Chapter 119: High-Energy Soil Production (Patreon)

Chapter 119: High-Energy Soil Production

During the day, on the fifth floor of an office building in Yungu Business District.

The once pristine office area now carried the scent of earth.

Outside the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, a gray sky released a fine drizzle.

Most of the ground below was submerged in stagnant water, enveloped in silence.

Inside the building, however, the atmosphere was bustling and vibrant.

Under Professor Ye's direction, a large open-plan office area on the fifth floor had been completely transformed.

Heavy curtains were removed to allow as much of the weak natural light as possible to filter in.

Discarded office desks were pieced together to create multi-level, tiered shelving.

Plastic storage bins, metal buckets, and even drawers were repurposed into various planting containers.

Professor Ye, dressed in worn-out clothes, was bent over inspecting a shallow tray made from a repurposed plastic file box.

He held a handful of seeds, carefully scattering them evenly across a damp paper towel.

"Remember, the key to growing Sprouts is to avoid light and maintain moisture," he explained, looking up at the few ordinary survivors assisting him.

"Spray water two to three times a day. You can use our daily water supply, water condensed by an Awakened, or purified rainwater. Just keep the soil moist—not too much, or it will rot and smell."

"Once the seeds sprout white shoots, they're ready."

Although Han Ning's acceleration skill was available, Professor Ye adhered to the principle of teaching a man to fish rather than giving him a fish, instructing them in the complete planting method.

"Understood," the survivors nodded repeatedly, mimicking Professor Ye as they carefully sowed seeds and sprayed water in their own trays.

Nearby, Lin Qianqian, who was still resting, was filling cut-open large water bottle planters with a mixture of wood shavings, dried leaves, and a small amount of plant ash.

This substrate was intended as soil for leafy vegetables.

Beside her, Chairman Wu was drilling holes in rows of organized plastic buckets to ensure proper drainage and aeration.

Little Xu Yinyin had also joined the work team.

She crouched beside a plastic flowerpot filled with Nutrient Soil specially prepared for her by Professor Ye.

The little girl wore an expression of utmost seriousness as she placed a few round spinach seeds into a small hole in the soil. Then, imitating the adults, she gently brushed fine soil over the hole with her fingertips, carefully covering it.

"All buried. Can't press too hard—Grandpa Ye says seeds need to breathe—" she murmured softly, as if talking to the seeds or reminding herself.

After finishing, she copied Professor Ye's gesture, lightly patting the soil surface with the back of her small hand.

"My spinach babies will grow so, so tall!"

On the other side, rows of homemade dark-colored Fungal Bags were neatly stacked in a relatively shaded corner.

These Fungal Bags were made by Professor Ye himself.

Their surfaces were covered with a thin, damp cloth to maintain humidity.

"Fungal Bags are sensitive to light, so leave them here and don't disturb them."

Professor Ye came over to inspect and instructed the person responsible for watching the fungal bags, "When you see the bag surface turn white and grow cotton-like fluff, that means the mycelium is growing—it's a good sign."

"Once the white covers the entire surface, remove the damp cloth but maintain humidity. You'll soon see small mushrooms sprouting."

Under Professor Ye's guidance, the entire planting team worked in orderly fashion.

"Grandpa Ye, when will my spinach babies sprout?" Xu Yinyin's childlike inquiry broke the focused working atmosphere.

Professor Ye straightened up and smiled, "Soon, soon. With Yinyin taking such good care of them, they'll definitely sprout quickly."

Xu Yinyin nodded vigorously, her expression turning serious, "When they sprout, I'll tell Grandpa Ye first!"

While Professor Ye and the others were busy, Han Ning wasn't idle either.

"Lao Xu, let's begin." Han Ning looked at the collected materials spread on the ground.

"Right away, boss!"

Following Han Ning's instructions, Xu Ming built a simple temporary stove in a relatively open corner of the office building using several flat cement slabs and bricks.

In the center of the stove, some dry kindling was placed.

Above the stove rested a large metal soup bucket with slightly deformed edges.

Drawing from his knowledge of the High-Energy Soil Refinement Technique, Han Ning began systematically organizing the materials.

He collected Jade Potatoes, Crimson Mist Tomatoes, some plant tissue from the Mysterious Algae Fruit, a portion of plant ash, a small amount of wood chips, most of the semi-finished compost, and sufficient powder ground from monster bones and flesh—all of which he poured into the soup bucket.

Then, he lifted a bucket of relatively clean water and slowly poured it in.

The water mixed with the other materials, forming a thick, multi-colored paste-like mixture.

"Light the fire," Han Ning instructed.

Xu Ming immediately ignited the kindling in the stove.

Orange-red flames rose, scorching the bottom of the metal bucket.

As the mixture inside heated up, it began emitting an indescribable odor.

Han Ning took out the Energy Stone from his pocket and tossed it in.

Then, with a thought, several vines that had become rigid like whisks inserted themselves into the mixture and began stirring.

While stirring, he channeled the natural Spiritual Power within him.

An emerald green glow seeped from the vines into the thick paste.

With the energy infusion and continuous stirring and heating, the mixture in the bucket began to change.

Its texture became thicker and smoother.

The originally incompatible materials seemed to begin preliminary fusion under the catalysis of natural energy.

The entire floor was filled with this peculiar smell.

It was like medieval witches brewing strange poisons.

"Boss, is this what you call 'High-Energy Soil'?"

Xu Ming kept adding fuel while occasionally checking the contents of the bucket,

asking with great curiosity.

The thick paste in the bucket hardly resembled the soft soil he imagined.

"Yes, but it's still semi-finished. Just watch."

Gradually, the energy within the Energy Stone began reacting with the paste.

The paste in the soup bucket, which had merely been boiling from the heat, started churning violently.

Visible deep blue ripples spread rapidly from where the Energy Stone had sunk, merging with the dark green paste in the bucket.

White steam billowed from the barrel like boiling water vapor, carrying a faint energy fluctuation.

After an unknown length of time, the energy fluctuation finally began to weaken.

As the steam dissipated, a large mass of material remained inside the barrel—now only about two-thirds of its original volume, with a uniform and fine texture, flowing with a reddish-brown oily luster, resembling dough.

"Hmm... aside from the color difference, the texture already looks quite similar to the High-Energy Soil in the image."

Watching the barrel of slurry completely transform into a dough-like substance, Han Ning wiped the nonexistent sweat from his forehead and let out a long sigh of relief.

Controlling the consumption of Vines was nothing to him, but the strange odor emitted during the material mixing process had thoroughly overwhelmed him.