Chapter 35 – The Surprise of the Diamond Treasure Chest

Xiao Wuwang took a deep breath, his eyes filled with anticipation and excitement as he slowly reached out toward the Diamond Treasure Chest, which emitted a mysterious and dazzling glow.

His fingers lightly touched the chest’s latch. With a soft “click,” the latch of the Diamond Treasure Chest opened.

In an instant, an extremely brilliant light burst forth from within the chest.

It took a full two seconds for the light to fade.

Xiao Wuwang leaned in and picked up the items inside one by one.

The first item was a long sword with an ancient design, slightly rusted.

Xiao Wuwang couldn’t help but cast an appraisal on it:

Item Name: 【Spirit-Purifying Sword】(Rule Item)

Trait: Light Attribute, Soul-Corrosion

Description: Don’t be fooled by its ordinary appearance—it is a sword that can terrify all dark demons, evil spirits, and supernatural anomalies.

——————

“Whew!!”

This was actually a Rule Treasure!!

Moreover, it was an extremely rare treasure capable of countering dark creatures, evil spirits, and supernatural anomalies!

With it, even the troublesome Platforms he might encounter in the future would no longer pose an obstacle. The benefits were unimaginable!

After barely suppressing his excitement, Xiao Wuwang continued to reach into the chest.

The second item was a Blueprint—a Refining Station Blueprint.

The Refining Station could refine basic Materials into higher-grade or special Materials!

Like the Crafting Station, the Refining Station was an essential tool for the mid-to-late stages!

The third item—a Water-Condensing Pearl.

True to its name, it could condense 1 ton of water per day. With it, he would never have to worry about water shortages again.

A very practical Item.

The fourth item was a card.

After appraising it, Xiao Wuwang couldn’t help but gasp—it was actually a Talent Plunder Card!

It could Plunder the Talent of someone who had died within the last 24 hours!

The existence of this card gave Xiao Wuwang the opportunity to possess a second Talent!

Having even one Talent already gave a person a significant advantage in the Survival World. If he could gain another, even with Xiao Wuwang’s calm temperament, he couldn’t help but feel his heart surge with excitement.

He carefully stored it in his Portable Space.

The final item—a Thermostatic Control System.

A control system capable of adjusting temperatures up or down by a maximum of 50 degrees Celsius.

Without a second thought, he would install it directly in the Living Carriage’s Expansion Slot once the Living Carriage was upgraded to Level 2.

Improving the Living Carriage’s environment would also increase the recovery rate of Fatigue Points.

This system was also one of the essential modules for the Living Carriage.

With that, all the treasures from the Diamond Treasure Chest were now in Xiao Wuwang’s possession. He stood in place, a smile unconsciously curling at the corners of his mouth, his heart filled with the joy of a bountiful harvest.

The rewards were immense!

“Master!”

Lao Tie’s voice interrupted Xiao Wuwang’s thoughts as he reveled in the joy of his gains.

Xiao Wuwang: “What is it?”

Lao Tie: “There is a Black Iron Treasure Chest in 1 minute.”

Xiao Wuwang: “Good! Stop the train when the time comes.”

After collecting the treasure chest and returning to the Living Carriage, Xiao Wuwang thought he could finally get some proper rest.

But just then, Lao Tie’s voice sounded again: “Master, we will pass by a mineral deposit 2 kilometers ahead. Please prepare.”

Xiao Wuwang immediately perked up and asked, “What kind of deposit?”

Lao Tie: “A sulfur deposit.”

“Really?!”

Lao Tie: “Master, rest assured. Lao Tie does not lie.”

“Uh,” Xiao Wuwang said, “I’m not doubting you. I’m just too pleasantly surprised.”

Lao Tie: “Master, what is ‘pleasantly surprised’?”

Xiao Wuwang: “Surprise is an emotion—it’s that uncontrollable feeling of joy and excitement when something you really want suddenly appears before you.”

Lao Tie: “Uncontrollable? Master, according to my database analysis, all behaviors can be precisely described and conveyed through data and language. Why would there be situations that are uncontrollable?”

Xiao Wuwang: “Human emotions are very complex; some things can’t be fully and accurately summarized with data and language. Like when you see a beautiful landscape, a sense of pleasure arises in your heart, but this feeling may vary depending on each person’s experiences and state of mind—it can’t be measured or described by a unified standard. Surprise is the same; it’s a sudden, intense emotion that surges up, like seeing a beam of light in the darkness—warm and bright, making your heart race and a smile spread across your face. If we can get an Omni-Intelligence Optical Computer someday and transform you into a mechanical life form, then you’ll understand what emotions are!”

Lao Tie: “Oh!”

While chatting with Lao Tie, the train also stopped at the resource point.

As the train came to a halt, Xiao Wuwang jumped off, thinking he might have a moment of leisure, but it turned out he still had to keep working like an ox!

If it were an ordinary iron mine or other low-value minerals, Xiao Wuwang might not have cared much, but sulfur is an essential resource for making gunpowder—a mineral he urgently needs. No matter how tired he was, he had to push through and finish mining this deposit.

Xiao Wuwang estimated that the deposit within the safe radius covered about twenty to thirty square meters.

Mining it all would likely reclaim two to three hundred units of sulfur ore.

Xiao Wuwang took out his pickaxe and got to work.

Time flew by, and Xiao Wuwang spent over three hours mining.

When he dug up the last piece of ore and checked his portable space, he found a full 246 units of sulfur stored inside.

Not a bad haul!

With another 246 units of saltpeter, he could produce 246 units of gunpowder!

As for the charcoal needed, Xiao Wuwang had already arranged for the production of 500 units as backup when he obtained the charcoal blueprint.

Instructing Lao Tie to set off, Xiao Wuwang returned to the living carriage.

It was now 5:30 PM, time to prepare dinner. After a moment’s thought, Xiao Wuwang took out a large piece of beef, cut it into chunks, blanched it in a pot of water, and then let it simmer.

The simmering process took a while, and he figured he probably wouldn’t encounter any more minerals later, so he went straight to the bathroom for a thorough, refreshing shower.

With the water condensation bead, he no longer had to worry about water shortages, so he used water without restraint.

After his shower, he checked his Fatigue Points—only 26 remained—and couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.

Aside from sleeping at night, it seemed his Fatigue Points rarely stayed above 80 throughout the day.

Glancing at the time, he saw half an hour had passed. Xiao Wuwang removed the nearly simmered beef and started braising it in another pot.

He didn’t waste the broth from simmering the beef either—he brought it to a boil and added some noodles.

By the time the noodles were cooked, the braised beef had just finished reducing its sauce.

He scooped up the noodles, poured the braised beef and rich broth over them, and a steaming, fragrant bowl of Braised Beef Noodles was complete.

Carrying the bowl, Xiao Wuwang went to the dining table, sat down, and eagerly took a big bite.

One bite of beef, one slurp of noodles—he ate with utter abandon.

The noodles were springy and chewy, the beef tender and flavorful, the broth rich and savory. Each mouthful made him squint with satisfaction, as if the weariness of the day had begun to fade away in that moment.

After finishing the noodles, Xiao Wuwang leaned back on the living room sofa, comfortably digesting his meal.

At the same time, his Fatigue Points were recovering rapidly.

A bowl of Braised Beef Noodles boosted his Fatigue Points recovery rate by 28%, an effect slightly higher than his previous meal of rice with grilled beef.

But as he glanced around at the worn-out environment of the surrounding carriages, with a faint musty odor lingering in the air, Xiao Wuwang silently resolved that once his Fatigue Points were fully restored, he would first upgrade the Living Carriage and then use the resources at hand to thoroughly renovate it.

Of course, for now, it was just a thought. He estimated he’d have to wait over an hour to accumulate enough Fatigue Points to upgrade the Living Carriage.

So, for the moment, he could finally relax and open the Chat Channel.

The first thing that caught his eye was a message notification from a friend.

He didn’t have many friends—only five in total.

This time, the message was from—Meichuan Kuzi.

He had quite an impression of this guy. When they were teleported over, he was in the middle of taking a bath, without even a pair of pants on, let alone clothes.

Now, however, Meichuan Kuzi had brought him some good news.

Meichuan Kuzi: [Big Shot Wuwang, I saw you were buying gunpowder. I came across a saltpeter mine on my way and dug up a lot of saltpeter. Do you want it?]

Xiao Wuwang checked the time—the message was sent ten minutes ago. He couldn’t help but silently hope it hadn’t been sold yet.

So, he quickly replied: [I’m buying saltpeter in bulk too. How much do you have, and what do you want in exchange?]

On the other end, after sending the message to Xiao Wuwang, Meichuan Kuzi waited anxiously.

During this time, he kept opening the Chat Channel, and several times he nearly gave in to the urge to post a message in the group chat to sell his saltpeter.

Just moments earlier, he had already seen several people in the group buying saltpeter, indicating it was likely a hot commodity lately.

But compared to the stingy offers from these people, he’d rather trust Wuwang Kuangzun.

If Wuwang Kuangzun needed it, he believed no one else in this Server Zone could offer a better price.

He didn’t have to wait long. Soon enough, a message from the person he was most hoping for finally popped up in his friend notifications.