"..."
When Lan Qingyou saw the food Gu Xiaobei had sent over, she fell into silence.
The cut was roughly forty centimeters long, and the striated muscle fibers made it obvious this came from some monster that got plenty of exercise.
After quietly appraising it with the Small Screen, she arrived at her answer.
It was Water Arrow Frog thigh meat.
Put more simply — it was the thigh of an oversized magic frog that could cast water-arrow spells.
Well, okay.
At least it was edible, and it even added 2 points to Strength.
So Lan Qingyou reached out — no utensils, no ceremony — tore off a strip of meat with her bare hands, and popped it into her mouth.
She had to admit, the roast was impeccable.
Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, satisfyingly chewy, with a faint, refreshing herbal fragrance.
It had probably been marinated in something like mint.
Where on earth this girl had gotten her hands on so much cumin, chili powder, and pepper was anyone's guess — Lan Qingyou even spotted chopped scallions on the meat.
Gu Xiaobei's cooking was getting better and better.
Lan Qingyou was eating frog meat, and Steel Wire Ball was naturally eating frog meat too.
Only, today's portion was a bit too big for the little thing. Its tiny head bobbed left, then right, unable to figure out where to bite.
So after finishing her own meal, Lan Qingyou wiped her hands on a cloth and began tearing Steel Wire Ball's portion of pure, unseasoned frog meat into bite-sized chunks.
As she tore, she stuffed pieces into its mouth one by one.
Watching Steel Wire Ball's miniature head bob back and forth as it gulped down each morsel, Lan Qingyou couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Attention, citizens of Blue Star! The first Mana Tide will commence shortly. This tide will last three natural days. Please remain inside your shelters and do not venture outside. Any consequences of leaving are your own responsibility."
Just as Lan Qingyou was leisurely feeding Steel Wire Ball for entertainment, the voice of the World Will suddenly sounded in her ears.
Mana Tide?
Three days?
Counting the days, it had been roughly twenty-seven days since the forced teleportation. Add three more and that made it an even month.
'End-of-the-month exam time!'
With that thought, a flicker of concern crossed Lan Qingyou's face. She switched her desk panel to the World Channel to see what was happening.
But before the World Channel could even react, Steel Wire Ball beat it to the punch.
"Squee-squee-squee-squee—"
Steel Wire Ball, which had been happily munching on frog meat moments ago, started shrieking frantically, flapping its wings as it dove into Lan Qingyou's arms, begging to be held.
Lan Qingyou froze for a moment, then furrowed her brow and wrapped her hands protectively around the trembling creature.
'Strange. Could this Mana Tide be even worse than the Mana Turbulence?'
'Frightening enough to scare an Aurora Snowy Owl even inside a shelter?'
Remembering that some animals possessed far keener instincts for natural disasters than humans, Lan Qingyou's expression shifted uneasily.
But then she reminded herself that she was in a Level 3 shelter and allowed herself a small breath of relief.
Level 3 — even if the base materials were relatively common, not everyone had one. No reason to panic.
So she stroked the squeaking Steel Wire Ball in her arms with one hand while absent-mindedly scrolling through the World Channel with the other.
"Oh god, I thought the extreme weather was over."
"Keep dreaming. Did you forget what Kalim's World Will said at the very beginning? Of course there's going to be extreme weather."
"I'm in a Level 3 shelter. Not worried at all."
"Lucky. How'd you get to Level 3?"
"Is there a direct connection between Mana Tides and Mana Turbulence?"
"Probably. Remember — this is a planet where even the river water and air are saturated with mana."
"I think this Mana Tide might be worse than the Turbulence. My advice: don't go outside."
"Great advice. My advice is that next time you keep your advice to yourself."
"The World Will just spelled it out clear as day. Think we're stupid? Over here playing expert."
"Is it just me or is the sky a weird shade of red?"
"Red? Before you said that, I could've sworn it was purple. Am I color-blind?"
"Wind's picking up."
"I can see the ocean from here. The waves are massive right now. No idea if it'll turn into a tsunami."
"Holy crap — a waterspout!"
"It's over. If a tsunami hits, my shelter's getting swallowed."
Lan Qingyou turned to look out the window. The night sky, which should have been pitch black, was now suffused with an eerie purple glow.
Purple lightning streaked across the sky outside, accompanied by howling winds.
If the Mana Turbulence was a gentle breeze, then the Mana Tide made it look like nothing more than a light gust.
"Holy shit! The patterns on my shelter walls are lighting up!"
"Same here!"
"How come mine aren't?"
"What do we do? The glowing runes are terrifying."
Runes?
Lan Qingyou looked up at the rune patterns on her own shelter walls. They weren't glowing.
But only for a moment.
The very next second, the runes ignited with green light and began to pulse.
Lan Qingyou blinked.
This was the sign of the magic shield activating — someone had mentioned it during the Mana Turbulence.
Could even a Level 3 shelter fail to withstand the Mana Tide?
Staring at the quivering Steel Wire Ball nestled in her arms, Lan Qingyou felt the first stirrings of doubt.
"What do we do?! I can feel the rune glow getting weaker!"
"You're not imagining it. Same here."
"Even Level 3 shelters can't hold?"
"The Level 3 runes are already activated. Everyone's panicking."
"Somebody save me! I still haven't found my daughter! I can't die!"
"Heh. Blue Star Earthlings aren't going to be saved. Let's all die together!"
"Mom, dad... I don't think I'm going to make it. Please take care of yourselves."
Within moments, the World Channel descended into collective despair.
Many of the messages read like final words.
The depth of their hopelessness was palpable.
"There's a rune inside the room that runs in the opposite direction from all the others — everyone, look for it! Once you find it, throw your collected materials onto it! The reversed rune will automatically absorb the mana from the materials and replenish the magic shield!"
Just when everyone was at a loss, this message appeared on the World Channel.
It was shared and re-shared at an explosive rate.
Within seconds, it dominated the entire feed.
Whether it was true or not, with this single ray of hope, nearly everyone began frantically searching for the rune inside their shelters.
Lan Qingyou was no exception.
After all, she had no desire to die.
Being the sole occupant of a Level 3 shelter made the search rather time-consuming, though.
Every second counted.
It was tedious, but Lan Qingyou didn't complain. She just buckled down and searched with single-minded focus.
To avoid having to double back and re-check anything, she examined every single rune with painstaking care.
All the while, she kept Steel Wire Ball clutched to her chest.
From the eighty-square-meter first floor to the forty-square-meter second floor to the twenty-square-meter third floor — it took her a grueling three-plus hours before she finally spotted it in a corner of the third floor.
Just as the World Channel message had described, it ran in the exact opposite direction from all the others.
When she first saw it, Lan Qingyou wasn't entirely sure.
After all, stare at any character long enough and you'd experience visual fatigue and pattern collapse — let alone with this many symbols to contend with.
She rubbed her eyes. It was definitely reversed.
Closed her eyes, opened them again. Still reversed.
'That's the one. Got you, you little rascal.'
Finally locating the rune, Lan Qingyou exhaled in relief. If the rune itself was real, then what those people had said should be legit too, right?
With that thought, she fished out her Appraisal Glasses and took a closer look.