Throughout this disaster, every livestream that ranked in the top ten without exception had chosen to build an aboveground shelter, mainly wooden cabins.
The only exception was the ninth-ranked Lone Wolf Guide Livestream, which consisted of a seven-person team.
They had not lived in the shelter provided by the Survival Game. Instead, they had moved directly to the foot of a mountain.
For five days, the group had been digging day and night. They had finally carved out a cave large enough for seven people to live in just before the last day.
With the mountain behind them, it was extremely secure.
"I wonder whether they gave up on the shelter provided by the game, or whether it simply wasn't released in the first place."
Su Mo pondered this silently and began considering how to develop his shelter.
Earlier, based on the hints from the Game Panel, he had instinctively placed greater importance on the shelter generated by the Game Panel.
As a result, his development was currently confined to the shelter.
That was a good thing, but to a certain extent, it was also a bad thing.
"I'm alone, while they usually have seven or eight people, and some even have dozens. In the early stages, there's no way I can match their speed of accumulating supplies. If I want to overtake them, the only path I can take is to climb the Technology Tree!"
Who would've thought that a corporate drone like me, who had only ever studied and memorized things since childhood and barely used his brain a few times, would one day start planning a base properly? But my hair... Su Mo laughed bitterly at himself.
Stockpiling resources and upgrading the shelter blindly would only turn it into a sturdy tomb. Once the disaster outpaced his upgrade speed, he would have no choice but to wait helplessly for death.
"The good stuff in the ruins requires combat power. Exploring the wilderness requires combat power too. Without better equipment and weapons, it simply won't work."
"The most urgent matter is finding a way to develop electricity. I have an advantage, so I must make use of it." Su Mo's eyes grew solemn. "I'll just have to take things one step at a time."
The heavy rain continued to fall outside. Su Mo stood up and began carefully weaving a Grass Raincoat and a grass umbrella.
He had to go outside and inspect the area around the shelter to make sure nothing unexpected happened.
After weaving for a while...
"Could it be that my weaving is too crude? The system doesn't recognize it at all?"
Seeing that the system could not display the Grass Raincoat's attributes, Su Mo curled his lips and spent another four units of wood to make a wooden chest.
He placed the Grass Raincoat inside and silently hypnotized himself. "This is a wardrobe. This is a wardrobe. This is a wardrobe!"
After repeating it three times, he focused his attention and mentally called for the Survival System to inspect the wooden chest.
Crude Wardrobe Description: Made of wood, used to store clothes Contents: Grass Raincoat Please select an item to upgrade: 1. Wardrobe 2. Grass Raincoat
"Just as I thought!"
Seeing the wardrobe's attributes, Su Mo raised his eyebrows.
After the Grass Raincoat had been made, he could not see its attributes or upgrade paths no matter how he called for the Survival System.
Clearly, the system did not recognize the item at all.
It was just like the table and tea set he had taken from the ruins. So far, he had not been able to develop upgrade paths for them either.
After making a wardrobe and putting the Grass Raincoat inside, an upgrade item finally appeared.
"I choose two!"
He silently repeated the words in his mind. When he looked again, the Grass Raincoat's attributes had already appeared.
Grass Raincoat Description: A raincoat woven from plant fibers, possessing a weak ability to resist rain Upgrade Path One: Change the material and design to provide greater comfort. Requires Survival Points (25) Upgrade Path Two: Change the material and add electric assistance to provide greater impact resistance, radiation resistance, and corrosion resistance. Requires Survival Points (300) Introduction: An old man in a straw rain cape and bamboo hat, fishing alone in the snowy waters of a cold river.
"Why are there only these two paths?"
Su Mo frowned.
If he wanted to go outside, he definitely needed better waterproofing!
Yet neither of the two upgrade paths currently displayed clearly stated what exactly they would enhance.
Spending Survival Points on them would practically be throwing them away.
After some thought, Su Mo silently asked, "System, can the upgrade paths be changed to replace them with a stronger waterproofing ability?"
As soon as Su Mo finished speaking, a flash of light passed over the screen. The two original upgrade paths vanished in a flicker, replaced by a new interface.
Grass Raincoat Description: A raincoat woven from plant fibers, possessing a weak ability to resist rain Upgrade Path: Powerful Raincoat Branches: Waterproofing (10), Material (10), Heat Insulation (10), Corrosion Resistance (10) Introduction: A powerful waterproof raincoat that can keep you fresh and dry on rainy days. Do not expose it to blazing sunlight; dry it in the shade.
"It can actually be changed?"
Su Mo was startled.
Apart from the upgrade method for the Youneng Water Well, this was the first time he had seen an upgrade method with such independent attributes.
Compared with that kind of vague, comprehensive upgrade in a broad direction, this method was more expensive, but it allowed him to choose the attributes he wanted. It was more suitable for the current situation.
"It seems there are still many functions of the system that I don't know about."
He silently committed the information to memory, spent 20 Survival Points, and selected the waterproofing and material upgrades one by one.
In an instant.
The Grass Raincoat placed inside the wardrobe began to change.
The woven layer that had originally kept out water grew denser, and the material itself began to change as well.
It gradually changed from grass into a material resembling the waterproof fabric of the civilized age.
Its color also changed from yellow-green to a mix of black and white.
Once the upgrade was complete, Su Mo took out the Powerful Raincoat and began examining it closely.
"As expected of a raincoat upgraded by the system. This craftsmanship couldn't possibly be achieved without machines!"
Waterproofing depended on precision.
After putting on the raincoat, Su Mo discovered that the Powerful Raincoat was a pullover design. It covered his entire body, including his hands and feet, so he could even save himself the trouble of holding an umbrella.
From head to toe, the raincoat seemed custom-made and fit him perfectly. There were tiny air holes around the face for breathing, and they had been coated with a water-repellent layer to ensure that no water molecules could get inside.
No Mutated Beasts detected within a one-kilometer radius of the player Remaining uses today: 2/3
He told Oreo to stay inside the base and not come out, then opened the gate and pulled up the bolt before walking out.
A wave of humid heat rushed toward him.
Rain pattered against the top of his head before naturally sliding down the raincoat and falling to the ground.
Under the wind, quite a few raindrops even went tap tap tap against the raincoat's face covering.
Su Mo raised a hand and wiped the water from the face shield. When he looked outside, he could not help sucking in a breath.
The area outside the shelter seemed to have suddenly turned into a swamp.
Standing halfway up the hill, Su Mo saw that the ground, which had originally been so dry that it was almost cracked open, had absorbed its fill of water and turned into mud.
The scorched-yellow vegetation was also beginning to show hints of green.
"The rain here is actually this heavy! Luckily, I have a specially made raincoat."
Su Mo felt slightly uneasy, but he shook his head and inspected the soil around the shelter.
The amount of rain differed from place to place. He had already gathered this information from the livestreams.
At present, even the first-ranked Zeus Shelter was not receiving rainfall as terrifying as this.
One step sank deep, while the next barely held.
Su Mo made his way to the back of the hill.
The three drainage ditches they had dug were working at full capacity, ensuring that the water would not accumulate beneath the hill where the shelter stood.
Sixty meters away from the shelter, a small lake had already formed.
Seeing this, Su Mo felt somewhat regretful.
If he had known, he would have built a drainage ditch and extended it as far away as possible! Who could have expected the rain to be this heavy, enough to form a small lake roughly ten meters long and ten meters wide directly behind the base?
"Well, once the rain stops, I'll have a place backed by a mountain and beside a lake!"
After checking that the drainage facilities were not blocked, Su Mo walked around the shelter once more to inspect for any loose soil.
Fortunately, the consecutive days of scorching sun had left the soil extremely short of moisture, so it did not turn into a marsh.
Otherwise, the roads would not have dried for a day or two after the disaster, and it would have been impossible to walk.
After patrolling for half an hour, Su Mo began heading back. Thanks to the raincoat's water resistance, his body remained dry and comfortable.
He returned to the shelter's gate.
Su Mo opened the gate, but the moment he did, he happened to turn his head. On the grass more than ten meters away,
a strange mark caught his attention.
After taking a closer look, Su Mo's pupils instantly contracted! What was this?
A footprint?
Thanks to Heihei Guijian La for the 100 coins, and thanks to NIKJ Mo for the 1,500 Starting Points. Thank you both for your support! (P.S. Please vote, bookmark, and follow!)
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