A huge thanks to GreenKiTea for the kofis. Enjoy these bonus chapters!

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In the days that followed, due to the effects of the disaster rain, players in Server 01 found themselves living a rare, collective “stay-at-home” lifestyle. 

A small number of reckless players ventured out on the first day despite the effects of decreased luck; after managing to scrape together some loot with great effort, they behaved themselves for the next two days. Qiyu spent those days fully immersed in cultivation.

Every day, he repeated the same routine—feeding his magic to the demon vine—training—feeding his magic to the demon vine. Perhaps due to the influence of the disaster rain, mutated creatures kept showing up at his doorstep that day.

【Cockroach Taste Is So Weird: On a day like this, I actually feel a sense of peaceful tranquility.】

【The More I Involution The Bitterer My Life Becomes: Who wouldn’t agree? A wooden cabin in the woods, rain falling outside, and I’m tending a fire while slowly roasting something—doesn’t it feel like a vacation? Plus, no idiotic boss to bother me.】

【Peaches and Plums Need Not Speak: Only big shots talk like that, right? All I know is that it rains every day so I can’t go out, food is running low, it’s getting colder, and I need wood to keep the fire going. At least my feet stay warm when I sleep at night.】

【Liver Emperor: I’m not going on vacation at all—I’m heading out!  I’m going to chop wood! I’m going to explore! I’m going to scavenge for resources—I’ll start growing fur if I stay cooped up in this cabin every day!】

【Current Location: Star Forest.】

【Today’s Weather: Light rain, 10°C–13°C, no wind.】

Qiyu had already put on his windbreaker set.

The rain had let up, and looking through the window, he could see that the days of rain had shrouded the entire Star Forest in a light mist. Opening the area chat and the trading board, he saw that prices for items like “clothes,” “blankets,” and “cotton” were skyrocketing.

The demand for wood had also increased, though prices remained relatively stable—after all, players could chop their own wood, and if it was just for a fire, the wood from a single tree was enough to last a whole day.

Just as he was about to head downstairs, his peripheral vision instinctively caught sight of something on the windowsill, and he suddenly stopped in his tracks. A familiar glass bottle lay quietly inside a wooden box. The drifting bottle!

Qiyu hurried over and picked it up.

Sure enough, nestled among the white sand was a rolled-up piece of dark yellow paper.

Qiyu hurriedly unfolded it, his heart filled with anticipation.

Last time, the drifting bottle had brought him a good friend named God Has No Form. What about this time?

Would it be another friend from a different region?

【You have received a request. A lost traveler in the Black Rock Mountain Range is hoping to hire a skilled warrior to escort them safely home.】

【Do you accept this quest?】

A two-minute countdown appeared on the screen, indicating that Qiyu had two minutes to decide.

Before Qiyu could make a decision, a line of text slowly appeared above the message in a drifting bottle:

【Once a drifting bottle quest is declined, the drifting bottle service will be terminated.】

Qiyu: …

He went downstairs to check the status of his territory first.

Since new plants were planted today, there’s also a harvest to be gathered in the territory.

Thanks to his persistent care, the demon vine has finally grown—well, there hasn’t been any noticeable change yet. 

At least to the naked eye, there was no visible change; it was impossible to tell how much energy it would take to grow even a little.

The mutated wind blade grass, however, gave Qiyu a pleasant surprise—it was growing very vigorously and had even dropped a batch of seeds.

Qiyu planted them in a circle along the inner side of the demon vine fence; once the mutated wind blade grass matured, the territory would have an extra layer of protection. 

The energy towers—built using magic crystals traded from the “Need One Gold to Save” vendor—had now expanded to ten.

Now, most of the territory could be covered by energy towers.

In addition, there was one Advanced Magic Energy Tower. With 80 energy, it had enough to launch four attacks. 

With such defenses, the territory has the capacity to defend itself even against an onslaught of mutated creatures. That’s right—Qiyu has already decided to accept this commission.

To him, the drifting bottle was a deeply mysterious phenomenon.

Just adding a single friend from another region had already brought him countless benefits.

He had originally thought the drifting bottle was meant for making friends. But this time, it had actually brought him a commission. 

While surprised, he also felt a sense of anticipation and eagerness to get started.

He’d heard of the Black Rock Mountain Range.

In other words, by accepting this commission, he might have to leave the Star Forest and head to another place.

Also, regarding the “lost travelers” mentioned in the commission, who are these people? Are they native inhabitants of the survival game, like Duo Ju? Or are they players from other regions? 

Perhaps this is an opportunity to learn more about the Survival Game.

After checking everything in his territory, he donned the Guardian Mage Robe, pulled up the hood, and organized the supplies in his backpack.

He didn’t know how long this quest would take, nor did he know how to get to the “Black Rock Mountain Range.” To be on the safe side, he made sure to have enough emerald crystal peaches for today for God Has No Form.

Over a hundred peaches would last a long time.

Although he had a teleportation scroll, it wasn’t a viable option; this was a last-resort lifesaver, and unless absolutely necessary,

He sent a message to God Has No Form, telling him he was going to explore an unknown area. Since he didn’t know what to expect, he asked him not to worry. God Has No Form didn’t ask where he was exploring; he just said, “Wait a moment.”

Qiyu was puzzled.

【Your friend “God Has No Form” has sent you a gift.】

Qiyu opened it.

【Received 50 rice balls, 1 kg of spicy dried meat, 1 kg of salted dried meat, and 10 pancakes.】 

【God Has No Form: I figured you probably don’t have much food stocked up either. If you’re heading to such a remote place, just eating peaches won’t be enough.】

Best friend! 

In Qiyu’s simple mind, a friend who would share food with you for free was truly, truly generous.

【I Love Survival Game: Thank you, Godless. If I can find any local specialties, I’ll bring you a gift, too.】 

He took out the yellowed piece of paper and selected “Accept Quest.” 

All was quiet, yet the figure still standing in the same spot seemed to have changed. Qiyu was puzzled: “So… how do I get to the Black Rock Mountain Range?” Just as he was wondering, the sound of clattering footsteps grew louder as they approached.

Accompanied by a series of whinnies, four snow-white beasts pulling a cart appeared at the entrance to the territory.

Qiyu watched them with a mix of wariness and curiosity.

【Wilderness Carriage: Climb aboard, and it will take you wherever you wish to go.】

A carriage? Is this the means to get to the Black Rock Mountain Range?

He walked over, and the carriage door opened, revealing a small, square interior—bare except for the seats. Qiyu sat down, and the door snapped shut with a “click.”

He felt the carriage swaying; it must have started moving. The interior was completely enclosed, so he had no way of seeing the scenery outside—he had to press his face against the door to take a look. 

Just as his hand touched the door, a tingling, numbing sensation suddenly shot through his fingers, as if he’d been zapped by electricity.

【Friendly Reminder: For the safety of passengers, please remain seated and refrain from any unnecessary movements while the Wilderness Carriage is in motion.】

Qiyu immediately sat up straight, not intending to defy this rule. 

In fact, less than a minute after he had settled into his seat, the carriage came to a stop. The door swung open on its own.

“Wait… are we here already?”

Qiyu gripped the Heart of the Great Tree Staff tightly as he cautiously stepped down from the carriage.

His eyes lit up.

The surroundings were completely different from the Star Forest—the view was wide open, and the sky was clear and cloudless.

Having watched rain for many days in a row, Qiyu felt his spirits lift a little.

He opened his survival panel.

【Current Location: Black Rock Mountain Range.】

【Weather: Sunny, 22°C–27°C, light breeze (Level 3).】

Was he in the Black Rock Mountain Range?

That carriage…

Qiyu turned around and realized that the carriage from earlier had vanished without a trace.

A series of hurried footsteps approached, and Qiyu instantly went on high alert, looking around warily.

“Excuse me, are you the hero who accepted the commission?” the visitor asked cautiously.

Qiyu didn’t answer right away; instead, he sized up the person.

At first glance, he saw that the person across from him had two eyes, a nose, and a mouth—just like himself. Seeing no apparent physical differences, Qiyu quietly let out a sigh of relief. 

At least, on the surface, they all seemed to be of the same species.

He asked, “Did you place this commission?”

Hearing this, the person who had spoken up replied happily, “Yes, yes, I’m the one who placed the commission. I was worried I wouldn’t find anyone.”

The others also breathed a collective sigh of relief and moved closer to Qiyu.

In their eyes, this mysterious Hero was shrouded in a dark green robe, his face completely hidden by his hood.

The only thing they could see was the Hero’s right hand, which held a staff.

His skin was pale, his knuckles prominent, and his fingers slender, each adorned with a mysterious ring. 

He looked like a young mage—that was the conclusion they had reached. 

Qiyu dared not say more, afraid of revealing his ignorance, and simply nodded slightly: “I accepted your commission—to escort you out of the Black Rock Mountain Range, correct?”

Hearing Qiyu’s confirmation, the young man leading the group smiled even more broadly: “Yes, sir, I placed the commission. My name is Leslie Borg, and I look forward to working with you.” 

The others introduced themselves one after another: one was named Annie, another was named Hugh, and yet another was named Ryan.

They spilled their backgrounds like beans spilling from a bamboo tube, each vying to reveal everything about themselves: they were residents of a small town called Gold Hole City, located outside the Black Rock Mountain Range. Leslie was something of a Young Master; Hugh and Annie were his attendants and servants; and Ryan was a mercenary. 

Not players. Qiyu came to that conclusion.