5: Chapter 5 The Initial Raft and the Black Tide Crisis

As consciousness returned to his body, the void scene filled with temptation and restlessness receded like the tide.

Li Taiping snapped his eyes open.

A salty, humid sea breeze mixed with a faint fishy smell rushed toward his face, accompanied by the sensation of swaying beneath his feet and the sound of crashing waves in his ears.

He looked down and saw himself standing barefoot on a pitifully small raft.

The raft was about two meters square, roughly the size of a single bed, and looked so rudimentary that it could fall apart at any moment.

In the very center of the raft lay an unremarkable fishing rod.

[Initial Fishing Rod: Common Grade, Durability 100/100]

[Description: Can be used to fish in the Treasure Chest Sea of the novice area. Those willing to take the bait will be caught. The probability of successfully catching an item is 10%, and it can only catch wooden treasure chests or stone treasure chests.]

[Rating: Nine out of ten attempts will be empty.]

Li Taiping pursed his lips. A 10% success rate—this rating was certainly honest enough.

These were his so-called initial supplies: a broken raft and a broken fishing rod.

He raised his head and looked around.

As far as the eye could see, there was only an endless blue ocean.

The sea surface sparkled under the sunlight, looking calm and beautiful.

But beneath this beauty lay endless unknowns and dangers.

Within his line of sight, there were no living things other than himself.

There were only wooden boxes, some new and some old, floating on the sea like garbage, bobbing up and down with the waves.

"So quiet..." Li Taiping muttered to himself.

Comparing the scene before him to the gentle haven surrounded by beautiful women just a moment ago, the huge contrast left him feeling empty inside.

He subconsciously turned his head to look back.

With just one glance, a chill shot straight from the soles of his feet to his scalp.

On the horizon behind the raft, it was not blue, but a pitch-black abyss that seemed capable of devouring everything.

"Is this... the black tide?"

Li Taiping's heart tightened.

The black tide, the shadow of death that chased everyone, as mentioned in Rule Three.

Just then, the diamond-shaped metal on his left wrist vibrated slightly.

He raised his wrist, and a translucent interface automatically unfolded before his eyes.

[Information Update:]

[black tide, Current Status: Speed 0, Stationary.]

[In one day, it will activate and chase all Survivor on the ocean at a speed of 5.]

[It will devour everything it touches.]

[If it catches up to you, death will be your only destination.]

"One day..." Li Taiping's eyes became serious.

It seems the system has left a one-day safe development period for everyone.

After one day, this race against death will officially begin.

His primary goal is to find a way to make this broken raft move within this day, and the speed must exceed 5!

He steadied himself and began to carefully browse the other functions of this survival manual on his wrist.

When he was on that void platform, most modules were in a gray [To Be Unlocked] state, but now, almost all of them had lit up.

[Personal Storage], [Personal Information], [area channel], [Weather System], [Trading Market]...

He casually tapped on [area channel].

Instantly, dense text information refreshed like a waterfall.

"Hahahaha! I'm the captain! I'm the captain!"

"Hehe, it seems everyone present here is a winner!"

"Luck belongs to me! A bunch of scumbags didn't vote for me, but in the end, it was a three-way tie, and the system chose me. Hahaha!"

"Anyone want to team up?"

"Damn it, I forgot I can't swim. So many treasure chests!"

"Starting with a broken raft and a broken fishing rod—all equipment depends on fishing!"

The channel was filled with wailing and howling.

Li Taiping just took a quick look and closed it.

The information was somewhat useful; at least everyone's start was the same.

He then opened [Trading Market], which was completely empty, obviously because no one had obtained any tradeable items yet.

Next, he opened the [Personal Information] interface.

[Name: Li Taiping]

[Life Level: Common]

[Strength / Agility / Constitution / Sanity / Vitality / Blood Qi...]

"Life Level?" Li Taiping frowned slightly.

This thing almost explicitly stated that extraordinary power existed in this world!

In other words, future dangers might not just be natural disasters like sharks or tsunamis; there would be even more outrageous things.

He silently raised the danger rating of this world in his heart by one level.

Moving his gaze down, he opened [Weather System].

[Current Area: Treasure Chest Sea]

[Danger Level: Extremely Low]

"Extremely Low?" Li Taiping narrowed his eyes.

Extremely low does not mean none.

In a world where extraordinary power exists, any carelessness could lead to doom.

Combined with his current unarmed state, a sense of urgency lingered slightly in his heart.

He scanned the floating treasure chests on the sea surface again, then looked at the raft information beneath his feet.

[Tier 1 Raft]

[Initial Raft, Cannot Move]

[Rating: A magical raft that can actually remain motionless on the sea.]

"Cannot move..."

Li Taiping walked to the edge of the raft and reached out to test the water temperature.

It was ice-cold and biting.

Going into the sea to salvage those treasure chests now was definitely not a wise choice.

If he caught a cold from hypothermia, in this environment, it would be no different from waiting for death.

The only option seemed to be using that "nine out of ten attempts empty" fishing rod to try his luck.

"Wait." Li Taiping suddenly remembered something. "Rule One stated that every team has one chance to choose the evolution direction of their ship."

As if to respond to his doubt, that familiar, emotionless mechanical voice rang in his mind again.

[Detected that all captains have finished voting and awakened. Now, please choose the evolution direction for your ship.]

As soon as the voice finished, three light screens of different colors suddenly appeared before Li Taiping's eyes.

Two white, one blue.