Chapter 53: Upgrade, Stuck

The fastest way to grow stronger was naturally to upgrade her vehicle. She had originally planned to build a defensive wall, but now, upgrading the vehicle took priority.

Aside from that, she also had her newly bound secondary vehicle. Even though its upgrade method had been lost, it wasn’t impossible to level up. When dismantling vehicles, the resulting salvaged parts usually hinted at their required upgrade materials. This meant the sailboat vehicle likely required Refined Steel to upgrade—and coincidentally, she had a massive stockpile of it.

With that in mind, Lily Rhodes finished her meal and headed straight outside.

She withdrew the vast majority of the Crystal Cores from her storage, leaving only a small fraction behind for emergencies.

"Come here, Shelly. Don’t hold back, eat it all," Lily said, waving her hand with sweeping generosity.

Shelly’s eyes lit up. It opened its massive maw, and a tidal wave of Crystal Cores automatically flew right in.

As the Crystal Cores were rapidly consumed, the ground beneath Lily’s feet began to shake violently. Since she had just dumped almost her entire net worth, she hadn’t even calculated how many levels Shelly would jump. The tremors beneath her were fiercer than ever before.

The insignia on her wrist began to heat up. What started as a mild warmth quickly escalated into a scorching burn.

HISS.

Lily gasped in pain, inhaling sharply, yet she did nothing to interrupt Shelly’s transformation.

Shelly dropped its camouflage, returning to its true form. From a distance, one could see the turtle’s body expanding steadily. However, unlike its previous exponential growth spurts, its sheer size didn’t increase drastically this time. The most profound change lay in the intricate patterns covering its shell. A brilliant five-colored light shot up from the ground, weaving together to illuminate the entire surrounding ocean.

Suddenly, a relentless surge of power flooded frantically into Lily’s body, fundamentally reconstructing her physiology.

The process was excruciating. She collapsed, thrashing on the ground as a tearing agony ripped through her flesh. It felt as though countless invisible hands were trying to tear her limb from limb, forcing a wretched scream from her lungs. This sheer torment lasted for nearly half an hour before it finally began to subside.

Lily slowly opened her eyes. The Potential Seed worked tirelessly to repair the damage and keep her from blacking out completely. Her clothes and hair were already drenched in sweat. Forcing herself to stand, her immediate priority was to check on Shelly.

After its previous upgrades, Shelly’s back had been entirely covered in earth. Now, however, an outer ring of hard, shell-like armor had formed around the perimeter, enclosing Lily and all her structures within it like a towering fortress wall.

Shelly itself had undergone a radical metamorphosis. The skin on its head had shifted from a standard green to a deep, dark emerald, gleaming with a metallic luster that looked incredibly resilient. Its frame was bulkier, though its movements felt noticeably more sluggish.

Yet, a decrease in speed hardly mattered to Shelly anymore. After all, no creature had appeared yet that could ever force it to flee.

Still...

"Why are there so many Crystal Cores left over?" Lily wondered, staring at the scattered gems.

She had emptied out her entire life savings for this upgrade, yet nearly half the pile remained untouched.

Just as confusion set in, the System’s voice suddenly echoed. This time, it didn’t just ring in Lily’s head—it broadcasted directly into the ears of every single Survivor.

[Congratulations to Survivor Lily Rhodes for upgrading her vehicle to Level 10. As the first Survivor to reach Level 10, she is rewarded with three Advanced Self-selected Item Boxes and two special buildings.]

As the announcement faded, three chests and two glowing architectural miniatures materialized out of thin air. However, Lily paid zero attention to the Self-selected Prop Boxes or the special structures. Her eyes were fixed squarely on Shelly’s status panel and its upcoming requirements.

[Vehicle Name: Atlas Titan Turtle

Vehicle Type: Special Biological Vehicle

Vehicle Level: Level 10

Upgrade Requirement: 10,000 Biological Energy]

She realized the next upgrade could only rely on Life Energy—Crystal Cores were utterly useless now. No wonder so many were left behind.

It seemed they had run their course. Lily shook her head in mild disappointment.

She shrugged it off. She would cross that bridge when she came to it. It was just ten thousand points of Biological Energy; she would accumulate it eventually. Lily knew she was strapping in for a war of attrition. The upgrade process would only drag on longer in the late game. Given that reality, she had to seize absolutely every early-game advantage she could get her hands on.

Meanwhile, the masses in the world chat channel had gone completely numb.

They were still agonizing over reaching Level 5, and yet someone had just broken through to Level 10. This was no longer a mere gap—it was an uncrossable chasm. Those who had previously harbored dreams of overtaking Lily completely abandoned the thought. With a disparity this massive, how could they ever catch up?

Furthermore, operators of ordinary vehicles still had absolutely no clue how to even acquire Refined Steel. Out of so many Survivors, a few had naturally unboxed blueprints for forging it. Unfortunately, holding a blueprint didn’t guarantee the ability to manufacture the actual alloy. Even if they did manage to produce it, they would strictly hoard it for their own survival.

Back on the turtle, Lily wasn’t in any rush to open her Treasure Chests. Instead, she inspected the two special buildings.

The first was a massive, golden beehive.

When she laid eyes on it, she was utterly dumbfounded. This actually counted as a building?

[Beehive (Unique): When placed on a vehicle, it automatically attracts bees. Please prepare sufficient food for the swarm, or they will abandon the hive.]

"It can even collect honey automatically," Lily muttered. "Fine. Seeing as you’re somewhat useful, I’ll spare you the complaints."

She tossed the beehive into the air, where it dissolved into a streak of golden light and vanished. The structure would automatically seat itself in an optimal location, waiting silently for a swarm to arrive.

Next was the second special building: a weapon processing workshop. It could apply an Enchantment to pre-forged weapons, tools, and other gear. For instance, if an ordinary wooden club received an Enchantment, it wouldn’t just pack a stronger punch—it would become infinitely more durable.

Not bad at all. She could enchant her current loadout first and test out the effects.

Just as Lily prepared to pop open her boxes, a weak, desperate voice echoed in her mind.

"Master, I’m hungry... Food... Starving to death," Sprout cried.