Farming Games are All About Grinding

After pressing for over an hour, even someone as strong as Han Qiwu felt his hands getting sore. He grabbed a towel to wipe the fragrant sweat off Tang Qingying's neck, sat up straight, and said, "Alright, beautiful lady, Alipay or WeChat?"

"One subject or two?" Tang Qingying flipped over and smiled.

"I meant, which of these apps takes up more storage? My phone's acting sluggish—I might uninstall one later." Han Qiwu shifted the topic with a laugh.

Tang Qingying let out a soft hum, stretched her neck, and said, "You're really good at this; the pressure is just right. The old pros outside always end up pressing way too hard, and I just can't bear it."

"If you like it, I'll help you out next time." Han Qiwu blurted out instinctively. As soon as he said it and saw Tang Qingying flush red, his mind went blank. Seizing the moment, he voiced the thought he'd been turning over for an hour:

"Mr. Tang, I like you."

Instantly, Tang Qingying's face turned completely red.

She had heard confessions many times before, and even expressions of love were nothing new.

But there had never been one that made her feel as complicated as she did now.

So complicated, in fact, that she didn't want to think anymore.

Closing her eyes, she followed the voice in her heart and softly said, "I like you too."

The sound of an embrace echoed through the room.

Half an hour later, Han Qiwu unwillingly loosened his grip on Tang Qingying, who turned away so he could retie her ponytail.

Even he couldn't figure out how the ponytail had come loose during their hug.

"Hmph! You bad guy. No wonder you fed me fragrant apricots earlier—you were definitely up to no good." Tang Qingying puffed out her cheeks as she sat on the bed, listening to her racing heartbeat.

Anyone who finds themselves in a relationship is bound to push their luck, and Han Qiwu was no exception.

However, Tang Qingying wasn't quite ready yet, so he hadn't had the chance to taste that juicy white apricot.

Han Qiwu just smiled without saying a word, walked to the side, poured two glasses of water, and handed one to Tang Qingying.

They hadn't exchanged more than a few sentences when Tang Qingying's phone rang. After answering the call, her face grew serious, and she repeatedly said, "Alright, alright, I'll head over right away."

Hanging up the phone, Tang Qingying explained, "My second grandpa's hybrid plant's mother specimen has run into issues. I need to go help him. You go ahead and rest, and later head back to work on your thesis. Be careful on your way."

"Alright, you too." Han Qiwu nodded. After Tang Qingying left the room, he opened the storage compartment and pulled out milk, cheese, eggs, and strawberries, piling them all into the fridge.

Next time he'd braise some pork belly for Mr. Tang. All she'd need to do is reheat it and eat.

Once everything was put away, Han Qiwu closed the door tightly, walked downstairs, and exited the research institute courtyard. He found a secluded corner and tore open the Teleportation Scroll labeled "Home."

With a flash of white light, he arrived home.

How convenient!

If only he could figure out whether this could be shared with other people.

Sitting in the courtyard, Han Qiwu glanced around at the familiar scenery, feeling sentimental.

This little courtyard's great—it's just missing a lady of the house.

From the tree above, the little electric bird checked out Han Qiwu's mental state, sensing something was off.

It even made a special effort to fly down and circle around him.

"Chirp chirp!"

That's women's perfume!

The master's finally figured it out!

With his own issues sorted, is it now time for him to address mine?

Watching the suddenly ecstatic little bird, Han Qiwu felt utterly bewildered.

Never mind. Let it be.

Maybe its circuits got fried.

Han Qiwu retrieved the [One-Time Collectible Item Map] he'd earned from the alligator gar mission from storage.

The map was straightforward. When opened, a prompt box popped up.

[Enter the name of the desired collectible item]

Without hesitation, Han Qiwu typed "tea leaves."

Tea leaves are the best—high experience, high yield, and just a few leaves can make a nice drink.

After the input was successful, the map slowly unfolded, scattering countless light points that flew into the air and dispersed across various locations.

[In five days, the map will display the location of Yunnan Red Tea. The location will only be visible for one day. Please prepare for collection.]

"Yunnan Red Tea? And I have to wait five days?" Han Qiwu mentally noted the time. Looks like he'd have to put off collecting tea leaves for now.

Still, once he got some Yunnan Red, he could make milk tea for Mr. Tang.

Bamboo Leaf Green is green tea—can't make milk tea with that.

Tired from the morning, he decided to nap. After waking up, he'd tangle with the dinosaur fish, and then in the evening, wrap up his thesis work.

Two hours later, Han Qiwu rode his pony to the boundary of the secret realm.

[Available time today: 2 hours]

"Plenty of time." Han Qiwu first strolled over to the secret realm's trading post for a bit of window shopping.

Sure enough, bait for dinosaur fish and giant squids was now available.

[Dinosaur Fish Bait] Price: 260 gold

[Note: This is the favorite bait of dinosaur fish, significantly enhancing fishing line durability]

[Giant Squid Bait] Price: 300 gold

[Note: This is the favorite bait of giant squids, reducing the duration of ink spray effects]

"Enhancing fishing line durability? Does that mean dinosaur fish are exceptionally strong?" Curious, Han Qiwu bought five units of each bait, spending a total of 2,800 gold.

Catching high-level fish was expensive—just the bait alone cost plenty.

Sitting on a rock by the shore, Han Qiwu first hooked some dinosaur fish bait and hurled it toward the center of the ocean.

As the bait hit the water, the sea remained perfectly still.

"What's going on? Fake bait?" Han Qiwu stood to check the situation.

Suddenly, a massive shadow resembling a submarine rose from the depths, opening its densely packed teeth to bite down on the bait.

The bait entered its mouth, and the fish's teeth grabbed onto the fishing line.

Luckily, the bait strengthened the fishing line, so it didn't snap under the creature's bite.

As it surfaced, Han Qiwu finally got a good look at the dinosaur fish's cylindrical body, covered with diamond-shaped scales. Its most striking trait was its dorsal fin, divided into individual small fins. When erect, they resembled a neat row of small flags—truly awe-inspiring. The fish measured around five meters in length and exuded an intimidating presence.

"Damn it, this thing's brutal! Good thing it's just a fishing game—otherwise, it could have easily knocked me over." Han Qiwu calmed himself.

The fishing game activated.

[Dinosaur Fish: Movement trajectory is straightforward; skill effect: Bloodline Call]

In the fishing game interface, the dinosaur fish's icon was larger than the golden float, though its movement speed was sluggish, resembling a submarine's slow departure from the float's position.

Upon seeing its skill description, Han Qiwu breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as it wasn't targeting the float.

The bait only cost 260 gold—if it swam away, so be it. A single float costs several thousand.

[Golden Edge]

Han Qiwu immediately used Golden Edge to reduce the dinosaur fish's size by one level.

The smaller dinosaur fish now matched the float's length perfectly.

Honestly, he knew landing such a catch was nearly impossible.

Even with the spiral float's assistance, filling up the progress bar within Golden Edge's duration was unlikely.

Today, he'd just test what its skill could do.

Bloodline Call? Was it summoning dinosaurs?