Chapter 229: Eve of the Crossing |
After leaving Home, Qin Ziwen gathered manpower. Because of the special nature of the spirit-absorbing fungus, he didn’t bring too many people.
He only brought the Home recruiters.
This time their tools were complete. They went to the mountain cave, took out shovels, iron buckets, iron mattocks, and other tools.
After a flurry of work, they shoveled away all the spirit-absorbing fungus growing in this area.
Not only the fungus, but also the mineral mud beneath it, which filled several large boxes.
Because they didn’t know whether the spirit-absorbing fungus could only grow and reproduce on this type of mineral mud, he shoveled several carts of the mud.
Considering efficiency was too slow, Qin Ziwen simply set up a node here.
He transported the mineral mud directly through the node.
This mineral mud could become food for the Giant Rock Dragon, and as an edible mineral mud, he subconsciously felt it might be something valuable.
This was an ordinary building card obtained from the Altar during this period.
Since the great sandstorm, Qin Ziwen’s focus had been on the Oasis.
But the Altar originally discovered south of the Great Rift Valley had not been abandoned; someone went daily to retrieve cards.
According to the Qin Alliance’s internal rules and reward system, some cards were distributed as rewards.
Soon the warehouse was piled high with thick mineral mud. Some clean mineral mud and some mineral mud covered with spirit-absorbing fungus were placed in opposite corners of the warehouse.
They planned to use this arrangement to test whether the spirit-absorbing fungus could spread through the air.
Until its safety was confirmed, the spirit-absorbing fungus was strictly guarded, and Qian Muzhen took samples for testing, examining its medicinal properties and effects.
Before long, another day passed.
Only one day remained until the third cross-dimensional countdown.
The atmosphere in the residential complex became restless and tense.
Even after having one lucid crossing before, the thought of experiencing it again still unsettled many people.
Qian Muzhen had someone brew a large pot of mint water and distributed it.
Qin Ziwu carried a large bowl of water to the Giant Beast Breeding Center.
Since returning yesterday, his elder brother had basically stayed here these past two days.
Pushing the door open, the first floor of the Giant Beast Breeding Center came into view.
There were all kinds of miniature terrains here; he went up to the second floor.
On the skylight above, holes were gathered above the "beds" responsible for incubation.
His brother was lying on one of the incubation platforms, cradling that hatched Tarbosaurus cub.
The cub noticed him, peeled one eye open to look, then closed its big eye again.
Two days apart, the cub seemed to have fattened up a whole notch.
Qin Ziwu walked over. "Brother, drink some mint water. Doctor Qian says it can refresh the mind, ease stomach discomfort, and reduce anxiety."
"Where did you see me anxious?" Qin Ziwen closed his eyes. Sunlight shone on the square area where he lay, warm and cozy like an afternoon nap.
Qin Ziwu, curious, put his hand into the light. The warm sensation traveled along the back of his hand.
He finally understood why his brother wanted to lie here.
It was really comfortable — he felt like he might be "incubated" himself.
"Brother, if you’re tired lie a little longer. Remember to come down later for dinner. We’re having roasted meat for lunch," Qin Ziwu called.
"Got it." Qin Ziwen waved a hand.
The little Black One in his arms nudged and shifted into a more comfortable position.
Holding the little Black One, Qin Ziwen felt complicated emotions. On the one hand, it was his partner who had helped him break through to the third superhuman tier; when it grew up it would certainly be an important fighting force for Home.
On the other hand, as its size grew, how to feed such a giant beast would become an important problem.
Once fully adult, its daily food intake might be measured in tons.
If nearby food was abundant, it could hunt on its own and be self-sufficient.
If not, Home would have to raise it.
After lunch, in the afternoon, Qin Ziwen received a report from Jia Liangcai.
As of now, the Qin Alliance had a total of 704 people, not including recruiters and members recruited within Home — this count only included residents of the complex.
Among them, 584 were young and middle-aged adults aged 18–40.
There were 364 male young adults and 220 female young adults.
Having such a high ratio owed much to the large number of students.
"These young adults mostly have hunting experience. After screening and selecting the best, 83 are sturdy and well-built. Five have extraordinary innate talent and strength beyond ordinary people. Two possess innate divine strength, immense power."
After Jia Liangcai finished reporting, Qin Ziwen quietly ran a scale through his mind.
The sturdy and well-built probably corresponded to humans marked as three-star.
The innately talented likely referred to four-star physiques.
The final two should be Qin Ziwu and Cao Biansheng.
He and Du Yu were not included in this rating label.
People from the modern era already had sufficient nutrition and decent foundations.
After two months of hardship in the wilderness, combined with training boosts from the Martial Training Ground, as long as meat nutrition kept pace, those who had maintained exercise foundations could naturally break through the three-star standard.
Those who usually lacked exercise and had poor physical foundations might need more time to reach three-star.
He thought for a moment and considered that for a mature, healthy alliance, not only the Core Hunting Team should be capable of hunting large prey; other teams in the alliance should also be able to hunt large beasts.
Here, large prey was measured by adult woolly mammoths, giants heavier than five tons.
"At present, keep the members of the Core Hunting Team unchanged for now. Divide the remaining members into an appropriate number of hunting teams so they can gain hunting capability."
"Yes, Master."
"Yes, Master." Jia Liangcai acknowledged the order, but did not leave immediately. He quietly lifted his eyes to observe Qin Ziwen’s expression, then cautiously spoke, "But... regarding the leaders of these new teams, does Master have anyone in mind?"
Qin Ziwen’s gaze suddenly sharpened, falling on Jia Liangcai. "What, did someone come to you seeking favoritism?"
Jia Liangcai hurriedly bowed and explained, "Your subordinate would not dare! No one has ever approached your subordinate. Liangcai only wishes to shoulder some of Master’s burdens."
Qin Ziwen’s expression softened slightly. "Speak."
Jia Liangcai said, "In the late days of previous dynasties, warlords abounded. To ensure the army’s loyalty, military commanders used every means. They heavily favored clan members, recruited local allies, adopted sworn sons, and promoted confidants. At the same time, masters honored scholars and shared hardships to spread renown.
Then, with lavish rewards, they tied soldiers’ wealth and honor to the master alone, so that local troops knew only the master, not the court."
"So you mean I should lavish rewards on them?"
Jia Liangcai replied, "Not quite. Tempt them with benefits, do not give them outright!"
Qin Ziwen stared at him for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "Luckily you didn't live in the modern age, otherwise you’d definitely be a capitalist. You have a professional term for this technique: drawing a big pie."
Jia Liangcai raised his eyebrows, a little puzzled.
This was a political truth he had painstakingly studied in books, something he had dug out from ancient texts.
Since ancient times, high officials and warlords used this method.
Lure people with benefits and steer their hearts.
But human desire is insatiable; they must never be satisfied outright, because satisfaction breeds even larger desires.
Give a little at a time so they understand who all rewards come from.
What’s wrong with that?
Qin Ziwen said, "Any method must be applied according to the place. Your set works perfectly on ancient figures of similar status to you because they were raised with the belief in ruling the world. But applying it to the people in the residential complex is inappropriate. There’s an idiom for this: adapt measures to local conditions. Use different methods for different people."
Jia Liangcai fell silent, then slowly nodded, "I see, Liangcai has learned."
"However, you are partly correct. Authority must flex. Call the other members of the Core Hunting Team here first."