Chapter 50: Planting Crops

Li Feifei stared wide-eyed, then happily continued operating on the interface, selecting the lettuce and carrot area.

The same automated process unfolded again, the robotic arms dividing labor and cooperating, like the most experienced farmer.

"So convenient! This is much faster and more precise than doing it ourselves!" Li Feifei exclaimed.

"This is just the beginning." Li Qingxuan couldn't hide his excitement; he quickly checked on the panel the optimal light, temperature, and irrigation frequency for several crops, and also checked their growth cycles.

When he set the wheat to need more light, the ceiling's light simulation suddenly intensified, like midday sun shining on that area; while the lettuce area's sprinklers, according to the setting, began spraying a fine, even mist.

When all the seeds had been planted according to plan, the irrigation system also, according to preset, initiated its first comprehensive spray.

Fine droplets of water fell evenly, moistening every inch of land; the silvery-white pipe network beneath the damp soil appeared and disappeared.

"Ding!" the clear panel notification sound rang.

On the panel before Li Feifei, in the crop status column, all newly planted seed icons lit up, each followed by a unified progress bar; wheat and rice required 2400 hours, lettuce and carrots required 720 hours.

The two stared at the lengthy 2400-hour progress bar, the excitement on their faces instantly froze.

"Two thousand four hundred hours?!" Li Feifei's voice suddenly rose, with an incredulous expression, "That isn't a full hundred days?! This… this is too long! Can we not wait until then?"

She gazed at the despairingly long progress bar for wheat and rice on the panel, the joy that had risen from automated planting instantly doused; she anxiously stamped her foot, "Even lettuce and carrots take a month! Qingxuan younger brother, this…"

Li Qingxuan's brows also knit tightly, but he wasn't panicking like Li Feifei; his sharp gaze swept over the dense options and information on the panel.

His finger swiftly swiped across the screen, toggling between 【Crop Status】 and 【Environment Settings】, as if searching for key information. "It can't be just like this," he murmured, "the fully automated intelligent system surely considered the growth cycle issue…"

Suddenly, his fingertip stopped on an inconspicuous status description. Upon opening it, the growth status description clearly stated the current growth rate was 3x.

"Found it!" Li Qingxuan's voice carried a hint of excitement; he immediately pointed to the information on the panel for Li Feifei to see. Li Feifei adjusted the display mode on the panel, and the progress bar visibly shrank considerably! The growth time for wheat and rice plummeted to 800 hours, while lettuce and carrots became 240 hours!

"Wow! So that's how it is!" Li Feifei's eyes lit up instantly; she leaned toward the screen and exclaimed delightedly, "I said it! How could high-tech stuff make us wait a hundred days for nothing! Right, Qingxuan younger brother?"

Li Qingxuan thought carefully: "According to the current time calculation, after you use accelerated growth, wheat and rice need only a little over three days from planting to maturity, and lettuce and carrots can mature in just one day."

He calmly analyzed, "It seems the top priority now is to raise your spiritual attribute!"

"Mm! I'll listen to you!" Li Feifei nodded firmly, firmly believing Li Qingxuan's judgment.

She looked at the panel, seeing that although it still required some time, it had become acceptable; she let out a long sigh, her face breaking into a smile again, "Eight hundred hours, thirty-three days plus… after rapid growth, it only needs a little over three days; compared to before, the time has been cut drastically, and the days are becoming more hopeful!"

Just as the two were delighted to have found the acceleration method, the control hub emitted a soft "dit" sound.

In the crop status column, next to the icons of the just-planted lettuce and carrots, the tender green sprout symbols indicating germination almost simultaneously lit up!

Immediately after, beside the icons for wheat and rice, the same tender sprout symbols appeared one after another.

"They've sprouted! They sprouted this fast!" Li Feifei pointed at the screen, shaking Li Qingxuan's arm excitedly.

The two, in unison, quickly walked to the edge of the planting area, crouched down to examine closely.

All they saw was the soft, moist soil surface slowly, at a speed visible to the naked eye, lifting tiny soil particles.

Initially, in the lettuce and carrot area, delicate seedlings bearing two tiny true leaves trembled as they broke through the soil, like jade, crystal clear and translucent.

Next, the wheat area saw successive slender, needle-like green shoots piercing the soil, vigorous and lively, neatly arranged between the ridges; the rice seeds in the cultivation box also quietly sprouted tender shoots.

Throughout the greenhouse, a unique fragrance of fresh plants breaking through the soil mingled with the clean scent of earth spread.

The silvery-white pipe network beneath the damp soil resembled beating vessels, continuously conveying nourishment and energy from the spirit spring to these newborn lives.

The ceiling simulated bright midday light, evenly showering each seedling; fine droplets on the leaves refracted into specks of light.

Li Feifei couldn't resist extending a finger, lightly touching the tender leaf of a lettuce seedling; her fingertip felt the plant's characteristic flexibility and coolness.

"It's real… they really have grown, right here, in our greenhouse!" Her voice carried a barely perceptible choke, the emotion of witnessing life tenaciously sprouting in dire circumstances.

Li Qingxuan also silently gazed at the vibrant scene before him, complex emotions surging in his eyes.

From the endless blizzard outside Panshi Fortress, to the flood of supplies brought by the trade scroll, to this patch of new green before us, breaking through the soil under the care of automated technology… all of this seemed unreal, yet it truly unfolded before his eyes.

"Yes, it has come alive." He replied in a low voice, tone deep and resolute, his gaze sweeping over the stable parameters on the control panel and the steadily advancing progress bar, "This isn't a dream, Feifei. This spring, this hope, is what we ourselves planted on the Frozen Wasteland. It has only just begun."

The two walked to beneath the Bodhi Tree, carefully plucking the Bodhi fruits from the tree,

The fruit was round and plump, its skin covered with a layer of pale golden halo, warm and smooth like jade to the touch, exuding a refreshing fragrance that penetrates the heart, as if condensing the purest life essence of heaven and earth.

Li Qingxuan cradled one, his fingertip sensing the gentle energy undulation within, and said in a deep voice: "Feifei, these Bodhi fruits are the key for you to raise your spiritual attribute. They can nourish your soul's origin and accelerate the accumulation of spiritual power."

Li Feifei held her breath, solemnly received the fruit, gently bit a mouthful; the flesh instantly melted in her mouth, turning into a cool breath that rushed straight to her mind.

She felt her consciousness instantly become much clearer; the spiritual attribute value on the panel quietly jumped.

Li Qingxuan, standing beside her, attentively observed her changes, reminding: "Don't rush, eat slowly; the Bodhi Tree grows five fruits each day, all for you to eat, so your spiritual attribute can steadily increase."

Li Feifei nodded, feeling the energy surging within her body, a determined smile appearing on her face.

The two sat on the ground beneath the tree, easing the fatigue of the night; the greenhouse's soft light poured down, casting their silhouettes in an especially tranquil and beautiful manner.

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