Chapter 5: First Kill
Pei Hening found a wooden crate. She gripped her katana tightly and used the tip of the blade to pry it open, prepared to slash any rat monster that might lunge out!
The black-furred rat monster had barely poked its head out of the box before it was killed on the spot by a storm of slashes. Red blood soaked the wooden crate, and the scent of iron filled Pei Hening's nose.
[Congratulations to player 'Di Bi Di Bi' for killing Common Rat Monster *1. Experience +2, dropped Rat Tooth *1.]
Chu Xuange had been watching her since she found the crate. Seeing her deal with the rat monster, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
For the next three hours, the two of them collected supplies while moving forward.
"Wife, what materials do you need to upgrade your roller skates?"
Pei Hening frowned as she listed the materials. "vehicle upgrade card *5, Wooden Boards *4, Wheels *4, Screws *4, Gears *4. I haven't found any vehicle upgrade cards, Screws, or Wheels."
As soon as she finished speaking, Chu Xuangesent her something: Screw *1.
"I have a Screw here, I've sent it to you. You've finished your minimum mileage, right? Want to rest for a bit?"
Chu Xuange asked as he noticed the dark circles under Pei Hening's eyes.
Pei Hening shook her head and continued skating forward. "No rest. I'll just treat it like jet lag. You said these seven days are the newbie protection period; we should take advantage of it to open more crates and cover more ground."
Chu Xuange knew he couldn't persuade her, so he continued looking for crates just like she was.
—
At twelve o'clock, Pei Hening took out the plain steamed buns she had found to eat and opened a carton of milk. She also sent a portion to Chu Xuange.
Pei Hening spoke faintly, "The taste is just average, not as good as your cooking."
Chu Xuange gave a helpless smile. "I'll cook for you once I find ingredients. The conditions are simple right now, so please bear with it."
Pei Hening wasn't an unreasonable person; she understood that now wasn't the time to be picky.
She opened the chat channel. She didn't know what had happened, but people had been arguing in there for a while.
[Fugitive Mermaid]: @I Can Smash You to Death with Money You dog whose whole family should die, if you have the guts to harm people, have the guts to come out!
[Fugitive Mermaid]: You have no chivalry at all! You actually sent over a monster crate. If I hadn't run fast and hidden in my car, I would've died! You should at least compensate me with half of your income today, or I won't forgive you!
[Eighty-Year-Old Bungee Jumping Grandma]: There are monsters in the crates? That's terrifying.
[I Can Smash You to Death with Money]: Are you fucking looking to die? How was I supposed to know if the crate had supplies or a monster?
[Fugitive Mermaid]: You hypocritical loser, you did it on purpose! If you really had a good heart, you would have sent me supplies long ago.
[I Can Smash You to Death with Money]: You better pray I don't find you, otherwise I'll kill you, you bitch!
Pei Hening's gaze shifted to the top right corner of the light screen: [Chat Channel] (99869/100000).
"Ge Ge, look at the numbers after the chat channel. Does that mean people have died?"
"Yeah, over a hundred have died."
After a morning of high-intensity skating, Pei Hening's legs were sore and she had to stop to rest. But Chu Xuange didn't; he was still driving and looking for crates, even stuffing the lunch she sent him into his mouth haphazardly.
Pei Hening took out her Sweet Dreams Seriesthree-piece bedding set and took a one-hour nap.
After waking up, she felt completely refreshed. Only then did she realize that this series of bedding could eliminate fatigue after deep sleep and restore the body to its best state.
She tried to turn the laid-out bed into a card and was pleasantly surprised to find that these items were combined into a single card.
She put the card into her card album and set off again.
"Congratulations to player 'Di Bi Di Bi' for obtaining Gasoline *1, Gear *1, Wooden Board*2."
"Congratulations to player 'Di Bi Di Bi' for obtaining Steamed Bun *2, Wooden Board *2, Nail *3."
"Congratulations to player 'Di Bi Di Bi' for obtaining Pickled Vegetables *1, Cola *2, Screw*1."
"Congratulations to player 'Di Bi Di Bi' for obtaining Gasoline *1, Nail *3, Family Medical Kit *1."
"Congratulations to player 'Di Bi Di Bi' for obtaining vehicle upgrade card *1, Jasmine Tea *1, Family Medical Kit *1."
...Until 5:58 PM, Pei Hening had opened a total of 17 crates. 11 were supply crates, and 6 were monster crates.
"Baby, it's time to rest. After six o'clock, monsters will appear on the road. The safety zone is within eight meters of the vehicle; they can't get in. You can rest easy."
Chu Xuange's steady, raspy voice came through the headphones.
"Got it."
Pei Hening unscrewed a bottle of mineral water for a quick wash, took out the Sweet Dreams bedding, took off her coat, and climbed into bed.
She let her hair down, sat cross-legged on the bed, and began to study the game panel.
Chu Xuange saw through the video call that there was no danger near Pei Hening. After a few instructions, he hung up the video.
After hanging up, he didn't rest but continued driving.
During the newbie protection period, the monsters' strength at night was halved, but they were still stronger than those during the day. He didn't feel safe letting Pei Hening fight these monsters, but he could. He had to get stronger—strong enough that no one would dare touch Pei Hening.
Chu Xuange thought of Pei Hening's tragic death in his previous life, and a flash of grief crossed his eyes.
He never wanted to experience the tragedy of watching his lover die before his eyes again!
Pei Hening didn't know that Chu Xuange was still driving on the road at this time.
She was organizing today's haul, sending him all the upgrade materials and miscellaneous items she didn't need.
Sipping her jasmine tea, she opened the chat channel.
[Fugitive Mermaid] and [I Can Smash You to Death with Money] were still arguing.
She skipped over them and started reading other people's chats.
[Im Freezing to Death]: What does a vehicle upgrade card even look like? I haven't seen one at all.
[Do You Understand Seals??]: It's just a thin black card, made of metal. I only opened one today too.
[Calm and Peaceful]: I haven't had water all day. Who has water? I'll trade a Gear for it.
[Round and Smooth]: Who has Gasoline? My tank is almost empty. I'll trade a Battery for it.
[Fallen Flower, Rainy Flower, Fragrance Fills]: Who has medicine? I was bitten by a rat monster. Help me, I'm willing to trade all my supplies.
[Fairy Descends to the Mortal World]: I only have cold medicine. Sorry, I can't help you.
[Perpetrator of Many Evils]: @Fallen Flower, Rainy Flower, Fragrance Fills Friend, no one can save you. Since you're going to die anyway, just give your supplies to me. That way they won't go to waste.
Seeing the comments on the chat channel, 'Fallen Flower, Rainy Flower, Fragrance Fills' slumped to the ground, her face pale. She had been too greedy, thinking the nighttime rat monsters were as fragile as the ones in the crates. Who knew a single rat monster would nearly kill her.
She looked dimly at the wound on her leg, which was deep enough to show bone. Perhaps she would die here today... If she had known she would die so soon without seeing her mother one last time, she wouldn't have argued with her and made her angry.
Just then, a private message from a stranger suddenly popped up on the light screen.
[Di Bi Di Bi]: I have anti-inflammatory medicine and bandages here. They should be able to help you.
After reading the contents of the private message, a burst of joy erupted in her eyes, like a drowning person catching a final lifeline!