While Everyone Panicked, I Upgraded My Raft

Chapter 78: Chapter 78: Abyssal Heat Bacteria Takes Effect

The players in District 122 were unaware of all this. They remained on their rafts, desperately brainstorming ways to survive—specifically, how to utilize their existing resources to safely make it through these twenty-four hours. As a result, many players were still awake despite the late hour, and Celia Lynch was among them. However, her goal was to see how much the temperature would drop after 1:00 AM. She had a feeling it wouldn’t be just a two-degree drop anymore; it could very well be even lower. This meant that the players’ survival would become increasingly difficult.

Subconsciously, Celia Lynch checked the survivor count on the World Channel. Just a few minutes past the hour, over a dozen people had already died. Perhaps these victims had lost the will to live and simply waited for death after realizing the temperature wouldn’t stabilize and would continue to plummet. Perhaps they had lingered in the Snowstrider Bear gathering areas, unable to fend off the attacks, and were eaten. Or perhaps they had frozen to death, lacking warm Equipment.

Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but sigh. She couldn’t help these players. While she could offer survival strategies, she had no way of providing the actual Equipment they needed to live. After all, she wasn’t dealing with just one or two people, but tens of thousands of players. All she could do was prioritize her own well-being and, if possible, share information that might help others survive.

Exhaling softly, Celia Lynch gathered her thoughts. Her attention quickly shifted to the Abyssal Heat Bacteria she had hoarded earlier. Because her resource reserves had recently increased, and her mind had been preoccupied with the newly crafted warm Equipment, she had completely forgotten about the Abyssal Heat Bacteria. However, after another player brought it up moments ago, it instantly caught her interest. Since the game had already appraised and confirmed that this Abyssal Heat Bacteria could serve as a heat source, it wouldn’t lie. It just meant that the trigger conditions for the Abyssal Heat Bacteria hadn’t been met yet.

The Abyssal Heat Bacteria first appeared at 76 degrees, so she wondered if its heat generation would trigger at minus 76 degrees. It was currently minus 74 degrees. It was the perfect time to wait and see. In the next moment, Celia Lynch took out the glass bottle containing the Abyssal Heat Bacteria. Within an hour, she would know for certain whether this Abyssal Heat Bacteria had any Effect.

While waiting, Celia Lynch’s Natures were dictating that she wouldn’t sit idle; instead, she continued to browse the World Channel, the Trading Hall, and the Sea Survival Shop. She enjoyed deducing information from various details. Looking at things this way, her Natures were also allowing her to notice the continuously increasing amount of iron ore in the Sea Survival Shop. She figured this person was likely the current server rank-one player, Rowan Rhodes. Most importantly, she had a premonition that this person was in District 122.

She felt this way especially when looking back at the district’s development since the novice period. Although many players claimed on the World Channel that they had survived thanks to her warnings, she knew that District 122’s current prosperity wasn’t solely her doing. After all, she had only provided verbal information. Even if some players grasped it, they wouldn’t necessarily survive. The entire District 122 had been revitalized by the mysterious big shot’s hints, and by the chain reaction sparked by the massive influx of resources they provided into the Trading Hall. Without this mysterious big shot, many players would never have stepped forward.

Perhaps because the game had just begun, most players hadn’t completely lost their conscience. Led by this mysterious big shot, they stepped forward. The display of their Skills provided District 122 with far more possibilities. There might have been players with ulterior motives trying to sow discord along the way, but at the very least, the ”economic trade” in District 122 was up and running. This was especially true regarding the game rewards reaped by the entire district’s residents after the first natural disaster ended: ten wooden chests. These ten wooden chests directly showed the players of District 122 the benefits of mutual assistance. Therefore, when the second disaster struck, many players were willing to keep it up.

Yet, amidst all this, the mysterious big shot remained absolutely crucial. They provided early information and massive amounts of relevant Equipment. Because Celia Lynch understood this mysterious big shot’s immense energy, she deduced that such a powerhouse would never be an unranked nobody in the game. Coupled with the comparison to another big shot like Zelda Parrish, Rowan Rhodes had entered her sights early on. Celia Lynch believed she wasn’t the only one who had guessed this. However, as long as the big shot didn’t step forward to admit it, they wouldn’t expose her. After all, they were genuinely grateful to Rowan Rhodes.

Speaking of which, her absolute confidence in the Abyssal Heat Bacteria stemmed from the fact that the mysterious big shot—Rowan Rhodes—had directly ”hinted” at it in the Trading Hall. The other party’s hint was definitely not baseless. However, when Harold Thompson had mouthed off earlier, she hadn’t stepped forward simply because she lacked tangible proof that it worked. Furthermore, she didn’t want to draw attention to herself during this special period. After being targeted by Harold Thompson time and time again, she had learned to protect herself.

The moments when the majority of players were willing to step forward were the moments she could manifest her worth. Without offering tangible value, other players would be afraid of being tied down and becoming targets themselves. This also cemented one undeniable fact: she couldn’t trust other players, even if they had helped her in the past.

In short, watching the iron ore excavated by Rowan Rhodes increase more and more—and seeing that she was still working hard even at this late hour—made Celia Lynch happy. She truly hoped that Rowan Rhodes could maintain this advantage and occupy the number one spot on the leaderboard forever. Celia Lynch felt that Rowan Rhodes would be the stabilizing anchor of District 122. As long as she was there, District 122 probably wouldn’t fall into chaos. This was because other players could see hope through her. With hope, they wouldn’t go mad, lose their minds, or commit acts that violated human decency. Celia Lynch knew that even she couldn’t guarantee she would maintain her ”kindness” and moral bottom line when facing a life-or-death situation. Ultimately, she just wanted to survive.

Time slowly slipped away as Celia Lynch waited.

Finally, 1:00 AM arrived.

Upon seeing the time hit 1:00 AM, the first thing Celia Lynch checked was the temperature.

[Minus 77 degrees.]

Celia Lynch’s heart skipped a beat. It had dropped by three degrees in just one hour. This was the ”rule” of the third day of the extreme cold.

The next moment, Celia Lynch focused her attention on the Abyssal Heat Bacteria in the glass bottle. There was no reaction! Had she guessed wrong? No! She had almost forgotten that the temperature on her raft wasn’t minus 76 degrees. Immediately, Celia Lynch bundled up in her cold-resistant Snowstrider Bear Equipment suit and stepped out of the Wooden House.

As she walked out, the Abyssal Heat Bacteria in the glass bottle still showed no signs of generating heat. Celia Lynch re-read the game’s description of the Abyssal Heat Bacteria—which noted it was in a dormant state and activated by friction—and hurriedly began shaking the bottle. As she shook it, the Abyssal Heat Bacteria inside the glass bottle began to emit a glow. After shaking it a few more times, Celia Lynch returned indoors. Enduring the biting chill, she took off her gloves. Consequently, she could already feel the warmth overflowing from the glass bottle in her hands, and this warmth was only intensifying.

She had succeeded!

Realizing this, Celia Lynch turned to the World Channel and began typing. She had to notify the other players of this good news! It would be the perfect opportunity to slap Harold Thompson in the face. Of course, the most important thing was that, apart from keeping warm, many players could perhaps use this opportunity to make a fortune!