this chapter is brought to you by mio
as translator, proofreader and editor!
“Beef slices?!” Jiang Ci’s eyes lit up instantly. As a carnivore who couldn’t live without meat, she was eager to try something different, especially meat!
[Yes, host,] the system replied. [After completing the second task, the restaurant will undergo its first upgrade, and you’ll also unlock a prize wheel.]
Jiang Ci’s interest was piqued immediately. “What’s on the wheel?”
[Seasonings, beverages, ingredients, and soup bases are all possible,] the system explained. [Each of them has a different probability of dropping, depending on your luck.]
Jiang Ci was eager to try her luck and see how it would turn out. She couldn’t help but wish that the first and second tasks could be completed simultaneously.
Judging from the business situation over the past couple of days, it shouldn’t take too long.
However, Jiang Ci had clearly overestimated the foot traffic in the apocalypse. Over the next few days, not a single person entered the shop.
Jiang Ci, who had been full of anticipation, continued to eat potato slices, shredded potatoes, and dry pot potatoes for several days. One day, as she got out of bed and passed by the bathroom mirror, she suddenly saw a massive yellow potato staring back at her, startling herself.
On the seventh day of Jiang Ci’s arrival in the apocalypse, the shop finally welcomed customers—Zhou Lin, Xu Yan, and Gu Qi, all familiar faces to Jiang Ci.
They were the shop’s first customers, so Jiang Ci was delighted to see them again.
The three of them seemed a bit tanner than before.
Having been here once, they were somewhat familiar with Jiang Ci.
Zhou Lin greeted her with a smile, “Boss, we’re back. How’s business been lately?”
“Business hasn’t been great. Not many people around, but plenty of zombies and mutated animals,” Jiang Ci shrugged, telling the truth.
“That’s normal,” Gu Qi plopped down on a wooden chair, looking somewhat exhausted. “Our base just drove off a horde of zombies. I hear zombies and mutated beasts have been quite active everywhere, so people probably don’t have the mood or energy to go out.”
Jiang Ci was slightly taken aback. “A horde of zombies?”
Xu Yan nodded, pulling out a wooden chair to sit down. “A horde led by high-level zombies nearly broke the base’s gate. All the ability users in the base were mobilized, and it took almost two days to finally drive them off.”
“This incident caused quite a stir. Bases around here have started reinforcing their gates recently, and there are hardly any survivors out and about,” Zhou Lin added.
Their narration was quite calm, with no hint of the intensity of the situation at the time. But Jiang Ci, having read many apocalyptic novels, could imagine how fierce the battle must have been. No wonder the hotpot shop hadn’t seen a single human in days.
“It’s been so many days since I last had hotpot, I’m practically dying for it. Boss, let’s start with a clear base, five plates of potato slices, and rice for the three of us,” Zhou Lin said, immediately raising his voice after finishing.
“Alright, take a seat for a moment,” Jiang Ci replied, rolling up her sleeves and heading to the kitchen.
“Boss, what’s this? It wasn’t here last time,” Gu Qi asked, pointing to the fridge by the counter.
“Oh, that’s mineral water. It’s a new product, two first-level crystal cores per bottle,” Jiang Ci explained.
“Mineral water? You can still get mineral water now? Most water sources are contaminated,” Gu Qi exclaimed in surprise, but then he remembered the unusual nature of this shop. Getting a few bottles of mineral water didn’t seem so unsurprising after all.
Jiang Ci’s skill in slicing potatoes had been improving steadily. Each plate of potato slices was now cut with uniform thickness.
Once all the dishes were served, the three of them skillfully scooped rice and placed the soft, glutinous potato slices on top, then poured a ladle of broth over it.
With the first bite, their souls felt utterly satisfied.
In the midst of battle, they had often thought about the possibility of death. Their only regret would have been not being able to have one last meal at the hotpot shop. It wasn’t just about the delicious food; it also represented the last remnants of their pre-apocalypse memories.
After the meal, each of them bought two bottles of mineral water. In total, they spent thirty-seven first-level crystal cores, three second-level crystal cores, and one third-level crystal core. The thirty-seven first-level crystal cores were directly converted into three second-level crystal cores and seven first-level crystal cores, totaling 1,670 points.
Behind the counter, Jiang Ci saw the points credited, and her total points now stood at 4,920.
With five plates of potato slices sold, the task section showed a noticeable change, with the number now reading (5/10).
After finishing their meal, Zhou Lin and the others didn’t leave immediately as they had the first time. Instead, they lounged lazily in their seats, chatting with Jiang Ci.
It was rare for them to have such a leisurely moment. No matter where they were, they had to stay on high alert. Once they let their guard down, exhaustion would overwhelm them.
Especially after eating and drinking their fill, they were even more reluctant to move.
From their conversation, Jiang Ci gradually pieced together a basic picture of a base. Each base had a leader who guided a group of people, each with their own responsibilities, keeping the base well-organized. It was no wonder humans were so resilient; no matter the adversity, they always found a way to adapt and survive.
pls do not share this anywhere or u will always stub ur toe when u walk past a door frame !! this translation has been stolen from mioscorner.com, pls only read there i’m begging u :kneels:
Just as they were talking, a loud noise suddenly erupted outside, shaking the ground for a moment.
The three of them, who had been lounging lazily, instantly sprang up from their seats and rushed to the door to look outside.
“What the…” Jiang Ci heard Zhou Lin’s surprised voice.
Jiang Ci also closed the task interface and walked to the window of the hotpot shop.
Outside, dust was flying everywhere, and it looked like a fierce battle was underway. On one side were humans, and on the other… a moving house?
Jiang Ci rubbed her eyes, making sure she wasn’t seeing things. The house was indeed moving, and this ‘house’ seemed to be fighting humans, completely dominating the situation. This discovery left Jiang Ci utterly shocked. “What is that?”
“That’s a local specialty of City C, a Level 9 Giant Tortoise. It’s strange, though. This tortoise usually hides underground to sleep and isn’t aggressive at all. Why is it suddenly so furious?” Gu Qi’s tone was full of confusion.
As they walked closer, Jiang Ci could barely make out the appearance of the giant tortoise.
Its shell was hard, and the exposed skin was a grayish-green color. During the battle, it was impervious to blades and bullets. As it moved, it looked as if it was carrying a small garden on its back, with buildings constantly falling from it. Survivors below could easily be hit if they weren’t careful, making the situation extremely perilous.
Seeing the survivors at a disadvantage, Zhou Lin and the other two rushed over to help. Jiang Ci, knowing her limits, didn’t dare join the fight. Instead, she poked her head out and called for the survivors to take refuge in the hotpot restaurant.
Zhou Lin and the others had witnessed the special nature of the hotpot restaurant, so they desperately tried to pull the survivors toward it.
Coincidentally, some of the survivors were acquainted with Zhou Lin and his group, so they trusted their character and followed without needing much persuasion.
The injured were brought over first. After confirming that the area outside the shop was safe, they sat down on the ground, bandaging their wounds or helping each other.
Soon, the uninjured survivors also arrived. Since the protected area outside the hotpot restaurant wasn’t very large, a group of about ten people squeezed together, sitting or standing.
Jiang Ci noticed a long-haired girl moving through the crowd. A faint white light was emanating from her palms as she pressed them against the skin of the injured, and the bleeding wounds gradually stopped. It seemed she was treating the severely wounded survivors.
Could this be the ‘ability user’ the system had mentioned? Jiang Ci had been here for over a week but had never seen one before, so she couldn’t help but feel curious.
Perhaps because her gaze was too intense, the girl, who had just finished treating someone, turned her head and met Jiang Ci’s eyes. She then smiled shyly.
After all the survivors had arrived, Jiang Ci let them rest inside the shop for a while.
The small hotpot restaurant was quickly filled to capacity. There weren’t enough chairs and tables, so people had to sit on the floor. However, the floor wasn’t dirty. Even though few people came, Jiang Ci still insisted on cleaning it every day.
The giant tortoise, for some reason, was still wandering around, searching for the survivors who had just been within its sight.
Every step it took caused the ground to shake.
“So, how exactly did you provoke it? This giant tortoise hasn’t made a move in a long time,” Zhou Lin asked, panting as he sat directly on the shop floor.
Beside him sat a tall, dark-skinned man who seemed to be acquainted with Zhou Lin and the others.
“We were also caught up in an unexpected disaster. It was Zong Tao and his gang. They used homemade explosives to blow out the giant tortoise. Most importantly, we found several eggs in the tortoise’s nest, two of which were already damaged. Zong Tao and his group were probably after these eggs. The eggs of a Level 9 giant tortoise are definitely not ordinary—they’re richer in energy than crystal cores and must be worth a fortune. That’s probably why the tortoise is so furious now,” the man said, his tone still carrying a hint of frustration over the unjust misfortune they had suffered.
“The tortoise laid eggs? This needs to be reported to the base,” Zhou Lin said, running a hand through his short hair, his expression turning serious.
After hastily tending to their wounds and resting for a while, they finally realized where they were.
“By the way, what is this place? Why is it shielded from mutated animals and zombies?” the dark-skinned man finally noticed something was off and asked in confusion.
Zhou Lin and the other two couldn’t help but smile smugly. “This is a hotpot restaurant, and that’s the boss over there.”
In an instant, several pairs of eyes turned toward Jiang Ci. She gave a small wave and then flashed a professional smile. “So, would you like to order something? We currently have clear soup base hotpot with potato slices, soy sauce over there, and rice.”
“We’ve already been here twice. The hotpot here is absolutely amazing, and you can eat as much rice as you want after paying with crystal cores. We just finished eating before we ran into you.”
craving hotpot rn
also tw0 chapters will be updated daily at 12pm aest until chapter 10, where one chapter will be updated daily! i’ve stockpiled quite a lot hehehe ◡̈
