【The Survival Game’s Cross-Game Shop will soon launch a Revive Card! Any player who dies in-game may use this card to return to life!!】
A Revive Card!!
With a Revive Card, the chances of survival soared—this was the unspoken thought of every player, and Ye Shu was no exception. True, she possessed an SSS-grade rollback artifact, but who wouldn’t want another life in reserve?
She opened the shop for a look—and cried out in shock. Their benevolence was enough to bring tears to her eyes: 99 points for a Revive Card! Was the game suddenly playing philanthropist?!
Ye Shu was baffled; it didn’t fit the game’s notorious style. In her eyes, the game was an unscrupulous beast of a capitalist, squeezing every last drop of points from her shrinking purse. A “life” for 99 points? It was almost free.
The Quit Card, though... 9,999 points. The game’s description was shiny and grand, but with requirements this high, she wasn’t even halfway to affording it.
Revive Card, though—Ye Shu clicked Buy without hesitation.
A black card appeared in her inventory, the face engraved with a delicate blood-red manjusaka. On its reverse, three simple characters: Revive Card.
Unlike Ye Shu’s measured calm, the other players erupted.
【Daiyu Pulling Willows: Damn, the Quit Card is a total scam! There’s no real way to escape this death-trap of a game. I’ve cleared two rounds already, fought like hell, even had my cleaver spark on the last map, and what did I get…? Thirty measly points. Throw in the twenty I scraped up in the last freaky quest and it barely covers half a Revive Card.】
【Zhang Wei Himself: Half a card? I make five points a game—beat that for misery.】
【Eggflower Tomato: I got lucky, drew a Points Crit Card. Turned ten points into a hundred in a flash. Ha! See you, I’m off to buy a Revive Card—bye!】
【Chili Pork with Mustard: You damn luck-magnet, I hit a Points Drop Card. Lost half my points from the last round. Sob… Who could understand this pain? But hey, I can still speak up.】
【Little Sponge: Unreal! You’re miserable, but only for a second—I pulled a Revive Card itself! Didn’t spend a dime! This is the life!!】
【……】
Complaints notwithstanding, the people of Huaxia proved astonishingly adaptable. They accepted the survival game as reality in record time. Citizens rallied: by day they went to work, by night they crammed survival guides. Many survivors even joined the nation’s Special Task Force.
The past two games had been entirely different in style, the breadth of survival knowledge required immense: disasters, man-made calamities, supernatural threats—every front was represented. Ye Shu, not content with only shooting and swimming, had taken up swordsmanship; she reserved her evenings to study specialized subjects.
Her 1-point game coupon remained almost untouched; she still had 98,000 left, plus more than 2,000 points on hand—which, if converted to Huaxia currency, was enough to swamp the Ye Group.
By habit, Ye Shu spent 300 points on a spatial ring, then refined it, merging it with her own spatial ability.
Pang Pangzi had wanted to reach Ye Shu, but work consumed all his available hours.
Two days flashed by in the blink of an eye.
A cold, mechanical voice sounded out above everyone’s heads.
【Only 1,346 cleared the previous round. One million players will now be entered at random!】
【Please take this game seriously. Failure means death!】
Across the vast expanse of Blue Star, people vanished where they stood: on crowded city streets, they disappeared mid-step; cowering at home, hiding from fate, they were whisked away all the same. In an instant, all that remained in a stuffed bed was an empty shell…
【Welcome, player: Ye Shu, to the Survival Game. As this is your second clearance, your odds of drawing high-grade cards has increased. You have been awarded an extra draw.】
【Congratulations! Acquired: Summon Card—can call a character from the game world to aid you.】
【Congratulations! Acquired: Obedience Talisman (Advanced)—apply to a target; makes creatures or objects obey.】
Ye Shu quirked a brow. It looked like her space would expand yet again.
A Summon Card—summoning an entity from this digitized realm? Used wisely, it might become her ace later.
Her vision blurred—then everything became endless darkness.
As her eyes shut, the world shifted again. She found herself abruptly standing on a city street, deserted in all directions. Heat radiated through the soles of her shoes, threatening to melt and glue her feet to the pavement.
A light-screen popped up:
【Player: Ye Shu】
【Age: 20】
【Current Survivors: 1,001,346 / 1,000,000】
【Game Role: Entry-level clerk at Doujia Corp】
【Game Brief: None. Players may unlock for 1,000 points or explore freely.】
【Goal: Survive thirty days in-game.】
【Starting items: 2,000 currency, 1 ID, 1 set of clothes, 1 mobile phone】
Ye Shu eyed the no-nonsense game brief and grimaced.
Shameless capitalists! One thousand points for a mere introduction—how about they eat dirt instead?!
She grumbled to herself, but soon the oppressive heat wore down her resolve.
Minutes beneath the merciless sunlight had already reddened her exposed arms. Even with twenty points’ worth of stat boosts, another person would’ve been sunburned by now.
One thing filled Ye Shu’s senses: heat.
Sweat soaked her clothes, leaving her sticky, damp, and suffocatingly rank. She could smell herself, to her own dismay.
Nearby was a small supermarket. Like a drowning woman finding a lifeline, Ye Shu dashed inside. Air conditioning embraced her at the threshold. She couldn’t help but sigh aloud in relief.
“According to Longguo media, In Asanguo, surface temperatures have hit 50 ℃, sending the populace diving into rivers for relief—death tolls have soared past a thousand daily, and experts warn that temperatures will keep rising.”
“Historic drought in Longguo’s northwest has decimated crops, with officers dispatched for disaster relief. We wish them a safe return.”
“High temperature warning: red alert. Experts advise residents in Longguo’s urban centers to minimize outdoor activities, work from home, and stock herbal cooling remedies—do not go outside!”
【……】
Even as the top player, just buying the game’s mission intro required hemorrhaging points. That alone made it obvious: the core challenge this round was the heat!
Thirty days was the given timeframe—surely, this third round’s difficulty would be lower than the previous two.
Ye Shu had long noticed a pattern: game difficulty scaled with time. Ten days in the supernatural dungeon had been an extreme challenge; the ocean liner, a bit easier, mid-level. On that logic, a thirty-day game—this must be the lowest tier.
“Boss, I want to buy purified water! Every single bottle you’ve got.”
Ye Shu immediately committed to stockpiling water.
If she was stuck here for a month, a few cases wouldn’t cut it. By game’s end, water would surely run out. She had to amass as much as she could before disaster struck for real.