The tea brewed earlier hadn’t cooled yet.
The battle had left Mu Shan both mentally and physically exhausted. She returned to the Safe House drenched from head to toe and collapsed into a chair, trembling as she picked up the cup with both hands.
The hot tea warmed her ice-cold body.
Only then did she notice that her hands were pruned and pale, almost numb.
The torrential rain curtain had blurred that brutal melee until now, when the cruel scenes replayed in her mind like a lantern show slideshow.
Liu Zhuhua’s face twisted in agonized screams, him pinned under the zombie with blood and tears streaming down together, the horrific sight of a living person with their neck torn open, veins bursting and spilling like rivers.
Mu Shan clutched her head and buried her face between her knees.
[I didn’t want to kill anyone. I just didn’t want to die.]
Four days ago, she had been a fresh college graduate facing tough job prospects; four days later, she had ended a living person’s life with her own hands.
This damn Main God game. This damn life.
The system’s notification displayed coldly before her eyes.
Mu Shan numbly lifted her gaze and read through it line by line.
【You killed another player for the first time
Skill Unlocked: Hoarding Addiction III
(Passive) Killing a player randomly steals one of their skills
“Death is not losing life, but stepping out of time.”】
【You successfully stole Player Liu Zhuhua’s skill: You’re Actually a Good Person
(Active) Single-target strong control skill
Any attack made by the target’s own will is invalidated against you for 1 minute (usable only 2 times per day)
“You’re actually a good person.”】
This explained why, earlier, neither her axe chops nor the Peashooter’s attacks had any effect on the man.
Because those stemmed from her own will.
But the zombies, having unleashed their instincts, craved flesh on a primal level. Mu Shan hadn’t commanded it to bite his neck.
Mu Shan glanced at the new entry in her skill panel: Hoarding Addiction III. She set down the teacup expressionlessly.
It was a bit cruel, but she finally had her first offensive skill.
After resting for about five minutes, her thoroughly chilled body gradually warmed. Mu Shan calmed down. She first changed out of her wet clothes to avoid catching a cold, then donned a raincoat and rain boots.
She ventured out into the rain. First, she headshot the zombie locked in the sedan, then stored Liu Zhuhua’s corpse and the two zombies’ bodies in her backpack slots. Finally, she picked up every item that had dropped upon his death.
She could be grateful now that her Safe House had respawned in a remote park devoid of human traces. All that earlier commotion hadn’t drawn any malicious intruders.
Mu Shan secured both the entry and exit iron doors, then jogged to the park’s streamside. She found a pit and dumped Liu Zhuhua’s and the zombies’ corpses into it.
The group of elderly zombies she had headshot earlier were still there. The pile of bodies mixed together, indistinguishable.
It wouldn’t be long before they decayed to bones and fully merged with nature.
With that done, Mu Shan ran back to the Safe House.
The escape passage’s iron door was intact, but the main entrance door’s durability had dropped to 50, with long cracks streaking the panel. Cold wind and rain whistled through.
She had no money for repairs, so she wrapped it inside and out with plastic sheeting, securing it with tape and rope—at least it wouldn’t leak anymore.
Mu Shan eyed her remaining 26 gold balance and the battered front door. She felt like crying, her nose stinging, but she held it back.
After cleaning the Safe House floor, she boiled water with the electric kettle.
The bruises from battles a couple days ago hadn’t healed, and her pale skin, soaked by the cold rain, looked even more bloodless.
Mu Shan mixed warm water in a plastic basin and scrubbed her hands repeatedly.
The man had been bitten to death by the zombie; she hadn’t touched him. Yet for some reason, she felt like her hands were covered in blood clots and chunks of flesh.
Steam filled the cramped bathroom.
Mu Shan dunked her entire face into the basin, hot water rolling down her gaunt shoulders. She locked herself in the small room for nearly half an hour. When she emerged, the hot bath had restored her weary body and mind.
Mu Shan took out all the items that had dropped from Liu Zhuhua after his death.
There was half a moldy, dirty loaf of bread left over from eating.
It seemed he truly had no food left, which was why he had braved the rain to assault Mu Shan’s Safe House—and since she was clearly a newbie player, it had fueled his determination even more.
There were two props.
【Nine Linked Rings (Auxiliary)
Quality: Common
Description: Forces mental value below 35 to play Nine Linked Rings for 1 minute
Note: Children’s educational toy】
Mu Shan felt somewhat relieved that her mental value was 36.
【Bizarre Fishing Rod (Tool)
Quality: Fine
Description: You might not catch a fish
Usage: Find a live water area, reel every 10 minutes
Note: Equipping grants Swimming Master and Diving Master titles】
This was a decent tool for outings. Mu Shan decided to test it in the park’s stream when she had time, to see if she could catch some fish to eat.
No medicine or food. Apart from a few dirty clothes, Liu Zhuhua had been truly broke.
On top of that, she gained quite a few tools.
An axe he had used to bash the iron door—it was larger than her current fire axe and quite heavy.
A big cleaver with a dulled blade, useless but good for chopping wood.
A dagger-like multi-tool knife, an engineer shovel, binoculars, and a magnesium fire starter—these were all perfect for outdoor camping. Mu Shan packed them all into a backpack.
【Player possesses similar weapon (axe). Upgrade?】
Mu Shan confirmed.
【Fire axe upgraded to—Viking Battle Axe
+3 Strength
“Continue the pirate legend.”】
The Viking axe blade was longer than the original fire axe, extending into hooks at top and bottom for disarming on chops. The axe face was broader and larger overall, but not much heavier.
Mu Shan picked up her new battle axe and swung it experimentally. She suddenly felt a dizzying shift, like a weakling turning into a melee specialist.
Liu Zhuhua’s Safe House surely held more valuables, but with him thoroughly dead, it had weathered away—no one could claim it now.
Mu Shan lay on the bed reviewing the day’s battle. Only then did the fear hit her. As a veteran player, Liu Zhuhua likely had more than one skill.
If she had reacted any slower, without exploiting the info gap for successive ambushes, the battle’s outcome might have been different.
She had gained tools and a weapon upgrade, but at the cost of a damaged Safe House entrance and wasted gold on the escape passage. Mu Shan felt like she had bled heavily.
Scavenging supplies and making money had become even more urgent.
【Player detected with urgent need for gold coins
Attempt transaction with Main God System?
Transaction Principle: One-to-one equal exchange】
The sudden system prompt put Mu Shan on guard.
“What kind of transaction?”
【Player may exchange gold coins, supplies, Safe Houses, props, etc.
Transaction Items: Anything owned by the player】
【Cannon Fodder Player 537099
Available exchanges: Sanity (100,000 gold), Courage (100,000 gold), Perseverance (80,000 gold), Lifespan (150,000 gold), Love (500,000 gold)】
Mu Shan pondered for half a minute. “Can I sell my thyroid nodule?”
【Does not meet transaction standards】
Mu Shan: Looks like you’re not dumb either.
Anyone else probably would’ve chosen to sell their love.
And the system’s so-called equal exchange principle made no sense to her. Why was love worth several times lifespan?
What was special about her love?
A lifelong single had no clue.
Mu Shan knew one thing: capitalists never did losing deals. The system was even worse.
If she lost her courage, sanity, or perseverance, would she turn into a monster like Liu Zhuhua?
Mu Shan sneered.
What one-to-one equal exchange? Total joke.
She was starting to get this alien Main God’s intent.
Players were grass sown by the Main God System—trampled by monsters again and again, weathered in wind and rain, occasionally nourished with light and dew, growing endlessly.
Once grown, they became leeks ready for harvest.
Mu Shan gave a frail smile. “Thanks, Main God. I don’t need it for now. I’ll survive on my own efforts.”
The Main God System didn’t pop up another word.
In the afternoon, after the rain stopped, Mu Shan detoured to the other side of the park. The spot once marked 【Liu Zhuhua Safe House】 was now just a pile of trash; the Sunroom and bunker had vanished.
She glanced a few times and turned away.
The park had a small lake connected to a stream—barely a live water source. But the stream was clogged with zombie corpses; Mu Shan wasn’t sure if any fish could survive…
She sat under a tree, took out the fishing rod, and cast it into the lake.
Blue skies, white clouds, emerald waters, green trees.
Mu Shan sat by the lake, feeling the gentle breeze, her mood gradually calming.
Without zombies nearby, it would’ve been a nice spot to relax.
The system said reel at 10 minutes, and it was exactly that. Right on time, she felt a tug and yanked the rod.
【Obtained: Second-hand dentures x1
Fishing skill proficiency +1】
Mu Shan grimaced, unhooking the grimy, weed-covered dentures and chucking them into a trash bin.
What the hell…
Unconvinced, she cast the second line.
During the wait, Old Driver messaged about tomorrow’s meetup. Their team would drive to pick her up at 7:30 a.m.
Mu Shan gave a street corner one road over from the park.
Old Driver said the outing’s duration was uncertain; she should prep her own rations.
In the Main God game, the Safe House was a player’s lifeline. Unless necessary, most avoided overnighting outside—easy prey for raids.
Mu Shan pondered her next steps when the second cast hit time.
【Obtained: Beer bottle x1
Fishing skill proficiency +1】
No wonder Liu Zhuhua never caught fish with the rod.