"Of course!" Zhou Yinuo exclaibase "Everyone’s talking about it. The whole market is wondering if that lady will come back with another batch."
Before Liora could respond, a man walked past them, slurping on a cup of the same noodles. The rich, savory aroma drifted in the air, making her stomach tighten slightly.
The scent was... appetizing. More than appetizing. It smelled irresistibly good.
Liora frowned. Had the factory always produced noodles that smelled this amazing?
She suddenly felt a little uncertain. She had never actually tasted the ones from her system.
Without hesitation, she reached into her bag and pulled out two cups of noodles. "I managed to grab a couple," she said casually. "Wanna try?"
The trio’s heads snapped toward her so fast she thought they might get whiplash.
"You got some?!" Liang Zihan nearly shouted.
"You’re the best, Liora!" Zhou Yinuo’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
Without wasting time, they rushed to a small stall selling hot water. The stall owner was thriving from the sudden demand, as people lined up just to get hot water for their noodles.
A few minutes later, the noodles were ready.
The trio decided to share, splitting into two groups—one cup for the boys, one for the girls.
Liora took a deep breath and grabbed a pair of chopsticks. She wasn’t sure what to expect, but as she lifted the steaming noodles to her mouth and took the first bite...
The flavor exploded on her tongue.
Rich, savory broth coated the soft, chewy noodles, and the taste was far beyond what she had anticipated. It was like a perfect balance of spices, making her crave more with every bite.
She glanced at the others and saw their stunned expressions.
"This is... amazing," Zhou Yinuo murmured in disbelief.
"It tastes even better than I imagined," Liang Zihan added, stuffing another mouthful into his mouth.
Even Chen Wei, who was usually reserved, looked completely mesmerized by the taste.
Liora swallowed slowly, her mind racing.
Why did it taste so much better than the cup noodles she had eaten before? And then it hit her. Was this because the factory system produced them?
Did her factory enhance the flavor somehow?
If that was the case... she had seriously underpriced them.
Liora stared at the empty cup in her hands, feeling both amazed and slightly regretful.
She should have sold more, and she should have charged way higher.
After eating noodles with a satisfied expression, Liora and her team walked toward the mission center, the hub where survivors gathered to take on various tasks. The large hall was filled with awakeners and humans, all scanning the giant mission board for opportunities to earn EUs.
As they stepped inside, the air was filled with conversations—some discussing past missions, others debating which ones to take next. Liora’s gaze swept across the board displaying different missions.
Most were standard scouting missions: searching for food, water, medical supplies, or mechanical parts.
Liora frowned. "All of these are just scouting missions. Boring," she murmured, and in reality, she did not want to take any scouting missions at all and give all the supplies to those greedy bastards. It would be better if she just searched by herself and took all for themselves.
Zhou Yinuo nodded in agreement. "Yeah. I don’t mind searching for supplies, but these pay too little for too much effort."
Chen Wei and Liang Zihan nodded. "Exactly! I’d rather fight zombies than spend days digging through ruins just to find a few cans of food."
Liora gave them side-eyes at their overacting. She would have believed it if not for the previous mission they had done. But never mind, let them do their drama. After all, she knew they were doing this for her. They still thought she was upset from the last time, after she convinced them countless times that it had nothing to do with them.
They noticed Liora’s side-eye and smiled sheepishly, but no one spoke anything and continued browsing until something caught their attention—a special mission.
Mission: Investigate the Abandoned Factory Hall in X City
Objective: Scout the area and report back on any unusual activity.
Status: Special Mission.
Zhou Yinuo’s eyes lit up. "A special mission? That means it was issued by the Community of Bases."
The Community of Bases was a powerful organization that controlled the rules across multiple survivor settlements. They regulated trade, set up base-wide laws, and even controlled the EU system, the universal currency used between bases.
If they were interested in the X City factory, then something serious must be happening there.
Chen Wei crossed his arms. "I have heard something about it. Many people have disappeared there, and no one knows why. That means there’s either a powerful zombie there or maybe something that was a threat. But so many people have disappeared there without coming back, and no one knows why."
"Either way," Liora said with a smile, "it sounds way more interesting than digging through old supermarkets."
Liang Zihan pointed at another mission beside it. "Obtain 10 intermediate-grade crystals – Reward: 2,000 EUs."
Liora scoffed. "This was probably issued by some high-ranking official who wants to level up without working for it."
She knew that zombie crystals were used to enhance abilities, but hunting zombies was dangerous. Many strong survivors preferred to pay others to do the hard work for them.
"Some people think leveling up is enough to survive," Liora muttered, "but without combat skills, they’ll just be dead meat later."
Still, she wasn’t going to refuse easy money.
"Let’s take both," she decided.
They approached the counter and handed their IDs to the staff member in charge. The woman scanned their information and confirmed their registration.
But gave them a strange glance before looking down again, like wanting to voice out something but held back.
"You have accepted two missions: ’Investigate X City’s Factory’ and ’Obtain 10 Intermediate Crystals.’ Estimated completion time?"
"We’ll return when we’re done," Liora said vaguely.
The woman nodded. "Stay safe out there."
With their missions set, the group returned to their apartment in the base.