I've already reached the maximum level, and you guys are just starting out?

Chapter 8 Dawn City

[You descended with divine might, suppressing the 'Fourth-Tier Mutant Beast King - Cerberus' with your bare hands despite your mortal body! Wasteland Points +1000!]

[Resource Acquired: Tier 3 Energy Crystal!]

Yu Jin stared at the text information on the panel in front of him, then looked down and glanced at the little black dog lying at his feet, wagging its tail eagerly for a pat.

Ember paid a price to defeat this 'Tier 4 Mutant Beast King - Cerberus'.

The price was not small; a Shuanghui ham sausage cost a full two yuan.

The sausage was something Yu Jin grabbed casually when he left the dorm.

I was hoping to find a stray calico puppy to feed, but I ended up encountering a stray black dog instead.

"Wow, wang wang!"

The little black dog kept rubbing its tail against Yu Jin's calves.

"No, I only brought one."

"Next time, next time for sure!"

Ember made a promise to the little black dog.

"Wang!"

The little black dog seemed to understand what it meant, and responded with a couple of words, while rubbing its tail even harder.

Yu Jin withdrew his gaze and looked at the text information on the panel again.

"A third-order energy crystal?"

"It sounds impressive, but I wonder what it's good for."

Swah——

As soon as Yu Jin finished speaking.

New text information then appeared on the panel.

【hint--】

[Energy crystals can be used for awakening and advancement!]

[It is recommended to use this as soon as possible. Only by becoming an evolved being sooner will you, despite your weakness, have a better chance of surviving in the perilous wasteland!]

Yu Jin was taken aback.

I fed a little black cat, and now I'm turning myself into a real 'Superman'?

Yu Jin was in a good mood and vigorously rubbed the little black dog's head.

"I'll bring you two sausages next time!"

After saying that, he stood up and looked around.

Despite the late hour, many couples were still strolling hand in hand along the tree-lined paths of the university.

"It's definitely not okay to collect the reward here."

"Old Cui and the others are all in the dorm. The building with the club activity room is closed right now."

Ember stood there, pondered for a moment, and then made a decision—

Let's find a hotel off-campus!
Ideally, it should be a reputable chain hotel; QQ Hotel won't do.

Like other college couples, Yu Jin didn't want to be filmed when he was "superman".

……

……

Jiangcheng.

A manor on the outskirts of the city.

The crystal chandelier on the ceiling casts a soft glow.

Wearing a silk nightgown, Yin Yao gazed at the night sky through the large French windows, holding a phone in her hand.

"Grandpa, did you discuss the things I mentioned?"

A slightly hoarse voice, yet carrying an invisible air of authority, came from the phone.

“A few of us old men had a special chat about it.”

"At the same time, we also organized a number of experts to conduct analysis."

The current conclusion is—

"With the current technology of our Great Xia, and even the entire Blue Star, it is simply impossible to make hundreds of millions of people disappear into thin air and travel to an alien wasteland world."

"in addition--"

"Your ability to be reborn cannot be explained by science."

"Moreover——"

"We launched the highest-level investigation into that 'Wasteland' game, but the result was that we couldn't find out who made and published it at all."

"It's like it appeared out of thin air, including that gaming helmet, which also appeared out of nowhere."

"According to the information we have so far, about 10,000 helmets have appeared in the Great Xia territory and have been randomly sent to the doorsteps of people of various identities and professions. We have already obtained most of the helmets from ordinary people as strategic resources."

"We also gathered the top scientists in Great Xia to study these helmets, and the conclusion is... that they far exceed the current level of human technology, or rather, they are not technology at all, but extraordinary items."

"In addition, we have organized a group of members with excellent overall qualities and a strong will, who have already started logging into the game and exploring."

"After all, according to your intelligence, these save files will be retained when we cross the wasteland in seven days, which means a higher starting point."

"..."

After a long while, the phone call ended. Yin Yao let out a long sigh.

The necessary information has been given, and Grandpa will arrange the rest.

Right now, what I need to do is...

Make the most of these seven days of closed beta testing to create a high-quality game save file, giving yourself a better starting point in the wasteland!

"Miss."

"Martial law has been imposed within a five-mile radius."

The voice of the female housekeeper came from behind me.

Yin Yao nodded and waved.

The female housekeeper withdrew without making a sound.

After taking a few deep breaths, Yin Yao picked up the gaming helmet that had been placed aside.

[Would you like to log into the Wasteland world and start from scratch to survive the apocalypse?]

Looking at the options in front of her, Yin Yao chose "Yes" without hesitation.

"In this life, I will forge a different path in the wasteland!"

then.

Her vision was plunged into darkness.

I don’t know how much time has passed.

When the light re-entered her pupils, the scene before Yin Yao's eyes had undergone a complete transformation.

A gloomy sky, an earthy yellow ground.

The wind howled in my ears, whipping up sand and gravel that stung my face.

After observing her surroundings, Yin Yao looked down at her own condition.

Ragged clothes, all alone, a typical wasteland refugee start.

Just for a moment.

A feeling that was both familiar and strange welled up in Yin Yao's heart.

The previous life.

He was forcibly transported here in a daze, and as a refugee, he struggled in this wasteland, but in the end, he still perished in the mouths of mutated beasts.

"There are many roaming mutated beasts and infected creatures in the wild. If you encounter them, you will become food on the spot and have to delete your account and start over."

Suppressing her complex emotions, Yin Yao assessed her current situation.

Not a moment.

She climbed up a nearby hill, where the terrain allowed her to see further through the sandstorm.

"That is……"

"Refuge city?"

Yin Yao stared intently at the hazy, indistinct shadows of buildings to the west, a look of delight on her face.

She didn't expect things to go so smoothly this time; the starting location was not far from the refuge city!
Hiking is an essential skill for every wasteland refugee.

Despite the harsh environment and the endless yellow sand.

However, Yin Yao still managed to walk several miles in just one hour and reach the outside of the refuge city.

Refuge cities are the only hope for refugees in the wasteland.

Although many refuge cities also fall and people perish when attacked by infected or beast tides, their safety is still far better than that of the perilous wilderness.

"This planet is extremely vast, and the number of refuge cities is incalculable."

"According to some information I heard in my previous life, the embers once conquered and ruled over a thousand refuge cities."

"That is to say——"

"The total number of refuge cities on this planet is no less than one thousand."

As Yin Yao muttered to herself, she walked towards the gate of the refuge city. Along the way, she didn't forget to grab a handful of dirt from the ground, wet it with saliva, and smear it on her face to cover her appearance.

In her previous life, Yin Yao disfigured herself at a young age in order to survive.

This time, she won't fall to that level.

Especially since it's only in closed beta now, if we really encounter such a crisis, we can simply delete our account, log out, and create a new one.

"I wonder which refuge city this is?"

Yin Yao mingled in the long queue outside the city, thinking to herself.

There were no plaques or stone tablets outside this refuge city, so much so that even now, as they were about to enter the city, Yin Yao didn't know its name.

Time passes little by little.

Fifteen minutes later.

Yin Yao finally completed the inspection and entered the city smoothly.

And it was precisely at the moment of passing through the city gate and officially stepping into this city of refuge.

Yin Yao finally heard it from the patrol inspector—

"Welcome to Dawn Refuge!"

(End of this chapter)