I can upgrade the shelter

Chen Xin wanted to take a look at the exoskeleton he was equipped with, and Wang Hai naturally had no objections or reasons to oppose.

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Before arriving, both the captain and the commissar had given him strict instructions. Apart from ensuring Chen Xin’s safety, the most important task was to have him help improve the equipment.

Previously, Wang Hai was pondering how to achieve this, and now Chen Xin proactively expressed his desire to inspect the exoskeleton he wore. It was as if a pillow fell right into his lap when he felt sleepy; Wang Hai naturally agreed immediately and removed his own exoskeleton, placing it in front of Chen Xin.

Seeing Wang Hai’s eagerness, Chen Xin only needed to think a bit to understand what was going on.

However, he didn’t mind this at all. After all, improving military equipment was a good deal for him; building goodwill with the military could come in handy at some time.

Just like now, if the military wasn’t counting on him to upgrade military gear, how could they have deployed a fully armed special unit to protect him?

With thoughts flashing through his mind, Chen Xin didn’t dwell on it too much and turned his attention to studying the military exoskeleton in front of him.

The military exoskeleton and the civilian exoskeleton Chen Xin had seen earlier were fundamentally different.

Although both are exoskeletons, the main material of civilian exoskeletons is metal, making them heavier and providing relatively less output. Additionally, exoskeletons offer no protection to the user, essentially acting only as an assistive mechanism with basic components.

But the military exoskeleton is different. Its main structure not only uses a higher-performance alloy but also extensively employs engineering plastics as materials, making the entire exoskeleton not only lighter but also more adaptable to harsh environments.

Engineering plastics aren’t ordinary plastics; they can replace metal materials for making mechanical parts or engineering materials. Their material performance is excellent—greater rigidity, less creep, high mechanical strength, good heat resistance, excellent electrical insulation, and can be used in harsh chemical or physical environments.

For the current low-temperature environment, using engineering plastics is undoubtedly better than metal materials, although engineering plastics are relatively much more expensive than metal materials.

Thus, only elite units could use such costly equipment; ordinary troops might not have such advanced versions.

Accordingly, since the country invested heavily in them, these exoskeletons naturally have more comprehensive and powerful functionalities.

Not only do they have enhanced versions of oxygen supply, lighting, communication modules found on civilian exoskeletons, but they also include weapon mounts, ammunition storage boxes, emergency medical kits, and other devices not found on civilian versions. They are sufficient to enable a soldier to handle various situations encountered in different environments.

Moreover, the nation has top-notch individuals involved in designing and researching exoskeletons. Although limited by technological constraints, some rigid requirements couldn’t be met and practical exoskeletons couldn’t be produced previously. But after Chen Xin created the original versions, further enhancements and improvements were possible.

Hence, this set of military exoskeletons is considerably superior to the original version that Chen Xin initially crafted with the help of a system, akin to the difference between a prototype and a specialized unit.

Wang Hai’s current exoskeleton is a strike configuration; its performance is relatively balanced in all aspects. The added bulletproof plates provide sufficient protection, while the exoskeleton itself grants heightened agility. Combined with enhanced strength, it can carry more auxiliary equipment and ammunition, transforming the soldier wearing it into a battlefield war machine.

Especially notable is that this exoskeleton clearly has interfaces and attachment points for modifications, allowing for the addition of heavy weapons normally equipped on vehicles, like heavy machine guns and rocket launchers. This lets ordinary soldiers wield powerful firepower while maintaining the agility typical of individual combat, displaying greater combat strength.

Faced with this exoskeleton, Chen Xin was momentarily at a loss for how to improve it.

After all, Chen Xin isn’t some weapons expert or a genius cursed with knowledge who can fashion power armor out of thin air. He mainly relies on the broad knowledge and insights he’s gained as a well-read web novelist.

The extensive knowledge allows him to articulate ideas on many subjects, but it doesn’t mean he’s omniscient and omnipotent.

In fact, Chen Xin had encountered similar situations several times. Among the project samples sent by the country for him to improve, some far exceeded his knowledge base. Facing these items, Chen Xin also felt like a mouse trying to pull a turtle, unable to find a place to start.

Fortunately, this difficulty arose only due to Chen Xin’s limited knowledge. In front of the system, as long as survival points were available, an upgrade was merely a matter of thought.

Even if Chen Xin doesn’t know how to upgrade or lacks a concept, he can forcibly enhance an item’s performance.

Though the system upgrade largely depends on Chen Xin’s thoughts and subconscious, if he has no ideas, he naturally can’t upgrade. But it wasn’t said that if Chen Xin had only one thought about upgrading, the item couldn’t be enhanced.

So in situations where he couldn’t figure out how to improve, Chen Xin’s usual approach was to directly use survival points to force an upgrade.

However, such measures weren’t required with the exoskeleton before him. After some research, Chen Xin turned to Wang Hai and asked: "This exoskeleton is very well-designed. In your daily use, do you feel there’s anything that needs improvement?"

Chen Xin’s question was fundamental; designing equipment often requires an extended period from conception to finalization. It’s not a decision designers can make just by brainstorming in offices. Samples have to be trial-produced and sent to troops for actual use to collect feedback before finally refining suitable products.

Wang Hai, of course, understood Chen Xin’s intentions, but he couldn’t quite articulate them: "We received this equipment just before the mission and only grasped the basic usage of the exoskeleton. So, it’s hard to say where improvement is needed right now."

Hearing Wang Hai’s response, Chen Xin nodded knowingly and returned the exoskeleton to him: "In that case, you use it for now. Discover any issues during actual use and then come to me; I’ll see what improvements I can make."

"Sure!" Wang Hai promptly agreed. Although Chen Xin didn’t help upgrade his exoskeleton this time, since he promised to assist, the follow-up improvements were naturally settled, achieving the mission goals assigned by the superiors at least.