About a week later, on a certain morning just after dawn, a light drizzle began to fall.
Yan Jin had gotten up very early. The system had told her that the random seeds would mature today. She had been so excited that she barely slept the entire night.
At this moment, two dark circles hung beneath her eyes like a pair of panda eyes. Meanwhile, Ji Yanting looked at the drizzle outside, his mood growing heavier.
“Good morning, Brother Ji. Why did it suddenly start raining?” Yan Jin greeted him, muttering to herself.
“Morning, Boss,” Ji Yanting replied, though he looked preoccupied.
Yan Jin wanted to talk with him a bit more, but just as she was about to speak, a series of footsteps approached from afar. Yu Chen and Qi Hua appeared, carrying a mutated bull that had only recently died.
Both of them were wearing strange raincoats to block the rain, and the soles of their shoes were covered in mud.
They dropped the mutated bull in front of Yan Jin with a heavy thud, then exchanged it for gold coins using the resource conversion machine as usual.
[Ding. New meat unlocked: Mutated Bull.]
[Reward obtained: 500 gold coins.]
“Sigh, the rumors outside are spreading like wildfire,” Qi Hua said.
Yan Jin turned her head and asked, puzzled, “What rumors?”
“Everyone is saying that with this rain, the zombies will evolve. Right now we have very few Level 2 ability users. I’m afraid the days ahead won’t be easy.”
Qi Hua looked worried. He and Yu Chen then returned to their room to rest.
Yan Jin frowned as she tried to recall the plot.
There did seem to be such a segment in the original story. This drizzle continued for several days and nights. Ordinary zombies gradually evolved into Level 2 zombies, and some even developed abilities similar to humans.
“Xiao Qi,” Yan Jin called out, now using the nickname she had given the system. “Will this rain affect the crops we planted?”
[Host, do not worry. The upgraded protective barrier can filter out those impurities. The rain that falls inside is just normal water.]
Yan Jin immediately relaxed when she heard that.
[Ding. New crop unlocked: Rice.]
[Obtained “Lucky Triple Draw” x1. Would the host like to activate it?]
She was stunned.
What? The random seeds had grown into rice.
That was wonderful. She could finally eat rice again.
“Activate it.”
She wanted to see what she would draw this time.
Two one star cards and one four star card immediately appeared. The cards flipped over on the screen and began shuffling repeatedly.
Yan Jin felt very calm this time. There was not even a five star card, so there was nothing worth getting excited about.
[Ding. Congratulations, Host. You have drawn a four star reward.]
[Ding. Obtained: One rice milling machine.]
“A four star reward, and this is what I get?”
[The main system has detected that the host has recently shown signs of slacking off. This reward was specially added in the hope that the host will work harder to earn gold coins.]
Yan Jin: “…”
“So all the gold coins I earned earlier count as slacking off?”
Yan Jin gritted her teeth as she spoke.
[Host, you need to think bigger. We must sell the inn’s crops to major bases. That is how we earn more gold coins.]
The system spoke with the tone of someone disappointed that iron could not become steel.
It seemed recruiting some workers had to be put on the agenda. Otherwise, with just her and Xiao Zhu, even planting vegetables took up a huge amount of their time, let alone doing anything else.
Yan Jin lay on the table with a worried expression, lost in thought.
Only when Ji Yanting coughed lightly and called out, “Boss,” did she return to reality.
His clear voice pulled Yan Jin back from her thoughts. Her cheeks warmed slightly as she replied awkwardly, “Brother Ji, is something wrong?”
“Yes. I was thinking that I’ve been troubling you by staying in your inn for so long. I feel a bit embarrassed about it. Now that my injuries are mostly healed, I want to…”
Before he could finish speaking, they heard Bai Ruozhu’s voice from outside.
“Sister, come help me quickly!”
Bai Ruozhu walked in carrying a large basket of fruits and vegetables, with several big green watermelons piled on top.
Yan Jin was stunned. “Why are there so many?”
“Hehe. I discovered that harvesting vegetables with wind blades is really fast. So before I realized it, I had already collected this much…” Bai Ruozhu said proudly.
[Ding. Mission completed: Unlock ten types of fruits and vegetables and five types of meat. 15/15.]
[Mission reward: Fruit and vegetable vending machines x2.]
Yan Jin carefully picked up a large watermelon and placed it on the table. She could not even remember how long it had been since she last ate watermelon.
Slice.
Bai Ruozhu’s wind blade struck the watermelon on the table, instantly splitting it into eight large pieces. The bright red flesh was revealed, with juice flowing out. Black seeds were embedded throughout the flesh.
By now, they were already drooling with anticipation, eager to take a bite.
Yan Jin picked up a slice and took a bite. Sweet juice burst in her mouth.
It was delicious.
Yan Jin devoured the watermelon in large bites. The sweet and refreshing flesh filled her mouth perfectly.
[Constitution +1]
“Brother Ji, you should try some too. It’s very sweet,” Yan Jin said with a smile as she handed him a slice.
Ji Yanting stared at the watermelon in his hand, his heart filled with shock.
During the past few days here, he had investigated the place many times. He knew that such a small inn could not possibly have enough land to grow so many fruits and vegetables.
Moreover, since the apocalypse began, the land outside had become extremely barren. Even potatoes, which were among the easiest crops to grow, could no longer be cultivated.
Many experts were now researching ways to restore the soil and grow crops again.
Yet here, inside this ordinary looking inn, so many fruits and vegetables had grown successfully.
If people outside learned that the food they fought desperately to obtain could be found so easily here, who knew what kind of sensation it would cause?
Seeing him holding the watermelon and staring blankly, Yan Jin urged, “Brother Ji, what’s wrong?”
Ji Yanting slowly raised his hand and took a bite of the watermelon.
At that instant, he felt a faint stream of energy flowing through his weakened body, gradually giving it strength.
This was truly astonishing, Ji Yanting thought to himself.