Wang Buyu: Yeah, I know. Including my chat with you, I have already sent 17 messages today, exceeding my quota. Thank you.
The group chat was very lively. Ash Kiss Starry Moon, Shadow Kill, and Happyending were all show-offs. They took turns bragging and boasting, with hardly a word of truth among them.
Cheese Milk Cap 80% Sugar and Endless Longevity were the more scheming types, trying every possible way to fish for information and thoroughly enjoying their little mind games with each other.
Wang Buyu rarely spoke, but Qi Xu liked her a lot. Even though they had never met, there was an inexplicable fondness, so Qi Xu always talked to her. The group chat had only been established for half an hour, but they had already fired off nearly ten thousand messages...
It was not until 8 PM, when Chinese Master Chef's vehicle upgrade was supposed to be completed, that Qi Xu reined in her thoughts, waiting for Chinese Master Chef's server-wide announcement.
If they could snatch second place on the entire server, they would probably get a lot of rewards. Qiuqiu was very wealthy right now, and Chinese Master Chef was such a sensible and polite good baby; Qiuqiu would not be stingy with the rewards.
Using the River Rhyme Pattern for the upgrade required a full 10 hours. Just before the rankings were finalized that night, the server-wide announcement rang out again.
Qi Xu originally thought it was Chinese Master Chef's announcement and was ready to congratulate Chinese Master Chef on successfully claiming second place on the server, but unexpectedly, they were a step too late...
[Congratulations to player Baba-Yaga from E Server, Region 01, Sub-region 02, for becoming the second player on the entire server to upgrade their vehicle to Level 8!]
Qi Xu frowned instantly. This was not the first time this player's name had appeared; they were also the second player on the server to upgrade to a Level 7 vehicle, triggering a server-wide announcement back then.
[Congratulations to player Miko from R Server, Region 01, Sub-region 03, for becoming the third player on the entire server to upgrade their vehicle to Level 8.]
[Congratulations to player Chinese Master Chef from Hua Server, Region 88, Sub-region 666, for becoming the fourth player on the entire server to upgrade their vehicle to Level 8.]
[Congratulations to player LUCaS from M Server, Region 01, Sub-region 06, for becoming the 5th player on the entire server to upgrade their vehicle to Level 8.]
Four server-wide announcements rang out in a row, almost simultaneously, with at most two or three seconds between them. Good heavens, this was a Level 8 vehicle!
Currently, most players still had Level 5 or 6 vehicles, yet within a single day, five players had successfully obtained Level 8 vehicles!
In addition, everyone could feel that the competition was getting fiercer! When had there ever been such a spectacular scene of four server-wide announcements happening at the same time!
Moreover, they were all from different countries. Some smart players could already guess that there might be country-versus-country confrontations in the future. When that time came... it would probably be much more intense and thrilling than it was now!
Qi Xu felt quite regretful. If she had asked Chinese Master Chef right after coming out of the Treasure Map Realm, they might have gotten second place...
What a pity, there was no such thing as knowing earlier.
At the time, she really did not expect Chinese Master Chef to collect all the materials in such a short period. Now, saying anything was useless.
Calming her emotions, she made a point to remember these powerhouses from other countries. Everyone was catching up faster and faster; she truly could not let her guard down for a moment.
Just then, the monthly leaderboard was released.
Because the top hundred big shots of Sub-region 666 had all scattered to various other regions, Qiuqiu completely lost interest in doing a passionate broadcast.
When the time came, it simply tossed out a list without any sense of ceremony.
Qi Xu focused on the top 10. She was first, which was beyond dispute. Even though her mileage did not even make the top 30, her resources were five times that of the second place.
Excluding Dongfang Yuan and Wolf Warrior 004, Qi Xu jotted down all the other players' nicknames. When she got back, she would send them to Bian, asking her to focus on investigating them, and to act quickly to recruit anyone who could be absorbed into the team.
Aside from the upgrade card, the other rewards for being first on the monthly leaderboard were not very useful.
Qi Xu sorted them into categories and went to the vehicle compartment. The Tree of Life was swaying its leaves, playing around.
It bore two fruits, one large and one small. The larger fruit was already ripe, but it had ripened while she was in the Treasure Map Realm, so she could not pick it in time.
Qi Xu rubbed her small hands, hoping it was a good treasure. She gently stroked it and saw the item description.
[Smart Little Fruit: Do you often feel confused by your own stupidity? Do you often feel that your IQ is not enough? Do you always envy others for having such smart brains? Hahaha, eat me, and I can enhance your cognitive comprehension and comprehensive IQ for three hours.]
Hiss... this description!
Qi Xu felt that this Smart Little Fruit could be used in combination with the Ability User Skill Honing Space Stone obtained from the server-wide announcement upgrade. This would increase the chances of upgrading her skills.
Generally, puzzle-solving dungeons or realms did not allow the use of backpacks. Eating it in advance might easily go to waste, so it was better to save it for a place where it was 100 percent guaranteed to be useful.
The players with the golden group chat cards had gradually begun to return, one after another, reporting their good news in the group.
Dandan Qi: Hahaha, successfully secured! I have honed my acting skills with the boss for so long, I can finally be considered a master. I pretended to be persuaded by Qiuqiu and promised to stay forever, then ran away as soon as I got the rewards and benefits!
God of Wealth's Only Daughter: I am speechless. The Qiuqiu in my sub-region did not believe me at all and even organized a group of people to gang up on me! If I had not brought enough bullets and been determined to freeload the first-place reward, I would have just come back!
Old White Dragon in the Waves: Sister Wealth, why did that happen? Do you not know in your heart? Did you swear at Qiuqiu again as soon as you went over?
God of Wealth's Only Daughter: I only cursed twice! None of the Qiuqius are good things. I had not even fully let loose yet.
Retired Magic Boy: The Qiuqiu in my sub-region was actually quite sincere. It made me feel a bit guilty.
Tonsils Never Speak: Then next time, switch to a different region to scam, Magic Boy baby.
Retired Magic Boy: Bian is right. Region 02, Sub-region 09, let us not go there to exploit them anymore. It is a good Qiuqiu.
Invincible Black Whirlwind: No problem. Next time, before our end-of-month operation, I will make a note first. If there are any other sub-regions with good Qiuqius, let us announce them in advance, and then try our best to go to Region 01 to fleece the Qiuqius.
Drink under the Moonlight: First time being rank one, feeling a bit excited. I specifically stayed in the chat hall to listen to everyone praise me for a while before coming back. [Shy]
Ruan Shizi: I ran into Wolf Warrior 005! Is he also from your Wolf Warrior family? So many regions, so many sub-regions, I am really speechless. How did I end up choosing a region with a Wolf Warrior! Not only did I miss out on rank one, but I only got rank 17. Wasted a cross-region card and two fuel packs. I would have been better off not transferring regions. I am so angry my internal organs hurt! I do not even have any strength left.
..........
