Chapter 50: The Death of a Player
After resting for a while, Moira Lynch went up to the third floor.
Since moving in, she had rarely gone up to the third floor. It was less of a proper floor and more of an attic, which she had always used as a storage room for things she didn’t need.
Although she could store everything in her dimensional space, she worried that if someone came to visit, she would have a hard time explaining the empty living room and sparse furniture.
But now, Moira Lynch moved all the clutter from the third floor into her space, then took out the Wood Ear she had collected in the game.
She laid them out neatly on the floor, still attached to their bark.
Fresh Wood Ear was slimy and very difficult to pick, but it would become much easier to harvest once it was sun-dried.
The last step was to take down the moisture-proof mat she used to block the sun from the window.
In an instant, blinding, scorching sunlight filled the room.
Fortunately, Moira Lynch was prepared. She had not only put in her beauty contact lenses but was also wearing glasses, so the blinding sunlight had no adverse effect on her.
Still, the intense sunlight made Moira Lynch’s exposed skin sting, as if it were about to get sunburned.
’I need to get out of this room, fast.’
With sunlight this intense, it would take less than an hour to evaporate all the moisture from the Wood Ear. She might even have to be careful not to over-dry it.
Back on the first floor, Moira Lynch didn’t stay idle. She began to exercise.
This time, she used the scientific training regimen Patience had designed for her, which was much better than the haphazard workouts she used to do while following videos.
Archery and marksmanship lessons were also on her agenda.
There was a lot Moira Lynch wanted to learn, but she knew she couldn’t get it all done at once. She had to take things one step at a time.
Patience had also developed a specialized spiritual power training method tailored to her situation.
Whenever she felt too cold, Moira Lynch would put away the Water-cooling Stone for a bit. During her breaks, she would run up to the third floor to collect the dried Wood Ear and lay out a new batch.
Moira Lynch didn’t throw away the bark left after harvesting the Wood Ear. Once dried, it became soft and fluffy and could be used as kindling.
She didn’t finish her workout until the sun set that afternoon. Her clothes were completely soaked with sweat, but Moira Lynch didn’t complain in the slightest. In fact, she felt happy.
She knew that if she didn’t shed sweat now, she might be shedding blood later.
Given the choice, she would much rather sweat.
After returning to her room and taking a shower, Moira Lynch opened her phone to check for the latest news while blow-drying her hair.
She didn’t expect to find much, but what she saw gave her a shock.
The appearance of the Water-cooling Stone had caused a huge stir online, but since its price was exorbitant, ordinary people couldn’t afford it at all, so they could only watch the spectacle from the sidelines.
But another piece of news was different. A player had actually died.
Moira Lynch clicked on the post and discovered that the player hadn’t died from being "erased" for failing a game, nor in a fight between players. He had died of an illness.
The deceased player had successfully cleared the third round of the game, but he started feeling unwell after it ended. He was vomiting and had diarrhea, not to mention a scorching fever.
A hospital checkup revealed a systemic infection.
The infection spread from the inside out. Before the doctors could figure out a solution, the player went into convulsions and died, beyond treatment.
After the player died, his body rapidly decomposed, emitting a foul stench. Upon learning of the situation, the government, without a second thought, immediately ordered the body to be incinerated.
However, this was not an isolated case.
About twenty other players were showing the same symptoms. Some of them had cleared the game, and some hadn’t.
However, their symptoms were milder, so they weren’t dying as quickly as the first player, but the situation was still grim.
After questioning these individuals, it was discovered that they all began showing symptoms after drinking water from the same lake.
At first, they just thought the water tasted strange and paid it no mind. They didn’t pay attention when the initial symptoms appeared, either.
By the time they realized the severity of the problem, it was already too late for them.
Reading the post, Moira Lynch couldn’t help but think of the lake she had encountered before. ’It couldn’t be the same one these players are talking about, could it?’
She’d thought it was strange back then. She never expected someone would actually dare to drink from it.
"Patience, why do you think this is happening to them? There isn’t really a problem with that lake, is there?"
"Based on your description, my analysis concludes that it was not a lake, but the urine of a Titan Ape."
"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH."
After hearing Patience’s explanation, Moira Lynch broke into a violent coughing fit.
’That was... that was actually...’
’Thank goodness I thought it was weird and didn’t stay long.’
"Is there any hope for them?" Moira Lynch asked.
"Titan Ape urine is mildly corrosive and highly infectious. If ingested, there is a chance of recovery in the early stages. In the later stages, a cure is only possible with a high-level healer."
The implication was that those people were doomed.
There were definitely people on Caelus who had awakened a Healing Talent, but Patience had specified a high-level healer—meaning a healer who had reached level six.
Putting her phone down, Moira Lynch finished getting ready and prepared to go out.
After this period of extreme heat, people had grown accustomed to being active at night.
"External temperature detected above forty-five degrees. Activate the Illusion Cloak’s climate control system?"
"The what now? Climate control system?"
Moira Lynch froze on the spot, annoyed. "You’re telling me I had this amazing feature and you didn’t say anything sooner?"
"You did not require it previously. Furthermore, I assumed you were aware of this function."
Moira Lynch: ’...’ ’I suspect you’re throwing shade at me.’
But on second thought, it made sense for such an expensive item to have a feature like this.
After activating the climate control system, she instantly felt much more comfortable. For a fleeting moment, Moira Lynch felt like she was back in the time before the extreme heat.
As she made her way to the main street, she saw many people scrambling to get into a shopping mall. Standing at the entrance were two burly men, brazenly charging an entrance fee.
Moira Lynch stared at the scene in shock. ’What’s going on? They’re charging money to enter a mall now? Why isn’t anyone resisting? They actually look desperate to get in.’
However, she soon found out what was going on. It turned out the mall’s owner had managed to get a Water-cooling Stone and had placed it inside his mall. He then converted the entire first, second, and third floors into a place where people could pay to cool off.
Realizing this, Moira Lynch couldn’t help but give the man a mental thumbs-up. ’Impressive. No wonder he’s a big boss.’
Moira Lynch didn’t go in, though. She knew without even thinking that it must be packed with people, and she wanted no part of that.
Riding her electric scooter, Moira Lynch weaved through the streets and arrived at the central plaza.
The area was brightly lit and bustling with activity.