Chapter 7: Successful Upgrade

Basic Workbench: An essential tool for every novice alchemist on the Elven Continent. It can craft items based on basic blueprints and materials.

Slow speed, low efficiency, high energy consumption.

Looks decent. Might as well give it a try!

She took the wooden bed blueprint out of her backpack and placed it on the workbench. The display showed the required materials: Wood x 40, Iron Nails x 15, Hemp Rope x 10.

She had enough materials. She pulled them out and began the crafting process!

The magic circle lit up, and the materials in her backpack vanished. The magical runes on the workbench glowed and flowed rapidly, displaying a three-hour countdown.

While waiting, Mo Yubai turned her attention back to her chat with her student.

“Thank you, Sister! The snake venom is gone. My head isn’t spinning, my vision is clear, and I feel so much better! The painkiller you sent works great too. The wound feels nice and cool.”

“Sister, do you need a toiletry set? I just got one from a chest tonight. I can share it with you. I’ll transfer it over!”

“Sister, my name is Zhu Ou. You can call me Ou’ou. Sister, if you need anything, just let me know. Now that we know each other, I want to help you out too.”

Mo Yubai smiled helplessly. The young girl was incredibly enthusiastic.

“Ou’ou, you can call me Sister Mo. I do need a toiletry set, but I can’t take your things for free. I’ll trade you a cookware set for it.”

“Okay! I’ll do whatever Sister Mo says. I’ll send the toiletry set over right now!”

Mo Yubai transferred the cookware set and accepted the toiletry set.

The cookware set consisted of a large iron pot, an iron ladle, and an iron spatula. The toiletry set included a toothbrush, toothpaste, a rinsing cup, a towel, and a bar of soap.

“Oh my gosh, Sister Mo, this cookware set is amazing! I can finally eat cooked food tomorrow!”

“I’m glad you like it. Is there anything else you need? I also have a quilt and a pillow. Would you be willing to trade your rubber? I can exchange other basic materials for it.”

“Wow! I definitely need a quilt and a pillow! Sister Mo, do you need sneakers? I can trade you sneakers, a helmet, and a face mask for them!”

“I can lend you the rubber first. I’m still missing a ton of basic materials to upgrade to level three anyway! If you only need rubber, Sister, you should upgrade right away!”

“I was the first player to upgrade to level two, and the system rewarded me with a complete workbench and three workbench blueprints. The rewards are super generous!”

Mo Yubai sighed as she looked at the pop-up window. This girl was far too naive.

Not only did she have no filter, but she also lacked any sense of caution. She had just sent over all of her rubber without a second thought.

[Do you wish to accept Rubber x 12 sent by Zhu Ou?]

Mo Yubai chose to accept only “Rubber x 5”, then immediately sent back the remaining rubber along with a down quilt and a soft pillow.

“Five pieces of rubber are enough, Ou’ou. I’m going to upgrade my electric scooter first. Let’s chat again in a bit.”

She took a deep breath, opened the game panel, and selected the upgrade option. The electric scooter icon on the screen transformed into an electric tricycle.

It was a pastel spring-colored electric tricycle. The cargo bed in the back was spacious enough to fit a child about 1.5 meters tall lying down.

It had three large headlights in the front, meaning she wouldn’t have to worry about riding in the dark anymore.

[Player Mo Yubai is the first player server-wide to upgrade their vehicle to Level 3. Would you like to make a server-wide announcement? Declining the announcement rewards a Gold Chest. Accepting the announcement rewards a Mystery Grand Prize!]

Mo Yubai looked at the prompt with interest. A Gold Chest! Who wouldn’t want that during the novice stage?

So, I choose the Mystery Grand Prize! Heheh.

[Congratulations to Mo Yubai from District 7 for becoming the first player server-wide to upgrade their vehicle to Level 3! We hope other players will keep up the effort and reach new heights!]

As soon as the announcement went out, the chat channel exploded.

“Are you kidding me? I’m still riding a bicycle while someone else is already driving a trike? How is the gap between us this huge?”

“Wait, why are the girls in this game so fierce? The first three first-kills in our district were all girls, and now the first to hit level three is a girl too?”

“Come on, brothers, step it up! We can’t let a bunch of girls show us up!”

“How do you know we’re being shown up? Look at those girls, each one prettier than the last. Who’s to say they didn’t get their upgrades sponsored by a few simps^[1]?”

“I’m one of those simps. That woman, Mo Yubai, is my girlfriend. I gave her all my resources, and then she blocked me. True devotion is always betrayed… Now I’m starving to death. Can any brother save me?”

“Don’t worry, brother, we won’t stand by and watch this happen! Let’s all donate some resources to him. The poor guy has had it rough.”

“Sister Mo Yubai, look at me! The guys upstairs are all brain-dead. A lunatic is acting, fools are believing it, and idiots are donating out of misplaced sympathy. I’m different! I’m handsome, sweet-talking, a 19-year-old college student with an eight-pack, and my DMs are always open for you, Sister! ~(*＾3＾)~”

“Wait, why is someone putting others down to kiss up?”

“Agh! I snapped my bike chain this morning and have to walk now. I’ve been dreaming of upgrading to an electric scooter, and now you’re telling me someone already has an electric tricycle?”

“Help! I’m a 1.9-meter-tall guy riding a 23-inch bicycle. Is this reasonable? I haven’t even gathered the materials to upgrade to level two, and someone else is already at level three. Is this reasonable?!”

“Wait, it’s only the first day! How did she gather so many materials? Is this the difference between a lucky god and a cursed peasant?”

Unaware of the lively discussion in the chat channel, Mo Yubai was focused on shaking the Mystery Grand Prize box sent by the system.

She heard a series of thuds and clunks. It didn’t sound like anything good.

She regretted not choosing the Gold Chest.

But a gambler never admits defeat! I haven’t opened it yet. Maybe it’s some amazing treasure!

Mo Yubai tore the box open. With a soft whoosh, a single gold coin flew out and landed near her quilt.

Mo Yubai shook the box a few more times before she was forced to accept the truth: the Mystery Grand Prize was literally just a single gold coin!

Wrapping herself tighter in her quilt, she wiggled around and reached out to pick up the gold coin that had landed nearby.

“Huh, it doesn’t look like a gold coin!”

Mo Yubai raised her right hand, holding the coin up to the firelight to examine it closely.

It was shaped like a gold coin, but the front was engraved with a strange magic circle, while the back bore the words “Resource Island” in large characters.

Mo Yubai tried putting it into her backpack, then opened the details page.

Resource Island Teleportation Coin: Upon use, teleports the user to a random Resource Island on the Elven Continent. The user may remain on the Resource Island from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM.

Once the time limit expires, the user will be automatically teleported back to the highway. This coin is single-use only.

Mo Yubai sprang up into a sitting position, exclaiming in delight, “What a great find! As they say, a gambler who goes all in eventually wins it all!”

Snuggling back into her blankets with a pleased smile, she stroked the teleportation coin affectionately.

She pondered her options. Should she head to the Resource Island right now during the novice period, or wait until it was over?

After some thought, she decided to set off tomorrow. It was better to use limited resources early; boosting her own strength was what mattered most.

Otherwise, hoarding good items without improving herself would make her the butt of a dark joke: “My neighbor hoards food, I hoard guns, so my neighbor is my granary.”

Shaking her head to clear her stray thoughts, Mo Yubai opened the chat window again. She had almost forgotten about Ouou!

Sure enough, as soon as she opened the chat, she saw several unread messages from Ouou.