Chapter 15 Natural Disaster 3

Chapter 15 Natural Disasters 3

Suddenly, Su Han heard a strange noise.

"Mmmph, mmmph!" It sounded like someone was being forcibly muffled.

"Quick, take him away!" Although the voice was deliberately lowered, it was still audible.

Then there was a rustling sound.

Su Han's instincts screamed danger. She suddenly remembered a question—since volunteer work was issued by the system, did that mean those standing guard on the roadside were definitely players?

At this moment, someone was conspiring to commit a crime, clearly intending to kidnap and extort!

Through the dense fog, Su Han couldn't see how many people were on the other side or what their plans were. To avoid trouble, she hurried away, feigning ignorance.

The next day, the fog enveloping the island thickened further.

On the third day, visibility worsened.

However, Su Han was living quite comfortably and was unaffected. To avoid drawing the attention of her bamboo house co-tenants, she would go to the beach to collect seafood every day at dawn.

Once her bucket was full, she set aside some for her meals and sold the remainder. Because her prices were fair and the food was delicious, her stall attracted many daily customers, and she effortlessly earned three to four hundred shells daily.

Her meals cost her nothing, and for cleaning, she only needed to buy two bars of soap from the supermarket for 10 shells. By the game's fourth day, Su Han had not touched her Portable Storage supplies and had amassed 1,000 shells.

To pass the level, she needed to survive 20 days and had already paid five days' rent at 50 shells per day. She needed to save 750 shells for the remaining fifteen days' rent.

So she went to the pharmacy, intending to spend the 250 shells. However, when she arrived, a quarrel broke out in the store.

A burly male customer, his voice gruff and face fierce, was clearly angry, "Alright, I get it, I arrived late."

"I arrived early in the morning on the second day, and you told me the transport ship had an accident and couldn't deliver the goods on time, forcing me to wait another day."

"On the third day, you said for some reason the transport ship still hadn't arrived, and I had to keep waiting."

"It's the fourth day now! Still no stock is unacceptable!"

"Sometimes I think you're just toying with me!"

The salesclerk looked utterly miserable, her face as sour as a bitter melon, "I'm not lying to you, the transport ship still hasn't arrived, and I'm going crazy!"

Fearing the customer's disbelief, she quickly explained, "There's no pharmaceutical factory on our island. The goods we sell are usually delivered by the transport ship. Normally, the ship comes every two days. But this time, for some reason, it hasn't come for several days."

"I don't believe a word of it!" The male customer snorted coldly, unwilling to believe her.

Su Han's heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly had a bad premonition—the transport ship might have been delayed for some reason, or perhaps... it would never come...

"I..." The salesclerk felt like she had a mouthful of words but couldn't explain. But what could she do if the ship didn't come? She couldn't just conjure up the medicine!

"Excuse me," Su Han interrupted their conversation forcefully, her expression unusually serious, "Is the transport ship specifically for delivering medicine? Or does it transport all the goods on the island?"

The salesclerk reluctantly answered, "All the daily necessities on the island are transported by it..."

Su Han's heart sank. Sure enough. She didn't care about anything else and immediately ran to the supermarket.

The male customer didn't react immediately, still muttering to himself, "How can someone just interrupt like that? And then run off without saying a word? So rude."

Suddenly, he realized something was off, "What if the transport ship doesn't come later, and the pharmacy runs out of stock? Then wouldn't the supermarket also..." "That's right," the salesclerk pursed her lips and nodded in agreement.

"What the hell!" The male customer jumped in shock and rushed out of the pharmacy.

On the other side, Su Han hurried towards the supermarket, finally understanding the nature of this dungeon.

The island she was on wasn't self-sufficient; all daily necessities were imported by transport ships. The fog, while not lethal, could still cause accidents, but it had effectively isolated the island from the outside world!

Most people were living their lives blissfully unaware that disaster was imminent.

The supermarket was probably surviving on its existing stock. But without timely restocking, it wouldn't last more than a few more days.

Once, Su Han genuinely believed that the daily announcement of the inflation rate by the system was terrifying. Just by calculating the prices, ordinary people couldn't help but panic. What was even scarier was that as days went by, people were sinking deeper into despair, edging closer to hell with no hope in sight.

But now she realized that the calm surface could suddenly give way to a survival crisis, which was just as frightening. At least now, she still felt the impact, unable to calm down for quite some time.

Soon, the supermarket was in sight.

Without hesitation, Su Han entered and embarked on a massive shopping spree. Originally, she planned to save some money for accommodation, but now she decided to spend it all. When there's no food or drink, accommodation fees could be covered with a piece of bread or a bottle of water.

Although her Portable Storage was already full, it didn't curb Su Han's desire to hoard. However, it was only then she noticed that the supermarket's stock of food and daily necessities was running low. A couple of people were quietly clearing the shelves, clearly sensing something was wrong.

Su Han pretended everything was normal, grabbing 20 bars of soap, 20 bottles of water, and then indulging in chocolates, various candies, biscuits, and small cakes. For daily necessities, she picked towels, toothpaste, facial cleanser, air freshener, perfume, and toothbrushes.

In fact, she really wanted to stockpile all the soap. Unfortunately, the soap was limited, so she had to settle for other items.

After some careful calculation, 20 bars of soap along with other daily necessities would last until the end of the second dungeon; 20 bottles of water plus the milk from her talent would ensure sufficient drinking water; various snacks were easy to carry, and with the bread from her talent, she could ensure she stayed full without negative effects.

After the massive shopping spree, Su Han was left with only 100 shells, feeling satisfied as she returned to her bamboo house.

At exactly 9 a.m., the system's mechanical voice announced, "Day 4, the fog has spread further. Due to poor air quality, people are highly susceptible to rhinitis. (Those with cleanliness > 80 will be immune.)"

At the same time, three bottles of milk, a Pork Floss Cream Bread, and a chocolate cake appeared in her Portable Storage.

Su Han sighed, lamenting, "Once people start hoarding daily necessities, the supermarket won't last long."

Shaking her head, she stopped overthinking and started steaming crabs.

On the fourth day of the game, collecting seafood on the beach had become increasingly difficult. Many people, upon hearing the news, came to compete, and the crowd kept growing, while the seafood washed ashore was decreasing day by day.

For example, this morning, Su Han spent a lot of effort and time to finally fill half a bucket. She originally planned to rush to the pharmacy to buy medicine and then continue, but now she had completely lost the mood.

Su Han nibbled on the steamed crab, thinking that survival games were indeed tough, full of pitfalls.

If someone let their guard down due to the comfortable life of the past few days, they might be in big trouble later. Even she had a moment of illusion, thinking there was no rush to convert currency into supplies, since natural disasters didn't affect the supermarket's operation. But now... she just wanted to laugh.

It's just that people living in a stable environment for a long time tend to let their guard down, thinking the current peace will last forever. But whether they like it or not, the crisis will come.

"Hey, eating?" someone greeted.

Su Han looked up and saw it was her roommate, Xiao Yanxue. She was about 25 or 26, seemingly just graduated from college, and her room was next to Su Han's.

The second floor of the bamboo house had four rooms, with the other two currently empty. So, only the two of them were in the bamboo house.

"Want to try some?" Su Han offered.

"How could I?" Xiao Yanxue said, but she sat down without hesitation.

"It's fine, I can't finish it all by myself," Su Han said indifferently.

With so many supplies hoarded, she didn't mind sharing the seafood she collected as a gesture of goodwill.

As she ate, Xiao Yanxue chatted idly, "Where are you from? Why are you staying in a bamboo hut?"

Su Han thought to herself, is this person an NPC or a player? She’s eating my crab and interrogating me like it’s a census—what’s the deal with that?

Outwardly, she kept her cool and casually replied, "I just graduated from university and am backpacking. After all, there won’t be much free time once I start working."

Banking on the fact that she had only graduated a year ago and still looked young, Su Han made up the story on the spot.

"I see," Xiao Yanxue said, lowering her eyes. She thought this person must indeed be an NPC. In a survival game, what player would complain about having too much food and actually invite others to share?

"What about you?" Su Han shot back.

Xiao Yanxue hesitated for a moment, then brushed off the question casually, "I had a disagreement with my family and came out to find some peace."

So she ran away from home, which is why she’s alone, living in some cheap bamboo hut? It sounded like a solid story.

Su Han thought, if it weren’t for this girl showing up to mooch off her meals all the time, she might’ve bought it. But Xiao Yanxue usually acted like she was rationing supplies straight out of a post-apocalyptic novel—clearly a player. No matter how smooth her story was, it wasn’t fooling anyone.

But knowing didn’t really change anything for Su Han—it was the same as not knowing. Because she always treated online games as single-player games. She wasn’t looking to team up with anyone, or backstab or scam them—she just wanted to live her quiet little life.

After finishing her meal, Xiao Yanxue casually mentioned, "You should stock up on supplies and food in your room these days."

"Hmm, why?" Su Han pretended to be clueless.

Xiao Yanxue said nonchalantly, "The fog is getting thicker. Stocking up in your room means you won't have to go out often. What if you get hit by a car when you go out?"

Su Han nodded, "Yeah, that’s smart."

As she got up to leave, Xiao Yanxue slightly curled her lips, her smile very faint.

Su Han touched her chin, feeling that her roommate seemed quite considerate. Having eaten her food, she still knew to give a reminder.

Author's note: Su Han: I always treat online games as single-player games.

Author: Actually, me too...

System: Hehe.