Chapter 2 · Volume 1

The BUG Physique (2)

These stats were far better than those of the four initial choices.
It ran on electricity, had high endurance, a massive storage capacity, and even infinite durability.
A blessing in disguise.
Cheng Shuili looked at the brand-new shopping cart before her. LED lights flashed on the basket, and it even came with a small loudspeaker that played on a loop: "Lejiale Supermarket, fifty percent off everything... Lejiale Supermarket, fifty percent off everything..."
Wait...
Cheng Shuili fell silent for two seconds. She wanted to say something but found herself speechless. A moment later, she grinned.
"Whatever, at least it's electric."
She hopped onto the shopping cart and pressed the acceleration button. Amidst the hypnotic advertising of "fifty percent off everything," she sped off down the highway.
The highway was wide, and the voice shouting "fifty percent off everything" echoed through the entire space. Cheng Shuili opened her panel, her lips twitching as she looked through the data.
【Player: Cheng Shuili】
【ID: AAAJCCJ8888】
【Username: To be set】
【Vehicle: “Supermarket Promotion Special” Electric Shopping Cart (Current Battery: 1000%)】
【Health: 1 (A human with an incredibly poor physical constitution. Long-term overtime, irregular sleep patterns, and a diet of unhealthy food. ...Wait? How have you not died from sudden cardiac arrest yet?)】
Cheng Shuili: "Thanks for the invite. I just revived from one."
And what was with the 1000% battery? Was that another BUG?
She continued scrolling down.
【Strength: 1 (Weakling)】
【Stamina: 1 (Sister, have you ever even moved? Do you pant just going up the stairs?)】
【Agility: 1 (Can run, but not fast.)】
【Overall Combat Power: 0 (The first 0 in the survival world)】
【Supplies: None】
【Congratulations to player Cheng Shuili for achieving the 'Weakest Newbie' achievement. You have obtained the unique title: Noob's Salvation. Would you like to make a server-wide announcement?】
【Title 'Noob's Salvation' Equipping Effect: Stabilizes Health at 60, eliminates the possibility of sudden cardiac arrest, and raises all attribute points to the level of a normal human. Equip?】
Cheng Shuili: "?"
What? Weakest newbie? Noob's Salvation?
She grinned. The name of the title was indeed terrible, but the buffs were excellent! She chose to equip it immediately.
The moment it took effect, Cheng Shuili clearly felt herself come back to life. All her attributes had risen to 20. Not bad at all.
This was the first title in the entire server.
Cheng Shuili liked to show off, but she didn't like doing it under her real name.
She set her username to "Angry Crow Takes Flight" before choosing to announce it.
【Congratulations to player Angry Crow Takes Flight for obtaining the first server-wide title. Players, please act quickly to obtain supplies and strive to survive!】
Cheng Shuili squinted, looking at the announcement with a smile. Only then did she notice the chat channel below. Most people were still in a state of confusion, while a small portion were asking how to get a title.
"Wait? It just started. How did they get an achievement already?"
This was the confused type.
"Angry Crow Takes Flight? I'm Elephant Kicks! Rounding up, we're basically long-lost relatives! Big boss, please carry me!"
This was the relative-claiming type.
"What the hell is going on? Where is this? I don't want to play some survival game! I want to go back to my 9-9-6 job!"
This was the mental breakdown type.
Cheng Shuili's lip curled. Realizing the channel lacked useful information, she decisively closed it.
She drove the electric shopping cart at high speed down the highway. The "fifty percent off everything" advertisement repeated endlessly, echoing across the empty road. Under the dark red sky, the highway wound toward the horizon like a long gray snake.
This godforsaken place had no signs of human life or man-made structures, except for the road beneath her feet.
She traveled for two hours. During the so-called bonus period where no monsters would appear, Cheng Shuili saw nothing. Looking at the chat channel, quite a few people had already found supply crates. Although the items inside were few, they were at least food.
The sun wasn't particularly harsh, but it was still draining.
Cheng Shuili looked up, shading her eyes with her palm. Peering through the gaps in her fingers at the sun hanging in the sky, she squinted as she lowered her hand. About a hundred meters ahead, on the right side of the highway, was a black, square object.
As she got closer, the outline of the object became clear.
It was a wooden box, about half a meter tall. The surface was slightly worn, and there was a clear opening at the top.
【Wooden supply crate discovered. Open it?】
The system prompt popped up right on time.
A supply crate!
Cheng Shuili braked, and the advertisement abruptly stopped.
She jumped off the cart and cautiously circled the box. She couldn't tell anything from the surface; whether it contained monsters or supplies could only be determined by opening it.
"According to the rules, supply crates can contain surprises or scares..." Cheng Shuili rubbed her chin in thought. "But it's the novice protection period, so the probability of a scare is reduced..."
"Tsk," she clicked her tongue impatiently.
What a joke.
What was she hesitating for?
Who plays a highway survival game and doesn't open supply crates? Was she waiting to die of thirst or hunger?
Cheng Shuili had no other choice!
She took a deep breath, but before opening it, she took a step back. She returned to the shopping cart to rummage around. The cart was almost empty, but she should be able to dismantle its parts.
Cheng Shuili felt around the bottom of the cart until her fingers brushed against a loose metal pipe. It was one of the support rods for the basket; removing it wouldn't affect the vehicle's structure.
She gave a hard yank. With a crisp 'crack,' she forcibly snapped off a metal pipe about sixty centimeters long.
"Not bad, fits the hand well."
Cheng Shuili weighed the pipe, turned, and walked back to the supply crate. Gripping the pipe with both hands, she used the tip to violently pry open the lid, then immediately retreated three steps.
A yellow and green furball launched itself out of the box, splatting directly onto Cheng Shuili's face.
She scrambled to pull the slimy creature off, but the thing was soft and squishy. She couldn't shake it off, and it even tried to crawl into her nostrils.
"Ugh, what the hell is this thing!"
She gripped the disgusting mass tightly, finally catching it, and hurled it to the ground.
The monster hit the ground with a 'splat.' It wiggled a few times before slowly crawling toward her. It looked a bit like the slimes often seen in anime; it appeared completely non-threatening and even slightly cute.
Cheng Shuili wasn't about to be fooled by its appearance. That disgusting sensation from moments ago still lingered. She raised the metal rod from the shopping cart and delivered a brutal blow!
The slime instantly split apart. Its body flickered a few times like a crashing program before disappearing with a 'poof' into a puddle of green slime, completely motionless.
【Congratulations to player Cheng Shuili for achieving the server-wide first kill. You have obtained the unique title: First Slayer. Would you like to make a server-wide announcement?】
【Title 'First Slayer' Equipping Effect: All attributes +10. Equip?】
【As the first player in the server to kill a monster, you are rewarded with: silver chest ×1】
Cheng Shuili panted, looking at the silver chest that had dropped from the sky, then at the metal pipe in her hand stained with eerie slime. She suddenly burst into laughter. "Hahaha... this is way more exciting than working overtime!"
She finally felt a true sense of reality in this apocalyptic survival world!
To this, Cheng Shuili's response was: awesome.
Even if she died here, even if she starved or was eaten by monsters, she would never go back to writing code and fixing those mountains of garbage!

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