Chapter 141: The Stone House is the Highest Level

Chapter 141: Chapter 141: The Stone House is the Highest Level

"The mud in the cave has been cleared out, but the tribe’s fence was completely destroyed. Everyone, go back and pack your things. We’ll gather back here in twenty minutes."

The tribespeople departed, overjoyed.

Shi Zhile took out a parasol and led Mr. Wen and Wang Peng back into the shelter.

As soon as she returned to the shelter, Shi Zhile immediately took out an electric fan and a solar panel.

She connected the two and cranked the fan to its highest setting, finally bringing a bit of cool air.

She took out a lounge chair, then a chilled watermelon, which she sliced and handed to Mr. Wen and Wang Peng.

"Brother Peng, what are you messaging Jiang Yuxing about?"

Munching on his watermelon, Wang Peng said, "I’m asking him if the whole thing with Chuyi has been resolved."

Mr. Wen asked casually, "Oh? What about Chuyi?"

"It’s about them breaking the game—"

He stopped abruptly, choking on the sweet watermelon juice.

Shi Zhile and Mr. Wen exchanged a look and silently continued eating their watermelon.

After finishing the watermelon, the three of them cleaned up and took a rest.

Shi Zhile opened the regional chat channel. The current number of players was 258,900.

After the last region merge, the chat channel had 330,000 people. Only 80,000 people died during the twenty-plus-day instance, which was indeed a lot less than before.

Twenty minutes later, Mo Ya knocked on the shelter’s door.

Shi Zhile went to meet her alone. Along the way, Mo Ya asked, "Can I stay? Or you could send me to Jiang Yuxing’s island."

Shi Zhile said, "Neither is possible! We’re constantly leaving the island. While we’re gone, Sea Monsters will come ashore, and you’ll die!"

’To abandon her home for a man she’s only met a few times... she’s clearly the type to let love cloud her judgment. If I let her interact with more players, she might really turn into a petty, jealous schemer.’

’The Teleportation Gate to the Primitive Forest is for gathering resources, not for taking on another burden. Besides, if Jiang Yuxing decides to stir up trouble, she might just stab us in the back.’

Dejected, Mo Ya left Stone Island with the rest of her tribe.

When she returned to the shelter, Wang Peng was on a video call with Jiang Yuxing.

"...The game’s energy is stable. Although the instance ended early because of a bug, it didn’t affect the game’s repairs."

To save energy, next month’s instance would be canceled, and the natural disasters on the islands would become more severe.

Shi Zhile asked, "If the natural disasters get worse, will some islands be destroyed? For example, islands like Mr. Wen’s Ice Island, or snow plains and the like."

Jiang Yuxing replied, "Yes. In extreme heat, ice will melt. The method of destruction will vary depending on the natural disaster. And... the distance between islands is shrinking. The real era of human conflict is only just beginning."

Once the energy was fully restored, all sorts of animals would reappear on the islands.

If you were lucky, you might get rabbits. If you were not, various large carnivores were not out of the question.

He chuckled. "Want to quit the game? I can tell you how."

"Let’s hear it!"

Jiang Yuxing said, "The way to quit the game is to die!"

Just as Shi Zhile had expected.

True or not, she had no intention of dying.

"Before Chuyi disappeared, they said that if I die, you die. Why is that?"

Jiang Yuxing, who was looking down and fiddling with something, paused at her words. A punchable grin spread across his face. "Take a guess!"

He hung up first. A moment later, he stepped through the Teleportation Gate and left Stone Island, taking Wang Peng with him.

Only Shi Zhile and Mr. Wen remained on the island, both lost in thought. After a moment, Mr. Wen silently took out a pen and paper and began to sketch and scribble.

Shi Zhile didn’t disturb him. She went up to the second floor, used her spiritual power, and started moving the island toward Huaxia Base.

「That afternoon,」 Shi Zhile received a video call from Shi Zhiyi.

"Lele, is that moving Stone Island your island?"

She aimed the camera at the world map, where a dot labeled Stone Island was moving continuously.

"It should be. I’m probably the only one with a moving island right now. Sis, where are you?"

Shi Zhiyi said, "We just passed Volcano Island. The volcano there erupted at some point. When we got out of the instance, our boat was right nearby. We were busy rowing all morning and didn’t have time to message you."

’A month has passed since I left Volcano Island. I can’t believe it’s been erupting for a whole month. Then again, I’m not sure if this erupting volcano is even Wang Peng’s island.’

Shi Zhile asked, "Is there an Ice Island north of Volcano Island?"

Shi Zhiyi looked at the map. "Yes, the world map marks the location of Ice Island, but it doesn’t show the island itself. It must have completely melted!"

"Got it. I’ll slow down. You guys catch up to me as fast as you can."

After hanging up, Shi Zhile opened the Mission Hall.

’Time to expand the shelter. I don’t care about anyone else, but I can’t have my sister living outside.’

’One-Click Shelter Upgrade? Is this from the latest update?’

Shi Zhile looked at the upgrade button and scrolled up and down to read the description.

[One-Click Shelter Upgrade: Use this function to instantly upgrade the shelter’s Level.

Shelter Divisions: Level One Thatched Hut, Level Two Wooden House, Level Three Stone House.

Stone House Level: Level 1 Simple Stone House: Can block wind, cannot block monsters.

Level 2 Rough Stone House: Can block wind and can stop Level One Monsters.

Level 3 Reinforced Two-Story Stone House: Thickened walls, can stop Level Two Monsters and minor natural disasters.

Level Four Simple Stone Castle: Contains a water source, fire source, and small vegetable garden. Can stop Level 1-4 monsters. Meets conditions for long-term survival.

Level Five Sturdy Stone Fortress: A three-story main building containing 5 rooms and 2 watchtowers. Equipped with simple fortifications. Weapons below Level Five will have difficulty breaching the walls.

... ]

From Level One to eight, the higher the Level, the more detailed the description, and the sturdier and larger the shelter.

Her shelter was currently Level Four, which the system judged as meeting the conditions for long-term survival. The shelter itself was still simple, but that was just because its Level hadn’t been officially upgraded yet.

’One-click upgrade, from Level Four to a Level Five Shelter, costs: Stone x100,000, Wood x50,000, Iron Ingots x5,000!’

’Holy shit! Why don’t they just rob me instead?’

She was glad that many of her wishes in the instance had been to obtain various resources. Right now, she wasn’t short on stone and wood; the biggest shortage was still iron ingots.

It would take too long to smelt enough iron ingots in the furnace. She thought for a moment, and her gaze fell upon the freshwater lake in the courtyard.

She opened the chat channel and typed: [Feeling bored, so I’ll do a good deed. Trading water for iron ingots. Two 300ml bottles of water for one iron ingot. Bring your own bottles. Best price today. DM me to trade, first come, first served.]

In this extreme heat, water was the most scarce resource. The instance had just ended, which was precisely when all the players were rich in supplies.

No one knew when the extreme heat would end. Rather than hoarding iron ingots they couldn’t eat or drink, it was better to trade for water that could ensure their survival.

As expected, the moment the message was sent, her private messages skyrocketed.