The Chef Rules the Last Days

More than half a month had passed since that night.

On the road, many creatures had appeared that could no longer be called human, they were zombies disregarded by the laws of survival, resembling humans but feasting on the flesh and blood of the living, possessing great strength and keen hearing, their only weakness being slow movements.

Those who had escaped the first round of selection, whether superpower users or ordinary people, all lived in a world dominated by zombies, filled with battle and fear.

Lu Chen was severely injured that night, but when he woke up, his wounds had mysteriously healed, and his body had undergone a sudden change—housing two magical energies, the Space and Ice Abilities.

Su Mo had indeed died that night, and her death was tragic, with no part of her body intact. She had died in a protective pose, slumped over Lu Chen.

Unable to bear seeing her body gnawed by monsters, he found some luggage in the military vehicle and took her to hide in this house, vigilantly guarding her for three days without sleep.

He had dressed her in clean clothes, considering that she might turn into a zombie, but she just lay silently on the bed.

Until the night when Lu Chen planned to bury her and leave alone for the Bunker, Su Mo's body burst into a dazzling red light, her wounds began to heal, and her heart miraculously started beating again.

She had revived.

He thought that Su Mo was just a late awakener.

So he waited, and waited until now.

Apart from training his superpower and searching for food nearby, he hardly ever left the house.

"How did I... exactly survive?" she asked, struggling to digest the horrifyingly changed world that Lu Chen described.

"You have to ask yourself that," Lu Chen pulled her hand to her chest, his expression serious, "Is there any change here?"

Here? Her chest? Su Mo looked down, touching her chest where she could feel her heart strongly beating; she indeed was still very much alive, but that night she had clearly...

"Could it be... that wasn't a dream?" she paused, some fragmented memories flashed through her mind, and she unconsciously shouted out a phrase, "God Chef No.1."

"God Chef No.1 is very pleased to serve you," said a mechanical male voice next to Su Mo's ear, followed by a pale blue, high-tech looking screen hovering in the air in front of her.

There were three categories on the screen, and below them lay an outwardly black Flat Pot.

The categories, from left to right, were labelled Backpack, Complete Recipe Collection, and Seasoning Section.

"That wasn't a dream!" Su Mo exclaimed, her eyes wide as she stared at the screen.

"What?" Lu Chen asked in confusion, following her gaze, but all he saw was empty air.

She pointed at the screen in front of her, asking him, "Can't you see it?"

The man shook his head.

It seemed that only she could see it. Su Mo tried tapping on the Backpack section, and the screen immediately enlarged the backpack and brought it to her view. Inside, many of the slots were grayed out, with only five slots lit up.

She then tried switching to the Recipes and Seasoning and found that the entire Recipes section was grayed, similar to the backpack with only five slots lit up.

The Flat Pot, however, was continuously emitting a faint blue glow.

She wasn't really supposed to cook, was she? Su Mo was stunned after looking at it; she didn't know how to cook after all, one could tell just by looking at the instant food and canned goods in her fridge back home.

Besides, she was currently living in an apocalypse; was she supposed to cook woolly food? This was definitely a trap!

Seeing her looking so distressed she was on the verge of tears, Lu Chen was genuinely puzzled and couldn't help but ask again, "What's the matter, exactly?"

Su Mo opened her mouth, looking at him with a pitiful expression: "Promise first, no laughing at me."

"Mmm."

She took a deep breath and poked at the handle of the flat pot, finding it solid enough to grasp, and then Su Mo clutched it completely.

Thus, the pot materialized right in front of Lu Chen.

The air was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

How should Su Mo describe this atmosphere? Just looking at the man's darkening handsome face told her everything.

"Is this what you evolved? A pot?" Lu Chen almost burst out laughing.

"Well... it seems so for now," Su Mo said, lowering her head in embarrassment and beginning to twirl her fingers. She didn't want it to be this way, but for now, that was all she had—a single flat pot.

The man sighed and rubbed his forehead; over the past half month, he had seen those who could spew fire, teleport instantly, and make plants blossom. But this was indeed the first time encountering something so bizarre.

The oppressive mood in the room made Su Mo lower her head even further, and she said in a soft voice, "Actually, it's not just a pot."

"Hmm?" Lu Chen looked at her skeptically, his tall nose emitting a doubtful grunt.

"Try the water I just drank," she said, stretching out her hand with a hopeful attitude. Upon taking the water bottle, the screen in front of her changed, displaying a ghostly image of the half-full bottle of water, alongside a few tags:

Item: Mineral Water (Ordinary)

Attribute: Level 3 Ingredient

Whether to Store: Yes/No

This really worked, Su Mo thought, surprised. She mentally chose yes, and the bottle of mineral water vanished from her grip. Simultaneously, a mini mineral water bottle icon appeared in a small slot in her inventory with a label "1/5" below it.

This time, Lu Chen's face looked somewhat more pleasant as he ignored the flat pot and asked, "Space superpower?"

"I'm not sure yet; let me study it," Su Mo replied, retracting the flat pot. She was feeling quite annoyed now. Scratching her itchy scalp, she pulled out a layer of dirt from beneath her fingernails and thought, 'How long has it been since I last bathed?' Feeling sticky all of a sudden, Su Mo sheepishly hid her hands behind her back and said awkwardly, "Is the bathroom still usable? I want to take a shower first."

"Wait," Lu Chen left the room, and returned shortly after.

"The bathroom is just around the corner. Go and wash up," he said, and then conjured her suitcase from thin air.

Clutching the suitcase, Su Mo was overjoyed, "You stored my luggage!" She happily pulled out a few clothes, ready to get off the bed.

Lu Chen's eyes softened as he helped her stand.

She tried walking a bit—her body felt much better after being in bed for such a long time. She let go of Lu Chen's hand to indicate she could manage on her own.

Just as she was about to walk out the door on her own, the man behind her called out to her,

"Su Mo"

Su Mo turned to look at him, waiting for him to continue.

"I'm really glad you're still alive," said the man, his deep voice sounding beautiful.

Thump, thump... Why did it feel like her heartbeat was racing?

"Mm,"

After speaking, she almost ran away.

Both the room and the bathroom were on the second floor; downstairs, the door busted by zombies was temporarily blocked by Lu Chen with a refrigerator and a sofa. As soon as Su Mo stepped out into the hallway, a foul stench hit her, and blackened bloodstains were everywhere—on the walls and the steps.

Below lay a fat man with a hole in his forehead as if something had pierced through it. His facial skin was severely decomposed, exposing the gums, his body turned blue-black. His pudgy hands sported sharp nails, and milky white maggots ceaselessly wriggled out of his mouth.