Chapter 3: Communication Channel, Gathering Supplies
With a goal in mind, Su Ning began to act.
It wasn’t nighttime yet, so she still had the opportunity to search other places for supplies.
Although she had already searched the house she was currently in and only found a bottle of water and a medical kit, that didn’t mean there were no other useful items.
Before entering the instance, due to the extreme temperatures in the real world, Su Ning had dressed lightly.
But now, she felt that the nighttime temperatures in this virus-infected town instance wouldn’t be high.
She began searching the house again for warmer clothing.
Holding a kitchen knife for self-defense, she also found a backpack to cover the ability of her [Scavenger’s Backpack].
She definitely didn’t want anyone knowing about her backpack’s special ability.
With her backpack secured, she prepared to search the next house.
Of course, along the way, she also needed to find a safe place to spend the night.
Although the instance only lasted one day in-game, she still had to survive through the dangerous night.
Given her limited combat ability, encountering infected people would almost certainly mean death.
Stepping out of the house, she cautiously scanned her surroundings. Nearby houses were all small, standalone buildings.
A little farther away were some tall trees.
There were birds flying in the sky.
“I wonder if the unknown virus affects animals too.”
Su Ning had to prepare for the worst—if animals were infected too, the danger level at night would increase.
So she had to find a secure shelter before nightfall.
“There’s still time. I can search for more survival supplies.”
Su Ning also began to wonder—was she the only one who entered this instance?
That didn’t seem likely. Before the game began, the system had announced that everyone on Earth was transported into the survival game.
Maybe because her attention had been focused entirely on staying alive and gathering resources, she hadn’t thought much about others.
Now that she thought about it, she realized there was a communication channel on her data panel.
[So I’m really inside the game now?]
[This feels amazing, so refreshing! Even if it’s dangerous, the cool temperature alone makes me want to stay. But we only get to live in the instance for one day—it’s too short! I hope the system extends it!]
[You’re too optimistic. This instance is dangerous. I landed in a hospital and tried to search for meds, but was attacked by a pale monster in the dark. Thankfully, I awakened the “Speedster” talent—ran like hell or I’d be dead.]
[Speaking of talents, what kind did everyone get?]
[Hehe, Strength Boost. I feel like the Hulk! I can even lift a small car!]
[Wow~ big bro, you’re awesome!]
[I’m a girl!!!]
[This talent system feels so random. I got “Makeup Master”… What am I supposed to do with that? Is the system mocking my lack of makeup skills?]
Su Ning noticed there were quite a few people chatting in the channel, though not an overwhelming number.
“Maybe everyone was transported into different instances in separate batches?”
That was entirely possible.
She also saw people awakening all kinds of talents.
“Compared to others, my Scavenger talent isn’t bad—though it lacks offensive power.”
Of course, it might not always be without offensive capabilities.
Maybe once upgraded, it would gain combat functions.
As Su Ning scrolled through the chat:
“Hmm?”
She spotted useful information.
[Hey fam, it looks like there are treasure chests hidden in the instance! I found a dusty box, and the system told me it was a player support crate. I opened it and got a bottle of iced water—ice water! I almost cried from happiness!]
Reading this, Su Ning realized there were treasure chests to be found in the game.
Though the odds of encountering one seemed pitifully low.
Out of so many players, only one person reported finding one.
Still, low odds were better than none.
“Right now, gathering supplies before nightfall is still the top priority.”
Su Ning moved directly into the next house.
She carefully opened the door, worried there might be infected inside. Fortunately, there weren’t.
Cautiously, she began to search.
This house brought an unexpected surprise.
Especially when she saw the camping gear.
Though not food, the items she found were incredibly useful.
[Camping Tent]: Though small and seemingly simple, this tent is quite powerful. It can be easily set up to shelter you from wind and rain, providing a comfortable space to sleep and rest during your tiring journey.
That’s right—she hadn’t only found a tent, but also various cooking tools for outdoor use.
These were essential for survival in the wild.
Su Ning silently praised the previous owner—he or she must have been a camping enthusiast to be so well-prepared.
Besides the tent, she also found a sleeping bag, handy camping tools, and essentials like a lighter, an alcohol stove, a water flask, and rope.
The water flask was empty, but it would be useful once she found a clean water source.
Among all of it, the multi-purpose shovel thrilled her the most—she immediately swapped out her small kitchen knife for it.
In both offense and defense, the shovel was clearly more useful.
But the surprises didn’t end there…
Even more exciting was what she found in the basement.
Three crates of food supplies.
Su Ning’s heart skipped a beat.
One crate contained 30 cans of meat, another had 40 compressed biscuits, and the last had 24 bottles of mineral water.
This stockpile would last her for a while.
“Looks like the house owner was definitely a survivalist. No wonder they were so well-stocked.”
When Su Ning saw the meat cans, her eyes lit up.
After surviving a world-ending disaster and extreme heat, food had become a luxury—and meat had long spoiled in most places.
She hadn’t tasted meat in ages, so the sight of it made her involuntarily swallow her saliva.
“But now’s not the time to eat. I should continue gathering supplies before night falls.”
She used [Scavenger’s Eye] to check the food—none of it was expired.
She packed everything into her scavenger backpack.
To her surprise, no matter how much she packed, the weight didn’t increase—her backpack had no weight limit.
This made collecting supplies much easier.
After doing one more sweep through the house, she found a clean, comfy couch cushion.
It could serve as a mattress, so she put that in the backpack too.
Just as she was about to move on to the next house—
A scream rang out from outside.
Su Ning immediately became alert.
“Other players? Or infected?”
She hid behind the window and carefully peeked outside.
She saw four people running frantically.
They looked like a family, though they were in rough shape, as if they were fleeing from something.
And then Su Ning saw what they were running from.
A shadowy figure came into view.
