Upgrading to Level 1 Cabin

This new world was quite complex!

The Insight skill consumed stamina, so Kyron couldn't maintain it indefinitely. But hearing them mention black spirit piqued his interest.

"Black Spirit?" Kyron eyed the coal-like black balls in the corner and used his Sorcerer card's skill to examine them.

[Black Spirit: The undead race's ghostly fires need this to replenish energy, simply put, it's the undead's bread.]

Kyron was overjoyed. Humans had no stones, but these skeletons entered this world even earlier, so they must have stones!

He quickly checked the World Trade Channel and sure enough, there were requests to trade stones for black spirit.

The highest was five stones for one black spirit, the stingiest just one stone for one Spirit.

Prices were chaotic, it seemed the skeletons didn't enter too long before the humans either.

Kyron didn't dare haggle with these undead. He quickly found the highest trade, exchanging four black spirits for twenty stones.

Suddenly, the World Channel erupted.

"Oh my god, guess what I just saw? I traded with a living human!"

"You blind skeleton, you must be seeing things. How could humans have access to the World Channel so soon?"

"I swear, the one I traded with was human! The avatar doesn't lie."

"I also traded with a human."

Others came forward to confirm it.

"Is this even possible? A bug? Should we report it to the system, that humans accessed the World Channel prematurely?"

None of them guessed that Kyron had seized a skeleton's cabin, allowing him to connect not just to the Human Channel but the Undead Channel too.

Seeing these comments, Kyron's face drained of color, realizing he may have caused trouble - he was likely an anomaly!

He swiftly left the World Channel and returned to the Human Channel, heart pounding.

"Why hasn't that bro listed a food combo yet, I'm going to cry."

"Don't bother waiting anymore."

"Let's just disband, might as well go back to sleep and conserve stamina."

Finally everyone had given up waiting.

They needed to conserve strength, as one could imagine there would be lots to do come morning - chopping wood, mining stones, anything requiring stamina.

Ignoring the complaints, Kyron began upgrading his cabin.

[Confirm upgrading Level 0 cabin to Level 1 cabin? Requires 113/100 wood, 53/50 stones. You have sufficient resources.]

"Confirm!"

The cabin began shaking, everything shifting, until soon it had completely transformed.

The interior space expanded greatly, adding a bedroom and bathroom besides the living room, totaling over 30 square meters.

The fire pit was gone, replaced by a European-style stone fireplace on the living room wall, with a chimney venting through the roof - probably why upgrading required stones.

This fireplace was clearly more advanced and warmer than the fire pit.

The wooden door became much sturdier, visibly reinforced with increased HP and defenses doubled.

Countless eyes peered through the mist, hesitating after seeing the upgraded cabin before slinking away.

Kyron finally breathed a sigh of relief, with a sense of security. Though the biggest disappointment was that despite gaining an extra bedroom...there was no bed in it.

He'd be more comfortable staying in the living room by the fireplace.

[Level 1 Cabin: Can withstand low-level monsters from the darkness, slightly increased cold resistance, but defensive ability very limited. Keep upgrading. This shelter can accommodate one occupant. Upgrading to next level requires 13/500 wood, 3/200 stones.]

Seeing this shelter now had an "occupant capacity" attribute, Kyron was taken aback. Could this mean at higher levels, it could accommodate even more occupants?

Would the final upgrade turn this into a real castle?

It certainly seemed possible.

Not bad, though Kyron had no interest in being a lord, preferring the solitude of being alone.

Though being totally alone was a bit too lonely - having a few friends over for a party occasionally wouldn't be bad.

Kyron's thoughts wandered for a bit, unaware that cabin upgrades had many branching paths - a castle was one option, but there were others.

But that was still ages away. For now, he just needed to survive until morning.

Kyron was exhausted - he needed rest, as chopping wood awaited him tomorrow.

Curled up by the warm fireplace, Kyron fell into a deep sleep.

The next day at dawn.

The rising sun dispelled the black mist, the first rays shining through every cabin's windows.

Time: Human Year 1, Month 1, Day 2, 6:00 AM

The wake-up bell roused all the groggy humans.

The cold, emotionless voice sounded again:

[Congratulations on surviving the first night, but the new world has only just begun. Here is today's survival quest - work hard to gather resources and upgrade your cabins, or you may face trouble on the next night.]

The forum immediately became lively as everyone fervently discussed the quest.

"It's just chopping wood and mining stone, easy."

"Brothers, hurry and be the first to complete it, there may be a reward!"

"Let's go, let's go!"

...

[Ding!]

[Announcement: Someone has completed the cabin upgrade quest first. The system will grant a special reward.]

This message came out almost simultaneously with the quest announcement.

The forum fell dead silent for three seconds, no one posting, then everyone's emotions exploded.

"Cheating bastard?"

"Joking? Did he sneak out to chop wood in the middle of the night?"

"Favoritism?"

"Dammit! Don't you have any shame, cheating so blatantly?"

...

Insults flooded in, cursing the anonymous recipient. The old saying goes, a thousand fingers point without illness ending, unless you can't see or hear.

Kyron slammed the sheepskin book shut, thinking - you useless raging idiots, I just won't look.

On the floor in front of the fireplace was a gleaming golden chest.

"This is the reward? Another loot box?"

Kyron sat on the floor and opened the chest, a pile of items spilling out.

"Jacket (White): A warming garment, wear it if you feel cold. It also has a slight defensive ability, tailor-made to your measurements."

"Gold Coins (Colored): 10 pieces, even ghosts love these, do you?"

"French Bread Sticks (White): 2, a bit hard but nutritious, perfect for breakfast."

"Large Sprite Bottle (Green): 1 bottle, contains sugar, very precious."

"Tailor Recipe: White Boots crafting method. At the alchemy station, with enough materials, you can craft white boots - requires 1 soft leather, 2 meters of rope."

"200 wood, 100 stones."

Food, clothing, and resources - quite comprehensive, much better than the newbie gift pack. Unfortunately still no bed, the stone cabin floor was freezingly cold.

He quickly pocketed the valuable recipe. And the colored reward was actual gold coins - not sure what they were for yet, but he kept them too.