Chapter 23: The Wrench in the Poison Gas Chamber, the Goblin's Scream, and an Unexpected Ally

The cloying poison gas, clinging like a parasite to the bone, seeped through the door cracks in thin wisps into the cramped metal compartment. Lin Mo pressed a wet cloth over his mouth and nose; his lungs burned with a stinging pain, and waves of dizziness crashed over him. Time was running out!

His gaze locked firmly onto the compartment wall: a rusted metal ventilation duct opening, as wide as a bowl! The duct opening was sealed shut by a heavy metal grille fixed with rivets; the gaps in the grille were so tiny not even a finger could slip through.

The only way out!

Lin Mo grabbed the heavy pipe wrench and, summoning all his strength, slammed it hard against the rivets securing the grille!

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" The ear-piercing sound of metal striking metal echoed through the bunker! Sparks flew! Under the brute force of the pipe wrench, the sturdy rivets slowly deformed and loosened!

The poison gas outside seemed provoked by the noise, seeping in even faster! Lin Mo's vision went black, his arms grew numb and weak, and every swing of the pipe wrench felt unbearably heavy.

"Clang-crash!" Finally, one rivet was smashed clean off and sent flying!

"Clang-crash!" The second one!

"Clang-crash!" The third one!

When the last rivet was smashed off, the heavy metal grille crashed down onto the compartment floor! A pitch-black duct opening appeared before his eyes! A current of stale but relatively "clean" air rushed in!

Lin Mo greedily took a few breaths, and the dizziness receded slightly. He didn't care where the duct led, whether it was a dead end or a way out; it was better than being trapped in the poison gas chamber! He stuffed the two manuals and the toolbox into his chest, grabbed the pipe wrench, and crawled on hands and knees into the cold ventilation duct!

The duct was narrow and steep, covered in thick layers of dust and cobwebs. Lin Mo could only crawl forward, the pipe wrench dragging behind him making a grating, ear-splitting scraping sound. In the darkness, he crawled for an unknown duration before a faint glimmer of light finally appeared ahead!

He struggled toward the light, discovering the duct's end was blocked by another grille, with what seemed to be a larger space beyond. He raised the pipe wrench again, preparing to smash it open.

Just then!

"Squeak! Gack! Who?! Who's messing with Uncle Wrench's roof?! Get out here! Or I'll blow you sky-high!" A shrill, manic, incredibly fast voice suddenly came from beyond the grille!

Lin Mo jumped in fright! That voice... didn't sound human! It sounded more like some... mentally unstable goblin?

He cautiously peered through the grille gaps. Outside was a chaotic room piled high with various discarded machinery, parts, and explosives! A small creature, less than 1.2 meters tall, wearing "clothes" pieced together from oil-stained rags and metal scraps, with a head topped by messy green hair and eyes absurdly large, was clutching a metal canister bound with wires and detonators, dancing wildly at the vent, spittle flying from its mouth, its expression a mix of terror and madness!

It was a goblin! A race famous on the Wasteland for its mad inventions and explosives! How could it be here?

"Don't attack! I'm not an enemy!" Lin Mo shouted urgently, his voice somewhat muffled inside the duct, "I was trapped by the Black Scorpion's poison gas! I escaped through the ventilation duct!"

"Black Scorpion?! That bunch of black-hearted folks in black leather?!" Upon hearing the name, the goblin's green face twitched violently, and intense hatred erupted in its eyes, "Uncle Wrench hates the Black Scorpions the most! They stole my 'Bang-Bang Baby' design schematics! And they blew up my lab!" He waved the "bomb" in his hand, his emotions running high.

"So did we! The Black Scorpions attacked our stronghold!" Lin Mo immediately seized on the common ground, "My name is Lin Mo! I need help! I can trade clean water!" He threw out his biggest bait.

"Clean water?!" Uncle Wrench's bean-sized eyes instantly widened to the size of saucers, flashing with greedy light, "Really?! You're not tricking Uncle Wrench?!"

"Really! My stronghold can purify water!" Lin Mo affirmed, "Let me out, and we can cooperate! Together against the Black Scorpions!"

Uncle Wrench scratched his head and ears in place, clearly engaged in a fierce internal struggle. Clean water was priceless on the Wasteland! Finally, his hatred for the Black Scorpions and his thirst for purified water overcame his suspicion.

"Fine! Cunning human! Uncle Wrench will trust you once! If you trick me, I'll blow you and the Black Scorpions to kingdom come!" He grumbled as he set down the "bomb," found a crowbar, and pried open the vent grille in a few strokes.

Lin Mo crawled out of the duct in a sorry state, covered in oil and dust. He watched the mad goblin inventor warily.

"Water! Clean water! Give it to Uncle Wrench quickly!" Uncle Wrench stretched out his filthy hands with impatient urgency.

Lin Mo untied his waterskin, which still held the last few sips of water purified by Xiang Lingna, and carefully poured a small cup for him. Uncle Wrench held it as if it were holy water, took a cautious sip, and his green face instantly wore an expression of ecstasy: "Oh! Sweet! Pure! No smell of radiation! It's real!"

His gaze toward Lin Mo instantly became much "kinder": "Cunning... uh, friend Lin Mo! Uncle Wrench, the greatest goblin inventor! Now, we are allies! Speak, what do you need? Uncle Wrench has all sorts of junk here! As long as... there's enough water!"

Looking at this neurotic but seemingly capable goblin, a sliver of hope rose in Lin Mo's heart. He immediately described the materials he needed for the water purifier: a larger container, finer plastic tubing, plenty of charcoal to replace activated carbon, a water pump...

"Water purifier? Piece of cake!" Uncle Wrench patted his chest, sending oil droplets flying, "Uncle Wrench will build you a big one! Ten times... no, a hundred times the efficiency! Using my 'Super Filtration Core'! But... it needs a few small parts..." His bean eyes rolled around, glancing at the toolbox in Lin Mo's arms.

Lin Mo felt a chill; this goblin was indeed not easy to fool. But he desperately needed the water purifier, so he could only make a painful sacrifice: "You can borrow the tools, but you must return them! In exchange, you also have to help me make some... defensive little gadgets." He thought of those Molotov cocktails and tripwires; with the goblin's "tech" support...

"Defense? Explosions?! Uncle Wrench's favorite!" Uncle Wrench jumped up excitedly, dancing wildly, "Burning ones? Flying ones? With spikes? You say! Leave it to me! Hahaha! Let the Black Scorpions and Blood Claws taste Uncle Wrench's power!"

A mad human lord and a deranged goblin inventor reached a gunpowder-laced alliance agreement in a ruined laboratory piled with explosives. The technology tree of Hope Outpost was about to be skewed by this green-skinned little guy into a brand new direction. And the shadow of the Black Scorpions still loomed over the Gear Graveyard.