Chapter 95

Chapter 95

“Mr. Ying?” Huang Yu tentatively called out, seeing Ying Yuanxing standing motionless.

“Your sister can control her body to lay eggs and hatch chicks,” Ying Yuanxing said, feeling a strange awkwardness. After a second’s pause, he added, “Are there any limitations to this ability?”

Huang Yu hadn’t expected such a question and honestly didn’t know the answer.

“Should I call my sister over?” Huang Yu suggested.

Ying Yuanxing nodded. Soon, Huang Yu brought Huang Hua over.

“Mr. Ying, this ability seems to consume a lot of Weird Qi. For now, I can only produce one egg a day, and only that egg can hatch into a chick. If I try to produce more, the eggs might be of lower quality and may not hatch,” Huang Hua explained.

“What if I provide you with more Weird Food to replenish your Weird Qi?” Ying Yuanxing asked.

“I should be able to produce more eggs, but there’s definitely a limit; it can’t be endless,” Huang Hua replied after some thought.

“Here, have some Weird Food first and try producing another egg,” Ying Yuanxing said. He might lack other things, but Weird Food was certainly abundant. He even asked Huang Hua, “What do you like to eat? Vegetables or fruit?”

She could choose?

Huang Hua was stunned. Although Mu Ye was capable, the farm’s output was meager, and Huang Hua had grown accustomed to the farm’s frugal life.

At Ying Yuanxing’s place, the chicken coop was never short on food. The pasture grass, though just grass, tasted much better than ordinary Weird Food. But in the coop, that was all they had to eat.

As for what to choose, Huang Hua was still a bit bewildered. Meanwhile, Huang Yu, standing nearby, brightened at Ying Yuanxing’s words.

Huang Yu knew the farm far better. For instance, whenever Mu Ye got something delicious, he would share a small portion from his own share. But these portions were tiny, leaving Huang Yu craving more before they were gone.

“Sis, the Weird Food here is all delicious. Let me tell you…” Huang Yu whispered.

However quiet he tried to be, it was hard for Ying Yuanxing to miss.

If Huang Hua’s ability proved powerful, Ying Yuanxing envisioned his farm becoming a true ranch, no longer constrained by livestock numbers or other limitations. Naturally, he wouldn’t be stingy with Huang Hua.

Noticing Huang Hua’s unfamiliarity with Weird Food, Ying Yuanxing simply brought out some dishes he had prepared. Now that she had taken on a human-like form, treating her like an animal was inappropriate. And offering raw ingredients to a guest wasn’t quite right, so preparing a full meal was more suitable.

When Ying Yuanxing mentioned preparing a full meal for her, Huang Hua quickly began to politely decline.

“Mr. Ying, there’s no need for such trouble. I…” Just eating something simple would be fine, like the Weird Food brought earlier; she didn’t care about its taste.

But before she could finish her refusal, Ying Yuanxing took dishes out of the refrigerator: four main courses, a soup, a dessert, a fruit platter, and a bowl of rice.

From the moment Ying Yuanxing brought out the dishes, Huang Hua couldn’t tear her eyes away. Huang Yu stared, mesmerized.

Though taken from the refrigerator, the dishes were steaming hot.

As a Weird creature, Huang Hua had never cared whether food was hot or cold. But at this moment, she suddenly felt that hot food tasted better, its aroma richer.

“I didn’t prepare much. Would you like to try?” Ying Yuanxing offered.

Huang Hua couldn’t voice her refusal. Noticing her interest, Ying Yuanxing stood up and left, allowing Huang Hua to eat at her leisure.

After all, he was now essentially her employer, and no employee enjoyed dining with their boss.

With Ying Yuanxing gone, Huang Hua indeed relaxed a bit. Seeing Huang Yu’s hungry gaze fixed on the dishes, she hesitated for a moment before saying, “Xiao Yu, you…”

“Sis, you eat. This is the boss’s way of nourishing you. I can’t eat it,” Huang Yu quickly refused before Huang Hua could finish.

“Besides, I eat every day at the ranch. Look at my physique—I’m very sturdy. But you…” Huang Yu added, looking at Huang Hua with some concern.

If she could distribute the food herself, Huang Hua would have shared some with Huang Yu no matter what he said. But remembering this was for her own nourishment from Ying Yuanxing, Huang Hua buried her head and ate heartily.

Knowing Ying Yuanxing was waiting for her results, Huang Hua, despite wanting to savor every bite, sped up her eating, clearing the entire table of food before quickly returning to the chicken coop.

She discovered that her ability only worked inside the chicken coop. Outside, it was as if the connection to her power was severed; she could sense it but couldn’t use it.

In front of Ying Yuanxing, Huang Hua immediately produced two more eggs. The first was still a large egg, but the second was an ordinary egg, and its quality wasn’t particularly high.

The hatching results showed that the large egg could accelerate growth, maturing into an adult hen in less than a minute. The ordinary egg, however, only hatched into a chick that couldn’t grow further.

Huang Hua looked nervously at Ying Yuanxing, afraid he would be displeased. But Ying Yuanxing seemed fine; even if she could only produce three eggs, it was still good.

Moreover, with these two new chickens, there were now a total of three adult chickens. Tomorrow, two or three more would be added. Regardless of whether Huang Hua’s ability would improve later, this alone meant at least ninety additional chickens per month.

And Ying Yuanxing was pondering something: Was this egg-laying ability unique to Huang Hua, or did other Weirds possess it too?

“Can these eggs be used by other Weirds?” Ying Yuanxing asked.

“I don’t know,” Huang Hua shook her head. She didn’t even know how she herself had been revived, so she naturally couldn’t make such a judgment.

“Then don’t try to hatch tomorrow’s eggs yet,” Ying Yuanxing instructed. He then looked at Huang Yu and his younger brothers with expectant eyes. “Keep laying eggs, you guys. Maybe all the other animals on the farm will depend on you to be born.”

Seeing the despair in Huang Yu and his brothers’ eyes, Huang Hua almost offered to help, but then she looked at her own hands and feet, realizing she was no longer a chicken and couldn’t lay eggs. So, she truly couldn’t help and could only offer encouraging glances to her brothers.

Huang Yu could only pray that the eggs Huang Hua produced could be used by other Weirds. Otherwise, he and his brothers might end up becoming the “mothers” of every chicken Weird on the farm.

The next day, Ying Yuanxing used the eggs Huang Hua had produced for an experiment. Under the hopeful gazes of Huang Yu and his brothers, the experiment succeeded: several chickens collapsed, and the eggs indicated they could be hatched.

Huang Yu and his brothers were overjoyed, especially the younger ones. That morning, they had just laid eggs. As Huang Yu had said, it didn’t hurt—just a moment of weakness before the egg was out—but the mental impact was immense.

Three days later, the eggs successfully hatched, and several Weirds emerged, looking somewhat disoriented at their surroundings.

Without relatives nearby, they had spent who knows how long as mindless chickens. Regaining consciousness now felt like waking from a very long sleep, still a bit slow to react.

But soon, Huang Hua led them to a small wooden hut for a meal, which served as a welcome ceremony, celebrating their escape from ignorance and return to sentience.

“How long were we unconscious?” When Huang Hua led them to the small wooden hut, the Weirds hadn’t fully processed things, still feeling somewhat dreamlike. But upon seeing the table laden with Weird Food, they instantly snapped to attention.

Though they didn’t know current prices, they understood the rarity of Weird Food. This table full of Weird Food certainly wouldn’t be cheap.

But they remembered Mu Ye wasn’t particularly wealthy.

Could their master have struck it rich?

“Huang Hua, did the master get rich?” Jin Shi asked Huang Hua excitedly, his eyes gleaming.

The other four Weirds also looked at Huang Hua expectantly, though their eyes couldn’t help but drift towards the table.

“The master didn’t get rich,” Huang Hua said, seeing their expressions and knowing what they were thinking, then firmly denied it, which was met with five disappointed looks.

“But the master is so strong—how come he never gets rich?”

“Maybe because he’s too honest? He won’t even cheat or swindle.”

“I think it’s because he raises too many Weirds. We’re the ones eating him out of house and home.”

“Not me! I eat very little and can even go out to find food myself. It definitely wasn’t me who ate him poor.”

…

The five Weirds chattered away, and Huang Hua couldn’t help but bang on the table.

“Alright, stop muttering and eat quickly. If you don’t get some nourishment soon, you won’t even be able to sit still.”

“You’re giving all this to us—what do you need us to do?” Jin Shi didn’t immediately eat, asking Huang Hua instead.

In the Weird world, there were no free lunches. If you encountered one, you first worried if it was poisoned, then if there was a trap behind it—eating it might mean repaying ten or a hundred times over.

If it were just themselves, that would be one thing, but if they got Mu Ye into trouble, they’d never forgive themselves.

The other Weirds also stared at Huang Hua, their expressions serious. If Huang Hua had brought them here to eat, she might already be someone else’s servant.

Huang Hua knew what they were worried about and rolled her eyes. These guys were all full of schemes and tricks, terrified of being exploited by other Weirds.

“I know what you’re thinking. The master is here too—if you don’t believe me, come and see.” Huang Hua pushed open the window and pointed at a figure outside.

Mu Ye was here too?

The five Weirds swarmed to the window. Fortunately, they were in childlike forms now, so they could all fit by the window. Otherwise, someone would have been left behind.

Mu Ye was holding a sickle, harvesting hay, when he suddenly felt someone watching him.

Mu Ye followed the gaze and saw five small faces squeezed together—pale, thin, and frail-looking.

“Master?”

A tender voice called out. Mu Ye felt the voice was familiar, searched his memory, and recognized whose it was.

“Jin Shi, you’re lucky. You were chosen in the first batch.” Mu Ye walked over but didn’t enter the hut, speaking to Jin Shi from beneath the window.

“Master!”

“Master!”

…

The other Weirds also called out, looking at Mu Ye with admiration. From a distance, they might have suspected this Mu Ye was an imposter, but up close, his aura couldn’t be faked.

Mu Ye responded to each of them, pleased to see the life in their eyes as he gently patted them. However, Mu Ye didn’t stay long; soon, he heard Ying Yuanxing’s voice telling him to go pick fruit in the orchard.

Ying Yuanxing could pick fruit with his new ability, but riding a horse in the orchard was uncomfortable. If he had to walk, Mu Ye’s sickle would actually be faster. So, it was better for him to handle the more strenuous work, letting Mu Ye pick the fruit.

Mu Ye left at the call. Jin Shi also heard Ying Yuanxing’s voice and was puzzled by how casually he ordered Mu Ye around. He asked Huang Hua, “Who is that? How can he command the master so freely?”

“That’s our boss—you could say he’s also our master now.” Huang Hua met Jin Shi’s furious gaze and added, “The master has transferred control of the ranch to Mr. Ying. We are all living off Mr. Ying’s farm now. In fact, we only woke up thanks to Mr. Ying’s blessing.”

Jin Shi’s expression shifted. If that was the case, then Ying Yuanxing truly was their master.

But what did she mean by “woke up”? Jin Shi still remembered emerging from an eggshell.

While Jin Shi and the others ate, Huang Hua didn’t waste time and explained everything in detail, leaving them stunned.

Master Mu Ye hadn’t gotten rich, but he had allied himself with a powerful farm owner. Now, under Ying Yuanxing’s support, the ranch was flourishing with delicious pasture grass growing everywhere.

While they were still unconscious, Mu Ye had rented them out to Ying Yuanxing to keep them alive—because Ying Yuanxing needed them to lay eggs and produce milk. After finally nurturing them back to health, they regained their Weird forms, which meant…

Jin Shi’s face flushed. By that logic, they really had been living off the farm’s resources for quite some time without contributing anything.

And now they were even eating some of Ying Yuanxing’s Weird Food.

Jin Shi stared at the spotless plates on the table, his face growing even redder.

“So, do you want to repay Mr. Ying?” Huang Hua asked.

“Huang Hua, whatever Mr. Ying needs us to do, just say the word. No matter how dangerous, we will do it,” Jin Shi declared resolutely. The other Weirds also agreed, their expressions serious.

“The farm doesn’t have anything dangerous for you to do right now. It’s just…” Huang Hua’s gaze flickered for a moment. “It’s just that I’m afraid you might not want to do it.”

The five Weirds exchanged glances, a bit puzzled, unsure why Huang Hua would say that.

“Ahem, just follow me,” Huang Hua cleared her throat and led the five Weirds back to the chicken coop.

This was a specially designated chicken coop, primarily used for laying eggs and hatching chicks, essentially the farm’s maternity ward.

As soon as Jin Shi entered, he saw five chickens walking inside—three roosters and two hens. Their appearance seemed somewhat familiar, yet not entirely so.

“These were your previous bodies. See if you can control them,” Huang Hua said.

“Is that all?” Jin Shi asked, stepping closer. He realized one of the roosters seemed to be his original body.

“For the rest, you’ll have to explore yourselves and see if you have a certain ability,” Huang Hua said.

Unable to make sense of Huang Hua’s vague words, Jin Shi decided not to overthink it and simply tried. He wanted to see what made Huang Hua so hesitant.

Jin Shi tried for a while and quickly learned how to control the body. He then carefully investigated the ability Huang Hua mentioned—and froze.

The other four Weirds, seeing his reaction, were curious but, confirming Jin Shi was unharmed, also found their own bodies and took control—then all froze.

After turning into chickens, none of the five had ever laid eggs. Now that they had regained consciousness, they could actually lay eggs, and even hatch chicks?

“The farm currently needs a lot of eggs to exchange for other Weirds. So, you’ll have to contribute by laying eggs too.” Huang Hua said, thinking of her younger brothers and then herself, suddenly feeling justified.

Everyone had to lay eggs, so it was only normal for Jin Shi and the others to do so too.

Besides, Jin Shi and his group had it much easier than her brothers. At least her brothers had to lay eggs with both body and consciousness, while they only needed to control their bodies to lay eggs, which was considerably less strenuous.

“Oh, and our stay on the farm isn’t free. Mr. Ying doesn’t need you to pay Weird coins for now, so I suggest you all choose to pay by laying eggs. This is better, and you can also get some pasture grass to replenish yourselves,” Huang Hua advised.

“I… I understand,” Jin Shi gritted his teeth. After Huang Hua explained the whole situation, he wanted to rescue his friends quickly, which meant laying eggs fast. Otherwise, if they didn’t lay eggs, their friends might remain unconscious for who knows how long.

It was one thing if there was no way to save them before, but now that there was a way, they couldn’t be too picky.

“Jin Shi, I knew you could do it.” Huang Hua patted Jin Shi’s shoulder, looking very pleased. “Oh, do you remember Jin Zhu’s appearance? You can even use the eggs you lay to help Jin Zhu recover her body.”

Jin Shi, who had been somewhat reluctant, nodded repeatedly at Huang Hua’s words, but then hesitated again.

“What’s wrong?” Huang Hua asked.

“If Jin Zhu also hatches, will she also have to lay eggs?” Jin Shi asked.

“If you don’t want her to, then she can be placed later,” Huang Hua shook her head. “But Mr. Ying won’t raise us for free. If you want Jin Zhu not to lay eggs, she’ll have to be more useful in other ways. Otherwise, do you want Mr. Ying to lose money?”

Jin Shi fell silent.

“Just try it. Once you overcome the psychological barrier, laying eggs is actually quite easy,” Huang Hua said. She had laid eggs several times already. Perhaps due to Ying Yuanxing’s ability, the greatest harm from laying eggs was psychological; there was no physical harm.

Jin Shi nodded. After trying it out, his previously tense expression relaxed considerably.

When Ying Yuanxing learned that Huang Hua had all the hatched Weirds start laying eggs, he said nothing but simply gave Huang Hua extra meals.

Although he could have accomplished it himself, Huang Hua’s intervention saved him a lot of trouble.

Good news came from the chicken coop, and soon after, good news also came from the livestock shed: several Weirds had been born. However, unlike the eggs, they suddenly appeared in the shed, but Ying Yuanxing received a notification.

However, the birth efficiency in the livestock shed was much lower. While chickens could lay two or three eggs a day, it took two cows to produce one Weird.

In the chicken coop, the dynamic was “friends and relatives lay me, hatch me, and I emerge with them.” In the livestock shed, the dynamic was more like “I and my friends and relatives gave birth to me, and then my relatives and other Weirds gave birth to relatives.”

Ying Yuanxing saw a particularly unlucky Weird. Every time it paired with another Weird, the other Weird would be born, leaving it to find another partner. But the Weird it found would also give birth, and it would still be without a body.

It searched the entire livestock shed, achieving the feat of selfless contribution, yet it remained a cow.

According to Mu Ye, Weirds that turned into cattle or sheep were generally stronger, making them unable to transform into smaller animals like chickens, ducks, or rabbits. As a result, regaining their consciousness by “birthing themselves” took a heavy toll on their original bodies.

Normally, a cow or sheep Weird would only need two partners to successfully give birth to itself. Although it took a toll on their bodies, they could endure it without extra nourishment. But this unlucky Weird, due to its extreme bad luck, helped birth a fourth before it finally collapsed.

Before Ying Yuanxing could provide food, the Weirds it had helped birth all volunteered to help, offering their milk to feed it.

After all, if they hadn’t regained their consciousness, drinking milk wouldn’t have been an issue. But now that they were self-aware and embarrassed, they just couldn’t bring themselves to do it.

Even though milk was beneficial, the farm had other options. Since it wasn’t a life-or-death situation, they preferred sticking to regular Weird Food.

Ying Yuanxing tried to persuade them but didn’t know how. While he knew the milk from their bodies was effective, he wasn’t about to drink it himself for now.

He decided to let their bodies recover first, allowing them to birth real calves and lambs before considering milk consumption—it was easier to accept that way.

After inspecting the farm, Ying Yuanxing sighed at the sight of the unlucky Weird still helping others while remaining unchanged. Its luck was truly unparalleled.

But…

Ying Yuanxing looked at the unlucky Weird and noticed that compared to before, its body had grown much larger. Clearly, the milk it had consumed these past days had not been in vain; its body was very well nourished.

As Ying Yuanxing’s farm flourished, the farming trend outside grew stronger. Of course, supermarkets were also being heavily raided.

As a result, some supermarkets chose to close their physical stores, operating online only. Customers could top up their balance on supermarket websites, pay for products, and choose between pickup or delivery. To boost sales, delivery fees were kept low.

One could say that the Weirds bound to the farming game had, by their own efforts, forced another option into the Weird world. Otherwise, given the supermarkets’ previous arrogance, most customers would have had no choice but to shop in-store, with no convenient options.

Even so, some warehouses were still attacked, and customer purchasing desire seemed low, which greatly frustrated the supermarkets.

After all, they had only ever worried about not having enough goods to sell, never about goods not selling well.

In a small alley, a group of Weirds gathered, whispering to each other, their movements somewhat suspicious.

If this had been during the time when Supermarket Weirds openly hunted down farming game-bound Weirds, seeing these Weirds gather might have prompted them to rush in and capture them. But now, some supermarket Weirds chose to act as moles, engaging in self-dealing, and many others had to remain in the supermarket to prevent theft and looting, leaving few personnel available for surveillance.

These Weirds didn’t actually need to be so cautious, but they did so out of habit.

“Your mature corn sprouts are way too expensive. Can’t you lower the price?”

“Hey, look at these sprouts—they’re already big! Just wait a bit, and they’ll bear corn. If I weren’t desperate for Weird coins, I wouldn’t even sell them. If you don’t want them, I’ll find another Weird to ask.”

“Wait, wait—I didn’t say no! This one, this one, and this one—I’ll take them all. Can’t you give me a discount?”

“If you take all of these together, I’ll give you a discount. This much, how about it?” The speaking Weird extended a finger, gesturing.

This was a small agricultural market, but besides Weird Food, a large portion of the goods were Weird Plants—all grown from second-generation seeds provided by Ying Yuanxing.

Unlike the human world, Weirds had more methods at their disposal. While first-generation seeds couldn’t be tampered with, resourceful Weirds had made second-generation seeds bloom everywhere.

Some Weirds, considering the difficulty of planting seeds, even helped cultivate seedlings before selling them. The larger the seedling and the better its condition, the more expensive it sold for.

For a time, many Weirds chose to come to these agricultural markets to purchase Weird Food and buy Weird Plants to grow, unwilling to go to the supermarkets.