LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 471 - 277_1
Chapter 471: Chapter 277_1
This was the second farm barrier Ange had ever seen. It was roughly the same size and almost identically structured, giving him a feeling of coming home. He had been itching to plant something for a long time.
Seeing that the Minotaur had turned the fields into a mess, with sparse crops showing signs of malnutrition, he felt uneasy.
Years of cultivation had led to a loss of soil nutrients, soil compaction and degeneration, resulting in decreasing crop yields.
The Minotaur aunt was chewing on a sweet beet, and unleashed her grievances when her energy was at its peak, “We really can’t help it. This place is a closed world, filled with stones and nothing else. We’re lucky just to survive. Thanks to the occasional fish swimming in the well, or else we would have starved a long time ago.”
Negris reviewed the Minotaurs’ conditions and couldn’t help but show sympathy: “Indeed, the conditions are extremely harsh. It’s a miracle that you guys managed to survive.”
Not only did they manage to survive, but they also managed to maintain their population. Originally, there were more than 200 Minotaurs, and even after a millennium, a hundred or so remained. This was definitely a miracle.
“What hardship are you talking about? If I hadn’t scammed them with food and fertilizers, they would have starved a long time ago,” the Lord of Terror, who was tightly bound by the Lifesaving Rope, retorted unwillingly.
The shouts of the Lord of Terror suddenly reminded Negris of something, “Ah, right, when you took payment, you accepted not only Soul Crystals but also ten bags of grains. Could those grains be for them? Do you have such a kind heart? What can ten bags of grains do?”
The Lord of Terror grumbled: “Did I have a choice? Have you ever seen a bunch of cows surrounding your stone, constantly mooing? Day and night, in shifts. If I don’t feed them, they won’t stop. This place is enclosed and vast, they moo, and the entire world hears. They even threatened me, saying they’ll poo on my stele if I don’t feed them.”
Probably no Devil King had had such a repressive experience as the Lord of Terror. After the space magma was released and the overall temperature of the space decreased, it lost its ability to rebirth by utilizing the earth’s veins and could only huddle inside the Earth Monument. If the Minotaurs really pooed on its monument, it could do nothing.
When the Minotaurs were starving, they could do anything. And even if it came down to a fight, it would not be able to defeat over 200 Minotaurs without its powers. What choice did it have but to pay for peace with grain?
“Ten bags of grains won’t do much, but I couldn’t give too much. If I did, they’d only take more and I’d end up feeding them even more. As long as they fish a bit more, work harder to plant things, they wouldn’t starve. So every once in a while, I give them ten bags of grains. Enough to keep them from starving but not enough to cause trouble. That’s enough.”
The Lord of Terror spoke sullenly, his words full of a deep understanding of the nature of cows, worthy of a demon that toys with souls.
“I was originally planning on getting the recipe for Insect Ash so they could fertilize and grow their own food, and free me from this chore. But keeping insects turned out to be worse than keeping cows, so I gave up,” the Lord of Terror sighed helplessly.
Negris just realized, so that’s why it had gotten involved with those pest controllers.
Regardless, this abandoned Divine Bull Tribe that had been left here had been lucky to meet Ange before their extinction. Taking care of an extra hundred or two hundred Minotaurs was not a problem for Ange.
Besides, the agriculture technology of the Divine Bull Tribe was still quite good. Given that they have been in this enclosed environment for a thousand years, it was already quite impressive that things were still growing in the soil.
Ange did not start planting right away but began by tilling the land. He brought back some hardened magma, and Little Angel crushed it one by one with the Earth Hammer and sprinkled it evenly over the ground.
He also moved over leftover fish bones from the Minotaur’s meals and crushed them into powder. The fish bones were clearly saved by the Minotaur on purpose, probably for fertilizing the soil.
There was no ash from plants or wood, but Ange sprinkled some insect ash on top, along with bird droppings. Then Little Zombie quickly turned the soil, mixing these well-proportioned fertilizers into the soil.
Farming is a profound science, and in order to master it, intelligent life forms have developed systems like Druids, Harvest Goddesses, and the Divine Bull Tribe.
How much fertilizer to apply, when to apply fertilizer, when to add more, how different crops require different amounts of nutrients, and how to adjust accordingly. These were all dedicated to producing more food faster and better.
Although the Minotaurs were of the Divine Bull Tribe, being trapped in this closed-off place, they naturally didn’t have the resources or conditions to delve into these studies. As time passed, the knowledge passed down from their ancestors gradually faded away, becoming outdated.
They stood there laughing, watching Ange in anticipation of a theater. But once Ange got started, they soon fell silent: This man, he really knows how to farm, even better than us Minotaurs…
Though they sort of understood tilling and fertilizing, they became confused when Ange moved on to planting and light supplementing techniques. But when the Instant Death Halo stepped in, they were simply aghast.
In a short span of eight hours, the Fire Dragon Fruits, red and vibrant as flames, bloomed and bore fruit. They hung on the fleshy vines, gently emitting the vibrations of the fire element.
“Hissss, did you really manage to grow Fire Dragon Fruits?” Negris asked in astonishment.
Just as its name suggested, Fire Dragon Fruit was a fire elemental plant. It was fiery red all over, resembling a flame, and egg-shaped. Those who didn’t know better thought it was a dragon’s egg, hence it was named Fire Dragon Fruit.