Chapter 2826: Combat Shovel The tempering skill turned out to be harder to level up than Fang Heng had anticipated. At present, the tempering level was at Level 31, and the highest grade that could be synthesized was only B-level. Judging by this efficiency, the upper limit of what he could likely produce would be S-level gemstones. There was still significant room to improve excavation efficiency. At the moment, aside from the shortage of zombie clones, they also needed more tools. It might be best to sell a batch of gemstones first to buy tools and boost efficiency, then think about expanding production. “Uh, this…” Zaka glanced at the pile of B-level gemstone crystals stacked to the side. Each B-level gemstone could be exchanged for 30,000 battlefield contribution points. Due to game restrictions, carrying more than 100 in the backpack would trigger additional negative effects. Without considering potential upcoming battles, the absolute limit they could carry was 120. That was worth a staggering 3.6 million points! Was Mr. Fang really not worried about them running off with all this loot? “Time’s about up,” Fang Heng said after checking the game hint timer. “There’s a little over half an hour until the next ship departs. Get ready, we’re heading out.” “Alright.” Zaka didn’t dwell on it and quickly moved over to pack the gemstones. “Fang Heng, aren’t you coming back with us?” Su Guantong looked at Fang Heng and said, “Without you, we might not be able to cross the desert region safely, especially on the return trip. The artifact carriers are bulky and move slowly—it’ll be even harder to pass through the desert.” “No worries, it won’t be a problem.” “Huh?” What did that mean? Su Guantong was taken aback. She had thought their previous safe passage through the desert was thanks to Fang Heng’s domain ability. But now it seemed that wasn’t the case? “I’ve already made arrangements. You’ll be able to cross the desert directly.” Fang Heng was confident. After all, he had just summoned over five thousand stealth-capable Licker modified bodies to lurk beneath the sand and slaughter Burrowing Sand Locusts, earning battlefield contribution points in the process. Those Lickers would also secretly protect Su Guantong’s team. Nothing would go wrong. “Alright.” Although still puzzled, Su Guantong didn’t press further. After filling her backpack with gemstones, she left through the passage with the Zaka brothers. Fang Heng watched them leave, then lowered his head to continue manually sorting ore. Time to keep grinding! … Meanwhile… Most of the mutant worms and mosquitoes in the forest had already been cleared out by Fang Heng, leaving only a few scattered stragglers that no longer posed any threat to Zaka and his group. Su Guantong and the others quickly made their way through the forest and reached the edge of the desert region. Staring at the calm, vast expanse of sand ahead, the group exchanged glances. Was it really safe? Zate spoke up, “With Mr. Fang’s strength, I’m sure it’s fine.” Zaka still felt uneasy. He thought to himself, “What does this have to do with strength?” No matter how powerful Fang Heng was, could he really control the mutant worms buried deep in the desert remotely? “Let’s move, no point wasting time.” Off to the side, Su Guantong pulled an energy crystal hoverboard from her backpack, stepped onto it, and glided toward the heart of the desert. Seeing Zate and Su Guantong already moving, Zaka gritted his teeth and followed suit on his hoverboard. As they entered the desert region, everything ahead remained eerily calm. There wasn’t a hint of danger anywhere. Zaka’s constant caution now seemed completely unnecessary. Strange. There weren’t even the usual ripples or disturbances in the sand like the last time they came through. It was as if, in the short time they’d spent inside the iron mine, the desert’s mutant worms had been completely wiped out. Su Guantong furrowed her brow. Though she trusted Fang Heng’s abilities, she had no idea how he had pulled this off. Had he somehow cleared the entire desert of mutant worms using some special method? Was it really that exaggerated? Impossible. Su Guantong shook her head and dismissed the thought. The Burrowing Sand Locusts weren’t like normal monsters—once they tunneled deep into the sand, who could even find them? So Fang Heng must have used some other method. Perhaps something like a perception-blocking field? The journey remained smooth. Ten minutes later, they successfully crossed the desert and arrived at the gathering point well ahead of the next scheduled ship departure. Coincidentally, as Zaka’s group reached the base of the ship to await spatial transmission, three other player teams also arrived early. The other players eyed Su Guantong’s group curiously, clearly unfamiliar with them. Zaka thought about making small talk but decided against it, mindful of the mission they were on. Once aboard the ship, they immediately submitted the B-level spirit crystals to the ship’s mainframe to complete the mission. Each of them pocketed 360,000 contribution points! Zaka stared at his character panel, watching his personal battlefield contribution points skyrocket, and he felt like he was dreaming. D*mn… Who would’ve thought they’d rake in this many points in less than half a day since entering the game? And this was just the beginning. Once Fang Heng’s zombie production ramped up, the scale of their earnings would multiply several times over. Even if they just got a small share, they’d be swimming in rewards. “Cling to the big boss, cling to the big boss…” Zaka muttered under his breath as he began exchanging points for large cargo-carrying artifact robots, just as Fang Heng had instructed. However, he ran into a snag when it came to the multi-functional combat shovels. Those were freely available rather than exchanged—but the stock had run out. The ship hadn’t prepared many, as normally one per ordinary player was sufficient. And since no new players had arrived in recent days, no one had restocked them. There weren’t even any available in the exchange menu. Su Guantong’s group exchanged a look, then reluctantly decided to approach Captain Zoran for help. Captain Zoran had been watching them. He’d noticed that the group seemed to be missing a member. Had someone died? While wondering about it, he saw Zaka’s group walking toward him. “Captain, do you have any spare multi-functional combat shovels?” “Out of stock?” Weren’t there a dozen or so left this morning? Zoran waved over a subordinate to grab a few from the warehouse. “Captain, a few might not be enough. We need a lot more.” “Huh?” Zoran raised an eyebrow. “Why do you need so many shovels?” Zaka scratched his head, unsure how to explain, “It’s for some tactical arrangements. We can use contribution points to trade for them.” “Forget it.” Zoran waved it off and signaled to his subordinate, “Bring them twenty.” “Uh, Captain, that probably won’t be enough…” “How many do you need then?” Zaka glanced at Su Guantong and Zate beside him. Judging by the load capacity of the cargo artifact robots they could now acquire, around five thousand shovels should do for now. If needed, they could always transport more next time. Zaka nodded and turned to Zoran and said, “Roughly five thousand, Captain.” “What? Did you say five thousand?”