Chapter 315 - Preparations Before Departure
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Six days passed.
The garbage inside the Shelter Ship had been completely cleared away.
The mountain-like piles of Homekeeper Rat carcasses and organic waste had all been processed into food and sold in batches to players of every kind.
Yang Yi also kept a portion for himself, as he needed to stockpile provisions. In total, he retained 3,000 cans, 3,000 packs of instant noodles, and 2,000 packs of compressed biscuits.
He kept 1,000 of each type, storing half in the Shelter Ship's integrated warehouse and the other half aboard the Nightmare Star as emergency supplies.
“Suna, aren't you going to try some? It actually tastes pretty good!” Yang Yi said while holding a bowl of instant noodles.
Suna merely glanced at him, pretending not to hear, before walking toward the cabin.
“Xiao Ji, make me a bowl of fish porridge,” Suna said to the robot beside her, which was currently taking the fish for a walk.
“Certainly. I'll bring it to the laboratory shortly,” Xiao Ji replied promptly.
“Make one for me too. I want it cooked with Concentrated Vitality Sardine Soup,” Yang Yi called out, deciding to have a second breakfast since he wasn't particularly worried about gaining weight.
Suddenly, his stomach rumbled like a beating drum, though in reality it was the tongue of the Mouth of Gluttony tapping against his belly.
“…Make an extra serving as well, a large bowl,” Yang Yi added.
Only then did the drumming from his stomach cease.
Half an hour later, Xiao Ji brought over two bowls of fish porridge, one large and one small, both emitting a rich, inviting aroma.
Although the Concentrated Vitality Sardine Soup certainly enhanced the flavor, Xiao Ji's culinary skills also played an indispensable role.
It truly was not exaggerated. Its programming contained an encyclopedia of culinary arts, allowing it to prepare dishes from nearly any cuisine and make full use of whatever ingredients were available.
As for the fish porridge, it was made by simmering fresh Long-Legged Sardine meat together with mashed Black-Skin Potatoes, seasoned with only a small amount of salt. The result was exceptionally delicious.
Yang Yi finished the porridge in his bowl in a single gulp before lifting his captain's coat to reveal his abdomen.
A zipper had been sewn onto his stomach.
It had been found among the tattered clothing buried within the garbage piles and happened to be the perfect size, so Suna had stitched it onto the Mouth of Gluttony, making it much easier to control.
Yang Yi pulled open one corner of the zipper, and a long, slippery tongue extended outward. It reached into the washbasin-sized bowl and sucked the entire bowl of fish porridge dry like a straw.
“Delicious~”
A muffled voice emerged from within Yang Yi's abdomen.
After eating, the Mouth of Gluttony retracted its tongue, and Yang Yi zipped the opening shut once more.
During this period, Yang Yi had reached an agreement with the Mouth of Gluttony. In exchange for regular meals, it had become part of his combat strength.
In essence, it was simply an extra mouth, or perhaps an additional organ, that Yang Yi possessed. Although it had its own consciousness, it was still a part of him and relied on him for survival.
After breakfast, Yang Yi began browsing the forum again.
It was currently morning, but that did not stop him from checking posts, as the information displayed was still from the previous night.
He had spent the past several days occupied with selling goods and had not had the time to browse the forum, so he was now catching up on the information and intelligence he had missed.
During this period, the forum had also undergone an update. The faction intelligence section had been refreshed, and users could now customize the background color.
However, Yang Yi was already accustomed to the white interface, so he ignored the feature.
Just as he was about to open the faction intelligence section, a post in the Maritime Affairs section caught his attention.
Its title read:
Review and Impressions of One-Eyed Brand Foods
Yang Yi opened the post.
The reviewer was a player with the ID One-Eyed Big Boss No. 37, the same person who had previously reviewed the Concentrated Vitality Sardine Soup.
He had purchased the food Yang Yi had produced from Homekeeper Rat remains and organic waste, sampled every variety, and arrived at the following conclusion:
【This food is incredible. Although the description labels it as synthetic food, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the taste. Especially the instant noodles, they taste almost exactly like the ones I used to eat.
The only drawback is the additives. There were probably too many mixed in, leaving behind a strange aftertaste. It's difficult to describe, but it doesn't affect consumption. I've already eaten two packs of instant noodles and one can, and spent most of the day without any abnormalities. In fact, I even feel like eating a third pack.
Conclusion: Everyone can eat this with confidence. It's a great deal for the price. These instant noodles really do contain beef and shrimp-flavored fish cakes!
Here's my recommendation: cook the noodles with Vitality Sardine Soup (Light). That way, the strange taste becomes almost completely unnoticeable.】
A flood of thankful comments followed beneath the review.
【Thanks for the review, even if it came a little late. I've already been eating it for quite a while.】
【Forget additives, even if the Jade Emperor himself descended from heaven, he couldn't stop me from eating these instant noodles.】
【Everyone knows what goes into black bread, and we still eat it anyway.】
【...】
Among the several hundred replies, only two or three players were still investigating the production process and origins of One-Eyed Brand Foods. They suspected that the products were made from rat meat, since One-Eyed was also selling rat-related equipment sets in unlimited quantities.
However, they had no evidence, and despite their suspicions, they were still eating the food.
Yang Yi closed the post.
In fact, beginning last night, he had already stopped selling most of his products. Aside from the rat-fur equipment sets, everything else had been removed from the shelves of his general store, and all of his weapons had already sold out.
Thanks to this, the amount of Conch Coins in his account had risen to 53,528,330, more than double his original target of 20 million.
His preparations for departure were now complete.
The supplies prepared aboard the ship were distributed as follows:
Wood ×10,000
Cloth ×5,000
Stone ×2,000
Steel ×2,000
Sulfur ×2,000
Crystal ×5,000
Blackwood ×200
Sea Silver ×500
Crystal Diamonds ×6,234
Magic Stones ×20,000
Fresh Water: 2,000 L
The total amounted to less than 55,000 units, leaving more than 20,000 units of free capacity available for purchasing and storing additional Crystal Diamonds later.
Even accounting for losses incurred during the journey, the remaining storage space would definitely be sufficient.
At present, he was simply waiting for the Shelter Ship's defense system to be fully restored. Once that was completed, he could depart with peace of mind.
“Xiao Ji, what's the current repair progress?” Yang Yi asked the robot nearby.
“89.7%. It is estimated that another one to two days will be required,” Xiao Ji replied after its indicator light flickered briefly, establishing contact with Selt, the Shelter Ship's AI.
“Alright, then we'll set our departure for two days from now,” Yang Yi decided. “By the way, what's the communication range between you and Selt?”
“Approximately 1,000 nautical miles.
Electromagnetic interference exists in these seas. Beyond that distance, communication becomes almost impossible,” Xiao Ji answered.
“Got it.”
Yang Yi nodded and considered whether there was anything he had overlooked.
He had not sold off all the supplies stored aboard the Shelter Ship, intentionally leaving behind a considerable amount so the robots could continue repairing other damaged sections of the vessel, especially the production facilities.
In addition, he had purchased a Low-Grade Craftsman's Inscription Stone and used it to upgrade the Fine-quality diving suit to Rare quality. Its power reserves and oxygen supply had been fully restored, ensuring it was ready for any situations that might require underwater operations.
【Name: Refurbished Second-Generation Type-A Diving Work Suit】
【Type: Treasure】
【Quality: Rare】
【Description: A technological product designed for underwater operations.
One of its engineering arms had lost mobility and was removed, with its components installed onto the remaining engineering arm, greatly increasing its strength.
It provides fairly reliable protection. With a full charge and a full oxygen supply, it can operate underwater continuously for more than eight hours.
The thruster mounted on its back provides powerful propulsion.
When using it, the diving depth must not exceed 500 meters; otherwise, the suit may sustain damage.】
I don't think I've missed anything, Yang Yi thought.
He scrolled through the Faction Intelligence section and continued browsing the forum.