Chapter 255 - 20: The Trial of the Factory

After watching the movie, Duan Fei and Jinghong toured the city for a while, discovering the city cluster was even more developed than she had imagined.

Some emerging businesses had already discovered the commercial opportunities here. Many real-world companies were starting to move in and establish their brands in the city.

In *Abyss*, all human senses, including taste, were perfectly replicated. One could even sample things that were impossible to eat in the outside world.

Beneath the urban area lay an even deeper factory district. The Proletarian Alliance had converted it into their base, using numerous automated factories to ceaselessly manufacture all sorts of products.

Logistics weren’t an issue. The Admins provided numerous "doors" that could connect different areas.

Paired with the players’ large, expandable backpacks, transportation costs were driven extremely low. Products went from the factory to the shelf in a single step, with no middlemen taking a cut.

This unconventional setup led to lower prices, which prompted many people with no interest in gaming to exchange their real-world salaries for Abyss Coins and come here to shop.

After a stroll through the player-run commercial district, Jinghong tried every snack she could find, rating each one. Finally, she said, "Looks like the restaurant business would be a good fit here. What do you think, Duan Fei?"

"Seeing how happy you look while eating, I’d say that’s a viable path."

"Alright, let’s test the waters with a restaurant then. This is the procedure for investing in one. Here, take a look."

Taking the flowchart from Jinghong, Duan Fei saw that the entire process had a distinct, game-like quality.

To open a shop in the game, you couldn’t just pick a spot and get started.

It had to be managed by someone, and players needed to be involved in things like restocking and pricing, though it was much simpler than in the real world.

Moreover, while the requirements for the restaurant business weren’t very high, like many other industries, it required a factory.

"Factory" referred to the buildings in the lower region of their current city, an area known as the Level 3 Factory Zone.

In the factories, countless automated machines were at work. Power plants ran nonstop, supplying a steady stream of electricity that enabled the production of all kinds of products.

The factories could even produce food, though the principles behind this were still a mystery.

However, obtaining a factory wasn’t easy.

Each factory was equivalent to a permanent dungeon instance, and different factories corresponded to different trials. To acquire a factory, one had to clear its dungeon.

Furthermore, if Duan Fei wanted to establish a food processing plant, he would need a player with a food-related Profession to even apply for the corresponding quest.

Racking his brain, Duan Fei could only think of one person: Cuihua, who held the title of Dark Chef.

While Jinghong handled the rest of the paperwork, Duan Fei sent Cuihua a message. "Cuihua, are you fr—"

"Free! I’m free! I’m always free! Where are we going? What are we doing?!"

Seeing Cuihua’s instant reply, Duan Fei felt as if he were watching a large sled dog wagging its tail at him.

"Well, I need your help with a dungeon quest..."

"I’m free! Wait for me, I’m on my way!"

In less than a minute, Cuihua appeared before Duan Fei.

Though his expression remained aloof, his eyes were brimming with excitement.

After learning that Duan Fei and Jinghong wanted to open a restaurant, he immediately agreed to help and submitted the application to the game system.

However, when he saw that the quest required a five-person team, he gave Duan Fei a troubled look.

Duan Fei thought for a moment, then tried to find people in the guild. Unfortunately, Lone Ranger was in another dungeon, so only Little Fatty accepted the invitation.

His other friends were all busy with event quests. As a last resort, he invited his new acquaintances, Flora and her Maid.

"Free! I’m free! I’m always free! Where are we going? What are we doing?!"

Seeing Flora’s reply, which was identical to Cuihua’s down to the very last punctuation mark, Duan Fei felt like he was watching a large golden retriever vigorously wagging its tail at him.

’There sure are a lot of puppy-like players around me.’

Before long, Flora, the young lady in the white dress, and her squinty-eyed Maid hurried over. "Where are we going?" she asked, her face alight with excitement.

"We don’t know yet," Duan Fei said, holding the key the game had just issued. "Competition for the factories is pretty fierce. We’ll be competing against two other teams for a single factory, so it’s a team-versus-team competitive dungeon. We won’t know what kind of instance we’re up against until we go inside."

"Oh, I get it! Don’t you worry, I’ll help you secure the victory! I look forward to working with you all."

Flora enthusiastically grabbed Duan Fei’s hand and shook it vigorously.

Turning to look at Little Fatty, she immediately greeted him too. "You there, the shifty-looking one! Let’s do our best together."

"I think I see why you don’t have any friends," Duan Fei sighed.

With five people assembled and key in hand, Duan Fei led the makeshift team to an underground fire door and inserted the key into the lock.

A moment later, the fire door’s color began to shift. Text appeared on its red surface: "Special Dungeon: The Factory’s Trial. You may only retain one item from your inventory. Most abilities will be restricted."

The dungeon provided no further information beyond these two lines.

Selecting his Crowbar, Duan Fei pushed open the fire door and stepped into the world beyond.

「Inside the dungeon.」

The time inside the dungeon was the 1920s. The changes wrought by the Industrial Revolution had swept the globe. Blessed with unique geographical advantages, the North American Republic began to pillage global markets with its industrial products, and the resulting wealth brought unprecedented prosperity to the nation.

However, the old ruling powers still held absolute dominance. They grew wary of the cultural changes brought by this newfound wealth and issued the most draconian decree in history.

The Gourmet Prohibition Act.

An excessive pursuit of culinary pleasures would only lead to degeneracy, causing people to forget the old faiths and chase after delights not meant for mortals.

It was degeneracy. It was blasphemy. It was a corrupting trend that had to be stamped out.

To enforce this act, all grains and meats harvested from farms had to be sent to designated government collection points. There, they would be uniformly processed into completely flavorless food.

Restaurants were forced to close, bars were forbidden from serving any food, and all food was removed from supermarket shelves, replaced by government-issued rations.

Fresh off a victory in a foreign war, the government wielded immense authority, allowing this absurd decree to be implemented and strictly enforced.

In an inconspicuous alley, someone knocked on a door at the far end, then pressed their ear against it, listening carefully.

After hearing the sound of footsteps from within, the visitor whispered to the door, "A Republic of Taste."

RATTLE.

The door was pulled open, revealing a burly man who stared intently at the visitor.

After getting a clear look at the newcomer’s face, the man asked, "Who sent you?"

"Professor Viktor. He—"

"I don’t care what’s happened to him. Do you have an offering?"

"I do."

After fumbling inside his coat for a moment, the visitor reluctantly took out the item.

It was a box of something rarely seen these days. Inside were slices of ham, thin as a cicada’s wing, their elegant marbling reminiscent of high-grade marble, shimmering with the gem-like luster unique to fat and muscle.

Though there were only three slices, the bouncer held the ham as if it were a priceless treasure, struggling to swallow the saliva that was rapidly pooling in his mouth.

"Come on in. You’re qualified."

Casting one last, longing glance at the ham, the visitor pulled his hat down low and stepped through the hidden door.

He knew that to walk through this door was to walk into Hell.

But he couldn’t stand it any longer.

’Fine food, here I come.’