Farming Games are All About Grinding
Chapter 180 - 173: Large-Scale Planting

Chapter 180: Chapter 173: Large-Scale Planting

While Master Shuzi was deep in thought, Han Qiwu took out the icy materials he had collected before: [Crystal Tears], [Snow Amber], [Snowflake Stalactite], [Earth Cold Iron Ingot], and placed them on the counter one by one.

Upon seeing these materials, Master Shuzi’s eyes lit up. He rolled up his sleeves, picked up the materials along with the icy sword embryo, and headed to the back. "Follow me."

"Got it."

Han Qiwu followed him into the forging room, only to see Master Shuzi continue walking without stopping. He reached a switch beside the workshop, pressed it, and revealed a staircase leading to the basement.

"There’s even a basement here?" Han Qiwu looked surprised. Wasn’t Master Shuzi worried that his daily hammering in the room might collapse the staircase?

As they descended, Han Qiwu could feel the temperature around them dropping progressively. However, the grass hat on his head started proving its usefulness—it maintained a perfectly comfortable temperature atop his head despite the chill around him.

The sensation was rather strange, akin to taking a bath at a hot spring when you’re completely naked, but leaving a warm mask pressed against your face.

At the bottom of the stairs, a row of various forging rooms stretched out in front of them.

They stopped at a room labeled [Ice], and Master Shuzi reached out to open the door.

Inside the forging room, every component was crafted from ice.

Even the furnace was made of ice.

The sight was rather surreal—blazing flames roared inside the transparent ice furnace, yet the two elements seemed to coexist harmoniously without interfering with one another.

"You’ll be forging here later. Start by hammering the molten rocks into this size." Master Shuzi handed Han Qiwu a small hammer and gestured to demonstrate the size.

Once he finished explaining, he carried the materials off to the side, preparing while saying, "I plan to use the Earth Cold Iron Ingot as the base material to forge a sword, then strengthen it with the other materials."

"Alright, alright," Han Qiwu nodded eagerly.

As long as money wasn’t brought up, he was happy to forge whatever was needed.

With tasks divided, the two got to work inside the small forging room.

After hammering for about half an hour, Han Qiwu started to faintly grasp some insights, casually incorporating movements from "Seven-Colored Sunshine" into his forging process.

Four hours later.

"Gurgle gurgle."

Han Qiwu’s stomach was growling from hunger, his arms exhausted and trembling, even his palms feeling numb.

"Let’s call it a day. Two more days of work, and we should be good," Master Shuzi said, turning to him. "Go home and rest for now."

"Alright, thank you, Master." Han Qiwu nodded and left the smithy.

Riding his bicycle home, Han Qiwu mulled over his upcoming plans.

The three items he needed to forge had already been scheduled, but their completion or upgrades would still take some time, so they wouldn’t be usable in the short term.

Given the state of his household, with over a hundred seeds needing planting, the sprinkler system was a definite necessity. In the coming days, he’d have to find time to go mining and gather iron and copper ore.

Fortunately, the cable car was now functional on all previously visited levels, making things much easier.

While passing by the Hundred Herbs Seeds Store, Han Qiwu suddenly remembered something.

If he wanted to optimize the sprinkler system’s watering efficiency, it might be better to surround his ’Shennong’-shaped strawberry plot with other crops.

That way, he could maximize the sprinkler’s utility.

Since he had some money on hand now, he decided to buy more seeds.

However, rice couldn’t be planted adjacent to the strawberry patch—it had to grow in a water-filled paddy field.

So he bought rapeseed flower seeds!

Recalling the empty spaces around the ’Shennong’ pattern, and leaving room for sprinkler placement, Han Qiwu purchased 30 rapeseed flower seeds.

Time to head home.

Back home, Han Qiwu immediately ran into the kitchen to steam three scylla crabs. After a minute, he thought it might not be enough, so he grabbed another pot and steamed a tiger spot fish as well.

Fresh ingredients only needed the simplest cooking methods.

Ten minutes later, Han Qiwu was sitting in his yard, gleefully enjoying the freshest coastal delicacies.

No surprise—the first scylla crab he cracked open was exactly what he expected, packed full of crab roe, tasting incredibly luscious.

After devouring the crab roe, Han Qiwu leisurely peeled the crab meat and savored it slowly.

The crab meat was mildly sweet and tender yet firm—not dry at all, making it an utterly delightful experience.

After eating two crabs plain, Han Qiwu dipped the meat in vinegar for the third one, and it tasted excellent as well.

Satisfying.

After finishing the scylla crabs, Han Qiwu brought out the tiger spot fish and quickly dug into it.

Unlike crab meat, the tiger spot fish’s texture was crisp and had a uniquely pleasurable mouthfeel. Since it was steamed, the flavor was fresh and rich. Each piece was a generous chunk with few bones, completely free of any fishy smell.

Delicious beyond words.

After finishing his seafood feast, Han Qiwu felt energized again. Grabbing a hoe, he headed into the yard to begin preparing for planting.

Looking at the flourishing little vegetable plot, Han Qiwu felt a great sense of accomplishment as he planted the 40 rapeseed flower seeds adjacent to the ’Shennong’-shaped strawberry patch.

No doubt about it—it actually looked quite attractive, almost like the patterned layouts you’d find at a fancy park.

Though he had to admit, his farm’s sophistication far surpassed those flimsy plastic one-time-use setups they’d use in parks.

After finishing the rapeseed flowers, he ate a bit to replenish his energy, then planted some spinach.

Once that was done, he started preparing the ground for rice planting.

The rice seeds looked almost like seedlings, surrounded by a protective membrane.

Standing on the freshly tilled plot, Han Qiwu carefully placed the rice seeds beneath his feet.

[Water field environment not yet formed]

[Would you like to transform the current plot into a water field?]

"Yes."

[Please fill the plot with freshwater]

Upon hearing the prompt, the plot in front of him naturally sank into a small basin-like shape.

Han Qiwu pondered for a moment—if he were to use a watering can to fill each plot one at a time, it would take forever. The prompt mentioned "fill," not "water."

Let’s try using tap water.

Han Qiwu rode his bike into town, bought several meters of plastic water tubing from the hardware store, and installed it onto the house’s faucet. Then, he easily and efficiently filled the basin-shaped plot with water.

After filling it, Han Qiwu stood on a dry plot nearby and experimentally tossed some rice seeds into the watery field.

[Water field environment not yet formed]

Alright then.

Looks like he’d need to stand in the water to plant them.

Wearing flip-flops, Han Qiwu stood in the water and tossed the rice seeds beneath his feet.

Success.

The rice seedlings planted in the water were a vibrant green, gently swaying in the breeze.

Using this same method, Han Qiwu planted the rest of the rice seeds.

"Finally done."

Han Qiwu plopped onto a slightly creaking recliner, letting himself drift off to sleep under the warm sun and gentle breeze.