Trivial Matters

Chapter 89: Trivial Matters

When Zhao Hai and Merine saw the small green seedlings, hope filled their hearts. Although the seedlings didn't seem to be growing well, they represented a kind of tenacious spirit. Despite being covered in poisonous guano, they managed to grow from the ground, which was quite extraordinary.

Zhao Hai and Merine stooped down and gently touched the small seedlings. The seedlings appeared malnourished, and even if they grew, they wouldn't yield much grain. They weren't particularly concerned about the grain at the moment.

Standing up, Zhao Hai smiled at Merine and said, "Grandma Merine, these seedlings can still grow, not as I expected. Let's use Spatial Water to irrigate here and see if they improve."

Merine nodded and joined Zhao Hai. Zhao Hai raised his ghost staff and shouted, "Water!" He knew that the ghost staff could utilize all the functions in the Space, allowing him to release Spatial Water.

Indeed, as soon as he spoke, a prompt from the Space sounded, "Portable Space has detected polluted land ahead. Would you like to improve it?"

Surprised, Zhao Hai responded, "Yes." The prompt immediately continued, "Please select the quantity to improve." A shadow and a row of numbers appeared before him, ranging from ten to 100, with units in mu.

Zhao Hai was taken aback by the options. He didn't expect that Space could improve such a large area at once. The number 100 represented the maximum area he could improve at a time, ten times more than before. It seemed that this was a benefit provided by Space's Level Up.

Zhao Hai chose the maximum number of 100 mu. As soon as he made his selection, clear water flowed out from his staff. It slowly floated in space before falling like raindrops onto the land in front of Zhao Hai, moistening it and causing the color of the land to change.

Merine also noticed this change, but she was already aware that Zhao Hai's Spatial Water could improve the land, so she wasn't surprised. However, she did notice that the area of land being improved seemed to be slightly larger than what Zhao Hai could previously manage by about ten mu.

Curiously, Merine looked at the increasing area of moistened land. She turned to Zhao Hai and asked, "Young Master, what's this water?"

Zhao Hai turned to her with a smile and reassured her, "Don't worry, Merine. After Space leveled up, the area of land improvement has also increased. Now we can improve 100 mu every day."

Merine's face lit up with joy. She exclaimed, "Fantastic! With that, we can improve the land here in just ten days. Although it's a bit late for this season, it's not too late. We can still plant something."

Zhao Hai nodded. Improving 100 mu of land in a day was undoubtedly good news. First and foremost, they could make good use of the land in the mountain valley. Additionally, this would solve the feed problem in the ranch.

Their ranch could accommodate 1000 animals, which required a substantial amount of feed daily. Although they had a considerable inventory in the Space, it wasn't unlimited. Zhao Hai planned to use it sparingly.

Currently, Zhao Hai had plenty of grain on hand, so he wasn't concerned about the grain issue. They would first plant corn this season. When the corn was harvested, if the weather turned cold and they couldn't plant anything else, they could rely on the corn. Next year, Zhao Hai planned to plant bamboo rice in the valley. Bamboo rice had a high yield, especially with Space's enhancements, so it could become their main grain.

Initially, Green used to purchase a lot of grain, but now Zhao Hai had enough grain to last them for ten years. Therefore, he didn't worry about the grain anymore. After they consumed the grain they had, Zhao Hai would plant more. Although the grain in the Space didn't spoil, it felt uncomfortable for Zhao Hai to rely on it for his daily meals.

Furthermore, after they traded with Laura, they would also acquire some slaves. With more people, their food consumption would increase. The grain Zhao Hai had would be enough for 100 people for ten years, but if the number of people increased, they would need to grow more grain.

However, using Space solely for growing grain would be wasteful. They needed to find another type of grain that they didn't have to buy, mainly to sustain themselves. Once they planted 1000 mu of land with bamboo rice, they wouldn't have to worry about the grain issue anymore.

With 100 mu of land now improved, the soil was moist and ready for planting. Zhao Hai used his staff to plant corn directly on the remaining 70 mu of land. Although it was a bit late, it didn't matter. They could simply irrigate the land a few more times to accelerate the growth.

With just a wave of his staff, Zhao Hai could plant corn without using the small iron spade. It was evident that the iron spade was functioning in the Farm. As long as Zhao Hai commanded with his staff, the land in front of him would automatically transform, saving time. Before long, the corn was planted.

While using the water stick, Zhao Hai realized the immense power it possessed. Moreover, he could use all the functions in the Farm. This made him wonder about something. When he cleared the ranch, he didn't see any ranching tools. Were they eliminated because the ranch used a breeding system instead?

Zhao Hai considered entering the Space to investigate but decided against it. He had finished dealing with matters in the mountain valley, and they should return to the castle. Merine, of course, didn't know what Zhao Hai was thinking, so she didn't object. However, she planned to explain the situation to Chrysanthemum and the others before returning, making sure they knew to bring the remaining Oil Fruit trees by boat. Although Zhao Hai had planted them here, taking care of them would be her responsibility. She couldn't spend so much time delivering them daily.

Before, they wanted to make straw boats but lacked lumber and shipbuilding skills. Now that they had lumber, they could gradually learn how to build ships. If things didn't go well, they could start by making simple rafts. The tarn didn't have storms, so rafts would suffice.

When the two returned to the castle, the slaves had settled in. Zhao Hai and Merine prepared to go to Stony Mountain since their main focus now was on that area. Additionally, Zhao Seven and the others had been using the undead to quarry there. Even after trading with Laura, Zhao Hai would still have to visit Stony Mountain occasionally to collect Stoneheads for his use.

However, Zhao Hai left behind a lot of alfalfa seeds for Blockhead and the others. Alfalfa was a crop that helped fertilize the soil. Zhao Hai intended for them to plant it on the mountain. When it grew, it would serve as feed and help improve the fertility of the land.

After settling the affairs of the slaves, only Drunk's matters remained. Zhao Hai planned to leave Zhao Chong and Zhao Land in the castle to lead 200 undead creatures in defending the fortress. Drunk and the remaining three would go to Carrion Swamp to capture more undead creatures and magic beasts.

Going into Carrion Swamp was risky for normal people, but for Drunk and the others, who were undead creatures, it was appropriate. Moreover, capturing undead creatures and magic beasts would increase Zhao Hai's combat strength, which was very beneficial.

Before they left, Zhao Hai thoroughly explained the situation to Drunk and his group. They were to focus on scouting initially and only venture near the swamp's periphery. If they discovered anything amiss, they should immediately retreat. Zhao Hai didn't want to lose any of the people he could use.

Drunk and the others were now Zhao Hai's summoned creatures, but they still had their own intelligence. They had roamed the continent for many years, experiencing numerous battles and rarely suffering losses apart from the encounters with Zhao Hai and his clan. In terms of combat experience, Zhao Hai was no match for them. They listened attentively to Zhao Hai's words and didn't say anything.

Zhao Hai had almost released all his undead creatures, but he kept Alien by his side. Alien served as his mount and was very convenient. Besides, Alien was a special undead creature and stronger than ordinary ones. Alien was Zhao Hai's personal bodyguard.

In addition to Alien, Zhao Hai also kept several humanoid undead creatures similar to Zhao Qian. They weren't initially very powerful, but after multiple enhancements in the Space, their strength was now comparable to that of fifth-level soldiers. Zhao Hai kept them as his guards.