[Upgrade materials detected. Upgrade shelter?]
"Upgrade."
No white mist appeared when the cabin upgraded. Instead, it was as though an invisible divine hand were performing magic. Before Qi Yu's eyes, the house began to extend and expand, developing additional functional areas…
One minute later, the wooden cabin had been completely transformed.
The original starter cabin had been nothing more than a square room, bare and empty.
Now, the wooden house was larger. The single room had expanded into a one-bedroom home with a living room, doubling in area, and several windows had appeared in the walls.
Even the rough wooden table that had come with the cabin had upgraded along with it. Its surface was now smooth, and two wooden chairs had appeared beside it.
When Qi Yu approached the bedroom, he discovered an even greater surprise.
[Basic household facility included with shelter upgrade: Bathroom.]
The bathroom was beside the bedroom.
It was not large, but it contained everything necessary, including a sink and shower stall.
Qi Yu drew in a breath. The first thing he did was reach for the sink faucet. After pausing for two seconds, he carefully twisted it.
Clear water poured out.
He hurriedly cupped his hands beneath the stream, then hastily shut the faucet off.
The survival System provided an explanation:
[Domestic Water: Unlimited uses. May be used for ordinary personal cleaning. Cannot be traded. Not safe for consumption. Forced consumption will reduce Health and may be life-threatening in severe cases.]
Not safe to drink?
Qi Yu stared at the water pooled in his palms, unable to understand. "Water this clean can't be drunk?"
In the apocalypse, as long as water was not so badly contaminated that drinking it would kill you, it counted as good water. He had drunk from muddy pits before.
But common sense could not be used to judge the survival game. Although he found it regrettable, he valued his life even more.
There was a showerhead in the shower stall. Qi Yu had never seen one before, but fortunately, whenever he scanned something with the badge in his palm, an explanation appeared.
A little observation was enough for him to understand how to use it.
There was a recessed slot in the wall beside the bathroom door.
When he scanned it, a prompt appeared:
[Insert Energy Crystal Card or Universal Electricity Card to enable hot water.]
Energy Crystal Card?
Universal Electricity Card?
Qi Yu remembered the mysterious green card he had opened from a treasure chest and tried inserting it into the slot.
[Requirements not met. Please insert an Energy Crystal Card or Universal Electricity Card.]
All right. Apparently, it was neither of those.
Seeing the card reminded Qi Yu of that mysterious Drift Bottle.
He took out an empty wooden treasure chest, filled it with water, and tentatively placed the Drift Bottle inside.
Something miraculous happened. The instant the bottle touched water, it dissolved, vanishing without a trace right before Qi Yu's eyes.
Remembering the item's description, Qi Yu thought perhaps it had already drifted off into some unknown region.
He wondered whether anyone would pick it up.
Just then, a notification appeared on his survival interface:
[Congratulations to player "I Love the Survival Game" for becoming the 537th player on the entire server to upgrade to a Level-One Shelter. System reward: Silver Treasure Chest x1.]
A dazzling burst of light appeared in front of Qi Yu.
The surprise came without warning.
A Silver Treasure Chest?
Qi Yu remembered that a player in his region, My Fate Is Mine, Not Heaven's, had obtained them before.
If he recalled correctly, that player had earned two Silver Treasure Chests for achieving the server-wide first kill and becoming the first person to register an ID.
Yet Qi Yu was only the 537th player to upgrade his shelter, and he still received a Silver Treasure Chest.
Clearly, just as the game had said upon entry, upgrading one's shelter was the highest priority.
Qi Yu was the 537th player to upgrade. He wondered how many people there were on the "entire server" altogether.
He felt perfectly calm about the fact that more than five hundred people had ranked ahead of him.
The world was enormous. There would always be all kinds of capable people.
Besides, he was already extremely satisfied with his current life… no, his life now had already far surpassed anything he had once expected life could be.
The Silver Treasure Chest was the same size as the others, but much more exquisite in appearance. Some kind of floral pattern was engraved across its surface, making it look like a fine work of art.
The System provided a prompt:
[Silver Treasure Chest: A treasure chest containing supplies. Can yield high-grade items.]
[Silver Treasure Chest detected. Open?]
Qi Yu was just about to say Open when he hesitated. He walked over to the wooden chest where he had dissolved the Drift Bottle and washed his hands with meticulous care, again and again, making sure they were perfectly clean.
He did not know why he did it, but an inexplicable thought had occurred to him: if he washed his hands clean, would his luck improve?
"Open."
Blinding golden light rose from the treasure chest. Qi Yu instinctively shut his eyes, then opened them again.
Several clusters of light floated within the chest.
The largest and most dazzling was the golden light at the very center.
Qi Yu had only just lifted his hand when, as though sensing his intention, the golden light floated over on its own and landed in his palm.
[Congratulations. gold-grade item obtained: Mental Power Cultivation Manual. Bonus item: Beginner's Introduction to Magic.]
[Mental Power Cultivation Manual: Written by the legendary elven Grand Magister Egnor. Extremely valuable. Note: Those with Mental Power below 50 are forbidden from studying it.]
[Beginner's Introduction to Magic: An introductory text for mages, compiled by the Mages' Association. Note: Recommended for readers with Mental Power of 8 or above.]
Qi Yu stared at the two books in his hands.
The first was extremely thick and weighty. Its cover was dark green, decorated with raised leaf patterns. It looked ancient yet imposing, and a vast vitality seemed to wash over him from it.
Even without knowing anything about it, anyone could tell at a glance that it was something good!
The other book, Beginner's Introduction to Magic, perhaps because it was intended for beginners, had a lively blue-and-white cover. At the center was an emblem formed from a magic staff and a branch of white flowers, with the words "Mages' Association" written beneath.
Qi Yu resisted the urge to start reading immediately and put both books into his backpack.
Two other clusters of light remained inside the Silver Treasure Chest, both glowing pale blue.
Qi Yu had seen blue light clusters before. The Fine-grade Brutal-Tusk Dagger had appeared in one just like this.
[Emerald Necklace: Fine-grade equipment. While worn: Mental Power +3, Health +5, Mental Power recovery speed +10%.]
[Emerald Long Boots: Fine-grade equipment. While worn: Agility +3, Health +5. Includes the "Chasing Wind" effect: movement speed +10% while moving.]
Qi Yu let out a small "wow" and equipped both items.
The boosts to Mental Power, Agility, and Health left him feeling refreshed, and his body became noticeably lighter.
"I was wrong, survival game." Qi Yu addressed the blue badge in his palm with a solemn expression.
The survival System remained perfectly quiet and let him perform his little monologue.
Qi Yu felt that he had been terribly wrong.
How could he have thought earlier that simply living a peaceful, stable life was enough?
How could he have remained unmoved when someone else obtained two Silver Treasure Chests?
If someone ranked in the five hundreds could still receive a Silver Treasure Chest, what kind of rewards would the top hundred get? The top three? The very first person to upgrade their shelter?
The thought that they might receive treasures beyond anything he could even imagine made Qi Yu's eyes begin to shine.
I've been far too relaxed, he thought. I have to work harder.
