Chapter 10: Damn, I’m Finally Full

"I've seen it before," the little girl replied respectfully and hurriedly, "but I never dared to get close."

Fair enough.

Liu Hen recalled that even the original owner of this body had rarely seen fire. It wasn't for a lack of fuel; although trees on the surface were sparse, they weren't extinct and could be burned as firewood. However, in such extreme cold, trying to start a fire by rubbing sticks together would likely be futile, as there was no dry tinder or shavings to catch a spark.

Liu Hen reflected once more that the fact that wastelanders could survive in such an extreme environment was a miracle in itself. This miracle required generations to slowly adapt, undergoing a subtle, cumulative evolution to endure these harsh conditions.

Since he still needed to go out and gather wood later, he wasn't in a hurry to seal the cave entrance. In any case, there seemed to be a thick fog during the late-night hours. With the cave providing shelter and only a faint glow of firelight projecting outward, it wouldn't necessarily be visible from hundreds of meters away. If there had been monsters in this vicinity, they would have already been drawn in by the earlier commotion.

With these thoughts in mind, he glanced at the little girl, whose gaunt frame was barely distinguishable from a skeleton. He took off one of his jackets and handed it to her. "Put this on. I can't get you clothes that fit for now, so make do with this for the time being."

This jacket belonged to Huang Hu. He still had three more; with the bonfire for warmth, three were more than enough.

"No, no... it's very warm here..." The little girl quickly refused, clearly terrified by such treatment.

"You can't just go without anything. Listen to me; this is an order."

When dealing with pure wastelanders, one couldn't be too gentle, or it would only make them more anxious and fearful. Liu Hen deliberately stiffened his expression. "Are you planning to defy me?"

"I... I'm sorry..."

The little girl’s body trembled, and she hurriedly took the jacket and put it on. She was so small that the jacket hung on her like a dress, enveloping her entire frame and leaving only a dirty little head poking out.

Satisfied, Liu Hen crouched down and activated the bonfire's cooking function to boil some water. Ten seconds later, he took out a cup of hot water and drank it himself to warm his stomach. Although the water was quite hot, it wasn't scalding—the temperature was just right.

The little girl beside him slowly crouched down. Seeing that Liu Hen didn't stop her, she tried to huddle closer to the fire for warmth, her eyes fixed longingly on the cup in Liu Hen's hand. Her throat worked as she swallowed, clearly desperate to drink, but she didn't dare to ask.

Liu Hen immediately prepared another cup of hot water and handed it to her. "Warm your stomach first."

"Thank you, Master!"

The little girl took the cup with both hands in pleasant surprise, as if it were a precious treasure. Only then did Liu Hen notice that her hands were covered in frostbite, looking wretchedly raw. But there was nothing he could do for now, so he chose to look away.

Soon, he finished his water, and the cup vanished into thin air.

*Time to upgrade the All-Purpose Pickaxe.*

With a thought, he initiated the upgrade. The data in his mind blurred along with the pickaxe. A moment later, he felt a wave of warmth radiating from deep within his body. Wherever this warmth flowed, his body felt as if it were being warmed from the inside out. Following that, he felt a slight itch at the back of his neck; the scab from his previous injury flaked off entirely.

Meanwhile, the little girl took a careful sip of the hot water. As the steaming, clean, odorless liquid entered her mouth, she was stunned, finding it hard to believe.

*This water... how can it be this good?! So warm...*

As the steaming water flowed into her stomach, a sense of warmth spread through her entire body. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she couldn't help but think, *Even if I am eventually cooked as food by this master, I would have no regrets.*

Liu Hen smiled at the sight. It wasn't just these pure wastelanders; even he, after enduring such extreme hunger and cold, felt a sense of bliss from a cup of hot water.

At that moment, the upgrade finished, and the data in his mind updated:

[All-Purpose Pickaxe (Black Iron) Lv.5 (Upgrade Requirements: 6 Iron Ore, 6 Magic Crystals)]
[Magic Crystals: 3]
[Spatial Backpack: 5]
[Recipe: Creation Workbench (Contains Bonfire Recipe)]

*Five slots now.*

Liu Hen looked forward to the future. *The pickaxe is currently at the Black Iron level. Since there's a distinction in 'color grades,' new functions should emerge later.*

*By the way, can non-harvested items be stored in the backpack?*

He took a piece of tree-cake from his pocket and, with a thought, successfully stored it in the backpack.

*It works... That's good.*

He quickly reopened the bonfire's cooking function and, sure enough, saw the tree-cake listed in the ingredients.

*I can't use it all at once; I need to be frugal.*

Thinking this, he took the tree-cake back out, grabbed his pickaxe, and prepared to use the axe-head edge to cut it into smaller pieces.

[Tree-Cake Essence +1]

With one strike of the pickaxe, a piece of essence was harvested. Immediately, the surface of the remaining tree-cake developed fine cracks and crumbled away.

*Wait, why did it register as harvesting?*

Liu Hen paused in surprise, hurriedly putting away the pickaxe and catching the falling crumbs with both hands. When he had used the pickaxe to attack monsters earlier, it hadn't activated the harvest function, so he had assumed it only worked on minerals.

*All-Purpose Pickaxe... can it really harvest everything? Was it ineffective against monsters because they are living creatures?*

He pondered this while successfully salvaging the crumbs before they hit the ground. However, the remnants looked like sawdust, and it was unclear if they were even edible. He turned his hand over to look at the Tree-Cake Essence he had harvested—it was a square, dark-brown granule about the size of a thumb. A faint scent, similar to compressed biscuits, wafted from it.

*This tree-cake... does it actually contain biscuit ingredients?*

Was the Red Snail Camp actually that conscientious? Liu Hen was secretly astonished and tucked the essence into his pocket. He then divided the crumbs into two portions, stored them in separate slots in his backpack, and opened the cooking interface again. Thankfully, the crumbs appeared in the ingredients list.

*Without a specific recipe... how should I cook this?*

Looking at the ingredients list, which contained only ice cubes and tree-cake crumbs, he thought for a moment. He placed one portion of crumbs into one of the four cooking slots and added an ice cube to each of the other three. When he selected "Cook," a countdown appeared. This time, it was one minute.

*I hope this results in a food recipe and not some dark, inedible concoction.*

"Ah..." the little girl suddenly cried out in alarm as the cup in her hand vanished.

Liu Hen smiled and explained, "The cup exists only to hold water. Once the water is gone, the cup loses its purpose and disappears. Don't be nervous."

"Purpose of existence? How... how magical!" The little girl was amazed, and she let out a sigh of relief. She had thought she had misoperated and accidentally broken the master's treasure.

"By the way, what is your name?" Liu Hen asked.

"Black Stone," the little girl replied.

"Black Stone?" Liu Hen raised an eyebrow. "Like the black stone?"

"Yes, Master." Black Stone replied respectfully, "I don't have a surname. My full name is just 'Black Stone'."

What a casual name.

"Thank you, Master. You gave me such delicious water; from now on, my life belongs to you!" Black Stone suddenly declared.

Liu Hen raised an eyebrow and glanced at her. Was she bought over just like that? Was it because her life had been too miserable before? He smiled and said, "Forget about 'life' and all that. Just do as you're told. You've seen my abilities; you only need to keep watch for me. You don't need to do anything else."

"I will definitely obey." Black Stone hesitated for a moment before speaking again. "Actually, I'm not that young. I'm thirteen. I can serve you, or I can bear your children. I'm not useless."

She was trying hard to demonstrate her value because the master had been so good to her, even giving her such delicious hot water.

Liu Hen glanced at her skin-and-bones frame beneath the jacket, his heart full of shock. Was this a body a thirteen-year-old girl should have? Zong Ni was only seventeen—just four years older—and while she was severely malnourished, she at least had some feminine characteristics.

Seeing that Liu Hen didn't reply, Black Stone realized her own condition and lowered her head in inferiority, terrified and not daring to speak again.

"If you want to serve me, focus on getting your body healthy first." Liu Hen pushed aside his shock; he wasn't in the mood for women right now. Especially not with Black Stone, whose skeletal appearance made it impossible for him to feel any interest. Besides, thirteen... back on Earth, that was still a minor.

The minute was up. The food was cooked, and a new recipe appeared in the bonfire's interface: Tree-Cake Porridge.

*Porridge?*

Liu Hen clicked to retrieve it and looked at the black mush inside a large bowl. Information appeared in his mind:

[Tree-Cake Porridge: A filling porridge that can only be digested by wastelanders.]

He took it out and discovered it was a large basin-sized bowl. It was filled with a thick porridge, weighing at least three pounds. A faint woody aroma drifted out, causing his already starving stomach to cramp.

Black Stone looked over, her eyes practically turning green as she smelled the aroma. However, she held back, forcing herself to look away. She didn't dare look again, afraid she might lose her composure and do something that would anger the master.

*About half a pound of crumbs, and it made such a huge bowl of porridge?*

Liu Hen was both shocked and delighted. He picked up the large bowl and took a hearty gulp. The taste... it was best not to dwell on it; it was bland, with no distinct flavor. But at least it wasn't unpleasant and was easy to swallow. In comparison, it was infinitely better than eating raw tree-cake. For someone as starving as him, it was a gourmet feast.

As he gulped down the porridge and the sensation of fullness returned, Liu Hen’s eyes grew moist again. He was moved by his own plight.

*Damn it, I can finally eat my fill. This hasn't been easy!*

From now on, he wouldn't have to rely on water to stave off hunger. He swallowed greedily, bowl after bowl. After consuming over two pounds, he felt his stomach distend, and he couldn't eat another bite, feeling incredibly satisfied.

There was about a tenth of the portion left in the bowl. He handed it to Black Stone. "Finish it."

Black Stone trembled, looking up at him in disbelief. "Master..."

"Don't hesitate when I give you an order," Liu Hen said, deliberately keeping his face stern.

"Yes, Master!"

Black Stone hurriedly took the bowl with trembling hands, raising it to her lips. She greedily drank the food, which, in her eyes, was something only gods could eat.

*This... it's so delicious. Is this the food of the gods? How can there be such delicious food?*

As she drank, she couldn't help but cry again, large tears falling into the bowl. She wondered if she was dreaming. In fact, even in her wildest dreams, she had never imagined such food; it felt completely unreal.