45: Chapter 45 Zhang Ming

Zhou An casually swiped away the noisy chat channel and rubbed his temples.

Although [Cloud Top Fortress] had now been upgraded to a rare LV4 fortress in this sky, after last night's life-or-death battle royale, he was keenly aware of the two fatal shortcomings he currently faced.

First, the serious waste of food resources. Li Muzi had cultivated top-tier epic-grade [wind spirit berry] and [blood crystal spirit wheat], but he and Luo Ning only knew how to boil them crudely or eat them raw. This kind of waste meant they couldn't fully activate the attribute boosts inherent in high-grade ingredients.

Second, the severe lack of means to counter high-level mental pollution. If not for that semi-finished sedative injection from Luo Ning, he would have already turned into an irrational tentacle monster.

The only hope right now was for Luo Ning to refine more potions using that piece of abyss tentacle. As for the materials consumed during research? Sitting on a stockpile of millions, Zhou An indicated that as long as the medicine could be produced, Luo Ning could take whatever she wanted from the fortress's material warehouse.

"The first step to fixing these shortcomings is to find a chef."

Zhou An made up his mind and turned to look at Li Muzi, who was preparing nutrient solution for the plants.

"Muzi, use your account to post an anonymous recruitment ad on the regional channel. My current name is too eye-catching and prone to attracting unnecessary trouble."

Zhou An recited the generous terms he had drafted: "Recruiting an exclusive chef. Requirements: Possess a cooking-related talent capable of activating and amplifying the special attributes of ingredients; must have excellent skills. Compensation: Once you pass the assessment and sign the contract, room and board are provided, and fuel is supplied without limit. We absolutely do not require you to hand over any personal supplies, and if your subsequent performance is good, we will cover all core materials for upgrading the spaceship to LV3 or even LV4."

After hearing this, Li Muzi pushed up her glasses and couldn't help but gasp: "Boss, if you post these terms during this polar night where everyone is fighting for a few drops of oil, it's like a god descending to help the poor."

The recruitment post was quickly sent out into the scrolling public channel.

Sure enough, just as Li Muzi expected, as soon as the post went out, the regional channel exploded, but the tone was completely unexpected.

"Unlimited fuel supply? And covering core materials? Scammers don't even bother drafting proper lies anymore, right?"

"Hilarious. If you had this kind of strength, I'd eat hail while doing a handstand! Even The Five Great Guilds wouldn't dare offer these terms, what are you posturing for?"

"Beware of a new type of scam! They're definitely using empty checks to trick you into sending your coordinates, then they'll sail their warships over and clean you out. Everyone, don't be fooled!"

Meanwhile, Li Muzi's private message notification sound was ringing incessantly like a death knell.

"OP, I'm a three-star Michelin chef. Although I haven't awakened a cooking talent, my food tastes amazing! Can you give me 100 units of fuel first? I'm about to freeze to death. I'll come over as soon as I get the oil!"

"Big sister, I awakened the [Foodie] talent and I can eat a lot. Does that meet the requirements? Please give me something to eat..."

"My talent is [Chopping Acceleration]. I can chop three potatoes in a second. Can you send me half the fuel as a deposit first?"

Looking at the chaotic screen full of private messages, Li Muzi sighed helplessly: "Boss, it's all a bunch of people trying to fish in troubled waters and freeload on supplies. Not a single one has a decent talent. The comments below even treat us like fishing pirates."

"That shouldn't be..."

Li Muzi was a bit confused.

Zhou An analyzed calmly: "These auxiliary talents that can amplify attributes are very rare and precious in this world. The big guilds aren't stupid; they would have definitely scooped up these special talents early on and kept them like ancestral treasures. There are very few freelance chefs left out there."

Just when the two thought this recruitment attempt would sink into oblivion, Li Muzi's private message interface flashed abruptly.

[Zhang Ming]: "Hello, may I ask if your recruitment message... is real? If I meet the requirements, can you really sign a team contract with me that has system-enforced binding power, and not confiscate my supplies?"

Li Muzi looked at Zhou An, and Zhou An nodded.

[Li Muzi]: "As long as your talent and skills meet the standard, the contract can be signed immediately. Our boss doesn't care about those peanuts you have."

Zhang Ming on the other end of the communication was silent for a full two minutes. Clearly, having experienced this cruel apocalypse, he was highly guarded. After repeatedly confirming that Li Muzi was willing to sign a contract protected by the system, he finally revealed his situation with difficulty.

[Zhang Ming]: "My current situation is very troublesome. I'm in a small guild called 'Black Iron' with about three or four hundred people. When I first transmigrated, I didn't grab any supplies, so I joined them to survive. But they aren't as capable as The Five Great Guilds, and they are very stingy. Now that the polar night has descended and fuel is scarce, they have forcibly detained the vehicles of us logistics personnel and chained them to their main ship to save power."

[Zhang Ming]: "My talent is [Cooking Mastery]. Although my system rating is only LV1 now, the food I make can stably amplify the special effects of ingredients by 30%! Moreover, I used to be a head chef at a star-rated hotel, and I know how to cook hundreds of different cuisines."

Seeing this, Zhou An's eyes lit up instantly.

LV1 and it could amplify by 30%! If he provided massive resources and pushed him to LV3 or even LV4, wouldn't the epic-grade ingredients Li Muzi grew be able to unleash heaven-defying attribute boosts?!

"Ask him if there are any other hidden conditions, and have him state them clearly." Zhou An ordered decisively.

[Li Muzi]: "Our boss is very satisfied with your talent. Do you have any other additional requests?"

[Zhang Ming]: "Yes... My wife transmigrated with me, and she is also in this guild; she is an ordinary textile worker. If you want me, you must accept her as well, and you must ensure her safety. As long as you can save us from this hell, I will sell my life to you from now on!"

"Loyal and righteous, he's still a real man, better than those who fly away when disaster strikes." Zhou An nodded appreciatively. As long as such a person signed a contract, loyalty would definitely be guaranteed.

"Muzi, ask him for his current coordinates, heading, and the average cruising speed of their small guild fleet!"

Li Muzi immediately sent the question.

A few seconds later, Zhang Ming's reply came anxiously.

[Zhang Ming]: "Our coordinates are (longitude 102, latitude 45), and our current speed is about 240 km/h! We are about eight hundred miles away from the regular shipping lane you were in when you posted!"

Looking at the data on the screen, the air in the hall suddenly went quiet.

Li Muzi turned to look at Zhou An: "Boss... our [Cloud Top Fortress] is too bulky. Although it was just upgraded to LV4, the maximum speed with engines at full throttle... seems to be only 200 km/h."

Not only was the distance far, but the other party's speed was a full 40 km/h faster than theirs.

Even if Zhou An floored the accelerator into the fuel tank right now, not only would he be unable to catch up, but the distance between the two parties would only grow further apart!