While Everyone Panicked, I Upgraded My Raft

Chapter 144: Chapter 135: This Time, Rowan Rhodes Stands at the Very Top

Engrossed in clearing out her inventory, Rowan Rhodes was completely oblivious to the flood of praise. But even if she had noticed, she wouldn’t have cared.

This kind of thing was all too common in her previous life. Any player who stood out would inevitably bask in endless acclaim. Yet the moment they suffered a massive loss or fell from grace, they would swiftly be devoured alive by the rest of the player base.

Empty fame was an illusion. Only true strength mattered.

After pricing all her unwanted Equipment and resources, Rowan let out a long exhale. Unsurprisingly, these items would soon be converted into tangible Trading Coins. Once that happened, she would go and purchase the resources she actually needed. Things like ores, medicine, fabric, and weapon blueprints. These were all materials she wouldn’t need until her raft upgraded to Level 10, but preparing them early would make things much smoother later on. Furthermore, these were fundamental commodities for the future; hoarding them now wouldn’t draw any unnecessary suspicion.

With her next goals set, Rowan finally had the peace of mind to check her other messages. The first thing that caught her eye were the messages from Zelda Parrish and the others.

[Zelda Parrish: Congratulations.]

[Faye Sinclair: Amazing!]

[Owen Caldwell: Boss, you’re seriously incredible.]

[Skye Schuyler: So amazing!!!]

After reading them over, Rowan replied to each with a simple ”Thank you.”

The moment Rowan responded, Skye quickly sent another message.

[Skye Schuyler: Boss, I wanted to ask you about something. There’s a player with a Medical Skill who wants to get to know you. Her name is Jaina Harmon. She has a small group chat with other players who have Medical Skills and Farming Skills. The Eira Grass originally came from them. I think they’d be a great team to collaborate with.]

Skye’s words were entirely sincere. After all, ever since Rowan started negotiating trades with them, they understood that she intended to develop a small team. With Zelda doing Manufacturing, Faye working as a tailor, Owen as a carpenter, and Skye herself handling culinary foods, they all had inherent value. Given that, Rowan would definitely see the value in Jaina.

Moreover, Jaina had good character. If Skye could successfully play matchmaker between them, she would be doing a favor for both.

Reading this, Rowan raised an eyebrow. Truth be told, she had indeed planned to use her ”Rowan” alias to establish contact with Jaina. Having someone make an Introduction for her now was even better. She would never turn away such talent. With this initial success, more would surely follow! It was the perfect opportunity to bring all the capable players she had collaborated with at the Sea Survival Shop over to work with her ”Rowan” persona.

[Rowan Rhodes: Alright. Feel free to recommend more in the future. I have a vast array of different resources on hand.]

[Rowan Rhodes: *Red Packet*]

Along with her reply, Rowan sent Skye a massive red packet. On the other end, Skye saw the red packet and instinctively tapped to open it. To her shock, she found 9,999 Trading Coins inside.

Staring at the massive sum, Skye was dumbfounded. She thought, ”Oh my god! This is way too generous! Boss Rowan is so magnanimous. She truly is a tycoon among tycoons.”

In the blink of an eye, Skye shared this news with Zelda and the rest. The moment Zelda, Faye, and Owen heard this, they immediately began scouring their Instagrams for contacts. If they had any capable friends, they were going to make proper Introductions to Rowan. Previously, they had been worried about coming off as presumptuous. But now that they knew Rowan’s stance on the matter, there was only one choice.

Make the Introductions.

And so, Rowan spent the next while using this account to add several players she had previously kept her eye on. All of them had been recommended by Zelda and the others. The sourcing was highly accurate. Rowan didn’t mistreat her scouts either. For every successful Introduction, she would send out a red packet.

In a very short amount of time, her Sea Survival Shop friends list had grown significantly. Rowan meticulously organized them into different categories based on their Skills.

Meanwhile, rumors of this friend-adding frenzy had already begun to circulate in the Sea Survival Shop’s main group chat.

”Rowan is adding friends in private!”

”Who? Who has Rowan added?”

”Waaah, I want to add the boss’s account too.”

”What are the requirements?”

”Is it the real boss?”

”Don’t even think about it. Most of the people she’s adding have special Skills. If you recommend someone to the boss, she straight up sends you 9,999 Trading Coins.”

”Holy crap, that’s so generous.”

”I want to earn those Trading Coins. Is there any chance for me?”

”You only stand a chance if you focus on improving yourself.”

”Anyone who can become a permanent player is already one in a million!”

”It seems the boss won’t add too many people of the same type. Some people tried to get added later on but failed.”

”Is the boss collecting them like trading cards?”

”She isn’t collecting them; she’s selecting valuable allies. I bet Rowan will prioritize these players for trades moving forward.”

”Ah! Wouldn’t that put the rest of us at a disadvantage?”

”Not really. When Rowan sells goods, she prefers to sell finished products! If she sells raw resources, it’s basically because she doesn’t want them or can’t consume them all. But with these allies, she can turn those raw resources into finished products before trading. By streamlining the process, she actually earns even more.”

”Rowan is operating on an entirely different level.”

”But are those ’utilized’ players really willing?”

”Of course they are! Right now, who has more good stuff than Rowan? Helping her process goods definitely comes with plenty of benefits, and it’ll absolutely boost their own strength.”

”Besides, if Rowan develops them, they can in turn develop other players in their line of work. With so many players and such a vast market, they can digest any amount of resources.”

”...”

The reality was exactly as the players speculated. Once the news spread, the number of players trying to cozy up to Rowan was a dime a dozen. Unfortunately, very few actually managed to catch her eye.

For the most part, those who did manage to add her as a friend soon received tasks from her. Once in the hands of these players, the tasks began to be delegated out in other forms. Many permanent players in the Sea Survival Shop who hadn’t managed to add Rowan directly ended up adding the players collaborating with her, allowing them to share in the spoils.

In a flash, numerous players across different zones were suddenly bustling with activity.

As for Rowan, she felt a wave of relief wash over her after delegating all the tasks. Even the sound of her Metal Walls groaning and buckling under the crushing grip of the Abyssal Sea Serpents sounded oddly soothing to her ears. She set up a recliner right inside the control room, laying back to relax in absolute comfort.

After dealing with so many players and handling all the aftermath, she was genuinely a bit tired. After all, she had already expended the Heart of Life’s reboot function during her killing spree.

The Seagulls of the Seagull Family were initially quite terrified by the two Abyssal Sea Serpents coiled outside, but seeing Rowan’s relaxed demeanor, their anxieties unknowingly melted away. Following a master like her gave them an overwhelming sense of security!

Nevertheless, they continued taking turns standing guard in the control room, keeping a vigilant eye on the radar at all times. Their master had mentioned that the sunken shipwreck wasn’t far away. The moment it appeared on the radar, they needed to inform her immediately.