Chapter 70 - 63: Conception of the Gate

Chapter 70: Chapter 63: Conception of the Gate

Once the thought, ’I’ll have to leave town someday,’ was planted, it took root in Xu Mo’s mind and branched out into countless new worries. The most prominent among them was what to do with his mountain of belongings.

This was no unfounded worry. Xu Mo glanced around the shelter he had spent months building up. In the corner, stacked neatly, were enough canned goods, compressed biscuits, and vacuum-sealed food to last him for over half a year. Several large storage bins held neatly sorted medicine, batteries, tools, parts, and fuel. On the weapon rack by the wall were everything from sharp Cold Weapons to well-maintained firearms, along with a large supply of matching ammunition. These were the very foundation of his survival.

Besides all that, there were winter clothes, sleeping bags, heaters, various types of lamps, backup power supplies, and a whole host of other items. These supplies filled up more than half of the second floor.

Xu Mo had painstakingly gathered all of this by relying on that miraculous ’door,’ making trip after trip within the sixty-second time limit, like an ant moving its home. Every single item was the fruit of his labor and a guarantee for his future survival.

"’Not having a Space Ring... It’s truly the greatest regret for a transmigrator in the apocalypse,’ Xu Mo couldn’t help but sigh."

He had already entered the Cowhide Realm, and his strength far surpassed an ordinary person’s. Trekking long distances while carrying several hundred pounds might not be a problem for him. But trying to take all these supplies with him in one go was simply impossible. Besides, a long-distance journey was already fraught with unknown dangers. Being weighed down would severely impact his reaction speed and combat effectiveness.

’So, should I hide the supplies here, travel light, and come back for them later?’ The thought had barely surfaced before Xu Mo decisively rejected it.

Cyan Pine Ridge Town wasn’t some isolated island. The fact that he’d seen a survivor convoy in the distance meant this area wasn’t completely untrodden. If another small team of survivors, or even a larger migrating group, passed through here, they would inevitably scavenge the area.

This relatively intact three-story building would be a prime target. By then, the supplies he had worked so hard to accumulate would be like an open treasure vault, guaranteed to be looted clean. Expecting survivors in the apocalypse to respect ’property rights’ when faced with ownerless goods was a fool’s dream.

’Should I just abandon most of my belongings and set out with only a few necessities?’ Xu Mo caressed the cold gun barrel, his heart filled with reluctance and frustration.

These supplies didn’t just represent survival; they represented a sense of security in this desperate, apocalyptic environment. Losing them meant he would go back to pinching pennies and constantly worrying about his next meal. Every time he needed a specific item, he would have to wait for the 48-hour cooldown period and carefully plan his use of the ’door.’ This would undoubtedly make survival much more difficult and uncertain, and it ran counter to his goal of constantly growing stronger and living more proactively.

"’What a hassle. This is way too much of a hassle!’ Xu Mo rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. He hated this feeling of being tied down by worldly possessions."

"’In that case...’ A flash of inspiration struck Xu Mo. An extremely bold, even fantastical idea, like a ray of sunlight piercing through dark clouds, suddenly illuminated his thoughts."

’The "door"... could I... "define" a door that belongs completely to me?’

The moment the idea appeared, it began to grow wildly. Xu Mo recalled the core rules of his Golden Finger: ’Door-Type Correspondence’ and ’Marker Guidance.’ The former relied on existing, real-world door structures, while the latter involved attaching a specific marker to guide the type of space the ’door’ connected to.

’So, what if I choose a specific door, ’mark’ it as exclusive in some way, and then stick a unique, personal marker on it? Would the space connected to that ’door’ then become a stable, repeatable, personal storage space that only belongs to me?’

’Just like a personal warehouse in an online game, as long as I can ’carry’ this door, it’s like carrying the entire warehouse!’

This conjecture made Xu Mo’s heart thump wildly. He immediately sprang into action and began preparing his experiment.

Xu Mo found some cardboard and a permanent marker and carefully crafted a sign: [My Private Storage Room]. Below it, he added a string of code he had randomly put together to ensure it was unique: "XM-739K#42@ALPha&86Qz"

Xu Mo stuck the sign on the security door of his second-floor bedroom in the shelter. It was the door he was most familiar with.

A faint light flashed, and an empty room appeared before Xu Mo’s eyes. Behind the door was an empty, slightly dim, enclosed space that seemed to be about the same size as his bedroom.

’The first step is a success!’ Xu Mo rejoiced. At the very least, it proved that a special marker could lead to a seemingly ’exclusive’ space. He immediately placed a box of canned food inside and then closed the door.

The next 48 hours of waiting felt exceptionally long. The moment the cooldown ended, Xu Mo eagerly opened the door again—the box of canned food was sitting right where he left it, completely unharmed. Its position and orientation were identical to when he had put it in.

’It worked! The space is stable!’ Xu Mo couldn’t hide his excitement, but his cautious nature made him immediately consider the crucial question: ’Is this space bound to this specific door, or is it bound to the marker?’

Xu Mo peeled the marker off and stuck it onto another security door in a different bedroom on the same floor. This door was made of a slightly different material and had different specifications.

After waiting for the 48-hour cooldown to end again, Xu Mo activated his Golden Finger, and the door opened smoothly. But when he looked inside, his heart sank—it was completely empty. The box of canned food was gone. This was a brand new, empty space.

Apparently, the same marker on different doors opened different, unrelated spaces.

After a moment of thought, Xu Mo took out his Mountain-Cutting Saber and forcefully carved a deep, unique ’X’ shaped mark in an inconspicuous corner on the inside of the first experimental security door. Then, he carved an identical mark in the same spot on the second door.

He stuck the marker back on the first marked door, placed a pack of biscuits inside, and closed it. Then, he moved the marker to the second door, which also bore the ’X’ mark.

When the door opened again, it was still empty. Xu Mo was a little disappointed. Even with identical physical marks, the two doors did not share the same space.

After several more rigorous cross-tests, Xu Mo had to accept a fact that was both exciting and a little frustrating: he had successfully created a stable, time-frozen storage space exclusive to him. However, this space was strictly bound to the specific, ordinary door he had chosen as an ’anchor’.

The marker defined the ’type’ of space as ’Xu Mo’s Private Storage Room,’ but the ’coordinates’ and ’ownership’ of the space were uniquely determined by that specific physical door itself.

If the anchor door was ever destroyed, it meant Xu Mo would likely lose that space and all the supplies inside it forever.

This also meant that if Xu Mo wanted to use this ’mobile warehouse’ anytime, anywhere, he would have to carry the door with him.

Xu Mo looked at the security door before him with a complicated expression. The door was about two meters tall and one meter wide, and it was certainly not light. With his Cowhide Realm strength, carrying it while walking wasn’t an issue. ’But what about on a long journey? What about during a fight?’ Lugging a door around would severely reduce his mobility.

"’Alright,’ he finally said with a wry smile, patting the cold metal door panel. ’At least this is unique. I’m probably the only person in the apocalypse who wanders around carrying a door.’ Self-deprecation aside, the problem still needed a solution. As his thoughts turned, his gaze grew clear."

"’It seems a reliable vehicle is an indispensable part of my future plans.’"

A sturdy vehicle with a large storage capacity or a roof rack could not only carry this all-important ’door’ but also other essential supplies like fuel, spare parts, and more drinking water. It could even serve as a mobile rest stop and emergency shelter. With a vehicle, the absurdity of carrying a door around would be greatly reduced, while the feasibility of the plan would skyrocket.