The two of them each had exactly 20 copper coins, so they bought a pickaxe and headed towards the east end of the village, organizing the information Spicy Rabbit's mom had given them as they walked.
The mining area to the east of the village was vast, with countless tunnels, and naturally, there were a lot of people.
Players who were either too afraid to fight monsters or were involved in many life professions would all head into the mine shafts.
There were actually quite a few zombies in the mine shafts, but they were only level 3, which was nothing to the players whose average level had reached four or five. They were instantly killed as soon as they spawned.
That's why the young girl dared to say she wanted to see zombies; after all, the zombies wouldn't have much of a chance to bite her.
Mining was very profitable when the server first opened, but now the earnings had decreased. Many players who couldn't handle the excitement chose to become miners, and with increased production, the prices naturally dropped.
Currently, the price of ores wasn't much higher than the shop's recycling price, but at least the production of ores was stable.
Moreover, mining had a drop rate; stones and iron ores were the most basic, but occasionally you could dig up silver or gold ores, which were quite valuable even at shop prices.
There were quite a few players coming and going at the east end of the village, each looking like a diligent miner with their dusty faces.
There was no need to ask for directions; the two of them just followed the crowd to the mining area.
They randomly chose a mine shaft and went in. As Spicy Rabbit's mom had said, it was very dark inside, with visibility only about ten meters. Beyond that, you could only vaguely see the swinging pickaxes.
The number of players was absurd. They walked several hundred meters, surrounded by people, and only after who knows how long, when their fullness value had dropped a bit, did they find a less crowded fork in the tunnel to enter.
On the way, the young girl's curiosity was half satisfied when they encountered a zombie.
Unlike other monsters, the zombies spawned by emerging from the ground. Unfortunately, just as the zombie had crawled halfway out and the young girl was halfway through her scream, it was already smashed into white light by a flurry of iron pickaxes.
The young girl felt embarrassed herself.
The two of them found a good spot; the tunnel ceiling was much higher than elsewhere, about ten meters high, so it didn't feel oppressive. Since it was deep in the mine shaft, there weren't many miners, giving them enough space to mine.
They found a flat spot, took out their pickaxes, and started digging.
Li Wu struggled to pry a stone loose with his pickaxe, then picked it up and put it in his bag.
Stone +1
Was such realism really necessary?
In other games, you just had to swing at the cave wall, and the ore would automatically go into your bag.
But in Blue Star Online, you actually had to dig out the stone and pick it up.
And the cave wall really did have a missing piece where the stone was. According to Spicy Rabbit's mom, the mine shaft environment was destructible, but since the server had only been open for seven days, the mine shaft hadn't regenerated, so it was uncertain how long it would take.
***
By now, Li Wu had been mining for an hour, and the mine wall in front of him had a pit half his height. His bag contained 86 stones, 5 iron ores, and one silver ore. You are reading on novelping dot com, the official source.
According to Spicy Rabbit's mom's information, stones were sold by the stack, with each stack of 99 stones having a shop recycling price of 20 copper, and players buying them for 21 copper.
There were too many stones, so it was up to you whether you wanted to sell or not.
The shop recycling price for iron ore was 10 copper per piece, and players bought them for 12 to 14 copper. If you found a buyer, you should sell quickly, whether it's 12 or 14, because who knows when the price might drop to the shop price.
The shop recycling price for silver ore was 50 copper, and players bought them for 60+ copper, still not at the bottom.
After mining for an hour, they earned about 130 copper, and after deducting the cost of the game card, they still made 8 coins.
They encountered another zombie spawn, but it was a bit far from them. Li Wu wanted to gain some experience, but with a visibility of only ten meters, by the time he got there, the monster was already dead.
"Rabbit, how much have you mined?"
"Oh, I told you not to call me Rabbit."
"Who told you to choose that name!"
"Invincible Cute, can you please not call me Rabbit?"
"Uh, my bad, Bunny, how much have you mined?"
"Hehe, I've made a killing! I've mined 150 stones, 8 iron ores, and 2 silver ores," Spicy Rabbit said, covering her mouth and laughing softly.
What the heck?
Li Wu was dumbfounded. How could a little girl mine faster than him when they were mining at the same time?
Li Wu couldn't help but stop and turn to look at Spicy Rabbit, quickly noticing the clue.
Spicy Rabbit had clearly only pried a stone from the cave wall, but as soon as it hit the ground, it became two stones.
100% Critical Hit!
This damn thing could be used for mining too!
Thinking of his own useless Slash Talent, Li Wu felt a pang of envy.
"Tuan Bro, how much have you mined?"
After another half hour of mining, the young girl, feeling a bit bored, suggested they have a midnight snack together.
Li Wu glanced at his fullness value, nodded, and took out some black bread and mineral water.
"My mom said there's a restaurant in the village that's even better than in the real world and won't give you a stomachache."
"Really? Then you should treat me to a meal when we get back."
"Huh? You're an adult asking a minor to treat you?"
"Aren't you making a killing!"
"Oh, right, hehe, I really am making a killing! I even mined a gold ore!" Spicy Rabbit said excitedly, munching on black bread.
Li Wu was shocked to hear this, quickly covering Spicy Rabbit's mouth and cautiously looking at the nearby player who had suddenly stopped.
"Bro, she's just a kid. One gold ore shouldn't be a big deal, and it might not even drop. Besides, there are two of us."
The player turned his head, revealing a set of white teeth on his dusty face.
"Yeah, it's not a big deal, but you should remind your girl to be careful about flaunting wealth."
After saying that, the player turned back and continued mining.
Li Wu didn't relax, gently lowering his hand.
Although Spicy Rabbit hadn't played many games, she suddenly understood.
The shop recycling price for gold ore was 3 silver, and players bought it for over 5 silver, which was over 500 copper coins, equivalent to 50 yuan.
In reality, 50 yuan isn't much, but in a game environment with no legal constraints, PKing someone for a quick 50 yuan is quite tempting!
Fortunately, the other player was only level 3, and with the game's annoying pain design, most people wouldn't PK easily.
Plus, the player had been there longer than them, probably with a bag full of ores, so a 1V2 would be risky.
After quietly advising Spicy Rabbit to watch her words, Li Wu slowly finished his bread and then got up to continue mining.
So envious!
The little girl said she mined a gold ore, and with a critical hit, it would naturally be two pieces!
Delivering takeout all night wouldn't earn as much as she did mining for a short while.
Could Spicy Rabbit have the protagonist template?
Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan