Starting With a Reef [Global Survival]

Back at the reef, Yun Luohe checked the time—
just as she had guessed.
18:34.
She had spent over ten hours in the secret realm, but outside, only half an hour had passed.
Her message alerts were going off nonstop, so she quickly fired back short replies one by one.
When she opened the Desert Event points leaderboard again, her squad was already sitting at first place.
Ahead of second place by more than ten percent.
If nothing unexpected happened, there was a real chance they could secure first place tomorrow.
It was already late. Yun Luohe decided to make some food, then sort and categorize all the resources she had hauled back.
Her work plan for the night was simple: take the desert haul, keep what she needed, and trade the excess for upgrade resources and essential materials.
What she needed most right now: Sapphire Shards, teleportation array components, anti-radiation supplies, and various reef-construction tools.
Tomorrow, there was no need to rush into the desert at dawn. The event ended at night, and they only had six hours in the desert anyway—afternoon would do.
Her thought was clear: by tomorrow, she must have the teleportation array materials ready. Then, head straight for the array node and build it. Everything else came second.
The reef teleportation array could wait. The desert one had to be done before the event closed.
She was short only about a hundred Desert Shards. Easy enough—they were all over the Trade Hub.
——
While sorting her resources, Yun Luohe unexpectedly discovered she already had five Treasure Map Fragments.
She had divided everything into multiple resource crates because there was too much. Each category had several crates. One treasure map fragment had ended up alone in its own crate, so she had been thinking she only had four.
[Treasure Map Fragment: Collect 5 to unlock the map of any island’s treasure cave.]
Good thing she took the time to sort.
But she rarely had this luxury—better to hurry up and craft management robots soon.
She merged the fragments into a complete map.
[Obtained: Spider Island Treasure Cave Map ×1]
Spider Island, huh.
Yun Luohe smiled, glancing at Yuntun.
“Looks like we’ll be paying your old home another visit.”
Spider Island was a complex, dangerous place. Back then, it had been risky for her—she barely explored much on her first trip. But now it wouldn’t be difficult.
It was on Spider Island she had gotten Yuntun. And also where she met Yu Chenjin.
Now, with a treasure cave map leading right back there, fate clearly wasn’t done tying her to that island.
——
At exactly midnight, the system’s announcement arrived.
[Congratulations, players, for surviving until the hottest day of summer.]
[The system will conduct a comprehensive rating. Results will be sent by mail at 8 a.m. tomorrow. Please check your inbox. The rankings will also be updated.]
[On the hottest day of summer, disasters will escalate fully. Players who haven’t upgraded their reefs, do so quickly—or you may not survive tomorrow…]
[The Desert Event has only one day left. The desert passage closes at 20:00 sharp. Mind the time.]
This comprehensive rating notice came awfully late.
No real time left to prepare.
Not that it mattered. Even if she had more notice, she wouldn’t have bothered.
Her score was already solid.
She had been running nonstop lately anyway. At worst, she’d buy some furniture tonight to pad things out.
Just then, a message popped up—from Lin Zhu.
He rarely contacted her. Now and then he’d buy food or trade resources.
This time, he sent a screenshot of a recipe’s description.
“Just pulled this. It’s no use to me, but it might be to you. Take a look.”
[Dark Cuisine Recipe: A rare recipe. Every dish will break your worldview.
Crafting any dish grants +300 Cooking Skill Points.]
Oh?! Now that was good.
The moment she read it, Yun Luohe’s interest spiked.
“How do we trade?” she asked bluntly.
“I want Sapphire, Ancient Civilization Tablet, Golden Seahorse, Fire Dragon Scale, Merman Scale, Symbiotic Crystal, Firefly Queen Wing, Golden Royal Jelly…”

Lin Zhu had attached a full list.
Dozens of rare resources.
“Any three of the above can be traded for the recipe. No duplicates. Preferably one item from each tier.”
“You want three of these? Isn’t that too much?”
Each material was extremely rare, nearly impossible to farm at will.
But Yun Luohe really wanted this recipe. Far superior to the Wild Vegetable Recipe she had.
Cooking—she knew this for certain—was powerful. Just one of these dishes gave 300 Cooking Skill Points. At her current level, her skill gains were painfully slow.
Lin Zhu replied, “Yes, they’re rare. But just three. You can use lower-value ones to fill the set. I’m not asking for the moon.”
True.
Still, she hesitated, wondering if it was worth the cost.
Lin Zhu added, “I guarantee you won’t regret it. These recipes can’t be screenshotted or copied. Without the actual book, even if you know the ingredients, you can’t make the dishes.”
“…Fine. But I don’t have many of these on hand. Give me some time to think which ones to trade.”
“Don’t take too long.”
Yun Luohe did have some of the materials—but she had to be careful.
She needed to choose the three items strategically.
Of the five in her possession, she could give up a Fire Dragon Scale.
Back on Bat Island, she had picked up three of them. Never once had she used them. No blueprint had ever required them.
Judging by Lin Zhu’s list, he must have powerful blueprints that needed these rare drops.
——
By dawn, the sun was already blazing. From 5 a.m. the heat only rose higher.
It was suffocating.
Even the animals on her reef grew restless, too hot to eat.
She had to make cooling drinks and pour them into the troughs before they finally drank.
Some players rushed to the desert early, thinking to avoid the heat. But by 7 a.m., it was already past 50°C.
Unbearable.
Many players stepped into the desert, only to retreat immediately.
“This heat’s lethal. Forget it—I’ll stay at my reef. At least I’ve got an ice maker. I’ll sit in my room with ice blocks.”
“Wish I could relate. I already installed an AC unit. No way am I going to suffer in the desert when I can just sit in air conditioning.”
“Easy for you to say, you lucky bastard. Us regulars have to farm the desert to upgrade. The sea’s boiling too—you can’t even dive.”
“The comprehensive ranking comes out today. Wonder if Yun Luohe will take first again.”
“Not necessarily. Some in our guild upgraded reefs early. They might outscore her.”
“Upgraded reefs or not, comprehensive rating includes personal strength. No way they beat Yun Luohe there. At most, their reef score is higher.”
The chat channel buzzed.
Meanwhile, Yun Luohe had completely forgotten about the rating.
She spent the morning between the chicken coop and barn, laboring under the sun for two hours.
She harvested every seasonal summer crop—
Agave, cactus, dragon fruit, aloe—plants that thrived in heat but would all wither tomorrow.
Greenhouse plants lasted year-round, but outdoor crops had to be harvested on schedule.
She wasn’t sure if these would be useful in autumn or winter, but she’d stockpile them anyway. Cooking skill boosters were always valuable.
But fresh crops didn’t store well. She had to process them.
Agave was broken down into fiber. Cactus could be juiced for painkillers and anti-inflammatories, or made into salad and stew.
Aloe had many uses—hydration, sunburn treatment, burns and antibacterial medicine.
For summer, it was indispensable. Maybe less so later, but it still made good moisturizing gel. Autumn was a dry season after all.
Once she finished harvesting, Yun Luohe hurried inside to rest.
Even with full protection, the heat was oppressive.
Indoors was far more comfortable. Her cooling AC ran nonstop, powered by a tidal generator.
The problem was materials were scarce. Otherwise, she’d have installed AC in the barn and chicken coop too. As it was, she had only built two units—enough for one or two rooms each.
Most players didn’t have the blueprints or means to make them. The Trade Hub had some for sale, but anyone who could afford them could probably craft their own.
Yun Luohe ate breakfast while resting, feeding Yuntun and Roubao too.
Lately, Yuntun had been steadily consuming Crystal Shards and ores every day.
Its body seemed larger, its color deepening—likely close to evolving again.
Roubao hadn’t changed much. Its belly was huge as ever, but Yun Luohe figured it had stabilized. It ate plenty but worked plenty too, helping her daily.
As she finished breakfast, a system alert chimed. She suddenly remembered—comprehensive ratings.
[Congratulations, Player, your third Comprehensive Rating score is 832 points. Reef Rating: 567. Personal Rating: 265.
District 2 Rank: #1.
Reward: Luxury Pack (check inbox).]
District 2’s rankings filled the screen—many familiar names.
[1st: Yun Luohe – 832 (Reef 567, Personal 265)]
[2nd: Lin Zhu – 801 (Reef 561, Personal 240)]
[3rd: Du Ruan Tian – 798 (Reef 572, Personal 226)]
[4th: Meng Tu – 772 (Reef 540, Personal 232)]
[5th: Yang Mian – 758 (Reef 540, Personal 218)]
[6th: Mu Zitang – 733 (Reef 530, Personal 203)]
[7th: Wu Jing – 730 (Reef 541, Personal 189)]
[8th: Bai Yuemian]
[9th: Cheng Xuening]
……
Messages poured in, congratulating her.
She had secured the top spot in District 2 by a wide margin—over 30 points above second place.
Second and third were neck and neck.
Some surprising changes too—Wu Jing, the “Lucky Emperor,” had dropped to seventh, while Mu Zitang had actually made the board.
His fame in District 2 was nearly equal to Yun Luohe’s, thanks to openly revealing his abysmally low luck stat from the start. For him to rank now was shocking.
Members of Wu Jing’s guild opened mic on the channel.
“I gotta know, Mu Zitang—how the hell did you pull this off? Even you made it up here?!”
“No kidding. Isn’t he the president of the Mutual Aid Association? With a guild that big, it’s not strange they helped him upgrade his reef.”
“Exactly. Everyone contributes a bit, the leader upgrades, simple.”
“Wrong. Our association is mutual aid, not tribute. We trade, not handouts.”
“Then explain how Mu Zitang climbed the board.”
Mu Zitang saw the channel spamming. Instead of answering right away, he DM’d Yun Luohe, in high spirits.
“Hahaha, I didn’t expect it either! Honestly, all thanks to my parents.”
“My luck sucks, but theirs is god-tier. Every seashell they open—guaranteed golden pearls. Unreal.”
“And of course, I wanted to make life comfortable for them. That’s why I pushed my reef so hard.”
“Oh, and I gotta credit you too, Yun! That Nightingale you gave me helped tons. It kept the animals happy, boosted output, faster breeding, plants thriving. My reef rating skyrocketed. This reward pack? It’s all yours!”
“Haha, no need. Keep it. You’ve already helped me so much, and I haven’t given you much in return lately.”
“What? You’ve given me way too much already! My parents nag me every day to repay you. I will send this pack—you must take it.”
“Fine. If it’s got anything I need, I’ll trade you for it.”
“No trades. It’s yours.”
“By the way, when do we hit the desert? District 1’s probably already gone, trying to close the gap.”
“Mm. No rush.”
By now, Yun Luohe had enough Desert Shards. The materials were ready.
All that remained was to plan with the squad.
Her strategy: split up. Let the others grind points at the oasis while she went alone to find the array node. That way, even if she failed, her squad still maintained steady points.
But then—
“Oh shit! Yun, check the leaderboard!”
Her squad had been first. Now they were second.
District 1’s team had surged ahead by 1,800 points, crushing them.
The District 2 chat shifted instantly from rating gossip to outrage.
“This is ridiculous! Did District 1 hack?!”
“Maybe they triggered a hidden dungeon, like the Desert Ruins treasure cave. That would explain it.”
“Remember yesterday, Yun Luohe’s squad had a sudden point ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) spike too? Same method maybe?”
“Could be. But if so, our District 2 can kiss first place goodbye.”
“Her squad’s score hasn’t moved at all. Haven’t they gone into the desert yet?”
“Must not have. But even if they go now, it’s too late. Eighteen hundred points in this heat? No chance.”
Squad chat blew up too.
Everyone was unwilling to accept it.
“What do we do? How’d they rack up that many points so fast?”
“Should we head out right now?”