Chapter 132: Space Spring

Chapter 132: Chapter 132: Space Spring

The days passed one by one, and in the blink of an eye, it was the 15th day.

Li Xi had died on the third day after being injured. By now, nearly a hundred players were temporarily residing in the Huaxia Tribe’s camp.

Aside from the danger of pythons, they hadn’t encountered any other crises so far.

The forest was rich with resources. The players left early and returned late, working hard day after day. Gradually, their backpacks filled up, and the smiles on their faces became more frequent.

The atmosphere was harmonious, and the tribe’s camp gradually felt more alive. Because things had become so easy, most players began to let their guard down.

Fortunately, Wei Zhan issued warnings from time to time, which in turn made many players more cautious and vigilant.

With the help of Mr. Wen and Wei Zhan, Shi Zhile collected crops from all over the island. Sometimes it was fruit trees, other times it was mutated millet.

After a period of hard work, the Planting Space’s area finally increased to 50 square meters.

Night fell once again. Exhausted from a long day’s work, Shi Zhile lay on her bed, enjoying the breeze from Jiang Yuxing’s electric fan.

Shi Zhiyi and the other four were on the stone bed, catching up on sleep.

Meanwhile, Jiang Jing, Wang Peng, and the others were sitting at the mouth of the cave, enjoying the night breeze and gazing into the distance.

Just as Shi Zhile was about to doze off, the long-absent system prompts finally arrived, and they brought a string of good news.

[Planting Space Notification: A significant increase in the Planting Space’s area has been detected. Current area is fifty square meters. Reward: 10 bags of hybrid rice seeds, Breeding Space area +10 square meters.]

[Breeding Space Notification: Breeding Space area increased by 10 square meters. Reward: 1 Space Spring.]

Shi Zhile shot up in bed, the fatigue accumulated over many days vanishing in an instant. She hadn’t expected that upgrading the Planting Space would affect the Breeding Space as well.

"It upgraded!"

Jiang Jing and Mr. Wen whipped their heads around and asked in unison, "Did the Planting Space upgrade?"

"Yes, and the upgrade rewarded me with hybrid rice seeds."

With a thought, a bag of seeds instantly appeared and fell to the ground.

Mr. Wen immediately ran over, deftly opened the bag, and carefully scooped out a handful of seeds.

"Yes, this is it! With hybrid rice, players will never have to go hungry again."

Wei Zhan and Jiang Jing also gathered around. Although their faces showed joy, there was also a hint of conflict.

Shi Zhile glanced at Jiang Yuxing. He was leaning against the headboard of the wooden bed, calmly watching the excited group.

Seeing her look his way, he raised an eyebrow and grinned, as if taking credit or showing off.

The Planting Space was already fully planted, so these new seeds could only be sown after the other crops had matured.

On this island, with the strongman’s tribe keeping order, fights and brawls were virtually nonexistent within the camp.

As long as players were willing to work, they wouldn’t lack food or drink. However, on the other islands in this instance, the competition for resources likely wasn’t so harmonious.

Therefore, the prerequisite for harmony and stability was having no worries about food and clothing.

Shi Zhile looked at Jiang Jing. "After this instance is over, I’ll donate this batch of seeds to Huaxia Base unconditionally. But whether they have enough land to plant them isn’t my concern."

Before Jiang Jing could speak, Mr. Wen was the first to shake his head. "No, that won’t do. For now, this is our only batch of rice seeds. These seeds are a matter of life and death for all of us.

The weather in the game is extremely volatile; crops can easily die with the slightest oversight. Planting them on the island is the worst possible method.

I suggest planting them in the Planting Space. First, crops grown in the black soil there are less susceptible to disease. Second, plants in the Planting Space grow at double the speed. And third, most importantly, this batch of seeds will only be truly safe inside the Planting Space."

Wei Zhan mused for a moment. "I also think Mr. Wen’s proposal is excellent. The weather in the game is too extreme and harsh. Even players can barely endure it, let alone crops."

Shi Zhile replied, "Planting them in the Planting Space is indeed the safest method, but I’m donating the seeds to the base, not the Planting Space.

To plant this entire batch of seeds, a 50-square-meter Planting Space is nowhere near enough. It would take dozens of planting cycles.

Never mind that I don’t have the time to tend to them. Even if I did, I wouldn’t let this one batch of seeds tie up the Planting Space for that long."

’People are inherently selfish. Even if she wanted more players to survive, she wasn’t going to sacrifice her own time to make it happen for others.’

Shi Zhile tapped the side of her bed, thought for a moment, and then spoke again. "I can lend the Planting Space to the base, but on the condition that I get a thirty percent cut of the harvest.

Furthermore, the base will be responsible for sending people to plant, irrigate, and harvest. I can provide the water, but I won’t be involved in the process at all.

You can discuss it with the base first and then give me an answer."

After saying her piece, Shi Zhile entered the Planting Space.

The 50-square-meter Planting Space could be taken in with a single glance, but compared to the tiny plot it was before, it felt enormous.

Remembering the Space Spring the system had rewarded her, Shi Zhile opened her inventory and clicked on the item description.

[Space Spring: A spring that can be placed in any space. The spring water is potable, can be used for irrigation, and can be given to animals. (I will flow in a never-ending trickle. If you want the stream to get bigger, well... please close your eyes and dream on, because in dreams, anything is possible.)]

Shi Zhile fell silent after reading it. The spring’s description meant its flow rate was fixed and wouldn’t change based on the owner’s wishes.

But that was actually a good thing. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about the spring flooding and drowning the crops.

The black soil in the Planting Space required a massive amount of water. She had watered it countless times, and as the number of plants grew, the soil’s demand for water increased.

She had already decided to place it in the Planting Space, but she hadn’t settled on a specific location yet.

She walked inward along the edge of the crops. In the center of the Planting Space was an area she had reserved specifically for growing weeds to feed the cow.

’The four corners are out. If I put it at the very front, it’ll be inconvenient to water the back. This spot is close to all the planted crops. If I put the Space Spring here...’

She paused. An image of stepping into mud suddenly flashed through her mind.

’What if the spring is constantly flowing outward? It would be a pain to harvest the weeds and crops. I can’t just wade through a thin layer of mud barefoot every time.’

She circled the space twice before finally choosing a corner where the fruit trees were planted.

[Use Space Spring immediately?]

"Yes!"

[Please select a location for the spring. Note: Once placed, the Space Spring cannot be moved.]

Shi Zhile pointed to an empty spot next to the fruit trees. "Place the Space Spring here."

The moment she spoke, spring water began to seep from the spot she had indicated.

The water welled up from below, and because it was rising through black soil, it carried the scent of earth.

Shi Zhile wouldn’t dare let even an animal drink such water, let alone a person.

"System, are you just phoning it in?"