: Ice Seal Age Open Beta Begins

"Axing, big brother is dead!"

"They say he was beaten to death by some workers at the construction site for owing them money!"

Xiangjiang, inside an office building.

Cao Xing heard someone calling his name, glanced at the other party indifferently, and saw a young man in a suit with slicked-back hair.

Then, Cao Xing looked down again.

He was playing a survival adventure game on his tablet called "Ice Seal Age." The art style was realistic, making it a more hardcore survival game.

Players started next to a bonfire because, in this world's extreme cold weather, they could only move safely within the fire's range.

If they stayed away from the fire for too long, the game character would freeze to death.

Players needed to build shelters and unlock various basic constructions.

These constructions could be upgraded by collecting materials; for example, a bonfire could be upgraded to a big bonfire or a melting furnace, and eventually even to an energy tower in later stages.

Apart from that, players could develop a military force or territory technology to unlock different paths...

According to the official announcement, a team mode would be released later.

However, since the game was still in beta testing, Cao Xing didn't see anyone around him playing it, nor could he find any information online.

At this moment, a prompt appeared on the tablet screen.

[The game will enter public testing in two hours and will soon enter maintenance status.]

[More content is being unlocked, stay tuned...]

Was it finally going public?

Cao Xing felt a little excited, and at this moment, the young man with slicked-back hair naturally sat beside him.

Wu Jiahui put an arm around Cao Xing's shoulder, "Axing, you followed the big brother for a while, and he was your boss."

"Aren't you upset that he died?"

Cao Xing put down the tablet, glanced at him, and said: "Come on, after he founded Yongsheng Group and cleaned up, he cut ties with us."

"I've just been his dedicated driver all these years, it's not like there was any real connection."

"Besides, with a heart so black, being beaten to death is nothing unusual."

"True," Wu Jiahui nodded.

At this point, an intriguing smile appeared on his face, "It's a pity big brother spent so many years pursuing Liu Muxue. Just when he was ready to get married, this happened."

"Speaking of which, Liu Muxue is truly a remarkable woman!"

"That figure, and those long legs, tsk tsk, anyone would be mesmerized."

"Too bad big brother couldn't savor it..."

Cao Xing didn't respond to this because his phone vibrated.

After checking it, Cao Xing got up from the sofa, turning to leave.

"Axing, where are you going?"

Cao Xing shrugged, "I'm a driver, where can I go? Of course, I'm off to pick someone up."

...

Cao Xing went to Yongsheng Group's underground garage, expertly finding a deep brown Maybach among the luxury cars.

Entering the car, the interior was extremely luxurious.

The car's value, including the interior, was at least over seven million.

Of course, this car was certainly not his.

Cao Xing was alone, with no family, making it tough to live in a city like Xiangjiang.

Let alone have the money to buy such a luxury car.

Half an hour later, the Maybach stopped at the entrance of a five-star hotel in the city center.

Cao Xing took out his phone and sent a message.

"Sister-in-law, I'm downstairs."

A message came back.

"Okay."

A few minutes later, a tall woman in a black dress walked out from the hotel's entrance.

Her demeanor was poised; the tight-fitting dress outlined a perfect body curve, with her long legs moving gracefully, like exquisite jade artifacts.

This woman was Liu Muxue.

Cao Xing didn't get out of the car; the woman naturally sat in the back of the Maybach.

"Axing, to the funeral home."

Cao Xing nodded, and the car started.

On the way, Liu Muxue took a call, her eyebrows furrowed, seemingly troubled by something.

"I said, agreeing to marry Yongsheng Group was something you requested back then. Now that Chen Jiang is dead, I have no relationship with him."

"Don't think you can use me as a bargaining chip for profit!"

She seemed quite angry, but due to her good upbringing, she quickly calmed the anger in her heart.

"Sorry, Axing," Liu Muxue said softly.

Cao Xing shook his head.

He knew Liu Muxue's character; she wasn't the type to berate people below her because of her status.

On the contrary, she had always been nice to her subordinates, and her reputation outside was good.

Since Liu Muxue quickly rose to fame, the media had done detailed reports on her family and personal experiences.

Her original family wasn't particularly wealthy.

But due to her outstanding looks and figure, she quickly rose to fame after becoming an adult.

Naturally, she attracted attention from many who had ulterior motives.

Yongsheng Group's chairman Chen Jiang, aka Cao Xing's big brother, was among them.

...

The car soon arrived at the funeral home.

Before exiting, Liu Muxue put on a sad expression.

She knew that no matter how much she disliked that man in her heart, she still had to put on a show.

Cao Xing remained in the car waiting.

An hour later, Liu Muxue returned.

It was clear she had cried, her makeup was slightly messed up, with a subtle smoky look.

Her elegant aura was accompanied by a touch of decadence, giving her a unique beauty.

Back in the car, Liu Muxue's expression calmed down, then she said, "Axing, take me back to the hotel."

"Okay."

Cao Xing nodded.

Just as he was about to start the car, everything suddenly went black.

Then, everyone heard a synthesized mechanical voice by their ears.

"The new version update of 'Ice Seal Age' is complete, officially opening the era of public testing. In a minute, all humans on Blue Star will enter this game."

"Game instructions: This is a world where the sun does not shine. It is vast and boundless, but shrouded in cold all day. Your task is to survive in this world."

"Once the game begins, you'll appear next to a bonfire, your flame of survival. Remember! Do not leave the space illuminated by the firelight easily!"

"Your goal is to gather more supplies, expand your territory, and develop more units."

"The new version features family survival mode, with families as units, up to four people per group."

"If you have no relatives, you'll be randomly grouped with people around you."

"So, in this brand-new world, strive to live on..."

...

When Cao Xing regained his sight, he suddenly found himself in an icy snowfield.

Everything before him was covered in ice and snow.

"What the hell, where's my Maybach?"

Before his words finished, an icy coldness swept over him.

Cao Xing felt like he would freeze stiff on the spot in an instant.

"Hiss!"

Cao Xing took a deep breath, instinctively hurrying close to the burning bonfire before him, finally feeling a trace of warmth.

At this moment, a character panel appeared before him.

[Name: Cao Xing]

[Race: Blue Star Human Clan]

[Level: Level 1, 0/100]

[Profession: None]

[Life Value: 100.]

[Power: 4, Agility: 3, Spirit: 5, Constitution: 5]

[Lord Interface: Not open]

[Current Status: Cold]

[Current Temperature: -31°C]

"Damn... this system panel is exactly the same as the one I played on the tablet!"

Then, the second system prompt appeared.

"All Survivors, please choose your professional system as soon as possible."

"Currently, there are five major systems: Cold Iron Mechanic, Polar Warrior, Frost Mage, Aurora Knight, Snow Hunter."

Cao Xing's eyes lit up with joy.

He could choose a profession!

Clearly, these professions were the same as the ones he had played before.

Of course, Cao Xing knew that these five professions did not have significant combat power in the early stages.

For instance, the Cold Iron Mechanic's early skill was summoning a small self-destructing robot, and its power wasn't even comparable to the firecrackers we used to blow up outhouses in childhood.

The Polar Warrior just had a simple slash attack.

The Frost Mage was a little better with an initial Ice Ball Skill.

As for the Aurora Knight and Snow Hunter, they had Purification Skill and Hunter Perception, respectively.

To truly gain extraordinary power, one needed to continuously develop and acquire more skills.

Cao Xing thought, "I have experienced all five professions before when playing this game."

"The strongest is naturally the Mechanic, but it's a late-game profession, and the material consumption is too high."

"In the early stages, both Polar Warriors and Snow Hunters are strong, but they become weak in the late stages."

At this moment, realization dawned on Cao Xing's face.

"I see, this game introduced the family survival mode so we Survivors can allocate professions reasonably, safely passing through early, middle, and late stages, and survive better."

However, Cao Xing glanced beside him.

Apart from him, there was only Liu Muxue here.

Although he didn't know why he was grouped with her, now was not the time to think about it.

She was looking at the bonfire with a bewildered expression, seemingly trying to digest the system's prompt.

Cao Xing understood, "It seems that achieving the four-person cooperation mode is not possible."

So... What profession should he choose?

After a moment of contemplation, Cao Xing directly chose "Frost Mage."

A system prompt appeared.

"Congratulations! You have successfully chosen the profession: Frost Mage. Elemental Affinity unlocked, slightly increased Cold Resistance, and initial equipment placed in Storage Box."

Cao Xing breathed a sigh of relief, and just as he was about to search for the initial Storage Box, a second system prompt solemnly appeared!

[Detected that Survivor 'Cao Xing's fate aligns with this world. Personal Talent: Eternal Power has been activated.]

[Eternal Power (Hidden Unique Talent)]: Causes all friendly units within the territory to gain permanent enhanced status when receiving temporary enhanced status.

Cao Xing was stunned for a moment, then exclaimed, "Holy shit! Cheat mode activated!"

: Bonfire Upgrade, Recruit Polar People!

Obviously, if the "Eternal Power" talent were to function, it's necessary to gather more territorial forces.

　　"It seems I should develop along the line of Lord Stream," Cao Xing thought to himself.

　　At this moment, Cao Xing noticed a countdown overhead.

　　[Time until nightfall: 4 hours 32 minutes...]

　　[Note: During the newbie protection period, there will be no monster attacks on the camp, newbie protection period remaining: 5 days 17 hours…]

　　"Only 4 hours left until dark!"

　　Cao Xing's scalp tightened instantly.

　　He knew that in this extremely cold world, the temperature would plummet drastically at night.

　　Cao Xing's gaze turned to the bonfire in front of him.

　　[Camp Fire: Level 1]

　　[Bonfire Effect: Can increase the temperature of a 10-meter radius by 5~20℃]

　　[Consumption]: 1 wood per 15 minutes.

　　[Materials required for upgrade]: Stone *5

　　Currently, the temperature near the bonfire was already at -32℃, and it would drop another 20 degrees or more at night.

　　Obviously, the heat emitted by this Level 1 bonfire was not enough to let him pass through the night safely.

　　Cao Xing then looked at another collapsed small hut nearby.

　　[Damaged Lord's Hut: Repairable]

　　[Materials needed for repair: Stone *10, Wood *20.]

　　Cao Xing's eyes lit up instantly.

　　This is it!

　　Once repaired, the territory interface could be opened, and he could hide inside at night to avoid the harsh cold.

　　However, repairing the Lord's Hut required materials like stone and wood.

　　Cao Xing surveyed the surrounding snowfield, where there were a pile of white stones and some cut wood near the bonfire.

　　[Stone (white): A basic material.]

　　[Wood (white): A basic material.]

　　Just as Cao Xing was about to pick up the wood, Liu Muxue softly inquired nearby: "Axing, the prompt sound asks me to choose a profession, what should I choose?"

　　Obviously, this woman had already digested the system information and accepted the fact that she was in a new world.

　　Cao Xing nodded secretly, her adaptability was quite fast.

　　"Sis-in-law, you should choose Aurora Knight."

　　Cao Xing had a personal bias for letting her choose this profession.

　　Because Aurora Knight had many powerful boost skills in the later stage, but the effects were always short-lived.

　　And with his own "Eternal Power" talent, he could turn these boost effects into permanent states.

　　Imagine, at that time, Cao Xing controlling a group of permanently buffed units, how terrifying their combat power would be.

　　Although, be it in demeanor or appearance, Liu Muxue didn't match the knight image at all.

　　Especially since today she was wearing white silk stockings.

　　Thinking of Liu Muxue wearing armor on top and white silk stockings below, Cao Xing felt it was quite a mismatch.

　　Uh... no, maybe it's not bad?

　　A white-silk knight... hehe...

　　"Alright, then I'll choose Aurora Knight." Liu Muxue didn't doubt Cao Xing's decision.

　　In this unfamiliar world, Cao Xing was the only person she knew.

　　Cao Xing nodded and then saw a small wooden box next to the bonfire.

　　[Territory Storage Box: Level 1]

　　[Storage Box Capacity: 40 slots]

　　[Note: There are some initial supplies and tools inside, please open it as soon as possible.]

　　Cao Xing stepped forward and opened it, revealing many supplies inside.

　　[Successfully opened: Obtained Bread *20, Obtained Iron Pot (white) *1, Obtained Stone Axe (white) *4, Obtained Stone Hammer (white) *4, Obtained Wooden Magic Wand (white) *1, Obtained Wooden Round Shield (white) *1]

　　The supplies inside were for four people, and the system didn't dock the supplies even though they were only a two-person team.

　　Cao Xing nodded with satisfaction.

　　With the stone hammer, he could start building the Lord's Hut. This was key to safely passing the first night.

　　Then he began to gather nearby stones and wood, moving them piece by piece.

　　System prompts appeared continuously.

　　[Stone +1]

　　[Stone +1]

　　[Wood +2]

　　...

　　These stones were quite heavy; after a while, Cao Xing was drenched in sweat.

　　As a modern person, my physical fitness really is lacking.

　　However, after nearly twenty minutes of hard work, he finally gathered enough materials to repair the Lord's Hut.

　　Cao Xing stood before the small hut.

　　[Start repairing the Damaged Lord's Hut? It will take 17 minutes…]

　　"Yes."

　　Then, Cao Xing began wielding the stone hammer himself, hammering away to the system's given template.

　　There was no choice; only after repairing the Lord's Hut could he unlock other territory constructions.

　　Before recruiting Polar People, Cao Xing could only do it himself.

　　Seeing him busy, Liu Muxue crouched on the ground, hugging her arms tightly against the cold, perfectly displaying her curves.

　　She looked at him with curious eyes and asked: "Axing, is there anything I can help with?"

　　Cao Xing glanced at the fire on the ground and then at the scattered stones and wood in the snow, nodding: "You go collect the nearby stones and wood first, then upgrade the campfire as soon as possible."

　　Liu Muxue, hearing this, had no hesitation.

　　She stood up directly and walked out to the fire.

　　Soon, she returned, awkwardly carrying a stone.

　　It was clear that the weight of this stone was quite burdensome for her.

　　Liu Muxue held it in her arms, her arms turning red from the cold.

　　But she gritted her teeth and continued moving stones.

　　[Stone +1]

　　The high heels were inconvenient, so Liu Muxue took them off, walking barefoot in the snow, her face pale with cold.

　　Cao Xing, busy repairing the Lord's Hut, did not stop her.

　　In this world, to survive, everyone had to exert effort.

　　"Hmm..."

　　When Liu Muxue put down the stone, her perky hips faced Cao Xing, perfectly showcasing her curves, making blood rush.

　　Cao Xing quickly turned his gaze away, focusing on his work.

　　There he was, repairing the Lord's Hut.

　　Liu Muxue was transporting stones to upgrade the bonfire, the two collaborated in division of labor.

　　Soon, Cao Xing heard a system prompt.

　　[Your campfire has been upgraded to Level 2.]

　　[Campfire: Level 2]

　　[Bonfire Effect: Can increase the temperature of a 20-meter radius by 10~20℃]

　　[Consumption]: 1 wood per 13 minutes.

　　[Materials required for next level]: Stone *10

　　…

　　The upgraded bonfire's coverage was significantly larger.

　　Even Cao Xing, who was working, felt a bit of warmth, and his efficiency improved.

　　A few minutes later, a system prompt appeared.

　　[Lord's Hut built successfully, territory interface unlocked, congratulations! You can now build more basic infrastructure.]

　　Cao Xing smiled joyfully, he could finally construct other buildings!

　　The next step was to build the "Polar People Hut" and then summon some Polar People to formally begin his path as Lord!

　　Simultaneously, a second system prompt appeared.

　　[As the first survivor on all servers to build a Lord's Hut, you earn a reward: Ice Healing Skill (Skill Book).]

　　[Ice Healing Skill (white): Consumes a certain amount of spiritual power to cast Ice Healing Skill on a target, restoring Life Value at 0.8 times Spirit per second, lasting 3 seconds.]

　　Smack!

　　A yellowed skill book appeared in the snow in front of Cao Xing.

　　Great! It was actually a skill book!

　　And one for himself.

　　Although combat rarely occurred during the rookie protection period, this skill book undoubtedly increased Cao Xing's confidence significantly.

　　[Learn Ice Healing Skill (white)?]

　　"Yes."

　　Cao Xing clicked to learn directly.

　　At this time, many functional panels appeared before Cao Xing.

　　They were: [Territory], [Construction], [Carrying Backpack], [Crafting], [Channel], [Personal], and [Territorial Forces].

　　These interfaces nearly covered all functions.

　　Cao Xing first opened the [Backpack], which had only 20 slots of storage space.

　　Of course, it was empty inside.

　　Then, he opened [Construction].

　　Clicking it, many Level 1 constructions popped up.

　　Including: [Level 1 Simple Stove], [Level 1 Simple Hearth], [Level 1 Smelting Factory], [Level 1 Logging Factory], [Level 1 Blacksmith Shop], [Level 1 Polar People Hut], among others...

　　Without looking at the other basic facilities for now,

　　Cao Xing first opened the [Polar People Hut] introduction.

　　[Level 1 Polar People Hut: Can summon Polar People to work for you by spending food.]

　　[Area: 12 square meters]

　　[Capacity: 4 people.]

　　[Materials required for construction: Stone *10, Wood *30.]

　　[Repair time: 45 minutes (Population can be added for repair, accelerating repair time, limit: 2 people)]

　　…

　　Cao Xing thought to himself: "It takes 45 minutes for one person to build, that's a bit slow."

　　"There are only three hours left until nightfall, and I still need to do other things."

　　Thus, he looked at Liu Muxue, "Sis-in-law, come help me."

　　...

　　...

　　Liu Muxue, due to moving stones and wood, had consumed a lot of physical energy, her dress soaked with sweat.

　　Through her dress, one could see the outline of her white lace underwear.

　　Hearing Cao Xing calling her, Liu Muxue put down her tasks and walked over slowly.

　　"Axing, what do you need me to do?"

　　Cao Xing pointed to the empty space in front of them and said, "I want to build a Polar People Hut here, but constructing it takes too long."

　　"Help me build it together, and it will be much faster."

　　Liu Muxue looked slightly confused, seemingly not understanding, but nodded anyway.

　　Then, the two started cooperating to build the Polar People Hut.

　　"Clang! Clang!"

　　Rhythmic hammering sounds echoed in the vast snowy field.

　　Half an hour later.

　　A system prompt appeared.

　　[Successfully built: Polar People Hut, Territory Population +4]

　　[Now, you can recruit Polar People to work for you by consuming food.]

　　[Note: As a Lord, you need to provide daily food for your subordinates, if left in hunger for long, they will abandon you.]

　　In front of the two, a small hut resembling a camp tent suddenly appeared on the snowy ground, standing just under two meters high.

　　At this moment, another system prompt appeared in Cao Xing's ear.

　　"As the first survivor on all servers to build a [Polar People Hut], you earn a reward: Bread *50."

　　Seeing this system prompt, a glimmer of delight flashed in Cao Xing's eyes.

　　Great! A full 50 pieces of food, this reward is quite impressive.

　　Cao Xing couldn't help but feel grateful for having played this game, allowing him to construct these buildings ahead of everyone in the shortest time.

　　Cao Xing thought to himself: "Recruiting a Polar Person requires 5 units of food, if not for this system reward, I could only recruit a maximum of 2."

　　"But now, I can directly recruit 4 Polar People."

　　Thinking of this, Cao Xing clicked on recruitment directly.

　　[Consume food *20 to recruit Polar People *4?]

　　"Yes."

　　As soon as the words fell, the tent-like camp began to tremble.

　　Then, the door was pushed open.

　　Out came four figures, each less than 1.5 meters tall, dressed in thick snow suits, with rough appearances.

　　These were the Polar People.

　　After coming out, they looked at Cao Xing and Liu Muxue, respectfully saluting.

　　"Honorable Lord, the Polar People pledge their service to you!"

　　On the side, Liu Muxue was completely taken aback by this miraculous transformation.

　　Her small mouth opened slightly, and she exclaimed: "Ah ah ah ah, Axing, they came...came out!"

: World Chat Channel

Liu Muxue was shocked by the sight of four Polar People materializing out of thin air in the snow,

while Cao Xing was not surprised at all.

Anyone who had been a Lord knew that this was perfectly normal.

At this moment, the four Polar People were staring with wide eyes, expectantly looking at Cao Xing.

Cao Xing started to check their attributes.

[Polar Person: Alfanasi (name can be changed)]

[Level: 1, 0/100 (can gain experience through combat and other activities)]

[Detailed Attributes: Click to expand]

...

[Polar Person: Zack (name can be changed)]

[Level: 1, 0/100]

[Detailed Attributes: Click to expand]

...

[Polar Person: Mama Duo (name can be changed)]

[Level: 1, 0/100]

...

The attributes of these four Polar People were mostly similar, although the one named Zack had a slightly higher constitution.

Because these names were of a more Western style, Cao Xing didn't want to put effort into memorizing their names.

So, Cao Xing pointed at the Polar Person named Zack and said, "From now on, you shall be called Dazhuang; you are the captain of your small team."

"The others are Erhuang, Sanhuang, and Sizhuang, respectively."

"Do you all understand?"

Beside him, Liu Muxue chuckled, seemingly amused by Cao Xing's simple and crude naming style.

However, the faces of the Polar People, covered with hair, showed joy.

"Understood!"

"Thank you, Lord, for granting us names!"

[You successfully named the Polar Person; Dazhuang's loyalty increased by 5 points...]

[You successfully named the Polar Person; Erzhuang's loyalty increased by 5 points...]

...

Cao Xing was surprised; could he increase loyalty with that?

Seventy-five loyalty points were already very high; at least they wouldn't defy Cao Xing's orders.

Once the Polar People were recruited, they needed to start working.

Cao Xing opened the [Construction] interface to check the buildings that could be constructed.

[Level 1 Simple Furnace: Can be placed indoors, raising the temperature by 15~20 degrees Celsius.]

[Consumption: 20 minutes/1 wood]

[Construction materials required: Stone*6]

Note: If you don't want to freeze to death at night, I suggest you build it immediately!

...

[Level 1 Simple Stove: Can be used for cooking, steaming, and other actions.]

[Construction materials required: Stone*8, Wood*4.]

Note: This is for eating, pal; you should know how important it is, right?

...

[Level 1 Logging Factory: Can be used to process logs.]

[Area: 30 square meters]

[Construction materials required: Stone*30, Wood*50.]

Note: To get rich, start chopping trees; I suggest you prioritize building the logging factory.

...

[Level 1 Sewing Shop: Can make simple cold-resistant clothing or armor.]

[Area: 30 square meters]

[Construction materials required: Stone*40, Wood*60.]

Note: As a Lord, you wouldn't want your subordinates to go naked into battle, right?

...

[Level 1 Ore Processing Plant: Can smelt and sort collected ores from the wild.]

[Processable ores: Coal, Iron. (Upgrading the processing plant can smelt higher-grade metals!)]

[Area: 50 square meters]

[Construction materials required: Stone*80, Wood*150.]

Note: To create more advanced equipment, a processing plant is indispensable.

...

[Level 1 Blacksmith Shop: Can forge weapons or tools inside]

[Area: 30 square meters]

[Construction materials required: Stone*100, Wood*200, Iron*20]

Note: Listen, pal, soldiers without weapons are like toothless tigers.

...

...

There were many types of level 1 buildings; besides these, there were also [Medical Room], [Small Shelter], [Wall], [Gate], etc.

However, these buildings required a lot of stone and wood, as well as higher-level materials like fine iron.

Clearly, Cao Xing didn't have a piece of iron.

Moreover, the stone and wood near the campfire had already been used up.

In this icy world, where else could resources be gathered?

Cao Xing scanned his surroundings, suddenly his eyes lit up.

About a hundred to two hundred meters away, he could see a patch of snow-covered small woods and some large stones.

These should be the initial resource points.

Thus, Cao Xing took out four stone axes and four iron shovels from his backpack and handed them to the four Polar People.

Then he said, "Dazhuang, Erzhuang, you team up to chop wood over there."

"Sanzhuang, Sizhuang, you take the tools and go collect more stones."

The four Polar People straightened up immediately and respectfully said, "Yes, Lord!"

After speaking, they each took their tools and walked toward the snow outside the bonfire.

Because of their talents, they could work outside the bonfire for longer than Cao Xing and the others.

All four Polar People were sent out by Cao Xing to gather supplies.

Liu Muxue blinked her pretty eyes, "Axing, what should we do now?"

Looking at her frostbitten skin and face gradually turning pale.

At this rate, Liu Muxue would either freeze to death or fall seriously ill.

Getting sick in the snow was a troublesome matter.

Cao Xing said, "Sis-in-law, you should work indoors next, build the furnace and stove first."

"Okay."

Liu Muxue whispered in response, not forcing it further, and walked inside gracefully.

Cao Xing checked the remaining supplies.

[Food*50, Wood*27, Stone*17.]

"The most lacking material now should be stone, but wood is also essential, as we need it for warmth at night."

"Although the current temperature can barely get through the first night, it's still not very safe."

"So, let's upgrade the campfire."

The system prompt appeared.

[Do you want to consume Stone*10 to upgrade the campfire's level?]

Cao Xing clicked 'yes' and started clanging away.

A dozen minutes later.

Cao Xing saw the bonfire in front of him piled with stones over a meter high, gradually taking the shape of a furnace.

The roaring flames burned brightly.

[Campfire upgrade successful, current level: 3.]

[Campfire: Level 3]

[Bonfire Effect: Can increase temperature by 10~20℃ in a 40-meter radius area]

[Consumption]: 10 minutes/1 wood.

[Materials required for the next level]: Stone*20, Wood*10.

"Great, although the temperature hasn't increased, the heating range has doubled!"

But similarly, the consumption was greater, with 1 wood consumed every 10 minutes.

At this rate, the camp's wood wouldn't last long.

Once the wood was exhausted, they would lose their heat source, facing at least minus sixty degrees of harsh weather.

It wouldn't be long before they froze to death.

Cao Xing furrowed his brow, "Hopefully, those Polar People can gather wood smoothly..."

Working outside for too long, Cao Xing felt almost frozen stiff.

So, he also went into the Lord's Hut.

Inside the hut, due to the lack of lighting equipment, it appeared dim.

A shapely figure was building a stove in the corner.

She bent down, her long white silk legs were straight, and looking up, her hips were wrapped in a dress...

This pose accentuated her curves round like a bowling ball.

"Wow... so big," Cao Xing couldn't help but remark.

Liu Muxue thought Cao Xing was there to supervise the work, wiped the fine sweat from her forehead, and said softly, "Axing, the furnace is almost done."

Cao Xing shook his head, "Sis-in-law, let me help you."

"Okay..." Liu Muxue responded softly.

With Cao Xing's help, the construction of the furnace sped up significantly.

A few minutes later, a system prompt appeared.

[Level 1 Furnace construction successful...]

However, this time, Cao Xing didn't hear a reward prompt.

His mind was suddenly clear.

It seemed that the [Furnace] was such a basic building and wouldn't trigger rewards.

Of course, it was also possible that other survivor teams had already built it in advance.

This time, more than 7 billion people worldwide had landed in the snowy world, among them naturally would be many with amazing adaptability.

"Sizzle!"

As the sound of wood catching fire emerged, the furnace gradually emitted an orange-red glow, illuminating the entire Lord's Hut.

Currently, the Lord's Hut was empty; apart from a furnace, there was nothing else.

Near the furnace, the two felt waves of warmth coming over them.

Cao Xing glanced at the indoor temperature.

[Current temperature: -16℃]

Although still very cold, it was much better compared to the outside temperature of minus several dozen degrees.

Liu Muxue curled up her body, continually shivering.

Having been working without feeling it before, she now realized her body was already a mass of frostbite.

Cao Xing furrowed his brow, thinking.

'It seems the Sewing Shop should quickly be put on the schedule, considering our thin clothing is practically like being naked.'

'At this rate, let alone Liu Muxue, even I would freeze to death.'

A strong sense of crisis reemerged.

Cao Xing started to explore other functions in the Lord interface.

Clicking on the [Crafting] interface, a slew of basic tools appeared.

Such as: Stone Axe, Stone Hammer, Stone Pickaxe, Wooden Bowl, Wooden Table, Wooden Chair, Wooden Bed, etc...

Cao Xing reviewed them and got the gist.

"Here, I can craft simple work tools or furniture items."

Then, he began to check out the [Chat Channel] feature, revealing four options.

[World Channel: All servers, limited to one message per person per day]

[Regional Channel: This is a 500*500 kilometer square area, including all survivors in the area, with no message limit.]

[Team Channel: Only survivors within your territory can speak here, with no message limit.]

[Private Chat Channel: 1-on-1 unlimited chatting.]

...

Cao Xing opened the world channel and was greeted by a flood of information.

Zhao Shengbing: "Good heavens! Why did I suddenly come to this godforsaken place? I'm freezing to death!"

Chen Erya: "Help! So cold, so cold!"

Zhang Qiang: "Didn't the system say we'd be allocated according to family? Who are these folks? I don't know any of them!"

Bell Grylls: "A survival game? I like it; this presents an unprecedented challenge for me!"

Yamagami Tetsuya: "Let the boomstick once again shine brightly!"

Ma Dongxi: "Hey! Don't let me find out whose prank this is, or I'll smash his balls!"

...