A small white gift box sat on the tabletop. It had dropped after killing the mutant zombie, and Mu Shan reached out with difficulty to open it.
【Safe House Gift Pack:
Please choose one of the following three upgrades:
1. Add an above-ground sunroom (4m x 4m x 2.5m)
2. Add above-ground defensive fortifications (basic type)
3. Underground safe house expansion (+1m)】
Mu Shan covered her face and let out a wail. “Why make me choose something so hard again? Why can’t I have all three…”
The main god system, of course, ignored her. Mu Shan struggled for a minute based on her current needs and finally made her selection.
【Player obtained: Basic Sunroom x1 (upgradable)】
【Detected that player possesses [Double Entry Door x1]. Install on the outside of the sunroom?
Note: The system will charge an installation fee of 3 gold coins】
Mu Shan grumbled about the stingy junk system while selecting 【Yes】.
Soon, the building materials she was sitting on let out a faint shaking sound, as if something had vanished into thin air.
Then, a rumbling commotion came from the earth overhead. She thought an earthquake had hit. Fortunately, the noise quickly subsided, and the safe house fell silent once more.
Mu Shan climbed the stairs and pushed open the battered basement iron door to poke her head out.
The wind did not stir her hair.
Because the 4-meter by 4-meter grassy area outside the entry door was now enclosed in a small sunroom.
…Was this not some remodeled public toilet?
The sunroom’s four walls were made of cemented bricks with no windows. One side featured the double entry door she had scavenged, already installed.
The usual basement entrance was framed inside the sunroom, probably on the west side against the wall. The backup entrance was outside the sunroom, camouflaged with turf.
With the sunroom as a buffer, her safety level increased by another layer. Now, attackers needed to breach two doors to truly enter the basement.
The original ground-level turf had all been enclosed. Mu Shan looked up; the 2.5-meter-high roof was pure glass, allowing light to pass through easily.
But at this height, she could not climb up without a ladder.
She also had no idea about the strength of this glass roof. It probably would not stop bullets…
She found a switch on the wall: In the open position, the sunroom’s glass roof could fold and retract about half; in the closed position, the glass roof stayed flat and extended.
It was an additional ventilation feature.
Mu Shan nodded in satisfaction. The basic sunroom’s specs far exceeded her expectations. Issues like leaks, damage, or dirt buildup would be problems for the future.
She returned to the basement and hauled out the scavenged metal racks, propping them up in a triangle in the corner.
The sky had darkened today, but tomorrow, under the sun, she could hang clothes and bedding there to air out and sterilize.
She stepped out through the entry door and looked around. From the sunroom’s wall corner outward, about 20cm away, the system had marked a clear yellow line.
It was probably to distinguish 【Player Territory】 from 【Public Land】.
Because of this line, Mu Shan’s plan to build a barbed wire fence around the area fell through.
“Stingy.”
Given the system’s nature, anything classified as 【Public Land】 could not be taken when switching instances. It would be a waste of effort.
After inspecting the sunroom, Mu Shan closed the main door securely and returned to the underground safe house.
She looked at the mess of building materials, supplies, and garbage piled everywhere, and her scalp tingled.
There was no way to finish it all. She could not finish it…
During the daytime battle, the kill notifications had spammed nonstop, so she had selectively blocked them. Now, reopening them, the system had kindly provided a summary.
【Player’s daily gold coin settlement completed
Solo zombie kills reward: 1598
Co-op zombie kills reward: 211
Current account balance: 1806】
Just a few hours ago, she had been a broke pauper with only 26 coins to her name.
Thanks to that final blaze, the massive zombie horde had converted into a hefty pile of gold coin rewards for her.
Seeing her wallet plump up, Mu Shan felt all the day’s fatigue vanish. No matter how bitter or tiring, it was worth it.
Keep going. Keep at it.
Now that she had money, she could repair the breached main door. Mu Shan browsed the system mall several times and selected the best value protective sealed double safety door. This type had been common at bunker entrances in the past.
【Damaged iron door upgraded to — Protective Sealed Door x1
Note: Protective door can block thermal weapon shockwaves. Sealed door can block external toxic gases from entering】
The peephole she had bought earlier automatically integrated with the new door after the upgrade. Mu Shan rapped on it fondly; the sturdy double door would let her sleep soundly.
【Purchased Escape Hatch Camouflage Entrance x1
Note: Can only be used on escape passages, not regular safe house entrances
Camouflage entrance blends seamlessly with surroundings】
Buying the two doors cost her 300 gold coins at once.
The iron door upgrade had only needed 15 gold before… The system’s inflation was impressive.
Mu Shan specially crawled out through the escape passage to check. Once the camouflage entrance closed, only seamless turf remained before her eyes, with no trace of any opening.
As the homeowner, she could see the system’s prompt: a circle of green dashed lines.
Her safety index had greatly improved. This money was well spent!
Night had gradually fallen. Mu Shan lacked the energy to cook and boiled water for instant noodles instead.
The braised beef noodles had neither beef nor meat.
Now that she could afford it, she craved vegetables badly and luxuriously opened a can of sweet corn to go with her noodles.
As she ate, her eyes kept darting to the pile of building materials on the floor, her mind racing nonstop.
There was too much to organize. She needed to tackle it one thing at a time.
【Purchased Safe House Overall Upgrade Project
Detected player possesses: Waterproof building materials (some), insulation panels (some), cement x10, roll materials (some), putty powder x10, floor/wall tiles (some). These can offset part of the upgrade cost.
System will charge renovation fee of 100 gold coins】
She had already gathered plenty of building materials, yet this stingy main god still deducted so many gold coins. One could imagine how much more it would cost to buy directly from the mall.
Buy it. She definitely had to buy it.
Mu Shan stood in place with her eyes closed and felt the overhead light in the safe house “pop” and go out.
In the darkness, she heard the surrounding walls, ceiling, and floor all roar with “rumble rumble” sounds, followed by an even greater commotion than the sunroom upgrade.
Shaking, trembling, humming.
She did not dare move recklessly and could only stand rigidly in the center of the room.
The floor beneath her feet surged up and down nonstop, like standing in a sand pit. Mu Shan nearly fell over.
She even had an unrealistic fantasy: If she opened her eyes and turned on the light right now, would she see green-skinned short goblins scurrying around renovating her place?
Or maybe not humanoid creatures at all?
The renovation lasted only 30 seconds, but it felt like 30 years to Mu Shan.
When the overhead light came back on, the clean and spacious safe house brightened her eyes, clearing the fog from her mind.
Mu Shan touched the cold wall tiles and stepped on the solid, level floor tiles. A smile never left her face.
The fresh mold spots in the stairwell corner had vanished, and the room now had the beginnings of a modern home.
She eagerly slipped on new cotton slippers, laid fluffy rugs under the bedhead and small table, and set the teapot and cups on the dining table.
“This is a place fit for humans.”
But the major renovations were not over yet.
【Purchased Bathroom Upgrade Project
Detected player possesses: Glass door x1, wall/floor tiles (some), bathroom cabinet x1, toilet x1, showerhead x1, towel rack/shelves x2, floor drains x2, faucet x1. These can offset part of the upgrade cost.
System will charge renovation fee of 30 gold coins】
Give, give, give it all to you!
After confirming the upgrade, the bathroom filled with “clang clang clang” hammering sounds, along with all sorts of weird noises: buzzing electric drills one moment, cracking tile-laying the next.
Mu Shan had been scared at first, but now she was completely used to it.
While the system acted as her “long-term laborer,” she took out the scavenged terracotta flower pots and placed them on the floor. She selected the smallest 0.5-gallon pot, carefully planted the peashooter inside, and watered it thoroughly.
The original paper cup had fallen apart after all the tossing.
In the flower pot, the ugly-cute peashooter made “puff puff” sounds as its leaves twisted, like it was dancing wildly.
Mu Shan poked its leaves with a finger and glanced at the moisture value displayed nearby (80/100). It was probably her imagination, but it seemed to rise a bit faster.
Treating a dead horse like a live one, she diluted some flower fertilizer No. 1 and wondered if it could absorb it…
Soon, the noisy sounds stopped. Mu Shan opened the glass door and stepped in. Her eyes lit up; the cramped bathroom was brand new.
She tested the faucet and other fixtures one by one, confirming nothing was broken. The only regret now was the lack of a water heater.
She could get one from a mall trip and did not plan to waste money on it.
The system was smart; unused cement, putty powder, tiles, and such were stacked in place, quantities precise to the gram. Since she had no immediate need, Mu Shan piled all the big and small packages in the stairwell corner.
Next to them stood neatly stacked sealed bottles of water and drinks.
The central open space still had a big pile of boards and sandbags. Mu Shan thought for a moment, stored all the sandbags in her virtual backpack, then moved them to the sunroom.
When the flood came, these sandbags would be her main flood defense.
【Purchased Multi-Functional Combination Cabinets (wall-mounted, freestanding)
Detected player possesses: Solid wood boards x50, angle brackets (some), screws (some). These can offset part of the upgrade cost.
System will charge labor fee of 20 gold coins】
Gold coin balance: 1356 points. Still plenty.
Mu Shan planned the safe house’s empty spaces and input the dimensions and requirements into the system.
She suddenly looked up. “Can you make it look a bit nicer?”
【Extra design fee: 10 gold coins】
“Never mind then. It’s ugly only to me anyway. Main god, I don’t mind your poor craftsmanship.”
【……】
After a “ding ding clang clang” of hammering, a row of snow-white clean wall-mounted cabinets appeared on the formerly empty wall. The style was minimalist, with no decorations or patterns.
The cabinets were brand new. Mu Shan stuffed all her snacks and cans that had had no place before into them.
In addition, she installed a row of freestanding cabinets at the bed-end wall corner, with double doors for storing scattered items. They could also hold off-season clothes and spare bedding.
The space above the freestanding cabinets could be utilized further. Mu Shan planned a multi-layer iron shelving unit, like those in apartment basements. But given her ample storage now, she shelved the plan for the moment.
After clearing the remaining building materials, she swept the floor clean. It was already 9 p.m.
She had been busy since 7:30 a.m. As a player, her work hours were even longer than a corporate slave’s.
7 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week, no pay, no weekends, no insurance, no benefits—and facing survival crises at any moment.
Whoever loved this crappy survival game could have it.
Mu Shan was exhausted, her waist and knees aching, but she persisted. With sheer willpower, she boiled hot water and carried it to the bathroom, then soaked her dirty clothes in a basin.
She had wiped down with tissues during the day, but the dried mix of zombie splatter blood and sweat had matted her hair into clumps.
Mu Shan sat on a small stool, wetting her hair bit by bit with hot water and carefully scrubbing and untangling it.
Under the hot water cascade, streams of brownish-red wastewater snaked from her feet into the floor drain’s whirlpool.
Steam filled the bathroom, but it was not a shower after all, and it cooled quickly. Mu Shan rinsed her body hastily, drying her hair while slipping into the bathrobe from the hotel.
She stared blankly at her reflection in the mirror.
In just five short days, she felt she had changed.
The facial features were clearly the same as before, with no difference whatsoever, but those eyes always gave the feeling of another person.
“Running every day before never made me lose weight, but now it’s so easy. I’m practically heaven’s chosen child.”
Mu Shan wiped the water stains from the mirror with her hand and tugged at the corners of her mouth as she walked out of the bathroom.
She straightened the bedding and nestled into it, letting out a comfortable sigh.
Her eyes were already too heavy to lift. In the end, Mu Shan spent 2 gold coins to purchase a formaldehyde removal service.
It was not some survival essential, and this thing was ridiculously cheap in the system mall.
【Formaldehyde Removal in Progress (Silently), Countdown: 14:00:00】
【13:59:59】
The basement was pitch black with the lights turned off.
Before falling into a deep sleep, Mu Shan was still wondering how long the continuous heavy rain mentioned by the weather forecaster would last. It wouldn’t go on for ten days, would it?
And how big would the flood be? Where was she supposed to get a small boat…
【Cannon Fodder Player 537099】
ID: Mu Shan
Age: 22
Profession: Collector
Skills: Hoarding Addiction I, Hoarding Addiction II, Hoarding Addiction III, Trash Sorting, You’re Actually a Good Person
Gold Coins: 1354
Main Quest (Day 5)
Mu Shan still had not changed her pants.