Chapter 16 Natural Disaster 4

Chapter 16 Natural Disaster 4

Su Han sat on the rattan chair and looked outside, feeling a sudden sense of dread—the fog was getting thicker. If she stood in the fog, she could only see the scenery within half a meter around her, and anything farther was completely unclear.

If a group of people banded together to block the roads and rob passersby, whoever they caught would be unlucky. Therefore, for safety, Su Han stayed put in the bamboo house, not venturing out.

At 9 a.m. the next day, the system's robotic voice announced, "Day 5: The fog on the island has lifted, but the outer edges remain shrouded in thick fog."

"Due to poor air quality (affected by the fog), residents may develop rhinitis. (Those with a cleanliness level above 60 will be immune.)"

"Recently, there have been continuous car accidents and many patients, and the hospital's medicine supply has run out."

As soon as the words fell, the thick fog covering the island slowly cleared.

However, Su Han's mood didn't improve; instead, it grew even heavier. Although the residents could move freely on the island, the fog still surrounded it, and the transport ships likely couldn't get through. Residents might develop rhinitis, but the hospital's medicine was already exhausted. Things were likely to spiral into chaos soon.

Su Han was thinking about her strategy to complete the level when the system's robotic voice sounded again, "Experience 30/30. Congratulations! Player level +1, talent level +1."

The transparent status panel showed:

Name: Su Han (real-name verified)

Level: 2 (Experience 0/30)

Occupation: Nutritionist (has intermediate talent, experience 0/30)

Satiety: 220/220

Cleanliness: 220/220

Stamina: 220/220

Talent Skill (Intermediate): In the instance, there's a 45% chance of getting a 'bottle of milk and a piece of rye bread' combo each day. There's a 10% chance of getting a 'three bottles of milk, a piece of Pork Floss Cream Bread, and a piece of chocolate cake' premium combo. There's a 1% chance of obtaining rare food items.

Note: The above probability events can occur simultaneously.

Su Han was a bit stunned. She hadn't had breakfast yet after waking up in the morning, and she hadn't expected all three stats to max out after leveling up.

The talent skill proved very useful. After leveling up, the odds of getting clean water and food significantly improved, and there was even an additional attribute of "a 1% chance of obtaining rare food items." Although she didn't know what these rare food items were, she could guess they were definitely something good.

As for the +100 to satiety, cleanliness, and stamina after leveling up, it was even more exciting. Originally, the upper limit was 120, and if cleanliness fell below 60, one might develop rhinitis, so you had to stay alert. But now, with an upper limit of 220, there was no need to worry too much.

After reaching level 2, both her survival skills and adaptability had improved significantly.

Only then did Su Han fully grasp how crucial it was to complete the instance. As for what the forum said about "leaving the instance early for the best cost-performance ratio," it was complete nonsense.

**

Upon learning that the hospital's medicine supply was completely used up, the island's residents immediately panicked. People ran around everywhere, asking what was going on? Why was there no medicine? Where were the transport ships?

Reluctantly, the hospital staff had to tell the truth, "The transport ships haven't come for several days. In fact, since the fog appeared, no ships have come."

This statement immediately caused an uproar. Had they been consuming stock all these days? How long could the inventory last? When would the transport ships come?

Questions were thrown out one after another. The more they thought about it, the more uneasy they became. A large number of residents rushed into the supermarket to stock up, fearing that the goods would be snatched up if they were late.

However, the more the panic spread, the faster the supermarket would collapse.

At 12:16 p.m., the system's robotic voice suddenly sounded, "The supermarket has been looted, inventory cleared, and will be closed permanently from today."

"It's coming, it's coming, chaos is coming," Su Han kept muttering.

A moment later, there was a knock on the bedroom door.

Su Han was startled, thinking the chaos had reached her doorstep. But upon reflection, she knew it was impossible.

"Open up, it's me," Xiao Yanxue's voice came from outside the door.

Su Han walked over and opened the door.

"There's trouble," Xiao Yanxue's expression was unusually grave. "The supply ship hasn't arrived in days, and the island's supplies are dwindling. I told you to stock up on food and supplies, right?"

Su Han nodded, "I did."

Xiao Yanxue breathed a slight sigh of relief, "Good. If we hunker down in the bamboo house, we should last a few days."

Su Han hesitated; her rent only covered her stay until the fifth day, "Well, I only rented until today..." She would have to move out tomorrow morning.

Xiao Yanxue interrupted seriously, "It's a mess out there—where do you think you're going? Listen to me, staying in the bamboo house is the safest. Plus, it's by the sea. We can hit the beach at night and grab some seafood to cook."

Su Han, "..."

She really just wanted to do her own thing, but Xiao Yanxue seemed determined to take her along. The question was, was Xiao Yanxue some kind of pro? Could she handle it? Could they really pull it off?

Su Han was skeptical.

But she'd gone to great lengths to pass as an NPC and really didn't want to bluntly tell the other, "I'm a pro—just worry about yourself, okay?"

She just nodded along, "Makes sense."

Immediately after, Xiao Yanxue, in a very business-like manner, earnestly asked, "How much stuff did you stock up on?"

"Milk, rye bread, ramen, toothpaste, a toothbrush, soap..." Su Han casually listed a few items to brush it off, then concluded, "Enough to last a week, probably."

Xiao Yanxue's eyes lit up with sudden excitement. She looked like she'd struck gold. But she quickly reined in her excitement, coughed lightly, and said calmly, "That's good. With these things, we should be able to last longer."

Su Han sensed something was off, her eyes narrowing. At first, she thought Xiao Yanxue was just looking out for her by telling her to stock up, but now... she couldn't help but suspect, was Xiao Yanxue treating her as a resource point? Tricking her into buying food and supplies, then finding a chance to take her out, and thus legitimately take over the supplies in the room?

On second thought, Xiao Yanxue's behavior seemed pretty shady, her concern too much.

"Where's the stuff? Where'd you stash it?" Xiao Yanxue couldn't help but press.

Su Han looked back quietly, not speaking, but her heart grew more alert.

"Ahem," Xiao Yanxue composed herself, trying not to appear too eager, "I figured we could pool our supplies—easier to keep an eye on them."

"No need," Su Han, convinced something was wrong, couldn't help but let her voice turn cold.

Xiao Yanxue wanted to say something, but after a moment's thought, she swallowed her words. She smiled lightly, looking extremely amiable, and said as if it didn't matter, "Then let's keep them separately."

"Okay," Su Han responded, then secretly observed Xiao Yanxue, her gaze carrying a hint of inquiry.

But Xiao Yanxue said nothing more and walked away.

In the room, Su Han fell into deep thought.

**

In the evening, Su Han took a pack of instant noodles to the kitchen.

Downstairs, Xiao Yanxue was busy. She was filling empty buckets with tap water and storing them aside. At the same time, water was boiling on the stove.

Su Han paused. Actually, if you pour tap water into unsealed buckets, bacteria will start growing like crazy. The same goes for boiled water.

She wasn't sure about the game's mechanics—whether it would lead to negative status effects—but with plenty of bottled water stocked up, she never had to test it.

However, upon careful consideration, the lack of clean drinking water would inevitably lead to negative status effects. Drinking unclean water resources could easily cause diseases, so drinking tap water with more bacteria should be better than the other two options.

"Instant noodles for dinner?" Xiao Yanxue took a break from her busy schedule and greeted, "The water's about to boil, come on over."

"Okay." Su Han walked over calmly, on guard, ready to counter any move.

"I've got plenty of water stored, help yourself if you need any," Xiao Yanxue said worriedly. "Soon, we might lose water, power, and gas."

Su Han kept a straight face, thinking Xiao Yanxue hadn't taken her seriously at all. She'd said the rent was up and she was leaving tomorrow, but Xiao Yanxue was acting like they'd be sharing the bamboo house for a while.

But she didn't let it show, proceeding to cook the noodles with boiling water and adding the seasoning.

The smell wafted out, filling the air.

Xiao Yanxue closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and showed a look of intoxication. "Smells amazing. It's been ages since I had instant noodles, but I forgot to stock up on them." She couldn't help feeling a little regretful.

Su Han asked casually, "What'd you stock up on?"

"Cornmeal, buns, stuff like that." Xiao Yanxue smiled sheepishly. "Didn't I tell you? I ran away from home, didn't have much money, so I could only stock up on cheap stuff."

Su Han thought, she's good at spinning tales, keeping her story straight.

"If you're hungry, I can spare some instant noodles," Su Han offered slowly.

Xiao Yanxue's lips twitched into a slight smirk, pleased with her little plan. But then her roommate added, "I really want to eat fried cornmeal and cornmeal porridge. Let's swap."

Xiao Yanxue's smile immediately froze on her face. She slowly turned her head, disbelief evident in her tone. "Swap?"

Su Han replied matter-of-factly, "Didn't you want to eat instant noodles? I want to eat cornmeal porridge, so let's swap."

Xiao Yanxue, "..."

What the hell! How's that any different from eating my own stuff??

In her mind, thanks to her reminder, her roommate had stocked up on food and supplies, so the other should be grateful. Therefore, after she said she wanted to eat instant noodles, her roommate should have offered to treat her to dinner.

Xiao Yanxue lowered her head and remained silent, but Su Han didn't let it go. "I think we should both eat cornmeal first. Think about it, without water, electricity, or gas, instant noodles can still be eaten dry, but cornmeal can't. So it's more appropriate to eat cornmeal first."

Xiao Yanxue's eyelids twitched. Not only did she refuse to share her food, but she also planned to eat her own first! It's like repaying kindness with enmity, utterly heartless!

"No need, let's each eat our own," Xiao Yanxue said stiffly, angrily returning to her room.

Su Han whispered almost inaudibly, "I overestimated her, thinking she was out to kill for supplies." She was just relying on her thick skin to try to freeload, and a cold rejection was all it took to stop her.