[You dropped down like a boss, suppressed the 'Tier Four Mutated Beast King—Hellhound' with your bare hands—Wasteland Points +1000!]
[Resource obtained: Tier Three Energy Crystal!]
Yu Jin stared at the text info on his panel, then looked down at the little black dog lying at his feet, wagging its tail eagerly, begging for pets.
Taking down this 'Tier Four Mutated Beast King—Hellhound' did cost Yu Jin a fair bit.
The price wasn't cheap—a whole two-yuan Shuanghui sausage.
Yu Jin grabbed the sausage as he left the dorm, just on a whim.
Originally, he'd wanted to feed it to a stray calico, but instead ran into a stray little black dog.
"Woof, woof woof!"
The little black dog kept rubbing its tail against Yu Jin's leg.
"That's it, only brought one."
"Next time, I swear!"
Yu Jin made a promise to the little black dog.
"Woof!"
The little black dog seemed to understand, woofed twice, and wagged its tail even harder.
Yu Jin looked away, glancing again at the text on the panel.
"Tier Three Energy Crystal?"
"Sounds really badass, no idea what it's for."
Shua—
Just as Yu Jin finished speaking—
A new message popped up on the panel.
[Tip——]
[Energy Crystals can be used for awakening and advancing!]
[Recommended to use ASAP—only by becoming an Evolver early can your weak self hope to survive in the crisis-ridden wasteland!]
Yu Jin froze.
After feeding a dog, am I about to feed myself and turn into legit 'Superman'?
Yu Jin was in a good mood and gave the little black dog a hearty head rub.
"Next time I'll bring you two sausages!"
He stood up and looked around.
Even though it was late, the tree-lined campus avenue still saw plenty of couples strolling hand-in-hand.
"Definitely can't claim rewards here."
"Old Cui and the guys are all in the dorm, and the club activity room building is closed now."
Yu Jin paused and thought for a moment before deciding—
Find a hotel off campus!
Best to pick a legit chain hotel—no sketchy QQ Hotels.
Just like those uni couples, Yu Jin didn't want anyone filming him while he turned 'Superman'.
...
...
Jiang City.
A manor in the suburbs.
The crystal chandelier on the ceiling cast a soft glow all around.
Yin Yao, dressed in silk pajamas, stared out at the night sky through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, phone in hand.
"Grandpa, did you discuss what I told you?"
On the other end came a raspy voice, but loaded with invisible authority.
"Us old men specially got together and talked it over."
"Also brought in expert analysts."
"Current conclusion is——"
"With Daxia's, even Blue Star's current tech, there's just no way to make hundreds of millions vanish out of thin air and teleport into the Alien Wasteland World."
"Besides——"
"You coming back through rebirth, that can't be explained by science either."
"And——"
"That 'Wasteland' game—we launched a top-level investigation, but found nothing, zero clues about who actually made and released it."
"It just popped up out of nowhere, same with the game helmet—also came out of nowhere."
"So far, we know about ten thousand helmets appeared in Daxia, delivered randomly to all kinds of people—we've retrieved most from civilians, treating them as strategic resources."
"We've gathered the top scientists in Daxia to study these helmets, and the conclusion is...they're way beyond current human technology. Or maybe, honestly, they're not tech at all, but objects on an extraordinary level."
"We've also got a team of highly capable and determined members starting to log into the game and explore."
"After all, based on your intel, when the wasteland crossing happens in seven days, those save files will be kept, which means a higher starting point."
"..."
After a long time, the call ended.
Yin Yao let out a deep breath.
She'd shared all the intel she needed, and Grandpa would handle the rest.
Now, her job is…
Use these seven days of beta testing to make her save file as strong as possible, so she can get a better start on the wasteland!
"Miss."
"Five miles around the manor are on lockdown."
A female butler's voice sounded from behind.
Yin Yao nodded and waved her hand.
The butler slipped away quietly, not making a sound.
Yin Yao, after a few deep breaths, picked up the game helmet she'd set aside earlier.
[Log into the 'Wasteland' World and start apocalyptic survival from scratch?]
Seeing the prompt in front of her, Yin Yao tapped [Yes] without hesitation.
"This lifetime, I'm gonna blaze a new path through the wasteland!"
And then—
Darkness swallowed her view.
Who knows how much time passed.
When light finally entered her pupils again, the scene before Yin Yao had changed entirely.
Dark sky, dusty earth.
The wind howled around her ears, picking up sand and gravel, smacking her face and stinging a bit.
After scanning her surroundings, Yin Yao looked herself over.
Ragged clothes, all alone—the classic wasteland refugee starting scenario.
Just that instant—
An oddly familiar feeling swept over Yin Yao.
Last life—
She got forced into this world while still dazed, as a refugee. Crawled and fought her way through the wasteland, only for a Mutant Beast to chow down on her at the end.
"There are tons of Mutant Beasts and Infected Bodies roaming the wild. If you run into one, you're basically lunch—straight up delete character and restart."
Yin Yao steadied her mood and assessed her current situation.
After a bit—
She climbed up a nearby hill, using the higher ground to see farther through the dusty wind.
"Wait…"
"Refuge City?"
Yin Yao stared at the vague shadow of buildings in the west, surprise flashing across her face.
She hadn't expected to get so lucky—starting this close to a Refuge City!
Walking is a must-have skill for every wasteland wanderer.
No matter how harsh the environment and endless sand—
Yin Yao still managed to walk several miles in just an hour, reaching the city gates.
Refuge City is the only hope for refugees in the Wasteland World.
Even though plenty of Refuge Cities fall to Infected Body and beast tide attacks, their safety is still way better than the wild.
"This planet is massive, the number of Refuge Cities is anybody's guess."
"From stuff I heard last time, Yu Jin conquered and ruled over more than a thousand Refuge Cities."
"So—"
"The total number of Refuge Cities here must be at least a thousand."
Yin Yao whispered to herself as she made her way toward the city gate, taking care to grab some dirt and wet it with saliva, smearing it on her face to disguise herself.
Last time, to survive, Yin Yao destroyed her looks early on.
This time, she wasn't desperate enough yet.
Especially since it's just beta testing—if things really go sideways, she could always delete her character and start fresh.
"Which Refuge City is this, anyway?"
Yin Yao mingled in the long queue outside, thinking to herself.
This Refuge City didn't have a sign or stone tablet at the gate, so even close to getting in, Yin Yao still had no clue what it was called.
Time ticked by.
Fifteen minutes later—
Yin Yao finally finished the routine checks and made it through the gate.
And right as she stepped through the city gate, officially entering the place—
She finally heard from the inspecting patrol officer—
"Welcome to Dawn Sanctuary City!"