A single-player post-apocalyptic game, but with an all-female teammate mod.

There are currently no other options available.

Even if it's just to experiment and see what happens, we still have to recruit her.

Secondly, Dudu is a chef.

It's not a combat profession, but it's still better than many blank survivors.

Moreover, in terms of combat, Aono felt that he could handle it on his own.

Even if we take a step back, a chef isn't incapable of fighting.

It's the end of the world, and everyone has to fight to survive.

The same applies to games; it's just a matter of strength.

Without further hesitation, Aono agreed.

The system notification appeared again the next moment.

[Estimated time: 5 minutes]

Aono frowned, puzzled, and asked, "Does it really need to take this long?"

His doubts were soon answered.

Om-!

The ark shook violently, all the lights went out abruptly, and then shone back on brighter in the next second.

A massive torrent of energy converged from all directions, completely enveloping the beautiful girl with long orange-red hair.

Aono subconsciously took a half step back, looking at the dazzling light.

The light flowed over Dudu's entire body like water, transforming into a hazy rainbow that completely enveloped her.

The girl's beautiful body floated in the light, seemingly undergoing some kind of change, or perhaps merging with something.

After about three minutes, the dreamlike colorful light gradually faded.

Aono was finally able to see what was happening.

Dudu's long, orange-red hair fluttered in the energy flow, and her skin became even more translucent, as if radiating a warm glow from within.

The most obvious change was in her eyes.

The hollow, glassy texture has faded.

When the light faded and Dudu slowly opened her eyes, her azure eyes finally regained focus and sparkle.

There was... emotional fluctuation.

She blinked, looking somewhat confused, and then looked at Aono.

This time, it's not just a mechanical repetition.

"captain?"

His voice was somewhat hesitant, yet it carried genuine hesitation and searching.

Aono's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately opened her panel.

------

Name: Zhou Meili

Occupation: Chef

Level: 1 (0/100)

Talents: Ultimate taste (rare), First-class Chinese cuisine (legendary)

Talent Effects: 1. Ability to identify the characteristics of all ingredients, greatly increasing the success rate and effectiveness of cooking (ultimate taste). 2. Cooked dishes have a chance to inflict special buffs (Master Class in Chinese Cooking).

Combat strength: 5

Trust value: 60% (Bonus: None)

------

"Player panel..."

Aono murmured softly, trying hard to control his excitement.

We can't draw conclusions right away. What if it just turned from a stupid NPC into advanced artificial intelligence?

He looked again at the beautiful young female cook with long orange hair and tentatively asked, "Dudu... do you know where this is?"

The girl frowned slightly, her small hand gently pressing her temples, as if she had a headache.

"I...I know, but it's like I don't know..."

She looked up at Qingye, her eyes filled with a strange mix of unfamiliarity and an indescribable sense of familiarity.

8. The Great Transformation of a Living Person

"What do you mean? What exactly is it..." Qingye subconsciously stood up, somewhat excitedly holding Dudu's fair shoulders, and continued to ask.

"Captain, could you please give me my clothes before we talk?"

The red-haired beauty shyly covered her chest and crotch, interrupting, "By the way, I hope you'll put your pants on too."

The two had just been in close contact, and naturally neither of them was naked.

Right now, Aono's big thing was hanging between his legs like a club.

Under the illumination of the incandescent light, it occasionally reflects streaks of crystalline light.

The air fell silent for a moment.

Aono glanced down at himself, then looked up at the beautiful young cook who had turned her head away, her face flushed.

His expression didn't change much, except for a very slight twitch of his eyebrow. "Sorry, I forgot."

He said he was sorry, but his expression, actions, and tone showed no sign of embarrassment whatsoever.

They had known each other well for three days, so whether or not they were wearing clothes was really irrelevant to Qingye.

Besides, it's the apocalypse now. If we don't open the shops soon, we'll be running around naked, let alone inside the Ark, even when we go outside to fight monsters.

Aono turned around and sat back on the bed, without any intention of putting on clothes, but just casually pulled the blanket to cover his private parts.

Dudu didn't say much, just glared at him with embarrassment and annoyance, then picked up her cheongsam that had fallen to the ground.

With each movement, her body revealed a glimpse of her cleavage, giving Aono a feast for the eyes.

Even though their bodies are almost identical, the real person definitely feels more real than the NPC!

Just like hentai anime with a storyline versus hentai anime that jumps straight into action, given the same production quality, the former will always be more appealing than the latter.

Holding the clothes, Dudu saw that Qingye had no intention of turning his head away, so she glared at him in embarrassment and annoyance, and walked towards the bathroom.

Aono carefully observed Dudu's every move.

He only slowly withdrew his gaze after the girl's slender figure disappeared behind the glass door.

"After recruiting them as teammates, the NPCs will become real players... No wonder it consumes so much Ark energy and takes so long."

After careful observation, Qingye was able to confirm that the current Dudu was indeed the real person.

"Is this Dudu just a survivor from a game with a different skin, or is it the Dudu from the anime/manga series 'Cooking Master Boy'?"

"Judging from the system panel, the latter is more likely."

"but……"

Aono frowned and couldn't help but curse again: "This game is trash! Can't you be a little clearer? The system prompts are so rudimentary!"

Just then, Dudu, dressed neatly, pushed open the glass door to the bathroom.

Seeing the beautiful girl wiping the dried marks off her cheongsam with a look of disgust, Aono decided to ask her directly.

"Dudu, do you have any memories from before? Do you remember how you came into this world?"

The girl paused in her movements.

She straightened the wrinkles on her cheongsam and looked at Qingye intently.

"I'm not quite sure what I am or how I got here; it feels like I've been in a very long dream..."

"In my dream... I grew up in Yangquan Restaurant. My mother passed away early, and my father was usually very kind, but he would become very strict when it came to learning cooking..."

She spoke haltingly, fragments of memory flooding back like a tide, yet remaining shattered.

As she spoke, a blush crept onto Dudu's earlobes, and her gaze began to dart away.

The three days she spent meeting Aono also appeared in her memory as a dream.

Those scenes of being "tested," those shameful touches, those passionate and fiery positions...

Perhaps because it happened so recently, the experiences of these three days were much clearer than other dreams.

It was so clear that she could hardly tell what was real and what was fake.

Aono did not notice anything unusual about Dudu.

At this moment, his mind was filled with excitement and surprise.

Without a doubt, the beautiful girl in front of me is Dudu from the anime "Cooking Master Boy".

Rather than just game NPCs with an empty appearance.

Whether it's due to a protection mechanism or some other reason, for Dudu, the memories of another world seem like an unattainable dream.

This includes my experiences over the past three days.

This dream is just closer, so it seems clearer.

It's called a dream because Dudu's body, which Qingye had thoroughly studied, was transformed and reshaped, and returned to its original, unopened state.

Of course, Aono only found out about this later.

As the turmoil in his heart subsided, Aono looked at the beautiful girl with long orange-red hair in front of him and sighed with some resonance, "Indeed, everything in the past now seems like an unreal dream."

Having been in this world for only ten days, my past life and memories have become like a distant dream.

The same applies to physical health.

As the level increases, not only do physical abilities improve significantly, but there is also a feeling of being reborn.

After reflecting on the past, a new question arose in Aono's mind.

In a sense, he essentially pulled Dudu from her original world into this apocalyptic world filled with monsters.

But in order to survive, and especially to survive better, recruiting teammates is a necessary thing to do.

Aono is not one to engage in internal strife.

To avoid future misunderstandings, it's best to clarify things now.

Having made his decision, he looked at the gentle and lively young woman before him and said, "I'm sorry, Dudu, forcibly dragging you into this precarious world."

"Ok?"

The lively and beautiful young female cook blinked her big, azure eyes and looked at Aono with a puzzled expression.

After a few seconds, she realized what she meant, then waved her hand and said, "Captain... I'll just call you Brother Qingye. You should be older than me, right?"

Aono shook his head.

He was more used to being called by his name than by the captain.

"Brother Qingye, you don't need to feel bad."

"Whether it's the memories of growing up in another world, or the experiences of these three days... cough cough."

Dudu blushed, coughed twice, and then changed the subject, continuing, "In short, I didn't mean to blame you."

Dudu, and indeed all the other surviving NPCs in this world, were never truly alive.

Even before Aono's transmigration, they were merely fantasy characters living in a two-dimensional world, following a fixed trajectory.

It was only after Qingye consumed a large amount of gold coins and Ark core energy that they were given souls and flesh to appear in this world, and were able to truly begin their own lives.

Even if you really don't want to, you can just commit suicide and leave this apocalyptic world.

Aono wouldn't stop them; he'd just feel a little sorry for them.

After all, recruiting teammates every time consumes a lot of gold coins and Ark Energy.