Wasteland: I Awakened A Plant System-Chapter 28: Creating New Shelter And Cold Solution

The original supplies were already piled everywhere, all of which were the result of Vikram’s diligent hunting.

Coupled with today’s unexpected gains, when stacked together they could form a small mountain.

"These materials, like cotton, rubber, and steel, aren’t urgent; they won’t spoil if left alone."

"The top priority is to put the food into storage."

While organizing, he discovered that the food at the very bottom had already started to grow mold and could only be painfully discarded.

Despite how easily he hunted, throwing away so much meat still hurt him deeply.

In the apocalypse, failing to hoard supplies was definitely abnormal. After all, with food in hand, one’s heart remained steady.

There were still two days left of the natural disaster, including today. Who knew how long this extreme cold disaster would prevent him from going out?

"Next are the large quantities of stone and wood; they take up too much space, so they should also be moved into the warehouse. In any case, they only occupy one storage slot."

"Finally, the medical supplies. Although their shelf life isn’t as short as food, most of them only last six months to a year, so they also need proper storage."

"Hoo..." He let out a long breath.

"Finally finished organizing."

"Next..."

Looking at his daily Plant Essence income, Vikram began calculating seriously.

Since he had already planted ten Thornvines, he would gain 100 Plant Essence from them. From twenty Spikevines, he would gain another 60 Plant Essence.

Guardian Sprout and Warrior Sprout had both reached Level 2, and each would now generate 15 Plant Essence per day.

The Healer Sprout was still at Level 1, producing 12 Plant Essence daily.

The Level-5 Lightfly Vine generated 20 Plant Essence per day, while the Aquaheart Root generated 30 Plant Essence.

After calculating everything carefully, Vikram realized that his total daily Plant Essence income was approaching 250 points.

Even so, it would still take time to reach a stable daily output of 500 points. Until then, upgrading the Treehouse would remain impossible.

Vikram scratched his head anxiously. He truly didn’t want to wait any longer to upgrade his home.

However, he had no better option for now.

He still wanted to continue developing his territory fully. Even now, there was no proper kitchen space inside the Treehouse, and Vikram himself did not wish to build one there.

Instead, he decided to construct essential facilities such as a kitchen, bathroom, shower room, and toilet around the Treehouse.

Since the Wasteland System allowed such construction, he immediately began using the newly gained materials.

Right beside the Treehouse, he built a small three-bedroom shelter. Inside it, he created a proper kitchen, bathroom, and toilet.

He even built a small resting house for the Guardian Sprout, Warrior Sprout, and Healer Sprout.

Seeing this, his chicken Pinku also wandered over, prompting him to construct a separate nest for her as well.

Using the Treehouse Core and a small amount of Plant Essence, he established a functioning water supply system inside the newly built shelter.

From the shining silver water tower nearby, clear water soon began to flow into the shelter’s rooms.

After finishing everything, Vikram silently made up his mind.

If outsiders ever came here, he would only live and act inside this ordinary shelter.

The Treehouse would remain his hidden sanctuary — a secret he would never easily reveal.

The Shelter’s food and water sources were now taken care of; what was urgently needed now was the equipping of the toilets and bathrooms.

The excavated toilets and bathrooms were still empty shells, with nothing inside.

According to the system’s plan, what was still missing were the reinforced concrete items, as well as some iron or plastic drainage pipes.

The rest would just have to wait until he accumulated enough Plant Essence.

He currently had no Plant Essence, so he estimated it would take a few more days.

"Also, the lighting issue for the Shelter must be put on the agenda."

Since it was not Treehouse, the Lightfly Vine didn’t work here.

Normally, the small house only relied on a bonfire for light. During the day, with the door open, the area by the door was acceptable, but at night, it was basically impossible to see anything.

---

Lying on his latex bed, Vikram skillfully opened the chat channel.

What greeted his eyes were two Shelter recruitment announcements.

[Black Bear Shelter is recruiting! Our Shelter’s small house has already reached the Fine Stone level. All brothers and sisters are welcome to join.] 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

[What’s so great about a Fine Stone level? Everyone already has a Fine Stone house,] scoffed a Survivor with the ID Rahul Soniwal.

Immediately afterward, he posted his own Shelter’s recruitment information.

[Don’t listen to the person above. Our Hungry Wolf Shelter is already an Iron Hut. Anyone who can bring a Territory Core to join, private message me.]

[Iron Hut? Words mean nothing — show us proof!] At this point, the Black Bear Shelter’s recruitment officer, who had just been rebuked, jumped out to retort.

[Hmph, a frog in a well. Do you really think everyone else is as useless as you?]

[Picture.]

A silver-gray small house appeared in the photo, surrounded by dense jungle.

The Black Bear Shelter’s members fell silent after seeing the image and quietly withdrew.

Following this, a large number of Survivors began sending messages expressing their desire to join the Hungry Wolf Shelter.

[I’m willing to join.]

[Me too.]

[Get lost, all of you! Rahul bro, let me into your Shelter. I can provide 20 pieces of iron for its development.]

[You little brat, what’s iron worth? I can bring a physique fruit into the Shelter. Can you? If not, then keep quiet.]

The two Survivors argued fiercely, neither willing to back down. It was then that Rahul of the Hungry Wolf Shelter chuckled and sent another message.

[Hahaha, no need to rush, both of you. You’ve both shown great sincerity. Why don’t you both join my Shelter so we can work together?]

What they didn’t know was that Rahul was practically splitting with laughter on his end.

The photo was indeed real, and the Shelter belonged to him. However, his claim of possessing a complete Iron Hut was exaggerated — only two sides of the structure were actually reinforced with iron.

Upgrading it into a fully completed Iron Hut required 50 pieces of iron, and he simply didn’t have the ability to gather that much so quickly.

He had only shown the photo to lure a few Survivors into cooperating for development, never expecting to attract so many resources through deception.

In his private messages, two Survivors had already sent him various cooperation plans and proposals regarding resource distribution.

[Hmph, how naive. Once you enter my Shelter, you won’t be able to act freely.]

After muttering to himself, Rahul closed the chat channel.

So far, most Survivors had already found partners to survive with.

For the remaining lone Survivors who still wished to form alliances, these two days were likely their final opportunity before the six-week extreme cold disaster arrived.

"Six weeks of extreme cold..."

Vikram felt that this natural disaster had come somewhat too suddenly. If it truly became impossible to go outside for six whole weeks, it would be extremely difficult for anyone to survive.

"Perhaps the extreme cold disaster will bring some unexpected changes."

The night passed quietly without any incidents.

---

December 18th.

Temperature: 0–15°C.

"What kind of crazy temperature difference is this?"

Lying on his warm latex bed, Vikram’s eyes widened as he stared at the temperature display in astonishment.

After the morning grogginess faded, he remembered that this was the last day before the extreme cold arrived.

Shivering slightly, he got out of bed. The indoor temperature was currently around ten degrees.

It was fortunate that his Treehouse still retained its protective measures. He had no idea what conditions the other Survivors’ shelters were in.

"I need to find something useful — maybe a heater or some kind of warming device," Vikram murmured.

"Otherwise, when the extreme cold truly begins, these blankets alone won’t be enough."

He took out the thick winter cotton coat he had previously used as a mattress, put it on, and slowly stepped out of the Treehouse.

The moment he emerged, a biting current of cold air surged toward him uncontrollably. The strong wind whistled past his body, producing a sharp, piercing sound.

Vikram estimated that the outside temperature was below seven degrees. Instinctively, he tightened his coat around himself.

Overnight, the outside world seemed to have undergone a drastic transformation.

Yesterday’s bright sunlight had been replaced by a dull, oppressive gloom. The air was heavy with dampness and chill.

Powerful winds howled through the mountains and forests, stirring up dust and scattered fallen leaves.

Dark clouds hung low in the sky, as if they were about to crush the land beneath them. The entire world appeared to be wrapped in a suffocating shadow. The sunlight could not pierce through the thick gray layer, causing the surrounding scenery to lose its former vitality.

The mountain forest felt eerily silent beneath the raging wind. Tree branches swayed violently, producing constant rustling noises, and from time to time, the cracking sound of dry branches snapping echoed through the woods.

A thin layer of frost coated the vegetation. When lightly pressed, it produced a faint brittle crunch.

Each breath Vikram exhaled formed a pale white mist in the air before quickly dissolving into the cold wind.

Taking out his last three pieces of iron, Vikram fashioned a simple shovel and began wandering around despite the biting cold.

He wasn’t admiring the scenery. From a perspective others could not see, Vikram was quietly interacting with the system.

He searched through the System Store, trying to find something that could help him endure the freezing nights inside the Treehouse.

Cold during the day could still be tolerated with movement and thick clothing, but once night fell and his body relaxed into sleep, the creeping chill would become far more dangerous.

After browsing for a while, his gaze suddenly paused.

Soon, he found exactly what he was looking for.

A faint blue icon of a plant quietly glowed on the panel.

[Warmheart Ember Moss (Blue)]

Type: Thermal Support Plant

Status: Seed Form

Growth Time: 1 hour

Daily Plant Essence Generation: +5

Purchase Requirement: Plant Essence ×300

Description:

A rare heat-emitting moss that can be planted directly onto large plant structures such as the Treehouse.

After maturation, it spreads thin vein-like threads beneath the bark and slowly releases gentle, stable warmth throughout the interior space.

Effect:

• Passively increases the internal temperature of the Treehouse

• Reduces cold damage and frost formation inside living areas

• Creates a mild comfort zone suitable for sleep and long-term habitation

Evaluation:

Barely enough to stop you from freezing like a stray dog in winter. Still... better than nothing.

Vikram stared at the price for a long moment.

Three hundred Plant Essence was not a small amount, especially with the extreme cold disaster about to begin.

However, warmth meant survival.

After calculating the Plant Essence he still had left, together with today’s daily income, he finally gritted his teeth and pressed the purchase button.