Surviving at Sea Takes All I've Got

[Upcoming novel: My Teammates Make Me Grind in the Game. Blurb at the bottom. Thanks for your support!] Qiao Sheng regretted it. She didn't regret quitting her job, nor did she regret getting hooked on games. What she regretted was getting hooked on a survival game. While pulling yet another all-nighter to build a shelter, she was dragged into the game. All around her was an endless ocean, beneath her feet a single floating board, and in her hand a slotted spoon. That was all her equipment. At that moment, Qiao Sheng decided she would never pull an all-nighter playing survival games again! Farm games were so much better: birdsong, flowers, and plenty of supplies! System: Congratulations, Player 38, you have joined the Drifting Survival Game. Qiao Sheng: … System: Player 38, please watch your game stats. Thirst, hunger, or a decrease in your health bar can all lead to death. Qiao Sheng: Where do I respawn after I die? System: Death in the game will result in your elimination from the real world. Qiao Sheng: One life? This game really goes all in. Later, Qiao Sheng diligently transformed a single floating board into a luxurious, multi-level wooden ship. Player 53332: So this is Big Shot Qiao's ship? It's really impressive. When will our little rafts get this big? Player 23333: Hurry and steer clear! Don't scrape the big shot's ship. I heard Big Shot Qiao's slotted spoon can fish up tool-users. Mine can only fish up ocean trash and teammates like you! Qiao Sheng was sunbathing on the deck, wearing a pair of System-bought ears that could hear everything. Listening to them, she felt like crying. Rumors really were terrifying. Tool-users? It made her sound like a slave driver. The people she'd fished out were smart captains! Of course, she was still the ship's owner and the ultimate boss! "Captain, is the milk tea ready? This one has no pearls, so it's not complete. Bring me a new one!" Qiao Sheng lay back in her hammock, shaded her face from the sun with a straw hat, and called out with her eyes closed. Blurb for the upcoming novel My Teammates Make Me Grind in the Game The country's biggest game publisher released a new large-scale multiplayer online role-playing game, and it immediately attracted countless players. Si Xin was a seasoned gaming addict. No matter how tired she was after work, she never let it stop her from logging in for raids and team battles. On the day of the game's open beta, she even took the day off and waited in front of her computer, logging in the moment the game opened. The instant her registration succeeded, everything went black. When she opened her eyes, she was dumbfounded. How had a PC game turned into a full-dive game? And how had she gotten inside it? Looking at the sign for the beginner village above her head, she was forced to start playing a "full-dive game." Along the way, she picked up a rampaging little girl who liked to gouge out bosses' eyeballs and spit at them. She also picked up an artsy young man who did nothing but stand behind people, fanning himself and playing the zither. The first time the three of them entered a dungeon, the other players at the entrance teased them for bringing the whole family along on a sightseeing trip. When the first-clear announcement came through, the other players were stunned. It was supposed to be a five-player dungeon, so how had three people cleared it? Later, everyone discovered that the three not only stole first clears and bosses, but also owned every shop in the main city that other players clamored to get into. Everyone had been forced into the game, so how come some people thrived with barely any effort while they remained unknown? The game's native residents had it even worse. Outsiders kept coming in and stealing their business. Si Xin: What do you mean, "thriving with barely any effort"? What do you mean, "stealing business"? I'm exhausted every single day, and I'm barely scraping by! The little girl looked innocent. "Si Xin, Si Xin, I don't want a striped dress. I want a lolita dress! With bows! And lace! The stats don't matter. It's how it looks that counts!" Si Xin sighed and started rummaging through the boxes. "Now you know how the equipment shop came to be. All the gear other people would kill for is stuff this little girl thinks is ugly." The young man furrowed his brow and flicked his sleeve. "Si Xin, I'm hungry. Let's go eat. Put a mana-restoring buff in the food. The mana potions from the apothecary are too bitter. I don't want to drink them." Si Xin rolled her eyes. "Now you know how my restaurant's premium dishes came to be. I've got a young man at home who's too picky." She'd picked up these teammates, so even if she had to cry, she'd have to raise them. Si Xin looked at the game currency in her storage, which had hit the cap, and sighed. Ah, another day of reaching the coin limit. Theme: Hard work brings a brighter tomorrow