The Safe Period Ends

Su Luo was awakened by the sound of the system.

He sat up and stretched, listening lazily to Su Luo's announcement.

[Survival log updated: major system update]

[To all survivors]

[The seven-day safe period has officially ended. Through blood and will, you have proven yourselves worthy of surviving in the Land of Darkness. System rules have been expanded, and more functions have now been unlocked or preloaded]

[1. Currency system activated]

[Survival Coins (SC): officially introduced as the sole universal currency in the Land of Darkness]

[How to obtain: recycle monster corpses and certain special items through the newly added shelter building, the [Recycling Box], or receive them from ranking and event settlements. Value is based on monster level and quality (see appendix 1: recycling guide prices for details)]

[Uses: purchases at the [System Store], trades between survivors, paid knowledge on the forum, and more]

[2. Forum functions upgraded]

[Paid posts now available: posters may set a Survival Coin price for reading posts or downloading attachments. The system charges a 5% transaction fee]

[3. System Store now open]

[The [System Store] function is available through the personal panel and must be used inside a Sanctuary]

[Goods for sale: include but are not limited to basic supplies, special items, and blueprints. (See appendix 2: store reference prices for details)]

[Goods will refresh periodically]

[Note: store goods are purchased with Survival Coins, but all prices are higher than the recycling guide prices. Please choose carefully]

[4. Ranking system updated]

[Shelter Rankings criteria optimized: the previous level-only criterion has been replaced by the [Shelter Comprehensive Rating]. The rating takes into account factors including level, scale, defensive facilities, special buildings, resource reserves, and whether shelters have been merged into Fused Sanctuaries.]

[Added the [Wealth Rankings], ranked by Survival Coins held]

[The temporary [Guardian Ranking] will close in 21 hours]

[5. Title System implemented]

[Based on survivors' performance during the Monster Tide, some survivors have received initial titles (e.g., [The Steadfast], [Elite Hunter], [Firepower Vanguard])]

[Titles can be equipped and switched through the panel. More titles can be unlocked through specific actions in the future]

[6. Team System now open]

[The team function is now officially available. Temporary teams may be formed (maximum 5 people) (members cannot leave a team for 24 hours after joining)]

[Team rules: members cannot harm one another, experience is distributed according to contribution, and rules for distributing supplies can be set]

[7. Class System preview]

[Upon reaching Level 5 (100%), further leveling will be temporarily locked]

[[Class Change] is the only way to continue progressing. A [Class Change Certificate] has a chance of dropping upon clearing a Dungeon]

[Please note: your choice of class will determine your future path of growth and skill system]

[8. Instance System notice]

[Dungeons are an important source of Skill Books, Class Change Certificates, and rare supplies]

[Dungeon cooldown mechanism: all Dungeons have cooldown limits]

[Danger warning: death inside a Dungeon is real death. Please assess your strength carefully]

[How to enter a Dungeon: purchase an [Instance Teleport Scroll] from the System Store to teleport to the Dungeon entrance]

[9. Skill system expanded]

[The concept of Skill Tiers has been implemented. Skill Books and skill effects will now have quality distinctions]

[Tiers: white, green, blue, purple...]

[10. Social and trading systems expanded]

[Anonymous trading platform now open: an [Anonymous Trading] option has been added to the trading system. Both parties' personal information will be hidden, and only the traded items and prices will be displayed. [Note]: beware of scams. The system will also charge a small transaction fee, payable in Survival Coins]

[Regional Auction House now open: the [Regional Auction House] function is available through the plaza interface. Survivors may consign valuable items and set a starting price, buyout price, and auction duration. All survivors in Zone 76 may bid. The highest bidder wins, and the system charges a 5% commission.]

[Inheritance Designation function: an [Inheritance Designation] option has been added to the personal panel. Survivors may designate an heir in advance for the items in their Sanctuary, specified items in their storage chests, and a portion of their Survival Coins in the event of their death (subject to the heir's consent). Note: activating this function costs Survival Coins. If no heir is designated or the heir has died, the inheritance will be reclaimed by the system]

The string of updates and information stirred the survivors' enthusiasm, and discussions broke out across the forum and channels.

[Finally, we're not playing single-player anymore!]

[Now we can use items to teleport temporarily to someone else's Sanctuary! But my girlfriend died in the Monster Tide...]

[Sorry for your loss. My family and friends aren't in this zone...]

[We can definitely survive!]

[Survival Coins? How novel! I just tossed in a Mask-Faced Hound and got 3 SC.]

[Forget that. The safe period's over, and there's a Level 3 monster knocking on my door right now!]

[That's pretty hopeless.]

Soon, the avatar of the survivor whose door was being knocked on went dark.

Su Luo looked over appendices one and two, then listened as the system settled the rankings.

[Settling daily rankings...]

[Kill Rankings: 3rd place]

[Level Rankings: 3rd place]

[Settlement rewards received: Survival Coins ×10,000 (5,000+5,000), Selectable Supply Vouchers ×20 (10+10), Selectable Special Supply Vouchers ×2 (1+1), Basic Skill Experience Stones ×10 (5+5), Intermediate Skill Experience Stones ×2 (1+1), Exemption Stones ×2 (1+1), two pieces of fine equipment, Floating Flares (fine) ×4 (2+2), Random Building Blueprint Chests (fine) ×2 (1+1), Stamina Potions ×8 (4+4), Mana Potions ×8 (4+4), random green Skill Books ×2 (1+1)]

[Note: Skill Experience Stones and Exemption Stones are bound items and cannot be traded.]

[Settling temporary rankings...]

[Guardian Rankings: 1st place]

[Settlement rewards received: Survival Coins ×10,000, Selectable Supply Vouchers ×20, Selectable Special Supply Vouchers ×5, Intermediate Skill Experience Stones ×5, Exemption Stones ×2, one piece of excellent-quality equipment, one piece of fine-quality equipment, Random Building Blueprint Chest (excellent) ×1, Stamina Potions ×6, Mana Potions ×6, random blue Skill Book ×1]

[Note: Skill Experience Stones and Exemption Stones are bound items and cannot be traded.]

[Unknown error detected...]

[Repairing...]

[Repair complete. The ranking logic for the [Guardian Ranking] has been optimized. It is now available only to owners of Sanctuaries at or above a specified level]

((╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻

This temporary ranking never appeared in the regional rankings afterward.)

Su Luo: "..."

Could they make it any more obvious they were targeting me?

At least he still had the rewards.

Remembering something, Su Luo looked at the Exemption Stones in his hand and casually lifted the ban on his [Fireball].

[Your skill [Fireball (green)] is no longer banned!]

[Fireball Level 11 (246/1100)]

[You can launch three large fireballs with the effects "Burn," "Ignite," and "Aggregation"

Burn: deals damage over ten seconds upon hitting a target

Ignite: when Burn ends, there is a small chance of igniting three nearby targets, including the original target

Aggregation: gathers surrounding flames to increase the fireballs' power]

Instantly, Su Luo felt a conspicuous [Quick Cast] button appear in his mind.

He held out a hand toward the distance. Quick Cast!

Three fireballs shot out one after another, trailing flames as they slammed into the distance and erupted in a blaze.

Su Luo clicked again.

[Skill on cooldown: 1.3 seconds]

"...What trash..."

With a flicker of thought, the Mana around him responded as readily as his own limbs. In an instant, dozens of blazing fireballs appeared out of thin air and slowly orbited him in an orderly formation, completely dispelling the surrounding darkness and lighting it up like day.

This was the power that truly belonged to him.