Chapter 3: Century Hotel (Part 1)
Chapter 3: Century Hotel (Part 1)
Yu Qing regained consciousness during a torrential downpour—it was already around seven or eight o'clock the next morning.
He swallowed every drop of rainwater trickling down his hair.
The outside temperature had dropped significantly, bringing an unprecedented coolness he hadn't felt in days.
Food—still food! This was the problem he needed to solve immediately. He hadn't eaten anything in two days.
He thought perhaps he should turn back first, return to where there was water - maybe he could catch some fish there to satisfy his hunger.
He hesitated slightly. Or should he keep moving forward?
The two buildings ahead were only seventy or eighty meters away. Should he go inside to check?
Theoretically, not a single edible grain could be found there.
Think about it - it was essentially an unsealed tomb from over a hundred years ago!
Perhaps with some luck, he might catch a rat or something. But what do rats even eat?
Nevertheless, he ultimately decided to go inside and look around. It would only take a few minutes.
Out of caution, before entering the building, he gripped his dagger tightly, maintaining a guarded stance.
He entered the lobby of this abandoned hotel.
The moment he stepped through the entrance doors, he was instantly awestruck by the grand and magnificent sight.
Most incredible of all, despite the thick layer of dust on the floor, its decorations remained as bright and vibrant as new.
Several deactivated humanoid beauties and gentlemen stood in the lobby, their clothing mostly intact.
Perhaps because they were indoors, they appeared much neater than the humanoid beauty outside.
This again demonstrated the technological advancements of the new humans in materials and construction.
The First Paradise was built earlier than this place and prohibited excessive use of non-natural materials, requiring minor maintenance of buildings every thirty years.
At this moment, he had no mood to appreciate any of this, instead heading straight to search for the hotel's nutrition workstation.
The First Paradise had already switched to nutrition workstations supplying synthetic food, as that era had nearly phased out natural food entirely.
People at that time believed synthetic food was more balanced and scientific, while consuming natural food was considered random nutritional patchwork.
Lifelong consumption of synthetic food could extend human lifespan by 22 years, while costing merely one-fiftieth of natural food's average comprehensive price.
Thus, those who ate natural food were generally regarded as fools during that period.
Of course, synthetic food can also be made to resemble natural food, and with a bit of seasoning, it can mimic the flavors of various natural foods.
But none of the natural food flavors in the world can compare to the deliciousness of synthetic food. In the end, there were no more issues of varied tastes globally—everyone uniformly consumed synthetic food produced by automated workstations.
It's obvious there's no electricity here now. The workstations can't possibly operate, and fantasizing about them producing food is impossible.
Even if there were leftover products from over a hundred years ago, they would have long since rotted away. His search for workstations like this might just be a waste of effort.
But he's starving—can't help hoping for a miracle.
When he finally found the food workstation, it was just as he expected: the equipment was all dead, and some of the products had turned to dust.
You might not believe it, but the raw materials for synthetic food are just water, air, and soil—nothing else is needed!
Time to retreat, just retreat. He somewhat blames himself for wasting time.
It seems going back to catch a couple of fish would be more reliable.
His consciousness began to blur—perhaps a symptom of hypoglycemia.
As he was leaving, he noticed what appeared to be a harpoon lighter on the counter in a room next to the workstation and immediately grabbed it.
The First Paradise had these items—two alloy rods resembling harpoons. During birthday celebrations, people would strike them together to produce pleasant music and sparks that could light candles.
Gripping one harpoon in each hand, he struck them together. Sure enough, they emitted a melodious sound and produced sparks.
This was a major find—now he wouldn't have to eat raw fish, as he could start a fire to cook it.
"This is where they make birthday cakes for guests," he muttered to himself. "Why didn't they leave one for me?"
Suddenly, as if remembering something, he slammed his hand on the counter and exclaimed, "Ah!" before frantically searching the area.
He was incredibly lucky to find a birthday cake that was pre-made a hundred years ago!
This isn't absurd at all. Back then, birthday cakes weren't primarily meant as food but rather as props for fun and revelry. Here's how they were made and used:
If the cake recipient was 20 years old, the cake would be divided into 20 sectors, each with a distinct flavor. When ordering, one could specify whether each sector should be sweet, sour, bitter, astringent, spicy, or any other taste—or leave it to random chance.
During the celebration, guests would strike small fish forks together while singing the birthday song, and the resulting sparks would light the candles.
After the host gave a speech and made a wish, they would blow out the candles and distribute the cake pieces.
No one knew which flavor sector they would get, leading to reactions like screaming, laughing, fuming, or grimacing while eating.
But everyone had to eat their piece.
And that's not all.
Actually, this kind of cake can't be digested when eaten like this - it doesn't even qualify as real food unless consumed with water.
Only when water reacts with the cake in the digestive tract does it transform into actual nourishment.
The funny thing is, this reaction between water and cake produces large amounts of gas, causing continuous flatulence.
At that time, people jokingly referred to this phenomenon as the "Year-End Summary.
In fact, this reaction benefits the digestive health of those who regularly consume synthetic food, giving their gut a comprehensive workout.
Since this cake can't be exposed to water, it's typically packaged in transparent vacuum-sealed containers.
As long as no water touches it, the cake will remain exactly the same even after a hundred years.
Moreover, as the old saying goes, good things come in pairs. He noticed an alloy canister in the cabinet opposite the counter - upon inspection, it turned out to be an unopened container of so-called "Sticky Powder," the raw material used to make these cakes.
The sticky powder is also magical - it's powder when not exposed to air, but turns into gooey paste when left in the open.
Food for half a month seems secured, but first things first - let's satisfy this growling stomach.
He pierced the century-old vacuum packaging of the cake with his dagger, picked out a piece and shoved it into his mouth.
This time luck wasn't on his side - he picked an ultra-spicy piece that brought tears to his eyes and sent him spinning around the room.
Spotting two cake-molding pans on the counter, he grabbed them and rushed outside to collect rainwater.
The rain had lightened considerably though droplets still fell from the eaves. He extended the pans to catch them.
One drop, two drops - hurry up!
Unable to wait for them to fill completely, he alternately gulped from both pans.
Then continued… That dripping sound was truly marvelous.
Soon his stomach began churning, followed by a series of fragrant farts.
The person who invented this thing is a genius. After the sticky powder reacts with water, it not only produces highly nutritious substances but also emits a rich aroma.
His stomach finally full, he fetched two more molds filled with water and returned to the cake-making area.
Rummaging through cabinets, he found two empty buckets that had contained the sticky powder, then went outside to fetch two more buckets of water as backup.
After completing all this, he noticed it had grown dark outside, only then realizing how he would spend the night.
(End of Chapter)