Chapter 595 - 5 Chewing Tobacco and Horseshoe
At the same time and seat, Zhang Heng laid on the sofa and put the alarm clock on his chest.
(Verifying player identity.]
[Verification completed, the eighth game is being drawn randomly for player 07958...]
[Drawing completed-Current quest is Chewing Tobacco and Horseshoe]
“Unimaginable wealth is buried in the west. Here, you can get 160 acres of land for only $10. No matter where you come from and what past you have, you can start a new life here. However, this wealth is accompanied by countless threats. Remember, only the toughest and strongest can survive on this land and be nurtured by it...”
[Task objective: settle in Lincoln County and find the lucky horseshoe]
[Mode: Single]
[Time flow rate: 480) (1 hour in the real world is equivalent to 20 days in this game. The player will be sent back to the real world after 40 days)
Friendly reminder, the game will officially start in five seconds. Please be prepared.
When he saw the quest’s name, Zhang Heng knew where he would be sent to this time. The background information of this round proved his guess was right. If he remembered correctly, the stipulation of “$10 for 160 acres of land” came from the Homestead Act, signed by the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War. It managed to bring the already soaring westward movement to a climax again.
Countless American citizens who yearned for wealth had flocked to the west, where they worked the land and built their homes. Simultaneously, many villains, thugs, gamblers, murderers, and the people who lost their land and wealth during the American Civil War also headed to the west, far away from the prosperous and stable East Coast and the legal system. The west had become a paradise for desperadoes.
The massacre and exile of Indians accompanying the Westward Movement aggravated contradictions and hatred between the Native Americans and the pioneers. It turned the west into land infested with unimaginable peril. When Zhang Heng opened his eyes, he found himself standing in a desert. Red rock cliffs were everywhere, and sparse bushes and cacti were probably the only colors in the Gobi Desert. This time, the situation was similar to that of the Soviet-Finnish war. He was still wearing his short-sleeved shirt, shorts, and sneakers from the real world. Other than that, his mobile phone and keys were also in his pocket. Since the Pestilence Bone Bow was too conspicuous, he did not bring it into the game. Instead, it was replaced by the Pestilence’s White Horse Crown and other game items he put in his backpack. Zhang Heng then went and checked his character panel briefly.
Name: Zhang Heng
Sex: Male
Age: 20
Player Number: 07958
Number of the game completed: 7
Current game points: 23
Items in possession: Infinite Building Block (B), White Horse Crown (C), Filter Lens (D), Paris’s Arrow (D), Shadow Key (E), Lucky Rabbit Foot (E), Betty’s Shell (E) ), Hunter’s Blessing (F), Melting Metal (F), Oath Ring (F).
Skills: Swordsmanship Lv.4, Sailing Lv.3, Language proficiency Lv.2 (eight languages have reached a daily communication level), Lego assembly Lv.2, Archery Lv.2, Field survival Lv.2, Driving skills Lv.2, Modification and Repair Lv.2, Shooting Lv.2, Aerospace Lv.2, Hacking Lv.2, Criminal investigation Lv.2, Make-up Lv.2, Piano Lv.1, Skiing Lv.1, Rock climbing Lv.1.
Evaluation: The player possesses incredible swordsmanship. As an opponent, you don’t want him to lay his hand on any bladed weapon. At the same time, he is also a Lego master, with an excellent criminal investigation and disguise ability. He has slightly better luck of encountering enemies than ordinary people. Other than that, he is also sheltered by shadows and storms. The white horse is his mount. The player has excellent sailing experience. As for other weapons, he is good at using bows and arrows, firearms. He can drive cars, fly airplanes and spacecraft, and other vehicles when it comes to transportation. He can quickly adapt to a wild environment. For combat, he is resourceful and possesses strong combat power. He is also the kind of player that sticks to his oath, which is rare among players.
To recast that “Ordinary Tachi,” Zhang Heng practically invested all the game points he accumulated so far, leaving only 23 game points for an emergency.
In terms of game items, there was little change from the previous round of the game. Except for the replacement of [White Horse Crown] and (Pestilence Bone Bow], Zhang Heng had used up the (Wall of Evil Thoughts] during his previous battle with Arc of Light. It was now officially resting in peace. Besides that, Zhang Heng also acquired the Shadow Necklace, which was part of the Shadow Set, but he did not bring it with him this time.
In terms of skills, Zhang Hengxin acquired two skills after he completed the Deductive Reasoning quest. The two skills were Criminal Investigation and Makeup, both of which had reached Lv.2. (Lvo Art Appreciation was not displayed) Also, his most significant change was, of course, the Lv.4 swordsmanship. This was the highest level of skills that he had so far. And it was probably also the limit of human beings. In the latest evaluation, the system emphasized his swordsmanship above everything else.
Other than that, Zhang Heng also noticed that his combat power had changed from excellent to powerful, and his final overall evaluation has also escalated from eye-catching to rare.
Zhang Heng did not spend too much time reading the evaluation. Though time was an issue for him since he had extra 24 hours every day, the scorching sun above him would definitely not allow him to stay here for too long
Zhang Heng knew that he needed to do something about it as soon as possible. He had no clue about the main task asking him to find the Lucky Horseshoe for the time being. He knew that in some Western legends, horseshoes and rabbit feet are regarded as lucky objects. However, the horseshoe he was supposed to find was considered very special. Although he stayed in the United States for some time during his sixth game, the Apollo Training Camp, he wasn’t very familiar with Lincoln County. And he did learn a lot about the states in America. As for counties, unless they are very famous. He would not know the specific details of each county. It seemed like Lincoln County was established not long after the Westward Movement.
And his guess was correct. Lincoln County was located in New Mexico. It was initially a small village inhabited by Mexicans. In memory of the assassinated Abraham Lincoln, the village was renamed Lincoln. But whether it’s Lincoln County or Lucky Horseshoes, it was something that Zhang Heng needed to study later. Right now, his top priority was to find a place with people. Zhang Heng first figured out the direction with the shadow observation method. However, even if he managed to distinguish south, east, west, and north, he would not know which direction to choose. Since the system put him here, it was impossible not to provide him with any hints. He was not supposed to rely just on luck.
Zhang Heng then climbed a relatively high red rock nearby and spotted something.
– A section of railway. The first railroad in the United States was built around 1826. It was only used to transport granite. However, with the Westward Movement’s vigorous development, the United States has more than 410,000 kilometers of railroad sprawled across the United States. It was more than the sum of some other countries in the world. Later, they had to remove almost half of it because some were not being used.
Whenever there was a railway, it often meant that there would be towns along the way.
Zhang Heng climbed down from the rock wall and walked towards the railway.