For the first thing to do today, Gray chose to upgrade the safe house.
After experiencing this accident, Gray once again realized the importance of the safe house.
It was obvious that as the Void Undead continued to approach this world in the future, similar natural disasters or abnormal phenomena would definitely increase.
The value of a safe house would definitely not be limited to just defending against a single Beast Tide.
As for the preparation for exploration, there was no rush to do it later. Sharpening an axe would not delay the work of chopping wood.
Since this was the first time he had strengthened a safe house, Gray was not sure if there would be any danger in staying in the safe house. Hence, he picked up the dragon egg and walked outside.
Opening the building interface, the safe house’s entry popped up. Gray clicked on it:
[Safe house]
[Current level: 1]
[Functions: Invincible (remaining 4 days)]
[Upgrade requirements: Wood * 20, metal * 10]
[Architectural description: An ordinary small house in the forest. It can slightly resist the intrusion of some weak beasts.]
[Do you wish to upgrade? Upgrading will consume the corresponding materials: Yes/No]
Gray did not hesitate to choose Yes.
The moment his fingertip touched the safe house, it began to tremble. The sound of metal colliding and the sound of friction from wood rose and fell. If Gray did not know what had happened, he would have thought that the earthquake had started again.
A moment later, the movement ended. Gray found that the appearance of the safe house did not seem to have changed much. It was just that the area seemed to have become larger. Originally, there was only a small window facing the bed. Now, there was one in the middle of the house and one at the front and back.
Gray pushed the door open and walked into the brand new safe house. He found that the furnishings in the safe house had also changed a lot.
The originally crude table and chairs had become more sophisticated. The table had become significantly longer. There were a few carved decorations on the corner. A new set of cutlery and a metal kettle had also appeared on the table.
On the wall, the fireplace seemed to have grown larger, and new kitchen utensils had appeared in the iron pot. They looked like iron poles for barbecue, and there were also spatulas and spoons. The wooden bed on the side had also grown significantly wider, and although it had not reached the level of a double bed, at least it did not look so uncomfortable.
There were also some minor changes, but they were not too big. Gray did not bother to investigate further. After all, the safe house was just a place for him to rest and settle down. There was no room for the Guardians to enjoy life in this jungle.
Looking around, the safe house seemed to have been upgraded to a whole new level.
This change satisfied Gray. This material was absolutely worth it.
The only problem was that the wooden house’s defense didn’t seem to have improved much. He didn’t know when the safe house would have the ability to defend against the enemy.
Gray opened the safe house’s panel, and the new properties of the safe house appeared before his eyes:
[Safe house]
[Current level: 2]
[Functions: Invincible (remaining 4 days)]
[Upgrade requirements: Wood * 40, metal * 20]
[Architectural description: A completely prepared cabin in the forest, able to avoid certain disturbances from wild beasts.]
[Do you wish to upgrade? Upgrading will consume the corresponding materials: Yes/No]
As expected, just like what Aikasha said, after upgrading the safe house once, the materials needed to upgrade it would be doubled. However, even so, Gray’s remaining materials were still enough to upgrade the safe house to another level.
Gray walked out of the safe house once again and chose to continue upgrading.
Immediately after, the safe house underwent a major renovation, both inside and outside, as expected.
After two upgrades, the safe house was no longer as shabby as it had been in the beginning. It now looked more like a residential house.
What made people happy was that this time, Gray noticed that the walls of the safe house were visibly thicker. The layer in between the walls even had a metallic luster. Clearly, the defense of the safe house was gradually increasing.
Although this kind of defense still made Gray feel insecure, it was at least a good start.
After completing the upgrade of the safe house, the next step was naturally to prepare for today’s trip.
Gray went into the safe house, put the dragon egg aside, and began to prepare as he had done yesterday.
Cutting meat and barbecuing, Gray’s movements were becoming more and more skillful and straightforward.
After preparing the dry food for today, Gray wrapped the food like yesterday and put it into his backpack. Then, he carried the dragon egg on his back. After thinking for a while, he brought the new kettle that appeared on the table. He was fully prepared.
Due to the hunting during the last two days, it became harder and harder to find beasts with mana crystals. At the very least, the nearby existences that could be sensed should have been eliminated. Today, Gray planned to go to the deeper parts of the jungle.
Bringing his knife, Gray pushed open the door. The third day of jungle exploration began.
…
Gray trudged deep into the jungle.
With his previous exploration experience, he was now much more familiar with traversing through the forest.
After the previous two days of hunting, the dragon egg now only needed to collect the last two mana crystals to successfully hatch.
If nothing unexpected happened, tonight’s dinner would need an extra portion. With such expectations, Gray felt that today’s footsteps were particularly light.
Due to his thoughts from last night, Gray would occasionally check the surrounding plants to see if there were any edible species.
This was not only a craving, but also practical considerations for his health. After all, the body of a person who only ate roasted meat would not be able to support itself.
As he was about to bid farewell to the first phase of his transmigration mission, Gray began to think about his future life.
At this moment, Gray suddenly sensed that the dragon egg seemed to have discovered something.
A strange feeling came from the dragon egg. It didn’t feel like it was hungry or craving something like when it sensed the mana crystal. Instead, it felt like it was confused, as if it was unable to distinguish what it had discovered.
This was the first time it had experienced such a phenomenon.
Gray recalled the description of the dragon egg’s ability. It should be able to distinguish the gathering of mana within eight hundred meters.
Although it wasn’t a mana crystal, there was no doubt that the dragon egg must have sensed some kind of gathering of mana.
But what kind of gathering of mana could make the dragon egg feel strange and confused?
For some reason, Gray suddenly remembered the exquisite arrowhead he picked up yesterday. That obviously man-made object had announced to him the tip of a secret iceberg in this forest.
With that in mind, Gray decided to see what the dragon egg had sensed.