Chapter 158
“We’ve got so many Lanhu leaves now!”
With over 700 fresh Lanhu leaves, 2,600 dried ones, and 1,000 more from Granny Guo, they had a total of 3,600 leaves!
But what made Tang Yu’an the happiest was discovering a use for the Lanhu leaves.
“How many points do we have now?” Zhou Qi asked.
Tang Yu’an grinned brightly, his eyes sparkling. “121,000!”
He immediately opened the dimensional store, first checking Gu Ganli’s storefront. Noticing a new medium-grade Spirit-Gathering Grass, he quickly bought it.
The Spirit-Gathering Grass appeared in the attic, emanating a refreshing herbal fragrance.
“Brother Qi, do we now have enough Spirit-Gathering Grass to make those physique-enhancing eggs?” Tang Yu’an asked excitedly.
Zhou Qi nodded. “It takes five plants.”
So far, they had purchased three lower-grade Spirit-Gathering Grass and two medium-grade ones, meeting the requirement.
“But Spirit-Gathering Grass is so useful. I can’t bear to eat them,” Tang Yu’an muttered.
The Spirit-Gathering Grass could continuously gather wood-element energy, functioning like a tireless wood-element ability user to create an optimal growth environment for plants. It was also essential for controlling the glow of green light strips.
Granny Guo even mentioned that the grass seemed to enhance wood-element abilities. Since moving to Shop No. 1, she had felt the effect more strongly.
“Materials aren’t fully ready yet, and we can keep collecting more Spirit-Gathering Grass,” Zhou Qi reassured him. “Besides, a single lower-grade Spirit-Gathering Grass only costs 500 points.”
Though other stores sold Spirit-Gathering Grass, their prices were much higher.
With their current surplus of points, they could afford it.
Tang Yu’an nodded. “What other materials do we need besides Spirit-Gathering Grass?”
“Five southern nectar flowers, one piece of phoenix perch wood, and lizard eggs for the base,” Zhou Qi recalled.
Tang Yu’an searched the store and quickly found the southern nectar flowers, known for their body-strengthening properties, priced at 1,000 points each.
Since they were well-funded, he purchased one immediately.
The flower wasn’t potted, appearing freshly harvested. Its vivid red petals and golden-yellow stamens exuded a pleasant aroma.
Tang Yu’an felt quite comfortable just smelling it.
He used his beginner appraisal skill on the flower and found that it alone was worth 200 points.
“So, the 1,000-point price is already discounted?” Tang Yu’an muttered.
Unfortunately, this dimension didn’t naturally produce southern nectar flowers or phoenix perch wood, so they had to buy everything from the store.
“Should we buy everything now?” Zhou Qi asked.
“Not yet. Let’s see if we can catch a good deal later.” Although Tang Yu’an had a fortune now, he still wanted to be frugal.
Somehow, he felt that his 121,000 points would deplete quickly.
Zhou Qi chuckled, reaching out to ruffle Tang Yu’an’s hair. “Let’s sleep.”
“Okay!”
The next morning, Tang Yu’an woke to the system notification of the seven-day special sale refresh. He let out a dramatic groan.
He knew it!
But when he saw the content on the interface, he shot upright in excitement.
[Seven-Day Special Sale (Refresh Countdown: 6 days)]
[Intermediate Healing Bandage (3/3): 200 points/roll]
[Intermediate Healing Potion (5/5): 400 points/bottle]
[Cold Medicine (3/3): 100 points/3 tablets]
[Smart Housekeeping Robot (1/1): 6,688 points/unit]
Description: Advanced tech-side product, level Lv1.
Function: Masters all housekeeping skills, performs tasks flawlessly as instructed by the owner, supports basic communication, and has simple learning capabilities.
[Void Stone (1/1): 48,888 points/stone]
Description: Rare material.
Function: Used for crafting spatial equipment and upgrading furniture.
“Wow, Brother Qi, the special sale has a housekeeping robot!” Tang Yu’an exclaimed.
Already awake, Zhou Qi had seen the list and smiled. Tang Yu’an’s wishes always seemed to come true.
“Shall we get it?”
“Of course!”
Tang Yu’an entered a spree mode, clearing out the entire special sale inventory. The total came to 58,676 points.
Despite the pain of spending so much, he still had around 60,000 points left!
“The robot has been delivered to the warehouse!”
Quickly tidying up their bed, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi rushed downstairs to inspect their newly purchased smart housekeeping robot in the warehouse.
The robot had a rounded design, completely silver-white, with an initial height of 1.2 meters.
According to the manual, it could automatically adjust its height based on the house’s size, compressing to as little as 30 cm or extending to 1.8 meters.
The material was unknown but impressive, allowing such drastic changes in size.
After some fiddling, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi found the power switch. When activated, the robot spun in place before facing them.
Its sleek, silver-white body lit up with a pair of round electronic eyes.
“Smart Housekeeping Robot CC5858 at your service! Detecting network… No network detected, connection failed.”
“Switching to manual operation mode… Mode switch successful.”
“Master, you can configure my basic settings through the control panel.”
The robot’s round head opened, revealing an electronic panel that displayed an interface with basic information and settings.
Tang Yu’an named the robot “Round Head” and set its voice to a childlike tone.
“Wow! Thank you for giving me a new name, Master! Round Head loves it!”
The robot’s small, beady eyes turned into cheerful crescents, making it look adorably cute.
Tang Yu’an instructed it to retract the settings panel and asked, “Can you clean the house every day?”
“Of course,” Round Head replied. “What time would you like the cleaning to start each day?”
Tang Yu’an thought for a moment. “10 a.m. every day.”
“Please calibrate the time for me.”
“Time calibration complete!”
“Okay, Master. Round Head will start cleaning the entire house at 10 a.m. every day. You can also set no-clean zones.”
Tang Yu’an considered this. “No need to clean the attic.”
“Scanning the house… Scan complete. Generating house map… Map generation complete.”
“Master, by attic, do you mean the second floor?”
“Yes.” Tang Yu’an led Round Head out of the warehouse and pointed to the end of the stairs. “Just clean up to here.”
“Understood, Master.”
Round Head responded obediently and then added, “Please designate a charging location for me so I can work every day.”
“How about this socket?” Tang Yu’an pointed to a plug near the sofa.
The robot emitted a silver light to scan the socket. Afterward, its base extended a cord, which plugged itself into the socket.
“Charging in progress… Charging complete.”
It retracted the cord and said, “This location is perfect, Master.”
Watching it, Tang Yu’an couldn’t help but exclaim to Zhou Qi, “Brother Qi, Round Head is so cute!”
“Thank you for the compliment, Master. You’re adorable too! ^_^”
Round Head continued, “Master, aside from cleaning, I can also do laundry, cooking, organizing, sewing, and more.”
Tang Yu’an turned to Zhou Qi. “Brother Qi, should we let Round Head cook for us from now on?”
Zhou Qi considered this. “Can you prepare ingredients?”
“Yes, Master. Round Head can handle ingredient preparation.”
Tang Yu’an couldn’t resist asking, “Do you call everyone you meet Master?”
“Everyone in this house is considered my Master,” the robot replied. “But you can set exclusive permissions for me.”
“Then I want you to recognize only the two of us as your Masters.”
“Understood, Master.”
“And if bad people break in, what will you do? Can you chase them away?” Tang Yu’an asked curiously.
“Report: Round Head is a housekeeping robot and does not have defense or attack capabilities. If an intruder is identified as a criminal, I can issue an alert—but this requires a network connection.”
Since their house lacked internet, that function was out of reach.
Tang Yu’an nodded. “Alright, go charge yourself first.”
He had noticed earlier that Round Head’s initial battery level was only 48%.
“Understood. Thank you, Master! ^_^”
Round Head happily went to recharge.
“It’s a shame we don’t have internet; remote control isn’t possible,” Tang Yu’an muttered before heading off to wash up, still in a good mood.
As long as the robot had a steady power supply, they could now enjoy a hands-free lifestyle.
And since Round Head could prepare ingredients…
“Round Head, can you make buns and steamed bread?” Tang Yu’an asked.
“Yes, Master. Round Head can prepare 18 different snacks, including buns and steamed bread. You can also demonstrate the process once, and I’ll learn it.”
“Haha, you’re smart!”
“Thank you for the compliment, Master. Round Head will continue to work hard! ^_^”
This meant repetitive tasks like making buns and steamed bread could now be handled by Round Head.
Oh, and it mentioned it could sew… Tang Yu’an decided to test that next.
Although the new residents were mostly wearing the free lodging clothes, those uniforms were a marketing strategy to encourage them to buy other clothes.
From what Round Head said, it should be capable of producing various styles of garments.
Currently, the residents and staff all wore uniform gray cotton outfits. If they wanted to make clothes for sale, they could consider adding color combinations for variety.
“And it could even be used with the super fabricator to produce new waterproof materials.”
Tang Yu’an paused, struck by a sudden idea. “Brother Qi, what if we put fabric and Lanhu leaves into the super fabricator? Could we create temperature-regulating fabric?”
After all, even when dried, Lanhu leaves retained their temperature-regulating properties, indicating that a specific substance within them was responsible for this effect.
If that substance could be extracted and applied to other materials, it might be possible to create fabrics with the same characteristic.
Zhou Qi’s eyes lit up. “We can try it.”
Perhaps due to the difference between natural awakening and parasitic awakening, while Tang Yu’an had wind-element abilities, his physical constitution hadn’t undergone much change.
If they could make clothes that automatically adjusted to temperature, it would be an excellent addition.
Moreover, such a material would have a high market demand in the wasteland.
Inspired, Tang Yu’an pulled out the super fabricator and exchanged for a 1.2m x 1m white cotton fabric. He placed it into the material chamber alongside one Lanhu leaf.
By the time they finished breakfast, the fabricator had completed its work.
Tang Yu’an eagerly opened the lid.
The fabric was still 1.2m x 1m in size, folded neatly inside the chamber. Though it still had the texture of cotton, its color had changed to a blue-and-white pattern.
Tang Yu’an removed the fabric.
The morning air was still chilly, with the thermometer reading 10°C. As he touched the blue-and-white fabric, he felt a faint warmth.
“How is it?” Zhou Qi asked.
Perhaps due to his constitution, Zhou Qi was less sensitive to temperature changes.
“It really works!” Tang Yu’an said excitedly. “But… it’s not as warm as touching the Lanhu leaf directly.”
If touching a Lanhu leaf felt like the ideal 25°C, then this temperature-regulating fabric seemed to maintain about 15°C—more of a “constant temperature” effect than an active regulator.
Lanhu leaves typically stabilized at 25–26°C. When the external temperature was lower, they felt warm; when it was higher, they felt cool.
This blue-and-white fabric, however, seemed to maintain a steady 15°C.
“Let’s try adding another leaf.”
“Sure.”
Tang Yu’an exchanged for another identical piece of white cotton fabric and added two dried Lanhu leaves this time.
While waiting, they focused on their studies for the day.
With a “ding,” the new fabric was ready.
Tang Yu’an retrieved it eagerly. This second batch of fabric was noticeably more blue than the first.
“It feels warmer,” he noted.
Zhou Qi measured it with a thermometer and found the temperature had risen to 20°C.
“Let’s try adding one more leaf,” he suggested.
“Alright!”
The third batch took the same amount of time. This time, the fabric was a deeper blue, and under the light, it had a faint jade-like sheen.
If silk were used instead of cotton, this jade-like texture would likely be even more pronounced.
“So beautiful!”
Tang Yu’an stroked the third piece of fabric. Even without a thermometer, he could feel that its temperature was almost identical to that of the Lanhu leaf.
Sure enough, Zhou Qi confirmed it: the fabric now held steady at 25°C.
“If we use this for clothing, it won’t come cheap,” Zhou Qi remarked.
Each 1.2m x 1m piece of cotton fabric consumed three dried Lanhu leaves, making the cost of a single vest approximately 130 points.
“Even just a vest and pants would be great,” Tang Yu’an said with a smile.
Compared to sewing pockets to hold Lanhu leaves against the body, a vest could provide full coverage and was already a significant improvement.
Although most residents might not afford it immediately, not all were in the same situation. Granny Guo and Tie Jin, for example, could probably save up to buy one or two pieces, while others could accumulate credits through work.
“Let’s see what else we can do,” Zhou Qi said after some thought. He exchanged for a 1.2m x 2m cotton fabric, folded it into the material chamber, and added a single Lanhu leaf.
Tang Yu’an didn’t understand the purpose but waited patiently.
Because of its larger size, the fourth piece of fabric had a much lighter blue tint. Zhou Qi set the warehouse air conditioning to 20°C before measuring its temperature.
This fourth piece maintained a steady 10°C.
“Brother Qi, what’s this fabric for?”
“It can be used for preservation,” Zhou Qi explained.
Hearing this, Tang Yu’an’s eyes sparkled. “You’re right! If this fabric keeps a steady temperature of around 10°C, it would be perfect for preserving food.”
Excited, Tang Yu’an immediately exchanged for a 1.2m x 3m piece of cotton fabric and added one dried Lanhu leaf to test further.
Unfortunately, the temperature-regulating fabric Tang Yu’an hoped could maintain 5°C didn’t materialize.
Due to the heavy dilution, the fifth piece of fabric lost its temperature-regulating properties. Aside from being slightly blue, it seemed like an ordinary cotton cloth.
“It seems the lowest temperature we can achieve is 10°C,” Tang Yu’an said with regret.
“That’s already good enough,” Zhou Qi reassured him.
“True.”
Tang Yu’an nodded and picked up the third piece of “normal temperature” fabric and the fourth piece of “low-temperature” fabric. “Let’s stick with these two fabric specifications.”
He decided not to test a one-meter-long fabric with four Lanhu leaves since the leaves’ maximum temperature was 26°C. It probably wouldn’t go beyond that.
Moreover, 25°C was a very comfortable temperature, whether during hot days or cold nights.
Tang Yu’an proceeded to make a two-meter-long piece of the third fabric type and handed it to Round Head to turn into a set of clothes.
“Understood, Master.”
“Scanning Master’s body measurements… Scan complete. Please choose a fit: tight, regular, or loose.”
“Regular,” Tang Yu’an said after some thought.
“Please choose a style…”
Tang Yu’an examined the options on the settings panel and selected a hoodie with long sleeves and pants.
Although he didn’t particularly like wearing thermal pants, staying healthy was more important in the post-apocalyptic world.
“Understood, Master.”
Round Head finished charging, then moved to the rear room. Instead of using Tang Yu’an’s sewing machine, it transformed into a small sewing machine itself.
Its silver-white exterior remained sleek, though its round head sitting atop the sewing machine gave it a humorous look.
It extended its mechanical arms, picked up the fabric and thread Tang Yu’an provided, and began sewing.
Tang Yu’an watched for a while before Zhou Qi pulled him away to study.
The super fabricator didn’t rest either, as the production of low-temperature fabric continued.
They made various sizes, with the largest being 2.4m x 2m. Thanks to the fabricator’s seamless construction, there were no visible joints, and the quality was flawless.
A low-temperature fabric of that size cost 120 points, while the smallest size, 1.2m x 2m, cost only 60 points—affordable enough for mass sales.
By the time their study session ended, Round Head had finished Tang Yu’an’s outfit and returned to charge itself.
Tang Yu’an eagerly tried on the new clothes. The pure cotton fabric was incredibly comfortable, and the constant temperature of 25°C felt just right—neither too warm nor too cold.
He put on both the jacket and pants and found that the temperature remained consistent.
“I think we should make some for Kang Kang and Lili!”
The two kids, like Tang Yu’an, were likely natural awakeners with physiques similar to ordinary wastelanders. Such clothes would undoubtedly be useful for them.
Since Zhou Qi had already taken their measurements when making their earlier clothes, Tang Yu’an entered the data into Round Head and instructed it to create two sets of small outfits.
Before leaving, they exchanged for more cotton fabric and instructed Round Head to regularly replace the materials in the fabricator and take out the finished fabric.
The super fabricator’s material chamber had limited capacity, so it couldn’t produce large quantities at once.
For Round Head, however, this repetitive task was a breeze.
After confirming its ability to handle the job independently, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi entrusted it to the robot and used the teleportation array to leave the Peace Grocery Store.
They arrived at Room 501 and handed the 10 firestones they had obtained from the previous trade to Old Li.
“These firestones are very useful,” Old Li remarked.
Yesterday, the first batch of kang beds had been constructed. Aside from the wood-element ability users, families with children were given priority access—Tie Jin’s family included.
Old Li had given Tie Jin two firestones. After experimenting overnight, Tie Jin returned one this morning and paid the rental fee for the stone.
Indeed, just one firestone placed under a blanket made it warm enough for sleeping.
For someone like Tie Jin, who didn’t need thick blankets, it was even more effective. He kept one blanket and returned the other to Old Li to trade with other residents in need.
With the firestones available for rent, the Desolate City Haven now had a new source of long-term income.
Clearly, though, 12 firestones weren’t enough.
“We’ll find a way to get more firestones,” Tang Yu’an promised, eagerly showing Old Li a piece of low-temperature fabric.
“Grandpa, look!” he said proudly.
Old Li quickly realized the value of the fabric and couldn’t hide his amazement.
“This can be used for preservation,” he said. “And it’s likely more effective than ice or metal boxes made with heat-absorbing bacteria.”
“That’s what we thought too!” Tang Yu’an said. “Grandpa, see if you can figure out a suitable price.”
“Sure!”
Leaving the fabric with Old Li, Tang Yu’an and Zhou Qi didn’t head downstairs immediately. Instead, they returned to the teleportation room, preparing to visit the swimming pool to feed the fish.
The daily fish-feeding routine was starting to feel like a hassle, and Tang Yu’an was considering moving the fish to the Desolate City Haven.
When they arrived at the swimming pool, the place looked unchanged.
The water level outside had risen alarmingly high, but the interior remained calm, with the occasional sound of goats bleating and birds chirping.
“Are there more birds here now?”
Tang Yu’an noticed the flock flying around the upper part of the facility and was about to investigate when Zhou Qi pulled him back.
Following Zhou Qi’s gaze, he saw a shadow emerging from the corner.
To his shock, a giant hen, over a meter tall, clucked its way into view!
“Wait, why is there a mutant chicken in the swimming pool?” Tang Yu’an exclaimed.
CHIMKEN ? ??