The first priority was turning V3S Mall into a fully operational fortress. Advik Bhardwaj selected Tier-4 Perimeter Walls, reinforced with steel plating and watchtowers, to enclose the entire complex.
Concrete and Steel Walls (10m high, 5m thick) – Cost: 600,000 Blood Coins
Automated Sentry Guns (20 Units, mounted on walls) – Cost: 500,000 Blood Coins
Electric Fencing (Outer Perimeter) – Cost: 400,000 Blood Coins
Watchtowers (15m high, stationed at key points) – Cost: 80,000 Blood Coins
[Total Cost: 1,580,000 Blood Coins]
Advik Bhardwaj confirmed the purchase, and those purchases went straight to his inventory. He checked it briefly in his inventory and figured that he'll deploy those once he is done with all the purchase.
Now, securing the territory was one thing—sustaining it was another. Advik Bhardwaj turned to the Urban Development section of the shop.
Water Purification Plant (Independent filtration & storage) – Cost: 500,000 Blood Coins
Solar & Wind Hybrid Power Grid – Cost: 350,000 Blood Coins
Hydroponic Farming System (Indoor agriculture for sustainable food) – Cost: 200,000 Blood Coins
Automated Manufacturing Plant (Basic ammo & weapon repair station) – Cost: 800,000 Blood Coins
[Total Cost: 1,850,000]
The next step was reinforcing their forces. Advik Bhardwaj checked his soul count—353,412 souls—and decided to make another large-scale recruitment.
2,000 Infantry Soldiers – Cost: 2,000 Souls
500 Heavy Weapons Specialists – Cost: 1,000 Souls
100 Engineers – Cost: 500 Souls
100 Medics – Cost: 200 Souls
1,000 Construction Workers - 1,000 Soults
[Total souls: 4,700 Souls]
With still over 80 million blood coins left, Advik Bhardwaj decided to expand his military arsenal as well. Good thing it was easy for him to navigate as he could simply select a country where the hardware originated from and he'll just have to choose. He chose the obvious choice, the United States Armed Forces. And then the display from the Army, Airforce, and Navy was displayed on his interface.
His first focus was armored ground forces. Tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, artillery, and mobile support were all necessary to maintain absolute control over the area.
Main Battle Tanks (MBT)
M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams (Advanced Model) – 30 units – Cost: 250,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 7,500,000 Blood Coins
The M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams was the latest in U.S. MBT technology, boasting enhanced armor, improved targeting systems, and superior mobility. The M60A3 Patton, while outdated compared to the Abrams, still packed serious firepower and could serve as secondary defensive assets.
Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs)
M2A4 Bradley IFV – 50 units – Cost: 3,000,000 Blood Coins
Stryker M1296 Dragoon (30mm Autocannon Variant) – 50 units – Cost: 4,000,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 7,000,000 Blood Coins
The Bradley IFVs would provide mobility and fire support for ground troops, while the Stryker M1296 Dragoon offered increased firepower and faster response times for urban engagements.
Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs) & Transport
M1126 Stryker APC – 100 units – Cost: 5,000,000 Blood Coins
JLTV Oshkosh Tactical Vehicles – 100 units – Cost: 4,500,000 Blood Coins
M928A2 6x6 Military Cargo Trucks – 50 units – Cost: 1,000,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 10,500,000 Blood Coins
These vehicles would be crucial for troop movement, supply distribution, and battlefield logistics.
Artillery & Mobile Fire Support
M109A7 Paladin Self-Propelled Howitzer – 40 units – Cost: 4,000,000 Blood Coins
M270 MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket System) – 30 units – Cost: 4,200,000 Blood Coins
M120 Mortar Carriers (120mm) – 50 units – Cost: 1,000,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 9,200,000 Blood Coins
These would serve as long-range suppression, area denial, and counter-battery firepower, ensuring that enemy threats would be eliminated before they even got close.
Air Defense Systems.
MIM-104 Patriot Missile Batteries – 8 units – Cost: 6,000,000 Blood Coins
AN/TWQ-1 Avenger Air Defence System – 20 units – Cost: 2,000,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 8,000,000 Blood Coins
These would ensure complete aerial superiority, defending against hostile aircraft, drones, or missile threats in the future.
Now for air.
Attack & Multi-Role Helicopters
AH-64E Apache Guardian – 20 units – Cost: 6,000,000 Blood Coins
UH-60V Black Hawk (Troop & Cargo Transport) – 50 units – Cost: 5,000,000
CH-47F Chinook (Heavy-Lift Helicopter) – 20 units – Cost: 5,000,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 16,000,000 Blood Coins
With these, V3S Mall would have rapid-response air mobility, heavy-lift capability, and lethal aerial attack forces.
Fixed-Wing Close Air Support & Gunships.
AC-130J Ghostrider – 1 units – Cost: 2,500,000 Blood Coins
A-10C Thunderbolt II – 5 units – Cost: 4,000,000 Blood Coins
MQ-9 Reaper – 5 units – Cost: 5,000,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 11,500,000 Blood Coins
The AC-130J Ghostrider and A-10C Thunderbolt II give them devastating close-air support, while the MQ-9 Reaper drones would provide real-time intelligence, reconnaissance, and long-range precision strikes.
Phase Three: Military Construction & Supply.
With his final purchases, Advik Bhardwaj ensured V3S Mall could be refurbished within its walls and expand beyond it.
M9 ACE (Armored Combat Earthmover) – 50 units – Cost: 300,000 Blood Coins
M88A2 Hercules (Heavy Recovery Vehicle) – 20 units – Cost: 300,000 Blood Coins
Heavy Fuel Tankers – 30 units – Cost: 100,000 Blood Coins
Mobile Field Hospitals – 10 units – Cost: 100,000 Blood Coins
Total Cost: 800,000 Blood Coins.
These vehicles would support battlefield engineering, fortification construction, and logistics.
Total spent: 73,930,000 Blood coins.
Additional expenses on weapons for troops: 10,000,000.
Total spent: 83,930,000 blood coins.
With all of that settled, it's only a matter of implementation. But that would be for another day. For now, they are safely stored in his inventory. Once everything calmed down within the complex, he'll summon everything he had bought.
Priya stepped out of her assigned room in Leela Palace Hotel, rubbing her eyes as the early morning sun streamed through the wide glass windows. It had been a week since she was rescued—dragged out of her hellish confinement at the university where she thought she would die.
But even now, walking through the halls of this supposed "safe zone," she couldn't shake the eerie feeling that something was off.