After Waking Up I Inherited the Earth [Interstellar] – CH72

Chapter 72

Sighing didn’t stop Xie Xingchen from riding his hoverboard to watch the wild horse herd.

Following the herd’s route forward, just as he was about to reach where they were, he felt the entire ground trembling.

He controlled the hoverboard to rise to its maximum height—three meters—and his view instantly opened up.

The amazement he’d felt watching the herd on video immediately became an in-person shock.

Xie Xingchen had grown up in a peaceful environment, and the original owner of this body had never been to war either.

To them, they knew battlefields were intense, but that intensity couldn’t truly be experienced firsthand—they could only learn from videos. Even to experience a holographic battlefield, you had to wait until adulthood.

So even now, Xie Xingchen had never been in a holographic battlefield.

With no more violent “battlefield” for comparison, the scene of ten thousand hooves thundering across the earth already felt more than enough to shake the soul.

And these creatures were so lively, so elegant, so strong… that he couldn’t snap out of it for a long time.

The herd’s leader was the same vigorous, heroic black stallion Xie Xingchen had noticed at the very beginning.

Even on video, Xie Xingchen had known how beautiful it was.

But when he met it in person, he finally understood that sometimes words were unbearably pale—no matter how eloquent you were, you still couldn’t describe even one ten-thousandth of this creature’s beauty.

The stallion fixed its large, dark eyes on the familiar two-legged creature standing on the hoverboard, and on the two robots beside him.

A moment later it looked away—clearly deciding that these strange two-legged beings posed no threat.

Xie Xingchen, on the other hand, met the stallion’s gaze again, and his hands started itching.

After waiting a long while, when the herd reached the stream and spread out to drink, he finally couldn’t hold back anymore—he put that itching impulse into action.

Xie Xingchen sneaked up beside two pretty foals. While the adult horses were drinking, he reached out quickly and… gave them a good rub.

That single rub left both cute, pretty foals completely dumbfounded!

They lifted their heads from the water, shook as if confused, then turned to look at Xie Xingchen. After that, they leaned in—oddly, adorably—sniffed him, and then actually nudged him with their foreheads.

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He held back for a long time, but still couldn’t stop a muffled laugh from escaping.

That one laugh immediately drew the attention of all the adult horses.

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Maybe because he looked cowardly enough, or because the herd didn’t think this tiny two-legged thing could threaten them, when Xie Xingchen froze and the two foals started acting clingy toward him, the adults lowered their heads again and drank from the stream in peace.

Xie Xingchen: phew…

He exhaled hard. Only then did he realize he’d been so nervous he’d almost forgotten to breathe.

With a wry smile, he rubbed the two foals a bit more firmly and whispered, “You two really are shamelessly friendly, huh, babies?”

He couldn’t help smiling at himself.

But because he didn’t want to attract the herd’s attention, this was a silent smile.

The two foals seemed to sense how much he liked them—clearly, they liked him too.

They stayed where they were, rubbing their heads against him again, and even invited him to go drink water with them!

He had to admit: these two foals were absolute masters of acting cute. That one gesture nearly melted Xie Xingchen’s heart.

Thinking of horse-training videos he’d seen before—where trainers soothed foals with sugar cubes—Xie Xingchen considered it. He didn’t give them candy directly. Instead, he scooped a basin of stream water and mixed in honey.

The sweet fragrance blended into the water, turning it into honey-scented stream water.

Without needing an invitation, the two keen-nosed foals trotted over—da-da-da—and let out soft, babyish whinnies.

“Okay, okay, good babies—wait a second. Don’t crowd me. Let me stir it before you drink,” Xie Xingchen said, feeling the “burden” of sweetness.

He quickly pulled out a spoon, stirred more than ten times, and once the honey was evenly mixed, he set the basin on a flat rock, stepped back, and let the foals come forward.

He’d even planned how to guide them to drink—but before he could steady himself, the two greedy foals rushed in and started drinking.

After the very first sip, Xie Xingchen saw both foals’ big watery eyes light up instantly.

Then they drank without even lifting their heads.

The black foal—white only on its legs, about a meter tall—finished the honey water and still refused to leave the basin, looking reluctant.

The other foal, completely white with red hooves—“Flame-Step”—was even smarter. It trotted straight over to Xie Xingchen.

It pressed its head into his chest, stared up with big round eyes, and acted like a little kid begging for sweets.

It was the first time Flame-Step had ever tasted something sweet, and it clearly loved it—so much that even when its parents tried to lead it away, it wouldn’t go.

Not only would it not go, White-Gloves wouldn’t go either.

The herd’s only two foals circled Xie Xingchen, acting spoiled. No matter how the adults nudged them, they refused to leave.

Xie Xingchen couldn’t help an awkward smile.

Wait… was he about to get trampled?

He exchanged a glance with the herd leader, thinking nervously.

But the stallion king—who looked proud and unruly—was unexpectedly gentle with him.

Seeing the foals refuse to leave, it didn’t attack Xie Xingchen. Instead, it kept issuing low warning sounds at the foals.

Those warnings finally kept the foals from sticking too close. They hesitantly returned to their parents and, under pressure, began to run.

Only—

they’d run a short distance, stop; run a short distance, stop—looking heartbreakingly reluctant to leave Xie Xingchen… and his honey.

Xie Xingchen knew exactly why they were acting like that, yet he was still ridiculously happy.

Don’t ask. The foals were just too cute.

So what if cute foals liked honey!

He was happy to give them honey.

He’d even buy them candy!

Since Prosperity wouldn’t be back at the starship until night, Xie Xingchen immediately went online and bought a pile of candy, leaving several messages for Prosperity, insisting he bring it over.

Prosperity, suddenly receiving weird messages from his boss: ?

After petting the foals, Xie Xingchen’s mood was unbelievably good.

That joy—when a creature you like also likes you—was incomparable.

But… some things don’t stand up well to overthinking.

Still basking in his happiness, Xie Xingchen suddenly realized something important.

Turning his head, he asked Get-Rich with confusion, “Get-Rich… why is that herd leader so nice to me?”

Yes—he’d noticed. It wasn’t that the horse king was naturally gentle; it seemed unusually gentle toward him.

If it were any normal wild herd, forget touching the only two foals—Xie Xingchen might have been attacked just for getting close.

“Wild horses are hard to tame” wasn’t a joke.

But now?

He’d walked right into the herd, wasn’t attacked, petted their only two foals, fed them, and even nearly lured them away—

and still wasn’t attacked.

It felt wrong no matter how he looked at it.

Xie Xingchen couldn’t figure out why the herd was treating him so well.

But the truth was simple: the horses dimly understood that this strange two-legged creature was their “benefactor.”

Animals’ thinking was simple—but precisely because it was simple, they understood gratitude more directly.

They didn’t know what Xie Xingchen had done, but they knew that ever since he arrived, they had more food.

Xie Xingchen didn’t realize these “snobbish” horses were being gentle mainly because their food had increased.

After thinking it over and over, he shamelessly attributed it to being naturally likable.

And—surprisingly—once he thought that way, his mood got even better.

So although he kept saying he was on vacation, he still trotted off to plant grass again.

No choice—those big horses and little horses were too adorable!

He couldn’t go without anyone, but he absolutely couldn’t go without feeding them!

He’d seen it today: the herd would sneak bites of his purple alfalfa.

So what he was planting wasn’t just forage—it was rations for those adorable babies.

The next day.

Xie Xingchen got up bright and early, full of energy—no one even needed to wake him.

In a great mood, he stuffed the candy Prosperity had brought over yesterday into his space button, then expertly rode his hoverboard along the tracking camera route until he found the herd.

That’s right—he was here to pet the foals again!

And this time he came fully prepared.

Not only did he bring candy for the foals—he also brought papayas for the adult horses!

Maybe, for the sake of fruit, he’d finally be able to pet an adult?

To be honest, he was drooling over that magnificent horse king.

His imagination was bold, but in reality he was still a coward. The moment he arrived, he immediately crumpled the “pet the horse king” idea into a ball and threw it into a corner.

He gave an awkward smile at the untouchable king.

Seeing the familiar two-legged creature again, the king merely glanced at him and kept grazing.

Only when it saw Xie Xingchen taking out sugar cubes to feed the two foals did it lift its head again to assess him.

After confirming he wasn’t dangerous, it let out a “hrrr” sound.

The slightly restless herd instantly quieted down.

The herd’s discipline made Xie Xingchen secretly marvel—and also made him like the horse king even more.

Dragging his feet forward little by little, Xie Xingchen stopped when he was still three meters away.

The horse king stared at him with sharp, lively eyes for at least ten seconds. Once it confirmed there was no danger, it lowered its head and continued grazing.

Xie Xingchen—secretly tensed, ready to flee at any second—finally let out a soft breath, then boldly stepped closer.

But every step, he paused, giving the king time to react.

Step… pause… step… pause.

No matter how small his steps were, three meters took only a dozen steps.

When he finally stood right beside the king—close enough to touch it—his eyes curved into a grin.

Since the king still hadn’t harmed him, he knew it had a favorable impression.

Xie Xingchen didn’t know why, but that was a good thing!

He pulled out the largest sugar cube and happily shoved it into the king’s mouth.

Now that he knew the king liked him, even his movements became casual—you could tell this was the type of person who took a mile when given an inch.

The king didn’t react in time; by the time it did, the sugar was already in its mouth.

It wasn’t just the foals’ first time eating candy—this was the king’s first time too.

The sweetest taste in the world was irresistible.

The king stopped eating even the delicious grass, savoring the sugar cube—and it didn’t even reject the two-legged creature rubbing it a couple of times.

Seeing that candy worked, Xie Xingchen snickered and fed it another one, continuing to “secretly” pet the big horse.

Only when the king finished and clearly wanted more did Xie Xingchen stop.

He took out half a papaya.

Why half?

Because he’d prepped them in advance—washed them clean, split them down the middle, and scooped out the black seeds. (He hadn’t peeled them.)

Ripe papaya was sweet, and more than just sweet—it had a fragrant plant aroma.

To animals, it was even more tempting than plain sugar.

The horse king was no exception.

After eating the papaya, Xie Xingchen felt it was especially happy—it even lowered its head and leaned against him in a show of affection.

That made Xie Xingchen even happier.

His bright eyes looked like they held shattered starlight, and his smile was more dazzling than the sun overhead.

He fed four or five papayas. When the king still begged for more, Xie Xingchen—his reason finally returning—forced himself to refuse.

To avoid looking at the king’s “sad” expression, he turned to feed the other horses candy and papaya.

After feeding the whole herd, he trotted back to the two foals and gave them peeled papaya.

Ahem. It wasn’t favoritism—just “everyone’s responsible for caring for young ones,” that’s all.

And just like that, with shameless generosity, Xie Xingchen was accepted by the herd.

Aside from the horse king—who still couldn’t be freely petted—Xie Xingchen could now come and go as he pleased, petting whichever horse he wanted.

“White-Gloves, Flame-Step—I’m going now.” Reluctantly saying goodbye, he took the chance to feed them another piece of papaya.

When the herd prepared to leave, he patted the two foals’ backs—urging them to catch up—and watched them run after the adults.

The foals were small, so they couldn’t run as fast or as long.

But their potential was excellent.

Compared to the “horses” in Xie Xingchen’s old understanding, these two would crush them into dust.

After the herd left, Xie Xingchen returned to the purple alfalfa fields.

Before, he hadn’t known. Now that he did—that the herd also lived off alfalfa—he no longer wanted to stop at the system’s “1,000 mu” requirement.

For these spirited, graceful, handsome, and adorable creatures… he had to plant double the forage, no matter what!

So although he’d originally planned to leave in the next few days, he willingly postponed his return.

He was more than happy to turn himself into a “recharge tool” to grow more and better pasture within limited time.

Early out, late back. Working under stars and moon. His diligent sweat fell onto this vast land, and in the end, clusters of purple flowers bloomed.

For the magnificent big horses and the adorable little horses, Xie Xingchen spared no spiritual power.

Every time he reached the alfalfa field, he refused to go back until he’d squeezed himself dry.

Then he’d rush back to the treatment pod, recover, and head out again—more mechanical than mechanical life, the kind of workload that would make capitalists weep with gratitude.

Just when Xie Xingchen thought the rest of his time would be this monotonous grind, the free-spirited wild horses suddenly came running over.

Led by the horse king, the herd thundered in.

But they were unbelievably well-behaved. When Xie Xingchen thought they’d trample the land, they instead spread out, obediently and lightly stepping along the ridges—da-da—as if they knew the rules.

Some greedy horses immediately began grazing at the ridge. Others—thirsty—trotted right over to the stream and drank the icy water without the slightest hesitation.

As for the horse king…

It brought the herd’s only two beautiful foals straight to Xie Xingchen, lowered its noble head, and gently touched his hand. The two foals followed suit, cuddling into his chest.

Xie Xingchen: ?

Xie Xingchen: !

What… was happening?

He was stunned.

Mouth slightly open, he turned stiffly.

Seeing so many wild horses wandering around the field ridges, he felt like he was dreaming.

And yet—

“Hrr…”

“Hrrr…”

“Hrrr-hrrr…”

One big and two small beautiful horses were urging him.

At that moment, Xie Xingchen felt like he understood something… and also like he understood nothing.

He tentatively pulled out sugar cubes.

The moment he did, the big and the two small horses whinnied even more happily.

Xie Xingchen: “……”

Uh… how should he put this?

His feelings were complicated.

Sure, foals were foodies—but even the big horse was a foodie too?

He complained in his head, but his hands fed them anyway.

After the three finished their sugar cubes, Xie Xingchen saw the rest of the herd remembering how good candy tasted and stirring toward them. He hurriedly handed sugar cubes to the nearby working robots, having them help feed the horses.

Once the sugar situation was settled, he took out unprocessed papayas.

Because the herd had come specifically to beg for food, he hadn’t had time to prep them—these were straight-up raw papayas.

But to his surprise, the horse king didn’t mind at all. It ate with relish.

The two foals, however, bit into the black seeds and let out a little “hrrr,” then lifted their heads and stared at Xie Xingchen with innocent, begging eyes—tilting their heads and refusing to eat.

Xie Xingchen sighed and accepted his fate as a “tool man.”

He picked up the papayas, washed them clean, peeled them, removed the seeds, and handed them back to the foals. Then they ate happily.

After the foals finished, Xie Xingchen led the king and the two foals to the stream to drink.

While they drank, he fed papaya to the other adult horses too.

Adults weren’t as picky; even unprocessed papaya went down enthusiastically.

“Horse King, do you see that cabin?” Xie Xingchen pointed toward the wooden cabin not far away.

The king lifted its head, glanced at the strange two-legged creature making noises, then lowered its head to drink again—clearly understanding nothing.

Xie Xingchen smacked his own forehead, almost dying of embarrassment.

Just because animals were smart didn’t mean you should treat them like people!

They hadn’t learned human language—how would they understand?

Even humans, even from the same country, might not understand an unfamiliar dialect at first.

With that thought, after the king and the two foals drank their fill, Xie Xingchen guided them forward.

Then he pulled Get-Rich close and whispered instructions.

After that, he went into the cabin alone.

Get-Rich waited outside for a while. Once the horses came up, he began his “performance.”

First, he gently knocked on the door—knock for a while, pause.

Then Xie Xingchen opened the door from inside and took out sugar cubes from his space button, handing them to Get-Rich.

They repeated this four or five times before Get-Rich stopped.

After Get-Rich walked away, Xie Xingchen shut the door again.

Not long after, the horse king stepped up and imitated Get-Rich—lightly tapping the door with its hoof.

Like Prosperity, it knocked five or six times, then stopped.

Just like before, after a moment Xie Xingchen came out, fed the king a sugar cube, and shut the door again.

Wanting more, the king repeated the action. Xie Xingchen patiently opened the door and fed it again and again.

After repeating three times, Xie Xingchen guided the king away, then had the two foals come forward to learn the knocking.

To his shock, the two foals learned immediately too!

Xie Xingchen couldn’t help marveling: these wild horses had the highest intelligence he’d ever seen in any animal.

“You’re amazing! Even my fat bunny can’t compare to how smart you are,” Xie Xingchen sighed deeply.

He wasn’t trying to trash-talk—his fat bunny truly was a little too dumb.

Aside from traveling and eating, it couldn’t do anything, and it kept getting itself covered in mud.

Yet when it wasn’t supposed to be smart, it was super smart—every time it got muddy, it would run back to Xie Xingchen for a bath.

In the end, he didn’t even know whether to call it stupid or clever.

But whether stupid or clever, it definitely made him furious often enough.

“If you ever don’t have enough food, or you run into danger, you can come here for me. If I’m not here, the robots will help you too,” Xie Xingchen said, stroking the horse.

He truly liked these natural spirits, and he didn’t want them to have nowhere to turn in danger.

He couldn’t stay here forever, but robots would always be around. As long as he told the stationed robots, no matter when the herd came, there would be someone to respond.

He spent several relaxed, happy hours with the herd. When the sun climbed high, the horse king let out a “hrr,” and the scattered herd regrouped and trotted away behind it.

The two foals, protected in the center, ran along, and even turned back to look at Xie Xingchen—but soon they were scolded by their parents.

Seeing that, Xie Xingchen burst into laughter.

Foals were just too cute.

They made his already-good mood even better.

He’d originally planned to plant double the forage—but after that “look back,” he nearly wanted to fill an entire grassland with forage for them.

And after that, he really did keep clearing land nonstop, just to give these beautiful spirits a better place to live.

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