As he drove farther into unfamiliar territory, Su Chen finally realized just how important privacy really was.
He'd been a little too high-profile lately. Just a while ago, he'd bumped into that guy Xi Bowen fishing by the river while he was out catching fish himself. That encounter now sparked a troubling thought.
The reason Wu Luxi knew his exact whereabouts might very well be because Xi Bowen spilled the beans.
After all, the two of them knew each other, and Xi Bowen had a habit of bragging about everything. If he knew where Su Chen parked his RV, there was a good chance he let it slip while showing off.
Plus, Su Chen vividly remembered saving a girl not long ago. He hadn't thought much of it at the time.
But who would've guessed—she actually took a picture of him and posted it online, causing a huge uproar.
Su Chen didn't even know if she realized the person she snapped a photo of was him.
But regardless, posting someone's photo online without their consent? Yeah, definitely not okay.
That incident taught Su Chen a valuable lesson—never trust people so easily.
From now on, he needed to be much more cautious. He couldn't afford to give anyone a chance to track or expose him. His privacy needed to be locked down tight.
After driving aimlessly down a highway for about thirty minutes, Su Chen pulled over to take a break.
Too much had happened today, and it was starting to wear on him.
He stepped outside to light a cigarette and ease the tension. Just as he crouched down and took a puff—
"RUMBLE—RUMBLE!"
A thunderous sound shook the air. A massive aircraft thundered overhead.
"A drone?"
Su Chen frowned in confusion. Aside from himself, who could possibly get their hands on a working aircraft?
Even for him, acquiring a small helicopter at this stage of the game would've been damn near impossible.
He looked up—and what he saw made his jaw drop.
"Holy sh*t! That thing's terrifying!"
Even Su Chen, who'd faced off against a giant tiger, was completely stunned.
This wasn't just any drone—it was huge, several times larger than a standard one.
Big enough to carry hundreds, maybe even thousands of people. It radiated an oppressive, overwhelming presence that made Su Chen break out in a cold sweat.
Beads of perspiration slid down his forehead.
And right then, a priority announcement popped up in the RV survival world:
---
[SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT]
Hello, Survivors! Today marks your seventh day in the Survival World. You've nearly completed your first week—has it been a tough ride?
Well, it's time for some good news! All survivors who are reading this message are considered victors of Round One—Congratulations!
Out of 7 billion players who entered the game, only 3.5 billion have survived to this point. Half the global player base has been eliminated in just one week. Those of you still standing will receive a reward: the Airdrop Perk.
Airdrops will begin tomorrow and be deployed at random intervals. The contents are guaranteed to be high-quality survival supplies—consider them a gift to honor your resilience. Stay alert and keep an eye out for aircraft!
Now for the next challenge: Round Two is about to begin, and it will be significantly tougher.
With the arrival of winter, many creatures have entered hibernation—but new and more terrifying monsters will emerge. Between 3 to 8 new types of monsters will be introduced. They are far more dangerous and show no mercy. If they catch you, you're done. Stay sharp!
---
Su Chen's eyes widened.
So there was a second round—and it was going to be worse?
They really waited until the last minute to drop this bombshell. It wasn't just the other players who were caught off guard—even Su Chen was shaken by the system's sudden announcement.
He hadn't expected this at all. When he first entered the game, there were 7 billion people.
And now, only a week in, half of them were gone. That pace of elimination was absolutely terrifying.
Anyone who had managed to survive this far probably wasn't an idiot. Most of them must have had at least a basic sense of survival skills.
From the looks of it, now wasn't the right time to form alliances. If Su Chen had to guess, there would probably be a third, fourth, even more rounds down the line.
The difficulty curve was clearly going to spike hard. Team-ups might become more viable later, but now? Too early.
He finished his cigarette and lit another, still trying to process what he'd just learned.
He had thought that after several tough days, he could finally take it easy, kick back, and enjoy life a little.
Nope. This survival world wasn't about to let anyone off that easy.
If you weren't constantly hustling, trying to survive here was a total pipe dream.
Still, it wasn't all bad news.
The airdrop perk started tomorrow, and tracking airdrops would be easy. The aircraft was massive—just follow it by car and you'd probably score big.
Unlike blind boxes, these airdrops were meant for survivors. Su Chen actually had faith that the loot would be worth it.
The fact that airdrops were being introduced only now made sense—Round One was all about eliminating the slackers.
People who couldn't fend for themselves, who waited around hoping for freebies—they didn't make it.
The system had clearly designed the game to weed those people out, and from now on, things would only get more intense—and more exciting.
But with airdrops came a new problem: running into other survivors.
What if conflicts broke out over supplies?
Figuring out how to handle that situation would be a skill of its own.
Meanwhile, the World Chat was already blowing up:
(> "This is insane. Almost half the players got wiped out in the first round? At this rate, we won't even make it to a month…"
> "Don't jinx it. Just focus on staying alive. Some people trusted internet strangers too much and got eliminated early because of it."
> "I can't believe I actually survived to Round Two! I'm a beast!"
> "Don't celebrate too soon. The real danger's just getting started."
> "Instead of chatting, maybe go gather some supplies?"
> "I'm honestly kinda hyped for the airdrops. Hope they arrive early tomorrow—I won't be able to sleep otherwise.")
…
Su Chen crouched there, flicking ash onto a growing pile of cigarette butts.
He didn't even have a smoking habit, but today's news had driven him to light one after another.
For him, this announcement wasn't exactly a blessing.
If the game had stayed in a steady loop—gather resources, survive, repeat—he could've coasted by just driving around, turning this survival game into a peaceful road trip.
But clearly, the game's mechanics were far more ruthless than that.
The first wave had been cleared out.
Now, the fun—and the real danger—was about to begin.
Su Chen took a deep breath, mentally bracing himself. It looked like it was finally time to put that Uzi submachine gun and military-grade backpack he'd drawn to proper use.
He wasn't alone—he had Er Bao, his loyal dog, and Jun Ma, his powerful steed.
Together, they'd face whatever this twisted world had in store next.
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