Xu Xin climbed up the stairs.
The entire treehouse had three floors in total. The second floor was identical to the first, both being completely empty except for a few windows. On one wall, there was a circular pattern similar to the one on the ground floor.
"Is this an entrance?" Xu Xin didn't enter but continued towards the third floor.
The third floor was entirely different. As soon as Xu Xin stepped onto it, his attention was drawn to a massive screen embedded in the treehouse wall.
Huh?
How did it suddenly become so high-tech?
Xu Xin stared at the screen before him, which must have been at least 100 inches, feeling somewhat dazed.
A luxury treehouse with a TV? Could there even be a signal in this wilderness?
Of course, this world couldn't be judged by common sense. Xu Xin was only stunned for a moment before stepping forward to examine the giant screen.
The screen wasn't hung on the wall but directly embedded into the wooden wall, integrated as one. In fact, the frame of this screen was the wooden wall itself, still bearing the marks of tree rings.
Xu Xin reached out to touch the screen. Its smooth texture felt no different from an ordinary TV screen, but he couldn't find a power switch anywhere.
On the floor next to the screen was a cardboard box. Xu Xin opened it to find five bottles of water and five loaves of bread, apparently initial supplies for newcomers.
These items couldn't be used carelessly, as they had a long shelf life and could serve as emergency rations.
Suddenly, the screen lit up.
[Treehouse mainframe activated]
[Currently available functions: Basic resource crafting, Regional channel]
Numerous options appeared on the screen, but only these two were illuminated. The others were covered in a gray layer, like the "Thank you for your patronage" on an unscratched supermarket receipt.
Xu Xin clicked on basic resource crafting. As he expected, he could use the treehouse to craft some simple tools and resources.
Stone axe, stone pickaxe, stone hoe, and other stone tools; wooden bed, wooden table, wooden chair, and other simple furniture.
[Stone Axe (White): Can fell trees of green level and below, durability 200. Requires 5 branches (White) or wood (White), 5 stone pieces (White)]
[Stone Pickaxe (White): Can mine stone or ore of green level and below, durability 200. Requires 5 branches (White) or wood (White), 5 stone pieces (White)]
[Stone Hoe (White): Can dig soil materials of green level and below, with a tiny chance of obtaining seeds from plants on that soil, durability 200. Requires 5 branches (White) or wood (White), 5 stone pieces (White)]
There was also an item that made Xu Xin feel like "the game is finally starting."
[Crafting Table (Green): Can craft more advanced tools. Requires 50 wood (Green), 50 pebbles (Green) or stone pieces (Green)]
Great stuff!
It needed green-level wood and pebbles. This might have been troublesome before finding this lake, but now green wood was everywhere, and pebbles could be found in the stream. This basic crafting table was within easy reach for him.
However, he first needed to go down to collect some branches and stones to make the stone tools.
Xu Xin didn't rush down immediately. Instead, he exited [Basic Resource Crafting] and entered [Regional Channel].
He felt a bit nervous, as this name probably meant…
As soon as he entered the regional channel, the introduction that met his eyes made him break into a delighted smile.
[This channel allows survivors in the same region to chat, interact, and trade resources. Current region: Jungle Area 188, Current population: 9,998 people.]
[Function will be available on the last day of the newbie protection period, facilitating resource exchange between survivors. Remember, do not attempt to abandon your treehouse, or you will face the consequences.]
The last day of the newbie protection period,
Isn't that tomorrow? Xu Xin had been exploring alone in the desolate jungle for two days, almost losing his mind. Now, seeing a platform for interaction and trading, he was beyond ecstatic.
Who would refuse to chat in a group full of fellow survivors?
"Enough thinking about this." Xu Xin shook his head. "Let's make these stone tools first."
Since he had no tools at hand, he couldn't fell trees or mine ore, but the materials for stone tools – branches (White) and stone pieces (White) – could be picked up directly from the ground.
So, how to get down?
Xu Xin surveyed his surroundings and quickly found a circular pattern on one wall, similar to those on the first and second floors. He walked over and pressed his hand against the pattern.
Another familiar sensation washed over him. He instinctively stepped towards the circular pattern, and suddenly the wall began to move like putty. He walked directly into the tree canopy, where a root wrapped around his waist and lowered him to the ground beneath the treehouse.
"This… is amazing!"
The root around his waist loosened and naturally hung at his side. Xu Xin grabbed the root again, and an image of the three-story treehouse appeared in his mind.
"Second floor," Xu Xin thought.
The root once again wrapped around his waist and brought him to the second floor.
So he could directly access the second and third floors!
After the second descent, he had basically mastered the method of entering and exiting the treehouse. It was very smooth and fluid, and as exciting as an amusement park ride, making him want to continue playing.
But no, he had important things to do.
The newbie protection period only lasted three days, and he needed to collect as many resources as possible before the trading platform opened tomorrow. He might be able to trade for things he didn't have here.
Time to get to work.
Xu Xin immediately began picking up everything he could find.
Thanks to his item identification ability, quality items on the ground emitted a glow. Not everything had a quality rating. For instance, the branches he needed now – only the thicker and fresher fallen branches had a white quality level, while small twigs were nothing.
The same applied to stones.
However, he now faced a major problem: he had no backpack. Without a backpack or any kind of inventory slots in his body, he could only carry things by hand, which was extremely inconvenient.
But there was no other way. Xu Xin had searched thoroughly in [Basic Resource Crafting] but couldn't find a backpack.
Perhaps it was a more advanced item that could only be made with a crafting table.
With no other choice, Xu Xin had to stuff stones in his pockets and carry branches under his arms. He managed to gather 15 branches (White) and 15 stone pieces (White), then grabbed a root to return to the third floor of the treehouse.
Approaching the screen, he opened [Basic Resource Crafting] and tapped on the stone axe item. Instantly, the required materials flew out from the pile on the ground, gathering into a ball of light.
Xu Xin had seen this light ball before when planting the treehouse seed, so he unhesitatingly reached for it. A crude stone axe appeared in his hand.
It looked incredibly rudimentary, with even the axe blade appearing extremely blunt, making him doubt whether it could actually fell a tree.
Using the same method, Xu Xin crafted a stone pickaxe and a stone hoe.