Webnovel Author In The Apocalypse World

Those seeds would sprout and grow, and soon enough, more and more normal vegetables would be served on people's tables.

Kim Haru: "..."

Ah, his social anxiety was kicking in. Savior of the world? That was a bit too much, wasn't it?

After praising him, Lee Kang couldn't wait any longer. Ignoring the fact that Kim Haru and Jang Dojang were still there, he eagerly started gathering tools to begin the hydroponic cultivation of the cabbage roots.

Seeing the excited anticipation on Lee Kang's face, Kim Haru cautioned him, "Don't get your hopes up too high."

Having a system-produced cabbage root alone wasn't enough to fully resist the mutagenic virus. Just as Lee Kang had worried, the virus in the water could still affect the growth of the cabbage. However, compared to other cabbages, Kim Haru's cabbage root had exceptionally strong resistance to the virus. The final cabbage plant would most likely be of Level S or even higher.

Lee Kang looked up and smiled at Kim Haru. "Don't worry. I'm aware of that."

Lee Kang had worked as a researcher for a long time, and he was no longer the ordinary farmer he had been before the apocalypse. He understood that you couldn't place too much hope in a research project without any data to support it. Any small change could affect the final outcome. If you expected too much too early and the results didn't match up, it would throw you off balance emotionally.

He had learned this clearly through his countless failures.

Still, Lee Kang believed that even if the cabbage from this experiment couldn't be entirely free of the mutagenic virus, the virus content in the mature plants would definitely be very low.

Perhaps it was his intuition from growing so many cabbages.

Seeing that Lee Kang had fully focused his attention on cultivating the cabbage, Kim Haru and his group continued on to the next lab.

This time, they headed to Baek Wonyeon's bean research lab.

Unlike Lee Kang's cabbage lab, Baek Wonyeon's lab looked more like a bean processing factory.

The soybeans that had been sent over by the safe zone commander were already planted. Two containers were placed in a controlled environment where the temperature and humidity were carefully adjusted. One soybean was planted in the soil, which looked perfectly moist, while the other was undergoing hydroponic sprouting. Neither had shown signs of sprouting yet.

Kim Haru asked Baek Wonyeon to open the lid of the planting chamber, and he reached in to touch the soybeans.

The system interface quickly displayed their growth status.

The soybean planted in the soil should have already cracked open, slowly growing roots. The system marked its health as "poor to mediocre," indicating it was in the early stages of viral infection.

Kim Haru examined the degree of infection and compared it with the other soybeans in the lab that weren't under his care. He let out a small sigh of relief.

Although this soybean had been infected by the mutagenic virus, the overall level was very low. The plant that would grow from it shouldn't be too bad.

The hydroponically sprouted soybean, on the other hand, had an even lower infection level compared to the one in the soil. However, it lacked some of the essential nutrients.

Kim Haru shared these findings with Baek Wonyeon, who immediately began recording and comparing the results.

Taking advantage of this moment, Kim Haru looked around the lab.

As mentioned earlier, this lab looked more like a bean processing factory. The oil extraction tools and tofu-making equipment Kim Haru had been searching for were all here.

At first, when he saw the oil extraction machine, Kim Haru didn't recognize what it was for. It wasn't until he closely examined the usage instructions posted beside it that he understood.

The oil extraction machine resembled a tall, narrow barrel. Soybeans were poured in from the top, and oil would flow out from the bottom. The leftover residue had its own outlet as well.

"Is there an extra one of these?" Kim Haru asked, pointing to the oil extraction tool.

Baek Wonyeon was too absorbed in his note-taking to respond, so it was Seo Woo who answered Kim Haru's question.

"Mr. Kim, do you want this?" Seo Woo asked. "If you need it, go ahead and take it. But to use this machine, you'll need a large amount of soybeans. As for Baek Wonyeon's lab, every soybean here has already been planted in the soil, and I've never seen him use this machine."

Jang Dojang also offered his support. "Are you planning to put this machine in the shop in Second District, or are you taking it home? If you want it sent to Second District, I can arrange for someone to deliver it right away. But if you're taking it back home, you'll need electricity to power it. Do you have access to electricity where you are? If not, I can help you find an electric energy core."

Kim Haru declined. After confirming how to use the oil press, he stored it directly in his system backpack. Then, he turned his attention to the tofu-making tools nearby.

Kim Haru had seen tools used for making tofu before—two thick wooden sticks crossed in the shape of an X with a cloth tied below. When he saw something similar in the countryside, he had been curious and even tried pushing it a couple of times himself.

Though he had seen the tools before, he didn't actually know how to make tofu.

Jang Dojang and Seo Woo didn't have much knowledge on the subject either.

Seo Woo gave Baek Wonyeon a shove and said, "Hurry up, we need you here."

Upon hearing Kim Haru's question, Baek Wonyeon immediately demonstrated the tofu-making process. When he realized that Kim Haru wanted to try making tofu himself, he even handed him a large bag of gypsum powder.

"Add some of this while cooking the soy milk, and soon you'll have tofu."

As for the wooden frame used to press the soy milk, Kim Haru didn't take it with him.