NOVEL NEXT Chapter 185: Farming and Reclaiming Land
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Lu Yuan didn't pay attention to Miss Chatterbox, just stretched a big lazy stretch, "It's time to start a new life, huh!"
Yes, this place was his new home, where he would live for a long time.
He grabbed a hoe and began to toil at the edge of the pond.
Occasionally, he would sing some old songs, even though he often forgot the words towards the end.
Sometimes, he would reflect that life was just a difficult cycle of reincarnation.
He cultivated farmland and raised animals among the ruins of the Meida Civilization.
He traveled tens of thousands of kilometers to the remnants of the Green Grass Civilization, to cultivate farmland and raise animals.
Everything seemed unchanging.
Even his mindset hadn't changed much...
He still felt a bit lonely, longing to return to his warm hometown, missing his parents, classmates, and friends—even the chubby-faced boss, whose name and face he could scarcely recall.
But in truth, a lot had changed—deserts, birds, journeys—when he looked back, he realized he had gained much.
At least this loneliness was something he could now bear.
"I also want to farm, I really want to see sprouts germinate."
See, Miss Chatterbox kept babbling by his side, so even if there was loneliness, it was drowned out by her chatter.
"No, I still prefer to play with electronic gadgets," Old Cat said, mercilessly refusing.
The turtle was still sleeping.
"Alright, alright, farming it is."
Lu Yuan first gave some steamed cornbread to the wolves, then shouldered his hoe and, feeling pretty good, picked up Miss Conch. Humming a tune, he came close to Chicken Lady's den.
He shoveled some farm manure, mixing it with the soil.
The Chicken Snake watched him vigilantly, unsure of what this fellow was up to.
"Can't help it, this is how farming is done."
"This is called composting."
"If you pour excrement directly onto them, it will burn the seedlings. They must go through a series of fermentations to become humus that improves the soil quality."
Miss Conch was bewildered. Alright, all poetic and picturesque things seem mundane upon being put into practice.
Lu Yuan then cleared away nearby pebbles to expose the golden soil underneath.
This place might have been a park once, overgrown with various weeds and cacti.
The soil's nutrients had been severely lost to the blowing sand and wind.
Then he planted the Tree of Life here.
Whoosh!
The Tree of Life unfolded its leaves and branches, and after suffering for so many years, it was finally a sweet ending, securing a peaceful place to stay.
"Kokodak!" The Chicken Snake, with its round eyes showing a shocked expression, saw the Tree of Life.
Chickens are naturally fond of plants, and this was something too wonderful!
In the Sky City, there had hardly been such tall plants.
Over the past three years, the Tree of Life had consumed the four anomaly corpses from the Rize Civilization spaceship, grown to a height of 15 meters, and its trunk reached a diameter of 40 centimeters.
Even the "Shape Attribute" of this big tree was as high as 34 points! (The Qi and Spirit attributes were the same as Lu Yuan's own.)
From any angle, it was a massive creature capable of defending itself.
Soon, the subtle life force emitted by the Tree of Life attracted a flock of chirping birds.
The Cannibal Flower, having eaten so many anomalies, became picky and lost interest in these small animals, letting them play on the tree.
The nature of a big tree, after all, was to bear great virtues.
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"What should I plant... Wheat, corn, and perhaps some Mei Gua and Beans?"
[What are Mei Gua and Beans?]
"They are drought-resistant plants, seeds given to me by the Rize people. They taste quite good."
In theory, the yield of corn from half an acre of farmland can sustain one person.
The subtle life force emitted by the Tree of Life can enhance the growth of neighboring plants, increasing yield by about 30-40%, so 0.3 to 0.4 acres should be enough to feed one person.
Lu Yuan planned to cultivate four acres of farmland.
By doing so, he could provide for a turtle, a few wolves, and a chicken, with a decent surplus of grain left over for the year.
After cultivating these farmlands, he went on to construct a large greenhouse.
The climate here was too dry; farming consumed a great deal of water.
The greenhouse could effectively reduce the evaporation of water vapor, and naturally, the Rize Civilization had provided the framework and plastic covering.
Finally, he made a delicate scarecrow and set it on top of the greenhouse.
He also stuck the pattern from the back of the spider's eyeball onto the scarecrow's face... Well, at this point, that eyeball pattern didn't really serve much purpose anymore, apart from scaring off small animals.
After completing all this, Lu Yuan felt a sincere sense of satisfaction well up within him.
"Farming is really satisfying... Just after I arrived at Pangu Continent, I would often have mental breakdowns, curse my fate and others, and even suffered from depression once."
"At that time, I couldn't understand what was happening."
"Only now do I realize that it was depression."
Lu Yuan recalled the past, feeling as if it were from a previous life.
[What happened afterward? How did you get over it?]
"I recovered through fighting, passionately brawling with a lizard for a day. Then I went home and wrote in my diary: 'Mom, I'm so strong now!'"
[Fits your classic villain persona well.]
[Leave some food for the little birds. They don't have much to eat here.]
Lu Yuan started teasing her, tossing a few corn kernels into the Conch.
[I can't eat this, give it to the birds.]
"I'm planting for you, and once the corn grows, you can feed whichever bird you want... On your cleared land, you call the shots."
"On my cleared land, I must first sustain myself. No bird can snatch food from the Greedy Demon God."
[...]
Miss Conch obviously lacked the strength to use a hoe, and she didn't even have the ability to move. She could only plead miserably with the wolves that were napping in the shade, whispering sweet words to them.
These wolves, as if bewitched, went to a corner, stretched out their paws, and began to dig holes.
The Chicken Snake too stood from its nest and began to dig with its claws.
After they finished digging, Miss Conch happily buried the corn seeds.
The wolves then carefully filled the holes back in, fetched a watering can, poured a bit of water, and ended by marking the spot with a urination.
In this barren soil, that little bit of ammonia water was a rare fertilizer indeed.
Lu Yuan watched with amazement, "How did you do that? Do you have the ability to communicate with animals?"
It wasn't surprising that Old Wolf could do this, but the mother wolves had just arrived, so how had they suddenly become so obedient?
[Seeing the look on your face, are you a bit surprised? Why don't you continue to give me a hard time?]
[Alright, since you want to know, I'll tell you. I just went along with their emotions.]
[They actually don't mind doing something as long as it's not too taxing, you've just never discovered it.]
Lu Yuan looked at the wolves and stroked their soft bellies.
Youth is wonderful, huh? These mother wolves, could it be they were only two to three years old when they were abducted and deceived?