Yining clutched the quarter of a watermelon he’d saved for himself. It had sat in his storage locker all night, yet it hadn’t gone bad.

He took a bite of the rough-textured hardtack and swallowed it down.

The compressed biscuits had mediocre stats, but they were good for filling his stomach—and only when he was full would he have the strength to survive.

On the game forum, Yining mimicked Yunzhou’s approach and posted 20 offers for item synthesis, charging a fee of 1 piece of wood per transaction.

The number of people in line shot past a hundred in the blink of an eye. He scanned the list, shoved the last small piece of hardtack into his mouth, and choked on the dry texture, forcing him to gulp down half a mouthful of water.

He had to refresh the forum, check the messages, and make do with whatever food he could find.

On the second day of the survival game, the atmosphere of life-and-death struggle was already palpable. A summary post on item tiers floated on the game forum’s homepage.

Yining clicked on it and saw the categories: “Gray, Brown, Silver, Gold.” His eyes moved down to a player’s vivid description:

“Rumor has it there’s a ‘Black’ tier above Gold… Those who’ve seen it are either dead or refuse to speak of it.”

His finger tapped the coffin lid unconsciously.

Black tier? It didn’t sound like an item from the living world.

【Discussion | Player Development Paths Across Different Terrains】

【Question】 Are synthesis opportunities just a rip-off?

【The OP did the math: There are fewer than twenty players across the entire server who own synthesis cards, and the total number of uses is limited—it’s simply not enough to satisfy everyone. How much faster would rushing the expansion really make things? And how much slower would delaying it by a single day actually be?】

A pretty sharp question.

Yining glanced at the replication card in his backpack and knew exactly what was going on. Most of the people in this thread urging others not to get caught up in the frenzy probably haven’t saved up enough resources yet and are jumping to conclusions based on their own progress.

Having a discussion, however, could help everyone find their own place in the game.

First post: That makes some sense.

Second Post: Ultimately, it’s not that players who choose to craft resources are one step ahead of others—it’s that players who obtain synthesis cards are one step ahead.

If you’re just one plank short of expanding your territory, it might be worth buying a crafting opportunity.

Someone in the comments retorted: “Show-off, like you know it all. You just managed to get promoted this time—will you still be one step ahead of everyone else later on?” 

Third floor…

Yining saw his name on the third floor.

It all started when, under 【Yining】’s post, 【Yunzhou】 shared his experience of entering the Dark Realm.

They were dissecting “why Yunzhou entered the Dark Realm, got the 【Contamination】 status, and then immediately drew a synthesis card.”

【Must have maxed out his Luck stat, right?】

【Maybe contamination is related to the draw odds… Want to bet?】

Yining stared in shock.

How did they even make that connection?!

Are these people’s minds really that wild?

He recalled Yunzhou’s casual remark during their private chat: “I pulled a synthesis card.” There was certainly more to it than just luck, but luck—or perhaps fate—was still a factor.

For instance, scrolling down this thread, the fifth post is still discussing himself. 

Post #5:

【We don’t know how 【Yining】 got the natural disaster card either. An item card that made it onto the official announcement—just the name alone suggests it’s powerful. And now we’re potential rivals…】

Someone mentioned the natural disaster card, their words tinged with caution. A reply quickly followed:

【Don’t worry, the game has penalty mechanisms. He won’t dare to use it recklessly, especially during the newbie period.】

Yining read this comment and couldn’t help but feel conflicted. They’d even gone so far as to assume he “wouldn’t dare use it.”

He casually took a screenshot and saved that reply separately in his notes. If it ever actually got used, at least he’d know who to thank.

Others might not understand the mechanics of the natural disaster card, but Yining knew it was tied to his time of death—though his own death was not something he could decide.

He’d actually like to postpone his death until January 1, 2100—that way, he might not have to end up in this godforsaken place. Rumor has it that only those whose time hasn’t yet come are sent to even harsher worlds.

So Yunzhou might have some special cheat code of his own—but that’s not really something he felt comfortable asking about.

Even if some players posed soul-searching questions, there were still a huge number of people lining up under Yining’s post, all hoping that someone ahead in the queue would suddenly go offline, giving them a chance to take their turn.

One minute before the cooldown ended, Yining sent a private message to call the queue. Out of the 20 players waiting, he actually came across a true master. “Big shot, can I run this on credit just this once? I’m only two planks short. If you craft it for me one more time, I’ll give you three logs.” Yining chose to refuse.

“Haven’t you made enough profit already? You greedy capitalist, I hope you die a horrible death.”

Added to the watchlist. The clock struck 8:00 AM.

【Game Announcement: The store has been updated. Survivors, hurry and check out what goodies are available!】

Yining headed to the store, his gaze scanning down the list of wood and stone. The first eight items remained unchanged until he reached the last two rows, where two new items had appeared.

1.  Wood: 1 Point

2.  Stone: 1 Point

……

8.  Tent Blueprint (Gray): 100 Points

9.  House Blueprint (Gray): 300 points

10.  Replication card (Brown): 800 points

【Replication Card Countdown: 24:00:00】

A single brown replication card is worth 800 points? Yining Jian almost thought he was seeing things.

But then he realized that 800 points was the in-game store price, and since the game store doesn’t buy back replication cards, selling one on the trading market would definitely not get him an item of equal value.

Perhaps he should try trading for some in-game samples instead.

Yining sent a message to 【YuYuYu】: How’s your wasp-hunting going?

The reply came quickly

【YuYuYu】: I’ve cleared half of them. Taking a break.

【Yining】: You aren’t taking them one by one, are you?

【YuYuYu】: Yeah, I’m taking them down one by one. Each one drops a stinger, and five stingers are worth one point.

【YuYuYu】: Have you seen the shop update? House blueprints!

【YuYuYu】: That’s my new goal! 

Indeed, most people are more interested in the house blueprints; the chat channel is now full of discussions about them. Only Yining, with his head in the clouds, has a replication card in his hand, so he’s particularly concerned about the value of this item. 

【YuYuYu】: Even though it’s just a blueprint—and a gray one at that—it doesn’t specify materials, terrain, how to upgrade, or how much land it requires, but a house is a house! You get it? A house!

【YuYuYu】: It’s less than half the price of that replication card.

Yining quickly replied, “I get it.”

Then he finally had the chance to ask what he really wanted to know: “I remember you mentioned killing a rattlesnake. Could you tell me what it dropped?”

【YuYuYu】: Sure! It dropped a gem that boosts critical hits.

【Yining】: That’s it?

【YuYuYu】: That’s it.

【Yining】: Actually, I’m mainly curious to know where everyone is currently getting their ranked items from. After all, once the early-game phase is over, the ways to acquire resources might change.

Perhaps some items aren’t actually worth much in certain situations.

For example, if the game encourages players to fight monsters, then replication cards, synthesis cards, and decomposition cards have a stable source of acquisition.

【YuYuYu】: Boss, you really live up to your title—you’re so far-sighted.

【YuYuYu】: To be honest, the highest-level skill I’ve seen so far is actually the 【Hollow Puppet】 skill.

【Yining】: How do you check a skill’s level?

【YuYuYu】: By the font color. 

The font color?

Aren’t they all just black Song font on a semi-transparent panel…? Wait a minute.

YuYuYu sent a screenshot showing his other skill, 【Deep Dive】, displayed in silver text on the panel.

【YuYuYu】: This skill is for diving, but where are we supposed to find water for me to dive in? It drove me crazy yesterday. Luckily, I ate the grilled liver you sold me, bro. Now I’m full of hope.

【YuYuYu】: The store has food, fresh water, and now even house blueprints. Life here is way more promising than the dead-end existence I had before I crossed over.

【Yining】: That’s great. If you need anything, be sure to let me know. Keeping in touch is good for both of us.

【YuYuYu】: Okay, bro. No problem, bro.

Alright, Yining now wants to keep completely quiet about his “black-tier” skill. Really, there’s nothing to say.

With a heavy heart, Yining went to the trading market to exchange the transaction fees he’d earned from selling synthesis card attempts for the resources he needed, then headed back to YuYuYu to trade for a weapon.

【Acquired: Machete I ×1】

【Machete (Gray): Attack +3, Durability 80】

Great. The goal for the next day was to expand his territory and find a way to remove the 【Contamination】.

All the resources needed for the expansion were gathered in Yining’s territory after trading the fees from 20 synthesis attempts. Just then, the bloodflesh flower in his skill slot—the one with the 【Growth】 effect—wilted.

Strangely, just as Yining heard the sound effect signaling an item dropping into his inventory, a tingling sensation ran through his wrist. He raised his hand to look, and Yining’s heart skipped a beat.

Wow, this is unbelievable.

A hardened blood vessel had grown on his wrist!

There were clearly two fleshy growths on the vein, writhing and straining to extend.

【Bloodflesh Flower, Growth Cycle: 6:00:00】 

This is way too much.

Yining’s heart went numb, as if he’d been sprinkled with Sichuan pepper.

The growths wriggled, and before long, several fingernail-sized leaves sprouted from the blood vessel. The whole process caused Yining a bit of pain and itchiness, but it was within tolerable limits.

Lifting his wrist to his ear, he could still hear the gurgling sound of blood flowing through the hardened blood vessels.

As he drew closer, a strange scent wafted into Yining’s nostrils—an indescribable aroma that lay somewhere between the scent of flowers and the aroma of meat. I really want to…

I want to…

What should I do? Yining felt an urge to lick his wrist.

If only he’d known, he wouldn’t have been so greedy for that little bit of recovery. He should have roasted it and sold it before it withered. Now he’s become a petri dish for this thing. Calling it a petri dish is too refined; Yining remembered hearing the term “meat soil” somewhere before—that seemed more fitting.

Thankfully, it’s his right wrist; it won’t hinder Yining, a left-handed person, from using tools.

At noon, Yining restored his three-dimensional attributes by eating food. During this time, he noticed a peculiar phenomenon.

In the 【Trading Market】, tent blueprints could be exchanged for house blueprints.

A 100-point tent blueprint could be traded for a 300-point house blueprint, with no need to pay the difference.

Yining continued to observe and discovered that the players trading blueprints hadn’t purchased them from the store; rather, after the store update, both items could be obtained from express blind boxes.

Desert players tend to prefer building houses, and players who spawn inside houses have no immediate use for house blueprints.

Low-tier blueprints that are not currently needed carry a risk of depreciation.

However, some players remain skeptical about the notion of “devaluation.”

No one can predict what will happen in the game later on, so every decision is highly controversial.

In the chat channel, players currently inside a house are referred to as “town players,” but a player posted on the forum pointed out that there are currently two types of players: “Desert Players” and “Town Players,” with a ratio of roughly 7:3, meaning Desert Players are the majority.

It is unclear whether players from other terrains, such as the Forest and the Ocean, might be on separate servers. The poster specifically emphasized that the server they were referring to involved some kind of high-dimensional energy, which sounded rather esoteric. Given this, the Graveyard where Yining himself was located was likely the area with the fewest players.