Watching the discussion in the Chat Channel, Clara patted her chest. Good thing she'd had the foresight. Otherwise, if those bastard men found out, she'd definitely be wrecked. She stopped paying attention to the channel and checked the Trading Platform. She saw that all the listed items had sold.
Without hesitating, she immediately crafted tires. The materials vanished, and four brand-new tires appeared in Storage Space. Then Clara clicked
“Vehicle Modification”
and installed the tires.
DismantleNotice¦ Replacement successful. Old tires detected.Dismantle the old tires?YesNoItemDetails⚫ Rubber x10Elastic material. Used in tires and crafting.🛠️ Steel Ingot x5Refined metal. Used in crafting and vehicle upgrades.
After thinking it over, Clara chose [No]. She'd keep them as spares, just in case. After handling all that, she took out Rabbit Meat, skewered it on a wooden stick, and roasted it by the lit campfire. The meat sizzled, filling the air with a rich aroma.
She hummed a tune, feeling completely at ease. Full and satisfied, Clara lay back in the driver's seat, eyes half-closed, enjoying a rare moment of comfort in the apocalypse.
“After a full meal, all I want to do is mess with my phone. What's up with that?”
“Shame about all the study materials on my hard drive.”
Just as she was muttering to herself, her wristband vibrated. It was a private message. From someone with the ID Cute Bunny.
Private Chat💬Cute Bunny-Boss, hello. Excuse me... do you still have High-Energy Milk? My little sister is hurt. I'm willing to trade a blueprint for it!-
Clara raised an eyebrow. A blueprint? She got a little interested and replied anonymously.
Private Chat💬Anonymous PlayerClara BennettWhat blueprint?
As if afraid she wouldn't be interested, the other person immediately sent a screenshot.
Appraisal📐C-rank Paper Cup BlueprintPermanent blueprint. Materials: ¦Logs x1 or Wood Planks x4.Each craft yields 40 paper cups,each cup 6.8 oz.
Private Chat💬Cute Bunny-Boss, I know this blueprint isn‘t high rank, but it’s permanent. Learn it once, use it forever. As long as you have wood, you can make unlimited paper cups.-
Clara quickly ran the calculations in her head. Paper cups don‘t sound like much. But they’re
“permanent,”
and they're a
“container.”
If she was going to make a fortune selling water and milk, containers were a must-have. She couldn't keep relying on people trading empty bottles. With this blueprint, she'd basically have a sustainable production line. This deal was a bargain.
Private Chat💬Anonymous PlayerClara Bennett3.4 ounces of milk for your blueprint.
Private Chat💬Cute Bunny-Thank you, boss! Thank you so much!-
The other player excitedly sent a string of thank-you emojis. Clara took out an empty bottle, condensed 3.4 ounces of milk, and sent it over, completing the trade. After receiving the blueprint, she immediately chose to learn it. Looking at the new crafting option that appeared on her wristband, she nodded in satisfaction.
After packing up, Clara got ready to keep moving. She didn't find any more supply crates along the way. By then, the sky was gradually darkening. Ahead on the highway, a dense forest appeared, dark and looming like the mouth of a giant beast.
Anyone with half a brain knew how dangerous a forest was at night. Clara decisively parked the car on the roadside before the forest and decided to spend the night there. Inside the car, Clara chewed on bread while opening the Chat Channel to see how everyone was doing.
Region ScanRemaining in Region¦ 9885
Chat Channel💬Anonymous Player-So thirsty... I've been opening supply crates all afternoon, and it's all materials. Not a drop of water. If anyone has extra water, I'll trade 3 Iron Ingots for a bottle of water.-💬Anonymous Player-Forget it, guy above. Water's more precious than gas now. My tank‘s still full, but my throat’s about to catch fire.-💬Anonymous Player-Waaah... I wanna go home. I wanna drink Coke. I wanna drink milk tea... I don't wanna stay in this hellhole anymore.-💬Anonymous Player-Wake up. Look around you. It's a wasteland. Even an idiot knows how precious water is now. Pray that boss who was selling Purified Water lists some again. Otherwise you'll have to wait until tomorrow.-
Then a message popped up and instantly blew up the entire channel.
Chat Channel💬Anonymous PlayerUh... do you guys think... pee is drinkable? I really can't hold on anymore.💬Anonymous PlayerBro, theoretically it seems possible. In an emergency it can save your life.💬Anonymous PlayerDon't drink it. I fucking tried a sip... it almost killed me. It was nasty and salty. I puked for ages, and now I'm even thirstier.💬Anonymous PlayerHoly crap! The guy above is a badass. Upvoted!
Just then, a user with the ID Bear Bear posted a long informational spiel.
Chat Channel💬Bear BearListen to me, everyone. You definitely can‘t drink it straight, but there’s a way. Put the urine in a container, leave it out under the hot sun, and use distillation to collect the water vapor. The water you get still tastes funky, but at least it's drinkable.
The moment that message dropped, the whole channel went silent for a few seconds, then completely exploded.
Chat Channel💬Anonymous PlayerFuck! A pro! There really are experts here.💬Anonymous PlayerLearned something, learned something. It's disgusting, but better than dying of thirst. I'm going to try it right now!💬Anonymous PlayerDamn it. To survive, I'll risk it all.💬Anonymous PlayerAny pretty girls want to join? Mine‘s cleaner. I don’t smoke or drink.💬Anonymous PlayerScrew off! Is now really the time to be chasing girls?
Clara looked at the messages, and her eyes lit up. She could totally take advantage of everyone's water shortage and trade for all the supplies in their hands. No point just thinking about it. She used 8 wooden planks to make 80 paper cups, then filled each cup with about 3.4 ounces of water.
As she picked up the first paper cup, Clara noticed that these system-made paper cups weren't pure white. In the middle of each cup's side, a small solid red heart was printed.
“It even comes with a design? It's pretty cute.”
Clara complained inwardly, but didn't pay it much mind. After all, on Earth, cups with patterns were super common. She just thought this little heart looked a bit like the shape at the end of her tail. She didn't dwell on it and started listing them.
But what she didn't know was that every item made from a permanent blueprint would carry the maker's unique mark.
MerchantItemTradeStock💧 Purified Water 3.4 oz2 limited materials (Iron Ingot/Steel Ingot/Logs/Bread, your choice)80•NoteNote: ¦ Buying all kinds ofblueprints, DM me.
After the trade was posted. The entire Chat Channel exploded instantly.
Chat Channel💬Anonymous Player“Holy crap! That water-selling boss listed more.”💬Anonymous Player“Boss, why limit it to these four materials? I have Rubber and Glass here. Can't you cut me some slack?”💬Anonymous Player“Yeah, boss, I have 10 copper blocks. Can I trade them for two cups of water?”💬Anonymous Player“Boss! I have a Rolex Submariner, the green one. Authentic, pre-apocalypse. Worth several hundred grand! I'm not asking for much, just five cups of water.”💬Anonymous Player“Damn, who's this fast? I clicked in and 20 portions were already gone.”
Looking at these messages, Clara just sneered inwardly. A bunch of idiots who still don‘t get the situation. It’s the apocalypse now. Everything from the civilized world has been reshuffled. Watches? Cash? These things aren't even worth toilet paper now.
Only survival resources are hard currency. In less than a minute, all 80 portions of Purified Water were snatched up.
LootItemDetails🔩 Iron Ingot x46Common smelted metal. Used in crafting and vehicle upgrades.🛠️ Steel Ingot x31Refined metal. Used in crafting and vehicle upgrades.🌲 Logs x34Raw timber. Crafting material.🍞 Bread x49Staple food. Fills the stomach.
Clara looked at the resources in her Storage Space and nodded in satisfaction.
“Collect another batch tomorrow, and I should be able to upgrade to a Level 3 vehicle.”
She glanced at the wristband. It was getting late. Then she put a few more cups of milk in Storage Space, just in case. She couldn't exactly milk herself on the spot every time.
“Sleep.”
She flattened the driver's seat, lay down, and put the fire axe and the Repeating Crossbow within reach. Even though the car was safer than outside, she still needed to stay alert. Listening to the occasional howls of unknown creatures from the forest outside, Clara slowly closed her eyes. Just as her mind was about to drift off, the roar of an engine, growing louder, shattered the quiet of the night.