【Congratulations, player. You have acquired the talent skill: Gardening.】
Gardening (Beginner): A rather ordinary talent that increases the yield of any plant you grow by 20%. However, it seems your talent has undergone some changes.
Qiyu noticed that “Gardening (Basic)” had changed to “Gardening: Mutated (Basic).”
Planting·Variant (Basic): A rare talent. Any plant you grow yields a 20% larger harvest. During its growth, there is a chance that the plant will mutate.
As Qiyu felt the familiar energy surging through his body, he confirmed that this so-called “Planting” talent was the same plant-based ability he had possessed in his previous life.
But… he found himself strangely confused. According to the rules of this Survival Game, his ability was actually classified as “Planting”?
Qi·Yu fell silent.
He decided to put the matter of his ability aside for now. Gathering materials was more important.
Judging by the descriptions on the two blueprints, both items were extremely useful.
Since the workbench was described as a structure for crafting all tools, did that mean he would also need a workbench to craft the basic backpack? Qiyu turned his attention to the wooden axe.
As soon as he picked it up, a line of text appeared on his survival panel.
【Wooden Axe: A very basic tool with no special properties, but it might help you chop down trees a little more efficiently?】
Qiyu gripped the axe, but instead of immediately chopping down a tree, he bent over, picked up the wooden chest filled with food, and headed back into the cabin.
The Survival Game had stated that the wooden cabin would be completely safe during the beginner phase. Once that period ended, however, the cabin might come under attack.
Did that mean there were other creatures here? Other humans? Or monsters?
Whatever the threat might be, he certainly wouldn't feel comfortable leaving his precious food outside.
The moment he pushed open the cabin door, his personal information panel updated:
Shelter: Initial Wooden Cabin (Durability 100/100), upgradeable.
Next Level: Level One Shelter (Sturdy Cabin).
Level One Shelter (Sturdy Cabin), Upgrade Materials: Wood x200, Stone x100, Leather x20, Iron Chunks x20. 2
Apparently, the materials required to upgrade the shelter were only displayed after obtaining the novice chest.
Qiyu wasted no time. He carefully placed the wooden chest against the far wall, picked up his axe, and went outside. He began exploring the area east of the cabin.
He remembered the voice that had echoed in his mind when he first picked up the Survival Game badge. Judging by the reactions in the chat channel, every player had heard the announcement.
A player named “My Fate is Determined By Me, Not The Heavens” had claimed the first kill on the server.
“First kill” was a straightforward enough term.
Did that mean enemies existed even during the newbie protection period?
Qiyu advanced cautiously, his footsteps making almost no sound on the slightly damp soil.
【Mature tree detected. Can be chopped down.】
【Wild banyan berries detected. Edible.】
【……】
Notifications from the Survival Game occasionally appeared before him. Whenever he received a notification about something edible, Qiyu took a closer look and memorized its location.
After walking approximately 500 meters, a warning appeared on his survival panel:
【Unsafe zone ahead. Not recommended for beginners. Continue?】
Without the slightest hesitation, Qiyu turned around and headed back.
Over the next hour, he explored in several different directions, receiving the same warning each time he reached a distance of roughly 500 meters. 1 In other words, the area within a 500-meter radius of the wooden cabin was what the Survival Game called the “safe zone.”
His exploration proved quite fruitful!
Besides discovering numerous useful locations, his greatest find was the three treasure chests now neatly arranged before him. 1 All three were the same size, but their appearances were completely different.
The two chests on the left looked just like the novice chest Qiyu had placed inside his cabin. Both were ordinary wooden chests.
The chest on the far right, however, was noticeably more exquisite. Its metallic surface had a cold, solid sheen, and beautiful patterns were engraved across its lid.
【Wooden Chest: A chest containing supplies, with a low chance of yielding high-tier items.】
【Fine Iron Chest: A chest containing supplies, with a low chance of yielding high-tier items.】
The descriptions were identical.
Qiyu had discovered the two wooden chests while exploring.
One had been lying in the grass beside his path, while the other had been much harder to find. It was perched high in a large tree, concealed among the leaves. If he hadn't discovered the first chest and begun searching more carefully, he might never have noticed it.
As for the fine iron chest, it had appeared after Qiyu finished exploring in every direction and began making his way back to the cabin. A notification had suddenly appeared on his survival panel:
【Congratulations! You have completed your first area exploration during the beginner phase and received a reward chest x1】
【Detected a chest that can be opened. Do you wish to open it?】
Qiyu opened the two wooden chests first.
【Congratulations! You have obtained 500ml of water x2, wood x20, cream cake x1, cotton cloth x2, and a standard dagger x1】
If anyone had been standing nearby, they would have seen Qiyu's eyes light up instantly.
A cream cake?
It was a legendary delicacy he had only ever heard about, never seen!
He eagerly leaned forward to examine it. It was a six-inch cream cake, its surface intricately decorated with vines and flowers fashioned from whipped cream. It was absolutely beautiful. As he drew closer, a rich, sweet fragrance wafted toward him.
Qiyu swallowed hard, carefully placed the cake in a separate wooden box, and tucked it away. He decided to save this precious, beautiful cake for the evening.
The cotton cloth consisted of two soft, white squares of fabric, each measuring 1m x 1m. Qiyu put them away as well. He could use them to make towels or undergarments later.
That left only the fine iron chest.
Although the Survival Game's description was identical to that of the wooden chests, its noticeably superior appearance made Qiyu look forward to opening it. He selected the option.
A familiar, faint light flashed.
【Congratulations! You have obtained 10 iron chunks, 1 wooden bed blueprint, and 1 mattress blueprint】
Qiyu was delighted. More blueprints!
Although he hadn't obtained any food, a wooden bed and a mattress were both extremely useful items. He picked up the wooden bed blueprint and chose to learn it.
【Wooden Bed: Basic furniture. Sleeping on it slowly restores stamina. Construction Materials: Wood x50】8
【Mattress: Basic furniture. Sleeping on it slowly restores stamina. Construction materials: Hay x40, Cotton x20】
The descriptions were still rather brief, but Qiyu had already added both items to his list of necessities. He had spent years enduring the hardships of living without a proper home, and few people understood that suffering better than he did. Given a choice, who would willingly choose hardship over comfort?
Judging by the contents of the chests, the rewards from the fine iron chest were clearly a cut above those from the wooden ones.
So…
Qiyu recalled the two announcements he had heard when he first entered the Survival Game.
If he remembered correctly, the player named “My Fate is Determined By Me, Not The Heavens” had received two Silver Chests. Judging by the name alone, Silver Chests were probably of a higher grade than either wooden chests or fine iron chests.
He wondered what kind of treasures that player would obtain.
Qiyu entertained the thought for a moment before quickly putting it aside. He had more important things to focus on.
The wooden cabin certainly needed upgrading, but the process required a considerable amount of materials, and he couldn't gather everything immediately.
Besides, according to the Survival Game's rules, he only needed to complete the upgrade before the newbie period ended. He could set that task aside for now.
As for everything else—whether it was the basic backpack or the blueprints he had just obtained—all of them required a workbench to craft. Therefore, his most urgent task was to gather the materials needed to build one.
Crafting a workbench required 50 units of wood and 50 units of stone.
Qiyu wasted no more time. Gripping his axe, he headed toward the nearest tree.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Chopping down trees was an incredibly easy task for Qiyu.
It wasn't that he possessed extraordinary strength or never grew tired. Rather, work like this, which required relatively little effort, posed almost no risk of injury, and involved no real danger, was the sort of job countless people in his former world would have fought desperately to obtain.
Half an hour later, with a tremendous crash, a tree as thick as a person's thigh toppled to the ground. 1 The instant it landed, it transformed into a neatly arranged bundle of lumber.
【Wood x10, Pick up?】
Qiyu: ……?
He stared at the pile of wood in bewilderment.
Where had that enormous tree he'd just chopped down gone?
And what about all those edible leaves, not to mention the branches that could have been used as firewood or weapons?
Still, this development answered a question that had been troubling him earlier. He had been wondering how he was supposed to transport entire trees back to the wooden cabin and process them into the 【wood】 required to craft tools.
Perhaps experiencing death had made him more accepting of strange phenomena, because he quickly adjusted to the Survival Game's system of automatically processing materials.
Before chopping down the second tree, he returned to the supply chest, took out a piece of cotton cloth, and used his dagger to cut it into strips, which he wrapped around his hands.
The Survival Game seemed to have completely restored and reset his body. Not only had all his old injuries healed, but even the thick calluses on his palms had disappeared. Without some protection, his hands would probably be torn to shreds by the time he finished chopping down five trees.
Another half hour passed, and the second tree came crashing down.
【Critical Hit Triggered, obtained 20 pieces of wood. Do you want to pick them up?】
The amount of wood had doubled.
Obtaining an extra 10 units of wood was equivalent to saving himself the trouble of chopping down another tree.
What a pleasant surprise! Qiyu happily chose to pick up the wood and added it to his earlier haul.
Together with the 20 units of wood he had obtained from the wooden chest, he now had all 50 units required to craft a workbench. Originally, he had intended to chop down another two trees while he was at it, but when he straightened up, he suddenly realized something was wrong.
An overwhelming wave of fatigue and weakness swept through his body. His vision darkened intermittently, and all he wanted was to return to the wooden cabin and get a good night's sleep.
Something was clearly wrong with his condition.
On a sudden impulse, he opened his personal information panel.
Survival ID: I Love Survival Game
Age: 19
Satiety: 10/100
Stamina: 30/100
Both his Satiety and Stamina indicators had turned a vivid red.
Although there was no accompanying verbal warning, the physical sensations he was experiencing and the glaring red numbers were warning enough.
Qiyu had indeed felt hungry while chopping wood, but he was so accustomed to hunger that he hadn't paid it much attention: …
A sudden, inexplicable warmth filled his heart. Deeply moved, he said, “Thank you, Survival Game. No one has ever cared so much about my well-being.”
The Survival Game offered no reply. It merely maintained its silence.
Qiyu bent down, carried the thirty units of lumber into the wooden cabin, and sat against the wall.
He took the half-eaten steamed bun from the wooden box and began nibbling on it.
Mealtimes were wonderful, joyous occasions. He casually summoned the Survival Game interface, opened the chat channel, and began looking through the messages to see whether he could find any useful information.
【Haicheng Number One Handsome Boy: Help me! What kind of shitty game is this? I've barely chopped down half a tree, and my hands are already covered in blisters. I want to die.】
【Coffee Spirit: Chopping down a single tree nearly killed me, and all I got was 10 pieces of wood! This game clearly wasn't designed for humans to survive!】
【The Bigger The Waves The More I Ride Them: Help! Does anyone have any medicine? I accidentally cut my leg!】
【The More I Involution The Bitterer My Life Becomes: Don't rush to chop down trees just yet. Remember to explore the map. You might find treasure chests, and those can contain resources.】
【A Salted Fish Is Just A Salted Fish: I've given up. Upgrading the wooden cabin requires 200 wood. I couldn't gather that much even if it killed me. Whatever Happens Happens. Maybe if I die, I'll respawn with some gear?】
【Cheating Neither The Old Nor The Young: Trading 20 units of wood for any blueprint.】
***
Just as Qiyu was about to switch to the trading section, a message caught his attention.
【My Fate is Determined By Me, Not The Heavens: The three-day newbie period is the time the Survival Game has given everyone to adapt and level up. There's no danger, and resources are plentiful and easy to find. Don't give up.】