A huge thanks to Lupeda for the kofis. Enjoy the bonus chapters!!

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“How’s it going?”

Qing Jiyue was busy when he heard a familiar voice.

He turned to look, and sure enough, he saw Tong Zhanyan smiling radiantly.

Qing Jiyue pursed his lips slightly. Tong Zhanyan really did seem to like any cat he came across.

“Not bad.” Qing Jiyue looked at the big tiger in the cage and gestured for him to transform back into a human.

The transformation went smoothly.

Qing Jiyue looked at Yang Hong and Tang Shijin.

Tang Shijin took a deep breath and stepped into the iron cage. “I’ll go first.”

During beastification, there was a high chance they wouldn’t be able to revert back.

She had originally intended to suggest going first, but Qing Suifeng had naturally beaten her to it.

The gaps in the iron cage were wide enough that she didn’t even need to turn sideways.

Inside the cage, Qing Suifeng did not immediately step out.

Upon reaching the center of the cage, Tang Shijin took a deep breath, summoned an eagle, and then, amid the eagle’s cry, her body swelled violently.

When Tong Zhanyan looked at Qing Suifeng again, she had already transformed into a giant eagle whose size rivaled that of the great white tiger from before.

“Tang Shijin?” Qing Jiyue scrutinized her cautiously.

A hawk’s cry rang out, and Tang Shijin still retained her senses.

Qing Jiyue breathed a slight sigh of relief, then asked a series of questions, occasionally having her perform a few movements to assess the situation.

A few minutes later, Tang Shijin returned to human form.

Qing Jiyue turned to Yang Hong, who stepped into the cage of his own accord, took a deep breath, and underwent beastification.

Yang Hong’s Spirit Beast was a wolf.

But Tong Zhanyan seriously suspected he might have gotten the species wrong, because Yang Hong kept flicking the tip of his tail from time to time, which made him look strikingly similar to a certain breed of dog.

A few minutes later, Yang Hong returned to human form.

Qing Jiyue stepped forward again to ask the three of them how they felt, receiving a unanimous reply of “nothing in particular.”

For someone in a state of frenzy, being unable to control their emotions, feeling nothing wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Tong Zhanyan looked at Qing Jiyue, and sure enough, his expression softened slightly.

Tong Zhanyan watched from the side for a while before realizing two people were missing. “Where are Principal Chu and Teacher Wang?”

“At the school,” Qing Jiyue replied. “Teacher Wang’s condition is relatively mild; he hasn’t reached the point where he might enter a state of frenzy at any moment.”

But it probably won’t be long.

Tong Zhanyan breathed a slight sigh of relief; he had mentioned that he’d never seen the Devil King go into a frenzy.

After a brief exchange, Qing Jiyue moved aside to continue discussing the matter with several people who looked like doctors.

Under the cover of night, Tong Zhanyan was just wondering if he should head back when a voice came from beside him.

“I heard you and Xiao Yue are classmates or roommates?” Qing Suifeng had appeared beside Tong Zhanyan at some point.

“Yes.”

“Is he happy at school?” Qing Suifeng had a rather gentle disposition, but a hint of stubbornness could be seen in his eyes; he must have been a headstrong person in his youth.

Tong Zhanyan thought of the promise between Qing Jiyue and Qing Suifeng and spoke against his better judgment, “He’s quite happy.”

Qing Jiyue is a training fanatic; his mind is probably entirely on the front lines and not at all on school. Staying at school is nothing but torture for him.

“Really?” Qing Suifeng studied him.

“Mm-hmm.”

Qing Suifeng stared at Tong Zhanyan for a moment longer, then let out a slight sigh of relief. “That’s good…”

Night had completely enveloped the world. Lamps were strung along the small building and the iron cage, but the bulbs hung too high, casting a blurry, dim yellow glow over the area.

Qing Suifeng spoke again, “He’s very talented. Many people see him as a beacon of hope. That’s why I’ve been so strict with him since he was a child, but I think I’ve been too harsh—I’ve made him lose all sense of being a child…”

Tong Zhanyan listened quietly.

“Could you do me a favor?”

Tong Zhanyan looked at him. “What kind of favor?”

Even setting aside Qing Suifeng’s contributions over the years in fending off external enemies, simply because he was Qing Jiyue’s father, if he could help him, he certainly would.

“Open the door for me.”

Tong Zhanyan choked on his words.

That… I really can’t help with that.

“I’m going back now.” Without waiting for Qing Suifeng to say anything else, Tong Zhanyan made a quick getaway.

Early the next morning, Tong Zhanyan soaked all the tomato seeds he’d set out to dry.

While waiting, he filled the cups with soil.

He didn’t use the manure-enriched soil; he only used some humus, as the seedlings’ roots were very tender and could be scorched by fertilizer.

He was planting more this time, and just filling the cups with soil took Tong Zhanyan the entire morning.

By noon, Tong Zhanyan didn’t even have time to rest. After drinking some nutrient solution, he hurriedly began distributing the seeds; if he didn’t work quickly, he might not finish today.

Sure enough, he worked straight through until past 5:00 p.m. before he finally finished distributing all the seeds from the two large cups.

If left out to air-dry, the soaked seeds would dry out in the breeze. After turning on the light at the entrance of the small building, Tong Zhanyan quickly covered them with soil.

It took him until past 9:00 p.m. to finally cover all the seeds.

There was no time left to water them, so Tong Zhanyan could only wash up and rest.

The next day, Tong Zhanyan called Tian Xinqing and the others over.

The workers he’d booked earlier were coming today, and the crops were ready for harvest.

Tian Xinqing and the others handled the harvesting, while Tong Zhanyan soaked the seeds.

Around ten o’clock, the workers arrived.

Tong Zhanyan led them to the designated area, gave them specific instructions on what to do, and asked Tian Xinqing to supervise while he went back to continue soaking the seeds.

Since pig farming produces a strong odor, Tong Zhanyan had the pigsty built on the other side of the mountain.

With so few people, it took Su Yanran, Ning Langdong, and Boss Bai nearly half a day to finally finish harvesting all the crops.

By then, Tong Zhanyan had just finished his own work.

He hurried over to check on the pigsty.

Several of the Spirit Beasts in the group—such as apes and monkeys—had dexterous hands. When they needed to move heavy objects, they would simply undergo beastification, creating a rather bizarre sight.

However, thanks to their high efficiency, the septic tank beneath the pigsty was dug out and coated with cement in just a single day.

The next day, the workers returned and completed the upper section of the pig pen exactly as Tong Zhanyan had instructed.

Tong Zhanyan was quite satisfied with their efficiency and promptly paid the final installment.

After seeing the group off, he walked around the pigsty one more time, then contacted the people at the breeding farm again to ask them to keep an eye out for piglets.

Piglets are different from chicks; chicks can be sold as soon as they hatch, but piglets need their mother’s milk right after birth, so they generally can’t be sold until twenty days later.

They replied quickly, saying the next batch of piglets wouldn’t be ready for another ten days.

The pig pen still needed to air-dry, so Tong Zhanyan wasn’t in a hurry.

After finishing up with the pig pen, Tong Zhanyan turned his attention to the cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplants.

The cherry tomato season was already coming to a complete end; although there were still fruits hanging on the vines, there would be at most one more harvest.

The eggplants and cucumbers could still be harvested a couple more times, but some of the early-blooming plants had long since yielded only one or two fruits.

Tong Zhanyan took a look and bought a shredder online.

There were so many seedlings this time; if he had to chop them by hand, it would take at least a week.

The shredder wasn’t designed for crops but for construction, but as long as it could shred things, it would do the job.

The machine arrived two days later, and Tong Zhanyan timed the harvest to coincide with its delivery.

After the harvest, Tong Zhanyan had the others pull up the tomato plants that no longer bore fruit.

Once Tian Xinqing had dragged the crops to the entrance, Tong Zhanyan started the machine and began shredding them as dusk fell.

“This feeling of wanting to spit blood but being unable to…”

“…I don’t even know whether to be angry or laugh.”

“Chopping them up just isn’t enough for the streamer anymore—now they’re using a shredder…”

“It’s still so heartbreaking to watch. Such sturdy seedlings, many still bearing fruit, just shredded into bits like this…”

“Why don’t you sell me a couple of those seedlings, host? I just feel like they could still bear fruit…”

“Don’t even mention it. I have to go comfort my grandfather again—the old man is heartbroken…”

…

Mechanized equipment is indeed more efficient than manual labor; five or six hundred seedlings were all processed in just over ten minutes.

After cleaning the machine, Tong Zhanyan dragged over the barrels used for composting, grabbed a shovel, and began filling them.

Another ten or so minutes later, he had six or seven barrels of compost waiting to mature.

The next day, Tong Zhanyan dug out the wire mesh panels he’d tossed in the warehouse and set up a chicken coop next to the large one.

The chicks were already producing enough droppings, and since they were about to enter their molting phase, the small pool was no longer sufficient for them.

He had a ready-made pen, but no nests. After setting up the pen, releasing the chicks, and finding two cardboard boxes for them, Tong Zhanyan browsed through a shopping app.

He bought some materials to build nests.

Aside from the chicks, over in the adult chicken coop, as the chickens grew larger, the two existing nests were no longer sufficient.

He’d need to restock the brooding cups—both large and small—and the plastic sheeting as well…

Additionally, for the pig pen: feeding troughs, a hose and brush for washing the floor, and a pot, shovel, and stove for cooking pig feed…

Pigs, unlike chickens, can’t survive on a raw diet.

Anything related to livestock is expensive, so Tong Zhanyan looked for substitutes wherever possible. Even so, when he placed his order three hours later, he couldn’t help but feel relieved that he wasn’t short on money right now.

The items wouldn’t arrive for another two days, and school was starting in just three days. Tong Zhanyan quickly arranged another harvest before then.

This time, the cherry tomatoes were completely picked.

Tong Zhanyan spent nearly an hour just shredding the plant stalks and turning them into compost.

That night, after sending a red envelope to each of Tian Xinqing and the other two, Tong Zhanyan told them that once school started, they should focus on their studies and just help pick up leaves during their free time.

It’s been pretty tough lately.

As for their studies, they were students to begin with; it wouldn’t be worth it to let their studies suffer because of him.

Tian Xinqing and the others didn’t think too deeply about it; they found it quite fun and were a bit disappointed knowing they wouldn’t be able to come every day from now on.

They were also worried about whether he could handle the workload.

It was certain he’d be busier without them, but Tong Zhanyan wouldn’t be overwhelmed—at worst, he’d just call in reinforcements.

Many people in the livestream were clamoring to come help.

The four of them chatted late into the night, so much so that Tong Zhanyan woke up a bit later than usual the next day.

Awaiting him was the clucking of a hundred chickens.

People coming from the back door to pick up crops had also been waiting downstairs for quite some time.

Tong Zhanyan pulled up some crops for the person, then hurried to feed the chickens.

A hundred chickens have quite an appetite; chopping everything up would take ages, so Tong Zhanyan simply tossed a bunch of baby bok choy into the large chicken coop and let them peck at it themselves.

Previously, Tong Zhanyan had always chopped the food up before feeding it to them. Suddenly tossing in a pile of whole leaves—stems and all—left the flock a bit bewildered.

The viewers in the livestream were just as baffled.

“How are they supposed to eat that if you just toss it in like that?”

“I can overlook the sloppiness with farming, but why is chicken-raising getting more and more haphazard, too?”

“Even though they’re eating crops, I suddenly can’t bring myself to feel jealous—I actually feel a little sorry for them.”

“Are you sure they won’t choke?”

…

By the time Tong Zhanyan finished chopping the cherry radishes, the chickens in the pen had already started eating.

Since the Great Cataclysm, these chickens had only been fed synthetic feed; even though pecking is instinctive, their movements still betrayed a certain clumsiness.

But at least they were eating.

Tong Zhanyan decided he wouldn’t chop up their baby bok choy or radish leaves anymore—it was easier that way.

After feeding the chicks, he dumped the remaining cherry radishes into the feed trough. Once he’d eaten his fill, Tong Zhanyan headed out to the fields.

The eggplant and cucumber seedlings he’d saved were ready to be harvested.

Tong Zhanyan had selected seeds with reduced infection rates, and from those, he had further screened for plants that flowered early and were robust—such seeds had better viability.

There were simply too many seeds to save, and Tong Zhanyan spent nearly two hours just separating them.

The harvest wasn’t bad—a full six disposable cups.

While spreading them out to dry, Tong Zhanyan took a look at the other crops—the ones beyond the three main varieties of cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplants—for the first time in a while.

The second batch of corn, string beans, chili peppers, and carrots was just a few days away from harvest.

Especially the corn, which Tong Zhanyan had been paying close attention to—the ears were already over three fingers wide and looked quite sturdy.

The cherry radish and bok choy seeds, which had a low infection rate, had already been harvested, but the others were still only half-grown.

Tong Zhanyan has a specific use for the pumpkins; when he pinched off the shoots and flowers earlier, he left only two fruits per plant to concentrate the nutrients, and they’ve grown relatively well.

What delighted Tong Zhanyan most were the sweet potatoes; they’ve sprouted quite a few leaves behind his back lately. Plus, since he didn’t split the tubers to separate the buds when he planted them, they looked quite lush.

After checking, Tong Zhanyan watered the sweet potatoes and pumpkins separately.

Aside from these, he had already planted the cherry radishes and bok choy in the third plot a couple of days ago, and now he could see dense clusters of sprouts.

As for the other two plots, the one currently being used to feed the chickens was now only half full, and the seeds sown with the Alliance’s low-infection-rate variety were ready to have their plastic sheeting removed.

Tong Zhanyan removed the sheeting from the latter plot and watered it while he was at it.

After finishing up in the fields, Tong Zhanyan headed to school.

He had already drawn up his class schedule, which boiled down to two words: “Elective Courses.”

Crop growth cycles vary; when he’s growing just a few things, he can manage to some extent, but when he’s growing a lot, that’s a whole different story.

Not to mention he has to feed the chickens, pigs, and people every day…

Chu Yi just glanced at the documents and put them away without saying a word.

Tong Zhanyan brought up the matter of the vehicle pass again.

Chu Yi agreed readily.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t end up needing to use a single word of the explanation he’d prepared.

The school was completely on his side, ready to accommodate him.

That left Tong Zhanyan feeling a bit overwhelmed by the attention.

There was only one day left before the start of the semester, and most students had already arrived on campus, including the first-year freshmen who had just passed their entrance exams.

While the sophomores, juniors, and seniors had already met Tong Zhanyan last semester, the freshmen were encountering him up close for the first time. As a result, wherever Tong Zhanyan went, crowds would stop to watch him.

Tong Zhanyan had originally planned to check out the new dorms.

After their sophomore year, they had moved to the dormitory building at the back of campus, and the dorm assignments had been reorganized.

Seeing the commotion, he had no choice but to give up on the idea.

A little later, Tian Xinqing sent him photos of the new dormitory.

He was still sharing a room with Qing Jiyue; Tian Xinqing and Su Yanran were still living across from him, while Ning Langdong was on the other side—and they were the only ones on their floor.

This was likely arranged by the school specifically for safety reasons.

Tong Zhanyan breathed a sigh of relief.

He’d seen the intensity of the livestreamers and those people from last semester; with new roommates and neighbors, trouble was inevitable.

A little later, some of the items he’d ordered online arrived, including the disposable cups.

After dragging them back to the warehouse, Tong Zhanyan pulled up a stool and started punching holes.

The hole punch got very hot, and the disposable cups were thin, so punching through several stacked together went quickly.

Unfortunately, the quantity needed this time was simply too large.

Tong Zhanyan worked nonstop from evening until 10 p.m., and only then did he barely have enough.

Early the next morning, Tong Zhanyan soaked the seeds.

Realizing he wouldn’t be able to finish in a single day, he soaked only one type.

After soaking the seeds, he began filling the pots with soil while waiting.

By the time the soil was ready, the seeds had soaked just enough.

After sorting the seeds and covering them with soil, Tong Zhanyan looked up to find it was already night.

After a good night’s sleep, Tong Zhanyan went to school the next morning to attend the opening ceremony, then continued working in the afternoon.

Soaking the seeds and covering them with plastic sheeting, by the time Tong Zhanyan finished again, it was already dark.

On the first day of the new semester, Tong Zhanyan didn’t go to school because it was time to harvest the eggplants and cucumbers again.

This time, it was just him and Mr. Bai.

Fortunately, there wasn’t much to begin with, so they finished harvesting in the morning.

When Boss Bai dragged the produce to the gate to settle the accounts, the other items Tong Zhanyan had purchased were also delivered.

Tong Zhanyan tossed the items he wouldn’t need right away into the warehouse, then hurried to assemble the chicken coops.

He added two for the chicks and two for the adult chickens.

Once assembled, Tong Zhanyan set them up for the chicks first, then moved on to the adult chicken coop.

He planned to take this opportunity to clean out the previous two.

After placing the new ones inside, Tong Zhanyan was just about to pick up the old ones to throw them away when something clattered against the coop wall.

The sound was faint, but louder than sand or soil.

Tong Zhanyan peered inside.

The moment he saw it clearly, he froze—because it was actually an egg.

Tong Zhanyan immediately set the coop down and retrieved the egg.

The shell had a small dent, but it wasn’t cracked.

Tong Zhanyan looked over at the chickens nearby.

He really wanted to ask who did it—how could they not say a word about something this big?

He had shoveled the droppings just yesterday morning, and it hadn’t been there then.

The flock of chickens had long since grown numb to his habit of rummaging through their nests and paid him no mind.

Tong Zhanyan hurried over to check another chicken coop.

There was no egg in that one.

Tong Zhanyan was a bit disappointed, but he couldn’t hide his excitement.

He could eat the eggs, since they wouldn’t have a noticeable bitter taste—provided, of course, that the infection rate didn’t exceed 50%.

Tong Zhanyan slipped the egg into his pocket, quickly cleaned out the two nests, and hurried back inside.

He turned on the analyzer, scraped some powder off the eggshell, and waited for the results.

At the live stream.

“I’m not seeing things, right? Is that an egg?”

“It is.”

“Those chickens are already four months old. It’s about time.”

“Where are the people who said the senior would kill the chickens?”

“Eggs from chickens raised on crops… wouldn’t eating these send you straight to heaven?”

“Do you think they might have a calming effect to reduce frenzy?”

“Is Senior selling them? I’ll buy some.”

“This is so unreal. I can handle the farming, but Senior actually managed to keep the chickens alive too…”

“Now I really want to check out Senior’s base.”

…

The test results came back quickly.

Tong Zhanyan checked them immediately.

Infection rate: 36%.

When those chicks were bought, the infection rate was around 40%, but the eggs they laid only had a 36% infection rate?

Tong Zhanyan immediately wanted to contact Qing Jiyue.

Before reaching out, he opened a browser and did a quick search.

He was a complete novice when it came to raising chickens.

This kind of situation happens all the time.

Livestock also have infection rates, but unlike crops, they have greater resistance to this thing. So as long as you strictly control their food and care for them meticulously, you can reduce the infection rate to some extent.

Otherwise, these livestock would have mutated and gone extinct long ago.

Tong Zhanyan’s racing heartbeat gradually calmed down, and upon reflection, he couldn’t help but smile.

At least now he wouldn’t have to give the eggs away.

The next moment, Tong Zhanyan began rummaging through the entire room for his old set of pots and pans.

Ever since his failed attempt to cook bok choy last time, he’d tossed the set into a cabinet. He’d brought it with him when he moved, but he couldn’t remember exactly where he’d put it.

Half an hour later, he found it in the storage room.

The induction cooker still worked, and the pot hadn’t rusted.

Tong Zhanyan quickly washed it, added water, and started cooking.

The water boiled quickly, and the eggs bobbed up and down in the boiling water.

Tong Zhanyan couldn’t help but swallow hard.

It was one thing not to think about food, but now that it was right in front of him, hunger immediately overwhelmed him.

In fact, because he hadn’t eaten for so long, the sensation of hunger was even more intense.

Ten minutes later, judging that the time was about right, Tong Zhanyan turned off the heat.

He used a spatula to scoop the eggs into a bowl and quickly poured some cold water into the pot.

After waiting a moment for the surface to cool, Tong Zhanyan took it out.

Just as he was about to eat, Tong Zhanyan didn’t feel as anxious as he had before.

He first poured himself a glass of water, then carried the water and the egg to sit under the eaves, where he gently tapped the shell all the way around along the crack he’d made earlier.

After soaking the freshly boiled egg in cold water, the shell became exceptionally easy to peel, and Tong Zhanyan easily obtained a smooth, intact egg.

Tong Zhanyan took a sniff—it was the distinctive aroma of a fresh egg.

Tong Zhanyan took a small bite.

The freshly boiled egg was still a bit hot, but that didn’t detract from the springy texture of the white or the rich aroma of the yolk.

In that moment, Tong Zhanyan almost burst into tears.

What made him want to cry even more was that once a hen starts laying eggs, she keeps producing them, averaging over two hundred eggs a year. That meant he’d have eggs to eat every day from now on.

And these weren’t like the ones sold outside, fed who knows what kind of synthetic feed—these were normal eggs, raised on crops.

There were over twenty hens in this batch of chickens. Even if their diet wasn’t the best and not every hen laid an egg every day, with their cycles staggered, he was sure to have a steady supply.

Tong Zhanyan decided to give the chickens a special treat tomorrow.

As he pondered this, Tong Zhanyan savored the egg as carefully as possible.

In the live stream.

“Why does it look so delicious?”

“The egg really is delicious. Watching him eat it makes me want some too.”

“Doesn’t he have anorexia? He only took a single bite of that baby bok choy earlier, and he usually drinks the nutrient solution like it’s poison.”

“Maybe it’s because the infection rate of the baby bok choy was too high and they were too bitter?”

“But the nutrient solution isn’t bitter.”

“Never mind the crops—why do the eggs from Senior’s place seem to smell better too…”

…

The next day, the first thing Tong Zhanyan did after waking up was head straight for the chicken coop.

He searched through all four nests but couldn’t find any eggs.

Disappointed, Tong Zhanyan quickly pulled up some cherry radishes and baby bok choy to give them a special treat.

To make it easier for them to eat, Tong Zhanyan even selectively forgot his decision from just yesterday—that he would no longer chop up the baby bok choy and radish leaves.

As long as they lay eggs, what’s wrong with him putting in a little extra effort?

After finishing up, Tong Zhanyan, still not giving up, went back to check the nests again. When he still found nothing, he finally headed off to soak the seeds, glancing back every few steps.

Today, he had to plant the remaining seeds as well.

It was the same routine, except that Tong Zhanyan kept popping into the chicken coop every so often to check.

That took up quite a bit of time.

He didn’t finish covering the seeds with soil until past nine o’clock at night.

Even by then, he hadn’t found another egg.

Chickens usually start laying eggs after about three months; that egg must have been the first egg from the first chicken.

That night, Tong Zhanyan dreamed of eggs.

The next morning, Tong Zhanyan ran to the chicken coop the moment he opened his eyes.

This time, the chickens didn’t let him down; he found one, though it was just one.

He boiled water and cooked the egg, then sat under the eaves, chewing it slowly and savoring every bite.

“Is it really that good?”

“Don’t you think about how many cherry radishes, bok choy, and other vegetables he’s fed them over the past three months? How could it not be good?”

“Now I’m craving one too.”

…

Even though this body had a small stomach, a single egg wasn’t enough to fill Tong Zhanyan’s hunger.

But after eating the egg, Tong Zhanyan genuinely didn’t want to drink any more nutrient solution—it made him feel like the egg in his stomach would be contaminated.

He felt hungry before noon had arrived.

He immediately ran over to rummage through the chicken coop.

He didn’t find any eggs. Perhaps annoyed by his frequent rummaging over the past two days, one of the chickens even pecked him.

The peck actually snapped Tong Zhanyan back to his senses.

With such poor food, it’s already remarkable that they lay eggs at all.

Tong Zhanyan turned to look at his own plot of land.

A bunch of people in the livestream had been raving all day about how well he was growing things, but looking at it now, he felt it was a sight to be ashamed of.

That measly amount wouldn’t even be enough to feed the chickens and get them to lay eggs.

Tong Zhanyan sighed, went to check on the corn, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes, then pulled out a crate and started harvesting.

There weren’t many cucumbers or eggplants left, so he could handle the harvest on his own.

After finishing, Tong Zhanyan contacted Mr. Bai.

Half an hour later, Mr. Bai arrived and hauled the produce to the front gate.

Once this harvest was done, Tong Zhanyan pulled up some of the plants that had stopped bearing fruit and shredded them for compost.

The cherry tomatoes had already been pulled up entirely earlier, and now that many of the eggplants and cucumbers had been sporadically pulled up as well, the entire field looked somewhat messy at first glance.

This made the crops that had previously gone unnoticed—the corn, string beans, chili peppers, and carrots—suddenly stand out.

Especially the corn—with its tall stalks and large leaves, it looked like a vast, lush green expanse at first glance.

“I hadn’t noticed before, but aren’t they growing pretty well?”

“That depends on what you’re comparing them to. Compared to what other people are growing out there, they’re more than twice as good. But compared to the seniors’ own cherry tomatoes, they’re nowhere near as good.”

“I’ve been following the livestreams of other seniors’ crops. Actually, the new seeds the senior bought this time are growing quite well, too. At least, I haven’t seen anyone else whose first batch of seeds has grown better than his.”

Gu Yunyang watched the discussions in the livestream with mixed feelings, because he knew all too well that even with the same first batch of seeds, the seniors’ crops were growing better than theirs.

The viewers didn’t know it, but he was well aware that the seeds his senior had bought later were purchased from their own farming alliance.

In other words, his seniors’ seeds and the crops their farming alliance was currently growing came from the same batch.

Yet even so, the plants he and Old Xu had grown still looked stunted, and their branches weren’t nearly as thick.

He and Old Xu had analyzed this long ago.

Soil, fertilizer—especially manure—could all be factors, but the more significant gap lay in their knowledge base and experience.

Was there too much water? Was there too little fertilizer? What exactly needed to be done at each specific stage? Without an expert by your side to guide you, you simply couldn’t master it without planting dozens or even hundreds of times.

But since most crops mature every three months, forget about hundreds of times—even planting ten times would take two or three years.

For this reason, over a thousand members from the two branches of the Planting Alliance were mobilized. As long as there was a lottery and they were eligible, they would participate, hoping only to find an opportunity to seek advice in person.

They had promised not to disturb them proactively, but if they were selected, that would be a different matter.

At the base.

After noticing that the corn was nearing maturity, Tong Zhanyan had been waiting ever since.

He wasn’t waiting to feed it to the chickens, but rather to let it ripen so he could test it.

This was only the second batch of corn seeds; the infection rate was unlikely to decrease—it might even increase.

He was currently relying on the eggs for food; if the infection rate exceeded 50%, he wouldn’t even dare to use the corn to feed the chickens.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t wait for the corn to fully mature; instead, he first received word that the pigs were ready for sale.

Only after being reminded did Tong Zhanyan realize this was the case, and he hurried over to the pigsty to take a look.

He had only bought two piglets, yet he had built five small pens in the pigsty, each nearly as tall as a person.

The pigsty was completely dry.

Tong Zhanyan went to the warehouse to bring out the feed troughs he’d bought earlier and set them up in the pigsty. He also found a hose to run water over, then gave the entire pigsty a thorough cleaning.

Finally, he tested the large cooking pot he’d bought.

Once he was sure everything was ready, he arranged a delivery time.

The pigs were delivered to his doorstep at 10 a.m. the next morning.

Piglets are typically castrated around twenty days after birth, but Tong Zhanyan had specifically bought ones that were about a month old.

Piglets at this stage weigh only about ten pounds; in Tong Zhanyan’s memory, they were cute with their pale, powdery skin.

But that was in the old world.

As soon as he reached the door, Tong Zhanyan heard the pigs squealing one after another.

The two pigs were kept in separate cages, wearing muzzles to prevent biting. The moment they saw him, they began squealing even more wildly—they looked more like two dogs than pigs.

Tong Zhanyan’s mind was filled with images of the monstrous beasts he’d seen in videos.

In theory, if the infection rate among livestock becomes too high, they mutate and take on the appearance of those monstrous beasts.

Crops also mutate when the infection rate is too high. Tong Zhanyan had seen pictures and videos; the mutated versions bore no resemblance to what he remembered.

Tong Zhanyan had mentally prepared himself for the pig, but when he actually saw it, he couldn’t help but frown.

However, with the situation at hand, there was no turning back, so he went ahead and paid.

After receiving the payment, the seller didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he thoughtfully went over the precautions to take when releasing the animal—essentially, to be careful not to get bitten.

That sent a chill down Tong Zhanyan’s spine.

After loading them into the car to take them back to the pigsty, Tong Zhanyan made a special trip to the warehouse to grab two pairs of thick gloves before carrying the cage into the pen.

Opening the cage from the back, Tong Zhanyan immediately grabbed the creature by the neck from above the moment it poked its head out, then removed the bite guard amid a violent struggle.

Once it was off, Tong Zhanyan let go and hurried out to shut the door.

After being roughed up the whole way, the piglet was furious; the moment it turned around, it grunted at him.

Tong Zhanyan watched from outside for a moment, feeling even more regretful.

Could manure from a pig like this really be used?

After putting the other one in the adjacent pen, Tong Zhanyan returned to the small house with a heavy heart.

The small house was far from the pigsty, so he couldn’t hear the squeals.

He didn’t rush to feed them, intending to let them acclimate to their new environment first.

The crowd in the livestream was even more conflicted than he was.

They were no longer the clueless newcomers they once were. Now that they had more land, running out of fertilizer so the need for pigs was inevitable—but so was the need for more crops to feed them.

“I don’t think we need to rush the expansion. Building up slowly is an option, too.”

“It takes at least three months for a crop to mature. How slow would ‘building up slowly’ really be?”

“But a lot of people can’t even buy crops.”

“That’s exactly why we need to get the land ready as soon as possible. Only then can we grow more crops…”

“But what about the crops we’ll use up in the process…”

…

At noon, Tong Zhanyan went to check on them. Probably because they were tired from squealing, the two piglets had quieted down.

As soon as he approached, they started squealing again.

That night, Tong Zhanyan went to check on them again.

Perhaps they were tired from all the squealing and hungry as well; this time, their voices were much quieter.

Tong Zhanyan still didn’t feed them.

Tong Zhanyan went to bed early.

The next day, he went straight to the pigsty as soon as he got up.

After a day and night of this, they only squealed twice when he entered.

Satisfied that everything was fine, Tong Zhanyan went back.

He pulled the vegetables, washed them, chopped them, and added water. While they were boiling in the pot, Tong Zhanyan chopped up some bok choy and cherry radishes to feed the chickens.

Usually by this time, they would have already started eating.

While feeding them, he took a quick look at the chicken coop.

Previously, they’d laid an egg every two days, but there probably wouldn’t be one today.

Tong Zhanyan hadn’t expected much, but when he looked over, he spotted two right away.

That instantly lifted the gloomy mood he’d been in because of the piglets, and his stomach immediately started growling.

After washing his hands, he quickly put the eggs on to boil.

Both of them.

Cherry radishes, radishes, and bok choy cook quickly. Since the piglets were still small and didn’t require much food, they were ready before the eggs were even done.

Tong Zhanyan didn’t rush to feed them; he focused on boiling the eggs.

Ten minutes later, the eggs were cooked. He carried a bowl of water and sat under the eaves to eat slowly.

It took him over ten minutes to finish the two eggs.

Whether it was because he ate too slowly or simply had a small stomach, those two eggs actually left him feeling full.

That put him in an even better mood.

By then, the cooked pig feed had cooled down almost completely.

Tong Zhanyan loaded it onto the cart and wheeled it over to the pigsty.

Hearing the noise, the two piglets didn’t even have the energy to squeal.

The feed trough was on the side near the aisle, and Tong Zhanyan scooped three large spoonfuls with a plastic ladle.

Fearing he might get bitten, he didn’t dare reach down while pouring.

Hearing the noise, the two piglets immediately moved toward the trough, but just like the chicks, they only sniffed at it and then went quiet.

Tong Zhanyan paid them no mind and left after finishing the feeding.

There were still some eggplants and cucumbers left, so Tong Zhanyan picked them after returning.

After picking them, Tong Zhanyan pulled up a batch of fruitless seedlings to use as compost.

The corn wasn’t ripe yet, and with the other chores finished, Tong Zhanyan suddenly found himself with free time for the first time in a month.

On a whim, he decided to go to school.

It had been several days since the semester started, but aside from the opening ceremony, he hadn’t been there once and didn’t even know where the dormitory building was.

When he arrived, the first afternoon class was about to begin.

Tong Zhanyan had originally thought that if he came early, he might be able to sit in on a class—he wasn’t sure when his classes would start—but the moment he stepped through the school gates, he knew he shouldn’t have come at this time.

Because from the moment he stepped through the gates, countless intense, excited stares came at him from all directions.

It was still manageable near the school gate, but when he reached the vicinity of the sports field—likely because word had spread through the campus network that he had arrived—people from the entire field and the surrounding academic buildings began surging toward him.

“Is that…”

“Yeah, it’s him. It’s definitely him.”

“Aaaah—”

“Do you think I’d get beaten up if I went up to ask him for an autograph right now?”

“The real senior…”

“I heard he’s a sophomore.”

“Senior!”

…

Tong Zhanyan had originally planned to find an opportunity to make a quick escape, but seeing the crowd forming a welcoming corridor, he could only curl the corners of his mouth and try to look elegant.

Perhaps sensing his good-natured disposition, many people were eager to step forward.

Tong Zhanyan’s smile was starting to falter.

“What are you all doing?” a familiar voice rang out.

The crowd that had been approaching all turned to look.

The Devil King’s forehead veins were throbbing, his face brimming with murderous intent. “The bell for the next class has already rung. If you don’t want to study, go straight to the academic affairs office and withdraw—don’t waste time here.”

A chill ran down everyone’s spine, and they quickly scattered.

Although the Devil King wasn’t their teacher, he had been one of the examiners during the entrance exams, so they knew full well just how terrifying he was.

Having been rescued, Tong Zhanyan felt as though the Devil King had never looked so imposing and towering—even his voice seemed to have become more pleasant.