Chapter 20: Upgrade Card

Zhao Kuo now had two intermediate treasure chests and Yor's gift box in his possession.

One of the intermediate chests was synthesized from three ordinary chests. He wondered if three intermediate chests could be combined into an advanced chest in the future, potentially yielding even better items.

Zhao Kuo checked the timer, waiting for his Luck Points to recharge.

Finally, the Luck Points reached the 100% mark, and without hesitation, Zhao Kuo decided to open the chests.

Tang Yingying, who was beside him, looked at him with some confusion. Everyone had their secrets, and since Zhao Kuo hadn't probed into hers, she saw no need to pry into his.

It was an unspoken understanding.

Zhao Kuo opened the first intermediate chest.

[Wooden Planks x50]

[Iron Sheets x100]

[Parts x80]

[Glass x80]

[Primary Fertilizer x4]

[Gunpowder x5]

[Mercury x1]

[Subway Coins x20]

[Congratulations! You've obtained an ultra-rare item: Bathroom Blueprint x1 (One-time use)]

A lot of items popped out, but the ultra-rare item turned out to be a bathroom blueprint. To be honest, it felt a bit underwhelming. Water was incredibly scarce now, and due to the extreme cold, Tang Yingying's water condenser had become less efficient. Using water for bathing was practically a luxury.

Setting the blueprint aside, Zhao Kuo continued to open the next chest.

[Wooden Planks x200]

[Glass x200]

[Colored Glass x50]

[Hard Bones x2]

[Pork Chops (500g) x5]

[Revolver Bullets x10]

[Subway Coins x15]

[Congratulations! You've obtained an ultra-rare item: Toilet Blueprint x1 (One-time use)]

Zhao Kuo was momentarily stunned. First a bathroom, now a toilet? Was he really going to turn his subway into a three-bedroom, two-living-room, one-kitchen, one-bathroom apartment?

Scratching the back of his head, he set the blueprint aside and opened the gift box he was most looking forward to.

[Yor's Gift]

Both Tang Yingying and Gu Shan had obtained useful items from theirs.

Tang Yingying got an electric treadmill, which was now installed next to the generator. The two of them would run on it whenever they had free time since free attributes were always welcome.

Gu Shan received a helmet that increased head protection and reduced headshot damage—both incredibly useful items.

Zhao Kuo wondered what he would get. With his Luck Points maxed out, he should be able to get something good, right?

Under his expectant gaze, the gift box slowly opened.

[Congratulations! You've obtained a rare item: One-time Item Upgrade Card]

A one-time item upgrade card? Zhao Kuo held the card in his hand and checked its properties.

[One-time Item Upgrade Card]

[Upgrades any item without consuming the corresponding materials.]

This was amazing! Zhao Kuo's eyes lit up. He had quite a few valuable items on his subway, such as the generator, refrigerator, rice field, and even Tang Yingying's water condenser—all worthy of upgrading.

Well, maybe not the refrigerator, since the temperature outside was now lower than inside the fridge.

But… Zhao Kuo scanned his surroundings and finally settled his gaze on the steam locomotive.

"What did you get?" Tang Yingying noticed Zhao Kuo's excitement and leaned over.

Zhao Kuo didn't hold back and showed her the upgrade card's properties.

Tang Yingying's eyes also lit up. "How are you so lucky? Are you cheating? Too bad it can't upgrade profession skills."

Upgrading profession skills—there might actually be a card for that someday.

Zhao Kuo didn't respond to Tang Yingying's comment. Instead, he pointed to the locomotive and said, "I want to upgrade the steam locomotive. A faster speed would benefit us more."

Their trains had merged, and the last car had been turned into a storage room, which slowed them down considerably.

Even with the steam locomotive, the subway's speed was maintained at 20 kilometers per hour, far surpassing players still pedaling manually. But Zhao Kuo was far from satisfied with this speed.

Tang Yingying didn't object and nodded. "Sure, I have no issues with that."

With that, she began studying the pork chops Zhao Kuo had obtained. For her, figuring out how to cook the pork chops was now the more pressing matter.

Zhao Kuo didn't hesitate and immediately chose to upgrade.

He hoped the upgraded locomotive would give him a pleasant surprise.

As the upgrade began, a notification sounded in his ear.

[Player has activated the trait: Fate Manipulation. Current progress: 1/10]

Zhao Kuo was momentarily stunned, then remembered the [Fate Manipulation] trait he had obtained during Yor's game when he encountered that unknown entity. So, consuming Luck Points counted as manipulating fate and could earn him points.

After reaching 10 points, he would receive a reward.

But that entity he encountered at the end… Zhao Kuo shook his head. After leaving the game, he had thoroughly checked his body and found no damage.

He had initially wanted to ask Yor about it, but the puppet told him Yor was meeting with an important guest and had no time.

Yor would come to him later to fulfill his promise.

As Zhao Kuo pondered, the locomotive finished upgrading.

[Experienced Steam Locomotive]

[A steam locomotive with a sense of history, having witnessed the glory of the industrial revolution and the smoke of countless wars. Its scars are the indelible medals of this brave warrior.]

[Moderately increases train speed and carrying capacity. Requires wooden planks or charcoal as fuel.]

[Hourly consumption: 20 wooden planks or 4 charcoal]

[Speed increase: 40 kilometers per hour]

[Carrying capacity increase: 200 kilograms]

Seeing the locomotive's stats nearly double, Zhao Kuo couldn't help but laugh.

Although resource consumption had increased, a speed of 40 kilometers per hour meant he could reach the next station in just over two days!

At this stage, no one would be able to catch up to him.

Zhao Kuo tossed 40 pieces of charcoal into the locomotive to maintain the train's speed.

Under the weight of the cargo, the subway's speed was reduced to 38 kilometers per hour, but that was still more than enough.

He figured Gu Shan should be nearing the abandoned station by now. With the steam locomotive, Zhao Kuo no longer had to worry about his speed.

As for the charcoal, Tang Yingying's nearly limitless supply meant they no longer had to be as frugal as before.

In just two or three days, things had changed dramatically.

Zhao Kuo looked out at the snow-covered landscape, feeling the warmth from the stove, and nodded with satisfaction.

Just then, Tang Yingying picked up the blueprints from the floor and said, "Let's build the toilet and bathroom!"