Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Wasteland’s skies really did change as it pleased.
‘The game encompassed a large part of the world’s authority. Even controlling weather would be as easy as turning a wrist for the Almighty Su.
Just as every human player’s game panel exploded with notifications, the wide sky darkened ominously.
Rows upon rows of black clouds covered up every inch of the sky. What every survivor saw in their eyes was Armageddon!
It was clearly the eve they received their rewards, yet everyone felt uneasy at the spectacle that had materialized before them.
The good thing, however, was what happened after another ten seconds or so.
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A video that looked as if it was a live stream, even though it was not, popped up on everyone’s game panel.
In the beginning, there was nothing but a void of darkness, and nobody could tell where it was referring to.
As the dark skies cleared up, however, a stream of golden light hidden underneath revealed itself like blue skies after a heavy storm.
‘Wasteland was ina frenzy!
“Isn’t…Isn’t this the ocean region that Almighty Su was at that night?”
“Damn it, I can even see Hope One! Look!”
“The Almighty Su is so awesome! I’d give this grand entrance 109 points. I gave him an extra 9 points because he’s too smooth!”
“Could it be that the Almighty Su is going to reward us?! Excited +1!”
“Thanks to rewards and the Almighty Su, there’s a plus one for my happiness levels! Goddamn it, I’ll be blasting the bullet screen!”
Just like watching a movie, everyone calmed down their worries after realizing they could send comments onto the bullet screen. They all quietly took in the slow rendering of the visuals.
As the shot closed in, the golden light surged toward Hope One’s main deck.
However, not everyone was engulfed in the light.
‘What was ingenious was as everyone cast their sights on him, and as the chiaroscuro between him and his surroundings grew even more pronounced, Almighty Su stood up nearly instinctually.
“Hmm?”
Seemingly with a flicker of the mind, intrigue flashed across Su Mo’s face as he looked at the images popping out of the game panel.
Was the game trying to flatter him?
Were they gassing him up?
He did not ponder on the deeper meaning behind these actions. In the next moment, Su Mo had a subtle grin streak across his face.
Feeling the immensity of every human’s glare, he gently lifted his arm and waved his hand toward the sky. The magical thing was…
Boom!
Ashapeless shock wave suddenly burst forth!
The dark clouds looked as if they cowered beneath his immovable power and backed off obediently. Endless streams of golden light spilled out of the empty hole, gloriously shining on everyone’s bodies like they were painted in that color.
At the same time, the notification sounds of their long-accumulated rewards sent their game panels into a frenzy!
[Record]: Congratulations to all human faction players! Up until now, all of you have survived on Wasteland for: seventy natural days. The cumulative times a disaster was weathered: 6 times!
(Record): The sixth disaster has ended completely. The total death toll from this disaster: 3268943562 people.
[Record]: The current number of human survivors on Wasteland: 2410369966.
[Record]: It has been detected that the fatality rate has surpassed the forecast. Letting the humans in (52, 16). Placement will continue until the end of the seventh disaster.
[Record]: Through a friendly discussion between the game moderator and human player “Su Mo’, the game has decided to restart the ranking system. It has recalibrated how rankings are determined based on the human player’s strength. The following disasters will undergo adjustments to a certain extent
due to the new rankings. Thanks to all players for your support!
[Record]: Phase-1 “Wasteland” has entered the final stages. Phase-2 “Ocean” has entered the middle stages. Phase-3 “New World” is making its debut!
[Record]: The accompanying revamped New World “Real Survival” version will be installed in all regions during the game’s update. In the light of all human player’s excellent performances, the second edition update’s notice will be sent to every player’s panel after the rewards are all given out. Stay tuned.
[Record]: Congratulations to all human faction players that a Leader figure has prematurely emerged. All rewards will be increased by a margin of 25%.
[Record]: All players, prepare yourselves for the rewards that are about to be issued. The choice is final and there will be no chance to revise them!
‘Thump! Thump! Thump!
As if a heavy hammer was beating on a drum, waves of noise from unknown origins jolted vigorously within every player’s heart.
‘What came together was the rush of anxiety and anticipation. As the words “rewards granted” appeared, almost every player received a different prompt.
[Record]: Distribution of first platinum-level reward, “Forge Ahead’ begins!
[Record]: Please choose between the two rewards below within three minutes.
[Record]: Option one: Level up your shelter once
Range: One level
Note: If a player with a Complete Core chooses this option, their shelter will level up once instantly. Once placed, it will present itself as a Lv2 shelter.
If a player with a raft shelter chooses this option, it will automatically upgrade its raft form to Level 2. For example: wooden raft > wooden fishing boat; wooden fishing boat — small sailing ship;
If a player with a raft ferry chooses this option, it will automatically upgrade its level by one. For example: from normal-quality – good-quality; good-quality —- excellent-quality…
[Record]: Option two: You get another chance to reset your shelter core. Said chance lasts for 60 natural days before it expires;
Note: Players with a broken core can make use of this chance to reset to a complete core; players without cores can use this option to rebuild a complete core.
Beep!
All four notices came up simultaneously!
Compared to the gold-level rewards in the past, this reward named Forge Ahead was only at the first level. Yet, it was enough to put Wasteland ina frenzy.
“Quick, which one? Which one do we choose? Apparently, every part of the ferry needs to be upgraded for it to go up one level!”
“Then, what in the world are we waiting for? Of course, we should upgrade. After upgrading our good-quality ferry, we can start researching ways to improve oasis in the sea. Why in the hecking world should we head to the New World after this? What can be safer than floating around at sea every day?”
“That makes sense. Hurry, I’ve already made my choice. To those of you who haven’t made your choices, hurry up! If you don’t upgrade by then, we’ll kick you off the ferry immediately!”
“Damn, damn, damn, my core is actually repaired!”
“What use is there to repair it? The core that someone stole from me has returned to me! It feels so good!”
‘The three-minute deliberation time was very short, but for every survivor on Wasteland, more than ninety percent of them would have chosen within just the first minute.
All those who own raft ferries did not even hesitate to pick the first choice.
For them, this upgrade could be called—Road Ahead!
Today—more accurately, before the rewards were given out—all the survivors with raft ferries had been worrying about where to go from there, even though they were all grouped.
‘Was it better to forge toward the New World, to find support from a stronger shelter, or to continue their lone wolf lifestyle?
Even after getting tempered within Doomsday’s furnace for more than two months, there were still some so troubled that they could not eat or sleep well at all.
Nonetheless, by now, with good-quality ferries available, they all thoroughly figured out the direction in which they could take for the future.
Once the upgrades were done, this ‘Road Ahead’ connected all those with raft ferries tightly. They all banded together and announced that they formed a collective.
From then on, with said ferry alliance, it would be as though everyone grew a backbone. They were finally able to imagine a future with hope and desire for the better.
On the other side, for those who had lost or broken their cores, this upgrade can be called—New Life!
To some extent, most humans would start giving up on their reliance on the assistance provided by the game. Even so, humans still had to rely on the game’s functions to survive.
In the past, those without cores were sidelined and considered a burden. They were refugees who were not even qualified to settle down in raft ferries.
Once they got on the big ships, they would endure some differential treatment just because they did not have a core.
They would spend endless nights regretting how they failed to take care of their cores properly. Why did they have to underestimate something so precious, even if everyone had one?
Sadly, there were even some so weak-willed that they threw themselves into the ocean on those desolate nights!
Nevertheless, these people could now welcome a second life. They were given the right to restart and be able to stand on the same starting line as others.
Regarding this first reward, you could not claim that it was not bountiful!
Of course, these rewards were as enjoyable as meatless chicken ribs for people like Lu Yongyi. They did not need an upgraded core, nor an upgraded raft ferry.
‘Thus, by choosing to have another core, it could only be interpreted as getting more insurance.
“I choose—shelter upgrade!”
Su Mo stood on Hope One, whilst looking out and scanning all the miscellaneous voices of gratitude. Even though he knew what the rewards already were, he still felt touched.
‘Within the preview for lv5 and lv6 upgrades, there were many cumbersome conditions to fulfill.
It was the reason Magoo ended his life without upgrading anything.
By now, however, with just a light flicker in their intentions, the main page’s prompt had come to lv6 after the system’s rewards were all granted.
This unexplainable force really was the root of the game. Once deciphered, any insane envisionment could be realized.
‘The shelter had unlimited upgrades!
Needless to say, this conception was impossible for the now broke Su Mo. After some thought, it was left behind in the back of his mind.
[Record]: The distribution of the first platinum-level rewards has ended. All the players who have not made a choice will select Option Two by default, getting a complete core *1
[Record]: Distribution of the second platinum -level reward, “Ride Winds and Waves” begins!
[Record]: Please choose between the two rewards below within three minutes.
[Record]: Option One: Individual Enhancement
By picking this option, players get a one-time all-encompassing physical constitution property +2 reward. They also get an accompanying prize draw between a few selections.
‘The draw’s prizes will be calibrated according to where players are and their past game records.
The selections will have three different special abilities in which players can choose any one;
Note: These abilities are only auxiliary abilities like faster swimming speed, slower hunger speed, faster running speed, stronger impact, and more…
[Record]: Option Two: Vehicle Enhancement
By picking this option, players get to have their attributed vehicle undergo a certain degree of enhancement. For which direction and degree the enhancement will go, it will be randomly drawn from a range of values;
Note: Players will have to enhance every raft component in a raft ferry whereas a certain number of players are required to select the same option for it to make a difference in enhancing large vehicles.
[Record]: Option Three: Building Enhancement
By picking this option, players get to randomly name a building to undergo architectural enhancement.
Said enhancement determines a propertyless building enhancement. After the enhancement, the building will possess a series of miraculous subsidiary abilities.
Note: The larger the building, the more specialized the building’s type will be, the more convoluted the building’s properties will be, the harder it will be to undergo enhancement.
‘These were yet another three different options.
They took care of every player on Wasteland, from the elderly to the youth. This included those having ships of the line to those having small drifting wooden rafts, even The Clingers were accounted for.
Every player would go through specific types of enhancements based on the direction of their own choices.
“Everyone, choose Option One! Hope One doesn’t need any enhancement from you. On the building front, Hope One also doesn’t have any architecture worthy of enhancements!”
After glancing at the expectant sights of every crew below, Su Mo also decisively picked Option One.
Based on the current situation, your own body was your best capital.
For rewards that provided a range like this, any qualitative change was unlikely. Unless thousands of people chose the same thing to enhance, the reward would be wasted.
Su Mo observed the words on the bullet screen while observing the rather indecisive faces of the nearby ship crew.
With a pause, Su Mo focused his sights on the game panel’s left side, then sized up the game’s special ability selection.
“Hmm? I really didn’t think going through the game’s examination would be so rewarding… This… was truly a great surprise!”
