Could it be… this person was holding a grudge over the sanctimonious nonsense he'd spouted during their first exchange?
That was moral manipulation, plain and simple.
Zhao Hong's irritation fizzled out, replaced by a grudging sigh. Still, he gritted his teeth and fired off a new message to Crow.
[Glory Shines on Blue Star]: Consider this a lesson learned. Looking forward to our next trade.
Meanwhile, Cheng Shuli neatly stacked the 45 fragments in her inventory, her eyes narrowing as a wide, unabashed grin spread across her face.
Without [Strawberry Hard Candy] as a steady supplier, her fragment collection rate had slowed to a crawl. She now held 54 fragments—still a far cry from the 125 needed for the next upgrade.
Cheng Shuli closed her eyes briefly, then parked her vehicle to prep lunch.
Elsewhere, Zhao Hong dutifully reported every detail to his superiors.
Group chats didn't exist yet, and the top brass, impatient with slow relays and wary of distorted information, demanded direct reports. Zhao Hong juggled private messages to the leader while simultaneously updating the other higher-ups.
Before the big boss could even respond, one of the others lost their cool.
"This Crow is a downright swindler! Seventy fragments—enough to upgrade seven vehicles to level two!"
"You're seriously planning to keep trading with them? We should blacklist them now and make sure they get nothing once we're stronger!"
Zhao Hong ignored the outburst. He was swamped, and this guy wasn't even someone with real authority—what was the point of venting at him?
[Glory Shines on Blue Star]: That's all.
The man didn't reply. Moments later, someone else told Zhao Hong to get back to work.
Zhao Hong nodded silently. If anyone asked his opinion, he'd advocate for continued trades with Crow. Forget the organization's long-term plans—they were still leaning on Crow's intel to survive. And crushing the American zone? That was thanks to Crow, too.
These people scheming to kick her to the curb later…
Zhao Hong sighed.
At noon sharp, the system broadcasted another announcement.
[System Notice: Attention all players! Today is the final day of the novice protection period.]
[After today, a seven-day cycle of random natural disasters will begin! Some fortunate regions already know tomorrow's specific disaster.]
[But as you've likely realized, knowing about a disaster without the right supplies is useless—it only breeds despair, like waiting for death.]
[Fear not, dear players, this system is exceptionally kind and considerate. We're now granting all survivors a chance to survive!]
[As the old human saying goes, "Know thyself." Those still alive are either lucky or truly skilled warriors! Tonight at 6 p.m., vehicles will halt early, and each player may choose to challenge a monster. Challenges are divided into five tiers: Casual, Normal, Elite, Epic, and Hell. The higher the difficulty you conquer, the greater the rewards!]
[Friendly reminder: These rewards are supplies you'll desperately need for the next seven days.]
Cheng Shuli's sharp instincts caught a shift—the system's usually emotionless tone now carried a hint of amusement as it continued, cold and merciless.
[However, fail the challenge, and the price is your life!]
[From now until 6 p.m., you have six hours to make your choice. Choose wisely, survivors!]
The moment the voice faded, a selection panel popped up in front of every player.
Each tier displayed a grotesque monster, its features vividly menacing.
The Casual-tier monster was one Cheng Shuli recognized—a humanoid creature coated in grimy oil, its blood-red eyes glaring. On the system panel, it looked almost… cute.
The regional chat erupted into discussion.
[Xiang Tai]: The Hell-tier monster is way too ugly.
[CPDD]: What, you think the Epic-tier one's any prettier?
[Money Bags]: Hold up, are we all seeing the same monsters for each tier?
The question sparked a flurry of responses. Cheng Shuli scanned the chat as several players described their monsters across all tiers. They were identical.
So, everyone faced the same difficulty levels.
Cheng Shuli fell silent, then felt a surge of wild joy.
Her selection panel was glitched—every tier, from Casual to Hell, showed the Casual-tier monster!
Another bug! And this time, it was a good one.
Heart pounding, Cheng Shuli didn't hesitate. She selected Hell-tier, terrified the glitch might vanish if she dawdled.
The panel closed automatically. She was about to hit the gas when the system's voice rang out again.
[Advance Notice: At 8 p.m. tonight, we will announce the top 100 players who traveled the farthest during the novice protection period. These lucky players will receive mysterious rewards!]
Cheng Shuli paused, her grin widening. For her, this was reassurance—her efforts over the past seven days hadn't been in vain. But for unprepared players…
This announcement was a deliberate ploy to sow chaos. Everyone's focus had been on the monster challenge, but now the system dangled a leaderboard and mysterious rewards like cheese on a mousetrap.
No one could ignore it. Greed was universal.
Being 100th was one thing, but what if you were 101st?
A little more distance now could mean the difference.
The temptation was blatant, irresistible.
Cheng Shuli's guess was spot-on. Players who'd stopped for lunch were already cramming biscuits into their mouths, restarting their vehicles to push forward.
She, however, was unfazed. Confident in her lead, she opened the regional chat again. Sure enough, the leaderboard had hijacked the conversation.
[Sunshine Mama]: Why didn't this damn system say this sooner? I would've pushed harder every day! I just hit the daily mileage and stopped!
[Blossom]: Early announcement wouldn't help. It'd just turn into a contest of who has more energy. That's unfair to gas-powered vehicles.
[Crabby]: You gas-car folks have speed and space. What's there to complain about?
[Si Yue]: Then give me your fuel, huh?
[Compass]: Quit bickering! Every time I open this chat, it's just you lot arguing. I'm here for big shots sharing intel!
[Fu Su]: Exactly.
[Serenity]: What's tomorrow's disaster, anyway?
The chat collectively ignored that question.
[Alumina]: @Crow Takes Flight @Glory Shines on Blue Star @Eternal, any insights, bosses? Please share about the monster challenge! I'm begging here—willing to trade supplies for info!
[Xu Ling Qi]: Who's Eternal?
[777]: You didn't check yesterday's leaderboard, did you? Our region snagged two spots in the global top ten: Crow and Eternal, who ranked ninth.