Chapter 57: Being My Teammate and Wearing a Collar Are Not Mutually Exclusive

"This is a sun-protection outfit. Wear it underneath; it will shield you from the heat. This is a mithril leather armor and a mithril longsword. In a moment, you’ll open the chest. Don’t worry about safety—if any magma creatures appear, I’ll deal with them." Lin Mu wanted to see if the eight-person materials could be obtained by anyone opening the chest, or if only he could access them.

Shu Yi looked at the clothes in her hands. Weren’t these the same ones she bought for her sister? So it turned out Lin Mu was the seller.

She didn’t hesitate. "Where should I change?" She was about to put them on, but there were two men present.

"Go upstairs to the second floor. 001, take her up."

Second floor? The vehicle actually had an upper level? Why didn’t their car have one?

Baffled, Shu Yi followed 001 upstairs. As she took in the decoration of the second floor, she was utterly stunned. This was practically a spacious studio apartment—was she really inside a vehicle?

Perhaps being captured wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, she mused.

Efficiently, she changed into her new clothes and followed 001 downstairs.

"Go ahead, don’t worry about danger. I’ll handle it," Lin Mu assured her with a pat on his chest.

For him, finding suitable team members was no easy feat. He certainly didn’t want them dying.

Shu Yi stepped out of the vehicle and took in her surroundings. The temperature had dropped significantly; now it was only about thirty-five degrees Celsius—much more bearable.

Standing before the chest, she took a deep breath, used the longsword to open it, and quickly retreated. Confirming there were no magma creatures, she collected the contents. As for the chest itself, she ignored it.

Returning to the vehicle, Shu Yi sent Lin Mu the information about the materials she had just acquired.

[Congratulations on opening the Black Iron Resource Chest. Obtained: Secret Red Braised Beef Noodles x40, Gasoline x400L]

Eight portions!

She deduced this from the quantity—there was no way this was a single portion.

"Let’s move to the next chest."

As for empty chests, Lin Mu naturally collected them.

Arriving at the next location, Lin Mu said, "Fatty, you open this one."

"Alright," replied Fatty, equipped and unafraid, heading straight for the chest.

A lava hound leapt out from the magma pool. Fatty didn’t even flinch. The longsword descended from above, and Lin Mu dispatched the creature with ease.

Back in the vehicle.

"Brother Mu, I can open the resource chest, but I can’t collect the items inside," Fatty reported.

Lin Mu smacked his forehead, having forgotten Fatty didn’t have his own vehicle.

"No matter, I’ll collect them myself."

[Congratulations on opening the Silver Resource Chest. Obtained: Mithril Ingot x24, Cooking Oil 1L x8, Antidote x8.]

It worked as expected.

Even if chests were opened by vehicle team members, the rewards were still multiplied by eight.

The efficiency, however, was lacking. Whether it was Shu Yi or Fatty, they had to be cautious around magma creatures, which slowed things down.

In the end, Lin Mu would have to handle it himself. But it was not a major issue; when they moved to a different region, he’d let them take over.

By eight in the evening, after collecting the last batch of resource chests, Lin Mu parked the vehicle.

"Time for dinner. To celebrate our new team members, we’ll have something special tonight."

He took out a heap of ingredients—chicken, duck, fish, meat, and a bundle of vegetables.

He had acquired these long ago, and there was plenty.

Shu Xin and Shu Yi stared wide-eyed at the bounty. This was extravagant beyond belief.

They might not find even one of these foods in a day, yet here was a mountain of them.

Indeed, you had to open every chest.

"Do you usually eat like this?"

"Every day. Isn’t this just ordinary food?" Jiang Ying replied, puzzled.

Lin Mu’s lips twitched. Using his supplies to show off, she really had some nerve.

"Ahem, as long as you open every chest daily, you’ll come across these eventually."

Shu Yi shook her head. "We’re not like you, able to open chests from inside the vehicle. Outside, many chests can’t be opened—they’re guarded by creatures."

Guarded creatures?

"You mean magma creatures?"

"No, when you open a chest, sometimes wild beasts come running in from outside."

Lin Mu blinked in confusion. What was that?

"You’ve never encountered this?"

He shook his head repeatedly, then looked at the others. "Have you ever seen this?"

Jiang Ying and the others nodded earnestly. "We have. It nearly scared us to death. Not every chest has them, but at least once a day."

What? There was such a mechanism?

"But since the beginning, I’ve never seen it happen. No one’s discussed it in the channel either—I had no idea."

Shu Yi pondered for a moment. "Maybe it’s because you don’t need to leave your vehicle."

That was the only explanation for why Lin Mu hadn’t encountered it.

"As for the channel, people discussed it at first. Later, when it became normal, they stopped mentioning it."

Lin Mu rubbed his chin, recalling the early days. Maybe he didn’t chat much, only glanced occasionally, and missed it.

"Enough of that. 001, cook the meal. Let’s have a proper celebration."

Whether his teammates wanted to celebrate or not, Lin Mu certainly did.

After all, he’d discovered another way to increase resources—how could he not be pleased?

Shu Xin and Shu Yi exchanged glances, feeling both fortunate and resigned.

Jiang Ying and Fatty, on the other hand, were already used to it, cheerfully helping with preparations.

Gu Wanqing was the same.

Two hours later, dinner was ready.

"Jiang Ying, grab some beer and drinks from the fridge. Whatever you want, help yourself."

"Alright!" Jiang Ying’s face lit up at the mention of drinks.

For this occasion, Lin Mu even used the workbench to craft a large table and seventeen chairs.

001 didn’t need to eat, but Lin Mu still had him join them at the table.

"First, let’s celebrate our new team. Rest assured, as long as you follow me, you’ll survive. Food and drink will never be an issue, and your lives will be better than most."

Hearing this, Jiang Ying and the others instinctively touched their collars.

Being a teammate was certainly no easy job.

Lin Mu didn’t mind their reaction.

"The collar is just for my own protection. It doesn’t restrict your actions, does it?"

They nodded unconsciously.

"But... if I find out someone harbors ill intentions, you know what happened to Zhang Qian and the others."

Lin Mu didn’t want to constantly change team members—finding the right people was difficult.

"Don’t worry, Brother Mu. I love this lifestyle," Fatty said happily.

Jiang Ying nodded repeatedly.

For them, this was already a great life—what more could they ask for?

They had no ulterior motives; survival alone was a blessing.

Shu Yi and Shu Xin forced a smile. Even if they wanted to scheme, they wouldn’t dare.

If life continued like this, it wouldn’t be so bad, though they wondered...

The two glanced at Lin Mu, uncertain whether he was pretending, or if he truly wasn’t interested.