"Hello."
"I know you have many questions, but I’m sorry—I can’t answer any of them. Still, seeing you today makes me really happy. The top-ranked player in the entire server is finally from our country."
With that, the girl curled her lips slightly and playfully blinked her eyes...
Qi Xu’s mind flooded with countless thoughts... piecing together his earlier speculations and theories about the deeper meaning of Survival Highway.
At last, a clear outline began to form.
She seemed to have said nothing, yet she had pointed out the most crucial detail.
No one around them showed any surprise at her words. Instead, their eyes gleamed with excitement, leaving Qi Xu both puzzled and conflicted.
"Ahem, I won’t ask about the nature of the survival game. But can I ask simpler questions?"
Qi Xu didn’t want to overthink things. He just wanted to clear up the immediate confusion first. The path ahead had to be taken step by step—getting scared before even starting wasn’t his style.
"Sure, let’s talk while we eat."
Qi Xu politely accepted a skewer of meat, took a bite, then naturally wiped his lips and set it down. It was awful—nowhere near as good as Master Chef’s grilled skewers.
A cheerful-looking boy nearby burst into laughter.
The others quickly turned and glared at him. He mimed zipping his mouth shut.
Qi Xu glanced at them, confused.
Bai Xiaohei spoke up, "Ask whatever you want."
"Why are there so few people in District 01, Zone 01, and why are they all so strong?"
The question seemed simple, but the answer could reveal a lot.
The one who replied was Divine Calculator, and he was brutally honest. "Because in our zone, if you don’t sign the agreement, you can’t stay permanently. At most, you’ll be teleported away after a month. And District 01, Zone 01 will never merge with other zones.
As for being strong—well, that’s just normal. Most of us are beta testers. We entered the survival game a month earlier than you."
Qi Xu dropped his formal demeanor. Even though it was his first time meeting them, he felt an inexplicable closeness. He simply sat down on the ground and grabbed a grilled bun to munch on.
"Then why have I been the top-ranked player in the entire server since reaching Level 3? You all had a month’s head start. That’s just... heh."
Divine Calculator vigorously fanned himself. "We’re bound by rules. We can never be the first to level up. Only when someone from the Chinese server levels up can we follow. And the supply crates in District 01, Zone 01 are all nightmare versions.
Half the supplies, double the monsters, and we’re not even allowed to join dungeons. That one-month head start was useless! If not for ##%, half of us here would’ve died!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Divine Calculator coughed up a mouthful of blood. Qi Xu was startled and immediately rummaged through his backpack for a healing card.
But no one else reacted. Divine Calculator didn’t seem bothered either—he just rinsed his mouth with bottled water and called it a day.
When Qi Xu handed him the healing card, he waved it off. "No need, it’s nothing. Keep asking your questions. I can’t answer anymore, but the others can. They’re tougher—they can afford to spit out a few more mouthfuls."
The group burst into laughter, teasing each other. Qi Xu didn’t rush to speak. He stared at them blankly before finally locking eyes with Bai Xiaohei.
"Don’t overthink it. Just focus on getting stronger, step by step. You’re already moving steadily toward victory."
"If District 01, Zone 01 is so tough, why not switch zones? With your strength, you’d be the core of any other zone!"
At this question, the smiles on their faces faded slightly, as if lost in thought. Finally, they sighed deeply.
"We can’t all leave. District 01, Zone 01 has a mission it must fulfill. We’ll never abandon this place."
"Right, we’ll never leave."
"Never!"
Watching the 900 of them chant in unison to pump themselves up, Qi Xu inexplicably felt fired up—even though he was still completely in the dark.
Noticing Warwolf 001 in his peripheral vision, Qi Xu decided to ask outright, "Last round, sis, you weren’t in District 01, Zone 01, right?"
The moment the question left his lips, the entire group fell silent.
"Last round? You..." Bai Xiaohei grabbed Qi Xu’s hand excitedly.
Qi Xu answered truthfully, "Jade Heart—a special item I obtained that lets me retain my memories and return to the beginning of the game."
"So that’s how it is."
Qi Xu found their behavior truly bizarre—one moment they were excited, the next, disappointed.
What were they excited about? What were they disappointed about? His mind was a tangled mess. Was there an item to boost intelligence?
Warwolf 001 awkwardly explained, "I wanted to venture out, see if I could forge a new path. Turns out, I’m not cut out to be a leader. I failed spectacularly."
Qi Xu chuckled. "It was just some overly evil items. You’re the captain of our country’s finest special forces—if you’re not suited for leadership, who is?"
"You are."
Qi Xu’s smile froze. It was just casual conversation, yet over 900 voices echoed in unison: "You are."
A shiver ran down his spine.
"Everyone’s got such a sense of humor."
They all laughed but said nothing more.
After that, no one brought up heavy topics again. Qi Xu also needed time to digest everything he’d learned.
The gathering shifted to eating and drinking.
Everyone was considerate toward Qi Xu, placing the rarer foods in front of him and even handing him a beer.
Alcohol was expensive on Survival Highway—only Old White Dragon in the Waves, the resident drunkard, kept them well-supplied.
Qi Xu politely sampled everything but didn’t touch much.
The food was lackluster—boiled chicken with barely any seasoning, grilled skewers without the soul of proper dipping sauce, and unevenly cooked meat.
Even the beer was subpar compared to Old White Dragon’s brew.
Bai Xiaohei asked, "Not feeling well? No appetite?"
After a moment’s hesitation, Qi Xu pulled out the skewers grilled by Master Chef.
"It’s not that I’m not hungry—I’m just not used to the taste. Here, try what my teammate made... Uh, there’s more, take your time."
Before he could finish, the skewers were snatched up in an instant...
Master Chef’s charm was undeniable. The aroma alone was enough to drive them wild—no introduction needed.
..........
