The next morning — the third day on this strange island world.

Ren woke up beside the long-extinguished campfire, which had left behind warm ashes and the faint scent of burnt wood.

He was still lying beneath the shade of a large tree, wrapped in a thick blanket that remained warm even after the night had passed.

The morning breeze blew gently, carrying with it the sound of waves crashing against distant rocks.

This time, it felt different. There was no heaviness in his body, no muscle pain, and no lingering drowsiness.

For the first time since being stranded on this island, Ren truly felt refreshed.

His body felt like it had experienced real rest—not just sleep from exhaustion.

With a lazy yet satisfied motion, Ren stretched his limbs.

He let out a small yawn, then opened his eyes to a sky that was shifting from violet to light blue.

“That was the best sleep I’ve had so far... No regrets trading that shark meat last night,” he muttered with a small smile.

Last night, Ren had taken advantage of the trading system.

After a day full of tension and nearly losing his life to a shark attack,

he opened the [Trading] panel and listed a few basic survival items for barter.

He offered up several pieces of raw shark meat—a commodity he now had in abundance—and requested warm clothing and a blanket in exchange.

It didn’t take long.

Several users responded, and one of them offered a set of coarse clothing and a tattered blanket, both low-grade items.

Ren didn’t mind. He accepted the trade immediately.

After the items entered his inventory, he hesitated for a moment, but eventually decided to use 2 upgrade points—one for the clothes, one for the blanket.

The change was instant.

The blanket became softer and thicker, perfectly insulating him against the cold night air.

His clothing no longer felt itchy against his skin and instead felt light and comfortably warm.

Now, waking up with a refreshed body and a clear mind, Ren knew—it was the best decision he had made since day one.

“Physical and mental health... that’s the foundation of everything,” he whispered softly before standing up.

Suddenly, the system panel appeared in front of him.

[Congratulations, Host. You have survived another day.]

[Reward: +1 Upgrade Point]

Ren smiled. The bonus came at the perfect time.

....

By the way, Ren also checked on his water purification device.

He found three bottles of fresh water had been purified overnight.

For now, water was the essence of life and an extremely valuable resource.

Ren had even checked the trading system—there wasn’t a single bottle of clean water being sold.

Most people were offering their own urine for trade instead.

With this kind of resource, Ren naturally wanted to take advantage of it through the trading system.

But before that, he checked on his automatic trash collector.

It had gathered a few resources, but unfortunately, there were no wooden barrels caught.

He felt a bit disappointed, but at the same time, there was a sense of curiosity and hope as he looked at the device.

“What if I upgrade the trash collector?”

With some hesitation, Ren touched the trash collector.

[Automatic Trash Collector (Basic) - Upgrade requires 1 point]

[Do you want to upgrade?]

[Y/N]

Upon spending the upgrade point, the trash collector transformed before his eyes.

Ren stood still, impressed by the result.

The device in front of him now looked far more professional.

The net, once made from rough twine, now appeared to be woven from some kind of shimmering natural fiber—flexible yet durable, like a primitive version of nylon.

Its frame was reinforced with thin, smooth wooden slats, forming a structure that was both sturdier and lighter than before.

Ren gave a small nod of approval.

He imagined what it would be like to build several of these trash collectors and install them all around the island—he could harvest an abundance of resources.

But for now, his focus wasn’t on the trash collectors.

“They didn’t bring in anything worthwhile… These abundant resources are basically low-tier materials everyone has.”

Ren decided to postpone the trash collector project for now.

After all, the returns weren’t worth the investment.

He had a better plan—becoming the top supplier of clean water.

By producing more water purification devices and scaling up his operation,

Ren didn’t think he’d ever run out of low-grade resources.

“After all… with just one bottle of fresh water, couldn’t I trade for a pile of low-tier items?”

Unconsciously, a thin smile formed on Ren’s lips as he muttered,

“Why go through the hassle of fishing and gathering materials when there are people willing to work for you?”

This only solidified Ren’s confidence in his plan.

However, it would still take time for his plan to fully develop.

So for now, Ren would continue fishing and collecting ocean resources while gradually preparing the materials needed to craft more water purifiers.