Hearing Zachary Pierce mention the Dungeon, Faye Yardley noticed there were only 41 minutes left until the system said it would open. 'Wait, did I really spend that much time just looking at the public channel and organizing my things?'
She opened the system's Dungeon page. As expected, everything was grayed out and unusable. However, in the bottom-right corner of her screen, it still showed [Dungeon 1 Fragment 2/4, collect all to unlock.]
"Mr. Pierce, I checked. My interface is grayed out too. We probably just have to wait for the timer. I'm going to trade for some things first."
"Okay. Let me know what you're missing at the end."
Seeing Zachary Pierce's message, Faye Yardley was certain he must already have a team. Otherwise, how could he guarantee he'd have whatever she was missing?
'How nice.' Faye Yardley hoped that one day, she too would have a group of partners she could trust to watch her back.
'Huh, I have a Small Group Chat Coupon.'
Even though she didn't have any partners yet, Faye Yardley never considered giving the coupon to Zachary Pierce or trading it away. She simply clicked to use it herself. A small group chat appeared next to the public channel, currently with only one member: the owner.
It really was small. The maximum number of members was 10.
Faye Yardley immediately pulled Zachary Pierce, Leo Sloan, and the two trustworthy players she had traded with before, Bonnie Callahan and Wade Warren, into the group.
Faye Yardley: Hello everyone, I just made a group. I ask that all members be trustworthy. Group functions are yet to be explored.
Bonnie Callahan: Oh my god, you can make groups? How did you do it, can you tell us? I can't find the option to create one.
Wade Warren: It must be an item or something. This game doesn't have a feature to create groups unconditionally. Thanks for the opportunity to be a group member, Admin. I'll take a look at the group functions in a bit.
Bonnie Callahan: Admin, I have the Oil you need. But I'm not short on food. What can you offer?
Faye Yardley was writing a group announcement listing the items she needed. Seeing the mention of Oil and that Bonnie Callahan didn't seem to need anything else, she said: Give me 2 Oil and 4 wood, and I'll make a torch for you.
Bonnie Callahan quickly sent a designated Red Envelope in the group chat. Faye Yardley accepted it and found it contained enough materials for four torches.
With nothing more to say, she placed the materials on the workbench and started crafting torches. A finished product appeared in just 30 seconds.
Faye Yardley also used a designated group Red Envelope to send two torches to Bonnie Callahan.
Then she collected the torches and put them in her backpack.
Just as she was about to check the Basic Body Refining Pill, she saw Leo Sloan ask in the group chat: Can 20 stones be traded for an Iron Axe?
Faye Yardley was thrilled. 'Perfect timing!' She quickly replied: Yes, yes.
After the Red Envelope trade was successful, Faye Yardley immediately used the Fireplace Blueprint on the wall opposite her workbench.
After a swirl of rolling mist, a square, rustic-looking fireplace appeared on the opposite wall, just as expected.
Fireplace: Fuel can be added (wood, charcoal, coal). A burning fireplace provides warmth, dispels darkness, and repels Sea Monsters that try to attack the raft.
Faye Yardley thought for a moment, then tossed a piece of wood into the fireplace. WHOOSH! A fire automatically flared up inside. She then discovered that a single piece of wood would only burn for 2 hours.
She moved her two-meter-long broadsword over the fireplace flames, then took out some Fish Meat and crab meat, placed it on the blade to grill, and sprinkled it with a little salt.
While waiting for the fish to cook, Faye Yardley took out the Basic Body Refining Pill. There was no special notification for it. It just looked like a large, unremarkable black sesame ball.
"How did the book describe this Body Refining Pill again? Ugh, I can't quite remember. I only recall that it randomly adds 1-3 attribute points."
After some thought, Faye Yardley took off her clothes and shoes, placing them on the wooden bed to the side. She then brought her wet clothes over, put them on the one wooden crate she hadn't dismantled, and moved it near the fireplace. 'The wet clothes should be dry in two hours, right?'
She popped the Body Refining Pill into her mouth. She had thought something so big would be hard to swallow, but to her surprise, it melted instantly into a liquid that slid down her throat.
Soon, Faye Yardley felt a pain like millions of ants gnawing at her.
She curled into a ball on the floor, her whole body breaking out in sweat.
Pain, pain, pain!
So painful!
It was a pain that made you want to roll around on the ground.
Just as the pain was about to make her pass out, Faye Yardley slammed her head against something and chanted inwardly: 'I can do this. I can do this. This little bit of pain is nothing. I can get through it. I definitely can!'
After the pain receded like a tide, Faye Yardley felt a sense of relief wash over her entire body. A warm current seemed to generate within her, instantly restoring her mind and body to normal.
However, she was drenched in sweat. Faye Yardley got up, walked out of her hut, and let the downpour wash over her, treating it like a shower.
After a minute, feeling she was clean, she quickly ran back inside. She dried herself with the cloth she had used to wrap her body before and swiftly put on her clothes and shoes.
When she checked again, the Fish Meat and crab meat on her broadsword were already SIZZLING, and the aroma of food filled the hut.
She took out her wooden tableware and used her chopsticks to flip the Fish Meat and crab meat.
Only then did she realize that not even five minutes had passed since she had taken the Body Refining Pill.
"System, display personal Attributes."
The holographic screen in front of her changed, and her personal Attributes appeared.
Talent: None
Constitution: 5+1 (You finally have the physical constitution of a normal adult)
Strength: 3+1 (The extra point of strength gives you the illusion that you can kill a tiger with one punch)
Agility: 7
Spirit: 7+1 (You can pull an all-nighter and still be full of energy)
Luck: 9
Charm: 8
Skills: None
Hunger Level: 67 (Max 100. If it drops to 0, you'll starve to death!)
Clenching her fist, Faye Yardley looked at the panel and scoffed. "I'm not that arrogant. I know my own limits, okay? If you had the guts to give me another 10 points at once, then maybe I'd get the illusion I could kill a tiger with one punch."
'Who is this system looking down on?'
But no matter what, she had already gotten stronger on the second day. 'I should be ahead of a lot of people, right?'
The broadsword really was great for grilling Fish Meat. She placed the cooked Fish Meat and crab meat onto a plate, then took out a bottle of Sprite and began her dinner.
Checking the time, she saw there were 26 minutes until the Dungeon opened. She quickened her pace of eating.
When there were only twenty minutes left, every player received a system notification: [Dear player, the trial Dungeon will open in 20 minutes. Please prepare for entry. We wish all players a pleasant experience in the trial Dungeon.]
[Dear player, you have received a trial Dungeon team invitation. Accept?]
Seeing that the invitation was from Zachary Pierce, Faye Yardley selected "Yes."
Soon, she discovered that the Dungeon interface was no longer grayed out. Furthermore, the entrance to the trial Dungeon now showed two small figures standing side-by-side, holding hands.
"Mr. Pierce, what's your Strength like? Do you like using oversized weapons?"