Volume 1, Chapter 50: Planning for the Future

What was Lin Yifan lacking the most right now?

Naturally, all kinds of blueprints, as well as various life-skill books!

Of course, life-skill books were just his own pipe dream, as he had no idea whether such things even existed in this world.

Yet at this very moment, his fantasy had actually come true!

The two items Ruan Qingtand sent him were precisely a pair of skill books.

[Junior Skinning Skill Book (After learning, grants the Junior Skinning skill. The target for skinning is limited to ordinary beasts below level 5.)] (Learnable)

[Junior Cooking Skill Book (After learning, grants the Junior Cooking skill, capable of producing elementary delicacies.)] (Learnable)

Two life-skill books, even if only at the junior level, were enough to make Lin Yifan ecstatic.

However... he truly needed the skinning skill, but as for the cooking skill?

It did not seem all that necessary to him!

He was not someone who particularly cared about the pleasures of the flesh; as long as food could fill his stomach, that was enough, and he did not pay much attention to the rest.

Besides, his goal was to become stronger. When it came to cooking, while making food edible was easy, wanting to make it exceptionally good required a massive amount of time and meticulous effort.

He simply did not have that much time to waste on such matters, so the cooking skill was not suitable for him.

Of course, he could also use the skill book to trade for other supplies. After all, since Ruan Qingtand had sent him this message, it meant she was willing to give the items to him.

However, in Lin Yifan's mind, Ruan Qingtand, as a lucky individual possessing a special talent, still held a certain weight.

Therefore, from the very beginning, he had intended to recruit Ruan Qingtand into his small circle as logistical support.

Because her talent was unsuited for combat and fit only for the rear.

Thus, it would be most appropriate for her to learn this cooking skill book, while he provided the ingredients to cultivate her properly.

Yet, all of this was conditional upon Ruan Qingtand's willingness to offer loyalty.

Even though she was a beauty, what Lin Yifan required, as always, were valuable companions, not a vase that merely attached itself to him.

Hence, after a moment of hesitation, Lin Yifan did not drag his feet and straightfowardly sent a message to Ruan Qingtand:

"Let me ask you a question, do you intend to join other organizations?"

At that moment, Ruan Qingtand was preparing her own dinner. Her sanctuary had already been upgraded to level two, so her safety was somewhat guaranteed.

Moreover, she had opened quite a few good things from treasure chests today, especially regarding food, having even obtained instant noodles.

However, she did not have any hot water, and right then, she was hesitating over whether she should ask Lin Yifan for some hot water!

Yet she was not someone who pushed her luck; she had always been grateful for Lin Yifan's care toward her, even though it outwardly seemed like a fair trade.

Still, she was not ungrateful or ignorant of good intentions. Even if he could open treasure chests to get good things and put them on the trading board to exchange for desired supplies, the problem was that someone had to be able to afford the supplies he wanted in the first place!

The reality was that the supplies she wanted, others could not afford, and the supplies others were willing to give, she had no use for.

Lin Yifan, on the other hand, was different. He could always provide her with the things she needed, which, to someone like her with virtually no combat capability, practically amounted to a bestowal of grace.

Not to mention, if not for the meat Lin Yifan gave her, she wouldn't have survived until now.

Therefore, she had always remembered this kindness and constantly wanted to repay it.

She had even thought that if Lin Yifan were a bit more wicked—wicked enough to make excessive demands—perhaps she could let go of her mental burden.

Yet the fact was, Lin Yifan had always maintained his boundaries and conducted fair trades, leaving her not even a chance to resent him.

Now, she had also resigned herself to her situation. Yesterday, when she asked Lin Yifan if he had any thoughts of forming an organization, she actually wanted to tag along and follow his lead.

She had even felt utterly disappointed when Lin Yifan expressed that he had no desire to create an organization.

Never had she expected that today, he would suddenly ask her such a question, which truly left her a bit baffled.

What on earth was this guy trying to do?

Regardless of what he was up to, Ruan Qingtand followed her own thoughts and honestly replied:

"I have no such thoughts at the moment. Right now, everyone hasn't met up yet, and we are all looking out for our own survival. I am still able to survive at present, so I don't want to join any organization."

"But if everyone gathers together in the future, I will definitely have to join an organization; otherwise, I'm afraid it would be hard to get by."

"That's also why I asked you yesterday if you wanted to set up an organization, only for you to refuse."

Ruan Qingtand's answer was quite honest and very realistic.

Yet her response did not disappoint Lin Yifan; instead, it made him increasingly satisfied.

If Ruan Qingtand had immediately started pledging all sorts of loyalty, that would have been a sign of zero truthful words.

With her responding like this, he was truly reassured, so he sent another message:

"I indeed have no intention of forming a large organization. My goal is to become a powerhouse of self-reliance, and I cannot possibly waste my time on such matters."

"However, becoming strong also requires a team. Therefore, I want to find a few like-minded friends who can watch each other's backs, and form an elite squad so that we can grow stronger together in the future and survive in this world."

"Your talent is quite good, and although I don't know much about your character, from what I've seen so far, your temperament is quite to my liking. Would you consider joining my squad?"

This time, Lin Yifan did not beat around the bush or drop indirect hints; he directly and decisively issued the invitation.

Upon seeing his request, Ruan Qingtand was so excited she almost jumped up!

Although she had not yet unlocked the rankings, she was certain that Lin Yifan was the strongest individual in District 10086.

She had managed to latch onto this strongest person's path with great difficulty, harboring the idea of clinging to a powerful thigh all along.

Now that the powerful thigh was finally extending toward her, she naturally could not refuse, and hurriedly replied:

"No need to consider, I am willing to join! A thousand times, ten thousand times willing!"

"I promise, I will place absolute trust in you and will never betray you. If I betray you, may I suffer a miserable death."

"It's just that my talent is unsuited for combat, and I myself have no talent for fighting, so... I might only be able to serve as logistics."

"What I want is for you to handle logistics for me!" Lin Yifan had originally planned to bring up the matter of loyalty, but he hadn't expected Ruan Qingtand to beat him to the punch by pledging hers.

As for how much of this loyalty was genuine?

Lin Yifan had no desire to delve into that right now. They were still people who had never met; back on Planet Earth, they would have simply been online acquaintances.

Expecting true loyalty right off the bat would be nothing short of wishful thinking. He was well aware that whether it was Ruan Qingtand or Hong Shaoqiang, the reason they were willing to follow him was none other than his strength, and the fact that he could bring them benefits. But that was enough. He had never intended to get things for free anyway; a fair trade was all that was needed.

Therefore, without any more nonsense, he stated straightforwardly:

"Your talent is suited for logistics, and you are a girl, so all that killing and fighting doesn't suit you either. Staying in the logistics department is safer and better allows your strengths to shine."

"However, everyone is still scattered in different places right now, and there are some things I cannot help you with. But I can promise that if one day in the future we are able to reunite, and you still wish to work in logistics, I will definitely fulfill your request."

Ruan Qingtand instantly breathed a sigh of relief. She truly disliked fighting and killing.

Back on Planet Earth, she was still a college student who occasionally worked part-time as a model, though not a very famous one.

Although she exercised occasionally, it was only to maintain her figure; in reality, she was someone who couldn't lift anything heavy with her hands or carry burdens on her shoulders.

After arriving in this survival realm, she had suffered untold hardships over the past few days just trying to find supplies and treasure chests.

Being able to stay in logistics was the absolute best choice for her.