Next, Su Yu repeated the same bad luck he'd had after fishing up the Strength Potion.
"Damn it, did I stumble into some event where you only get a pity reward once every ten tries?" Su Yu thought gloomily as he reeled in another heap of everyday supplies.
With that expression on his face, if he'd been somewhere crowded, someone would've beaten him to death for sure.
"Maybe I should try the Enhanced Bait. I've got four, anyway." Glancing up at the sky, an idea suddenly occurred to Su Yu.
After fishing up the Constitution Potion, he'd cast his line ten more times in a row. All he'd gotten were ordinary everyday supplies, nothing special.
"Let's do it." After thinking it over, Su Yu decided on one thing: do it.
Then, calmly, he hooked the Enhanced Bait, adjusted the float's position, took a deep breath, and cast the line out.
[Ding! The item you uploaded, Zhonghua Cigarettes (one carton), has been successfully traded. Would you like to retrieve the item?]
Just as Su Yu was concentrating with all his might, the sound of a successful trade suddenly rang in his ear again.
"Holy crap, you scared me!" After a string of choice curses flashed through his mind, Su Yu silently chose to retrieve the item, then ignored the materials lying on the ground.
"It's here." Just then, Su Yu noticed the float on the water beginning to twitch.
He held his breath, his focus sharpening to a razor's edge.
"Holy crap, that's heavy!" The moment the float plunged beneath the surface, Su Yu immediately put his strength into the rod.
The ordinary Fishing Rod in his hands bent into an alarming curve, as if it were about to snap at any moment.
The veins stood out on Su Yu's arm. He was putting most of his strength into the fight.
Fortunately, Su Yu managed to steady himself. His lower body suddenly braced, and he planted himself firmly in place like a stubborn holdout.
After getting a feel for the force coming from beneath the water, Su Yu began carefully pulling backward.
But the moment he exerted himself, the pull from underwater forced him to take a step forward.
After a full twenty minutes of grueling back-and-forth, Su Yu finally dragged the treasure chest on the lakebed up until it broke the surface.
[★★★★★ Common Wooden Treasure Chest] Description: Contains ten Common Energy Stones. Fishing technique: Apply force intermittently, keep draining its strength for an hour, then drag it in.
The instant the chest beneath the water surfaced, Su Yu caught sight of its information.
"Does this mean I've already achieved energy-stone freedom this early in the game?" Seeing the chest's information, the thought couldn't help but pop into Su Yu's mind.
Honestly, Su Yu was a little worried. There were just too many Energy Crystals—he'd never use them all!
One Common Energy Crystal could be combined with flour to make thirty portions of Common Bait. And Su Yu had the Double Happiness talent, which meant he'd get twenty Common Energy Crystals from this Five-Star Treasure Chest.
That meant that after crafting them, Su Yu could get 600 portions of Common Bait.
What did that even mean? Su Yu figured he could fish until his hands cramped and still not use it all up anytime soon.
Su Yu shook his head, casting aside the kind of thought that would get him beaten to death if he said it aloud, then focused once more on a tug-of-war with the Five-Star Treasure Chest below.
By the time the sky had darkened, Su Yu had finally managed to haul the chest up.
"Phew." The moment he got the chest ashore, Su Yu didn't rush to open it. He tossed his Fishing Rod onto the ground, lay down flat, and breathed heavily.
Damn, fishing up this chest had felt more exhausting than every other chest he'd caught before, all put together.
Fortunately, the haul was incredibly satisfying. Even at Su Yu's rate of using bait, he wouldn't have to worry about running out for the next few days.
Su Yu was practically like someone who'd struck it rich overnight. What was more, his ability to snowball his gains was just too powerful.
The Double Happiness talent paired with Insight, that absurd SSS-grade talent, was practically a cheat code!
[Ding! Survivors, please take note: night is about to fall. The temperature will continue to drop. Please make sure to keep warm.]
As Su Yu gasped for breath, a special notification suddenly rang in his ear.
Hearing it, Su Yu planted both arms on the ground and pushed himself upright.
"Temperatures drop at night, too. Looks like during these seven days of beginner protection, ordinary Survivors have to worry about more than just food and water. They also have to keep warm!"
"Whoosh." Just as Su Yu was thinking, a cool breeze blew across his body, and a chill swept over him.
With no time to think, Su Yu immediately got to his feet and hurried over to the Massage Chair. He quickly put on his shirt and jacket, then picked up the chest from the ground and headed toward the Wooden Cabin.
"Get a fire going," Su Yu ordered the two Low-level Goblins in a low voice, glancing at the rapidly darkening sky.
After that, Su Yu carried the chest straight into the Wooden Cabin. He silently chose to open it, and when he saw the twenty Common Energy Crystals piled up inside, a flicker of excitement couldn't help but pass through his eyes.
It was like the difference between seeing digital currency on a screen and seeing cash sitting right in front of you. The impact was completely different.
Su Yu then went straight into the Communication Channel to see whether anyone else was having the same problem.
"Damn it, the temperature keeps dropping. It's so cold! Didn't they say beginners get seven days of protection?"
"Can't you start a fire? If you're cold, warm yourself by the fire!"
"Holy crap, that wind is strong! It nearly blew away the tent I caught while fishing."
"Buying a coat and bedding! Anyone with extras, hurry up and put them on the Trading Channel!"
As soon as Su Yu entered the Communication Channel, he saw that plenty of people were discussing the issue.
"If you have the means, get a fire going as soon as possible. That's the only way to make it through the night. Otherwise, if you catch a cold and come down with a fever, you'll be in trouble."
At that moment, someone on the Communication Channel spoke up.
Meanwhile, the slightly cleverer ones had already started browsing the Trading Platform for items. After all, once more people caught on, plenty of sellers would withdraw their listed items or raise their prices.
After all, wherever there were people, there was profit—no matter what the circumstances.
Glancing at how many trade slots he had left for the day, Su Yu listed a few lighters, giving them away as a little gift. Any Survivor who managed to get one could consider themselves lucky.
After all, Su Yu really wasn't short on lighters. And after fishing for treasure chests all day, he planned to eat something and go straight to sleep. It would be a waste not to use up today's trading slots, so he might as well build a good reputation and lay the groundwork for future trades.
Before you continue