enough, early the next morning, a massive convoy rolled in—over a hundred strong. A man sitting atop one vehicle, scanning the surroundings, looked familiar. Bai Wen recognized him—the Wind Ability User he'd seen back in S City!
This must be the Second Boss they mentioned—Long Er!
Based on memories from his past life, the ability ranking system was gradually taking shape. From what he'd witnessed in S City—casually wielding Wind Blades with such endurance—Long Er had likely reached the second stage, equivalent to a two-star rating.
Though the rank might not seem high, to ordinary people, such abilities were practically divine magic. A dozen armed soldiers might not even be a match for a single Ability User!
Thus, Bai Wen's primary target was Long Er atop that vehicle.
Just then, Long Er suddenly stood up and shouted to his underlings, "I'll go ahead first! You all catch up!"
With that, Long Er activated his ability, conjuring a small whirlwind beneath his feet that lifted him high into the air.
"Second Boss is invincible!" The underlings roared with laughter, marveling at how their leader's power kept growing—now even controlling wind with such precision.
But Bai Wen wouldn't let him escape so easily. He pulled back the bolt, chambering a round.
"Bang!" A massive bullet tore through the air, reaching Long Er in an instant.
"Thud—" Long Er only felt a numb sensation in his arm before his shoulder erupted in a spray of crimson. The tremendous impact ripped his entire arm clean off his body!
"Ahhh—" He screamed in agony, losing control of the whirlwind and plummeting straight to the ground.
"Ambush! Ambush! Everyone out—"
Panic erupted as everyone scrambled from their vehicles to check on Long Er.
At that moment, over a dozen massive-barreled weapons emerged from the roadside's left flank.
"Rat-tat-tat-tat—" A dozen dark muzzles roared to life simultaneously. Solid fuel propelled Metal Spikes in a deadly barrage, sparking off their vehicles and cutting down a dozen slow-reacting militants where they stood.
"Depleted Uranium Shells!" someone shrieked. The gleaming Metal Spikes ceased fire, replaced by the earth-shaking booms of terrifyingly large Depleted Uranium Armor-Piercing Bullets.
"Boom-boom-boom—" Vehicles reinforced with double-layered steel plating might as well have been rice paper against these rounds. Instantly perforated, the cars offered no protection to the militants using them as cover. Bodies exploded one after another—blood spraying, viscera flying—leaving not a single intact corpse behind.
"Damn it—" Long Er gritted through the pain, staggering to his feet. Staring at the gruesome wound near his neck, he bellowed furiously, "Counterattack! Hit them hard! Where are the mortars? Bring them out now!"
"Second Brother, let me handle this!" A young man with fiery red hair jumped up, his face also filled with anger. This was Zhao Si, the fourth leader of Zuo Mountain Safe Zone and a second-level Fire Ability User.
"Good! You truly are my worthy fourth brother. I'll have men cover you—go!" Long Er shouted loudly.
"Just watch me!" Zhao Si roared as he suddenly leaped forward, opening his mouth wide and spewing a long tongue of flames toward the roadside bushes.
"Fourth Master is mighty! Burn those bastards to death!" The armed men cheered loudly. But the next moment, Zhao Si's head suddenly exploded like a watermelon while he was still spewing fire, splattering blood that stained the entire roof of the vehicle red.
I find it strange—people often say the protagonist is foolish, but where exactly is the foolishness? Please give examples!