Now was a critical moment. People were bound to come out looking for supplies.
From the chatter in the world chat channel, Su Chen had gathered the information that many people had already started forming alliances.
He wasn't entirely sure what was going on out there, so today, he planned to use his stealth aerial drone to scout the outside world.
He'd been fully focused on building his survival base these past few days, but the world outside was probably changing drastically with each passing day.
Naturally, Su Chen was curious to see what had happened recently.
Fortunately, this drone came with a cloaking function—completely invisible, so no one would notice it flying around.
It was easily one of the best pieces of gear he'd ever received, and he'd been most satisfied with this item since the beginning.
Su Chen had high hopes for it, praying it wouldn't disappoint him.
Last night, he had spent some time fiddling with it. It could take off via remote control, though that was about all he'd figured out so far.
It couldn't fly very high yet. It just hovered around for a bit before crashing to the ground.
He wasn't sure whether it was a problem with the drone itself or just his poor piloting skills.
After several attempts, he finally got it to take off properly.
The display screen on the remote was impressively clear—almost 4K quality—and it even had anti-shake stabilization. The image remained smooth without a hint of jitter.
The resolution was so sharp that he could even see ants crawling on tree branches.
Su Chen could hardly believe something this high-tech actually existed in this world.
After all, the drone could not only see into people's homes, but it was invisible while doing so.
It was compact too—small enough to sneak into someone's home undetected. You could even spy on someone in the shower without them realizing it.
Not that Su Chen had ever thought about doing such a thing, of course… It was just that the potential for misuse was definitely there.
Still, that didn't stop Su Chen from using it.
In this world, he practically had cheat codes. With the drone in hand, everything around him would become crystal clear.
He no longer needed to fear the monsters outside. The drone even came with night vision, meaning he could try going out after dark.
The problem was, he still didn't know what kind of dangers were lurking out there, and he didn't want to take unnecessary risks.
One misstep could mean death—even the system wouldn't be able to save him.
He had to protect himself at all costs. No recklessness allowed.
The remote controller was no different from a regular gamepad. It should've been easy to operate.
Unfortunately, Su Chen had barely used a drone before. His flying skills were trash—complete garbage. Painful to watch.
Barely a few minutes into his flight, the drone crashed into a tree.
"Damn it, how do I even control this thing?!"
He frantically pressed buttons on the controller, but the drone was completely stuck in the branches.
No matter how much he fiddled with the controls, it wouldn't budge. He was totally out of options.
So apparently, this thing wasn't as easy to use as it looked.
Clearly, practice made perfect. He'd need to fly it more often to improve.
It was undeniably a high-tech product. And like all high-tech gear, it came with a steep learning curve.
Plus, real drones didn't come with a stealth function!
Su Chen was still figuring things out, and if another survivor happened to steal it, he'd be screwed.
Luckily, the drone's camera footage was incredibly clear.
He had a pretty good sense of where it had crashed. He just needed to get there quickly and retrieve it.
A good product needed repeated practice to master. The equipment could be great, but the user had to be competent too.
Otherwise, even the best gear would be wasted.
Su Chen managed to retrieve the drone without running into anyone, avoiding any awkward encounters.
He was a little disappointed in the device, but it wasn't really the drone's fault—his skills were just lacking.
After all, if the toy was so great, why couldn't he use it properly?
He examined the drone closely and confirmed that there were no extra buttons on it—just a single flight switch.
Maybe the issue was with the system itself?
He lowered his head and began thinking deeply, trying to pinpoint the problem.
"Oh! I get it now."
His brain suddenly clicked, and he slapped himself on the forehead. How had he missed something so simple?
He felt a bit embarrassed just thinking about it.
He remembered something about automotive coatings—some of them could be invisible.
And then it hit him—yesterday he'd seen a packet of clear, water-like liquid. That had to be the stealth coating meant for the drone.
With a hopeful mindset, Su Chen applied the transparent liquid to the drone.
Even if it didn't work, at least it gave the drone a new color scheme. No loss either way.
He had plenty of the stuff, and it would've gone to waste otherwise.
As soon as he finished coating it, the drone instantly turned transparent.
There were still some visible granules if you looked very closely, but overall it was highly effective.
After all, drones were meant to fly up in the sky. Who was going to be up there inspecting them?
Looking up, you couldn't see anything unusual at all.
It was perfectly see-through—just like it wasn't even there.
Really, he could only blame himself for being so dense. It had been right in front of him all along.
Now things were getting interesting.
Su Chen relaunched the drone, and this time his control was much smoother. He was finally getting the hang of it.
He practiced with the remote for a while and quickly mastered all the basic functions.
Just like that, the morning passed by uneventfully.
His biggest achievement was finally learning how to use the drone properly.
He hadn't encountered any monsters outside either, which was probably a good sign.
If you ran into monsters every time you went out, this place wouldn't be suitable for living.
Living in constant fear and paranoia was exhausting.
By noon, Su Chen decided to take his usual midday break.
Two hours of rest—he was tired from all that fiddling with the drone.
Without a manual, everything had to be figured out through trial and error.
To Su Chen, lunch was the most important meal of the day.
Time to whip up something decent—meat was a must.
You needed to eat well to work hard.
Su Chen didn't want to turn this place into a battlefield. He just wanted to enjoy the occasional good meal and gather more supplies.
A little countryside fun, some wilderness camping—that's the kind of life he wanted.
At the end of the day, people should enjoy life.
Su Chen was just a step away from reaching that kind of lifestyle.
He had a simple hotpot for lunch and rested for a bit afterward.
Jun Ma, his trusty mare, had been cooped up inside for days. She was probably bored out of her mind by now.
Su Chen suggested taking her out for a walk, but she refused once again.
A true homebody—confirmed.
Today was the second day of Round Two. Even though the morning had been uneventful, Su Chen couldn't afford to lower his guard.
After all, there were still so many people out there striving to level up. It wasn't fair if someone like him just lazed around and advanced with no effort.
Opportunities favored those who were prepared. Su Chen decided that tonight, he'd head out with his now-mastered drone and check out the situation.
After being alone for so long, he had almost no idea what other survivors were up to.