[System Announcement: Day 3 has begun.]
[Weather: Clear Skies. Temperature: -20°C.]
[Shelter Status: Secure. Internal Temperature: 22°C.]
He stretched his limbs, expecting the stiffness of sleeping on the floor, but the crude dry-grass mattress had done its job. He was rested. Warm.
He looked at the heater. The [Elemental Core (Ice)] was still glowing with a steady blue light.
[Heater Status: Active]
[Core Energy: 98%]
"Two percent energy usage for a full night of heating," Chen Chen marveled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "At this rate, one core will last nearly two months."
He sat up and looked around his domain.
Yesterday felt like a fever dream. The Level 1 cabin. The Ice Golem. The Silver Chest. The literal mountain of supplies piled in the corner.
But his stomach gave a loud, demanding growl, reminding him that he was still human.
"Breakfast," he muttered.
He looked at his inventory. He had bread. He had chocolate. He had frozen boar meat.
But he wanted something... more.
He walked over to his makeshift kitchen area a flat stone slab near the heater. He pulled out the [Self-Heating Rice Meal] wrapper he had saved. It was trash to anyone else, but the plastic tray was heat-resistant.
He took a chunk of the frozen boar meat and sliced it thinly with his knife.
Then, he did something that would have made the other 9,000 survivors weep.
He placed the metal tray on top of the heater.
The heater's surface was hot to the touch. It sizzled as he dropped a piece of animal fat onto it.
He tossed the thin slices of boar meat onto the sizzling fat.
The aroma of frying pork wafted up. He sprinkled a pinch of salt (obtained from a random crate the day before) and waited until the edges turned crispy and brown.
He ate directly from the heater, using two clean sticks as chopsticks.
The meat was gamey and tough, but the fat was rich, and the heat spread through his body like a warm hug.
"This is living," Chen Chen sighed contentedly.
He finished the last piece of meat and licked the grease from his fingers.
Then, a thought struck him.
He looked at the sizzling fat remaining on the tray. He looked at the vast pile of raw meat in the corner.
"I have 4kg of meat left. I can't eat it all."
"But everyone else is starving."
He opened the Regional Chat.
It was Day 3. The desperation had shifted into a dull, aching hopelessness.
"My stomach hurts so much... I ate some snow to stop the hunger pangs, but now I'm just shivering."
"I saw a guy yesterday chasing a rabbit. He collapsed. Didn't get up."
"I have wood. I have stone. I just want... food. Real food."
"I'd kill for a piece of moldy bread right now."
Chen Chen leaned back, picking his teeth with a splinter.
He had a monopoly on warmth and high-quality protein.
But he was smart. He knew that simply selling raw meat had limits. People needed to cook it. Cooking required fuel. Fuel was scarce.
"What if I sell... cooked meat?"
A pre-cooked, high-calorie meal that required zero fuel from the buyer. Just open and eat.
He looked at his heater-grill setup. It was efficient.
He sliced another 500g of boar meat. He fried it until it was fully cooked and glistening with fat.
Then, he took a photo.
In the photo, the golden-brown pork strips were sizzling on the metal heater, with the glowing blue core visible in the background. A pair of Frost-Resistant Boots rested casually next to the setup.
He uploaded it to the Trading Hall.
[Seller: Chen Chen]
[Auction Item: 500g Fried Boar Meat (Cooked & Ready to Eat)]
[Description: No cooking required. High fat, high protein. Tastes like heaven. Includes 50g of rendered lard for extra calories.]
[Required: Blueprint (Any), Rare Materials (Copper, Silver, Gold), or Elemental Shards.]
[Stock: 3 Servings]
He hit post.
The chat went dead silent.
It was the silence of thousands of people staring at their screens, their mouths watering, their brains short-circuiting. Then, the dam broke.
"COOKED?! HE COOKED IT?!"
"Is that... is that a heater? He has a HEATER?!"
"Look at the boots! He has fur boots!"
"I'm eating dirt. I am literally eating dirt right now. And this guy is having a BBQ?"
"Chen Chen, I have a blueprint! I have a blueprint for a [Reinforced Wooden Door]! Please!"
"I have a [Copper Ingot]! Take it all!"
"I found a weird glowing stone! It's green! Is that an Elemental Shard? Take it! Give me the meat!"
Chen Chen watched the offers roll in.
He ignored the wood and stone offers. He was past that stage. He needed tech. He needed upgrades.
He filtered the bids.
[Bidder: TechBro_99] offers: Blueprint - [Water Filtration System (Basic)]
[Bidder: MiningQueen] offers: Elemental Shard (Wind) x2
[Bidder: SilentShadow] offers: Blueprint - [Crossbow]
Chen Chen's eyes widened.
Water Filtration. Crossbow. Wind Shards.
The [Water Filtration System] meant he could melt snow and drink it safely without relying on crate drops for bottled water. Infinite water glitch.
The [Crossbow]? Ranged superiority. No more risking his neck in melee combat against things like the Ice Golem.
And the [Wind Shards]... likely power sources for speed-based items or ventilation.
He accepted all three bids.
[Transaction Complete.]
[You lost: 1.5kg Fried Boar Meat]
[You obtained: Blueprint - Water Filtration System, Blueprint - Crossbow, Elemental Shard (Wind) x2]
"Pleasure doing business," Chen Chen grinned.
He immediately learned the blueprints.
[System: You have learned how to craft [Water Filtration System].]
[System: You have learned how to craft [Crossbow].]
He walked to his Workbench.
[Crossbow]
Materials: Wood x4, Iron Ingot x2, Animal Tendon/Rope x1.
He had the wood. He had the iron. He lacked the tendon.
"Damn."
He checked the [Water Filtration System].
Materials: Plastic Bottle x1, Charcoal x2, Sand x2, Cloth x1.
He had the plastic bottle (from the Vitamin Water). He had cloth (from the extra clothes he looted). He had sand (from the soil under the snow).
But Charcoal...
He looked at his burnt logs in the fireplace.
"Close enough."
He spent the next hour crafting the filtration system. It was crude a cut plastic bottle layered with cloth, sand, and crushed charcoal but the System recognized it.
[Item Crafted: Basic Water Filter]
[Efficiency: 90% bacterial removal. Safe to drink.]
He scooped a pot of snow, let it melt on the heater, and poured it through the filter.
Clear, clean water dripped into his cup.
He took a sip. It tasted like nothing. Which was perfect.
"Water independence achieved," Chen Chen declared.
He sat back on his bed, feeling like an industrial tycoon. In three days, he had moved from struggling survivor to owning a heated cabin, infinite water, and high-end gear.
But his peace was interrupted by a private message.
It wasn't a trade offer. It was a warning.
[Sender: DragonTeeth (The guy who bought the raw meat earlier)]
[Message: Chen Chen, watch out. There's a group forming in the Northwest region. They call themselves the 'Snow Wolves'. They've been tracking people who sell high-value items. They know you have a heater. They're asking for coordinates.]
Chen Chen's smile faded.
"Snow Wolves," he repeated, the name tasting sour.
In every apocalypse, there are those who build, and those who take.
He walked to the window. The vast white landscape looked peaceful, but he knew better.
He looked at his [Crossbow] blueprint again.
"I need that tendon," he said, his voice cold. "And I need it now."
He grabbed his Iron-Tipped Spear. He grabbed his shield.
He stepped out into the snow.
"Come and get it," Chen Chen whispered to the horizon.