Chapter 16: Boom

Of course, plenty of survivors still hated him or wanted revenge, but he wasn't about to reveal his island's location in the Arcane Ice Sea.

The pitch-black waters were protection enough.

Within three seconds of posting, Logan's private chat window exploded with "Ding Ding Ding" alerts. Simultaneously, the trading interface showed a flurry of exchanges as people scrambled for his supplies. Those who missed out wailed in frustration.

He didn't immediately remove anything from his personal inventory to deliver. Instead, he focused on the huge batch of friend requests.

Logan had a different system for "friends": each applicant listed their offer and demands up front. If their terms intrigued him, he would add them, and only then would they discuss the final deal. If not, they were ignored.

After a swift mental triage, Logan picked twenty-seven applicants out of more than three thousand. These twenty-seven had the best trades—and since his supply of certain items was limited, he couldn't serve everyone anyway.

For two hours, he hammered out trades with those twenty-seven people. When he finished, the resources he'd gained made him grin from ear to ear.

He had everything he wanted, except for the right rank of monster tendon:

He gave an exasperated laugh, staring at twelve buttons in his hand. All this time, he'd been fixated on treasure chests for clothing materials, forgetting that the "people" teleported to this world came wearing different outfits.

These twelve buttons—snipped from some clothes—were bright royal blue, a color the game recognized as a valid crafting material.

His biggest triumph came from snagging more than twelve thousand Floating Stones—nearly thirteen thousand, in fact.

He also got around seven hundred Universal Metal Sheets. He had picked up a variety of new blueprints too, though a quick scan left him both amused and frustrated:

D-rank Sock Crafting Blueprint x8

Materials: "D-rank Vine Silk x0.5, Cotton x0.2."

(Socks fit men or women, offer athlete's-foot prevention and sweat-wicking properties, and are durable.)

D-rank Large Bath Bucket Crafting Blueprint x3

Materials: "D-rank Wood x3 or Normal Wood x1000, Dark Iron x2 or Refined Iron x200."

(A big, comfortable tub with thermal properties. Enough room for two people to bathe together—fun times!)

D-rank Boiler Crafting Blueprint x1

Materials: "Dark Iron Element x3, Diamond Block x5, Fire Spirit Stone x1, Golden Spirit Stone x1."

(Allows cooking B- to S-rank meat, increasing flavor. Durability depends on the Fire Spirit Stone's energy, which depletes 1–30% per use but can be replenished.)

D-rank Hairpin Crafting Blueprint x1

Materials: "D-rank Aquamarine x1, Universal Metal Sheet x1, Gem x3."

(Lets a woman pin up her hair. Worn daily, it grants Luck +1, FaceLikeJade +2, and MentalPower +2. Can be used as a discreet weapon.)

D-rank Glasses Crafting Blueprint x3

Materials: "Glass Crystal x1, Plastic x2."

(Helps people with poor eyesight see 1–10% better than average. Does nothing for people with normal vision—apart from looking stylish.)

Logan shook his head. It wasn't surprising that nobody wanted to trade away high-level weapon designs or advanced gear. Most of these were "fun" or comfort items. He was lucky to get two B-rank blueprints and a rare piece of an S-rank blueprint:

Two were for weapons, but he hadn't had time to read them in detail. The third was a partial blueprint for an S-rank water purifier. Only one-third of it was complete, so the listed materials were impossible to gather right now. He sighed, wishing the "system" in his mind could fill in the gaps. But no—the "Survival Games World" worked in its own cryptic way.

Refocusing, Logan spent a large chunk of resources to build three sturdy, oversized cabins. By the end of construction, he'd nearly run out of wood. Next, he built a crafting table, then used the [Four-Piece Clay Paper Set on Down Bed x1] and some linen to make new clothes. He crafted three sets of linen outfits so he wouldn't have to keep re-wearing his ragged hospital gown. It felt liberating to finally have proper clothing.

With the day's biggest tasks done, he organized his supplies, distributing them among the three cabins:

One cabin for water, food, and seeds.

Another for large numbers of blueprints and raw materials.

The last one for Floating Stones, Spirit Stones, and weapons.

As for himself, Logan decided to remain in his original thatched hut.

Though he hadn't slept in a real bed for days, at least the stone floor was smooth enough for a blanket, and wearing fresh linen clothes felt downright luxurious compared to most survivors.

Just after midnight, Logan felt the island tremble beneath him. The rumbling jarred him awake, making him sit up immediately.

"Boom… Boom!" came the distant thunder-like sounds.