By the time Jim woke up after sleeping for an hour, with a mild headache from overusing his talent for the first time.
Jim rose slowly, drank some water to alleviate his headache, and noticed that his mental state had slightly improved compared to when he first awakened his talent yesterday.
After a quick review, he found that repeated use of his mental strength by activating his talent can increase his soul/mental strength.
Jim exited the shelter and noticed that the cave housing his refuge appeared darker than before, as the entrance had been entirely sealed off, preventing any light from entering.
Jim approached his exoskeleton, carried it outside, positioned it against the shelter door, and activated its headlights, which were mounted on the shoulders and helmet.
This brightly illuminated the entire cave, making it a bit easier for Jim to walk through.
He then sat in the chair at the table, switched on the tablet, and accessed the store. He spent another 10 points and purchased another iron cube, deciding to use it to make tools.
Jim then carried the delivered iron block outside the shelter and placed it next to the wood collected.
He seated himself on a nearby stone, chose a sturdy branch, and positioned it beside the iron block.
Then Jim closed his eyes to concentrate so he could create a mental blueprint of the item he wanted to make.
Jim first decided to create an axe so he could easily break down the wood into logs.
After devising a mental blueprint, he placed his hand on the iron block and the wooden handle. He then activated his talent, causing a portion of the iron block to melt and flow seamlessly onto the wooden handle. Consequently, a sharp axe took form before.
Jim took an axe in his hand and observed that it was designed as he had envisioned in his mind.
He rose from his position, took hold of a large log, and struck it with the newly crafted axe, cleaving the log into two with a single, powerful strike.
Jim raised the axe and observed that there were no scratches on its sharp edge, confirming that it was both sharp and durable. He felt relieved after knowing he would not have to struggle with wood logs to defeat the monsters.
Jim transformed the massive iron block, weighing approximately 25 kilograms, into ten parts and skillfully crafted various iron tools such as saws, chisels, hammers, and scrapers.
Jim then started splitting the big logs into the desired sizes and shapes to make household items such as tables and chairs for him to use in the cave.
Initially, Jim considered making nails but ultimately chose to apply the wood technique to craft tables and chairs, a skill he had acquired as a young child during his time at the orphanage.
Jim employed scrapers to smooth the wood, refining it to a polished finish. Subsequently, he utilized a chisel to carve deep into the wood, constructing a sturdy base with interlocking joints.
Using the same technique, he crafted four supporting legs for the chair, employing mortise and tenon joints. Jim securely attached the legs to the base.
Jim then created a backrest using the same method and fixed it to the chair base.
He then beat the joints with the small hammer to make them sit tightly in the grooves, and the chair was ready.
Jim constructed two additional chairs for his personal use, followed by a round table for placing items.
Using the wood, Jim began crafting cups by chiseling it to create a source for drinking water at present, and for tea and other beverages in the future when he obtains the necessary supplies.
By the time Jim made a set of chairs, a table, and wooden glasses for drinking water, outside the cave, the sun was just setting, and Jim prepared a small fireplace in the cave to start a bonfire to keep the cave warm as it began to feel a little chilly in the cave.
Initially, he utilized his skill to create fire starters using an iron block, which produced sparks when struck together. He then gathered all the wood dust generated during his work and began the process of igniting a fire.
After several attempts, the fire was successfully lit. Jim carefully blew air to enhance its intensity and gradually added wood, eventually creating a small bonfire within the cave.
As the wood was sufficiently dry, no smoke was emitted, allowing Jim to breathe a sigh of relief as he sought to avoid poisoning himself with smoke in the confined space.
Subsequently, once he had regained enough mental strength, he resolved to construct a passage that would permit airflow while preventing radiation from entering the cave.
Jim spent an hour by the bonfire before extinguishing it, satisfied that it had sufficiently warmed the cave. He then returned to the shelter, bringing the exoskeleton with him to recharge. Once inside, he seated himself at the table where the tablet was mounted and accessed the regional chatroom.
The people in the chatroom are a lively bunch, as everyone has only 2 hours of exploration today. Jim saw almost all of them chatting and discussing various strategies to kill the monsters in the wild to survive.
After browsing for a few minutes, Jim discovered that there are many types of monsters in the wild.
Some weak monsters will escape upon seeing humans, but if we try to attack them, they will attack back, which can seriously cause injuries to the human.
Some monsters actively attack all creatures in the wild upon sight, which led to several shelters becoming surrounded by these monsters after people were discovered when they ventured outside to check their surroundings.
Jim then found that the survival points for today's survival were credited to his account, which were only ten points, as he hadn't increased his shelter size or actively hunted the monsters in the forest.
Jim used the points to buy a meal, as he found he couldn't get enough calories just by eating starch food.
He resolved to consume at least one full meal each day to preserve his health and accumulate more points through hunting the monster, which he intended to use for upgrading the shelter.