Chapter 36: This Straightforward and Crude?
After waking, Chen Fan washed up with his usual brisk efficiency, then stepped to the threshold of his wooden cabin and gazed out into the endless, drizzling rain.
Today, the rain was gentle.
Back in his own world, the Rainy Season was nothing more than a stretch of wet weather—an inconvenience, not a calamity. Here, though, it was relentless: day and night, the rain never ceased. Sometimes it fell as a fine, misty drizzle like this; other times, it crashed down in sheets.
He looked out over the parched earth.
Days of rain, yet not a single sign of flooding—no puddles, not even a glimmer of standing water. The ground remained cracked and furrowed, riddled with narrow, bottomless fissures reminiscent of a farmer’s callused heels, swallowing every drop the sky offered.
Not even a trace of moisture lingered on the surface.
In his memory, the weather here was mostly unremarkable—except for the Rainy Season in the Wasteland. This ceaseless downpour was anything but natural. Worse still, when the Rainy Season arrived early, the Ghostbeasts always became more violent and unpredictable.
He didn’t dwell on it.
His gaze shifted to the two remaining Unique Treasures he’d retrieved after the last Ghostbeast Swarm of Flesh Maggot Ghosts. He’d found three in total—already, he’d used the Building Module Blueprint for the Copper Pipe. Now, he held a miniature knife in his hand.
It was small enough to hang from a keychain.
Unique Treasure: Broadsword
Treasure Grade: White Grade
Effect: Deals decent damage to low-level Ghostbeasts.
“...”
Chen Fan frowned at the Unique Treasure in his palm. It wasn’t his first weapon-type drop—Crippled Monkey’s spear, for instance, was also a weapon-grade Unique Treasure.
But at least that one had a proper name—Godslayer Spear.
And this?
Broadsword.
Could it get any more blunt or unremarkable?
No special abilities, either. The Godslayer Spear could shift in size at will, shrinking and expanding as needed. This was just… a broadsword. Plain and simple. He set it aside—he’d give it to Zhou Mo when he returned. Even so, a Unique Treasure weapon was still better against Ghostbeasts than any ordinary blade.
The other Unique Treasure was far more interesting.
A tiny black speck, encased in a thin, translucent membrane—a seed-type Unique Treasure.
Unique Treasure: Flesh Ghost Twin Seed
Treasure Grade: Green Grade
Effect: Must be planted in Level 2 Farmland; matures in seven days. Upon maturity, produces two fruits—each consumed by a different person, enabling telepathic communication within a hundred li for one month.
Planting Requirements: Must be watered every two hours with Ghostbeast blood and fertilized with Ghostbeast corpses.
“Now that’s useful.”
Chen Fan tucked the packet of seeds into his robe. This solved one of his biggest headaches—communication. At the moment, if he wanted to contact Zhou Mo while he was out on patrol, he had no way of doing so.
The planting conditions were a hassle, though.
He’d need someone to keep a close watch and water them on schedule.
Still, it wasn’t a problem.
He had his two farming specialists—Ah Le and Qi Chong—on the job. They could take turns tending to the seeds. Problem solved.
This was his first Green Grade Unique Treasure, and it was even better than he’d hoped.
Once the Flesh Ghost Twin Fruit matured, even in a place like Jiangbei Market, it would be highly sought after.
...
Stepping outside, Chen Fan immediately noticed a change atop the Wall: a small, makeshift hut assembled from wooden planks, with a few tattered clothes draped over the roof for extra coverage. It wasn’t large, but it kept the rain off.
He’d told Ah Le and Qi Chong to build it before he went to sleep.
Not bad.
Otherwise, the night watchmen would be soaked to the bone—no one could endure that for long, not even if they were made of iron.
“Station Master!”
As Chen Fan stepped beyond the Wall, Qi Chong came jogging over from the Farmland, his face streaked with dirt and rain. “Everything’s harvested!”
“All ten Monkey-Head Mushroom seedlings produced one mushroom each.”
“The eight Ghoststone Vein plants yielded eighty Ghoststones.”
“They’re all stored in the warehouse.”
“Good.”
Chen Fan nodded and made his way to the warehouse outside the Camp. He pushed open the door—on the shelves, a neat row of Monkey-Head Mushrooms and a whole layer of Ghoststones. The yield wasn’t huge, but it was decent. He picked up a mushroom and took a sniff.
Then he took a bite.
An earthy aroma, cut with an unexpected sweetness, burst in his mouth.
“Huh?”
Chen Fan blinked in surprise. Before he knew it, he’d finished the mushroom. The flavor was surprisingly good, but what truly caught him off guard was the sensation—a gentle warmth spreading through his body, as if he’d eaten something piping hot, not raw.
And as it settled in his stomach...
He could feel his body growing a little stronger.
Not bad at all.
Nine left.
And—conveniently—ten people in Camp.
“Take the rest and divide them up. One for each person. This rain isn’t letting up anytime soon—boosting everyone’s constitution will help keep us from falling ill.”
The stat boost wasn’t enough to make a difference in battle, but it should help ward off sickness.
Chen Fan glanced at the eighty Ghoststones on the shelf, then pulled out the Flesh Ghost Twin Seed and handed it to Qi Chong. “I’ll upgrade the Farmland to Level 2 in a bit. You and Ah Le will take shifts watching over these seeds.”
“They’re delicate.”
“Water them every two hours with Ghostbeast blood.”
“Crippled Monkey buried a bunch of Ghostbeast corpses in the field—dig some up for fertilizer.”
“Understood!”
Qi Chong’s eyes shone as he carefully took the thin packet, cradling it in both hands.
“...”
Chen Fan shot him a sidelong glance. When did Qi Chong become such an enthusiastic farmer?
Just yesterday, he’d sensed Qi Chong itching to go out on patrol like Zhou Mo, still resisting farm work. Chen Fan had even planned to talk him around, to ease his reluctance. But today, that resistance was gone. What changed?
Did someone talk to him?
He glanced at Ah Le—the burly, bearded man following behind Qi Chong—and nodded thoughtfully. Then he clapped Qi Chong on the shoulder, smiling.
“Do a good job.”
“Soon, we’ll have even more Farmland. You’ll miss these easy days when they’re gone.”
“Heh, don’t worry, Station Master! I’ll take care of every inch of the field!”
“Off you go.”
...
Chen Fan braved the drizzle, walked to the Farmland, and used ten Ghoststones to upgrade the Camp’s outer Farmland to Level 2.
A System Panel appeared before his eyes.
Farmland upgraded to Level 2.
No Upgrade Path available for this building.
“So not every building has multiple Upgrade Paths.”
He left it at that. The Farmland before him had changed—the yellow dirt transformed into rich, black soil, clearly more fertile.
It wasn’t a large plot.
But with so few seeds, it was more than enough.
...
Once everything was done, he made his way to the open ground outside Camp.
Thanks to the Heating System 1.0, he’d slept well during the day—the cabin was much warmer now.
But...
The hot water in the Copper Pipes didn’t flow on its own. Twice during the night, he’d been woken by the cold, forced to get up and refill the pipes with hot water.
A bit of a hassle.