Anjun River Bay.

Knock, knock, knock—three knocks on the door, and the dilapidated wooden door swung open. Sun Qiuhua’s face peered out from behind the door. She glanced outside, looking slightly surprised. “Are you able to get out of bed already? Come on in.”

Two figures cloaked in capes slipped silently inside.

Through the crack in the door, a faint glimmer of dawn could be seen outside. It was three in the morning—the hour when people were fast asleep.

Sun Qiuhua led the two men into the room; Xie Xiuping and Yu Wenchao were still awake. A crystal lamp sat on the table, and the air carried the distinctive scent of burning pine resin.

Sun Qiuhua smiled and said, “Captain Qi, have you made up your mind? Are you willing to accept the suggestion we made the other day?” The two removed their cloaks—they were none other than Qi Shaoyuan and Qi Yiyun.

Qi Shaoyuan’s gaze swept over the crystal lamp on the table, and his suspicions about the identities of the three people before him grew… A pine resin crystal lamp—in the entire Anjun River Bay, only Cui Pengfei owned one; not even Cui Hongxuan had one. Pine resin isn’t hard to come by; what’s rare is the crystal.

He said in a deep voice, “I don’t know how much of what you said that day was true and how much was false.”

Sun Qiuhua nodded. “It seems, Captain Qi, you’re here today to verify things.” She gave a nod to Xie Xiuping. Xie Xiuping got up, went into the back room, and brought out a head of baby bok choy.

Despite the long journey, the bok choy was still crisp and tender, as if glistening with dew. Qi Yiyun, being young, widened her eyes in surprise; she had never seen such plump vegetables before. Xie Xiuping said, “Captain Qi, you can try some—this head of Chinese cabbage is a gift for you.”

Qi Shaoyuan took the vegetable without batting an eye and, without hesitation, tore off a leaf and popped it into his mouth.

The leaf tasted sweet, crisp, and tender… but that wasn’t what he was focused on; he was carefully sensing the supernatural power within his body.

Suddenly, his eyes widened sharply. A faint current of energy surged from his abdomen, gently smoothing out a hint of his uncontrolled superpower… No one could have known just how thrilled Qi Shaoyuan felt at that moment!

Anjun River Bay wasn’t a good place. Although Qi Shaoyuan was nominally the deputy captain of the Ability Squad, in reality, he was nothing more than an errand boy. He was always the first to take on dangerous missions, yet when it came time to divide the rewards, he was always the last to receive any. Under these circumstances, how healthy could his body possibly be?

In fact, as early as a year ago, he’d begun showing signs of losing control of his abilities, and now he was teetering on the brink of a power surge. Otherwise, with the pride of a Level 3 ability user, how could he possibly have allowed Cui Hongxuan to insult his sister?

There is no cure for an ability backlash—that’s the consensus among everyone. He had always assumed his fate would be to die one day from an ability backlash or in some battle. His only hope was to make sure his sister was taken care of before that happened.

But now, these three ability users who’d appeared out of nowhere were telling him that a stroke of luck had fallen from the sky—that the ability backlash could be alleviated, or even cured… Could he really believe it?

Sun Qiuhua was well aware of his inner turmoil. “Don’t worry. We’ve used these vegetables many times before; they’re absolutely safe.”

Qi Shaoyuan was silent for a moment. After finishing an entire leaf, he asked in a hoarse voice, “How do we work together?” Sun Qiuhua and Xie Xiuping exchanged glances. “Let’s sit down and talk.”

A long time passed, and by then, dawn had already broken outside.

Qi Shaoyuan spoke his first words after sitting down: “Your chief wants Anjun River Bay.”

“How can you say that?” Sun Qiuhua poured him a cup of tea. “Our leader simply wants the villagers of Anjun River Bay to live a better life. Or do you think the people of Anjun River are already living well enough?”

Perhaps a man of few words understands another of few words best; at that moment, Yu Wenchao looked up and said, “If I were you, even if it were just for my family’s sake, I wouldn’t let such a good opportunity slip by.”

Qi Shaoyuan instinctively glanced at Qi Yiyun.

Qi Yiyun thought for a moment and asked, “Sister Qiuhua, if I partner with you, will I be able to take out Cui Hongxuan with my own hands?” Sun Qiuhua smiled. “If the plan succeeds, you can do with him as you please.”

After applying medicine to Qi Yiyun and seeing the two off, Sun Qiuhua had barely returned to her room when someone emerged from the inner chamber. The wind-type ability user shivered, “I’ve been crouching for so long; my legs are all numb. Wenchao, pour me a glass of water.”

Yu Wenchao grimaced as he poured him a glass of water.                            

“You couldn’t have picked a worse time to show up,” Xie Xiuping complained. “We actually have a meeting scheduled with Qi Shaoyuan today to discuss business.” 

The wind-elemental ability user chuckled. “I heard everything. I’ll report this good news to Brother Cen as soon as I get back.”  

“Thanks, but no need—we’ll write the letter ourselves.”

The wind-type ability user drank his fill of water before opening the large bag beside him and pulling items out one by one.

“These are jade crystal fruit preserves—Brother Cen made them himself. There isn’t much, but here, try a taste. And these are steamed buns and rice cakes from home, made with our new harvest. Help yourselves…”

Sun Qiuhua and the other two burst into laughter. It wasn’t that their situation at Anjun River Bay was particularly dangerous, but they truly had to tread carefully at every turn. It was a bit of a struggle, but knowing that someone back home was thinking of them made all that seem insignificant.

No one but Brother Cen would go out of his way to send them even food.

The wind-elemental ability user chuckled, “Brother Cen was worried you wouldn’t be able to adjust to the food out here, and that you wouldn’t be able to replenish your abilities, so you’d have to go back to absorbing crystal cores.”

Finally, he pulled out a bag of baby bok choy and white radishes. “Use these for now. This should be the last batch of fresh vegetables. Brother Cen’s pickle barrels are almost ready, so from now on, we’ll probably be sending pickles instead. Pickles keep longer, so when the time comes, make sure to explain this clearly to the people.”

Sun Qiuhua nodded. That went without saying.

The Wind-type ability user tapped the table again, sat up straight, and tilted his head. “One last message. Our leader asked: Can we take out Cui Pengfei and help Qi Shaoyuan take his place?”

Sun Qiuhua was taken aback. She glanced at Xie Xiuping and Yu Wenchao—the two male ability users also looked momentarily stunned. Finally, all three laughed, their smiles carrying a solemnity known only to them. “We will certainly not fail in our mission.”

Wherever the leader pointed, that was where their swords would strike.

Now that the message had been delivered, the wind-elemental ability user had to head back. Before leaving, he asked, “How much do you sell those ‘Little Cabbage’ plants to Anjun River Bay for—per plant?”

Xie Xiuping looked at him and held up five fingers. The wind-type ability user was puzzled. “Five crystal cores?”

Xie Xiuping couldn’t help but chuckle. “No way—fifty.”

And that was a friend’s price—only those with a good relationship could get it. For those with a so-so relationship, eighty or a hundred wouldn’t be out of the question. As for those with a poor relationship… sorry, not for sale.

It’s a seller’s market—that’s how capricious it can be.

Yongning Village.

The vegetable patch behind the little wooden house had expanded to a hundred plots. Expanses of fertile black soil stretched out in contiguous swaths, planted with lush, leafy vegetables; just a few steps closer, one could smell the fresh fragrance of vegetables and fruits;

Scattered across the village’s open spaces are no fewer than thirty plots of “crystal core powder soil,” planted with wheat and rice of varying heights. Due to their different stages of maturity—some golden yellow, others emerald green—they create a vibrant, colorful scene, resembling an oil painting;

To the north of the village lay a continuous stretch of livestock sheds of varying heights, neatly arranged from largest to smallest. The sheds were bustling with people coming and going, and the occasional sounds of animals could be heard, though human voices were few and far between—even though the villagers were temporarily living in the sheds, they knew that animals were easily startled. As for the few livestock sheds scattered throughout the village, their small number makes them rather inconspicuous;

On the eastern side of the village, Dahei was still lying quietly in his den. Rock Crystal Beasts are not fond of movement, and Dahei embodies this trait to the fullest. The little bit of exercise he gets from playing with the little two-legged creatures every day is enough to keep him relaxed. By now, even the children of Stone Spring Village have become familiar with Dahei.

When some of the younger, more tearful ones started crying, their parents would simply point toward Dahei, and the children would stop crying, their big, shiny black eyes widening in fascination.

To the south of the village lies the residential area of Stone Spring Village. By now, the people of Stone Spring Village have settled into their new lives. 

Naturally, they aren’t as well-off as the native residents of Yongning Village, but within just a few days, they’ve got food in their hands, smiles on their faces, and their demeanor and mannerisms have come to resemble those of the Yongning villagers more and more. They’ve even picked up the habit of constantly referring to “our leader” and “our Boss Cen” to a tee.

This wasn’t out of deliberate flattery; rather, these down-to-earth villagers believed from the bottom of their hearts that without Yongning Village and without Cen An, they wouldn’t have the life they have today. Although many of them had never even seen Cen An in person, their gratitude was no less for it.

As for Little Boss Cen, whom they so deeply respected and admired—what was he doing right now? Well, he was opening a barrel of pickled vegetables.

There’s been some good news in the village lately: the chickens and ducks recently introduced to the poultry shed have started laying eggs, producing fifty or sixty eggs in just a few days. Since eggs don’t keep for long in this heat, Cen An decided to share them with the villagers so everyone could get some nourishment. As for whether to exchange them for points or something else, he’ll leave that up to the Ability Squad to figure out; his job is simply to deliver the goods.

Since the first batch of pickled vegetables was ready at the same time, he decided to distribute them together. Boiled eggs and pickled vegetables—that sounds like a pretty good breakfast.

“How do you even open this thing…” Little Boss Cen paced back and forth around the pickling barrel, which had already stopped working. In the game, all he had to do was tap a button, but in real life, he really didn’t know where to start.

“Su Rui, Su Rui, where are you? Come over and give me a hand—” Cen An looked up and called out twice, but no one answered. He was puzzled—had the guy gone out? That couldn’t be; he’d just seen him eating a moment ago.

After a moment’s thought, he pulled out the wooden whistle around his neck and blew it… Before he’d even finished the note, someone dropped down from the roof. So that guy had been hiding up there all along!

Cen An was so annoyed he kicked him twice. “Aren’t you being childish!”

Su Rui laughed like a cheerful, sunny young man. “I knew you’d blow the whistle.”      

“Yeah, yeah, I love blowing whistles… Hurry up and help me open the pickle barrel…”

Su Rui gripped the handle and gave it a casual tug; the pickle barrel swung open, and the familiar aroma of pickles wafted out.

Cen An peered inside and saw row upon row of prepared pickles; one barrel could hold thirty bottles at a time.

“Not bad. This way, they’ll keep for a long time and are easy to transport. You…” He glanced back and was instantly speechless—the guy had already started eating. “…Aren’t they too salty? Stop eating them. I’ll cook some congee for you to have with them tonight.”

With that, he handed the pickles and eggs to the ability users waiting at the door. Given the squad’s efficiency, these items would appear on the villagers’ dinner tables by evening.

“Next…” Cen An thought for a moment. “It’s time to head up the mountain to gather supplies.”

He planned to upgrade the house to Level 3 before things settled down at Anjun River. At Level 3, the storage room would become a warehouse, with even bigger space…but that was just a bonus. Cen An no longer expected his home to be able to hold all the supplies the villagers brought; after all, it wouldn’t be much trouble to set up a shed outside the courtyard… 

He smiled.

More importantly, a Level 3 house unlocks a workshop. Players can choose to unlock a medical room, a crafting room, or an equipment room, but there’s no denying that whichever one it is, it will be very useful—especially for Yongning Village right now.

Open the house upgrade system:

[House Level: Small Log Cabin Description: Just average. Next Level: Comfortable Wooden House

Materials Required for Upgrade: Crystal Cores x5,000, Wood x5,000, Stones x1,000, Bricks x1,000, Cloth x800, Animal Hides x500, Metal Ornaments x300, Plant Seeds x300…】

He had plenty of crystal cores, wood, stone, and animal hides. He was a little short on cloth, and bricks could be made from clay, so that wasn’t a big deal. The rest were plant seeds, metal ornaments, and… He scrolled to the very end of the list. Hmm, Space Stones?

That’s right—once the storage room was upgraded to a warehouse, it gained spatial storage capabilities, so he did indeed need Spatial Stones. But three of them… Isn’t that a bit too many?

Oh well, I’ll just save up for them little by little.

“I have the recipe for metal ornaments—I can make them once I’ve gathered enough metal materials. So, the first thing I need to collect is… plant seeds?” Cen An closed the page. “Do you know where I can find the most plant seeds?”

Su Rui lay back lazily, propping his head on his palms. “What kind of plant seeds do you want?”

“Anything’s fine, but preferably herbaceous plants—I can’t grow trees or anything like that inside the house.” Cen An thought for a moment. “Or maybe some pretty vines or orchids?”

A house is meant for living in, so aesthetics are important too.

The big white wolf clearly had no idea what “pretty” meant. “How about I take you on a tour of my territory?”

Cen An thought that sounded great. He nodded, and Mr. Big Wolf wrapped his arms around him and took flight. “You seem to be flying faster now?”

Su Rui nodded briskly. “I advanced a minor stage a while back.”

Cen An wasn’t quite sure what he meant. “What do you mean by ‘minor stage’? Does that mean your ability has leveled up?”

Su Rui explained, “Once a superpower reaches Level 6 or higher, each level is divided into three sub-stages: Low-tier Level 6, Mid-tier Level 6, and High-tier Level 6.” Cen An nodded, then suddenly realized, “Oh, is your superpower that high? Level 6? Or even Level 7?”

Su Rui glanced up at the sky and declined to answer the question. “We’re here. This whole area is my territory.” He traced a circle in the air.

Cen An looked down, somewhat surprised. He knew Su Rui had his own territory in the mountains and forests and had a general idea of its location, but he hadn’t expected this. “Is your territory that big? It covers several mountains?”

Su Rui said smugly, “I’m pretty powerful. The more powerful you are, the bigger your territory.” In fact, given his strength, he could have claimed the entire Silver Moon Mountain Range, but he found managing such a vast territory too much of a hassle, so he’d limited himself to just this small area.

“Do territories actually need to be managed…? It sounds a bit like a wolf pack. I’ve heard that some wolf packs rule their territories like kings,” Cen An said thoughtfully.

Su Rui glanced at him and tightened his grip on his hand a little more. “Want to go take a look to the south? There’s a pond there—you might find the vines or orchids you need.”

Seeing him nod, Su Rui swept him up on a gust of wind and flew south.

A small, crystal-clear pond lay spread out across the land, dotted with orchids all around. Vines hung down from the surrounding cliffs, and mist swirled in the air—it was like a scene from a fairy tale, and one couldn’t help but feel that some kind of spirit lived in the waters of the pond.

“There’s actually an Ice Crystal Orchid here?” Cen An’s eyes widened, then he sighed with regret. “Too bad there are only three.”

Ice Jade Pills made from Ice Crystal Orchids are perfect for summer, but three flowers are only enough for one pill—better than nothing, he supposed.

Even though he said it was better than nothing, Cen An still went to pick the three Ice Crystal Orchids. He also made a mental note of the location, planning to return later to see if more might grow there.

Su Rui helped him pick the seeds. “Is this one okay?” 

“That’s ugly. Take the one next to it—the red one.” Su Rui reached out to pick it.

One picked from the cliff face while the other gathered from the ground; their division of labor made them quite efficient. They even stopped for afternoon tea along the way.

The little pond looked even more beautiful at dusk. The setting sun cast a thin layer of gold over the water’s surface, the cliff face, and the orchids, making them look like silhouettes of gold leaf.

Cen An sat cross-legged on the ground, with a bed of leaves spread out before him, as he carefully sorted through the seeds they’d collected. The setting sun illuminated him as well, casting a soft halo around him that made him look like a beautiful little immortal who’d fallen from the heavens.

Su Rui, unusually quiet, watched him, his eyes turning silver for a moment… He scratched his slightly itchy gums and suddenly said, “There’s a herd of spirit deer nearby. They’re beautiful. Do you want to go see them?”

“Spirit deer?” Cen An thought for a moment but couldn’t recall what they were. “Are they just ordinary deer?”

“They’re not ordinary deer—they’re called spirit deer.” Su Rui stood up and held out a hand to him. “There are no animals in the mountains that eat them, and they don’t bother other animals either. But there’s an old legend that says whoever sees them will have their heart’s desire granted.”

Cen An placed his hand in Su Rui’s palm. “That sounds so romantic. Have you ever seen them?” 

“No, I never really wanted anything before.”                

“What a cheeky thing to say—I have plenty of things I want.”

“What do you want?”

“Right now, I guess I’d wish for the mutant beasts to disappear and for world peace, or something like that…”

The spirit deer were indeed beautiful—graceful and pure, leaping like little mountain elves.

Su Rui looked at the herd of deer, then at the person beside him. He scratched his chin, his face flushing slightly for some reason. “Are they pretty?” 

“Hmm…” Cen An replied thoughtfully.

Su Rui quickly scanned the area, looking for any strange grass, trees, rocks, or patches of ground nearby… Cen An pointed ahead. “That grass…”

Su Rui immediately looked over and breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, that? That’s deer grass. It only grows around the Spirit Deer, and it doesn’t seem to have any special purpose.”

Cen An nodded. “I thought it looked like it,” he said with a smile. “Deer grass is very useful. Come with me.”

With that, he stood up, bent over, carefully made his way past the herd of deer, picked the deer grass from the ground, then turned back and waved at Su Rui with a smile. 

Su Rui: “……”

He was sullen and dejected, but he simply couldn’t bring himself to get angry. There were just too many useful things in this forest.

Cen An pulled him along, finding the next deer grass plant, then the next, and the next…

The deer grass seemed to be guiding them, leading them step by step deeper into the forest. “This place…” Su Rui hesitated. “I don’t think I’ve ever been here before.”               

“This must be a special space,” Cen An explained to him. “It doesn’t usually appear.”

What’s the purpose of the deer grass? If you follow it, you can find the Deer King. Once you find him, feed him the deer grass, and you’ll receive…

“Ah, there it is!”

It looked as if the shadow of some giant beast had flashed by, and Cen An excitedly tugged Su Rui along as they ran over.

It was a massive spirit deer, with antlers like a cluster of coral growing from the top of its head, and a patch of pure, sacred white fur on its chest. It seemed even larger than an elephant, with four hooves as big as giant bowls. Yet its eyes were calm and gentle; upon hearing the approach of the two, it simply turned its head and looked at them with composure.

Cen An really enjoyed interacting with the Deer King. These creatures were spirited yet gentle, and he always felt as though they could understand human speech. Of course, that was in the game… In reality, perhaps they were even easier to get along with?

With that thought in mind, he reached out and offered a handful of deer grass. The Deer King lowered his head, sniffed it gently, and began to eat.

Cen An felt a bit excited. For some reason, seeing the Deer King gave him the feeling of reuniting with a long-lost friend. After feeding it all the deer grass, Cen An stroked its drooping antlers and whispered, “How have you been?”

The Deer King let out a soft groan, shook his head, and a few items clinked and clattered to the ground from his antlers.

The Deer King gently plucked the last few stalks of deer grass, ate them, glanced at him once more, then turned and slowly walked deeper into the forest.

It took Cen An a while to snap out of it; he was a bit dazed. It seemed as though he’d just heard someone speaking right next to his ear—the voice of a very kind-hearted elderly man, saying, “It’s so nice to see you again.”

Was it the Deer King speaking to him? That seemed a bit supernatural…

But in any case, the voice certainly held no malice, so Cen An didn’t let his imagination run wild; he simply looked down at the items on the ground. Sure enough, they were Life Stones—three of them, to be exact.

Life Stones can be used to craft many items, including the Healing Heart that Old Geng had used before.

Don’t be fooled by the fact that the Healing Heart couldn’t save Xiao Ji back then—that was because his injuries were too severe at the time, and it took far too long to get him down from the mountain. If the Healing Heart had been used immediately after Xiao Ji was injured, it would have been entirely possible to turn his critical injuries into minor ones.

The reason is simple: the Healing Heart has one crucial feature—instant healing. Just how miraculous that is in real life goes without saying. Three Life Stones—enough to craft three Healing Hearts. That’s great, that’s great.

Boss Cen didn’t even hesitate; he immediately crafted three Healing Hearts and casually handed one to Su Rui. Su Rui took the heart-shaped ruby—hmm… quite a bountiful haul!

Cen An also felt this trip had been fruitful. The three Healing Hearts were a bonus; they’d already collected all the plant seeds, and now only the metal ornaments and Space Stones remained. Their progress couldn’t be described as anything but rapid.

On the way back, as he looked down at the increasingly familiar scenery below, something suddenly occurred to him. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen Yu Fei and Xiao Lin. I wonder what they’ve been up to lately. I hope nothing’s happened to them… Maybe I should go check on them.”

Su Rui muttered, “What could possibly happen to him?” In the end, he still descended, swept along by the wind, and felt a pang of regret—if only he’d just used spatial teleportation. Cen An frowned slightly. At the entrance to Yu Fei’s house, the flowers in the flowerpot had withered again.

He remembered that after Yu Lin’s health had improved, these flowers had been thriving… He raised his hand and knocked on the door.

A hoarse voice soon came from inside, saying impatiently, “I’ve already said I’m not seeing anyone right now. Stay away!” The knocking sounded again.

Yu Lin was just about to say something when his expression suddenly changed. “You…”

Sure enough, the voice he both longed to hear and feared to hear came from outside: “It’s me, Xiao Lin. Open the door.”