Chapter 22: Backpack Coins

"Then why didn't you remind me earlier?" Liang Yi asked, reaching out to retrieve the dagger and its sheath from the treasure chest.

Given how toxic the dagger was, it was worth keeping safe.

[My sole responsibility is to record areas in need of improvement based on your experiences as a player, and to answer your questions as a secondary function.]

"Then why did you remind me this time?"

Liang Yi tried tucking the dagger into her pocket, but it was too long, looked awkward, and risked falling out, so she had to give up on that idea.

The man who had fallen into the swamp earlier had left behind his balance bike and backpack, which hadn't vanished along with him.

Consequently, Liang Yi had tossed the balance bike into the trunk of her tricycle yesterday and listed it for sale on the [Trading] board, though no one had shown interest yet.

As for the backpack, she had thrown it into the carriage earlier today while collecting bones.

At first, Liang Yi had been put off by the fact that it was a dead man’s pack.

But now, she realized it would be much more convenient, especially since it could be upgraded. She could keep her weapons inside and retrieve them at any moment.

With the kettle blueprint now in hand, Liang Yi stood up, returned to her vehicle, and retrieved the backpack from the carriage.

She examined it from every angle, making sure there were no traces of blood. She then began to consider whether she should find a water source to wash it.

[Player Liang Yi, please rest assured. Our backpacks reset once their original owner perishes, becoming an entirely new item.]

[The backpack in your hands now is brand new, inside and out.]

Hearing this from the game assistant, Liang Yi felt at ease and strapped it onto her back.

"How do I check what's inside this backpack?"

Liang Yi began to investigate.

[Players who own a backpack can check their inventory through the main interface of the game board.]

Hearing this, Liang Yi immediately pulled up the game board.

The main interface had changed once again.

Whenever Liang Yi entered the game board, she was usually greeted only by her avatar, name, game announcements, and the names of the four main sections.

But now, she suddenly noticed a small, backpack-shaped icon at the very bottom of the screen.

Liang Yi clicked on it without hesitation. Upon entering the backpack interface, she found the design to be exceptionally clean and straightforward.

The top-left corner clearly displayed the backpack's level as "Level 1," and below that, ten squares were arranged in an orderly fashion.

Liang Yi mused that this must be the space for storing items.

She decided to test it by trying to put the deadly dagger into the pack.

Mentally thinking the word "Store," the dagger vanished instantly into the first square of the backpack.

At the same time, an icon representing the dagger appeared in the square, with the item's name thoughtfully labeled at the bottom.

Next, Liang Yi began to explore how to retrieve items from the backpack.

After some experimentation, she discovered that she simply had to think of the item's name, and it would appear before her immediately.

This method of retrieval was both convenient and fast, leaving Liang Yi very satisfied.

Since the backpack still had several empty slots, Liang Yi decided to take the other bulky items out of her carriage and store them in the pack.

She quickly gathered the various items from the carriage and organized them into the empty slots: the kettle blueprint, a dead 60-kilometer battery, an electric pot, eggs, a fruit knife, a can of Red Bull, chocolate, essential balm, and an extension cord blueprint.

Because the backpack level was low, and each slot could only hold one type of item, it filled up quickly.

"Game assistant, how do I upgrade this backpack?"

Liang Yi closed the carriage door tightly and began pondering the upgrade process.

[The backpack requires Backpack Coins to level up.]

[Backpack Coins can be obtained from Level 2 treasure chests and above.]

[You can check the specific number of coins required for an upgrade yourself.]

Liang Yi sat on the seat of her tricycle, opened the [Backpack] interface, and continued her research.

However, aside from the "Level: One" display and the ten squares, there was nowhere else to look.

Fortunately, Liang Yi had played her fair share of games before.

After a closer look, she noticed a small exclamation mark next to the level.

Liang Yi clicked it, and a new interface appeared:

[Backpack Coins: 0]

[To reach Level 2, 100 Backpack Coins are required; current progress is zero.]

[To reach Level 3, 1,000 Backpack Coins are required; current progress is zero.]

...

Reaching Level 2 would grant twenty slots, and Level 3 would allow for fifty items.

Having opened over a dozen chests, Liang Yi had never seen any "Backpack Coins." She assumed they must be extremely rare.

[Player Liang Yi, Backpack Coins are not rare.]

[What is lacking is your observant eye.]

The game assistant sensed Liang Yi's thoughts and reminded her promptly.

Liang Yi was turning the ignition key to head out when the assistant spoke. She began to reflect on the comment as she started the engine.

*Screech!*

Suddenly, Liang Yi slammed on the brakes. The tires skidded against the ground with a harsh, piercing sound.

Without a second thought, she got off the bike and walked back to the treasure chest she had just opened.

Retrieving the fruit knife from her backpack, she pried off two golden, circular objects from the exterior of the chest—objects she had previously assumed were merely decorative because they were engraved with "SOS" and were about the size of a one-yuan coin.

Without hesitation, she threw them into her backpack.

When she checked her Backpack Coin count again, the value had changed to two.

Thinking back to the previous chests, several of them had featured these same coins, but she had dismissed them as mere decorations.

Little did she know, they were actually used for upgrading the backpack.

After a two-second silence, Liang Yi looked up sharply. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

Otherwise, she would have collected over twenty by now.

[I am only responsible for recording areas of the game that need improvement. I cannot directly participate in the game; to do so would be to compromise the game's fairness.]

Liang Yi rolled her eyes, deciding not to engage with the AI.

She turned the key and continued forward.

After traveling for ten minutes, she spotted another treasure chest by the side of the road.

Opening it, she found two packs of instant noodles and a small bunch of bok choy.

Seeing the greens, Liang Yi couldn't help but lick her lips.

She hadn't eaten vegetables in two days, and she feared she would become constipated if she didn't have some soon.

Liang Yi plucked two leaves, and without worrying about whether they were clean, she shoved them into her mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

They didn't taste good at all, even carrying a hint of bitterness, but Liang Yi swallowed them anyway.

Being able to supplement her vitamins now was a stroke of luck; she wouldn't complain about the taste.

She took the chocolate out of her backpack to make room, then placed the greens in the empty slot.

Liang Yi hugged the treasure chest and looked around, confirming there were no Backpack Coins on it before she left.

Then, she continued her journey, wandering along the road in search of more treasure chests.