“Rumble—”
A deafening roar split the air as the asphalt road ahead suddenly collapsed.
He Ni’s pupils constricted instantly, and the next moment, she saw a towering wall of white-capped waves crashing down like a tidal wave.
A two-ton car was, in that instant, as insignificant as an ant, swallowed whole by the deluge.
In a daze, He Ni felt as if she were drifting on the sea surface under the blazing midday sun of summer, the scorching heat making her deeply uncomfortable.
After struggling for a while, she barely managed to move her fingers, then snapped her eyes wide open.
The sky above was an unreal shade of blue, the glaring white sun hanging high, and the air thick with the salty, slightly fishy scent of seawater—hot and humid.
He Ni was dazed for some time before gradually regaining control of her body.
Supporting her head, she sat up and stared at the scene before her, feeling bewildered.
Hadn’t she died in an earthquake and tsunami?
How was she now floating on the sea?
Around her stretched a vast expanse of water, sunlight sparkling like scattered silver coins.
The wooden raft beneath her gently bobbed on the waves, producing a soft rustling sound.
Before she could fully comprehend her situation, a faint blue virtual screen popped up:【Player ID 117177, welcome to world C9-13 of “God’s Game: Raft Survival”】
【You are currently in Experience Server 7, which hosts 500,000 players. If the server population falls below 100,000, merging will be triggered.】
【Here lie endless opportunities and treasures, but also deadly dangers lurking like shadows. Whether you grow stronger with a smile or die crying depends entirely on your every move. Note: All players in this experience server have died in the real world. Successfully completing the game offers a chance to rewind and be reborn, advancing to the next round of the God’s Game to compete for Candidate for Divinity status.】
【Current date: Sea God Calendar, June 1, 2000. Daylight saving time is in effect: Daytime lasts from 5:00 to 19:00. Gather enough supplies during daylight to face the challenges that may come at night.】
【Current phase: Beginner Period】
【Current coordinates: Feng Rao Zhi Hai】
【The Beginner Period will end at 6:00 on June 4. During this time, item drop rates are increased by 50%, and all monster damage is nullified.】
【The game has officially started. Your Newbie Gift Pack has been sent via mailbox. Please check promptly. Enjoy the game!】
【Mailbox function activated】
【Character panel function activated】
【Backpack function activated】
【Chat channel function activated】
【Map function activated】
【Trading Hall activated】
【Achievement System and Leaderboard unlocked as some player has already completed the first kill】
One by one, newbie tips flashed on the screen, sliding upwards automatically as she finished reading each message.
It felt as though an invisible hand was controlling all of this.
After reading all the prompts, an item shaped like a gift pack suddenly appeared, shining brilliantly:【Newbie Gift Pack x1 acquired. Open now?】
He Ni rubbed her eyes, confirming again that this was no dream, only then slowly realizing—she had been pulled into a strange game after death?
Her heart pounded heavily.
Ignoring the gift pack for the moment, she focused on the last notification.
“Detected: a player has completed the first kill”?
She had just finished reading the newbie tips, and someone already made the first kill?
Startled, He Ni flipped over and stood on the raft, looking cautiously around.
Seeing no monsters on the raft or nearby waters, she finally exhaled softly.
She was 22 years old, freshly graduated from university.
Her biggest hobbies were binge-watching short dramas and reading novels.
She was somewhat familiar with post-apocalyptic games and stories.
But she had no idea what the monsters in this game looked like.
As a normal new office worker, fragile as a glass doll, and nearly zero combat skills, if this was a combat-heavy game, she would be doomed.
Thankfully, there was a three-day immunity to monster damage during the Beginner Period, allowing her to ease into things.
After once again confirming no abnormal creatures around, He Ni looked up at the large virtual screen before her.
Top left showed mailbox, time, and weather; top right displayed stamina, health, and mental state.
At the bottom were five task bars: 【Personal Backpack】【Chat Channel】【My Map】【Trading Hall】【Leaderboard】.
The screen had just stopped on 【Chat Channel】, where messages scrolled rapidly:【Player 238809: God’s Game? Candidate for Divinity? Can we actually become gods? Ahhh!】
【Hai Shang Jian La Ji: Big shot who got the first kill, take me with you! Where did you find the monster? What’s the kill reward? Do you have weapons? How did you kill it?】
【Player 163380: Anyone have water? I can trade dirt or compressed biscuits. Please, I’m so thirsty. I’ve got heatstroke.】
【Xiao Luo Hao: Everyone watch your negative statuses! The three newbie essentials: gather supplies, fight monsters, and upgrade your raft. Good luck, all!】
【Player 451257: Is Xiao Luo Hao customer support? Or do they know something? Can you share more? What monsters will we encounter? How to get more supplies? How do we leave here?】
The screen was full of question marks; valuable information was scarce.
The World Channel resembled chat windows in mobile games—divided into public channel, latest announcements, private messages, and nearby players.
Only two lonely announcements appeared:【Congratulations to Player 321178 for successfully killing a level 1 monster Sha Chi Luo】
【Congratulations to Player 321178 for unlocking the achievement “Pioneer Brave” and receiving the Pioneer Brave Medal】
He Ni’s pupils narrowed as she softly repeated, “Sha Chi Luo.”
Her gaze dropped to the wooden raft beneath her.
Sha Chi Luo didn’t just attack players; it could also damage rafts.
This small raft was her lifeline at sea; if it were destroyed, the consequences would be disastrous.
She thoroughly checked again to ensure no Sha Chi Luo attached beneath the raft, then raised her hand to check “Nearby Players”:【Open location to view nearby players?】
【Note: Opening location services will reveal your position to others within the nearby waters.】
Her finger paused.
After a moment’s thought, she chose 【Yes】.
Opening location services was risky; other players could track her and cause trouble.
But the risk was worth it—she could keep an eye on others approaching and prepare in advance, better than being completely in the dark.
【Nearby Players (5/5)】
Within a 50-nautical-mile radius, there were five other players besides her.
Each player’s avatar showed their ID, making identities public.
Fortunately, she was far from all of them; the nearest was 46 nautical miles away, ID “Jin Se Chuan Shuo.”
The raft had no oars and drifted with the waves, moving only a few miles each day.
Meeting other players in the early game wouldn’t be so easy.
He Ni relaxed a little.
【My Map】also showed the sea area within 150 nautical miles.
Her eyes fixed on a small island 33 nautical miles to the northwest.
It was the only landmass on the map—
Abandoned Stone Island.
She wondered if players could set foot on the island.
【Trading Hall】was empty.
The 【Leaderboard】had only one player listed—the one who just made the first kill, ID 321178.
After this exploration, He Ni gathered her thoughts and summarized: The Beginner Period protects against monster damage but not other harms; her priority was to avoid dying from thirst, hunger, or drowning.
The map function exposed player coordinates and identities; whether players could rob or kill each other was unknown, so staying alert about “Nearby Players” was crucial.
Killing monsters brought rewards and achievements.
Small islands at sea might hold abundant resources—she needed to find a way to land.
With a rough understanding of the game, He Ni felt a little steadier.
It was 8:27 in the morning.
Her urgent task was to gather as many supplies as possible before nightfall.
The raft beneath her measured about 2 by 2 meters, its soaked wood a dark brown with a thin layer of white crystals of dried sea salt on top.
A loosely coiled hemp rope held a rusted iron hook claw; other than that, the raft was empty.
The floating debris in the nearby sea looked like trash, with no “treasure chests” common in games.
He Ni picked up the iron hook and weighed it.
A brief description popped up:
【Iron Hook: A simple salvage tool made of pig iron, can grab drifting supplies within 10 meters (3 stamina per use)】
Using the hook consumed stamina?
She immediately checked her character panel:【Player: 117177 (name changeable)】
【Status: Elevated body temperature! Mild dehydration!】
【Health: 97/100】
【Stamina: 100/100】
【Mental: 94/100】
【Strength: 3】
【Luck: 2】
【Charm: 2】
【Skills: Locked】
【Talents: Locked】
[Elevated body temperature: Due to environmental effects, player’s body temperature is high. Find shade quickly to reduce temperature or risk heatstroke (Mental -1 per 5 minutes)]
[Mild dehydration: Environmental effect accelerating water loss. Replenish fluids promptly (Health -1 per 5 minutes, Mental -1 per 5 minutes)]
Negative statuses would continuously drain health and mental values.
He Ni couldn’t afford to examine other stats now.
She looked at the Newbie Gift Pack floating before her and opened it directly:
【You received 1 bottle of 300ml mineral water, 1 pack of 100g compressed biscuits, and 1 Newbie Fishing Rod】
There was barely any supply inside the gift pack.
With such hot weather and drifting under the scorching sun, 300ml of water was definitely insufficient.
100g of compressed biscuits was hardly enough to survive.
Clearly, she would have to rely on her own efforts to find food and water.
The Newbie Fishing Rod and iron hook were the gathering tools given to players.
She picked up the fishing rod:
【Newbie Fishing Rod: A simple fishing rod. With some luck, it might catch something. Durability resets daily to 100 points. Each use consumes 5 stamina, which is 2 more than the iron hook. Has a durability limit, unlike the iron hook that can be used indefinitely if stamina allows.】
After receiving the three items, a virtual backpack interface popped up automatically:【Pick up and store in Personal Backpack?】
【Personal Backpack: 15 slots x 99 stackable items (items of the same type can stack), with permanent preservation function】
Permanent preservation was a good thing, but with only 15 slots and limits, it couldn’t hold much.
She stored the water and biscuits, holding the fishing rod in one hand while opening the World Channel chat with the other.
The gift pack contained no bait—did fishing not require bait?
Since the rod consumed stamina and durability, she didn’t want to waste attempts. S
he hoped to see experienced players sharing tips.
Before she could find any useful info, a wave struck, making the raft splash loudly.
A red health bar appeared on the edge:【Raft Durability 98/100】
Even the raft was deteriorating.
Her temples throbbed.
Pressing her hand against the raft, the details popped up: Player 117177’s raft (name changeable): Level 1 Raft (upgradable)
【Description: A crude raft made of driftwood, durability -5 per day】
【Special functions: None】
【Environment rating: -25 (bare and dilapidated, comparable to ruins, can be improved)】
【Defense rating: 0 (no resistance, can be upgraded)】
【Function rating: 0 (can only serve as a foothold, upgradable)】
【Expandable facilities: (0/1)】
【Upgrade materials (basic): Wood x100, Fiber x20, Iron Nails x20, Coarse Rope x20, Resin x5】
【Durability: 98/100 (minor damage)】
【Status: Minor damage (consumes 2 wood to repair)】
Alongside the raft details, two alarming warnings appeared:【Warning! Your sea shelter’s defense rating is too low; upgrade immediately.】
【Warning! Your sea shelter’s environment score is too low; mental state -1 per hour.】
With thirst, hunger, relentless sun, monsters lurking, and even the raft risking collapse, her situation was dire.