Chapter 3: Chapter 3 Mechanic's Beginner Guide
Both items could be made into weapons. Chen Qing's gaze lingered on the materials on the deck, completely unaware of the huge stir her purchase information had caused.
"Holy shit! Am I seeing this right? Someone killed a G-level creature right at the start of the game!"
"This is a real big shot!"
"Pfft, who knows if they just got lucky!"
"If this Chen Qing has the ability, why can't she just give the fish meat to everyone for free!"
"Exactly, even if not for free, she should at least give everyone some benefits!"
"... The entitlement of the people above is astounding."
Chen Qing was completely unaware of the arguments on the chat channel, and even if she had known, she wouldn't have cared.
She was more concerned about the two private messages she had received.
One was for trading, the other an invitation.
[He Congrong: I have a four-piece bed set, cotton cores, pillow cores, and a two-piece pajama set, in exchange for 20 pounds of fish meat.]
[Gao Yue: You are a Transcendent.]
Seeing the second message, Chen Qing slightly frowned.
This survivor named Gao Yue wasn't from her area, and Transcendents were somewhat rare.
[Chen Qing: 5 pounds of fish meat.]
[Chen Qing: ?]
She responded to the messages one by one.
He Congrong's items were all of normal quality, not up to rating, Chen Qing could take it or leave it.
It was merely a difference of comfort.
The Devil Fish was a G+ level creature, and its meat... wasn't very useful.
The most valuable poison sacs and electric sacs were in Chen Qing's hands.
Overall, neither party could really say they lost out.
[He Congrong: Sister, that's not how you haggle!]
[Chen Qing: Exchange or not.]
[He Congrong: …exchange!]
He Congrong seemed very short on food, to be precise, on food with a rating.
If he just wanted to fill his stomach, He Congrong should have had better options.
Chen Qing tagged this survivor as a suspected Transcendent, a conjecture that wasn't too difficult to make.
And He Congrong's next message made Chen Qing's guess seem even more credible.
[He Congrong: Sister, this Fire kind is for you. Next time there's food with a rating, notify me first and I'll give you a good price.]
Looking at this message, Chen Qing's expression shifted slightly. She had just entered this new world and had already encountered two suspected Transcendents.
Was it the strange attraction between Transcendents or merely a coincidence?
Chen Qing didn't know the answer, nor did she dwell much on the question, as the ensuing stream of trade information kept her exceedingly busy.
He Congrong had set a good precedent.
Chen Qing had 210 pounds of fish meat, 20 pounds of fish bones, and 20 pounds of fish blood, nearly all of which she had traded away, keeping only 20 pounds of fish meat for herself.
Sporadically, she exchanged it for various basic living supplies, none of which were rated.
Most of the fish meat went to He Congrong, who was quite lucky and scooped up seven to eight supply boxes.
Many other survivors who hadn't managed to buy Devil Fish meat also placed advance orders with Chen Qing; there are always people at the forefront of the world.
The cabin quickly filled up with supplies, breathing a bit of life into the living space.
Chen Qing sat in the cabin, cradling a cup of hot tea, her body wrapped in a soft quilt, while in front of her, a bucket stoked with fire grilled the fish meat, which sizzled as it released a tantalizing aroma.
She waited for any movement of the fishing net, as well as a reply from Gao Yue, who was also a Transcendent.
Since she had killed the Deep Blue Devil Fish, six hours had passed and Chen Qing had not encountered a second living creature.
There were no extra supply boxes either, but fortunately, the ordinary supplies she acquired were enough for a week.
The outside sea was already misting over and the temperature began to drop, chilling people to the shiver.
Players in the chat channel complained incessantly, as they were utterly unprepared for the situation and didn't even have fire, left to suffer in the icy fog.
Players who had Fire began to sell it at rare good prices, but the value of Fire was destined not to be high, as those who bought it could just as well sell it.
Sitting inside the cabin waiting for the fish to be caught, Chen Qing directly sold the ignited piece of wood on the trading platform at the price of a plank.
To many players, this was like sending charcoal in snowy weather, but Chen Qing did not pay much attention to the players' Evaluation, as she followed the maxim of doing good without asking about the future.
"..."
While preparing lunch, Chen Qing suddenly felt a tug on her wrist, a sign that something big had been caught.
Or perhaps the fishing net was full of basic materials.
Chen Qing quickly stepped out of the cabin, a blast of cold air hit her, making it hard not to shudder.
The gloomy and mystic sky, the fog-covered sea gave an unfathomable feeling, as if a terrifying sea beast or a mysterious ghost ship might break through the mist at any moment.
Chen Qing's small boat seemed so tiny in front of the vast ocean.
"..."
Chen Qing looked up at the sky, sighing softly.
Approaching the side of the boat, the fishing net bobbed in the sea, appearing to have collected quite a few supplies.
Chen Qing immediately hauled the entire net onto the boat, and indeed, there were many items.
Just the supply boxes alone numbered three.
[Large Supply Box (White)], [Small Supply Box (White)], [Small Supply Box (Dark Green)]
The assorted basic supplies in the fishing net were, as usual, hung up on the trading channel by Chen Qing, players had already successfully discovered new functions of the trading channel.
As long as one set the price far above the actual value of the supplies, the trading channel could act as a storage space.
Whether this was a bug or a benefit of the game was unknown.
After clearing out the basic supplies, Chen Qing turned her attention to the Dark Green level supply box.
The supply box was not locked, and upon lifting the lid, a rich green light beamed onto Chen Qing's face, vanishing in an instant.
The box was not large, holding only a thin booklet.
[Mechanic's Beginner Guide (E-grade): A not very reliable guide for mechanics, note that it is a guide, not an appointment book.]
Chen Qing picked up the manual, flipped open the first page, and the manual immediately transformed into a bright light that entered her body.
A flood of unfamiliar knowledge poured into Chen Qing's mind, causing her a severe headache. Her face turned pale, and she leaned on the cabin to keep from falling over.
After quite a while, Chen Qing slowly recovered her strength.
[Congratulations Survivor Chen Qing for acquiring the abilities Simple Repair (E-grade), Simple Transformation (E-grade)]
[Congratulations Survivor Chen Qing for acquiring blueprints for Sea Water Purifier (E-grade), Automatic Fishing Net Machine (E-grade), Automatic Fishing Rod (E-grade)]
No matter which blueprint, all were critically needed by survivors at this stage. Just because Chen Qing had enough food and water did not mean other survivors did as well.
Chen Qing's expression was subtly complex; the items were indeed valuable.
But... a mechanic and the ocean?