Day 2 came with a dull sun and a worse smell.
The base had been awake all night. Fires burned in barrels. People slept in lines with their shoes on. The fence held, but only because soldiers didn't stop moving.
Luo Yan woke up with a stiff neck and a dry mouth. He had slept in short bursts. Every time he closed his eyes, he heard the fast scream again.
Lan Huan came back before noon. His uniform was damp and dirty. He looked the same as always, but his eyes were sharper, like he'd counted too many bodies.
He Li and Qin Yi were with him.
Qin Yi looked worse. His face was pale and his eyes were red at the edges. He dropped onto the tarp and didn't speak.
He Li spoke instead. "East will get hit again tonight," he said.
Lan Huan nodded once. "I know."
Luo Yan swallowed. "Med lane said the same," he offered carefully.
Lan Huan's eyes flicked to him. "You went to med lane."
Luo Yan hesitated. "There was a turn inside the base," he said. "We helped."
Lan Huan didn't praise him. He didn't scold him either. He just said, "Don't get surrounded."
Luo Yan nodded.
Lan Huan looked around the container. "Pot," he said. "Where?"
He Chenyu answered, "Not yet. Supply is controlled. Zhao is rationing hard."
Lan Huan's jaw tightened. "Then we trade."
He Li frowned. "With what?"
Lan Huan's gaze moved to Luo Yan. "He cooks," he said. "That's value."
Luo Yan blinked. "You're trading my cooking?"
Lan Huan's voice stayed flat. "I'm trading the idea that people can eat hot food and not riot," he said.
Luo Yan didn't like it.
But he understood.
Inside his head, the system prompt flickered, private.
Ding.
DAY 2 MISSION: FEED YOUR UNIT
Time Limit: 24:00:00
Objective: Provide one hot meal for at least 5 people
Reward: Squad Stamina Recovery (Small)
Reward: Void Screen Stability +1
Optional Objective: Secure a pot and fuel without violence
Reward: Storage Capacity +1
Luo Yan swallowed.
"Okay," he said. "I'll do it."
They moved in the afternoon.
Not outside the base. Just to the supply lanes where military crates were stacked and guarded.
Zhao Qingshan was there, shouting at two soldiers about not letting civilians touch fuel.
He turned when he saw Lan Huan. His face tightened. "General," he said. "What now."
Lan Huan didn't waste time. "Pot. Fuel. Salt. Rice," he said.
Zhao stared. "You think this is a market?"
Lan Huan's voice was calm. "You want the east fence to hold tonight," he said. "You want people to stop fighting in ration lines."
Zhao's jaw clenched. "And you think congee will fix that?"
Luo Yan stepped forward. "Hot food calms people," he said. Simple. "It also saves water. And it stretches rice."
Zhao's eyes moved to Luo Yan. "You're the Void kid," he said.
Luo Yan kept his face blank. "Yes."
Zhao grunted. "You can cook?"
Luo Yan nodded. "For a group," he said.
Zhao stared at him for a beat, then looked at Lan Huan. "If I give you fuel," Zhao said, "my soldiers will complain I'm favoring you."
Lan Huan answered, "Give me enough to cook a pot for your east lane team too."
Zhao's mouth twisted. "So you want to feed my people with my supplies."
Luo Yan spoke again. "You can stand there and argue," he said, "or you can have five hundred people less angry tonight."
Zhao's eyes narrowed. Then he barked at a soldier, "Get them a pot. One. And a small stove. And a bag of rice. If they waste it, I hang them."
The soldier stared. "Commander—"
"Now," Zhao snapped.
The soldier ran.
Zhao looked at Luo Yan. "You cook," he said. "If it tastes like trash, I'm taking the pot back."
Luo Yan swallowed. "Yes," he said.
They carried the gear back.
He Chenyu took the rice and fuel and pot and moved like he wanted to hide it inside his chest, but he didn't. He carried it straight, careful.
Back in the container lane, Luo Yan set up the stove outside the door where there was air. He poured water, washed rice fast, and started the heat.
The smell of rice and salt didn't fix the apocalypse.
But when it rose, people nearby turned their heads.
Hungry eyes.
Too many.
Lan Huan stood near the pot like a guard.
He Li watched the lane corners.
Qin Yi sat inside and held his head, but his breathing eased when the smell hit him.
When the congee was done, Luo Yan poured it into cups and handed them out.
Five people first. Lan Huan. He Li. He Chenyu. Qin Yi. Himself.
Qin Yi took one sip and let out a small breath like he'd forgotten what warm food was. "I could cry," he muttered.
He Li ate without looking up. But his shoulders lowered.
Lan Huan ate slow. Then he nodded once. "Good," he said.
Luo Yan's system chimed in his head.
Ding.
MISSION COMPLETE: FEED YOUR UNIT
Reward: Squad Stamina Recovery (Small)
Reward: Void Screen Stability +1
Then Luo Yan filled more cups.
Lan Huan had told Zhao he'd feed the east lane team. Luo Yan didn't like making promises with food, but it was already done.
He walked with Lan Huan to the east fence, carrying a pot of congee and cups.
Soldiers stared like they didn't trust it.
Then they drank.
Quiet happened for a minute.
Not peace. Just quiet.
One tired soldier said, "Hot," like he was surprised.
Another said, "Thanks," and looked away fast like it embarrassed him.
Zhao Qingshan watched from a distance. He didn't smile. But he didn't interrupt.
Lan Huan leaned close to Luo Yan, voice low. "You did good," he said.
Luo Yan's throat tightened. "It's just rice."
Lan Huan's eyes stayed steady. "It's control," he said. "The kind that keeps people human."
Night came again.
The east fence was quieter than the night before, but not safe.
Luo Yan stood under the floodlights and listened to rain hit metal.
Then, far outside the fence, the fast scream sounded again.
And this time, another fast scream answered it.
Two.