Chapter 10: Vehicle Upgrades

Yu Jiang took the opportunity to collect a few puffball mushrooms, using the same one-to-one exchange ratio while adding in a few materials she was currently lacking. After the crafting process, she even managed to net a profit of five health-restoration potions.

Seeing her collect puffball mushrooms, others began to realize that these fungi were related to crafting health potions and started asking how to make them. The existence of crafting scrolls was no longer a secret, so Yu Jiang spoke up directly, though she kept quiet about how she had obtained the scrolls. As for those who argued that since she could craft medicine, she should just help everyone out and not stand by while others died, she simply ignored them.

"I haven’t seen any mushrooms along the way," wrote a user. "@KingTellMeToPatrolTheMountains, brother, sister, please have mercy. Could you spare some for me first? Look and see if there’s anything you need?"

Yu Jiang posted: "Crafting medicine has a failure rate. I truly don't have much on hand. I'll trade two health potions for every A2 or A3 small water purifier part."

Some accused her of extortion, while others called for people to team up and block her path within the instance, all speaking in self-righteous tones.

"I just can't stand people who gouge prices like this. Everyone in the same instance as her, just go find her when the time comes. Same for those other notorious heartless merchants."

IronButtMan: "I don't care about anything else, I just want to see if this 'Sicily' who scammed me out of my supplies is a man or a woman!"

...

The public chat was heated, but those who were sincerely interested in trading had already moved to private messages to negotiate.

momo6789: "Three health potions for an A2 part."

"I can't very well leave myself with nothing. Not having an A2 part isn't a huge problem, but not having medicine is a death sentence."

In truth, momo6789 was reluctant, hoping to save the part to assemble a water purifier for themselves, but thinking of the upcoming instance, they eventually gritted their teeth and agreed. Besides, they hadn't seen anyone else selling health potions yet, and it would be easier to trade in the future if they established a good relationship now.

PureCockroachSpicy: "Big Boss! I have an extra A3 part! Trade with me! I'll even throw in an electric motor expansion card, how about it?"

Yu Jiang was curious: "Don't you need it yourself?"

"Nah, I'm riding an electric-assisted bicycle. I can only use one for now, and I've already installed it."

"Fine. Spicy chicken noodles or spicy cabbage ramen—which one do you want?"

The other party didn't stand on ceremony and sent a touched emoji: "!!! Spicy chicken noodles, one pack is enough. Sob, I miss the days of eating spicy chicken noodles and fried chicken back home so much."

Yu Jiang sent the items over. The motor expansion card was quite important as it could increase a vehicle's range. With the trade complete, she now possessed all the parts for the water purifier.

[Small Water Purifier: Can produce 500ml of drinking water and 1L of domestic water daily.]

This item was expensive, but it solved her basic survival needs, making it well worth it—and it could be upgraded in the future. Yu Jiang placed the purifier, closed the public chat, and rested.

***

The "Eight-and-a-Half-Bar" rider didn't get a discount on the parking fee. Early in the morning, the moment the panel switched to daytime, he bid farewell to Yu Jiang, saying he needed to collect supplies to improve his vehicle. Yu Jiang didn't hide anything and told him there were abandoned houses ahead that could be scavenged.

For breakfast, she took out five small potatoes, boiled them in water, ate three, and put the remaining two away as reserve rations. Without seasoning, the potatoes were bland, but they were filling. She kept the other five to plant; potatoes had low cultivation requirements and grew quickly, making them the best choice for sustainable long-term sustenance. Once she solved the vehicle upgrade and basic survival issues, Yu Jiang planned to expand her doomsday menu to improve her quality of life; otherwise, she would go mad sooner or later.

At 7:00 AM, the task bar updated with a map. It was for the "Silent Town" instance, located 50 kilometers away. It would officially begin at 2:00 PM, and survivors were required to arrive on time, or the instance would be considered a failure. This meant she had to cover the 50 kilometers that morning.

That wasn't much of a problem; Yu Jiang still had enough battery power for two or three days. Once the remaining 20% was consumed, upgrading the vehicle would restore her to full charge. Departing at 6:50 AM would be plenty of time.

Yu Jiang looked at the rabbit merchant in the convenience store with a hint of reluctance. The merchant, seemingly lost in thought, remained expressionless, looking as though they were very unhappy to be of service.

Yu Jiang drove her "three-wheeler" out of the service area. When she returned to the highway, the sky wasn't yet fully bright. She couldn't clearly see things on the road, mistaking a pile of broken wooden boards for a crate. She had just sighed when, suddenly, with a loud 'bang,' something heavy slammed into her windshield. It had been moving too fast, and she only caught a glimpse of a large black shadow. The windshield was already spiderwebbed with cracks.

Yu Jiang didn't stop the vehicle; she decisively accelerated and sped away. The vehicle's wear and tear level had reached 68. She was only 500 meters away from leaving the parallel highway, so she ignored any concerns about energy conservation, pushed the engine to its maximum, and surged forward.

Once clear, she parked on the side of the road, confirmed the surroundings were safe, and dismounted to upgrade the vehicle. The light screen displayed the required materials:

[Iron bars *20, Rubber *5, Glass *1, Glass glue *2, Nails *5, Plastic *5, Battery *2]

The electric vehicle's headlights weren't strictly necessary; she could skip replacing the broken ones for now, though it meant she couldn't drive at night.

[Materials have met the upgrade requirements. Please confirm if you wish to stack one 'Motor Expansion Card' to upgrade the vehicle. (You cannot undo this after upgrading!)]

Yu Jiang clicked confirm, and upon hearing a clattering sound, the vehicle began to upgrade automatically.

***

One minute later, a brand-new Tier 2 vehicle appeared before her eyes. It was still a three-wheeler, but the body had been expanded by 1.1 meters, and a cargo bed had been added to the rear—half of it connected to the interior with a cover, and the other half open. It could hold quite a lot of items; its utility was undeniable!

The defense had increased by a full 10 points, and with the fresh paint job, a 5% gray shield appeared over the wear-and-tear meter. With the motor expansion card stacked, the range had also increased to 120 kilometers. Excellent—she had essentially "freeloaded" 120 kilometers of energy.

Yu Jiang took the opportunity to check the materials needed for the Tier 3 upgrade. It was enough to make one's head spin: electric vehicle steering wheel, wires *20, iron bars *25, steel bars *5, steel wire *5, rubber *10, carbon black *5, and ten "Tier 3 Vehicle Part Cards." She had no idea what those cards even looked like; she figured it was impossible to obtain them during the initial novice protection period, as no one in the public chat had even mentioned them. Carbon black, she assumed, was a composite material for making tires.

So, was the Tier 3 vehicle a four-wheeled electric pickup truck?

The road ahead was long. Yu Jiang moved the blueberries she had planted in a 3-gallon pot the night before into the cargo bed.

[Grumpy Blueberries: Still prefers fresh air. Without sunlight, the berries will be super sour! (You can use a Sunshine Card if the weather is bad.)]

Yu Jiang: ...

Did she look like someone who could afford a Sunshine Card? The service area did have them, priced at 50 crystals per card, but they only increased mood by 5 points. Yu Jiang decided to act as if she had never seen a Sunshine Card. No matter how grumpy the plants were, they couldn't jump up and attack her, right? She would wait until she encountered a discounted service area to worry about it.

Sitting in her brand-new vehicle and looking at the cute rabbit ornament she had placed behind the windshield, Yu Jiang felt her spirits renewed. The vehicle now had doors and windows, and the clean, organized environment even reduced her fatigue level by two points.

On the road ahead, Yu Jiang opened three wooden crates and collected 50 small wooden sticks. The haul for the day wasn't great; the crates only yielded two loaves of whole-wheat bread and a small bag of raw peanuts. The next two crates she opened contained snakes—colorful, triangular-headed, and estimated to be over 1.5 meters long. She threw a rock at them, turned around, scrambled into her vehicle, and took off.