Chapter 96: Tools
Sunny Plateau.
After seeing Little Can, Kakaba’s gaze finally focused.
The little capybara excitedly raised its little paws and shouted loudly at Little Can, “Little Can! We have a promise!”
“We promised!”
“We will help Lu Qingyan—”
Before the little capybara could finish speaking, Little Can “whooshed” over and firmly covered the little capybara’s mouth with its small paws.
“Meow meow meow!”—”Can’t say, can’t say, can’t say!” Little Can shouted anxiously.
We can’t let Chu Jiu know that we are helping Lu Qingyan become Chu Jiu’s wife!
If Chu Jiu finds out that we beat up everyone else to help Lu Qingyan—Chu Jiu is so kind, he will definitely be unhappy!
Although Little Can didn’t say these words, Kakaba nodded as if it understood: “Dang, dang dang…”
Although it didn’t know why it couldn’t say it, since Little Can insisted so much, it wouldn’t say it.
Chu Jiu on the side was completely dumbfounded.
What on earth was going on?
Just then, Little Can’s voice changed.
“Chu Jiu.” It was Lu Qingyan’s tone.
Chu Jiu quickly picked up the little black cat: “Lu Qingyan! What happened just now? Is Kakaba okay now? Is there a problem? Is the mirror not working properly?”
The little black cat placed its paw on Chu Jiu’s cheek: “Don’t worry.” “Kakaba… is fine.”
“But there are indeed some unexpected circumstances.”
“It, Little Can, and Rawr Rawr Rabbit and Glup-Glup all made a promise. The power of this promise is strong enough to keep it here.”
“…To stay here safely and healthily.”
Only then did Chu Jiu breathe a sigh of relief: “I see…”
So it wasn’t a problem with the transmigration.
So Kakaba could continue to stay here.
That’s great.
Thinking of this, Chu Jiu suddenly realized something and immediately spoke again: “Are you saying that all four spirit beast babies made a promise?”
“Then, will all four babies have to stay because of this promise?”
After a few seconds of silence, the little black cat spoke with some difficulty: “Although I still don’t know the thoughts of ‘Rawr Rawr Rabbit’ and ‘Glup-Glup’s’ masters, based on my understanding of them…”
“Yes, they should all stay here.”
“Until…”
Chu Jiu’s eyes widened: “Until…?”
The little black cat: “Until the promise is fulfilled.”
Chu Jiu: “Oh oh…”
That made sense too.
He quickly asked again, “Then this promise must be very important!”
“But Little Can just now wasn’t willing to tell me!”
“Lu Qingyan, you must know what they promised!”
After all, Kakaba’s half-spoken words just now were “to help Lu Qingyan.”
Chu Jiu stared intently at the little black cat in his hands.
Unexpectedly, the little black cat looked away, unwilling to meet Chu Jiu’s gaze, and its tail twitched unnaturally twice behind it.
What… what does this mean?
Chu Jiu wanted to ask again, but the little black cat raised its paw and rubbed its cheek, saying:
“This would be a bit complicated to explain.”
“There’s no time today…”
Just now, too much spiritual power had been consumed to maintain the stability of the passage.
However, even if there was time…
The little black cat didn’t know how to explain it.
Chu Jiu quickly said, “Then hurry back—don’t delay.”
He paused for a moment and then said, “It’s okay, I can probably guess.”
The little black cat was stunned, and its tail stiffened for a moment.
Chu Jiu touched its little paw, his tone carrying a hint of dissatisfaction: “There’s no need to hide it from me.”
“I said, we are partners.”
“Whatever you want to do, I will work hard together with you.”
“And it’s very likely that our goals are complementary!”
The little black cat looked surprised and stared at Chu Jiu’s clear black and white eyes for two seconds.
The little black cat’s tail gradually softened.
Now he could be sure that Chu Jiu must have guessed wrong.
The little black cat, secretly relieved, lowered its head and said softly:
“This time I will be gone for a longer time…”
“Don’t worry. I’m fine. Kakaba is fine too.”
“……Goodbye.”
A few seconds later, Little Can suddenly raised its head, meowing anxiously: “Did Lu Qingyan come? Did he… did he say anything?”
Chu Jiu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry and shook his head: “Nothing.”
“He just said that Kakaba is fine and told us not to worry.”
Little Can breathed a sigh of relief, pounced on Chu Jiu’s shoulder, and reached out its paws to hug Chu Jiu.
Chu Jiu hugged the awakened Kakaba into his arms and pulled Rawr Rawr Rabbit and Glup-Glup over as well, his arms full.
He patted the little guys’ backs and whispered, “Anyway, according to Lu Qingyan, you can all stay here until your promise is fulfilled.”
“You… you don’t have to hide it from me.”
“Although you are unwilling to tell me what that promise is, but… I think, it must be something like helping Lu Qingyan defeat the association and bringing peace back to this world, right?”
Kakaba: “…Dang?”
Rawr Rawr Rabbit: “…Roar?”
Glup-Glup: “Glup… glup glup?”
Little Can didn’t dare to breathe loudly.
Chu Jiu: “How can you not count me in on something like this!”
Putting aside everything else, the system’s task for me is to “increase pioneering progress.”
If the association keeps suppressing this world like this, not allowing this and not allowing that, how can the pioneering progress increase!
So, my goal, Lu Qingyan’s goal, and the spirit beast babies’ goal are essentially the same!
Chu Jiu touched each of the babies’ foreheads: “Let’s work hard together!”
Little Can: “Awoo!”
The spirit beast babies all stretched out their paws: “Work hard together!”
What Chu Jiu said is completely different from our previous promise…
However, having more promises isn’t bad either!
We are also very willing to work hard together with Chu Jiu!
The spirit beast babies’ eyes curved into arcs, thinking very happily.
Ancient Linburg.
The Vice President’s Residence.
The “Vice President,” or rather the alien thing wearing the Vice President’s skin, admiringly gazed at its own face in a mirror from hundreds of years ago.
After spending several months gradually digesting the inferior reserve food left behind previously, it was finally able to make this skin adapt to its mental power, and the eyeballs no longer fell out, and the tongue no longer suddenly broke off.
In this way, this body was also qualified to absorb higher-level energy without worrying about being devoured by the energy in return.
If the “feeding points” previously set up outside Sea Moon City hadn’t been destroyed, then it would naturally be able to absorb mental power from high-level ability users by August.
The bad thing was that it didn’t know how those humans did it, but they had completely destroyed the “worms” buried there.
Thinking of this, a strange unease, even some fear, welled up in the Vice President’s heart.
No, this fear was unfounded.
In this backward plane, in this world where there shouldn’t be any mental power, I am the absolute king.
The destruction of the “feeding points” must have been just a coincidence, an accident.
What it needed to do now was quickly replenish its energy in other ways.
The Vice President pondered for a moment, then moved the silk thread to shake the bell, summoning the servants.
“Lord!” The two black-robed servants lowered their heads tremblingly.
A suspicious fishy stench permeated the room.
But how dare they ask.
Last time, another servant had merely mentioned in private, “Lord Vice President, why does the reception room smell a bit strange?” That person had turned into a pile of rotten flesh right before their eyes.
The servants were terrified.
This kind of thing, this “presumptuous discussion of the venerable, then immediately punished by the true god,” they had only heard about before, but never witnessed firsthand.
Now that they had actually seen it, their first reaction was to run away.
However, anyone who tried to sneak away turned into yellow water in the middle of the night.
After dawn, those servants who had stayed in the residence and hadn’t left were told that they “could go to the Vice President’s basement and choose any gold and silver jewelry. As long as they could carry it, they could take it all.”
!
When the servants stood in the basement, looking at the dazzling gold and silver coins and the various jewels from hundreds of years ago, they instantly threw the thought of “this place is too dangerous and terrifying” aside.
Anyway, leaving was also death, so it was better to stay.
Therefore, even though they had all noticed that the current Vice President was completely different from the Vice President half a year ago, who was greedy for money and wanted to hold even a silver coin tightly in his hand—
They felt they could endure it.
As long as they didn’t talk nonsense, they could survive and get a lot, a lot of money.
The Vice President sat in the high-backed chair, its entire body shrouded in shadow.
It spoke in a hoarse voice, “I want to see high-level ability users.”
“Have their leader send four ability users over.”
The two servants still didn’t dare to look up.
One of them hesitated for a long time before whispering, “Lord.”
“The high-level ability users in the association have all gone to carry out tasks and haven’t returned yet.”
Vice President: “Tasks? What tasks?”
Servant: “…Tasks that you issued alone… we don’t know…”
Before the words were finished, the servant’s head had already fallen from its neck.
The other servant beside him opened his mouth wide in horror but dared not scream.
He looked at his companion’s rolling head and quickly knelt on the ground: “Lord! I have never heard of any tasks, I only know that all the high-level ability users are not in Ancient Linburg!”
Vice President: “Then you, go find new ability users.”
The servant’s black robe was already soaked with sweat: “But… we ourselves don’t have any abilities, we are no match for high-level ability users…”
In the past, these things were all arranged and designed by the Vice President. We only had to execute his orders.
Under the current circumstances, who do we drug? Who do we bribe? Who do we threaten?
We have no idea!
But the servant dared not say these words even if it meant death.
The Vice President made no sound of agreement.
The servant secretly glanced at the corpse beside him, which was still oozing blood, and trembled as he said, “However, we can always find those whose abilities have faded!”
Vice President: “Very good.”
“Go find them. The more the better.”
“There will be a reward after you find them.”
The servant prostrated himself on the ground: “Understood! We will go prepare immediately!”
The servant dragged his companion’s corpse away.
The Vice President was annoyed, annoyed by “hunger.”
In this world, those “high-level ability users” with slightly stronger mental power were its high-quality rations.
For this part of the ability users, it could directly absorb the mental power in their bodies.
As for those low-level ability users, their mental power was too weak to be qualified food at all.
Only when their mental power completely overwhelmed their…—that is, the so-called “ability fading”—did they barely reach the “edible standard.”
But even so, they tasted particularly dry and could only be regarded as reserve food for maintaining mental power during the rehabilitation period.
Those high-quality rations were still more palatable.
Unexpectedly, the high-quality food that it had ordered its human subordinates to collect before was all gone?!
What on earth were these stupid human subordinates doing?!
Now, it had to go back to gnawing on those inferior dried rations.
…It truly disgusted the worm.
The only thing worth celebrating was that its carefully cultivated “top-grade rations” could be harvested in a while.
Those top-grade rations were not something ordinary people could get their hands on.
When the time comes… huff…
Just bear with it a little longer.
The Vice President comforted itself in this way.
*
Several days later.
Outside Ancient Linburg City.
Several black-robed figures were riding in a carriage, relying on the protection of high-priced, non-patrol team ability users they had hired, rushing towards Ancient Linburg.
Inside the carriage were two “ability-faded” individuals tied up with hemp ropes.
These people were already suffering from the fading of their abilities and had no ability to resist at all.
After letting those freelance ability users who “only recognize money” beat them up, they could be directly tied up and brought back.
The leading black-robed figure, sitting in the driver’s seat, was calculating in his mind: He was also licking blood off a knife’s edge.
Bringing these “ability-faded” people back would earn him at least ten gold coins, right?
If he could also drug and bring back the freelance ability user beside him in the end, he could get at least another ten gold…
Just as he was thinking this, a wind blade suddenly flew towards them head-on!
The black-robed man’s hood was sliced open, and a piece of his ear was directly cut off!
“Ambush!” the ability user beside him shouted, starting to gather power to fight back.
The black-robed man covered his bleeding ear, scrambling back into the carriage without even daring to shout.
Ambush? How could it be?
He was taking a secret path that only internal members of the association knew!
Who on earth was ambushing them?
Great God, save me! I still have so many gold coins I haven’t spent!
*
The “ambush” didn’t last long.
Weber of the Sea Moon City Patrol Team looked at the black-robed man tied up securely and the freelance ability user with his arms dislocated, and gently exhaled.
Trash.
In the past, the association would still put on an act, still pretend to deceive people, but now they were too lazy to even pretend, directly knocking people down and transporting them to Ancient Linburg.
Fortunately, the city lord was wise and had foreseen this.
These patrol team members had earlier received a secret mission from City Lord Clara: closely monitor the carriages the association sent to Ancient Linburg. The association was very likely to be “cornered like a dog jumping over a wall,” using various means to send ability users or ability-faded individuals to Ancient Linburg.
When the time came, they were not to be soft-hearted and were to directly stop them on the grounds that they had violated the “Kingdom Laws.”
In fact, this mission should have been very difficult to carry out.
Because the terrain around Ancient Linburg was complex, and the association had secret forest paths unknown to outsiders, it was impossible to predict which route they would secretly take back to Ancient Linburg.
But the city lord had sent new “telescopes.”
With the help of these latest telescopes, even the slightest movement in the dense forest could not escape the eyes of the patrol team.
This time, they had indeed achieved a great victory!
The city lord was wise!
Weber praised inwardly while happily going to report to the squad leader.
According to past rules, the “black-robed man” and the “freelance ability user” would be sent to Sea Moon City.
And those poor ability-faded individuals would be sent to Bean Village—it was said that in Bean Village, these people could receive the best treatment.
But Weber didn’t know exactly what kind of treatment it was.
“Here, all the tying up is done, you quickly assign manpower,” Weber said casually.
The squad leader nodded: “You can escort the ones going to Bean Village this time.”
Weber frowned: “Huh? Me? Do you really need me for such a simple task?”
Squad leader: “Because… I’m going too this time.”
Weber: “Tsk tsk, you’re going yourself and still calling me along—forget it, forget it, you must be afraid of being lonely on the road without anyone to chat with. When do we leave?”
Squad leader: “Weber, this time, I’m not escorting them. You need to escort us.”
Weber: “……Huh?”
Squad leader: “My abilities have reached their limit. I must go to Bean Village for treatment.”
Looking at Weber’s suddenly changed face, the squad leader stood up and patted his shoulder:
“Why make such a face? This day will come sooner or later.”
“Just… consider it accompanying me on a trip to Bean Village. I’ve always been very curious about that place.”
Weber, who always joked and chatted non-stop in front of the squad leader, stood stiffly in place, unable to squeeze out a single word.
The squad leader sighed inwardly and said with a smile, “What, aren’t you curious?”
He picked up the telescope placed on the table: “I heard that this telescope was made in Bean Village.”
He lowered his voice, deliberately making a mysterious appearance:
“I also heard that they have the only physician’s clinic in the entire Carrot Continent, brown sugar sweeter than honey, peculiar dams…”
“Such an interesting place, let’s just treat it as a vacation and go take a look together.”
Weber slightly raised his face to prevent tears from falling and replied, “Okay.”
*
Three days later.
Weber escorted the squad leader and two other ability-faded individuals to Bean Village.
But Weber had no intention of wandering around the village.
As soon as the carriage stopped, he personally carried the squad leader, who was already trembling and unable to walk, out of the carriage and ran directly to the place called the “clinic.”
As soon as they reached the clinic door, Eric, who was said to have been the deputy captain of the Sea Moon City Patrol Team, came out to greet them and helped him carry the squad leader to the bed.
Then…
Weber saw a small skeleton less than half a person tall running over.
The little skeleton took out a flat metal box connected to a leather tube and placed it on the captain’s chest. It listened for a while with its earless head, then successively pried open the captain’s eyelids, checked his fingers and toes, and finally turned around, very skillfully starting to instruct a young man standing nearby about what medicine to use.
Among these medicines, Weber heard a familiar name:
“Chu Jiu’s cough syrup.”
Lord Chu Jiu’s cough syrup?
He was slightly surprised.
Eric noticed his surprise but didn’t say anything at the moment.
It wasn’t until the squad leader had taken the medicine and fallen asleep that Eric pulled Weber outside the clinic and said in a comforting tone, “Don’t worry.”
“That cough syrup is an irreplaceable panacea for ‘ability-faded’ individuals.”
“Do you know those dozens of people Clara sent to Black Wheat Village? They were all ability-faded, originally living in unbearable pain, but after drinking Chu Jiu’s cough syrup, every single one of them recovered.”
“The ability-faded individuals sent to Bean Village now are also using this syrup to stabilize their bodies, and then using other medicines to help them recover—so rest assured.”
Weber twitched the corner of his mouth, trying hard to make a “relieved” expression.
Just then, he heard a somewhat familiar voice: “Weber? What are you doing here?”
This voice…?
Weber turned his head and saw that it was indeed Lord Chu Jiu!
*
Chu Jiu had actually come to deliver Tata.
But as soon as he saw Weber, he recognized him: this was the patrol team member who went out to sea with them to fight the barrel worms!
Why was Weber in Bean Village? And why was he outside the clinic?
He quickly walked over and immediately asked what had happened.
Eric sighed and told him about their squad leader’s ability fading.
Chu Jiu understood.
He patted Weber’s arm:
“Don’t worry! Our Doctor Xiao Ku is a very, very powerful physician!”
“He will definitely return a healthy squad leader to you.”
Weber nodded and said “Thank you, Lord Chu Jiu,” but his eyes couldn’t stop getting redder.
Finally, he raised his arm and wiped his eyes with his sleeve, choking up as he said, “But, from now on… he will never… never have any abilities again…”
“He has always… ever since I joined the patrol team… it was him…”
“I know all abilities will eventually fade, but I still… still…”
“I can’t even imagine what he… what he will be like without his abilities…”
Chu Jiu and Eric were silent for a while.
After a good while, Eric said, “You know, since I came to Bean Village, I haven’t used my abilities at all.”
Weber sniffled. “Huh?”
Eric: “It’s not just me.”
“Those who were once high-level ability users haven’t used their abilities again either.”
“At first, it was because our bodies were too weak to use them, but later, when our bodies got better, Doctor Xiao Ku instructed us not to use them.”
“Slowly, we got used to it.”
Weber was somewhat incredulous. “You all haven’t used your abilities?”
He looked around—
Although he had no intention of wandering around, he still noticed the uniqueness of this village.
The vast fields, the clear water in the ditches, the wide roads, the tidy houses…
None of this was done using abilities?
That’s impossible.
Such a big village, with so many high-level ability users, whether wind or water type, they were all rare and valuable resources!
Weber’s eyes were full of doubt.
Chu Jiu nodded emphatically at Weber. “It’s true.”
“Now, in this village, no one uses abilities anymore.”
Except for Chu Jiu himself, who would still use the “system cheat,” which wasn’t exactly an ability, near the Pioneer Cabin.
Several months ago, Lu Qingyan had entrusted Chu Jiu to tell Doctor Xiao Ku:
First, when treating those high-level ability users, try to find a way to “completely eliminate their abilities.”
Second, advise everyone in the capacity of a physician to try not to use their abilities in the future.
Doctor Xiao Ku hadn’t yet found a way to do the first thing.
But the second thing, Doctor Xiao Ku had promoted very well.
Weber was stunned.
This… why? Isn’t this just ignoring a shortcut?
Chu Jiu thought for a moment and said to Weber, “Come with me.”
*
Chu Jiu took Weber to the small river beside the Pioneer Cabin.
Weber looked at the constantly turning waterwheel with buckets, and the irrigation canals made of some kind of green pipes, both amazed and puzzled.
But Chu Jiu’s real intention wasn’t to show him the waterwheel.
Chu Jiu carried out a large vat and said to Weber, “If I remember correctly, your squad leader’s ability is ice-type?”
Weber: “Yes.”
Chu Jiu took out some powder that Weber had never seen before, put it in the vat, poured in a lot of clean water, and started stirring it non-stop.
As he stirred, the clear water, right before Weber’s eyes, turned into ice crystals, then slush, and finally into solid ice blocks!
Weber was dumbfounded.
After a good while, he said, “Lord, I remember, your ability… is controlling spirit beasts? So you are also… an ice-type ability user?”
Chu Jiu shook his head. “No.”
Having said that, he handed Weber a set of flint and steel and a branch: “Try it?”
Weber didn’t understand, but he still lit the branch with the flint and steel.
Chu Jiu held up the burning branch and said with a smile, “Look, aren’t you also a ‘fire-type ability user’ now?”
Weber was still dazed, stammering, “But… this isn’t an ability… this, it’s just a tool…”
Chu Jiu extinguished the fire on the branch and pointed to the ice blocks in the vat: “This is also something I made with tools.”
“Grind saltpeter into powder, and by utilizing its properties of ‘easily dissolving in water and absorbing heat to freeze,’ you can make ice blocks.”
He held up the flint and steel in his hand: “The sparks from colliding flint can ignite flammable materials and produce flames.”
“As long as you use the right tools, anyone can have ‘abilities.'”
He looked at Weber again: “In the place where I used to live, no one had ‘abilities.'”
“But we… we could still easily light fires, get ice blocks by opening a cabinet, fly in the sky, and swim in the sea…”
“We just used the right tools.”
Weber stood with his mouth open for a while, finally understanding.
He looked excited and somewhat incoherent: “Lord, are you saying, do you mean, with these tools…”
Chu Jiu nodded emphatically: “Yes. As long as you learn how to use tools, as long as you know the principles behind the tools, even without abilities, you can do these things that look like only ‘ability users’ can do.”
“So, don’t worry that your squad leader will have a hard life after losing his abilities.”
“He can still live well.”
Having said that, he winked: “Of course, if he can stay in Bean Village, then he can live even better!”
Weber: “…Uh?”
Chu Jiu spread his hands: “You know, City Lord Clara and His Majesty the King gave us a mission, requiring the population of Bean Village to reach 400 people…”
“So I’m going all out to recruit people…”
Weber couldn’t help but laugh: “Okay. When the squad leader wakes up, I’ll tell him: you must stay in Bean Village!”
I think our squad leader will be even more curious than me: what amazing things can this village, which actively refuses to use abilities, achieve!
*
When Weber, who had recovered his spirits, left the Pioneer Cabin, the spirit beast babies were all returning one after another.
Kakaba: “Dang dang dang! Golden Horn and Silver Horn are helping to plow the fields today too!”
Rawr Rawr Rabbit: “Roar roar roar the seed cultivation is also going very smoothly today!”
Glup-Glup: “Glup-Glup… I’ve repaired all the broken fences!”
Chu Jiu gave them a big thumbs-up: “Everyone is great!”
He thought for a moment and told them about Weber’s visit just now.
After listening, the spirit beast babies’ eyes sparkled:
“Chu Jiu, you’re so amazing!”
“That ability user just now might also try to use his abilities less!”
Chu Jiu smiled and said, “Ah, I think since Lu Qingyan asked me to tell everyone to ‘try not to use abilities,’ then this matter must be related to ‘defeating the association’!”
He patted the little ones’ heads: “Everyone is working hard to fulfill the promise!”
The spirit beast babies happily raised their little paws.
Only Little Can, while raising its little paw, felt a little guilty.
The “promise” Chu Jiu mentioned was completely different from the initial “promise”…
If Chu Jiu finds out in the future, will he be unhappy…?
It’s okay, as long as we try hard not to let him find out!
Little Can thought to itself.
