Chapter 77 Opening Up a New Industry <TOC> Chapter 79 The Dam Project
Translator: SumTLMan
Early the next morning, the Bone Man Sun Zhonglai came running to report.
“Chairman, the situation in Mushroom Forest was good last month. Two new Black Hand Mushrooms have been born, and the production of edible mushrooms is steadily increasing.”
“Although we still don’t know what’s in the Claw Boar feces that causes the mycelium of the cave mushrooms to mutate, we’ve confirmed that Monster Lure Mushrooms prefer low-temperature environments.”
The Bone Man, wearing an ear-flap cotton hat, said happily: “This winter, they’ve grown rapidly. The number has exceeded 7,000, and they are mushrooms that fully mature in winter.”
He took out a sample from the box he was carrying.
The originally clustered, thin Monster Lure Mushrooms had now become much denser and broader. The round mushroom caps had turned pink, looking very beautiful.
Zhou Yi was delighted.
The progress in Mushroom Forest was impressive.
“It’s just that we now have a new problem.”
Sun Zhonglai said: “The Black Hand Mushroom buttons have discovered that Monster Lure Mushrooms are extremely dependent on Claw Boar feces and need this specific fertilizer to grow. Otherwise, they will gradually revert to cave mushrooms.”
“We suspect that Monster Lure Mushrooms are a parasitic hybrid resulting from cave mushrooms and another kind of mycelium through Claw Boar feces. Just like a mule born from a horse and a donkey.”
Zhou Yi understood: “You need more Claw Boar feces?”
“That’s not a big problem. In the northern regions where Claw Boars live, there’s a large amount of natural feces produced. Now, Nemo’s Sand Rats are helping us collect them everywhere; not a single dropping can escape their pursuit.”
The Bone Man adjusted his hat with his hand bones: “The real difficulty is that once Monster Lure Mushrooms fully mature, they wilt within a few days. We collected the mushrooms and sent them to Jade Emerald City for drying, but after losing water, their effectiveness diminished greatly—perhaps only one-tenth of their original potency.”
“We currently haven’t found a method to lock in the effects of Monster Lure Mushrooms, so we can only let them grow in the soil. Gong Zheng says this involves the field of herbal medicine, and the methods he knows are of no use.”
The Bone Man’s jaw moved: “Chairman, could we ask Doctor Da Vinci to come take a look? Because the efficacy of this thing diminishes too quickly.”
Zhou Yi felt a headache coming on.
Da Vinci was still on Snake Island treating illnesses and leveling up.
However, given the immense value of Monster Lure Mushrooms, he said: “I’ll have him come back from Snake Island to take a look at your place.”
“Great, that’s wonderful.”
The Bone Man breathed a sigh of relief and said emotionally: “Such a precious species—it would be a pity to waste this winter’s maturity period.”
Sun Zhonglai’s arrival also brought a new batch of Exploding Mushrooms. Jade Emerald City converted them all into just over 5,000 Light Seeds.
The deposit zone beneath Mushroom Forest continued to produce steadily.
Zhou Yi left Jade Emerald City and came to the beach by the Dead Sea.
A small Light Print ship was stranded on the ground.
At this time, the one-eyed Yuan Tong was teaching sea operations.
“Remember, if someone falls into the Dead Sea, there’s no saving them.”
“But as long as you operate correctly, there won’t be any problems. This is my experience from more than ten years at sea.”
He raised a grass rope in his hand: “First, you need to find two sturdy ropes. If you don’t have a sufficiently strong waist buckle, tie it around your waist like this.”
Yuan Tong deftly wrapped the rope around his waist, tying the other end to the base of the mast on the deck.
He continued: “Two ropes—if one breaks, the other can still save you. Remember, don’t be lazy and tie only one. This ensures that if you accidentally slip off the deck or the side of the ship, you can still be pulled back.”
“Next is the use of the net sand scoop. This is very simple——”
Zhou Yi watched from a distance for a while.
Being technically inclined, Yuan Tong had strict control over the details of operational procedures.
For example, each rope needed to have marked dimensions and distances. After tying it around the waist, the length left behind should be between three to four arm lengths—neither too long nor too short.
When using the net scoop, you must explore and scoop in the same direction, and there are precise timing requirements.
He even marked positions on the deck with charcoal, so that these novices could stand directly in the corresponding positions—avoiding interference and maximizing the use of space on the ship.
Yuan Tong even provided some basic knowledge about the Dead Sea, genuinely wanting to teach the townspeople.
Many people came to learn the skills, surrounding the ship and eagerly asking common novice questions.
The topic they were most interested in was still the pay.
“Really 6,000 mushrooms a month?”
“If we say 6,000, it’s 6,000. The Chairman says how much it is, and that’s how much it is. Our Wasteland Development Company doesn’t lack this bit.”
“Can we get paid in mushrooms for working just one day?”
“We only hire long-term, day and night shifts, two shifts. The entire salvage operation requires training and a certain amount of experience to do well.”
“I’ll do it!”
“You said 6,000, right? I can start working today!”
These unemployed youths flocked to sign up.
Soon, Yuan Tong began practical operations with experienced hands leading the new ones, piloting the ship to the Dead Sea to collect Light Sand.
A competitive salary is the best catalyst, immediately boosting everyone’s enthusiasm.
Their previous habit of being active at night and sleeping during the day was also changed in the face of new demands.
During the winter days, more and more new humans dared to step out of their houses.
Zhou Yi looked up at the sky.
At this time, the sky was bright with no snow falling, but the cold wind was still biting.
Since Red Falcon left, it had been a whole day without any news.
“My signal will be disconnected for a while, but it’s no big deal. Wait for my message.”
If it weren’t for receiving the drone’s message yesterday, Zhou Yi would have suspected that it had met with an accident.
Near dusk, Red Falcon finally sent a message.
Text popped up on the remote controller.
“Recently, Energy Storage City activated a shielding system, causing machine lifeforms without local Machine Stack Service ports to have their signals blocked nearby, making it difficult to send and receive messages.
After identity verification, the registration process can be completed. This time I came as a company representative, so the initial procedures are relatively cumbersome. They need to send a letter from this side to Recursion City for confirmation to obtain local credit synchronization.
I consulted the Mineral Department of Energy Storage City, and they are willing to purchase our Light Sand. As long as a single batch reaches one ton, they will send a transport specialist to come purchase and transport the raw materials.”
“The purchase price is divided into two tiers: one for fine sand and one for coarse sand. Our situation is coarse sand, and the price is 5 copper per 5 grams.”
Zhou Yi recalled.
Previously, Yuan Tong said they sold Light Sand to the city at a price of 4 copper. It seems that the purchasing price from machine cities is higher.
“The selling price of energy packs is the same; all are 10 units per Light Seed. According to the situation of two ships operating continuously, we need to purchase enough for the four months of winter, which is 120 energy packs in total, amounting to 12 Light Seeds. I asked a friend to help bring them back.
He used to be in the rescue team, later switched to Energy Storage City, and now works in surveying.”
Zhou Yi was a bit surprised.
Red Falcon actually had contacts over there.
At dawn, the drone leisurely returned.
Arriving together with Red Falcon was a black aircraft.
That aircraft had an overall shape like an elongated letter “V,” making Zhou Yi think of the famous B-2 stealth bomber. It was two sizes larger than Red Falcon, and from the look of the cockpit, it could probably fit a person.
Red Falcon introduced: “This is ‘Lin,’ a member of the reconnaissance team from Energy Storage City.”
The large-bodied Lin transmitted a loud and clear voice: “Hello, Chairman Zhou. Nice to meet you. I’m Lin. Since you are an associate of Captain Red Falcon, that makes us friends as well. Welcome to visit Energy Storage City.”
Red Falcon corrected: “I have been logged out of the rescue team sequence and should no longer use that title.”
Lin said: “It’s just a personal address, not violating relevant regulations.”
Only now did Zhou Yi realize.
Red Falcon was actually a captain of the rescue team in the past and seemed to be Lin’s superior?
The problem is, Red Falcon’s body is very small, giving the impression of an ordinary person or low-ranking soldier.
In terms of appearance, Lin looked more like the superior.
Logically, those with stronger bodies should be more capable of successful rescues.
Could it be that Red Falcon’s body was very strong in the past?
Zhou Yi asked.
“No, Captain Red Falcon has always had this body.”
Lin explained: “The ranking in the rescue team depends solely on mission achievements.”
“No matter how good the physical test data is, if you don’t dare to risk high failure rates and the danger of damage to rescue those in distress, what’s the use?”
Zhou Yi agreed.
“Let’s chat later; for now, let’s attend to official business.”
Lin said: “Chairman Zhou, I need to survey the environment and output here first.”
Chapter 77 Opening Up a New Industry <TOC> Chapter 79 The Dam Project