Chapter 1
Shu Mo looked at the scene in front of him in shock.
Before her was an endless snowfield. The snow seemed to be falling without stopping. There was deathly silence all around. It was so quiet that the only sounds she could hear were the rustling sound of snowflakes falling and her own slightly rapid breathing.
Behind her was a series of deep footprints, with a thin layer of snow on them. If you follow the footsteps and look back, you will find that the footprints appear abruptly in a certain place.
Half a minute ago, she suddenly appeared in this world.
His body temperature was rapidly dropping, and there was no sign of any biological activity in front of him. It was eerily quiet, and his pockets were empty. The possibility of calling for help was cut off, and Shu Mo's body was shaking uncontrollably.
In desperation she recalled why she was here.
Shu Mo is a senior this year, a student majoring in economics at a key university in China, and is currently interning at a securities company.
In this industry, 996 is the norm, and interns have even less human rights. In addition, Shu Mo is the only undergraduate student in the same period. She feels that her knowledge reserves are insufficient, so she has to make up for it after get off work every day. In addition, she also has to prepare her graduation thesis...
The life of a new office worker is like going through a tribulation, so naturally, after sleeping only four or five hours a day for a week, Shu Mo gloriously collapsed on the way home from get off work.
The streets were empty late at night. She was lying alone on the side of the road, with her cell phone lying beside her, and peaceful and soothing music coming from it.
It was a business simulation mobile game that she had just opened and wanted to play for a while during her commute.
In the cute cartoon scene, the female owner of a small dim sum shop sits behind the counter calmly, fanning herself with a palm-leaf fan while waiting for customers to arrive.
The electric fan was creaking, the sun was shining outside, and the cicadas were chirping loudly.
Shu Mo thought dazedly before completely losing consciousness.
If there is a next life, she never wants to curl up again.
It seems like it would be nice to open a small shop like this and live a leisurely life.
…
When she opened her eyes again, she was already standing in the vast expanse of white snow.
Shu Mo began to doubt his life.
The southern city where she was interning was much warmer than the northern town where she was from, but even in her hometown, Shu Mo had never seen such heavy snow. The snow felt like sharp blades on her skin, making it difficult to tell whether it was coldness or pain.
What's more, she clearly remembered that it was just the beginning of autumn before she fell into a coma.
The perceived temperature at this moment was colder than any winter she had ever experienced. If no one else passed by, Shu Mo felt that she would soon be frozen to death.
When my consciousness was blurred, I heard a "ding dong" sound in my ears.
[Player Shu Mo has been detected and the simulation management system has been bound for you! 】
Here we come!
Shu Mo felt ecstatic.
After a sudden death, she came to a strange world. This was a familiar plot. She had indeed traveled through time.
But, players?
Is this a game world?
...Why would a business simulation game have such a harsh living environment?
【Please select your business direction】
Before Shu Mo could think more, the clear child's voice continued.
A light screen popped up in front of me, with countless pictures of buildings on it, ranging from department stores to apartment buildings.
Shu Mo was dazzled.
As a heavy fan of business simulation games, if it were normal, she would definitely choose carefully, but Shu Mo was already freezing to unconsciousness at this moment, and asked hurriedly, "Wait, shouldn't you solve the problem of freezing to death for me first?!"
Sorry, this is not within my service scope.
【Please select your business direction】
The huge light screen slammed into his face.
This system doesn't sound very smart.
Shu Mo was afraid that it would continue to dwell on this issue, so he had to be patient and scan it quickly.
When I saw it, I was immediately attracted by one of the pictures.
The picture shows a pool of turquoise hot spring water, surrounded by wet boulders, with wisps of white smoke rising from the water surface, and a lush green bamboo forest all around.
……spa?
"I want this!" Shu Mo said directly without even turning the page.
[Do you choose "hot spring hotel" as your business direction? 】
Shu Mo said without hesitation, "Yes."
The ding ding ding reminder sounds rang out one after another, like jumping and pleasant notes.
[Obtain: [Small Indoor Hot Spring]*1]
[Obtain: [Cashier]*1]
[Obtain: [Simple stall]*1]
[Put in backpack]
[During your trip, you can open your backpack at any time and choose a suitable location to start your first business]
Shu Mo followed the instructions and tremblingly opened his personal panel - backpack.
The grids of the backpack were empty, except for the three things placed in the first row, first second and third columns respectively.
Shu Mo chose [small indoor hot spring] and built it under his feet.
The next moment, a small wooden building rose from the ground. At the same time, a transparent barrier was formed around it, like a soap bubble in the sun, wrapping the entire building.
Shu Mo had a feeling that within the range of this barrier, she seemed to possess extremely powerful strength, even able to override the rules of the world.
The small wooden house continuously supplied heat to the surroundings, and the biting cold was immediately alleviated a lot.
Shu Mo suppressed the shock in his heart and opened the door.
As she pushed the door open, a wave of heat hit her in the face, and she fell into the warm air, and the coldness outside was swept away.
The house was lit with warm orange lights, as if it were another peaceful and tranquil world.
What I saw was a small square lobby with a door behind the counter, which looked like a storage room or something. There is a symmetrical curtain on each side, with the words "male" and "female" written on them respectively.
Standing at the door, you can already smell the faint sulfur scent of the hot spring water.
Shu Mo walked straight into the women's bathroom. Lift the curtain and turn the corner to find a small changing room with a toilet next to it, and further inside are the shower room and indoor hot spring pool. It is really not big if you say it is small. Shu Mo estimates that it can only accommodate five female guests at a time. The men's bathing pool on the other side is symmetrically designed with this one, and the area should be about the same.
By this calculation...the small indoor hot spring can accommodate up to ten guests at a time.
Shu Mo pondered secretly in his heart.
Without thinking any further, she returned to the locker room to get a set of disposable toiletries. There were folded clean bath towels on the shelf nearby, and Shu Mo also took a set.
Take off your clothes, rinse your body, and then enter the hot spring pool.
The pool, which could accommodate five people, was much larger than her own bathtub. Now she was the only one enjoying it. Shu Mo soaked in it for a long time until she began to feel a little dizzy. She went out to change her clothes and blow-dry her hair.
The used towels were thrown into the recycling bamboo basket at the door of the locker room. Shu Mo was surprised to notice that the empty space on the shelf was immediately filled with a dry and soft white towel.
——It seems that she doesn’t need to worry about replenishing these supplies.
Shu Mo returned to the front desk and resolved the survival crisis that almost froze her to death. She finally began to seriously consider the issue of store management.
There were still two items left out of the three items that the system had just provided for free. Shu Mo moved the [Cashier] out of his backpack and built it at the front desk.
When you move your eyes to it, a viewable panel will pop up immediately.
【Today's turnover: 0 o'clock】
[Today's operating cost: 200 points (small hot spring maintenance cost * 1)]
[This facility can recruit 1 employee (current number of employees: 0)]
[Tip: The system will automatically settle accounts at 0:00 every day and deduct operating costs. If the account balance is insufficient, the system will reclaim the facilities that have not paid the maintenance fees. Please work hard! 】
Without considering recruiting employees for the time being, Shu Mo fixed his eyes on the last line of instructions and secretly thought that this was not good.
If she fails to earn 200 points before midnight tonight, the hot spring will be reclaimed?
Without the hot spring, she might have a hard time even getting through tonight.
Shu Mo glanced at the wall clock. The current time was 6:30 in the afternoon.
Only five and a half hours left.
The snow outside was getting heavier and heavier, and there was even a strong wind blowing. Shu Mo recalled the lonely scenes he had seen along the way here and slowly frowned.
Such a remote place, coupled with bad weather...will there really be any customers coming?
No matter how anxious he was, he couldn't attract customers for her. Shu Mo sighed and was about to take out the last item [Simple Stall] given by the system from his backpack to prepare for opening the store when he heard a slight creaking sound coming from the door.
*
Song Wei gritted her teeth and trudged through the snow.
She was wearing thick gear, which effectively protected her from the negative effects of the blizzard, but the biting cold still penetrated every corner. Every time she pulled her boots out of the snow that was above her calves, she could feel the dampness and coldness.
This is the tenth year since the launch of "Apocalypse of Extreme Cold".
Ten years ago, this survival game suddenly appeared and covered the whole world in ice in just one month. The temperature plummeted, and almost all plants and animals became extinct, leaving only humans and a steady stream of ferocious and evil monsters.
Humans are forcibly transformed into players, just like in the online games of the past, where they can level up, learn skills, form teams to fight monsters, and so on. Then use the points you earn to exchange for survival resources with the game system.
The clothes Song Wei was wearing at this time were the Class B winter-proof clothes she had purchased. This is the standard equipment for every player who wants to survive - the down jacket and cotton coat worn before the game starts have no equipment attributes and cannot resist the severe cold of the game at all.
However, even though she was wearing a cold-proof suit and would not lose health due to the cold, the long journey in the snow almost exhausted her physical strength.
"Weiwei, let's forget about it." Her companion Zhao Yu said behind her, "We have been walking for so long and haven't seen any suitable place to camp. Let's take a rest and then go back to meet up with the captain and the others."
Players in the game are used to teaming up to kill monsters. Song Wei and Zhao Yu are in the same team.
After dark, players' movements will be greatly restricted, so teams that go out to kill monsters will usually choose a campsite in advance and set up defenses, and then rush back to the camp before dark to rest until dawn.
Song Wei and Zhao Yu came out this time to find a camp for their team.
It’s a pity that after walking for so long, I haven’t found a suitable one.
"Hold on a little longer. There are snow-capped mountains in the distance. There might be caves. Camping in a cave is much safer than on the plains."
When Song Wei saw Zhao Yu sighing, she felt helpless as well.
The setting of "Arctic Cold Apocalypse" is too harsh. There is no absolutely safe area in the entire game continent. Even towns may be attacked by powerful monsters. The team's outdoor camp is even more dangerous.
Since becoming a player, she has hardly had a good night's sleep in the past ten years, and her spirit has long been tense to the extreme.
If it weren't for her elderly parents at home, she might have collapsed long ago.
It would be great if "Arctic Cold" had a safe house where players could rest and save files like in previous games...
When will this busy and fearful life end?
Song Wei dragged her tired body, gritted her teeth and walked forward, but despair gradually grew in her heart.
"Weiwei, look what that is?!" Zhao Yu suddenly exclaimed.
Song Wei came back to her senses, raised her head, and a bright color was reflected in her dim pupils.
In the distant snow and wind, a warm orange light appeared.
"Is it my illusion?" Zhao Yu rubbed his eyes, "Why does it look like... a lamp?"
"It's still half a day's journey from here to the nearest town, right?"
The two looked at each other and approached carefully.
When she got closer and saw everything clearly, Song Wei suddenly opened her eyes wide.
She turned around and saw Zhao Yu who was also stunned.
——In the midst of heavy snow, there stood a small wooden house.
A lamp was hanging under the eaves of the wooden house, swaying gently in the wind. It was the light of that lamp that they had just seen.
The roaring snow and wind suddenly subsided the moment they approached the cabin, as if there was an invisible barrier separating this place from the outside world. What shocked the two most was that they actually felt a sense of warmth.
After the game took back the fire, all the warm things in the world disappeared. Sometimes, even when Song Wei touched her own body, she felt it was cold.
But from the building in front of me, there was clearly a warmth emanating.
Song Wei's heartbeat suddenly accelerated.
She ignored Zhao Yu's anxious call from behind her, took a step forward and pushed open the door of the cabin.
The welcoming bell hanging at the door rang crisply, and as I pushed the door open, hot air with a smell of sulfur hit me in the face.
Behind the counter, a young girl was smiling.
"Welcome."
*
Shu Mo didn't expect that he would welcome his first guest so soon.
The girl in front of me looked to be in her twenties. The tip of her nose was red from the cold, and her short hair was covered with snow grains. It was like a chilly wind blowing in, and I felt cold just by looking at her.
She froze the moment she entered the room, and if you looked closely, her body seemed to be trembling slightly.
Shu Mo thought she was just cold, and kindly explained: "Our store has just opened, and we haven't had time to hang up the sign yet, but this is a hot spring hotel. Do you want to take a hot spring bath?"
She looked at Song Wei expectantly, her dark eyes bright as stars.
To her now, every customer is very important and she has to fight hard for them.
But the price list hasn’t been finalized yet, so I don’t know how many guests we can welcome tonight. She had to earn 200 points, but she couldn’t set the price too high and scare away the hard-won customers.
Shu Mo pondered, "As for the price..."
"Bubble!" Song Wei suddenly reacted and interrupted her.
As if she was afraid that Shu Mo would run away, she quickly added excitedly, "If there really is a hot spring, I will soak in it no matter how much it costs!!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
