Chapter 109: Construction

It was a delightful shopping spree, especially when Yu Sheng discovered that many things were cheaper than he had imagined.

Now it was time for who-knew-which round of "storing" goods. Yu Sheng brought his two followers to a corner where no one was watching, then had Hu Li reveal her tail and stuff the newly bought chicks into it.

Watching Hu Li grab one chick after another and shove them into her tail, her eyes practically sparkling with gold, Yu Sheng felt a subtle twinge. Ai Lin, currently draped over his arm, was already beyond words: "You actually bought them... You're really planning to raise chickens in the valley!"

"Why not? It's huge, no worries about losing them or having them snatched by wild dogs or anything. Just scatter them all over the mountains—free-range chickens!" Yu Sheng couldn't help but envision a bright future. "Let me tell you, I couldn't find any piglets, otherwise..."

"Otherwise you'd raise free-range pigs too, huh? You sure think ahead. But these chicks are this small—you're just going to set them loose?" Ai Lin sighed. "And that place—the grass has only just started growing. Are you sure you can raise animals there?"

"...So it's a future plan, okay? For now, I'll keep the chicks in a cage," Yu Sheng said, scratching his hair awkwardly. "I've been studying how to accelerate the valley's ecosystem, and I'll also find a couple of books to learn about growing vegetables and raising chickens."

Ai Lin was stunned. "...So you don't actually know how?!"

Yu Sheng put on a straight face as if it were only natural. "Duh, do I look like someone who would? I only have extensive theoretical knowledge and imaginative experience!"

"And you're still this excited," Ai Lin said, her tone especially helpless. "With the way you were planning so vigorously, I thought you were an expert at this. You looked like you were going to turn that Twilight Valley into some exotic farmhouse resort."

"You don't understand," Yu Sheng said, looking mysteriously at the little puppet dangling on his arm. "Farming is a way of life."

"I don't understand, because puppets don't need to eat," Ai Lin secretly rolled her eyes when she saw no one was around. "The Mother of Puppets never taught us this kind of knowledge, and I've never heard of any puppet studying farming when we sisters share our experiences remotely."

"See, that's exactly why I say your educational method—preschool graduation plus correspondence courses from kindergarten—is unreliable..."

"I'll bite your head off! Is that any way to describe a lady?!"

Meanwhile, Hu Li had just stuffed the last chick into her tail. She looked up at Yu Sheng and Ai Lin, who were bickering as usual, hesitated, then carefully asked, "Benefactor, can I raise them?"

Yu Sheng was taken aback. "Do you know how?"

Hu Li nodded vigorously. "I do! School taught me!"

Yu Sheng felt something was off, but seeing the fox girl's eyes sparkling, he quickly nodded. "Then it's yours."

Ai Lin was shocked. "...You're letting a fox raise chickens?!"

Yu Sheng finally realized what was wrong and quickly reminded the great fox yokai in front of him: "Wait until they're grown before eating them!"

Hu Li's eyes were already squinting with joy, and it was hard to tell if she had taken it to heart. She just nodded happily. "Mm-hmm~"

At that moment, Yu Sheng felt like he might never see these chicks grow up and run freely in the valley...

Now he just hoped that when Hu Li ate them, she would at least remember to cook them thoroughly.

"Shopping's done. Let's skip the building materials market for now," Yu Sheng said, checking the shopping list he had prepared before leaving. After confirming there was nothing missing, he let out a long breath, then looked down at the puppet on his arm. "What about you? How's the body at home?"

"Doing great! Even though we've come this far, there's no sign of 'disconnection' at all," Ai Lin immediately replied. "I'm trying to have that body walk around the room a little."

As she spoke, she moved her arm slightly, propped herself up on Yu Sheng's arm, and wiggled her limbs a little. "At this distance, there's no change in control for either body. I've gotten a bit better at handling them separately. I can basically adapt to and distinguish between two simultaneous fields of vision. But I still can't cut loose here—I'll need to go to that valley for further testing."

"Alright, let's head home first. We'll pack up and then go to the valley."

"How are we getting there? Call a cab?" Ai Lin raised her head, her tone subtle. "We shouldn't 'coincidentally' run into a Special Operations Bureau ride this time, should we..."

A faint smile appeared on Yu Sheng's face. "Going back? 'Open the door.' You two wait a moment. I'll notify the Special Operations Bureau first."

As he spoke, he pulled out his phone. But the moment he unlocked it, he raised his brows in slight surprise.

"The Border Communications app has a software update notification," he said, instinctively hitting the confirm button. "What could this thing possibly update... Done already?"

The software update finished almost instantly. Yu Sheng even suspected for a moment that something was wrong with his phone. Then he saw the Border Communications app restart by itself and go back to the main screen.

"It doesn't look any different... Huh?"

Yu Sheng had barely muttered half a sentence when he noticed a new button at the bottom right of the main interface.

Ai Lin immediately craned her neck in curiosity. "What, what, what? Let me see, let me see! What was updated?"

Yu Sheng pointed at the button with a blank expression.

"...'One-Click Door Opening Notification'?" The little puppet froze for a moment, then looked up at Yu Sheng. "An exclusive update just for you?"

"Anyway, I doubt anyone else's Border Communications has this feature," Yu Sheng said, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Looks like that call to Bai Lijing at midnight made quite an impression."

As he spoke, he casually pressed the one-click notification button, then turned around and opened the door to 66 Wutong Road.

Once home, he first had Hu Li dump out the pile of things from her tail and sort them by category. He put the rice, flour, oil, and other staples into the kitchen, then carried Ai Lin up to the second floor to check on her other body in the bedroom.

He had to admit, even saying that sequence sounded like a grammar error.

Ai Lin was pacing in circles on the master bedroom floor, looking quite pleased with herself.

She didn't look anything like earlier that morning, when both bodies had been awake at the same time and she couldn't even stand steady.

"I think I'm starting to get the hang of controlling two bodies at once," both Ai Lins said in unison (the one on his shoulder and the one on the floor). "And I think there might be an even easier way than direct control. The 'secondary body' shell doesn't seem to need very direct or detailed commands to operate. Watch—"

As she spoke, the Ai Lin pacing on the floor suddenly stopped, and her expression went blank. But the puppet that seemed to have "lost the connection" didn't fall over; after a moment of blankness, it wobbled and continued walking toward Yu Sheng.

"Okay, okay, I get it. But that's kind of creepy." Yu Sheng watched the red-eyed puppet with a cursed-doll vibe staggering stiffly toward him, and a dozen horror movie scenes flashed through his mind. He quickly waved his hand to get her to snap out of it, then bent down, picked up the little puppet, and placed it on his other shoulder.

He carried one Ai Lin on each shoulder as he went downstairs. When he reached the living room, he saw Hu Li crouching by the dining table. The fox girl had a silly grin on her face, two chicks pecking at a handful of millet on the table in front of her, looking utterly unaware of any danger.

The fox yokai was even chatting with the chicks: "Eat up, grow fast. I have big plans for you... Poached, or salt-baked."

Yu Sheng paused, then figured out what was going on. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead. "You named them?"

Hu Li squinted happily. "Mm-hmm~"

"...Alright, as long as you're happy," Yu Sheng said, his face twitching. "Grab your 'Poached' and 'Salt-Baked.' We're going to the valley."

"Coming!"

As Yu Sheng had predicted, it was still daytime in the valley.

A clear, partly cloudy sky covered the wide basin. Bright daylight outlined the rugged contours of the distant mountains, showing no signs of dimming.

By now, Yu Sheng had entered the valley at different times of day and could basically confirm that there really was no day-night cycle here.

The valley was perpetually in this sunny, comfortable state.

That had both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage was that the environment was indeed pleasant—at least much better than before, when it had been endlessly dark, cold wind biting, and the air reeking of decay.

The disadvantage was that he seriously doubted whether this environment would allow him to successfully carry out his "farming plan."

After all, plants also needed a day-night cycle to grow properly.

But that was something to verify later. For now, Yu Sheng still needed to clear a patch of land—and get rid of that annoying ruined temple debris, which probably wouldn't take long.

Considering he might be spending a lot of time in this valley going forward, he planned to roughly set up a "base camp" here before taking Ai Lin through the scheduled "test" items.

The ruined temple debris had gone through a "feast" and was now practically nothing left. The scattered broken bricks and tiles mixed in with the pitted soil served no purpose except to hinder his farming.

Under Yu Sheng's influence, the earth began to gradually "awaken."

The soil churned, swallowing, breaking down, and burying the bricks and tiles. The larger and smaller stones were pushed together and stacked at the edge of the open space. A flat stretch of land formed beneath Yu Sheng's feet and slowly extended outward, outlining the rough shape of the plot.

He stood at the edge of the open ground, carefully sensing the connection between himself and this valley, feeling the wondrous process by which the soil, the rocks, even the air and water were shaped according to his will. Gradually, he became immersed in it.

Without realizing it, he felt that his "control" over this place... seemed to have deepened a step.