The Post-Apocalyptic Big Farm Owner

Chapter 37: The Benefits

of Jade Just as Li Ba was thinking about finding an opportunity to get to know that muscular guy named Shi Lei, the man had already appeared at the street food stall outside, sitting right next to Feng Xiaoyang. The muscular guy was dressed the same as before—wearing a black tank top and jeans, his two pectoral muscles on full display, looking incredibly strong. “Hey, buddy, let me introduce you to someone,” Feng Xiaoyang called out from a distance. When Li Ba walked over, the muscular guy stood up upon seeing him, laughing heartily and saying, “I was wondering who Xiao Feng was talking about—turns out it’s you, buddy!” The guy had a great memory; he’d clearly recognized Li Ba as the sucker who’d gone to the landlady’s place to watch the show a few nights earlier. Judging by his tone, he seemed to be on very good terms with Feng Xiaoyang. Li Ba had been hoping to get to know him anyway, and now it had come without any effort at all. He handed over a “Great China” cigarette and introduced himself: “I’m Li Ba. I’ve long admired Brother Shi’s reputation—please look out for me in the future.” “Your dad?” Both the muscle-bound guy and Feng Xiaoyang froze for a moment when they first heard Li Ba’s name. Knowing his name was prone to causing misunderstandings, Li Ba scratched his head sheepishly and repeated, “My surname is Li—as in ‘dawn’—and my given name is Ba, as in ‘Little Overlord’!” “Whoa! Dude, that name is genius—you’ll be able to take advantage of people wherever you go!” The muscular guy laughed heartily, held out his hand, and introduced himself: “Shi Lei. Everyone in the scene calls me Shitou.” He must have been a fitness trainer before the apocalypse—his muscles were bulging and well-defined, and he really did look a bit like a stone statue. After they sat down, Li Ba warmly welcomed everyone. There were only three of them at the table: him, Shitou Feng Xiaoyang. Their spread was the most lavish—in addition to the hot pot wafting the rich aroma of meat, Zhou Yan had specially prepared a few stir-fried side dishes to serve. “Come on, let’s raise a glass!” It was some fine liquor he’d just gotten his hands on today—perfect for entertaining guests. Li Ba raised his glass and downed it in one gulp. His bold gesture won over Shitou and Feng Xiaoyang, who also raised their glasses and drank in one go. Nothing brings people closer than a meal shared over drinks. After a few rounds, the three of them were chatting and joking as if they were old friends who hadn’t seen each other in years. “Old Li, I heard from Xiao Feng… that your supply store is about to open and you need a few security guards. I wonder if you’ve filled all the positions yet?” Shitou slung his arm around Li Ba’s shoulder and asked with a grin. The moment he opened his mouth, Li Ba knew exactly what he was after. For Li Ba, spending a few grain coupons to befriend Shitou—an Evolver—and his mercenary team was absolutely worth it. “Bro, if any of your guys are up for it, I’ll take as many as you’ve got!” Li Ba replied without hesitation. Just like Shitou Feng Xiaoyang’s group, the Giant Rock Guyan Mercenary Corps also had several injured or disabled members who had long been supported by the team—a significant financial burden. At the same time, those disabled members felt guilty for becoming a burden to their brothers and had been in low spirits ever since. Now that Li Ba could solve this problem for him, it was exactly what he’d been hoping for. “Old Li, I’ve got five brothers under my command. They may be disabled, but they’re still tough as nails—they’ll be absolutely perfect as security guards for your supply store!” Shitou said, his face beaming with gratitude. He also promised that these brothers would bring their own equipment. Furthermore, he pounded his chest and guaranteed that if they encountered any trouble they couldn’t handle, the Guyan Mercenary Corps would step in to back them up. Feng Xiaoyang made the same pledge. For Li Ba, that was exactly what he wanted to hear. “Come on, here’s to a successful partnership!” Li Ba raised his glass. The three of them drained their drinks in one gulp. As they chatted, Li Ba learned more about Shitou and Feng Xiaoyang’s backgrounds. Before the apocalypse, both of them had trained in martial arts. The difference was that Shitou practiced Muay Thai, while Feng Xiaoyang studied the traditional Chinese martial art of Yongchunquan at a martial arts school. “My dad’s a real character—he’s crazy about martial arts. Since he was too old to learn himself, he dumped all his dreams on me.” Feng Xiaoyang chuckled and said, “You can tell just from my name—Feng Xiaoyang… When I was born, if my mom hadn’t objected, my eccentric dad almost named me Feng Qingyang—after that master from the Hua Mountain Sword Sect. No way!” Although he spoke in a joking tone, Li Ba noticed tears glistening in the corners of his eyes. He didn’t need to ask to know that his parents had likely perished in the disaster. “Xiao Feng, try to take things in stride,” Shitou said, patting Feng Xiaoyang on the shoulder and offering a few words of comfort. The atmosphere grew a bit heavy. As the host, Li Ba quickly changed the subject, asking the two for information about zombies and Evolvers. Since the apocalypse began, Li Ba had always been at the very bottom of the social ladder and didn’t know much about zombies or Evolvers. So he seized the opportunity to ask them for guidance. “The settlement authorities have a comprehensive illustrated guide on this subject. I have a copy; I’ll have someone bring it to you later!” Shitou said with a smile. It was impossible to explain everything in a few words, so it would be better to give him the book and let Li Ba figure it out for himself. Afterward, the three of them resumed drinking and feasting. It wasn’t until late at night, when they were all completely drunk, that they went their separate ways to rest. Tonight’s meal cost Li Ba several hundred jin in grain coupons. But it was absolutely worth it! Befriending Shitou and Feng Xiaoyang—these two Evolvers—as well as their team, held extraordinary significance for Li Ba. It could be said that he had already begun to establish his own network of connections within the settlement. Should he ever run into trouble, he was confident that these two Evolvers and their team would stand by his side, serving as a powerful support system. Back at the Villa, after taking a shower and letting off some of the alcohol fumes, Li Ba decided to pay Zhou Yan a visit. He had no ulterior motives; he’d acquired a heart-shaped jade pendant that day—one with a beautiful luster—and planned to give it to Zhou Yan to strengthen their bond and, while he was at it, gauge her mood. After all, Zhou Yan had been so distraught the night before that he was still a bit concerned. He flipped his hand to produce the jewelry box. Upon opening it, Li Ba’s expression froze in surprise. Inside the box, every piece of gold and silver jewelry was accounted for—except for that heart-shaped jade pendant. Items stored in the bracelet’s spatial pocket could never go missing. Of that, Li Ba was certain. He paused for a moment, then focused his mind, and his consciousness immediately entered the bracelet’s spatial pocket. Whoosh! His consciousness arrived. The next moment, an indescribable look of delight spread across Li Ba’s face. First, the patch of land in front of the Tower: the soil had completely turned dark brown and regained its vitality. This came as no surprise to Li Ba. When he’d left that morning, he’d killed quite a few zombies in that small village, obtaining a total of six crystal cores, all of which he’d placed in the bracelet’s storage space—and they’d been absorbed by the land in front of the Tower. Now, the soil that had absorbed the crystal nuclei had completely returned to its original state—it even looked a bit more fertile. What truly surprised Li Ba, however, was the change that had occurred in the stone trough at the center of the plot. Originally, only a small amount of Spirit Spring remained, but now the trough was completely full. “Could this be…” The joy surging through him was beyond words. After standing there in a daze for three or four seconds, Li Ba grabbed the jewelry box and ran out the door, heading straight for Zhou Yan’s house. “Yan Yan, Yan Yan…” Li Ba shouted loudly from outside the door. Zhou Yan came out quickly. Upon seeing it was Li Ba, she shot him a disapproving glance, as if reproaching him for shouting so late at night right outside her door—it made a terrible impression on anyone who might see him. As she opened the door, Li Ba blurted out, “Do you have any jewelry made of jade or something like that?” Zhou Yan was a bit confused by his question but nodded. “I have two pieces. What for?” “Give them to me! Hurry up and give them to me! I need them urgently!” Li Ba said impatiently, shoving the jewelry box into Zhou Yan’s hands as he spoke. “These are for you.” Although she didn’t quite understand, Zhou Yan didn’t ask any further questions and turned to walk into the Villa. Li Ba followed her. Soon, Zhou Yan came downstairs from the upper floor, holding two pieces of jade jewelry. One was a jade bracelet, and the other was a pair of jadeite earrings. “These jade earrings are very valuable—they cost me 70,000 or 80,000 back then… Fatso, be careful not to break them.” As Zhou Yan handed the jade bracelet and jadeite earrings to Li Ba, she didn’t forget to give him a few words of caution. “Got it!” After taking them, Li Ba didn’t linger; he turned on his heel and left. Back home, he locked the door. Li Ba first scooped out some of the spiritual spring water from the stone trough and poured it into buckets. After filling three large buckets, less than half of the spiritual spring water remained in the trough. At that moment, his consciousness entered the space, bringing the jade bracelet Zhou Yan had given him along with it. A strange scene unfolded: the moment the jade bracelet entered the space, it seemed to be drawn in by some force and flew straight into the stone trough. Li Ba’s consciousness watched clearly from the sidelines as the jade bracelet sank to the bottom of the trough and, astonishingly, began to melt like a candle. Within no more than ten or so seconds, the jade bracelet vanished, and crystal-clear spring water began gushing from the walls of the stone trough. “Just as I thought!” Li Ba was overjoyed. Just as he had surmised, the crystal core could fertilize the land within the bracelet’s spatial pocket, while the jade could replenish the spiritual spring in the stone trough. This meant that as long as he had enough crystal cores and jade, he would never again have to worry about barren soil or the spiritual spring running dry. When he dropped a jade bracelet into the stone trough, the spiritual spring gushed out a full hundred jin. Although it didn’t fully replenish the spiritual spring he’d just removed, Li Ba was still overjoyed. Next, he dropped the pair of jade earrings into the stone trough. As the jade—no larger than his little finger—melted away, the spring water gushed forth from the trough’s walls. Within just a few seconds, the trough was overflowing, and the spiritual spring began to flow out. Li Ba hurriedly fetched buckets from outside and filled two large ones. Afterward, the spring water continued to gush from the walls of the stone trough; only after it overflowed once more did the gushing finally cease. At that moment, Li Ba’s consciousness returned. Spotting five full buckets of spiritual spring water arranged in the room, he couldn’t stop grinning from ear to ear. “There’s no doubt that jade can replenish the spiritual spring… At the same time, depending on the quality of the jade, the effect it has on generating the spiritual spring varies.” Of the two jade ornaments Zhou Yan had given him, if Li Ba was not mistaken, the jade bracelet was made of ordinary Hotan jade—a mediocre material with a market value of only a few thousand yuan. The jadeite earrings, however, were top-grade, worth at least ten to twenty times more than the jade bracelet. When the two pieces of jade jewelry were placed in the stone trough, the results were also different. Although the jadeite earrings were small, the spiritual spring they generated was several times greater than that produced by the jade bracelet. “Jadeite… jade… and crystal nuclei!” Li Ba smiled, narrowing his eyes.