CHAPTER 181 - SPROUT-STANDING PERFORMANCE AT PLANTING SEASON
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I hastily accepted the quest but put it out of my mind for now since I wanted to focus on the all-important planting season. The grove could wait.
We finished plowing a small field and fertilized it with [Mysterious Goo].
“Vegetables are fun,” said Kharli. “I know rice and tea are important, but I prefer growing vegetables.”
“Rice is great but boring,” said Lari.
Mo and Kharli unrolled the scroll we had made that had the companion planting diagram on it.
“The [Cucumbers] and [Nasturtiums] are mine!” said Kharli.
The System said that [Nasturtiums] should repel cucumber beetles, which would obviously be good for the [Cucumbers] if they were planted close to each other.
I nodded. “Do it.”
Meanwhile, I got started planting the [Corn], [Beans], and [Squash] together in a mound in the Three Sisters method. Lari took care of the [Carrots] and [Onions] that each repelled pests that bothered the other plant, while Kharli planted [Eggplant] and [Marigold] together. According to the System, [Marigolds] help surrounding plants by releasing allelopathic chemicals that inhibit weed growth and attract pollinators. This sounded plausible, but also perilously close to gobbledygook to me. I longed to access the internet to check the facts, but, alas, this world was probably one thousand years behind Earth’s technology. I guess one could simply think of it as “spirit plants doing magic things.”
I got into position and smiled as seeds shot out of my hand-held seeder and buried themselves two inches into the ground. This part looked easy, but it consumed a lot of energy, so I kept a close eye on my energy bar. When it was four-fifths empty, I watered the seeds.
“That was almost too much,” I said to Yinuo.
“Do you feel dizzy? Lean on me, my lady.”
“I’m gonna sit down.” Taking out a folding chair from my inventory, I almost collapsed into it. “I regret doing too much today.”
Though I didn’t think I was going to faint, I decided that this was an emergency and drank a bottle of [Kola Kola Soda] despite the fact that the kids and I had collectively decided we needed to wean ourselves off it.
After resting for a time, I went to the main house to soak in the [Hot Spring] which gave me enough energy that I felt a lot livelier. Since the kids were a little worried about me, I invited them to spend the day with me in my [Ranch House] where we tested the different styles of [Zero Gravity Chairs] and chatted.
[Zero Gravity Chair:
Designed to evenly distribute weight and reduce pressure points, this chair offers a supportive and relaxing place to unwind.]
“I feel weird since it’s so tilted.” Mo frowned and wiggled her bare toes. The default position put her feet up so that they were above her head.
I wiggled my toes, too. “Press the buttons on the sides to adjust the chair's recline. I kinda like it though!”
We tried out the buttons and eventually settled on more normal positions. Yinuo arrived with lunch, and we ate out on the patio. The weather was cooler today and there was a refreshing breeze. As we were enjoying the meal, Fengying came by with a letter from Scholar Wu.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
The kid’s tutor wrote that I could tell the others the news, so I read bits of the letter out loud. “Guys, listen to this. ‘The demonic qi from the egg has been dispersing into the atmosphere at a steady rate, and they expect it to be at a level that the egg can be approached by summer next year.’ Wow, I was right!”
Kharli frowned. “Is that good news?”
“The egg isn’t increasing its qi. That has to be good news?” Lari frowned into his soup.
“Yes, I think it's good. I mean, as good as one can expect.” I shrugged and continued spooning the fish congee made with the [Miracle Pearl Rice] and [Carp] we harvested into my mouth. “And also she writes that we should continue making the [Bronze Arrows +E].”
“I’m close to leveling up and making [Iron Arrowheads],” said Lari.
“Then we can make [Iron Arrows] that Teacher can make into explosive arrows,” said Kharli.
“Are they really going to pay less for them?” asked Mo.
“Yeah, because all the weapon makers are manufacturing and selling them in bulk now and the clans expect a discount.” I shrugged. “It’s just a small decrease. Don’t worry about it.”
The plan was for us to focus on farming since we were the only spirit farmers in the whole Westerlands while there were plenty of crafters who could make weapons, armor, and supplies, but, of course, the kids could craft [Bronze Arrows] during their spare time.
Fengying and the others left, and my apprentices asked to see how I made the [Diamonds]. I let them come inside with me to the living room and showed them how I used the cauldron to make the enchanted gems.
“It’s so magical!” Mo’s eyes were opened wide.
“May I?” Lari leaned forward, his forehead wrinkled in curiosity and his hand hovering over a [Diamond] that I had placed on the table in front of us.
Kharli was silently circling the [Nine Dragon Jade Cauldron] and running her fingers along its blue-green surface carved with majestic dragons.
“Sure.”
I handed Kharli a few [Diamonds] which she showed to the others. They oohed and aahed over the sparkly gems, claiming they could sense how mystical they were.
“Remember, you guys can’t use this. Fengying said it’s way too dangerous to wear something so valuable,” I said.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” said Lari. “People have been killed over less in Anwei, I’m sure. They say criminal gangs use a strong acid to dissolve bodies.”
Kharli and Mo shuddered.
“The Bone Melting Powder? Do you think that’s true?” asked Kharli.
“Do you remember the silversmith who went missing? His body was never found!” said Mo.
“I thought they said he was a drunk who ran away because he went bankrupt and owed people a lot of money,” said Kharli.
Mo and Lari exchanged a conspiratorial look.
“You don’t know the story? A few days after he went missing, the city guards found a suspicious spot in an alley…” Lari lowered his voice. “It smelled like strong acid and there were… residues of human bones and flesh.”
I stopped listening because, to my surprise, I got a quest.
[Quest Available: The Gangs of Anwei]
Reading the quest text made my stomach drop.
[The Gangs of Anwei:
Join the Black Arm Gang to learn the secret recipe for Bone Melting Powder.
Reward: Herblaw Exp and a Thieving Book]
That’s a no from me!
I quickly clicked on the [Reject] button, shivering at the thought of actually meeting up with criminals in real life, especially the ones who like to dissolve people’s bodies with Bone Melting Powder.
Adventure Incarnate added this quest as a way of introducing the upcoming Thieving skill, which was supposed to allow players to pickpocket NPCs, break into bank vaults, loot treasure chests, and so forth. However, after a few months, the skill was canceled because the beta test server showed that there were a lot of bugs, including a game-breaking item duplication exploit. The [Thieving Book] became rare and valuable for a time until the developers introduced a new NPC that sold it for a mere one gold coin.
My mind raced as I tried to remember everything I knew about the Black Arm Gang.
Lari, Kharli, and Mo, seeing that I was preoccupied, left after lunch, and I quickly wrote down the information I recalled. The [Thieving Book’s] popularity made the NPC seller’s location quite memorable, so that particular detail should prove useful. I wrote a letter to Prince Baiyu to let him know that I had some new, perhaps important, insight from my bloodline inheritance.
Three days later, I got a message from the prince saying that the Anwei guards would look into it.
Three days after that, Shuye sent word that the gang’s headquarters had been discovered and over fifty gang members had been arrested.
Despite my refusal of the System quest, I found myself rewarded for my efforts with a special prize. Just as I had requested, I got the item I wanted from the Black Arm Gang raid.