Chapter 42

Chapter 42

"Indeed."

No longer was it the dilapidated and peculiar vehicle it once was; its body had been extended to resemble a standard car with a backseat and a full trunk, its chassis raised, and the interior now boasted a uniform dark brown leather upholstery.

The staff member smiled as he stepped out of the car, holding the door open in an inviting gesture. "The upgrade was very successful. I hope the guest appreciates these changes."

Ji Xinghai tapped on the glass and the body of the car, which seemed even more robust after the reinforcement, but the alterations inside were even more significant.

The seats and the entire cockpit were now ergonomically designed for greater comfort and efficiency. The display showed both the inside and outside temperatures, the car's horsepower had increased, and it now featured a dashcam, a rearview camera, air conditioning, and a small night light. The fuel tank capacity had also expanded.

He guessed that after the upgrade, the car could travel further on a gallon of gasoline, but that would have to be tested on the road.

The spectators outside the testing grounds were equally excited; this was the first car to undergo a comprehensive upgrade.

Although many students had successfully counterattacked monsters the previous night, they had only received wooden treasure chests, containing basic car upgrade cards.

This was somewhat odd, considering how quickly the Skinwalker died and its lack of distinction in legend. Why did Ji Xinghai receive a brass treasure chest?

Some speculated that it was because he was the first to defeat a boss, receiving a bonus for being the 'first clear' of the instance.

Others guessed that the Skinwalker, as a 'caster', was inherently powerful, but it met its match in Ji Xinghai, a glitch in the system, who defeated it before it could utilize any of its abilities.

Regardless, Ji Xinghai's rewards from defeating the monster were not skimmed by the loathsome Hungry Academy, allowing him to be the first to upgrade his vehicle.

"I'm very satisfied, thank you."

The staff member in blue revealed a row of white teeth. "This is just the most basic upgrade. Don't rush to reach your destination; the more you invest, the more you will gain."

"Thank you." Ji Xinghai expressed his gratitude again, this time for the hint.

He had always been a very polite person—when he was in a good mood.

The reinforced wheels rolled over the tracks left by the previous cars, leaving new patterns behind. Inside the testing grounds, the students entered a new 'safe loot time,' while the live streams across various countries fell silent.

Watching someone drive was indeed a dull affair, especially when the driver wasn't much of a talker, leaving viewers to stare at the scenery blurred by heat outside.

However, the newly introduced instant chat and trading function piqued their interest.

"The surface-level approach grows closer to that of a 'game,' yet beneath it lies a brutal dual elimination mode of monster disasters and human folly. The Hungry Academy is becoming increasingly adept at exploiting human weaknesses," humans, creatures easily deceived by appearances.

"Yes, the recent downtime of the students during the night barely sparked panic and a sense of crisis before more engaging features were introduced. Although the students are aware of the grave dangers lurking within this instance, human nature has a penchant for self-deception."

"I'm not sure if it's just my impression, but the distribution frequency of white resource boxes seems to have decreased. However, the appearance rate of blue resource boxes has slightly increased. Minister, please wait, we'll provide the data shortly."

Their primary subject of study was Ji Xinghai, not just in JiuZhou, but in many other countries as well.

There was no helping it; the deciding factor for other students when looting boxes was luck, but Ji Xinghai had never come up empty-handed. Using him as a benchmark was the most accurate method.

"Eliminate the interference caused by his route overlapping with other students' routes from the car motel to the car repair shop near the Y-junction. Compare the number, intervals, and difficulty of acquiring resource boxes under identical distances.

"The frequency of white resource boxes has dropped to sixty percent of what it originally was. Blue resource boxes appeared only once yesterday, and it was in a monster-infested area, making it less reliable for reference. However, one has already been discovered this morning, indicating an increase in frequency."

The golden 24 hours had passed, and the Hungry Academy was visibly increasing the game's difficulty, albeit still within the students' tolerable limits.

Thus, they continued to search for resource boxes. A minority of students, having tasted the sweet fruits of monster hunting, silently shifted their focus towards areas on the map where monsters might appear—resource boxes were unstable, but the income from defeating monsters was consistent.

A few officially dispatched students performed admirably, but others proved disappointing. They failed to capitalize on the advantage of daytime, when monsters couldn't actively attack, instead opting for an extremely conservative strategy.

"If these students still harbor侥幸hearts, believing that simply surviving will allow them to make it to the end like in the previous instance, they may not survive this one."

They watched the students on the video, struggling under the blazing sun to find resource boxes, and sighed softly. "If those who have started moving can rouse them, perhaps fewer will die."

"It's impossible. They're in competition with each other. There are only so many monsters and tickets available. If you get one more, I get one less."

"Sigh."

The decrease in white resource boxes and the emergence of blue ones were soon noticed by the students. Relying on luck, they could secure two or three boxes in the morning yesterday, but today, despite deliberately slowing down, some hadn't found a single resource box.

Lacking resource boxes meant no bread, water, gasoline, or car motel day passes, among other things. The students were finally growing restless, unsure of what to do.

Consequently, numerous voices filled the internal student channel: inquiries about other students' situations, speculations about dwindling resource boxes, pessimistic predictions of not surviving until the end, and shameless pleas for help.

All of this indicated that the assistance provided by resource boxes would diminish.

This led to a significant rise in prices for many items in private transactions, particularly food—tools could be shared, but meals couldn't.

Meanwhile, another change was causing concern: the temperature.

Yesterday, the highest temperature was 25°C, with partly cloudy skies and a gentle breeze, perfect weather for a drive. At night, it cooled down to 18°C, ideal for camping outdoors, ignoring the presence of monsters.

However, today, the temperature began to slowly climb after five o'clock, reaching 32°C, and it hadn't peaked yet.

As it remained within the human tolerance range, many students didn't pay attention, but some felt uneasy about the rapid temperature increase. If it continued, their cars would turn into ovens.

'Are they pushing students to upgrade their vehicles sooner?' Ji Xinghai parked his car by the roadside, munching on a pumpkin bread as he pondered. The sweet pumpkin filling soothed his taste buds, complemented by the milk he had acquired today, making for a delightful meal.

Although the number of resource boxes had decreased, their quality had improved. Yesterday, the white boxes contained only ordinary bread and water, but today, they yielded several stuffed breads and sandwiches, with water replaced by various functional beverages. Though the drinks weren't as useful as water.

The game was intentionally eliminating a portion of the students.

'Maybe upgrading the vehicle isn't enough.' Ji Xinghai added mentally. For today, the blue resource box he obtained contained a small portable car refrigerator, capable of storing a limited amount of food.

The game wouldn't give out anything without value. Ji Xinghai suspected that the bread, drinks, and water from the resource crates would only last for two to three days, especially in this weather where temperatures were rising. Food without preservatives would spoil faster.

Eating moldy food carried risks like diarrhea.

Apart from refrigerators, using air conditioning could also extend the shelf life of food to some extent, making upgrading the car's electrical system a necessity.

This required only a Basic Car Upgrade Card.

Some people had already realized this, causing the price of Basic Car Upgrade Cards within the channel to skyrocket.

Without upgrading their vehicles, they couldn't enjoy air conditioning, and driving in a steamer-like car was no fun. If the temperature continued to rise and there was still no air conditioning, heatstroke would be imminent. In the scenario, this was akin to Death paying a visit.

Aware students were playing dumb, trading food that couldn't be stored long or items of little use for Basic Car Upgrade Cards and Fuel Cards.

Exploiting the information gap, they actually managed to obtain these items that would soon be scarce.

Uninformed students were still laughing and joking, at most complaining about their bad luck in finding only one resource crate in the morning.

They didn't even know what the night would bring, thinking it was just an easy game.

Or perhaps they knew but instinctively avoided the grim reality.

"How dare they exploit the information gap to plunder others' resources at a time like this! These people have gone too far!" The audience from the country of the exploited student couldn't contain their surging anger.

They were from a weak nation, both in reality and in the scenario. After multiple abnormal natural disasters, most people's mental health values were nearing dangerous levels, on the verge of losing control. Yet, despite life being so hard, the strong were further squeezing their resources.

"What global cooperation? It's all a lie. Those powerful countries never took us seriously. Keeping their intelligence to themselves is one thing, but using it to harm our students? Are they doing it on purpose, or are they wary of our students?"

"No, the strong nations are wary of other strong nations, not us who are vastly inferior."

"Ji Xinghai from JiuZhou didn't participate in this."

"Forget it, he just can't see it, just like those young masters in reality who are forever 'blind' to people like us. The arrogance of the elite, tsk tsk."

Inside the scenario.

'Does the Hungry Academy want to boil these ordinary students like frogs, slowly cooking them to death?'

Ji Xinghai stroked his chin with his index finger: Was following someone else's playbook too boring? Games should be lively. It wasn't fun to be unbeatable alone; unexpected twists were more entertaining.

He looked at his original ID 'Ji Xinghai' on the internal channel, pondered for a moment, and tapped on the speaking bar.

'It seems we've been targeted by setting the defeated monsters as inedible plushies.'

'Sabotaging others' happiness should be punished by heaven.'

'Ah, I want to see the mastermind's smile freeze on their face.'

One minute later.

"The High Score Classroom is now in session!

"Question 1: What happened last night, and why did so many students disconnect?

"Answer: Staying outside the car motel at night will encounter Western monsters. These monsters mostly originate from Western legends, with some elements borrowed from movies and TV shows. To deal with these monsters, you can refer to traditional Western exorcism methods or tactics seen in films. Additionally, fighting monsters comes with surprises."

"Question 2: Why is the market for Car Upgrade Cards booming?

"Answer: Today's temperature has risen nearly 10°C compared to yesterday. We're unsure about the nights yet, but suspect that the coming days will be unbearably hot. I recommend everyone upgrade their car's electrical system quickly to get air conditioning. It might also be wise to upgrade other components, as the weather will become increasingly bizarre, possibly including extreme conditions like hail, hurricanes, and torrential rain."

"Question 3: What is the top priority?

"Answer: First, try to acquire as many resource crates as possible while preserving your food and keeping track of dates. No expiration date might mean it doesn't expire, but it could also mean it spoils quickly. Second, if you have a Car Motel Day Pass, check into a safe shelter before dark. If not, consider finding nearby familiar scenes – familiar means you have over a 60% confidence in predicting what monster might appear here and knowing its weakness."

"Fate doesn't always favor the brave, but opportunities certainly wait for the prepared.

"Wish you good luck on your test.

"– Ji Xinghai"