The deck beneath her feet, once a gray-painted wooden surface, was now replaced with cold steel. The hull had expanded to a sprawling hundred square meters, all in shades of white and ash, with a smokestack-like exhaust pipe rising behind Ye Shu.

Besides the captain’s cockpit, engine room, private quarters, bathroom, and other essential cabins, several additional empty rooms had appeared, all lined with neatly arranged cotton quilts. Even the crafting table enjoyed a new, separate workspace.

Top speed had now climbed to twenty knots per hour—an extra two knots thanks to the Dinghai Compass—for a total of twenty-two. By any measure, that was fast.

The fishing rods hadn’t changed, though. The same two as before.

That night, Ye Shu fished for a while in the darkness. Fatigue crept in, so she retired to her room, entrusting the night’s haul to Da Piaoliang and the merman on deck.

Da Piaoliang, being a weird entity, required no sleep. The merman, on learning the rod could pull up human-faced starfish, helped her out willingly.

It was 11:53 p.m. when Ye Shu, nestled under her quilt, suddenly felt a chill seep in. Her drowsiness vanished at once.

Some instinct warned her: after the newbie phase of this survival game, the ocean would surely grow colder. Otherwise, what was all the coal they’d gathered on the islands for?

Her constitution had been boosted four times now, and wearing her long-sleeved piglet pajamas, she felt no cold. She even found the chill outside oddly refreshing.

As expected, eight minutes later, the temperature dropped off a cliff.

[Congratulations, survivors. The newbie protection phase is over. The true Survival at Sea game begins now!] [Temperatures will decline. The system will no longer provide a warm environment. As things grow colder, monsters from the abyssal depths will surge up in droves. Players, you'll need to craft your own braziers—basic braziers for warmth, low-grade braziers to drive them away!!] [Sea Log Reminder: Safe zones are about to refresh. Supply chests will appear daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The black fog now moves at ten knots. Remember: touch the black fog, you die! Run, survivors! Let’s see how long you can last.]

Ye Shu frowned. The refreshed safe zones were expected. But an accelerating black fog? Thank goodness she’d upgraded the raft in time—if she were still sailing, she’d never truly outpace that creeping darkness.

The chat exploded with complaints from players across the sea.

[Seriously?! Colder temps, faster black fog—how are we supposed to live?] [Mama mia! I don't think I'm going to make it... Started with a flimsy raft, attacked by piranhas, spent three days fishing only regular fish, never seen a supply chest. Just two or three planks—how do you upgrade anything?] [Can someone strong help me out? I’ve got supplies, just need some iron nails to upgrade—who’ll trade?] [Anyone got a brazier? I’ll swap pure water for one! I was dragged into the game while vacationing in the South China Sea, wearing nothing at all—now I’m freezing to death here... Please, just a warm coat or a brazier.] [Help me... Something’s gnawing at my boat’s hull—water’s leaking in... Aah! It’s a weird one-legged fish, what the hell? I don’t want to die, save me!] [What happened to the guy above? Still with us?] [He’s...probably gone! Said the freak fish was some kind of human-legged sardine from hell—those things’ll eat through steel. Saw them on day one, outside the safe zone, but never inside it—until now.] [Game designers really want us dead. Why all this effort to let us live, then shove us straight into the abyss? I’m freezing out here—temps dropped again! It’s only eleven degrees, the ocean winds are brutal, I’m about to catch my death of cold.]

The sea survival log refreshed, showing temperatures plunging from 29°C down to 9°C. In a handful of breaths, a twenty-degree drop...

Ye Shu sent the brazier blueprint and needed materials to the rear crafting room.

[Ding! To craft Basic Brazier x1 requires: Common Steel x2, Common Coal x1. Proceed?] [Confirm. Synthesis in progress... Complete.]

A flash of white light, and a blackened coal brazier appeared on the workbench. Lighting it, she saw it was good for ten hours, and still at full durability.

She also crafted a low-grade brazier next. This one would burn for thirty-six hours straight and could repel the weird fish lurking below.

Just as the system promised, the brazier’s flames stood firm against the wild sea winds. As soon as the fires lit, the fish gnawing at the steamship’s hull fled in a panic.

She kept at it, making over a dozen basic braziers and a few low-grade ones too.

“Master, can I have one of these little things?”

The black cat edged closer to the warmth.

All felines are creatures of curiosity. Da Piaoliang stared in astonishment, curling up with its legs crossed and paws stretched toward the flames, basking in the balmy heat as it chased away the discomfort brought by the cold and endless sea.

Even as an oddity, it never liked water—much less the endless ocean.

“Sure.”

Ye Shu was never stingy. She handed over a low-grade brazier, scooping some strawberries for him as well.

The merman beside her silently shied away from the brazier’s light. Born to the abyss, cold-blooded by nature, he found the fire distinctly unpleasant. If not for being high-class, able to ignore the flame’s harm, he would never set foot on the steamship.

The merman plucked the human-faced starfish from the hook. One went straight into his mouth, the other into a wooden bucket behind him.

Ye Shu opened the chat, publishing a message.

[From: Your Daddy — I’ve got braziers! Trade me steel or coal, or cold-weather clothing. PM if interested.]

[From: Your Daddy — Braziers for trade! Only a few left, don’t hesitate or you’ll miss out!!]

[It’s that big-shot again, I want one! I’m freezing to death!] [Only trading for coal and steel? What about food or water? Got loads of fish.] [Holy cow, all gone already?! Was I too slow or is my internet just that bad?] [Big-shot, can’t you sell more? I’ll double the materials—my boat’s surrounded by a school of those human-faced fish, I’m terrified. Boat’s durability only at 76%...] [Whoa! I scored a brazier—so warm, I’m not cold at all now! It lasts ten hours—should’ve bought more.]

The lucky player posted a photo to the comments: a black sea, a dimly lit deck under sail, and a barrel-like brazier, fire crackling, skewers of squid grilling above it; two bottles of Green Island beer beside.

[Oh, come on!] [So what? It’s just a brazier—I’ve got a thermal suit! That flickering little flame can really keep you warm? Sounds like a scam!] [Bragging much? I got one too—hey, want to trade? Haven’t had beer in ages, I’ll swap my Huazi. PM me.]

She uploaded a dozen braziers onto the trade interface. [One brazier for three steel, or three coal.]

This time, instead of a bidding war, the chat was full of desperate pleas for more braziers from Ye Shu.