The entire afternoon, Room 618 studied the “Farm Game” interface.
There were also scattered posts on the [Forum] page, where they could find quite a bit of information about the game.
Most players had also suddenly discovered a blue-green app appearing on their phones. After tapping it, a semi-transparent floating panel would pop up, guiding them step by step into the game interface.
Players could plant crops on the farm. Based on the yield, they would earn points, which could then be used in the [Market] to exchange for supplies, or to trade with other players.
The supplies owned by players would also be listed in the [Ledger] and converted into points. Players could choose to exchange their supplies for points to purchase needed items.
Because even farm seeds required points to buy.
The four of them sat dejectedly on the square carpet, discussing whether it was worth taking the risk.
In an apocalypse swarming with zombies, their current supplies were limited. Exchanging supplies for points meant a loss.
But if the farm market was real, they could rely on it to obtain more resources.
In any case, the apocalypse had already arrived. Zombies were already appearing on campus, and even the Dorm Manager Auntie had gone missing. No one was delivering meals, and they did not dare leave the dorm. If zombies overran the building, they would have no choice but to wait for death.
Looking again at their so-called “weapons” in the dorm, a kitchen knife, fruit knives, and a clothes-drying pole, none of them seemed like effective tools against zombies.
Yet in the [Market] of Farm Game, there were astonishing weapon items such as long spear, axe, throwing darts, stun baton, firearms, and even hot air balloon.
There were also defensive items such as armor, bulletproof vest, shield, and zombie virus antibody.
The item that tempted them the most was the zombie virus antibody.
If bitten by a zombie, one would turn into a zombie. But with the antibody, one could be saved.
However, a single [Zombie Virus Antibody] required 100,000 points.
By comparison, instant noodles in the market cost 5 points, meaning it would take twenty thousand packs of instant noodles to exchange for one antibody.
The prices of other items varied, but overall, food was relatively affordable, weapons were more expensive, and medical items were the most expensive.
This clearly reflected the importance of each category.
After logging into the game, the farm granted them two plots of land. To obtain more land, they would need to unlock it using points, up to a maximum of fifty plots.
According to the game guide, completing achievements would unlock generous rewards.
Staring at the floating semi-transparent panel for a long time, Chen Jianwei finally spoke hesitantly to her three friends, “Why don’t we try planting something, just to see if this game is real?”
“But what if it’s a scam?” Luo Mushi hesitated.
“Just to scam us out of a pack of instant noodles?” Ying Ran remained skeptical.
“I think we can try,” Duan Minmin agreed with Chen Jianwei.
Once they made up their minds, they immediately took action. From their stockpile, they selected a pack of whole wheat nut bread that only had three days left before expiration and placed it on the table. Then in [Ledger] → [Food], they selected [Whole Wheat Nut Bread], set the quantity to “1,” and clicked [Tradable].
The bread on the table disappeared.
A small window popped up on the panel:
[Transaction successful]
[Whole Wheat Nut Bread: 8 points]
[Current total points: 8 points]
“Oh!”
They had not expected the game to actually work.
“Wow, we have 8 points now!” Duan Minmin exclaimed happily.
Ying Ran, still rational, pushed things forward. “Let’s see what seeds we can exchange for with 8 points in the [Market].”
They opened [Market] → [Farm Seeds].
The seed categories were extensive. The cheaper ones included garlic seeds, cabbage seeds, carrot seeds, and broccoli seeds, all priced at 3 points.
Scrolling down, they could clearly see the yield of each crop.
[Garlic Seeds]
Price: 3 points
Yield: 4 points
Growth time: 8 hours
[Cabbage Seeds]
Price: 3 points
Yield: 4.5 points
Growth time: 12 hours
[Winter Melon Seeds]
Price: 4 points
Yield: 6 points
Growth time: 12 hours
…
From the data, the higher the seed price and the longer the growth time, the higher the yield.
For example, garlic and cabbage both cost 3 points, but cabbage, which took longer to grow, yielded 0.5 more points.
Similarly, between cabbage and winter melon, both taking 12 hours, the more expensive winter melon yielded 0.5 more points.
“Then let’s buy two garlic seeds,” Chen Jianwei suggested after reviewing the options.
Garlic seeds were cheap and had a short growth time. The 0.5 point difference could easily be compensated by the four hours saved.
It was a suitable test choice.
Everyone agreed.
They purchased [Garlic Seeds ×2], reducing their points by 6, leaving them with 2 points.
They quickly planted the seeds on the two available plots in the [Farm].
[Congratulations to player 122053077 for completing your first planting. You have received a beginner’s gift pack]
[Beginner’s Gift Pack]
Cherry Seeds ×1
Pea Seeds ×1
Sunflower Seeds ×1
Seeing the reward, they were genuinely delighted.
Although it was only three seeds, once harvested, they could be exchanged for points.
They checked the prices of cherry, pea, and sunflower seeds in the market and felt the reward was very generous.
“Back when we played Plants vs Zombies, pea shooters, sunflowers, and cherry bombs were great at wiping out zombies. Once we grow these, can we just go out and wipe out all the zombies?” Duan Minmin said excitedly.
Luo Mushi seemed to consider it but felt it was better to avoid confrontation unless absolutely necessary.
Ying Ran, still browsing the [Forum], could not help but laugh. “Zombies and those game zombies are not the same species. With our abilities, we’d just be one bite each.”
Duan Minmin touched her head. Fortunately, it was still there.
“But how do we close this panel?” Chen Jianwei began experimenting.
The semi-transparent panel floated in front of them and moved with their thoughts, so it should also be possible to hide it.
Ying Ran said, “I opened it by tapping the app, so tapping it again should close it.”
“But I think it’s convenient to keep it open. We can watch our crops and make sure no one steals them…” Duan Minmin suddenly froze mid-sentence, then quickly asked, “Wait, can people steal crops in this game?”
They had been annoyed enough when crops were stolen in old farming games. Now that crops were tied to points, losing them would be like losing money.
The thought alone made Duan Minmin feel distressed.
To verify this concern, they opened the [Communication] forum.
The game had described them as beta players, and although there were not many users yet, the forum already had several pages of posts.
Chen Jianwei thought to herself that these people were really talkative.
The forum was even more active than the university plaza.
However, since the game had just launched, there was no information about crop theft yet.
After all, zombies had only appeared that morning. More precisely, they likely appeared after the blood moon and meteor the previous night. The “Farm Game” was clearly designed for people staying indoors during the outbreak.
They were among the first batch of test players.
Test players, which essentially meant everything ahead was uncertain.
It was already around 4 p.m. They had planted the seeds at 3:30, and the garlic would mature at 11:30 p.m.
They felt relieved.
If they had chosen cabbage or winter melon, they would have had to wake up at 3:30 a.m. to harvest.
Even so, Chen Jianwei set an alarm for 11:20 p.m.
A ten-minute buffer would reduce the risk of losing crops.
They already had limited supplies and points. If their crops were stolen, it would be disastrous.
Seeing Chen Jianwei and Duan Minmin’s worried expressions, Ying Ran tried to reassure them. “It might not be that bad. In older games, crop theft required a friends list, but this game doesn’t even have one. Maybe stealing isn’t possible.”
Duan Minmin remained determined. “Either way, let’s harvest this round first.”
Since the crops would take eight hours to grow, they did not need to keep watching the panel.
Leaving it floating, they checked their group chats again. Aside from fear and confusion, there was no new information.
As dinner time approached, they would likely have to handle it themselves.
The appearance of “Farm Game” gave them some sense of hope.
They still needed to eat, but now at least they had a potential way to sustain themselves.
“Are we eating instant noodles again tonight?” Luo Mushi asked, rubbing her stomach.
Chen Jianwei did not want instant noodles again.
They still had water and electricity. If they did not use their rice and grains now, they might later have to rely on candles or alcohol burners just to heat water.
Earlier, she had checked the market. It also sold candles, alcohol stoves, gas stoves, induction cookers, and ovens, all priced accordingly.
“How about we cook egg noodles tonight?” Chen Jianwei suggested.
They had bought egg noodles yesterday morning, and they still had forty-eight eggs from a previous purchase.
Everyone agreed.
Chen Jianwei boiled water, added four portions of dried noodles, and once they softened, cracked in four eggs, adding oil, salt, and soy sauce.
They finished dinner quickly.
After washing up, Duan Minmin went to shower, while Chen Jianwei continued checking messages.
The class and dorm groups were once again filled with unread messages.
[Lanzhou Garden Building 2 Dorm Group Chat]
[321 Qiu Xiaolin: Do not leave the dorm! I heard from Lanzhou 7 that zombies were spotted in the study room across from them. Two students were eaten in front of others!]
[322 Qu Miao: That’s right, do not leave the dorm!!]
[114 Hui Yi: Those on the first and second floors need to be especially careful. Keep windows and doors closed, and avoid going onto the balcony. Zombies will rush toward people on sight.]
[617 Chen Xiaoqi: Is the school just abandoning us now? Leaving us here to fend for ourselves?]
[303 Lu Shan: If the school really abandons us, I’ll go out and take the zombies down with me!]
[801 Chen Wenqian replied to 303 Lu Shan: Calm down! Don’t do anything reckless!]
[103 Dong Wenyu: I’m scared. I hear sounds outside. Did someone go out?]
…
At a time like this, no one would dare go outside.
So who was out there?
No one in the dorm dared speak. The only sound was the running water from the bathroom.
“I just remembered something,” Duan Minmin said, coming out of the bathroom with clothes in her arms. “I think I have a surveillance camera.”
She began rummaging through her cabinet. “I rented a place during summer for a part-time job and installed it at the door. I brought it back, but I don’t know where I put it.”
Luo Mushi joined her. “Did you leave it at home? The game ledger lists everything in the dorm, and there’s no camera.”
“It’s probably out of battery,” Duan Minmin said, finally pulling out a box. “Do you have batteries? Large ones?”
“My headphones use large batteries. I just replaced them yesterday,” Luo Mushi said, handing them over.
After inserting the batteries, the camera powered on.
But how would they place it outside?
They did not dare step out.
“We can push it out through the vent above the door and stick it outside,” Chen Jianwei suggested.
There was a metal grille, but it was just enough to fit the camera through.
They stacked chairs and books, and Luo Mushi climbed up.
After securing the camera with double-sided tape, they connected it via Bluetooth.
The iPad displayed the corridor outside.
The sixth-floor hallway was empty. The camera rotated slightly, showing the opposite corridor and even parts of the floors below.
No one was outside.
“The upper floors should be safe for now,” Duan Minmin said with relief.
But whether they could survive even a month remained uncertain.
They had no idea what was happening outside the building.
“If I ever turn into a zombie, make sure to finish me quickly,” Duan Minmin said.
“Nothing will happen,” Chen Jianwei said, though she was not sure herself.
“I’d rather starve than become a zombie,” Luo Mushi added.
As night fell, a new message finally appeared in the dorm group.
The original admin, Dorm Manager Auntie Yin, had added a new admin.
[Lanzhou 3 Dorm Manager Chen Lian (Admin): I am Chen Lian, the dorm manager of Building 3. Since your original dorm manager Yin Yi encountered an accident, I will temporarily manage Building 2 as well. Due to special circumstances, please understand.]