Chapter 2: Stranded at Sea, Bartering on Land

[Little Fortune]: +50% earnings and +50% experience within 24 hours.

Yun Shi isn’t sure if this buff relates to the earlier plot or is an opening server perk.

From the small boat’s clutter, he scavenges some coins.
With the buff, his inventory now holds 2 gold and 25 silver.
He also finds two potatoes, a simple grill, a water purifier, and an old harpoon.

No other boats, players, or NPCs are in sight on the sea.
Most games spawn players in a starter village.
This one?
It strands them alone on the ocean.

Worse, there’s no tutorial, and the quest lacks coordinates.
No wonder Starnet users call this game brutally difficult.

Yun Shi adjusts the sail, steering the boat toward the mist.
On the sea, there should be islands nearby—surely they wouldn’t leave players without a place to repair.

His survival stats are steadily dropping.
The boat’s remaining items can serve as fuel, but roasting potatoes and purifying seawater are slow.
Yun Shi estimates they’ll be ready when his hunger and thirst hit 8.
At that level, without the boat’s supplies, a player would likely starve or dehydrate.

But finding resources doesn’t mean safety.

From the official forum, Yun Shi knows Breath of Life’s full version has multiple phases:
Breath – Survival (post-apocalypse survival), Breath – Civilization (rebuilding society), and Breath – Galaxy (cosmic exploration).
All phases are complete, unlocked when players progress to the next stage.
A server advances from the first phase once a player does.

Today’s new server is still in the first phase: post-apocalypse survival.

“Post-apocalypse” needs no explanation—danger lurks everywhere.

Something gnaws at the boat’s damaged section, splintering wood with sharp teeth.
Yun Shi draws his bow, approaching cautiously.

A small shark chews the boat, drawn by the NPC’s bloodstains.

[Shark · Small]
Level: 10
Health: 400/400
Rage: 0/100

Unlike typical games, skills don’t unlock with levels.
All six are available at level 1.
Yun Shi’s basic attack deals 20 damage, his three attack skills 30-40.
His bow deals physical damage, boosted by his skills’ physical bonuses, plus control and buffs.
With proper skill combos and a few basic attacks, 400 health is manageable.

In a flash, Yun Shi aims an arrow at the shark’s eye, dropping its health by 50.

The shark thrashes its tail, rocking the boat.
Yun Shi steadies himself, landing three more critical shots, reducing its health to 200.
Surprisingly, instead of charging him, the shark dives deep, vanishing.

[Boat Durability -100]
[Boat Durability: 400/1000]

The damaged section worsens, the NPC’s blood gone, replaced by the shark’s.

Yun Shi glances at the boat, then the calm sea, sensing trouble.

Sure enough, after eating a gritty, soft potato and drinking purified water, the shark returns, its health at 300.

It targets the boat again, as if knowing a broken vessel traps its prey.

This time, Yun Shi opens with a control skill—saved earlier for when the shark’s rage maxes out to prevent a big move.
With it immobilized, the shark can’t bite the boat.
Yun Shi unloads damage during the control window.
When it ends, the shark flees again, its health down to 120.

Thanks to timely control, the boat loses only 10 durability.

After the shark escapes, Yun Shi checks his survival stats:

Hunger: 55/100
Thirst: 60/100
Mental: 50/100

The potatoes, gritty yet slightly sweet, feel almost real, except for the fake fullness.
They make him hungrier.
As basic food, they don’t fully restore stats.
The boat has no more food, and it hasn’t reached shore.
To survive, he needs more food and purified water.
Mental stats likely recover with rest.

While waiting for the shark’s return, Yun Shi skips using the harpoon on fish.
Instead, he shoots seagulls landing on the boat.
Level 1, 50 health, they drop drumsticks and feathers, yielding 10 experience each.

The boat sails into the mist, confirming Yun Shi’s guess—two connected islands lie ahead.

The shark returns, and this time, Yun Shi kills it.

[You have successfully killed the Shark · Small!]
[System: Congratulations, you’ve reached level 5 and unlocked the secondary weapon slot!]
[System: Congratulations, you obtained [Shark Tooth] *3; [Shark Skin] *1; [Shark Meat] *4]

The rewards are surprisingly generous, with hefty experience and blue (fine) quality items.
Teeth can be crafted into secondary weapons, skin into armor or sails, and meat can be roasted or used in advanced recipes.

The boat’s remaining durability suffices for the short trip.
After killing a few more seagulls, it docks on a beach.

Yun Shi prepares to disembark, then turns back, transferring all remaining items to his inventory.
He succeeds.

The game’s kindest feature?
The inventory, called a “space node” here, mirroring interstellar tech.
It’s massive—30 slots per page, 20 pages total.

Yun Shi, now penniless, plays a survival game that feels too real.
Grills, purifiers, and fuel will be vital later.
If the boat could fit in the space node, he’d take it too.
Even if NPCs sell these for a few coppers, he’s saving every coin.

Fully packed, Yun Shi steps onto the island.

[System: Congratulations, you’ve achieved the Twin Islands Landing achievement!]

So it’s called Twin Islands.
The achievement, boosted by [Little Fortune], grants a chunk of experience and 39 silver coins.

The system unlocks the marketplace, world chat, friend list, and leaderboards.

The interface’s bottom left buzzes with activity:

[Woe is me! Finally on the island! Expected an easier new version, but I feel like a fool!]
[Fool +1! Heh, the devs are as dogsht as ever. Ten years, still no tutorial!]
[Sigh, never thought my first time would be with a fish!!]
[??? Spill the details?]
[Ha, probably got bit in the as by a shark.]
[All traps! NPC dies, lures sharks, only two potatoes on the boat, shark’s defense is insane, can’t kill it. I starved right after landing, and revival cost half my experience!! Still level 1, can you believe it?]
[If I hadn’t read beta guides, I wouldn’t have made it to the island.]
[Bet some didn’t even reach it! Notice how few people are here?]
[Anybody know the coordinates for the sister quest?]
[Ask island NPCs. I found their camp at (xxx,xxx).]
[You’re a saint!]
[Saint for life!]
[Bad*ss! Level 4, must be a pro! Carry me!]

As players say, the island is sparse.
Yun Shi’s beach has fewer than ten boats.
Ignoring level gaps, he inputs the NPC’s coordinates and heads there.

Early game, NPC quests yield more experience than grinding mobs, plus some coin rewards.
Yun Shi also wants to check if the shark materials are worth more to NPCs or players.

Beyond the beach lies a dense forest, lush like a tropical rainforest, teeming with life.

But this is the apocalypse, and it’s the wild.

Rustling comes from the grass.
Vines on trees twitch.
Beasts roar faintly in the depths.
On a screen, danger feels distant.
Here, it’s real.

Goosebumps rise on Yun Shi’s hand.
The game’s sensory system is unnervingly advanced.

Nearby, players entering the forest scream:

[Aaah! Just wanted a fruit! Why’s it all spiders?!]
[Oh sh*t! Poison, bleeding out! I’m done!]

Two players drop dead mid-sentence.
The rest freeze, unsure.
The NPC camp is past this forest—what now?

“Hey! Wrong way!”
A player at the forest-beach border shouts.
“The forest is full of poison! This way!”

The shouting player, ID CherryWhatFlavor, is a streamer currently live.
Watching players retreat from the forest, he brags to his audience:
“Saved a few lost newbies—aren’t I great?”

“So, Breath of Life demands caution.
From sea to island, traps everywhere!
Remember the key points Peach Bro’s teaching, babies!”
He checks the elements and levels of retreating players.

“Let’s see: fire, level 2; thunder, level 2; water, level 1… Yup, all newbies.
Peach Bro loves carrying newbies.
Oh, another one—wind, and—f*ck! Level 5?!”

The stream explodes:

[Holy sht! Badss!]
[Meeting a pro this early?]
[Just joined, clueless—why’s level 5 a big deal? You’re level 5 too, right?]
[LOL, don’t ask! Streamer’s level 5 is from dying in beta!]
[For the unaware: hitting level 5 on landing needs two things—kill the two-meter fish for the buff, then the shark chewing the boat for big experience.
Sounds simple, but like Peach Bro said a million times, the boat sways, you’re level 1, and you need fast, precise critical hits.
Miss the weak point, and their high defense makes them unkillable.]
[So, this wind guy’s either a beta player or a real pro?]

Cherry wonders the same, eyeing the wind player named Clouds and Breezes, then leads the group back to the beach.

The beach’s right side has a towering stone wall, seemingly a dead end.
Closer inspection reveals a narrow, one-person path.
It’s damp but safe—NPCs use and maintain it regularly, Cherry explains to the newbies.

Two minutes later, bright light pierces the narrow cave’s exit.

Yun Shi trails behind as others pass through.
He follows, and his vision opens wide.

Simple wooden huts line a valley stream.
Some stone walls are carved into warehouses or homes.
Each doorstep has firewood and an old iron pot.
This is the real starter village.

“Wow! We made it! Huge thanks!”
“So d*mn brutal! Without you, I’d have died in that forest who knows how many times.”
“Seriously!”

Newbies thank CherryWhatFlavor profusely.
Yun Shi adds a quiet “Thanks.”

Cherry brushes it off, gives more tips, and players scatter to find NPCs for quests.
As the crowd thins, Cherry catches up to Clouds and Breezes, sending a team invite.

Yun Shi accepts.
Cherry clearly played the beta and knows the ropes.
Yun Shi asks if the village has a weapon crafter.

Cherry gets it: “You want to craft a secondary weapon, right? I’m heading there too. Let’s go.”

Yun Shi: “Sure.”

Like most games, the starter village has vendors for basic weapons, food, and low-grade potions.
But unlike others, NPCs here don’t take coins—they want materials.

At the village’s weapon merchant, Yun Shi and Cherry state their purpose.
The NPC glances over: “Fine, two [Shark Teeth] for a weapon.”

“Scammer!” Cherry whispers to Yun Shi.
“A [Shark Curved Blade] only needs one tooth, and he’s charging two. Pure profit!”

Yun Shi frowns.
Blue materials are rare early on, and the NPC demands two teeth—wiping out his stock.
This wasn’t his plan.

The merchant sneers at their hesitation: “Too poor for materials? Move aside, don’t block my business.”

“F*ck!” Cherry mutters, ready to hand over materials as more players arrive.
He doesn’t want to lose his spot.

Before he does, someone pulls him back.
Cherry turns, about to ask what the wind guy wants, when Clouds and Breezes—Wind Bro—draws his bow, aiming at the NPC’s forehead, voice cold but words brazen:

“One [Shark Curved Blade], 10 silver. Sell or not?”

The arrow glints at the NPC’s brow. His face shifts to a fawning smile: “Hey, buddy, let’s talk nice—”

Whoosh!
An arrow hits the table, just missing the NPC’s sneaky hand.

Yun Shi repeats: “Sell or not?”

Three seconds later, Yun Shi, without spending materials, buys a curved blade for 10 silver.

[Shark Curved Blade] [Fine]: Deals 70 piercing damage, ignores defense (non-upgradable, non-tradeable)

[System: Congratulations, you’ve achieved the Bargaining achievement!]
[System: Congratulations, you’ve reached level 6!]

Nearby channel:
[System]: Congratulations to player [Clouds and Breezes] for achieving the Bargaining achievement!
Nearby players: …F*ck! That’s some hardcore bargaining!