After a brief rest, Chen Shu picked up the Stone Axe again.
With the experience from his first attempt, he found a rhythm, aiming at the same cut, using his waist and abdomen to drive his arms, making each swing more stable and deeper.
Although the efficiency was still lacking and his palms were reddened by the rough wooden handle, watching the number of wood pieces in his Backpack increase bit by bit, the sense of achievement offset his fatigue.
After spending several dozen minutes, he finally gathered the 15 pieces of wood needed for the ladder.
He also discovered that not every tree provided the same amount of wood; larger, taller trees yielded more, while smaller, thinner ones gave less.
"Phew... Done!" Chen Shu exhaled deeply, ignoring the sweat, and immediately summoned the Workbench to craft the Wooden Ladder.
[Do you want to consume 15 pieces of wood to craft?]
"Yes."
[Crafting started, remaining time: 10 seconds]
A white light flowed over the surface of the Workbench, emitting a slight hum.
As the ten seconds elapsed, the light dissipated, leaving a solidly built Wooden Ladder lying quietly on the table.
The two main beams were straight, with evenly spaced rungs tightly interlocked, far sturdier than Chen Shu had expected.
"Wow, this efficiency and quality are way better than any production line on Earth!" Chen Shu exclaimed in surprise as he picked up the ladder.
It felt heavy in his hands, with a tightly knit wooden structure and perfectly interlocked joints, extremely sturdy.
He immediately moved the ladder to the entrance of the Dragonspine Tree, stood it up against the trunk, where two grooves at the entrance seemed perfectly designed to hold it, fitting snugly and securely.
"Finally, I can go home."
Chen Shu stretched his arms, sore from chopping trees, packed up the Workbench, and grabbed the ladder, climbing up step by step.
He quickly reached the entrance, where the edge was smooth, with faint wooden textures remaining, as if naturally formed.
The interior of the giant tree, as mentioned by those on the World Channel, indeed formed a hollow space.
This space was much larger than he had imagined; although the entrance was not big, the inside was exceptionally spacious, likely due to the tree he had chosen.
Had he chosen a Dragonspine Tree with a diameter of about three meters, he would have lost over ten square meters right from the start.
In the city he used to live in, that would have cost tens of thousands.
Thinking this way, it seemed he had a head start over some people right from the beginning.
The entire space was an irregular cylindrical shape, less than three meters high, with a wooden ceiling, where the natural texture and structure of the wood were clearly visible.
Seeing this environment, Chen Shu felt a sense of achievement; he hadn't expected to have a house again so soon.
After the initial joy, he began to survey his surroundings.
Air circulation was not an issue, with a gentle breeze flowing in from the entrance, and windows thoughtfully left on both sides of the tree wall at the entrance.
On the right side of the entrance, there was a display screen showing some Shelter Information, which should be the Control Console of the Treehouse.
[Chen Shu: LV1]
[Treehouse Level: 1]
[Functions: Basic Safe Space, Simple Rest Platform, Natural Storage Warehouse]
[Upgrade Requirements: Wood (0/500), Stone (0/100), Iron Ingot (0/50), Energy Crystal (0/1)]
[Hint: Upgrading the Shelter can unlock more functional areas and enhance overall strength and safety.]
[Detected that the Survivor possesses a Workbench, it will automatically connect to the Shelter.]
Before Chen Shu could fully react, his Workbench appeared inside the Treehouse, seemingly embedded in the tree wall.
So the Treehouse can be upgraded!
And more areas and functions can be unlocked!
Looking at it this way, this house was much better than the one he bought before.
Not only is it free, but it can also be upgraded, just like playing a game.
However, he was a bit puzzled about why there was a level next to his name, and what was its purpose?
There was no mention of how to level up, only that the Shelter could be upgraded. Could it be that a person's level would increase with the Shelter's upgrade?
That seemed to be the only possibility.
The materials needed to upgrade the Shelter were quite a lot; the need for wood and stone was understandable, but what was this Energy Crystal?
For now, Chen Shu could only set it aside as he was unsure.
Besides the Shelter Information, he could also see other details about the Treehouse, and at the end, there was a time.
[Tide in 10 days...]
Tide?
Isn't that a phenomenon that occurs in the ocean?
Will there be a tide here too?
Chen Shu immediately stuck his head out, looking down from a height, seeing further, but even so, all he could see were forest trees.
He checked the surroundings through the two windows, and no matter how he looked, it didn't seem like a place where tides would occur.
Or does the tide here have some other meaning?
Unable to figure it out for the moment, Chen Shu decided not to dwell on it, as there were still ten days left to find out.
Next, he began to examine his Treehouse; on the other side of the entrance was a place resembling a washbasin, only it was made of wood.
In the center of the washbasin was a small hole, just like the ones in regular home basins.
Above the washbasin, a green pipe protruded from the tree wall, its end naturally bending downward, hanging about twenty centimeters above the wooden platform, resembling a reed stalk.
"What is this? A decoration?" Chen Shu curiously leaned in to observe.
The pipe seemed like a part of the Dragonspine Tree. He reached out a finger and gently touched the pipe's opening.
Something unexpected happened!
A stream of clear, cool water gushed from the pipe's opening like an awakened spring, forming a water column that fell into the wooden platform below.
"Damn! Running water?"
Chen Shu was both surprised and delighted, almost unable to believe his eyes. This new "purchase" even came with running water?
He instinctively caught the water with his hand, feeling its cool, refreshing touch.
[Treehouse Water Source (Level 1): Guided by the Shelter Core, the Dragonspine Tree's roots draw from underground water veins.
Current flow rate: Low (about 0.5 liters/minute)
Water quality: Pure and drinkable, flow rate and quality will improve with Shelter level.]
Several clear prompts appeared in his vision.
"Comes with a water source?! And it's pure water!"
Chen Shu hadn't expected this; had he known, he wouldn't have chosen a location near a stream.
Although the current flow rate was modest, the lack of usage restrictions made it irrelevant.
He noted the words in the prompt, realizing that upgrading the Shelter was of utmost importance.
"Energy Crystal... looks like I need to get my hands on it soon." Chen Shu's gaze became determined.
Wood and stone were basic and could be collected slowly, but the key "Energy Crystal" for upgrading was still a mystery.
He opened the World Channel, intending to ask if anyone knew what an "Energy Crystal" was and how to obtain it, but unfortunately, there were too many people talking, and his message was quickly buried.
"Does anyone know what an Energy Crystal is? How to get it?"
"Damn, let me tell you, I just found wild chickens in my forest, almost caught one."
"That's nothing, I saw wild rabbits, but they were too fast."
"What talents did you guys get? I feel like my 'Rapid Recovery' is so useless. As long as it's not a fatal injury, I can heal quickly. If I never get hurt, doesn't that mean I have one less talent than you guys?"
"Isn't that a godly skill?"
"Useless? Is it more useless than my Night Vision? Damn, it only works at night, and there's danger at night, who the hell do I complain to?"
"Seems like my Precision Hunting is not bad."
"......"
Everyone's focus was on talents; those who got good talents were naturally smug, while those with useless talents could only complain on the World Channel.
Otherwise, they had nowhere else to vent.
Just as he was about to give up, Chen Shu noticed a word under the [World Channel]: Channel.
Upon clicking, he discovered that there were not just one but as many as ten million channels.
He randomly entered a string of numbers: 666666, and the interface immediately switched, with only a few dozen people speaking.
"Damn, isn't this just like switching channels in a game?"
Chen Shu realized that many things in this world were very game-like.
He asked about the "Energy Crystal" again, but no one in this channel knew either, and some hadn't even bound their Shelter.
Chen Shu knew he couldn't rely on them and decided to try his luck at the Exchange.
Upon opening it, he found a variety of items for sale: wood, stone, bread, drinking water, etc.
There was even someone selling their original underwear, truly a living saint, though the underwear looked increasingly like men's.
After entering the words "Energy Crystal," the interface displayed "No items listed for sale."
Seeing this, Chen Shu breathed a sigh of relief, at least knowing it was tradable, though no one seemed to have obtained it yet.
If he couldn't get one later, he could always buy one at the Exchange.
Someone should sell it... right?