Chapter 441: Apocalyptic Trading System (13)

Yu Baozhi finished loosening the soil and watering the vegetable plots opened up in the front yard, then sowed the vegetable seeds.

That will do for now; there are still vegetables and fruits in the refrigerator that the daughter obtained through Trading, and once those are finished, she will use her powers to accelerate the growth of the ones in the ground.

Just as she finished in the front yard and was preparing to move to the back yard, her husband and children returned with their morning's haul.

"What is this?"

Seeing her husband hand over a winnowing basket of ash, Yu Baozhi was puzzled.

"Zombie Ash; let's see if it has any effect on fertilizing the fields. If it's useful, we'll burn every Zombie we encounter later and bring the ashes back."

Yu Baozhi's expression shifted, she let out an "Eww," and with a hint of distaste, directed her husband to take it straight to the back yard, where there were still a few patches left to be sown.

"Just scatter it directly into the soil; don't bring it into the house. Dust off your clothes before you come inside, too."

"Mom, all this ash was handled by Dad. Yang Yang and I took care of them from a distance, so we didn't get any ash on us."

"Fine, then go help me cut some bamboo," Yu Baozhi instructed her son. "When I came in yesterday, I saw a cluster of thin bamboo by the lake. Cut a few more; besides the grape trellis, we'll need to build frames for the eggplants and melons later. I'm going to go cook. Remember not to dig up the roots; I'll go accelerate their growth later..."

After giving her instructions, Yu Baozhi hurried to the kitchen.

Time flies so fast; it feels like she hasn't been busy for long, and it's already mealtime again.

Xie Yang followed her, wanting to help, but was shooed out by Ms. Yu: "You've been busy all morning, go rest quickly, don't tire yourself out again."

Xie Yang: "..."

Aside from occasionally delivering a finishing blow, she hadn't done anything at all.

Her brother, on the other hand, was the absolute main force; he had taken care of all the Zombies, and upon returning, he was sent out by their mother to cut bamboo. She wondered if he would complain about his hard life.

In fact, Xie Yan was working quite happily.

He went out to cut the bamboo without bringing any tools. What did he use to cut it? An ice blade!

This was a new use for his Ice Control Technique that he had just figured out; it was so useful!

He conjured an ice blade and, with a few *swish-swish* motions, completed the task his mother had set.

He still felt like he hadn't had enough!

After returning, he simply chopped the bamboo into sections to make it easier for his mother to build the trellises.

When Yu Baozhi called them for dinner, she discovered that her son had cut the bamboo into the lengths she needed without waiting for her instructions, and she couldn't help but remark to her husband:

"Our son has grown up! You used to always say he was like an abacus bead—he wouldn't move unless pushed, and even then, he'd only move depending on the situation. Now he can draw inferences about other cases from one instance."

No sooner had she finished speaking than she saw the son she had just been praising still waving his ice blade and chopping; the current bamboo segments were no longer long enough to build trellises—they were even too short to be used as chopsticks.

Xie Yongcheng twitched his lips: "He's not drawing inferences; he's clearly just playing with his ice blade."

"..."

In the end, Xie Yan naturally had to go back and cut a few more bamboo stalks.

As for the short bamboo sticks that couldn't be used for trellises, with the help of Xie Yongcheng's Metal Ability, they were fashioned into a birdhouse and hung on the paulownia tree in front of the entrance.

There were birds in the residential complex; Xie Yang had even heard them chirping that morning!

Yu Baozhi hadn't really used her Beast Domestication Technique much yet, but she said that when she was close enough, she could understand the chirping of birds.

Hanging a birdhouse in front of the entrance meant that sooner or later, birds would settle there.

With them chirping all day long, perhaps they could obtain some information about the outside world through the bird calls.

While making the birdhouse, Xie Yan complained: "I'm just afraid these birds only move around within the complex and are even more isolated than we are; we won't be able to get any useful information at all."

Xie Yang smiled and said: "You forgot about Mom's ability, the Beast Domestication Technique. That means not only can she understand their sounds, but she can also send them out to scout for information."

"..."

Xie Yan was genuinely envious: "Is this ability that awesome? Doesn't that mean Mom is raising an animal army? And she doesn't even have to feed them."

"..."

It sounds as if your ability doesn't require feeding?

Xie Yan said righteously: "My appetite is nearly three times what it used to be. It's clear that whether it's the Lightning Spear or the Ice Control Technique, using them consumes physical energy. I get hungry fast and eat a lot; if that's not 'feeding,' then what is?"

"..."

Hearing him say this, Xie Yang recalled her own situation when using the Lightning Spear; it did seem like she got hungry quite easily.

If Xie Yan hadn't mentioned it, she really wouldn't have made the connection for a while.

Fortunately, there was the Trading System, where one could buy a solid, stuffed steamed bun for 0.5 coins.

Not just the Vegetarian Meal Bun, all agricultural and sideline products on the Trading Platform were very cheap.

According to the Sub-system, these were produced in the Orc Plane.

Presumably, the Orcs were skilled at Planting, resulting in high yields of agricultural and sideline products, which naturally drove the trading price down.

So, they wouldn't go hungry.

However, to reward Xie Yan for this discovery, Xie Yang spent 100 coins to buy a pile of energy-replenishing snacks:

Chocolate, energy bars, nut bars, butter cookies, vitamin candies, electrolyte water, etc., and had her brother pack them into his backpack so he could replenish his energy in time when hungry.

Of course, their parents had them too.

This was just like restoring health in a game!

Thus, from that day on, the family of four, except for Xie Yang, each carried a small supply pack wherever they went; it wasn't heavy anyway.

Even when Yu Baozhi was planting vegetables in the yard, she kept it with her, fearing a sudden accident that would require a massive output of her ability, leading to an empty health bar.

This practice seemed a bit redundant for now, but it would prove to be of great use later on—though that is a story for another time.

For now, Xie Yan was actively going out every day to clear out Zombies.

Within three days, he had cleaned out every corner of the residential complex, ensuring there wasn't a single fish that slipped through the net.

The Zombie Ash brought back was mixed into the vegetable plots in batches.

"I didn't see any changes at first, but now that they've grown into seedlings, I can see some differences."

Yu Baozhi pointed to the pumpkin and sweet potato patch in the back yard that had been mixed with the most Zombie Ash:

"I didn't use any growth-promoting methods, but aren't the melon vines and sweet potato seedlings growing even better than the eggplants in the front yard?"

"It really is!" Xie Yongcheng's face showed joy, "So, Zombie Ash is actually useful?"

"Dad, then what are we waiting for!" Xie Yan was eager to try, "Let's go out and kill Zombies tomorrow! We can bring back more Zombie Ash for Mom to grow vegetables."

"Go out tomorrow?"

"Yeah!"

Xie Yan had long been unable to wait.

The Zombies in the residential complex had all been cleared out by him, and the feeling of having nothing to do was not very good.

Before the apocalypse, he could have slept in, played games, or watched Television, but today is different from the past.

Holding the "Little Bee" Observation Panel given to him by his younger sister, and seeing the devastation and scars of the outside world through the "Little Bee's" field of vision, how could a hot-blooded young man who had just reached adulthood sit still?

He also wanted to go kill Zombies and hoard supplies!

"Besides, abilities need constant training to improve. Hiding won't lead to any progress!"

Xie Yang agreed with this:

"Brother's words are not without reason. How about this, tomorrow I will accompany Brother out first, and Dad will stay behind to keep Mom company."

For a family of four, it didn't matter in the residential complex, but going outside the complex still required proper distribution.

Yu Baozhi could not be left here alone.

Xie Yongcheng had witnessed his daughter's abilities, and after a moment of consideration, he agreed:

"It is fine for you siblings to go out and scout the situation tomorrow. But don't rush to the City Center; just wander around the less populated areas of the City South New District, and you must pay attention to safety. Do not go to places where there are many Zombies or many people."

In this world, the living are not necessarily much safer than the Zombies.