Chapter Thirty: The Mysterious Iron Mine

The gunfire had temporarily frightened the mutant crows, but the crisis was far from over. The crows circled above the dense forest, unwilling to leave, and Lin Lei dared not take to the skies to fight. Both sides were locked in a stalemate. After finishing off two wounded crows that couldn’t fly, Lin Lei collected five mutant crow corpses; one of them was level two and contained a crystal core.

He checked the recycling value: four level-one crows without crystal cores were worth only 0.08 contribution points altogether, while the level-two crow was worth just 1.1 contribution points. Truly, the system’s recycling style cared nothing for quality, only for weight.

“It seems most of these are level-one mutant crows, and there’s no sign of any level-three ones,” Lin Lei mused in frustration. Without high-level mutant beasts, there was little to gain—this flock of crows might fetch at most forty or fifty contribution points. Moreover, crows were timid; a bigger commotion would likely scare them all away.

If he spent money now, he might not recoup the cost; it was the very definition of a tasteless, inedible chicken rib—too trivial to be worth keeping, yet a waste to discard.

In reality, the larger a group, the scarcer resources become, making it difficult for high-level beings to emerge, especially among birds—free-spirited and lacking predators. “What now? Am I supposed to wait until they automatically disperse?” Lin Lei was at a loss.

He had hoped to earn some extra profit on the last day. With no better ideas, he decided to venture deeper into the forest, hoping the crows would eventually lose patience and leave.

Perhaps the mutant crows had frightened the other mutant beasts in the forest; Lin Lei walked several kilometers without encountering a single one.

“Two hundred meters northwest, mutant Xuan Iron ore detected. Ownerless. Host may collect and recycle. Recycling value: five contribution points per ton.” The system had found something valuable.

“Mutant Xuan Iron ore? Even minerals can mutate?” Lin Lei was astonished.

What was happening in this world? Humans could mutate, animals could mutate, plants could mutate, and now even mineral resources were mutating...

“The virus on this planet is not artificially manufactured. Host may understand it as the planet undergoing self-transcendence; all matter here is changing, survival of the fittest,” the system explained.

It was somewhat like a spiritual revival in the cultivation world, where mountains and rivers were transformed.

Originally, all mineral resources in this world belonged to local governments, but with many places now in a state of anarchy, previous mines without transfer agreements were inaccessible to Lin Lei. However, the Xuan Iron ore hadn’t existed before the apocalypse, so it had never been registered—truly ownerless.

“Five contribution points a ton? What’s it used for, why is it so valuable?” Lin Lei wondered as he moved toward the target.

That was a million credits a ton for raw ore—at the system’s recycling price, it was worth more than rare earths.

“It’s a fundamental material for energy-conducting weapons, and is versatile enough to be considered a strategic resource in other worlds. Host may understand it as akin to a magical artifact. When an evolver reaches level four, weapons made from this material will increase their innate abilities’ power by at least twenty percent compared to bare-handed use,” the system explained.

The system wanted Lin Lei to value this material; whether recycled or traded, the system would ultimately benefit.

“A treasure, indeed! Who would have thought being driven here by a flock of birds would lead to such a windfall?” Lin Lei marveled.

Luck was truly a mysterious thing.

Soon, guided by the system, Lin Lei arrived at his destination—a black mountain about a hundred meters tall, barren and eerie.

“So... I still have to spend money!” Lin Lei sighed, gazing at the circling crows.

He couldn’t even mine in peace.

“System scan confirms this Xuan Iron vein has only recently formed. The actual Xuan Iron ore is about one hundred fifty tons.”

Despite the mountain’s size, most of it hadn’t fully transformed; forcibly removing it all would mean recycling most as ordinary stone.

Even if Lin Lei could take it all, such a wasteful approach was inadvisable.

“One hundred fifty tons would be worth seven hundred fifty contribution points. System, tell me how to collect it—I can’t just touch it bit by bit, can I?” Lin Lei said.

Recycling markers could only be placed on living things, and only those killed by oneself could be automatically recycled; ownerless objects had to be collected manually.

“Host may use a large-scale mining machine, fifty contribution points each. Without interference, it can finish in six hours. Alternatively, if Host cultivates to the Divine Refining stage, with spiritual sense covering the area, ownerless objects can be gathered with a single thought.”

“If I want to mine peacefully, I’ll have to deal with the crows, which means exchanging for heavy armor—costing four hundred fifty contribution points. I might as well spend two hundred eighty-eight points and take the path of the strongest cultivator,” Lin Lei calculated.

His very first mission had brought so many bizarre situations—who knew if gods or demons would appear next?

Although Lin Lei believed the material exchange zone must have high-tech gear to deal with gods, he imagined such equipment would be astronomically expensive.

It would be better to pursue cultivation from the start. Even someone like Yang Xueli, equipped with the same advanced gear, would have combat strength many times greater than Lin Lei.

“If Host intends to cross the threshold into cultivation, you must find a safe place. Upgrading takes at least half an hour without disturbance. Otherwise, a mishap could mean severe injury, paralysis, or even death,” the system warned.

From the system’s explanation, Lin Lei knew it was impossible to cultivate here. Even without the threat of mutant crows, he dared not embark on the path of cultivation in such a perilous world.

But Lin Lei would not give in so easily. While the crows above hesitated to attack, he entered the material exchange zone and selected a more affordable anti-air weapon.

Finally, Lin Lei chose a Guardian intelligent anti-aircraft machine gun, equipped with both manned and unmanned operation systems, intelligent friend-or-foe recognition, 360-degree coverage, six barrels, firing 12.7mm copper-jacketed bullets, automatic loading, a rate of ten thousand rounds per minute, effective range of 4,500 meters, all for only twenty-five contribution points.

It was powered by a nuclear energy crystal core, and Lin Lei had spares, so he didn’t spend more points. The only downside was the high ammunition consumption; fortunately, one contribution point could buy four thousand rounds, and Lin Lei exchanged for one hundred thousand rounds—enough for about ten minutes of sustained fire.

As for mining equipment, Lin Lei didn’t pick anything himself. The cheaper options all required manual operation or had sluggish mining speeds, which he found unacceptable.

As a boss, how could he personally dig for ore?

As a boss, dealing in millions at a time, he couldn’t tolerate inefficiency—even from machines.