What are the odds? Just finished worrying about retaliation from "Invincible Black Tornado," and then his life was snuffed out...
The man removed a hair tie from his wrist, tied up his hair, took a deep breath, and opened three golden supply crates in a row—no monsters, just plenty of valuable loot.
Not only that, but a full-screen announcement also popped up.
[Congratulations, player Low Profile, for triggering a triple luck streak! Would you like to broadcast this to the entire server? Broadcasting will grant special rewards!]
Still riding the high of his good fortune, Low Profile was stunned by the announcement and immediately blurted, "No broadcast! No broadcast! I don’t want it!"
[Spineless coward. Screw you, get lost.]
Low Profile: ?????
What the hell? Since when does a system announcement mock and curse at players? Is there even a report button? His face flushed red with anger, but he had nowhere to vent.
The thing was... if this really got broadcasted, it’d be way too obvious. Everyone else was struggling with bad luck, while he was thriving—clear proof he’d used a Luck Drain Card.
He’d probably get jumped by a dozen players the next day.
But his frustration quickly faded as he looked over the loot from the three crates. His grin stretched ear to ear—this was what it meant to be heaven’s favorite! With this much loot, he’d instantly become a top-tier player.
Too bad Invincible Black Tornado had gone to some godforsaken site, so his luck couldn’t be drained.
Smart players knew to develop in secret, play the fool, then strike a fatal blow when least expected.
Those who chased empty prestige, flaunting their status with red envelopes and unsolicited advice, were no different from idiots—just desperate for others to acknowledge their "greatness."
Today’s haul was already massive. Tomorrow, with Invincible Black Tornado’s luck added to his own, his fortune might soar even higher, triggering even more lucky streaks...
But then he checked the group chat and frowned.
Old White Dragon in the Waves: "@Invincible Black Tornado, Boss Tornado, is there any way to fix this now?"
Invincible Black Tornado: "No. But there’s one spiteful move—just don’t open any crates. That way, the card user can’t drain your luck either."
Blessed by Luck: "Got it. Then no crates for me. If I can’t get supplies, nobody can."
Chinese Master Chef: "This is insane. Good thing I’ve got some food stockpiled, or the next couple days would be rough."
Invincible Black Tornado: "Hang in there one more day. No need to get too worked up—this kind of thing is normal. There’ll be more bizarre cards in the future. Stockpile supplies, prepare backup plans, and you’ll last longer."
Qi Xu accepted the situation quickly. If he’d found that card and been pushed to the brink, he’d have used it too—just avoiding those he got along with.
There was no real right or wrong here. Once you joined this survival game, you had to play fair—you couldn’t only accept gains and never losses. Otherwise, you’d crack under pressure and drive yourself mad.
Coincidentally, Qi Xu had planned to spend the next day at the gym instead of rushing around for crates. He’d even felt a little regret over the wasted trip.
Now, this guy’s blunder had unwittingly resolved his dilemma.
What a saint. A true hero.
Qi Xu spent the entire next day at the gym, stepping onto the sparring platform four times without wasting a single minute. He even ate all three meals there.
The 200 survival coins he’d loaded onto his membership card were completely drained, and he had to top up again. His favorability with the Bunny Muscle Monster also reached 55.
Rumor had it that hitting 60 triggered a special effect...
But no matter how much Qi Xu tipped or flattered, the number stayed stubbornly frozen.
Of course it wouldn’t be that easy. He gave up pushing it—some things just weren’t meant to be. With a casual wave, he said goodbye.
Both of his Dungeon Selection Cards were now used up. A faint pang of regret hit him, but one glance at his player stats made his lips curl upward.
His damage resistance had jumped from 40 to 69—a staggering improvement in just two days.
At 40, a single monster hit could kill him. At 69, he could at least take a beating.
But the exhaustion hit hard. When changing sanitary pads, Qi Xu got a shock—how were they already gone in less than four days?
Normally, his cycle dragged on for a full week. This time, he’d neglected self-care—freezing in the dungeon on the first day, then pushing himself through two days of intense training.
Panicked, he gulped down hot water to calm himself, then checked his health stats. No abnormalities—not even the usual "Qi and Blood Deficiency" note.
Now, it just read: "Damn Healthy."
Relieved, Qi Xu shrugged. A shorter cycle was even better.
Low Profile’s crate hauls today were pitiful compared to yesterday’s triple gold and eleven silver crates—though "pitiful" was relative.
He still scored eight crates, with the worst being bronze.
"Damn Invincible Black Tornado. Couldn’t keep his mouth shut, could he? Had to blab and ruin everything. Now today’s loot is garbage. What a meddlesome prick—can’t stand seeing others do well."
Qi Xu skimmed the chat room. Everyone was still griping about the Luck Drain Card, but he couldn’t care less about the truth.
With only two or three days left until month-end, the rankings would reveal everything.
The rain grew heavier, pounding down in sheets. Thunder rumbled through the night, as if the sky itself were cracking open. The downpour was far worse than previous days—terrifyingly so.
Qi Xu instantly understood: the first major elimination event was beginning.
Many players didn’t dare sleep, frantically trading supplies to upgrade their vehicles. Some had already noticed their cars nearly being swept away by the floodwaters...
If they dozed off and their vehicle got dragged into the black fog at the roadside, it’d be game over.
Qi Xu checked his small group chat: "Anyone still not at Vehicle Level 3? I’ve got spare upgrade fragments."
Old White Dragon in the Waves: "Already at Level 4. Hit a small windfall a couple days ago—feels like Level 5 is within reach."
Chinese Master Chef: "Nice, 666. Level 5 needs 1,000 upgrade fragments, though. I’ve only got 100-ish..."
Qi Xu sighed. The hardest part of Level 5 wasn’t the fragments.
It was the upgrade materials—100 energy stones and one smart AI chip.
The chip was rare. The 100 energy stones? Even rarer.
........
