Chapter 59: The Alchemist Summoning Card

Gu Ning just wanted to curse. In this scorching weather, pulling out something like that—it felt like the Heavenly Mother was deliberately messing with him!

He turned to the final item, the one dropped by the last shark. Gu Ning had intentionally saved the best for last, hoping it wouldn't disappoint.

Check item info.

Alchemist Summoning Card (Purple): Use to summon an alchemist! Alchemists can brew various potions and even modify your troops. A vital profession for any territory!

"Holy crap! That's a jackpot!" Gu Ning was overjoyed!

Although he had a hunch, seeing that it was actually a purple-grade item still left him stunned.

At this stage, purple-grade items were equivalent to legendary gold for him!

And it was a summoning card. Based on past experience, his talent tended to yield more items of the same category after using one. He hoped he might even get another Hero Summoning Card.

He stored it away—for now, he'd wait until evening to use it!

For the rest of the day, Gu Ning alternated between participating in matches and crafting ice blocks.

By evening, after finishing dinner and with his mana still recovering, Gu Ning opened the chat channel—only to find people talking about him.

"Guys, what's going on with Big Shot Xia? Why isn't he even in the top 100?"

"Maybe he's not planning to participate in the Domain Duel?"

"Tch, I think he's just not strong enough. Look at Chuanxi Nai and Lico—both are top ten in survival and also top ten in arena rankings."

Some people were clearly questioning Gu Ning's strength.

"I've said it before—Gu Ning just got lucky. That's the only reason he's ranked first in survival. He's actually not strong at all."

That message was from Chuanxi Nai.

"I don't believe that at all. I fought Gu Ning once—he one-shotted me!"

A player who had previously encountered Gu Ning in the arena came forward to counter that claim.

"I doubt it too. Gu Ning is still first in survival points. And the second place is way behind him!"

Most people believed Gu Ning was indeed powerful, though a portion still sided with Chuanxi Nai.

After all, Gu Ning wasn't on the arena leaderboard.

"Gu Ning is strong. He'll definitely join the Domain Duel. He's just too busy to focus on rankings." That was from Lico.

Gu Ning wasn't surprised Lico spoke up—she was always active. But what did surprise him was Bai Xue chiming in too!

Their messages dropped like boulders into a lake—creating massive waves. The whole chat channel suddenly came alive!

"Don't underestimate Gu Ning. He must have his reasons for not being in the top ten."

"Whoa! Two of the top three arena goddesses are defending Gu Ning?!"

"Wait… do they have some kind of relationship with Big Shot Xia?"

"Scandal! The untold stories of Gu Ning and the top-tier beauties!"

"Lico and Gu Ning: A story you won't believe!"

"The love-hate triangle between Bai Xue, Lico, and Gu Ning!"

Watching the chat spiral wildly off-track, Gu Ning closed the channel with a deadpan expression.

Someone had brought up the Survival Points Leaderboard, and only then did Gu Ning realize he hadn't checked it in ages.

Since he was always in first place, he didn't pay it much attention.

But with rankings being published tomorrow, it was time to take another look.

Gu Ning opened the leaderboard—and saw a few interesting changes.

Survival Leaderboard:

1st: Gu Ning (2760)2nd: Bai Xue (1320)3rd: Lico (1210)4th: Danton (1111)5th: Ye Baifeng (1111)6th: Chuanxi Nai (1098)7th: James (1097)

Lico had overtaken Danton for third place. Seven of the top ten now had over 1000 points, meaning they weren't far from upgrading their tower ships.

Gu Ning, however, was miles ahead—more than double the second-place score! It was nearly impossible for them to catch up, unless some massive fortune fell into their laps.

But Gu Ning wasn't about to give them that chance. Tomorrow, he'd join the Domain Duel, and with his strength, he was bound to gain a ton. That meant another massive upgrade!

Which would only widen the gap even more.

Gu Ning understood one thing very clearly: unless something unexpected happened, this world belonged to the strong.

He closed the leaderboard and returned to crafting ice blocks. It wouldn't be long before people stopped buying them.

After all, Day Six was just a few hours away. Some would tough it out rather than spend precious white stones on ice.

Sure enough, as midnight approached, sales slowed to a halt. Seeing this, Gu Ning stopped crafting ice altogether.

After two more water deliveries by the civilians, Gu Ning told them to rest—no more deliveries tonight.

Then he sat down on the couch and began his usual crafting session.

First up: a luxury quilt crafting blueprint he had obtained from Wang Mu's trading list.

Luxury Quilt Crafting Blueprint (Green): Allows you to craft a soft, cozy quilt. Stay especially warm during the coldest of winters!

Looking at the blueprint, Gu Ning was reminded of the radiator blueprint he got earlier today.

He suddenly felt something wasn't right. Could the next disaster involve extreme cold?

That idea took root in his mind.

He searched the trading channel for keywords: "heat" and "cotton."

Search results:

Radiator Blueprint (White) ×1Cost: 100 White Stones

Thermal Plate (White) ×2Cost: 100 White Stones

Thermal Plate (White) ×1Cost: 60 White Stones

Quilt Blueprint (White) ×2Cost: 60 White Stones

Cotton Clothing Blueprint (White) ×3Cost: 30 White Stones

Heating Blanket (White) ×2Cost: 80 White Stones

…

Gu Ning's eyes lit up.

Just as I thought! Looks like his hunch was spot on.

He smiled to himself. That meant he could stock up now and make a fortune later!

Of course, it came with a risk—if something other than cold weather happened next, his hoarded goods might become worthless.

But then again, worst case, he'd just use them himself after establishing his territory. It would only be a short-term financial loss.

Having thought it through, Gu Ning checked his white stone balance—he still had a little over 10,000.

He kept 2,000 in reserve and used the remaining 8,000+ to go on a shopping spree.

He bought radiator blueprints, thermal plates, and heating blankets for personal use.

Then, he started bulk-buying quilt and cotton clothing blueprints, along with fabric and cotton stuffing.

Since the weather was still hot, most people thought these items were useless, so the prices were low. But once the cold arrived, they were bound to skyrocket.