SOLAK Chapter 14

He Huan glanced at the timer for her house upgrade. Two minutes left. With the same calm disinterest as before, she tossed Li Changping a reply.

“Seriously? You know this kind of gossip in detail? Are you a member of Taishan Mutual Aid?”

“Not me. But I’ve got a cousin in there—just a small fry. He told me. It’s no secret inside the group.”

“Pretty loyal of them, huh? Helping their own, avenging grudges. Why didn’t you join?”

Li Changping snorted with disdain, clearly not impressed.

“What, is life not hard enough already? Meat not tasty enough? Why would I volunteer for more suffering? Still, I do kinda admire that Red Name.”

“How so?”

“Not many dare take Taishan Mutual Aid head-on. That girl’s bold. If she stood in front of me, I’d call her ‘big sis’ no hesitation! I mean, she killed their people and snatched their stuff. That’s badass. Absolutely badass!”

He Huan: … Well, I heard that.

Li Changping, oblivious to the irony of chatting casually with the very Red Name Zhou Yuanshan had just put a bounty on, dropped the subject and hopped to another.

“Boss He, my cousin from the group also wants ten torches. Give me a friend discount, yeah?”

“This is the friend discount.”

“…”

“You’re such a ruthless, stingy woman.”

“Thanks for the compliment.”

While they bantered, her upgrade finished.

Compared to her level 1 hut, the new level 2 shelter had more than doubled in size—easily over thirty square meters now.

She checked its stats.

[Exceptionally Sturdy Level 2 Shelter: Because you chose higher-quality materials, your shelter now has stronger defenses.

Defense: 3000.

While resting inside, stamina and energy recovery speed +50%.]

Her old level 1 hut had only 1000 defense. Even if the system simply doubled values, it should’ve been 2000. But with hardwood and granite, it hit 3000. Proof that advanced materials really made a difference.

Even better: the +50% stamina and energy recovery bonus.

So her theory was right—higher-tier materials yielded higher-tier attributes.

The granite-and-hardwood construction looked sturdier and more elegant. Thicker walls, reinforced floor, and even a shiny glass window by the wide wooden door. From it, she could see the night outside—a swirl of fog wrapping her shelter, black winds howling uselessly against the stone half-walls.

Inside, it was warm, cozy, and windproof. Even the bonfire lasted longer.

Upgrading unlocked a new sub-option: the crafting station.

[Crafting Station: A tool for making various items. Each use consumes 1 energy. Requires: Wood x15, Metal x5.]

Without hesitation, He Huan swapped in hardwood. If she had better metals, she would’ve used those too.

Construction time: one minute. Soon, a polished red-hued crafting table appeared in the corner.

She opened the crafting menu. Five recipes showed up. Four were ones she’d learned: Fur Coat, Leather Boots, Lasting Torch, and Basic Healing Potion.

The fifth was new—a bonus for using advanced materials.

[Synthesis: Combine two identical basic materials into one higher-tier material.]

She tried it with wood.

[Consumed: Wood x2]
[Produced: Hardwood x1]
[Consumed: 1 Energy]

So that’s how it worked.

Energy was purely for crafting. If it dropped too low while exploring, a “Fatigue” debuff kicked in—50% chance of reduced combat ability and accuracy.

Her current Level 3 stats gave her 100 energy. Normally, in a level 2 hut, recovery was 1 energy per 2 minutes. But here? Thanks to her upgraded shelter, it was 1 energy per minute.

Twice the productivity of others. Delicious.

Meanwhile, Li Changping had quickly handed over materials. Whatever his haggling, he was prompt with payment.

After He Huan traded him ten Lasting Torches, he immediately passed her more supplies for his cousin’s order.

From twenty torches, she pocketed two straw and two grease as fees. Market rate was decent—but given her torches were unique, cost energy, and were far superior, she wasn’t satisfied.

So, once she finished his cousin’s order, she flat-out ignored any further trades from him. While he wailed about betrayal, she put up her first listing on the trade platform.

[Lasting Torch: Essential for traveling at night. Reduces encounter chance with night dangers by 30%. Duration: 4 hours. Stackable.]
[Price: 14 Wood, 7 Straw, 7 Grease = 5 Torches. Minimum order: 5. No haggling. Stock: 80]

Compared to ordinary 2-hour torches that cost 1 wood + 1 straw, her price was steep. But worth it.

As expected, buyers swarmed. Some tried to bargain, but most just bought directly.

In the blink of an eye, all 80 torches were sold.

She immediately delisted, then got to work crafting. Yet even with the order closed, buyers kept messaging—some haggling, some begging to reserve tomorrow’s stock.

She stayed cautious. In a world where survival wasn’t guaranteed, promises for “tomorrow” meant nothing. She didn’t take reservations, but she did add would-be buyers as friends.

She kept crafting until her palms practically sparked fire. But her effort paid off: producing 100 torches boosted her Lasting Torch proficiency to Intermediate.

Now, crafting two torches only cost 1 energy. If she reached Advanced or Expert, maybe torches would cost her nothing at all.

While working through the 80 orders, she triggered “Epiphany” six times. The closer she got to Intermediate, the more frequent it became—clearly a skill tied to mastery.

The special torches produced this way came with a bonus:

[Lasting Torch (Epiphany): Essential for traveling at night. Reduces night dangers by 30%. Lasts 4 hours. Stackable.

(Epiphany: While carrying this torch in battle, your highest attribute increases by 10% until the torch burns out.)]

For low-level residents, +10% was minor. But for high-level ones? A game-changer.

She kept all six for herself. Best to hoard the good stuff.

Two hours later, all orders delivered, she checked her earnings with satisfaction.

Her energy had already recovered to over 40, thanks to her enhanced shelter.

She decided not to relist torches. Scarcity raised value—and revealing her surplus energy might attract dangerous attention.

After all, as a Red Name with a bounty, staying low-profile was smart.

Instead, she switched to synthesis, fusing materials for stronger upgrades. She was just about to push her shelter toward level 3 when her private chat pinged.

“Excuse me, are you Miss He Huan?”

The sender’s name: Qiu Keke. Clearly a girl.

Normally, He Huan was more patient with girls.

“Yes.”

“Are you the one who makes the Lasting Torches?”

“That’s me.”

“Can I place an order?”

As usual, He Huan gave her standard cautious answer.

“Sorry, I don’t take reservations. We can add each other as friends. If I’m still alive tomorrow, you can come back then. But there are plenty ahead of you already—you might need to queue.”

She prepared to add the friend and close the chat, same as always.

But then, Qiu Keke’s next words made her stop dead.