Farming Games are All About Grinding

Ten minutes later, Grandpa Chen pulled out an identical box and handed Han Qiwu the book inside.

When Han Qiwu looked down this time, he noticed a faint glow emanating from the book, with four bold characters on the cover:

[Eight-Step Cicada]

Han Qiwu flipped through the book briefly and discovered that, just like the Strengthening Technique manual, the exercises needed to be performed exactly as illustrated.

"Eight-Step Cicada... I think this one's supposed to be for quick travel, right? No wonder it says 'secure an unbeatable position.' If you can't win, you can always run." Han Qiwu felt secretly delighted.

My movement speed is about to get a boost!

Grandpa Chen is always so generous!

Next time, I need to ask Big Brother Tu Tou for the villagers' birthdays and start giving more gifts—that's the proper way to do things!

"Take the book back and study it. If you understand it, keep it; if not, just return it," Grandpa Chen said wistfully. "Go ahead and get busy. Seeing this book reminded me of my own grandfather."

Not wanting to intrude, Han Qiwu thanked him and left Grandpa Chen's house.

A surprise gain.

Feeling amazing.

Let's try practicing this at lunchtime today.

If it doesn't work out, I'll just return the book to Grandpa Chen.

Glancing at the map, Han Qiwu headed toward the blacksmith shop.

This time, he had specially brought plenty of fibers along, intending to craft a conveyor belt himself.

The constant clanking noise every morning was driving him crazy.

Arriving at the blacksmith shop's entrance, Han Qiwu was ready. He pulled out six Frozen Crystal Orbs and held them in his hand.

A solid currency.

"Here again? What are you looking to make this time?" Master Shuzi set down the bamboo scroll he was reading and looked up to ask.

Just as Han Qiwu had anticipated, upon seeing the orbs, a smile crept onto Master Shuzi's face.

Han Qiwu placed the orbs on the counter. "I want to upgrade my pickaxe, buy a feed box, and use your forge to craft a conveyor belt. I'll give you three orbs and keep the other three for myself."

"Sounds good. What kind of ingots are you planning to use this time?" Master Shuzi became intrigued, lightly tapping one of the Frozen Crystal Orbs while asking out of curiosity.

"Flame Iron Ingots will do—the purer, the better," Han Qiwu replied, placing his Flame Iron Ingots and pickaxe on the counter. These high-quality ingots were crafted from Silver-Star-grade Flame Iron Ore.

Master Shuzi nodded approvingly. "Now that's more like it. Forging isn't just about piling up materials; you have to consider potential conflicts between them."

As he spoke, three of the Frozen Crystal Orbs shattered with a crisp sound.

[Clay]×1

[Coal]×2

The items extracted this time were quite practical.

After paying 10,000 gold, a prompt appeared before Han Qiwu:

[Pickaxe upgrade in progress. Please return in 48 hours to collect.]

After wrapping up the pickaxe-related matters, Han Qiwu followed Master Shuzi into the forge and picked a suitable hammer to begin crafting according to the ideas swirling in his mind.

During the forging process, whenever he didn't understand something, he immediately consulted Master Shuzi. His forging skills improved rapidly.

An hour later, Han Qiwu stood, his face flushed from the heat, staring excitedly at the bizarre contraption he had just crafted:

[Flame Iron Ore Conveyor Device]

[Crafted by: Han Qiwu]

[Effect: Automatically collects Flame Iron Ore at designated locations. Has a low chance to fuse two pieces of Flame Iron Ore into Silver-Star-grade ore.]

[Note: No comments.]

Han Qiwu glanced at the note and smirked.

Not even going to acknowledge you!

This crafting process had gone perfectly—iron ore for the conveyor mechanism, fibers for cushioning, and wood for the support structure.

The finished conveyor device performed exactly as Han Qiwu imagined.

Amazing!

Once he completed the crafting, Han Qiwu felt a bit hungry. After saying goodbye to Master Shuzi, he brought the feed box home.

Summer was nearing, and the sun overhead was blazing.

Upon reaching home, Han Qiwu quickly grabbed the ice and milk he had stashed away, along with some strawberries, and whipped up a strawberry shaved ice for cooling off.

The texture of the ice combined with the sweet and tangy strawberries refreshed him with every bite.

"I should be able to grow some watermelons to snack on during summer."

After finishing his shaved ice, Han Qiwu went to the spot in the yard where Flame Iron Ore typically fell every morning and set up the [Flame Iron Ore Conveyor Device].

All set.

"What should I eat for lunch?" Han Qiwu wondered aloud, knife in hand, as he wandered along the Hospital River, glancing around.

Which poor soul of a creature was about to make its way onto the dining table?

The fish in the area seemed to sense the murderous aura emanating from the riverbank. They quietly swam away in an effort to minimize their presence.

After a little while, twenty-something blue crayfish emerged in single file from the transparent water barriers, looking innocent. Trailing behind them was their queen—a particularly large blue female crayfish.

"Aw, a lonely shrimp all by herself here. Time to give you some peace." Han Qiwu reached out, grabbed the female blue crayfish, and dispatched her with a single cut before she could "thank him."

Meanwhile, two tiny hermit crabs popped their heads out of the transparent water barriers nearby. They were hideous-looking—each carrying a random seashell they had scavenged as a makeshift home.

Not appetizing at all.

Grow bigger and I'll toss you in the selling crate when the time comes.

Fresh seafood is all about its "freshness."

Han Qiwu quickly cleaned the blue crayfish and tossed it in the steaming basket for a high-heat cook.

While it steamed, he made good use of the time, grabbing the feed box and walking into the Heavenly Ascension Pavilion to drop it inside.

He spent too much money buying it—he couldn't let the livestock starve.

The cashierhorn goats sprang nimbly down the steep cliffs as soon as they saw the feed box. Their agility made Han Qiwu suspect they might secretly be wearing harnesses.

"Don't rush to eat just yet—I need to organize your rooms first. Separating the two goats prevents fights, while the sheep need to stay farther from the entrance to avoid shedding everywhere," Han Qiwu explained, efficiently sorting their accommodations.

While feeding the animals, Han Qiwu reached out to touch their adorable horns. The goat horns were straight and felt a bit rough to the touch. Although the sheep's and the ram's horns were still small, they already showed a slight curve.

"Eat up, eat up. I'll grab some food myself." Han Qiwu chuckled and exited Heavenly Ascension Pavilion.

Back in the kitchen, the blue crayfish's striking blue coloration had disappeared, replaced by the familiar orange-red hue of cooked lobsters.

Han Qiwu gently picked out the largest chunk of meat from the crayfish's body using two chopsticks.

Taking a bite.

The flesh was tender yet springy—a delightful contradiction in texture concentrated in one morsel.

This was unlike any regular lobster.

The blue crayfish truly stood out!

The subtle natural saltiness in the blue crayfish further enhanced the flavor of the meat. Before long, Han Qiwu had polished off half of it.

"This is way too delicious. Hopefully, those smaller blue crayfish grow quickly," Han Qiwu thought as he prepared a simple tangy dipping sauce. Dipping and savoring each bite, he felt utterly satisfied.

"Good thing I didn't make any rice or bread. Lobster alone is enough to fill me up!" Han Qiwu chuckled to himself mid-meal.

What a cheeky comment.

After he finished eating, Han Qiwu basked in the refreshing coolness brought by the ancient glacier stones while opening [Eight-Step Cicada] to begin studying the manual.

Learning is my joy!