Chapter 18
The newly constructed composting facility now serves the dual purpose of a public restroom and a garbage dump, helping to mitigate the decline in the territory's sanitation. Once the technologies for the bathhouse and sewer are unlocked in the future, the hygiene level can be maintained at a consistently high standard.
Moreover, sanitation is a crucial part of environmental attractiveness. After three days of clearing the surrounding trees and stones, the environmental appeal of the territory has increased from 3% to 8%.
The development of any territory is inextricably linked to its population. In two more game days, on the fifth day of the territory's establishment, the second wave of refugees will arrive. The level of population attraction will determine the number of newcomers.
Upgrading from a level 0 village to a level 1 village is relatively easy for Ye Bai, but the most challenging requirement is to reach a population of 25.
Ye Bai plans to upgrade the territory to a level 1 village by the time the third wave of refugees arrives on the tenth day.
Typically, upgrading to a level 1 village occurs around the 20th or 30th day, when the fourth and fifth waves of refugees arrive. Starting from the second month of the territory's establishment, the frequency of refugee arrivals will stabilize at once a month, with the number depending on the territory's level and population attraction.
It is precisely due to the accumulation of various advantages that Ye Bai can achieve this.
On the night of the third day, as usual, Ye Bai worked late, allocating all her manpower to the farmland near the composting facility.
By the fourth day, a usable plot of farmland was successfully cultivated.
Ye Bai assigned one villager to work at the composting facility, two villagers to gather berries and mushrooms, and two others to continue collecting resources, while the remaining three villagers, including herself, went to sow seeds.
When she initially unlocked the Planting technology, she received 100 seeds, which were randomly generated "unidentified seeds." The villagers responsible for gathering also had a chance to find more in the wild. Without a Botanist profession, one could only discover what crops would grow after planting.
Thus, farming isn't about reaping a bountiful harvest on the first sowing; it requires a preliminary identification and selection of seeds. Only after the second batch of planting can the goal of mass food production truly be achieved.
While Ye Bai was halfway through her planting, she suddenly received a system notification:
【Source Energy Crystal Mine (Beginner) has been completed】
Ye Bai was overjoyed. With the source energy crystals, the speed of territory construction could be exponentially increased!
She immediately assigned a villager to work at the source energy crystal mine and checked the mine's building information.
【Source Energy Crystal Mine (Beginner)】
Building Level: Beginner
Mining Efficiency: 10%
Output Quality: Poor - Average
Current Workers: Ka Li, Ho Mu Si
Although the mining efficiency was dismal and the output quality low, it was more than sufficient in the early stages, far superior to firewood or coal.
Ye Bai opened her talent page. Over the past few days, she had been using Energy Protection on the villagers and had leveled up to level 12, saving a talent point.
Seeing the source energy crystal mine completed, Ye Bai immediately allocated that talent point to the 【Skilled Hands】 talent.
A familiar surge of bloodline energy washed over her, and images of crafting items and wielding weapons flooded her mind. Ye Bai instinctively moved her hands, feeling them become exceptionally nimble, both hands exhibiting the same agility and coordination.
Having experienced the "Roll" skill manifesting in reality before, Ye Bai no longer dismissed this sensation as mere game effects.
【Skilled Hands】
Passive Ability: Gathering and crafting efficiency +10%; hands coordinate in sync.
Upon activating the talent, a series of system notifications appeared:
【You have mastered the crafting method for beginner tools】
【You have learned to use more weapons】
【You have mastered the beginner embedding method】
The passive effects were one thing; while the Skilled Hands talent lacked an active skill like Roll, it compensated in other ways. Firstly, it allowed for the direct crafting of beginner tools. Secondly, mastering the use of more weapons meant that Ye Bai could employ a wider variety of attack forms with basic weapons, rather than just simple basic attacks.
Shields could now use the 【Raise Hand Block】 to deflect attacks, while swords, axes, and wooden sticks could utilize 【Charged Heavy Strike】.
Talents also have hierarchical connections. In the next level of talents unlocked after Skilled Hands, there is a 【Weapon Mastery】 talent, which, when activated, allows mastery of more weapon techniques, including important combat skills like 【Shield Counter】 and 【Combo】.
However, at this stage, the most crucial aspect for Ye Bai was the beginner embedding method.
【Beginner Embedding】 is commonly known as "punching holes" in items and embedding various gems to grant them additional effects.
Not only can weapons and equipment be embedded, but tools can be as well.
This is the wonder of the fantasy world; when Ye Bai mentioned an internal combustion engine hoe, she wasn't joking.
In a technological world, to harness the kinetic energy of an internal combustion engine, a corresponding industrial foundation is required to create complex machinery. However, in the myriad realms, this lengthy step can be bypassed.
Ye Bai immediately went to the material pile and picked up two stones and a piece of wood.
【Would you like to craft a 'Stone Axe'? This will consume 5 stamina points.】
【Yes】
【Would you like to perform 'Beginner Embedding' on the 'Stone Axe'? This will consume 10 stamina points.】
【Yes】
With the Skilled Hands talent activated, Ye Bai could craft axes, pickaxes, and hoes without needing a blacksmith shop, but the stamina cost was significant; without Ye Bai's experience reserves, one couldn't afford it.
After crafting the stone axe, Ye Bai took a recently mined source energy crystal and embedded it into the newly made stone axe, instantly changing its attributes.
【Stone Axe】
Level: Average
Attack Power: 2
Work Efficiency: 100% (+500%)
Durability: 100%
Embedding: Source Energy Crystal (Poor)
A standard quality source energy crystal could power a golem; embedding it into such a basic tool was like using a cannon to swat a mosquito. Even the lowest quality source energy crystal increased the tool's work efficiency fivefold.
As for the effect of this fivefold work efficiency...
Ye Bai approached a fully grown tree and swung the axe.
“Clang... Crash!” With just one swing, the tree fell.
Previously, chopping down such a tree would cost 4 stamina points and reduce durability by 2%, but now, Ye Bai's stamina only dropped by 1 point, and the stone axe's durability decreased by just 0.5%. The time saved from fewer swings made a significant difference.
This was a solid win!
Ye Bai immediately took out the remaining tools from the Tree of Creation. After days of hard work, there were fewer than ten new tools left.
The current output of source energy crystals was three pieces per day, with quality between poor and average. Ye Bai prioritized embedding the recently collected average quality source energy crystal into the pickaxe, replacing it for Ka Li and another villager, Ho Mu Si, instantly boosting their collection efficiency to eight pieces per day.
That afternoon, Ye Bai stationed herself at the mine entrance, embedding a source energy crystal into each pickaxe as they were mined.
After dinner that night, she rallied the entire village's labor force to "work overtime" at the source energy crystal mine.
By the morning of the fifth day, Ye Bai had completely exhausted her supply of firestones, but at the temporary material pile, there were neatly arranged thirty tools embedded with source energy crystals.
Along with these thirty tools came the first batch of new refugees joining the territory.
【Eight refugees wish to join your territory. Do you agree?】
【Yes】
Before long, the eight new villagers arrived at the territory. “Greetings, Lord.”
“Welcome! Your timing couldn't be better.”
Ye Bai immediately went to greet them, enthusiastically leading them to the temporary material pile.
“Come, come, come! Let me show you a treasure…”
---
Chapter 14
The addition of eight new villagers alleviated Ye Bai's urgent labor shortage.
She assigned a total of four people to the source energy crystal mine, maintaining a mining efficiency of about fifteen pieces per day. The fields were undergoing their first batch of breeding, and one villager was sufficient for care. The number of villagers gathering food increased from one to five, as the population had nearly doubled, leading to a greater demand for food.
The remaining labor force was divided, with two left to build the blacksmith shop, while the rest were assigned to gather wood, stone, and ore.
Based on the number of the second wave of refugees, Ye Bai was confident that her plan to upgrade the village on the tenth day was sound. Therefore, the focus of the territory's work over the next five days would be to clear ground resources and construct the blacksmith shop and residential houses.
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