Qi Xu scrolled up—every message was a flood of "Yes!"
Even the usual lurkers who never spoke in the chat room had emerged from the shadows.
Qi Xu unpacked two more pizzas and two family buckets, exchanging them all for steel bars, cotton, and batteries.
Yizhimei: "Damn, y'all struck it rich? My 28-year single-life hand speed wasn’t fast enough to grab anything!"
Black Stockings Old Man: "I missed out too. Ugh, I could really go for a Coke right now."
Seeing more demand in the group, Qi Xu dismantled another KFC meal, converting it entirely into cotton and fabric.
With steel bars and batteries now fully stocked, Qi Xu’s electric tricycle was finally ready to upgrade to Level 3!
[System Alert: Player Qi Xu has met all conditions for Level 3 vehicle upgrade. Proceed now? Upgrade will take 20 minutes. Please plan accordingly.]
Reaching Level 3 in just seven days—what kind of insane speed was this? Even Qi Xu could hardly believe it.
The previous record-holder had taken nearly a full month. Back then, Qi Xu had just hit Level 2 when the global announcement popped up, filling him with envy.
Now, here he was, outdoing even that.
Qi Xu waited until the tricycle’s battery was nearly drained before hitting the upgrade button.
A 20-minute wait? No problem. It was the perfect chance to crack open that remaining silver crate.
This time, Qi Xu decided to test out his newly acquired long staff. Less sharp than a blade, but longer and safer—ideal for post-newbie protection, when his physical stats hadn’t fully recovered yet.
If a monster got too close, he’d just pull out the chainsaw for some heavy-duty action. Or maybe the tranquilizer darts.
With a forceful jab, Qi Xu pried open the crate, swinging the staff around for good measure. Nothing jumped out. A good sign, though he couldn’t help feeling a twinge of disappointment.
Another giant boar would’ve been nice...
[Congratulations! Obtained: Fabric ×10, Duck Feathers ×8, Yarn ×5, Heavy Quilts ×2.]
A warmth-themed haul. Temperature drop incoming, no doubt.
The screen flickered—someone had tagged Qi Xu in the group chat. He expected more food requests, but it was Bright Light Fills Tomorrow.
Bright Light Fills Tomorrow: "@Invincible Black Whirlwind @Warwolf009, did either of you get a silver crate? Or anyone else? Let’s share intel.
I opened one—got cotton, thick scarves, even wool socks. My guess? A cold snap’s coming. Stop selling cotton now.
@Invincible Black Whirlwind, you should return the cotton you just hoarded. Stealing someone’s survival essentials? How’d you sleep at night?"
Qi Xu ignored the guy. Same old sanctimonious act.
But before Qi Xu could respond, the cotton sellers fired back.
Yizhimei: "The hell? No take-backs! That pizza’s already in my belly. Tasted amazing, by the way. Bet you’re drooling, you mutt."
Bright Light Fills Tomorrow: "No need for insults. Trading life-saving supplies for junk food? When the freeze hits, how’ll you stay warm?"
Yizhimei: "I’ll tough it out."
Player0404: "I got a pair of snow boots today. Maybe the cold’s really coming."
Player0819: "Regretting it hard—left the last silver crate untouched."
Player0718: "Check your friends list. See how many are grayed out. Then check our server’s total headcount. You won’t feel so bad."
Qi Xu pulled up the server list. 8,013 survivors left.
Even the profile pic of that streaming star—the one who’d been feuding with SweetDoughnut—had turned black.
Death was routine in this survival game. Entire servers merged when populations dipped below 5,000.
Qi Xu was numb to it by now, though the thought still weighed on him.
Shaking off the gloom, Qi Xu pulled out the winter coat blueprint bought from the monster shop.
The crafting station showed two variants:
[Winter Coat: Cotton ×2, Fabric ×1.
Winter Coat (with Pants): Cotton ×3, Fabric ×1.]
Materials were cheap, so Qi Xu crafted a full set.
The coat auto-adjusted to the wearer’s size, with colors matching the input fabric. Qi Xu had used magenta fabric—resulting in a garish, no-frills set. But the insulation? Solid.
Next, Qi Xu extracted all remaining green fabric (eight pieces total). He added three green feathers, triggering a special alert:
[Wow, you and green just click! May you glow green, thrive green! Figured out the cold-resist meta already? Slap me on the crafting station!]
Combining feathers and fabric, the station prompted: [Craft Green Armor Set?]
Qi Xu confirmed.
The result? A five-piece monstrosity: green hat, scarf, shirt, pants, and overcoat—all with built-in heating. Qi Xu could probably stroll through -50°C in this.
At the current 20°C, even holding it felt like a sauna. He stashed both sets in his inventory, then mass-produced seven more green sets.
Another alert popped up: [Vehicle upgrade nearing completion. Align with player’s profession?]
Qi Xu froze. Profession? Trash collector?
Few players had professions, and Qi Xu knew next to nothing about synergies.
Going profession-aligned might turn his ride into a garbage truck.
At first glance, that sounded grimy. But think bigger—strip away the trash, and you’ve got a spacious hauler.
Either way, it beat his current plastic-roofed tricycle.
The alternative? Upgrade to a fully enclosed trike, then a senior-citizen buggy. At best, a slightly roomier one.
Compared to that, a garbage truck’s cargo bay sounded downright luxurious.
