Chapter 40: Vegetable Mutation

After seven days, the desperate cries for help in the chat channels dwindled to almost nothing. Everyone had accepted their new reality and begun to adapt.

Through the brutal baptism of the past week, the original population of over seven billion shrank to less than five billion. However, this number likely only represented the officially tallied Survivors. The actual population had to be higher—perhaps even exceeding the original count—since the elderly and children were excluded from the Survivor classification. They lacked access to the System and could not even view the regional chat.

Lily Rhodes watched the Survivors discuss Sea Beasts and speculate about the next impending disaster. Major Guilds advertised for recruits, while individuals sought parties. Everyone scrambled to form their own survival strategies. Many viewed this apocalyptic world as an opportunity to rise to power, dominating the chat channels with their endless, eager chatter.

Lily observed them with cold detachment. She understood that personal might was the only true form of strength; everything else was a fleeting illusion.

After a moment of thought, she typed a message into both the world and regional chat channels.

"At eight o’clock this morning, The Supreme Shop will officially open. We have everything you need: fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, various spices, explosive mushrooms, constitution-boosting drumstick mushrooms, Healing Water, and more."

Initially, she considered posting anonymously. But on second thought, her current location was completely isolated and unknown. Even if she used her real name, no one could track her down. Besides, having just claimed first place on the vehicle leaderboard, using her identity served as the perfect advertisement for The Supreme Shop.

The message instantly reignited the chat channels.

"Holy crap! Big Boss Lily is in the same region as me! Where are you, Boss? I’m coming to find you so I can ride your coattails!"

"Isn’t the real focus here that Big Boss Lily has already started a farming lifestyle?"

"How did she do it? Can you teach me?"

"To the guy above, even if she taught you, do you really think you have the brains to learn it?"

"Whatever happens, I’ll definitely be the first one in line to support the Boss’s shop."

Seeing their reactions, Lily pondered for a moment before sending another message.

"The Supreme Emporium doesn’t just sell goods. We are also permanently purchasing all kinds of props, seeds, and other items. Prices will vary based on rarity."

Her goal was to hoard all the seemingly useless items currently in the hands of other Survivors. As the saying went, there was no such thing as garbage in this world, only misplaced resources. She planned to buy unwanted junk at low prices, find the right buyers, and flip them for a hefty profit.

Since she had to oversee the shop’s grand opening, Lily decided to skip sleeping entirely so she wouldn’t accidentally oversleep. It wasn’t like she had a job to commute to anymore. With the Sea Beast Frenzy over, there would likely be a few days of guaranteed safety for her to catch up on rest whenever she pleased.

First, she went to check on the two orcas. Mother Orca’s injuries had completely healed, and she was currently swimming lazily around the miniature ocean with Baby Orca. Over the past few days, Lily had used a fishing net to catch a large number of live fish, tossing them into the miniature ocean to breed. She also bought plenty of seaweed, kelp, and coral reefs from other Survivors, transforming the once-empty waters into a vibrant ecosystem. Naturally, the two orcas ruled as the undisputed overlords of this sea.

Next, she checked on Ink-Cloud and the Golden Fish. Compared to when they first arrived, they had nearly doubled in size. She had yet to feel any effects from the Golden Fish’s abilities, but Ink-Cloud...

Lily looked up at the sky. A protective shield visibly hovered over Mount Greln. Now, that barrier appeared slightly thicker and more defined around the edges, shifting from transparent to a faint golden hue. Her only regret was that she hadn’t encountered any other Special Fish since the Moonlight Fish Mother that caused such a stir recently. It seemed she needed to add Special Fish and Golden Fish to the shop’s purchasing list.

After her patrol, Lily arrived at the vegetable and fruit gardens. Thanks to their rapid growth rate, the cultivated fields expanded almost daily. She suspected the remaining empty plots would be entirely filled before long. Harvesting such a massive stretch of farmland manually would be impossible for one person. Fortunately, Shelly had recently upgraded, completely freeing up Lily’s hands.

Lily squatted on the edge of a field ridge, gazing at the lush green crops before her. This specific plot grew Indian lettuce.

"They feel a lot bigger than the previous batch," she murmured.

It wasn’t just the Indian lettuce; all the vegetables had noticeably increased in size. She inspected them closely and found that they hadn’t grown old or tough—they were simply larger. She pulled up the System interface for a scan. The results indicated that the crops had undergone a benign mutation, resulting in larger yields, richer nutritional value, and improved taste.

"So they just mutated. That scared me for a second."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Lily moved on to the orchard. Aside from berries like strawberries, blueberries, and cranberries, most fruits grew relatively slowly since the saplings needed time to mature before bearing anything. Notably, plants required pollination to bloom and fruit. Since Lily lacked the natural conditions for that, she ultimately spent Crystal Cores to have the System handle the process.

"I wonder if bees even exist in this world."

The current harvest yielded apples, bananas, lychees, and grapes alongside the berries. The quantities weren’t massive, but they were more than enough to give her customers a fresh taste.

Eight o’clock finally arrived.

Lily opened the shop interface and selected the option to list her items. With a mere thought, the entire vegetable patch and orchard sprang into motion. The crops vanished into thin air, instantly reappearing neatly stacked on the virtual store shelves.

Furthermore, she linked The Commons Workshop and the spice production workshop directly to the shop. This eliminated the need for manual restocking; whenever someone placed an order, the workshops would automatically begin production.

Naturally, the spices were sold in limited quantities due to raw material constraints. However, The Commons Workshop could run twenty-four hours a day. The tools forged inside were durable and affordable. Customers simply provided their own materials when placing an order, and Lily collected a processing fee. The Commons Workshop operated purely on a business model of small margins and high volume.

The moment her inventory went live, every single item Lily listed was swept clean in an instant. Countless people who missed out flooded the regional chat with endless complaints, while The Commons Workshop and the spice workshop hummed to life.