Volume One, Chapter 11: The Pond

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With a smile on his face, Lin Yi led Zhang Guoxing and his daughter toward the place where Huang Tian was building a house, his steps light and brisk. From a distance, Huang Tian and Huang Xiaorong could be seen working feverishly, completely absorbed in their tasks.

Huang Tian skillfully stacked the pieces of wood and stone in neat rows, while Huang Xiaorong swiftly handed them over to him. Their cooperation was seamless, as though they shared a tacit understanding. As time passed, the house that had initially been no more than a rough outline gradually took shape, its general form now clearly visible.

At that moment, Huang Tian happened to look up and immediately spotted Lin Yi and the others approaching in the distance. He hurriedly set down his work and tugged at Huang Xiaorong, signaling for her to come and greet them. The two quickly stopped what they were doing and jogged over to Lin Yi.

Once they had come to a halt, Huang Tian first bowed to Lin Yi, then curiously turned his gaze toward Zhang Guoxing and his daughter behind him. Although puzzled, he asked respectfully, “Your Majesty, these two are…?”

Seeing Huang Tian holding Huang Xiaorong’s hand, Lin Yi’s lips curled upward as he stared at him with amused interest.

“Well, well, well. Huang Tian, you’re something else. You two are holding hands already, and in such a short time.”

After hearing that, Huang Tian put on a simple, sheepish expression and scratched his head awkwardly.

“Heh heh, Your Majesty, it’s not like that. You must have seen wrong.”

Huang Xiaorong, meanwhile, was rather bashful. She fidgeted with her fingers, her face flushed red.

Just then, Zhang Xin broke free from Zhang Guoxing’s warm embrace like a nimble little rabbit. Pumping her short but sturdy legs, she dashed over to Huang Xiaorong and tightly clasped one of her fingers.

At that moment, Zhang Xin looked like a tiny grown-up. She lifted her tender, adorable face and spoke in a childish yet deliberately stern voice.

“Big Brother, just look at you! All you know how to do is bully this pretty big sister! And you too, big, hulking uncle—you saw someone bullying her, yet you didn’t even step forward to help!”

When Huang Tian heard those innocent, unrestrained words, his expression instantly shifted like a chameleon, turning by turns green and white. He could only bitterly lament inwardly: Good heavens, how could I dare? His Majesty is my great matchmaker!

Zhang Guoxing hurriedly raised a hand and wiped away the cold sweat that did not actually exist on his forehead. With an apologetic and embarrassed expression, he said, “Your Majesty, you two, she’s only a child. She doesn’t understand anything. Please don’t take it to heart.”

Lin Yi paid no attention to Zhang Guoxing’s words. Instead, he stared at Zhang Xin with great interest, a mischievous smile spreading across his face.

“Oh, really? Little girl, which of your eyes saw me bullying her? You’re so young, yet instead of learning something proper, you’ve already picked up the bad habit of spreading rumors. That won’t do. If you keep this up, you might never grow up!”

Frightened by Lin Yi’s teasing threat, Zhang Xin immediately grew timid and hurried behind Huang Xiaorong, as though she had found the safest shelter in the world.

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Even so, she could not resist peeking out with her tiny head. Blinking her bright, limpid eyes, she pouted and muttered, “Hmph! I don’t want to stay little forever. Big Brother, you’re so mean! I’m never playing with you again!”

At that moment, Zhang Guoxing felt as though a hundred horses were stampeding through his heart.

“Little ancestor, please say a little less!”

Lin Yi naturally noticed Zhang Guoxing’s expression.

“All right, all right. I’m done teasing you. Get acquainted with one another. Huang Xiaorong, there’s a place to bathe in my castle. Take the little girl there to wash up.”

Then his tone suddenly changed. Turning toward everyone, Lin Yi wore a stern expression.

“Tonight, everyone is to go up onto the city walls. Monsters will attack tomorrow. Whether we survive will depend on how well we prepare today. Think of some countermeasures yourselves. I want to hear them tonight.”

Seeing the solemn expressions on the four faces before him, Lin Yi nodded in satisfaction. Although he could not see Zhang Guoxing’s attributes, he could tell that Zhang Guoxing’s potential was greater than Huang Tian’s. After all, Huang Tian’s preset limitations were fixed: even if he reached the highest level, his strength would never attain the Gold tier. At most, he could reach Silver.

[Strength levels, from lowest to highest: Common, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Epic, Rare, Legendary, Perfect, Peerless…]

“All right, there’s no need to be overly nervous. I have a feeling the monsters coming won’t be very strong, and we should be able to handle them. I’ll return to my room first.”

Lin Yi was already impatient to see what was inside the chest. He did not want Zhang Guoxing to witness a treasure suddenly appearing in his hands. The system’s rules meant that Zhang Guoxing could not see the chest, but that did not necessarily mean he would be unable to see whatever came out of it. Lin Yi did not dare take that chance.

After Lin Yi left, the four exchanged a few simple words. Huang Xiaorong then took Zhang Xin to wash up, leaving Huang Tian and Zhang Guoxing behind.

Frowning, Zhang Guoxing said, “Brother Huang, His Majesty said that monsters will attack tomorrow. Do you believe him?”

Although he did not know how Lin Yi had learned of it, Huang Tian had been summoned by Lin Yi and naturally trusted him. Thus, he replied, “Brother Zhang, His Majesty cannot be wrong. As for how he came to know of it, that is not something we can speculate about. We need only do our own duties properly.”

“And one more thing, Brother Zhang. You must remember that a subject is a subject, and a king is a king. Since you chose to join us, you must always remember your place. His Majesty is not someone who cannot distinguish right from wrong. You should think carefully about your daughter.”

With that, Huang Tian patted Zhang Guoxing on the shoulder and returned to his work.

Hearing Huang Tian’s words, Zhang Guoxing felt a lingering sense of fear. He murmured, “I really was foolish. I am a subject, and he is the king. I actually dared to question him. I was practically asking for death.”

Having come to his senses, Zhang Guoxing walked over to Huang Tian and called out loudly, “Thank you for the reminder, Brother Huang!”

The corners of Huang Tian’s mouth lifted slightly, revealing a faint smile.

“It was nothing more than a trivial matter. From now on, we’re practically family. Come on, give me a hand and help me get that piece of wood up here.”

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Hearing this, Zhang Guoxing replied, “All right!”

At that moment, Lin Yi, inside his room, knew nothing of what had happened. He never could have imagined that on this very day, Huang Tian had recruited a capable aide for his future self.

Elsewhere, Lin Yi stood intently before the bronze treasure chest and began chanting an incantation.

“Spirits of heaven, spirits of earth, Supreme Lord Lao, reveal your power and open this chest for me!”

As soon as he finished speaking, the chest slowly opened. Three beams of light shot out from within and transformed in midair into three glowing orbs. Two were white, while the other shimmered with a green radiance.

At the sight of this, Lin Yi’s spirits immediately lifted.

Ordinarily, the tier of an item produced by a treasure chest would be only one level higher than the chest itself—and the odds of that happening were practically infinitesimal, so close to zero as to be negligible. Yet this chest had genuinely brought him a pleasant surprise.

[For reference, treasure chests have nine tiers, from lowest to highest: Common, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Epic, Rare, and Legendary. Their corresponding colors are white, yellow, green, blue, orange, red, purple, silver, and gold.]

Looking closely, Lin Yi saw the two white orbs gradually dissipate. Inside them were ten long loaves of bread and four bottles of drinking water.

Lin Yi was overjoyed. He clearly remembered that the protection period would end tonight, while the seeds they had planted only recently had barely begun to sprout.

Food was desperately scarce at present. With the bread and water, they could at least ease the immediate crisis for a while.

As for the green orb, once its radiance faded, what appeared before him was a card depicting a pond two meters in diameter.

Lin Yi was even more delighted. Unable to contain himself, he said, “Good! Good! Good!”

With this pond, the problem of watering and irrigating their vegetable garden would be solved.