Chapter 204: Stand United

Chapter 204: Chapter 204: Stand United

Shi Zhile stood alone on the third floor.

From her high vantage point, she looked into the distance. To the south, there was no longer an ocean, but an endless expanse of dry, barren land.

Stone Island was surrounded by the sea on three sides. Its southern edge was the only part connected to the mainland, which was where Huaxia Base was located.

Dust and ash swirled up, lingering in the air.

In the chat channel, the players were, for once, surprisingly united.

[Turtle-Eating Empress Dowager Chen: It rose up so suddenly and fell just as fast. Is the son of a bitch behind this game in such a hurry because he won’t live to see tomorrow?]

[Player: You piece of shit! If you can’t handle losing, just say so. Pulling a stunt like this, it’s like you’re afraid we won’t die.]

[FearlessBeast: @Jiang Yuxing, for a grown man to be in such a rush, you must be pretty damn insecure. I hadn’t even dropped my pants and you were already finished.]

...

The Base Chief posted two consecutive messages in the chat channel, but they were almost instantly buried in the flood of new posts.

A few moments later, the dust finally settled. Shi Zhile received a multi-person video call initiated by the Base Chief.

Behind Wen Changming was the sea. He was sitting by a house built on the ocean’s surface, constantly tapping his interface panel.

"What’s the situation outside? We just got the server merge notification. Are you all okay?"

The Base Chief was on the move, with about a dozen players following him.

Wei Zhan was by his side. "Don’t worry, Vice Chief. We’re fine, and so are the base’s players. But the buildings aren’t in great shape. A few of the taller ones have developed cracks. I’m leading a team to inspect them now."

The island had fallen from mid-air, creating a tremor equivalent to a magnitude seven or eight earthquake. Thankfully, the base’s buildings weren’t very tall. If they had collapsed, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Hearing that Huaxia Base’s buildings had cracks, Shi Zhile immediately went to check on her Stone Castle.

The two rooms on the third floor were pristine, with no signs of cracks in the walls. The second floor was the living area, and Shi Zhiyi’s daily necessities were still left in the three rooms there.

After confirming the structure was undamaged, she entered the basement.

The basement was completely empty. Aside from a collapsed shelf in the lowest room, there was nothing else out of the ordinary.

The Base Chief spoke up. "Everyone should have seen the messages in the chat. All players are now united against a common threat. This is a good opportunity for our base to recruit more people."

"Get the higher-ups from Jiuzhou Base. We need to hold a meeting and discuss our plans."

Wen Changming had the same idea.

The few of them set a time. Shi Zhile was responsible for opening a Teleportation Gate to send them to the secret base.

While they were in their meeting, a massive riot broke out in the center of the newly merged island. In just two hours, the death toll reached over ten thousand.

After the meeting, the two bases jointly issued an announcement.

[Wei Zhan (Huaxia Base Representative): Fellow players, on behalf of Huaxia Base and Jiuzhou Base, I extend greetings to all Huaxia players.

For over a year, a new dungeon instance has opened every month, bringing all kinds of slaughter and suffering. The enemy has thrown us in here in their attempt to seize our homeland.

The elderly and the children were the first to die. To this day, not a single player in Huaxia Base or Jiuzhou Base has seen a young child survive.

It’s not that children weren’t pulled into the game, but that they couldn’t survive the various disasters!

Today, we face our greatest challenge to survival. The enemy is strong. They want to seize our home and kill all our families.

If we are not united now, if we continue to fight amongst ourselves and kill our own people, the only path that awaits us is extinction.

Eighty years ago, our forefathers fought a fourteen-year war with their own flesh and blood. The peace and tranquility they won so arduously is once again being targeted by the enemy.

Now, I have only one question for all Huaxia players: will you be cowards, or will you be heroes?]

Shi Zhile was the first to reply: [Heroes! I, Shi Zhile, will never compromise with the enemy! I am willing to donate all my supplies to the base and share its fate!]

[Wen Changming: I, Wen Changming, Vice Chief of Huaxia Base, will share the fate of Huaxia Base!]

[Lu Xing: I, Lu Xing, am willing to share the fate of the base!]

...

The messages came one after another. Soon, another announcement was posted.

[Wei Zhan (Huaxia Base Representative): Base construction is urgent. The bases need talented people. We hope that all Huaxia players can make their way to our two bases to help build them up.

Islands with gentle terrain can be cleared for farming. The bases have already developed cold-resistant potatoes and corn. Specific exchange conditions will be announced later.

The coordinates for Huaxia Base and Jiuzhou Base will be posted in the group chat later.

Additionally, if you have any questions, you can @ me in the chat, or @Zhou Tian (Huaxia Base Chief), @Wen Changming (Huaxia Base Vice Chief), @Base Chief Ye (Jiuzhou Base Chief), @He Huahua (Jiuzhou Base Vice Chief).

Also, @Contentment Brings Happiness, Comrade Shi Zhile, is another important member of Huaxia Base. Her space is being used by both bases. Comrade Shi Zhile’s role is critical to the survival of this entire game (note: this is not alarmist talk; the specific details are classified). We hope that no players will try to target her.]

Finally, Wei Zhan posted the coordinates for both bases and attached pictures of Huaxia Base and Jiuzhou Base.

Night fell. Shi Zhile sent all the players back to their respective locations, then lay down in the courtyard on Stone Island.

The rocking chair swayed gently. Not far away, a large pot sat on a stove, simmering with lamb bone soup. The savory aroma wafted through the courtyard, yet it only made the vast space feel even more desolate.

「Five months passed in a flash.」 Shi Zhile suppressed most of the Energy Ball’s power, feeding the excess energy to the Wish System.

With enough energy, the Wish System became even more powerful. It was no longer suppressed by the game; it could grant almost any wish made.

The secret base first produced a batch of high-quality weapons. Then, using the combat suits Shi Zhile had brought back, they created soft armor that could resist energy attacks.

The sea remained frozen, and the ice on its surface grew thicker and more solid. To fish, one had to use an auger. Days were for labor, and nights were for fishing.

Every time night descended, many tents would pop up on the sea ice. Inside them were the fishing fanatics, completely hooked on their hobby.

To improve farming, remote areas suitable for cultivation were organized into village-sized units. The bases provided high-quality seeds, and they worked together to grow cold-resistant crops.

A harvest of cold-resistant potatoes and corn was brought in. Besides returning an equivalent amount of high-quality seeds to the bases, the players who grew the crops could trade their surplus for other supplies.

Perhaps due to a lack of energy, no new dungeons opened during these five months, and the system that issued "Survival Tips" did not appear again.

「The days passed one by one.」 One morning, she woke up to find the temperature had risen by 10 degrees.

From then on, the temperature rose every day. Half a month later, it climbed above 0 degrees Celsius.

The ice and snow began to melt. At night on the coastal Stone Island, one could occasionally hear the crisp sound of melting ice blocks colliding in the sea.

As the frozen sea thawed, all sorts of animals descended upon the continent.