Chapter 116

Zhang Ai knew she was a newcomer without the experience of veteran players, so she had to work harder and think smarter to clear the game. That was why, when Lin Tu listed the simple crossbow blueprint yesterday, she'd gritted her teeth and immediately traded the two pale-white items she'd collected for it.

The last person to buy the blueprint—Lu Zhu—had already made a profit. If she followed Lu Zhu's example, making money would be only a matter of time!

After scrapping two crossbows, Zhang Ai spent her evening rest period cranking out thirty crossbows and three hundred arrows to list.

A simple crossbow required one wood, one metal, and one plastic each, so Zhang Ai priced it at ten units of any of those materials. Ten arrows needed one wood and one metal, and she priced them at five units of any material.

She felt the price was quite reasonable—she'd tested the simple crossbow last night, and although it was basic, it packed serious punch. For self-defense, it was the best choice by far.

Plus, her price was slightly lower than the system's. Zhang Ai wasn't afraid of hard work; she was afraid that better weapons would come out, or that people wouldn't want to use weapons for defense, and then no one would buy. So she preferred the path of small profits, quick turnover, and high cost-performance.

After a night of sweet dreams, she woke up the next morning to find only two crossbows and twenty arrows sold.

Zhang Ai's heart nearly shattered. But she refused to let all the materials she'd invested go down the drain. So while traveling, she advertised in the regional channel—

"Discount and cost-effective crossbows! One headshot kills monsters! See the effect in the picture below! What are you waiting for? Come get yours!"

The other players' responses chilled her heart again and again—

"Looks cool, but still too expensive. Monsters don't spawn on every stretch of road, and some missions give you weapons. At least I haven't encountered a mission yet that required a weapon to pass."

"Killing monsters is a bit underwhelming. Lower the price and I'd buy," said an old player. "Monsters at this stage—if you're willing to risk it, you can beat them to death with metal. A crossbow is useless. Later-stage monsters have massive damage and strong defense, so the crossbow won't be useful then either."

"I'll buy, miss! I'll buy! Don't take it down! As soon as I run into danger in a mission, I'll buy it right away!"

Really? Swallow? Will Swallow really come back? And when—what year, what month, what day would that be?

Just then, Lin Tu's fuel engine was bought by Lu Zhu again. Watching the regional channel—where people were either urging Lu Zhu to list ropes, Zhang Zimi to list charcoal, or waiting for Lin Tu's next fuel engine—Zhang Ai felt a wave of frustration. Had she been too presumptuous, assuming the crossbows would sell? Was her price still too high?

At that moment, the regional channel suddenly turned warm and harmonious, discussing how to earn more materials to upgrade to SUVs. Someone mentioned increasing income and cutting expenses—like eating less... Zhang Ai's eyes suddenly lit up—

In the desert, there were often snakes, rabbits, cottontails, turtles, and turkeys roaming around. Of course, they could be eaten too! People just couldn't catch them.

But with her crossbow, it would be child's play! That way, she could not only save a meal and get protein, but also make fur coats from rabbit and cottontail pelts, and use snake skin to reduce inflammation, detoxify, and kill parasites. Turtles and turkeys? The former nourished yin and enriched blood—they were medicinal anyway—and the latter could save not just one meal, but days' worth of food!

Zhang Ai immediately crafted a crossbow and ten arrows for herself. As she continued down the road, she scanned left and right. Whether by luck or fate, she suddenly spotted a pair of horns swaying in the distance.

Zhang Ai stopped the car instantly, suppressing her excitement, and crept closer.

Twenty minutes later, Zhang Ai carried her crossbow and strutted triumphantly back to the car. She opened her backpack, tossed the entire huge, plump, pale antelope onto the vehicle, reinserted the arrow she'd shot into its quiver, and angled herself for pictures.

Moments later, she sent the photo to the regional channel—

"Still worried you don't have enough materials? As players, we must take the initiative! Look at the sheep I shot with my simple crossbow! Enough to feed me for a whole week!"

"Holy crap!" Sure enough, shocked faces appeared below in no time.

Of course they were shocked! She was the first person in the entire region to catch such a big sheep! Zhang Ai thought confidently. Actually, she hadn't expected to hunt an entire antelope by herself either. It must be partly thanks to the game... But no matter whose credit it was, just look—she caught it, didn't she?

"Selling the meat, miss? The kids want some! Look here! Look here!"

Zhang Ai replied: "I'll butcher it tonight. Fresh meat won't keep well, so I'll smoke it over a wood fire."

"That works for me!"

"Me too! Are you selling the hide? I want to make a blanket from the sheepskin!"

Zhang Ai was about to reply when she suddenly remembered her original purpose. Her tone shifted, and she said earnestly, "There are many living creatures in the desert—you've all seen them. Why not buy a crossbow? Ten materials per crossbow. If you can catch two meals' worth of food, the crossbow pays for itself. Like me—I caught a week's worth of food in one go. Not only did I break even, but I can sell the surplus and make a profit!"

Below, many people were persuaded, saying they wanted one too.

Zhang Ai struck while the iron was hot: "If you want a crossbow, buy from me. I'm the one who bought Lin Tu's blueprint. I'll sell arrows long-term—when you run out, you can restock here, and the price will never change."

After saying that, she clicked back to the trading platform and saw, to her satisfaction, her crossbow and arrow stock dropping at an astonishing rate.

She put the antelope back into her backpack, mounted her vehicle, and continued forward. This time, for once, she didn't find the sun scorching. Ahead weren't mountains of knives and seas of fire—her future self sat in an SUV with air conditioning, bathed in endless light!

.

Elsewhere, someone else was also fighting for an SUV.

"Water collector... purifier..." Someone was installing two devices on the roof of a tricycle's canopy.

The water collected by the water collector flowed into the purifier, and finally into a plastic bottle beside the tricycle's driver's seat. The water inside was raw and needed to be boiled before drinking. But for the young man, it had other uses.

After huffing and puffing to install them, he climbed down from the tricycle, carefully stepping on the handlebars to get down, avoiding touching the sides of the vehicle.

On either side of the tricycle, neatly arranged, were eleven flowerpots—five on the left, six on the right. The right-side pots were treated against sun exposure; the left ones weren't. Some pots held only dark soil, some held seeds that had already sprouted, and some even had small seedlings growing.

In these pots were tomato, mango tree, potato, blueberry, lettuce... all kinds of seeds.

Normally, no sane person would try to grow vegetables in a desert. But when the young man first entered the game, he'd opened a supply crate that gave him a lettuce seed and a flowerpot. Since he couldn't sell them, he'd planted them on a whim, poured some leftover drinking water over them, and tossed them in a corner without a second thought.

To his surprise, when he woke up the next morning, three green sprouts had shot up!?

It was then he realized this was a game, not reality. After all, if players had to grow vegetables like in real life, waiting three or four months for a harvest, they'd be long dead by then. What would be the point of farming?

He'd only meant to grow some greens to feed himself. But then the fuel engine appeared!

The young man, who had been racking his brains over how to increase income and cut expenses, turned his gaze to farming. It was probably the only thing he could do. So he bought seeds, a water collector, and a purifier on the trading platform, and started planting.

If these could actually grow here... the man watered the vegetables with a pierced plastic bottle while thinking, he could earn a bit more materials and upgrade to an SUV sooner.

He really wanted to survive. He really, really did!

.

[Infinite Calamity] players were different from ordinary people after all. They had all kinds of items that saved them a lot of trouble—for example, they didn't need rope to make backpacks; they already had Single-Use Backpacks. Thus, players gathered resources far faster than ordinary people.

Lin Tu quickly received resources from several players. Several players wanted to give her extra thanks, but Lin Tu kept her word and refused them all. She directed the Butler to keep driving forward while she crafted fuel engines.

After about a day, when evening came, Lin Tu completed the mission on the twelfth stretch of road, and the five fuel engines she'd been crafting for the players were all done. All six players had upgraded to small SUVs. Unless they had truly terrible luck, they'd soon meet up on the road.

Running five stretches of road in one day—even without driving herself, Lin Tu was tired. Fortunately, the rewards were worth her effort—

She'd collected a total of thirty one-star supply crates, eight two-star crates, and three three-star crates.

She'd leave out the basic materials inside. Combined with the resources she'd earned from selling fuel engines and food, she could now craft four more fuel engines. Good thing she was getting more and more skilled, crafting faster and faster. Otherwise, at this rate, she'd be at it for ages!

These supply crates also yielded quite a bit of food, materials, and blueprints. As usual, Lin Tu exchanged what she could for items, and what she couldn't for fuel engine materials.

In the end, she also opened five pale-white item cards and one green item card.

The five item cards were: "Fuel Consumption −1: Vehicle-exclusive," "Defense +1: Vehicle-exclusive" ×2, "Glasses That Let You See Farther," and "Car Aromatherapy: Fresh scent, reduces your chance of vomiting."

The green card was a [Sunscreen Bracelet (Green/F-rank): Worn on the wrist, it covers your entire body with an invisible film, protecting you from sunburn caused by sunlight.]

Lin Tu used all the item cards, and the glasses card she applied to her own wire-rimmed glasses. Now, when she gently touched the side of the glasses, the lens would magnify the view ahead four times, like a magnifying glass.

The sunscreen bracelet seemed useless—it could only prevent sunburn, not lower the perceived temperature. But Lin Tu anticipated that the desert environment would worsen later on. Perhaps the sunlight would become so scorching that people couldn't bear it, so she didn't turn her nose up at this green item.

Lin Tu crafted fuel engines while directing the Butler to keep moving. What monster would send her goodies tonight? She was already looking forward to it.

Time on the road was long, especially under the blazing sun, surrounded by endless yellow sand, with no one beside you to speak—only yourself to talk to.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed.

Lin Tu had reached the twenty-seventh stretch of road and reunited with the other four players except Luo Yongzhi. Luo Yongzhi was almost there too—he'd be on the twenty-eighth stretch soon. They were finally about to enter the legendary "difficulty jumps up a whole tier" twenty-ninth stretch.

According to Lu Zhu, in the past, only a third of people could make it this far, and usually only after ten days or more.

But this time was clearly different. Many people had upgraded to small SUVs ahead of schedule. New and old players got along fairly well with the abundant resources, cooperating to clear the game. Lu Zhu had already entered the twentieth stretch and was looking for teammates. Many players had also broken through the tenth stretch and were pushing toward the twentieth. The mortality rate was far, far lower than before!

"Once we enter the twenty-ninth stretch, we might get four-star and five-star supply crates, and yellow item cards," Lin Tu said in advance. "But no matter how good the items are, we'll do it like before—whoever contributes the most gets first pick. If you need something, trade down. Any questions?"

Everyone nodded in unison.

They were all [Infinite Calamity] players—what item couldn't be exchanged with points? Moreover, among them was a Black Market player who could trade materials at any time. Trust between people wasn't easy to build, and turning against each other over a few items was impossible for them.

"In that case, get ready. We're moving out!"

Soon after, Lin Tu and the others met up with Luo Yongzhi. Six SUVs sped across a road with over twenty lanes, quickly arriving at the entrance to the twenty-ninth stretch.

Lin Tu listed the eighteen fuel engines she'd crafted from last night to now, then honked twice as a signal to her teammates. In an instant, the six SUVs shot into the entrance like arrows from a bow.

Meanwhile, on the twelfth stretch of road.

Lan Yanzhen stared at the eighteen fuel engines just listed, and the way they sold out in an instant. Rage surged in her heart.

She lay over the frame of her tricycle, staring at photo after photo of silver-gray SUVs in the regional channel, each with a different person standing beside it. She wished she could yank those fools out of the photos and put herself in their place.

"Where did they get so many resources?! What right do they have to so many resources!" Lan Yanzhen pounded the handlebars of her tricycle, roaring.

And Lin Tu was an old schemer too. She never spoke in the regional channel, but she knew everything anyone said bad about her. Without a word, she'd quietly added Lan Yanzhen, Li Haohao, Old Li, and everyone else who'd badmouthed her to her blacklist, refusing to sell them fuel engines.

Lan Yanzhen could understand that, but understanding was one thing—she was definitely going to mock Lin Tu.

She'd been through so many stretches of road, and she knew by heart how far the game developed on any given day. Early in the game, everyone was poor. Lin Tu's fuel engines were priced at one hundred electronic components, one hundred metal, one hundred rubber, plus another hundred of any material—or ten pale-white items and three green items. Apart from those veteran players who already had item stockpiles, who could afford her stuff?

Of course, among the "veteran players with item stockpiles" Lan Yanzhen had in mind was herself.

She watched Lin Tu list fuel engines in bulk, waiting for the day they wouldn't sell and she'd have to lower the price, or pull them out of her blacklist. But little did she expect...

It was only day six! Shouldn't everyone be broke? Shouldn't everyone be on covered tricycles? How could they afford it? Who! Who could afford it!"

"Lan Jie, a lot of people want to leave our organization now," Li Haohao said at that moment. "Xiao Rui also wants you to return the fuel engine fragments he handed over earlier. He says he wants to leave."

"Idiot!" Lan Yanzhen fumed. "Does Chen Rui really think that just because he found one fuel engine fragment, he can do whatever he wants? A fuel engine needs three fragments to synthesize. Without my furnace, what use is his one?"

A long time ago, on one stretch of road, Lan Yanzhen had obtained something called a crafting table.

She only needed to place a finished product on it and add the required materials according to the instructions, and it would produce a copy nearly identical to the original. But the table had one flaw—it took time.

So on every stretch of road, Lan Yanzhen was eager to gather subordinates. As soon as they got fuel engine fragments, they'd hand them over to her immediately. Even so, she usually only got a fuel engine as early as day seven or as late as day ten or more.

This time would have been the same, and Chen Rui had even been especially lucky to find a fragment early.

But then that damned Lin Tu appeared, and now so many people had SUVs earlier than her!

"Hold him down for me," Lan Yanzhen fumed. "Can he buy a fuel engine just because he leaves us? Didn't he also curse out Lin Tu in the regional channel? Tell him that once I upgrade to an SUV, I'll build an engine for him first. Anyway—use carrot and stick, use your methods. You have to keep him in line."

Won't the first one be me, Li Haohao... Li Haohao's expression soured slightly, but he smiled. "Sure thing, Lan Jie~ I'm your little warm coat. You've entrusted so many things to me—are you still not reassured? I'll make sure he stays right where he is."

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten you either. Hmm, my crafting table seems to be making a sound. Let me go check if the fragments are done."

After taking his leave from Lan Jie, Li Haohao opened the regional channel. He knew Lan Yanzhen had been badly provoked by these people. He, Li Haohao, felt the same. Why did these people get so many resources so easily? Ropes and charcoal that should require luck to draw, food that should require materials to trade for—how were they getting them?

He remembered his original intention in following Lan Yanzhen—wasn't it to live a better life? But now, instead, he lived like a servant, running around from dawn to dusk, and good things never came his way!

Li Haohao clenched his fists, feeling his head spin with anger.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Lin Tu and the players had already entered the mission on the twenty-ninth stretch of road.

"A1D1QN10 Highway"

"A1D1QN9 Highway, 100 kilometers." "A1D1QN9 Highway, 100 kilometers"

"Be warned! This highway section has a supermarket running a promotion. All travelers passing through MUST enter the supermarket for a browse and complete at least one purchase! Please prepare your currency!"

"A supermarket!" Luo Yongzhi honked twice joyfully and stuck his head out the window. "Can we rob the supermarket?!"

Ever since hearing about Lin Tu's massacre of an entire town—men, women, children, dogs, and tour guide included—and getting the fuel engine blueprint from it, Luo Yongzhi couldn't wait to try killing something whenever a mission came up.

Forget the others—but this was a supermarket! A supermarket! His favorite place in disaster worlds. Whenever he had the chance, he'd go stock up.

A supermarket was a place for selling things, so supplies would be plentiful. If they could rob it, who knows what great stuff they'd get.

And it wasn't just Luo Yongzhi—the other players looked equally eager.

Lin Tu: "..." Please get a grip, all of you!

She now felt like she was the sanest one among all the players.

The group had initially assumed the so-called supermarket was just some roadside store, so they drove slowly, six pairs of eyes plus one pair of machine eyes scanning left and right. To their surprise, they spotted a mountain far off, standing at the end of the road! A massive building, a full six stories tall, stood among the mountains. The road spiraled upward through the hills, past several pavilions, until it finally reached the building's entrance.

"Doesn't look much like a supermarket!" Lin Tu caught Luo Yongzhi muttering with her sharp ears.

Lin Tu couldn't help wanting to facepalm. Get a grip! This was a mission on the highway—there was no such thing as a real supermarket! Just like the so-called vicious dog she'd encountered before, the highway sign was only a hint. What the mission really was had to be explored deeper.

After picking up three one-star supply crates and one two-star crate along the way and dividing them one by one, they finally went up the mountain.

About ten minutes later, they arrived at the supermarket entrance.

"Welcome!" A row of salesclerks bowed enthusiastically at the players. As they smiled, they revealed their parched oral cavities and tongues dried almost to jerky. Even so, they respectfully held out trays, not even glancing at the water and fruit on them.

Luo Yongzhi stared at the water the salesclerk offered him and got goosebumps all over. "Maybe... you have it, ma'am. I'm not thirsty at all!"

As he said this, he quickly pulled a bottle of mineral water from his backpack and gulped down two mouthfuls. "Now I'm even less thirsty."

Players didn't have much, but water—they really had plenty.

The others also took out their water, drank a symbolic sip, and awkwardly declined the salesclerks' offers.

The salesclerk seemed to want to swallow, but their dry mouths restricted their movements. For some reason, Luo Yongzhi's salesclerk directed a flash of resentment at him: "This is for guests. We can't eat it."

"Take us shopping," Lin Tu said.

"This way, please." The salesclerk spoke with clear malice. "Are you sure you don't need it? This cup of water might be the most precious thing you'll ever look back on."

"Can shopping bankrupt us?" Lin Tu asked with a half-smile.

"Who do you think we are—paupers?!" Guan Suixing couldn't be bothered to even pull out water. She strode past the salesclerk, chin held high, and walked inside.

"Please, come in. Look ahead," the salesclerk followed her, leading the group into the building's main hall.

A shopping guide standing guard beside the merchandise smiled professionally and introduced, "This is our first product—a water and food gift pack. Upon purchase, you will receive two cases of mineral water and two cases of bread..."

She praised the two items to the skies, then finally said, "Their value is... one little finger."

Little finger? The players wondered if they'd heard wrong.

And the salesclerk's malice grew even more obvious.

Just how rich could players be? How many little fingers did they have to buy things with? They stared intently at the players, seemingly hoping to see shock or fear on their faces. If they could even catch a hint of possible infighting... the salesclerks were already growing impatient.