After the farm was upgraded to Level 4, the following updates were implemented: First, the terrain modification feature.

Is the host troubled by terrain limitations due to the farm’s expansion? For just a small additional cost in gold coins, you can cut through mountains and fill in seas, leveling all land to its optimal condition for cultivation!

This feature was indeed quite useful for Jiang Le. Having chosen to locate his farm deep in the mountains—gaining both seclusion and security—it was inevitable that expanding the cultivable area would become more difficult. But now, with the farm’s upgrade, this problem has been solved.

Jiang Le compared the number of coins required to alter the terrain. Although it wasn’t quite as “just a little” as the system claimed, the cost was only about 40% higher—still within his acceptable range.

Second, the currency exchange machine.

Mutated Beasts Nucleus Crystals, Zombie Nucleus Crystals, and other items obtained by employees when killing mutated flora and fauna outside of work hours can all be exchanged for system coins or employee points via the currency exchange machine, allowing them to acquire more personal supplies and boost employee satisfaction.

The exchange machine shown on the page resembles an ATM; the displayed installation location is right below the staff dormitory, making it part of the supporting facilities.

Third, additional building features have been unlocked.

The staff dormitory serves as a temporary living space for employees. As their circumstances improve, they may desire a space independent of others. This feature allows employees who have accumulated a certain amount of wealth to apply to the system for building materials. Employees whose applications are approved can construct independent residences at designated locations.

The longer an employee has been on the job and the higher their task completion rate, the greater their chances of having their application approved.

Below the introduction to this feature is a map. The central portion shows the farm’s boundaries, and along the farm’s perimeter are several red-marked areas designated as “safe zones”—that is, areas designated by the system where new structures can be built. These areas fall within the farm’s protective perimeter, making them extremely unlikely to be disturbed by mutated flora and fauna.

As soon as he saw this map, Jiang Le understood one of the reasons behind the system’s application requirement. Although these areas lie outside the farm’s perimeter wall, they occupy prime locations. As the farm expands, they will eventually become part of the central area—truly prime real estate with enormous potential for appreciation.

Take Mao Xiaofei, one of the farm’s earliest employees, for example. Aside from food, he has virtually no other personal expenses. His current accumulated points are quite substantial, and in another year or so, simply by working on the farm, he’ll likely have enough to build a small bungalow. If he goes out to hunt mutated flora and fauna and combines that with the points he earns from redemptions, he could reach that goal even faster.

Fourth, expanded purchasing privileges.

The selection of purchasable items has increased to varying degrees across the System Store’s pages for seedlings, tools, construction materials, and more.

As for seedlings, the plant selection has become more specialized, including some relatively niche food items such as okra, Brussels sprouts, and even artichokes—a notorious space-hog in communal plots—which truly impressed Jiang Le.

In the pond area, the selection of aquatic species has been expanded to include shrimp, crabs, loaches, snails, and other fish varieties, as well as some crops that grow in or near water, such as water bamboo shoots and water celery.

As for livestock, in addition to expanding the existing breeds of pigs, cattle, and sheep, horses, donkeys, and mules have been added. Among poultry, quail, pigeons, and turkeys have been added.

As for tools, the warehouse no longer requires system upgrades to be equipped; instead, they can be purchased directly with gold coins and placed wherever needed in Jiang Le. Already-purchased equipment, such as composters and feeders, can be upgraded using gold coins to improve production efficiency and expand production scale.

The “Construction” section has even added an entire new page, covering everything from road surfaces to livestock fences, including streetlights—such as concrete roads, asphalt roads, and gravel roads; simple fences, metal fences, and premium fences; and streetlights ranging from candles to oil lamps. These aren’t just for decoration—for example, well-maintained roads can increase employee movement speed and improve work efficiency, while streetlights can boost the farm’s safety rating.

Fifth, security system upgrades.

First, in addition to raising and reinforcing the farm’s perimeter walls, security crop stations have been added both inside and outside the farm. This not only provides security posts for more crops, but it also facilitates the detection of threats and enables a swift response.

Second, the farm’s wall defense rating is tied to the host’s strength; currently, the farm’s defense is equivalent to that of a Level 5 superpower user, making it quite robust. 

Sixth, off-season planting.

As the weather grows colder, the cultivation of many crops is restricted. However, a high-quality farm will not let the seasons become an issue. Through off-season planting, it provides the host with powerful heated greenhouses, solving seasonal challenges.

Seventh, Cultivation Level Rewards.

As a qualified farmer, the host naturally earns the favor and trust of the crops, thereby gaining the ability to instantly activate high-cultivation-level seeds. When seeds are in a nutrient-rich environment and the energy bar is full, the host can instantly activate them at will, shortening the cultivation time and reaping a bountiful harvest.

Note: The energy bar can be charged by stacking various types of nucleus crystals, or the seeds can absorb energy from the environment on their own.

This ability does not mean Jiang Le can use it for large-scale farming; upon closer inspection, he can only accelerate the growth of one plant of each crop at a time. If the goal is to obtain food, this is more of a convenience for emergencies.

The so-called “high cultivation level” refers to crops on the farm that have been repeatedly planted and have reached a higher level. Opening the cultivation level list reveals lettuce, cucumbers, and tomatoes at the top.

At the bottom of each crop’s page is an empty slot indicating that Jiang Le can insert nucleus crystals there. After a quick experiment, Jiang Le discovered that simply tossing in a few zombie nucleus crystals wouldn’t fill the slot—shortening the cultivation time required a massive exchange of energy. If he merely placed the seeds in the soil and let them absorb the energy on their own, the process would be just as slow as regular cultivation.

However, the effect of accelerating growth was truly astonishing. Jiang Le only needed to issue a mental command, and a tomato seedling would grow to bear fruit right before his eyes in the blink of an eye. When he picked the fruit, it tasted exactly the same as one that had grown naturally.

Having understood the changes brought about by this upgrade, Jiang Le set about making arrangements.

With the number of employees greatly increased, the area available for farming and livestock raising naturally expanded significantly as well.

Jiang Le purchased several new plots of land. He used the terrain-altering function on two of them to create contiguous, level tracts of land, and he directly converted another plot into a pond, connecting it to the existing one to form a large body of water. A separate warehouse was added to each cultivation area to allow employees to conveniently store various produce nearby.

With the off-season greenhouses, seasonal restrictions on seedlings were essentially eliminated. Jiang Le also planted various new types of seedlings in quantities commensurate with his needs.

After finalizing the farm upgrades, Jiang Le turned his attention to the meteorite.

The effectiveness of meteorite fragments in increasing the success rate of potential star-level breakthroughs depends on the user’s willpower. A star-level breakthrough differs from a level breakthrough; the pain involved is several times greater than that of a normal upgrade, as it completely reshapes the very foundation of a living being. Moreover, the cost of failure is enormous. As their owner, Jiang Le found it difficult to make decisions for Xiao Lang or the blood vine based solely on his own wishes.

Taking out the meteorite fragments once more, Jiang Le reiterated the risks to Xiao Lang and the blood vine, then asked, “Do you want them?”

The blood vine twisted slightly; of course it wanted it, but with Xiao Lang right there, it had no choice but to passively act modest.

Oh well, the blood vine sighed inwardly. I’ll let that stinky wolf have the chance first. Once my level is a bit higher and I’ve overtaken him, won’t every meteorite fragment be mine anyway?

As for Xiao Lang, he displayed his deep-seated thirst for leveling up and breaking through, just as he always did.

Especially after encountering the mutated giant fish—witnessing Jiang Le on the brink of death while feeling powerless to help—the desire to grow stronger, born of that fear and anxiety, was unstoppable.

Jiang Le looked at Xiao Lang and could only sense its determination, though he didn’t know the specifics. Still, he couldn’t help but say, “But the risk is huge.” Xiao Lang’s expression didn’t change, nor did its resolve.

After a moment, Jiang Le gave in. Deep down, he actually hoped Xiao Lang would make the same choice as the blood vine, but wouldn’t that be imposing his own will on Xiao Lang?

Mutants yearn to evolve—and the higher their rank, the stronger this desire becomes.

Jiang Le let out a soft sigh. “All right, I’ll let you give it a try.”

He thought that even if it failed—even if Xiao Lang regressed into an ordinary wolf cub—he could still raise it himself and wouldn’t let it be left to fend for itself in the wilderness.

With that thought, Jiang Le felt a little more at ease.

After getting ready, Jiang Le opened the Creature Compendium and, right in front of Xiao Lang, placed the meteorite fragment into the slot below its information. A system prompt popped up: “Do you want to attempt to break through this pet’s current star rating?”

Glancing at Xiao Lang’s aqua-blue eyes, Jiang Le tapped “Confirm.”

Xiao Lang’s body instantly went limp and slumped to the ground, while the meteorite fragment in the slot emitted a faint blue glow that enveloped Xiao Lang from above, continuing to radiate light.

A line of text appeared below the pet profile: “Estimated time: 72 hours.”

For the next three days, Jiang Le could only wait. Rather than fretting aimlessly in the spatial realm, he decided to keep himself occupied with other tasks.

Just like during previous upgrades, the construction work was handled by a construction crew dispatched by the system, with Old Farmer transporting the seedlings. However, these workers were now all listed as Level 5 superpower users, just like Jiang Le. When they arrived at the farm, the veteran employees didn’t think much of it, but it gave the new employees—led by Feng Yun—quite a shock.

Ordinary people aren’t particularly attuned to the ranks of superpower users, but Feng Yun was different. Although his ability was rather lackluster, he was, without a doubt, a superpower user. He had already held Jiang Le in high regard, but now, seeing so many Level 5 superpower users working so diligently, the impact was simply indescribable.

The pace of construction remained as fast as ever. The original walls were torn down as if they were blocks being dismantled, while new walls, warehouses, and other structures were erected just as if they were being built from building blocks. The dirt roads were replaced with gravel paths, and wooden streetlights—topped with candles—were installed between the fields that required nighttime work. The light they emitted was sufficient for employees to perform simple tasks at night, enhancing safety on the job.

During these two days of construction, planting on the newly cleared land has not been neglected at all, and the new employees have adapted to the farm’s work at an extremely fast pace.

Work assignments were based on individual preferences and physical fitness; the system made the initial arrangements, and Jiang Le could then use these as a baseline to make minor adjustments as she saw fit.

Take Li Jiajia, for example. The system had assigned her to farm work, but since Jiang Le knew she needed to care for Tangyuan, he reassigned her to work in the cafeteria. This way, Li Jiajia could prepare breakfast for the staff alongside Luo Mian before Tangyuan woke up, then spend half the morning with Tangyuan. At lunchtime and dinnertime, she could wash and prepare vegetables away from the kitchen’s smoke and heat.

If Zhang Haiyang finishes work early, he can also take over the responsibility of caring for Tangyuan.

Apart from employees like Luo Mian and Li Jiajia, who work at fixed locations and have relatively consistent daily tasks, the work assignments for most other employees tend to vary.

Yesterday they were sowing seeds in the east; today they might be cleaning the animal pens in the south; and the day after tomorrow, they might be paddling a rubber boat across the pond to catch fish.

Zhang Haiyang’s assignment for today was to dig up lotus roots at the pond. Following the directions to the designated section along the pond’s edge, he could already see many people working in the fields along the way—some standing, some bent over.

There was a sensor at the entrance to the pond. Only after Zhang Haiyang swiped his work ID card over it did the gate open. He made his way to the tool shed by the pond, changed into a pair of one-piece waders, and, following the instructions, spent the morning digging up several large basins of thick lotus root sections from the designated pond sections.

After giving the lotus root sections a quick rinse to wash off the mud clinging to them, Zhang Haiyang pushed a cart loaded with the lotus roots to the nearest warehouse. There, he weighed the lotus root sections again, clocked them in, and placed them on the incoming conveyor belt—employees couldn’t see the entire interior of the warehouse; they could only watch as the harvested produce entered via the conveyor system, and moments later, empty containers were sent out on the same conveyor belt.

After pushing the empty baskets and cart back to the tool shed by the pond, Zhang Haiyang’s morning shift was complete.

The road had been a dirt path just the day before, but now this section had been paved with gravel. Zhang Haiyang felt the handcart in his hands was much lighter, and he walked back to the staff dormitory area with a spring in his step.

Employees have a two-hour lunch break. However, since many areas are still under construction these past few days, there’s relatively less work—not enough to fill the entire workday—so Zhang Haiyang can stay home all afternoon to watch over Tangyuan, allowing Li Jiajia to work at the cafeteria with peace of mind.

Before he even reached the cafeteria, Zhang Haiyang saw a crowd gathered around the bulletin board, chatting.

Zhang Haiyang walked over and found that the notice explained how to use the newly installed currency exchange machines and listed the employees eligible to apply for additional housing. Currently, only Mao Xiaofei’s name appeared on the list.

Reactions to this varied among the crowd.

Employees like Kong Shuya and Luo Mian—who had arrived at the farm a little later than Mao Xiaofei but had been working there for quite some time—felt their enthusiasm for work had been greatly boosted.

As for the newly hired employees, while they envied this, they also felt it was only natural that only individuals with extraordinary abilities like Mao Xiaofei would receive such opportunities; for them, as ordinary people, living in the farm dormitories actually provided a greater sense of security.

Mao Xiaofei, the center of attention, was just turning onto the road from another street. He was carrying a burlap sack full of watermelons—Jiang Le had sent him to a designated warehouse to pick them up, saying they were fruit for the employees’ special treat.

Upon hearing this, the crowd erupted in excitement once more. Although basic fruits were available at the farm’s small supermarket and weren’t too expensive, they still required points—and that simply couldn’t compare to the free perks provided by the boss.

After lunch, everyone helped themselves to watermelon as a post-meal treat right in the cafeteria.

As soon as Mao Xiaofei touched the watermelon, he remarked, “This is the same variety I used to grow.” After cutting it open, he marveled even more: “Hey, the flesh looks just like the one I used to grow. Come on, everyone, help yourselves.”

Feng Yun laughed when she heard this: “So you’re working in your field of expertise here at the farm, then.”

“You bet,” Mao Xiaofei said.

He hadn’t left the farm since the apocalypse and knew very little about the outside world. But from what he’d heard from Kong Shuya and the others—as well as from ordinary people like Zhang Haiyang, who had lived in other bases and had come over this time—Mao Xiaofei couldn’t help but feel incredibly lucky.

“It’s all thanks to Brother Jiang,” Mao Xiaofei said.

Everyone present agreed wholeheartedly.

The breeze rustled the trees, birds sang, and flowers bloomed. On a makeshift bookshelf in a corner of the dining hall sat books they’d brought back from a shopping mall in Xizhou City. Everyone sat together eating watermelon, chatting, and occasionally laughing—wasn’t every single one of these moments incredibly precious right then?

Jiang Le had Mao Xiaofei take the watermelon away, while he remained in front of the warehouse to verify the quantity of the newly arrived seedlings. Only after confirming everything was correct did he lock the warehouse door. Seedlings for various crops would have to wait until their respective seasons to be planted according to plan, but the animal seedlings—arriving over the past two days at different times—were immediately assigned to their respective breeding areas upon arrival.

The last batch to arrive was horses. After proper care, they would be able to adapt to a variety of terrains and be used for tasks such as transportation—all part of planning for the future.

Jiang Le didn’t go to the cafeteria to mingle and chat with the staff during their break; instead, he went straight back to his office, entered the spatial realm, and checked on Xiao Lang’s star-level progression.

Over the past few days, he had been returning to space every two or three hours on average to check on Xiao Lang’s current condition. On several occasions, Xiao Lang’s stats had fluctuated dramatically, and its health points had even dropped to near zero at one point.

Whenever this happened, Jiang Le couldn’t help but whisper words of encouragement to Xiao Lang. He didn’t know if it helped, but fortunately, its health points eventually crept back up again.

As the evolution progressed, the meteorite’s blue light almost completely enveloped Xiao Lang, preventing anyone from glimpsing the changes taking place inside.

Breaking through one’s predetermined potential means reshaping every cell, stripping away the old and purging impurities—becoming a brand-new being from the inside out, from start to finish. Many factors influence this process; even the slightest mistake can lead to failure.

This pain, which he had experienced during his cubhood, dragged the young wolf back into his memories. Driven by the will to survive, the cub had weathered a life-threatening crisis and eventually found his parents and siblings. Yet, due to changes in his scent and appearance, he received no affection—instead, he was ruthlessly cast out.

A voice echoed repeatedly in the young wolf’s mind: “So this time, once you’ve successfully transformed, Jiang Le will treat you the same way. If you succeed, he’ll fear you; if you fail, he’ll despise you. To him, you’re nothing more than a tool.”

But another voice countered: “That’s not true! Jiang Le likes you, cares for you—he’s the best person to you. Even if you’re just his tool, so what? You have to be the strongest one! That way, even if he doesn’t like you enough, he’ll still value you the most.”

“As long as you become strong enough, you’ll be the one he values most. And even if you aren’t, just kill everything else he values. You’ll always be the one—but only if you get stronger.”

Several voices intertwined and clashed, until finally the latter two drowned out the first. As the countdown ended, the blue light faded, and the wolf below slowly opened its eyes, lifting its gaze to meet Jiang Le’s.

A faint golden arc now encircled its aqua-blue pupils, and its fur had shifted from black to a blend of gray and white, as cold as the full moon. A system notification popped up.

“Congratulations, Host. The mutant wolf has evolved, successfully breaking through the 4-star limit to become a 5-star mutant!”