Qi Xu thought he had been doing quite well so far, yet he had only managed to save up 66 energy stones. Of course, he hadn’t collected enough upgrade fragments either—still short by over a hundred.
He’d probably have to wait until the end of the month when rewards were distributed before considering an upgrade.
"Vitality Girl Pot-de-Gang" chimed in: "I’ve already upgraded to Level 3. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have survived those 10 days of extreme cold."
"Invincible Black Tornado" asked: "@Watch Me Slap You, what about you?"
"Watch Me Slap You" replied: "I don’t want to upgrade to Level 3. Level 2 is enough for me."
Invincible Black Tornado pressed: "How many fragments are you missing? I’ll help you make up the difference. The rain’s too heavy tonight—it’s easy for things to go wrong."
Watch Me Slap You brushed it off: "Relax, nothing’s going to happen."
She then sent a photo.
Her delivery tricycle’s two rear wheels were each tied with a rope, gripped tightly in her hands. Dongfang Yuan was holding the ropes, resting outside the vehicle...
Though the photo didn’t show her, the scene looked downright pitiful.
"Chinese Master Chef" exclaimed: "Oh dear, sis, why put yourself through this? Just tell us how many fragments you need. I can’t stand seeing friends suffer."
"Old White Dragon of the Waves" agreed: "Right, there’s a limit to being polite. Don’t think just because you’re tough that you won’t catch a cold from the rain. This survival game is brutal—getting drenched guarantees illness."
"Wolf Warrior 009" added: "Exactly. We can each chip in a few fragments. It won’t affect us."
"Iron Shirt, Golden Bell" chimed in: "Yeah, I’ve got plenty of fragments too."
Dongfang Yuan felt uneasy. The more they insisted, the more uncomfortable she became, not wanting to trouble others or take advantage.
So she simply stopped responding.
Upgrading to Level 3 required 100 fragments. After nearly a month of hard work, she’d only scraped together 20 or so.
Most of them came from teaming up with Qi Xu to win first place in a dungeon.
When they compared rewards that day, Dongfang Yuan nearly lost it. Same team, yet completely different rewards! Qi Xu got 100 fragments, while she only got 10. What the hell? Were they even playing the same game?
Other valuable items were nowhere to be seen—just basics like instant noodles and bottled water.
It was so pathetic it hardly felt like a first-place reward...
Seeing Watch Me Slap You go silent, the group didn’t push further in the chat.
But they all privately sent her 10 vehicle upgrade fragments—a silent agreement.
Watch Me Slap You was still hesitant, but Qi Xu cut in: "If you refuse again, you’re not treating us as friends."
Reluctantly, she accepted.
Finally, 100 fragments were gathered!
The moment the upgrade requirements for a Level 3 vehicle appeared before her, Dongfang Yuan shot to her feet and started cursing at the sky. She went on for five minutes straight without pausing for breath.
Others had shared their Level 3 upgrade costs in the group before—expensive, but nowhere near as outrageous as hers!
The rain had left her chilled, but after the rant, she felt invigorated, her body warming up.
[Congratulations, player Watch Me Slap You, on your profession upgrade! "Keyboard Warrior" has evolved into "Professional Troll."]
[Professional Troll]: "In this survival game, whenever you encounter bugs or frustrations, vent your emotions freely. Each outburst grants you one random item.
The effects of the "Keyboard Warrior" title remain active."
Dongfang Yuan suddenly stopped cursing. Finally, a glimmer of hope!
She immediately shared the title upgrade news with the group.
Qi Xu also sighed in relief—the kid had turned her fate around by cursing!
Invincible Black Tornado said: "Send me your upgrade materials list. From now on, just curse as much as you want. Pay me back when you can."
Watch Me Slap You replied: "Deal."
Maybe because she now saw a way to repay them, Dongfang Yuan stopped refusing. She sent the upgrade list to Qi Xu.
Qi Xu was stunned.
The materials required were nearly triple what he’d needed...
No wonder Dongfang Yuan had lost it. Who wouldn’t?
Following the list, Qi Xu sent her the supplies, then posted in the main chat:
Invincible Black Tornado: "If you meet the conditions, upgrade your vehicles now. The rain tonight is unusually heavy."
He then listed multiple sets of basic upgrade materials in the trading hall, asking for rare cards or equivalent items in exchange.
Qi Xu handed approval authority to Qiuqiu.
"I trust the clever, adorable, and absolutely invincible Qiuqiu-sama won’t let me down. Two survival coins."
At first, Qiuqiu thought, No matter how much you flatter me, I won’t budge this time!
But at the mention of two survival coins, she eagerly responded, "Don’t worry, you rest! Leave these tedious tasks to me!"
Qi Xu didn’t even bother with more sweet talk. Without checking the flood of @-mentions in the chat, he collapsed into bed, exhausted.
The past two days had drained him—fighting hundreds, maybe thousands, of monsters in the arena...
The moment he lay down, the deafening rain lulled him into a deep, worry-free sleep.
Qi Xu’s carefree attitude was one thing, but more importantly, he knew the rules of this survival game...
The heavy rain tonight was meant to weed out players still stuck with Level 1 vehicles—or even flimsy Level 2 ones.
Having upgraded to Level 4, Qi Xu was among the elite in the game.
Not only was he safe, but he’d also enjoy certain privileges.
The game actively encouraged players to widen the "wealth gap"—a lesson Qi Xu had learned in his last playthrough.
Once the beginner protection period ended, the first server merge would happen soon.
After the merge, resources and rankings would shift dramatically.
Qi Xu’s last message in the chat had indeed spooked players who hadn’t upgraded their vehicles.
After all, Invincible Black Tornado never spoke without reason.
Either he’d uncovered intel or deduced something critical.
Those who’d delayed fell into two categories:
1. Players with strong starting vehicles and ample upgrade materials, prioritizing trading basics for other resources.
2. The utterly unlucky, still struggling for food and water, unable to even think about vehicle upgrades.
Now, both groups scrambled to upgrade.
The trading hall descended into chaos. Though Qi Xu had listed plenty of basic supplies, this wasn’t charity...
