Chapter 135: Taoyang Expands, Lin Fangzhi’s Unusual Behavior
Stop. No need to rush. Take it step by step.
Su Tao calmed herself down. As she opened the Agricultural Supplies Store, she suddenly noticed the “Map” icon flashing.
She recalled the system prompt—after reaching LV5, she could expand the original land area.
Excited, she set aside the Agricultural Supplies Store and clicked on the map.
A top-down map of Taoyang unfolded before her. The green areas represented the land she already controlled, while various red zones of different sizes flickered around Taoyang.
She selected a small red area to the east of Taoyang and clicked on it. A dialog box popped up:
[This area covers 500 square meters. It requires 5 Level-1 Crystal Cores to gain control.]
Curious, she clicked on a larger red zone:
[This area covers 800 square meters. It requires 8 Level-1 Crystal Cores to gain control.]
After testing four or five red zones, Su Tao came to a conclusion:
The land-to-crystal-core ratio was 100:1.
This consumption rate was much higher than the hidden mission rewards.
She still remembered that when she unlocked Panliu Mountain, she only spent 5 crystal cores for 1,000 square meters.
Yep, hidden missions were way more cost-effective.
Su Tao looked at the red zones surrounding Taoyang with envy. If only they were all mine…
Some red zones overlapped with Dongyang’s territory—did that mean that if Taoyang kept expanding, it might eventually absorb Dongyang?
She blinked, suddenly intrigued.
It wasn’t about power or control—she just felt that if she could include Dongyang, it would reduce casualties among the warriors and help Dongyang develop faster.
After daydreaming for a while, she sighed.
Forget about absorbing Dongyang—I can barely afford the smallest 500-square-meter plot.
But 500 square meters was still enough to replace the third-floor greenhouse.
That greenhouse was only 100 square meters, and Qian Lin had been complaining about space for a long time.
She originally wanted to buy the land immediately, but when she saw Lin Fangzhi curled up on the couch, sleeping soundly, she couldn’t bring herself to wake him up just to fetch crystal cores.
His spatial ability was convenient, but at times like this, it was a bit troublesome.
That night, she went to sleep feeling excited.
*
The Next Morning
Before dawn, she woke up to the soft groans of Lin Fangzhi.
She quickly got up and found him.
The hangover left Lin Fangzhi with a splitting headache, but when Su Tao asked for five crystal cores, his hand reacted faster than his brain—he handed them over immediately.
[Five Level-1 Crystal Cores detected. Energy extraction in progress… Congratulations! You have gained control of the selected land.]
Su Tao immediately checked the map.
The once-flashing red zone had now turned green, merging seamlessly with Taoyang’s land.
She was about to go downstairs to check it out in person, but Lin Fangzhi, now more awake, suddenly grabbed her.
“Where’s the crystal core?”
Su Tao was puzzled. “I used it. It’s gone. Why?”
Lin Fangzhi froze for a moment. Then he said:
“Last night… you promised to check again.”
Su Tao suddenly remembered.
Last night, he had insisted that the crystal core felt hot, but she couldn’t sense anything and had promised to try again in the morning.
Even after drinking so much, he still remembered that? Incredible.
Feeling a little guilty, she sat next to him and apologized:
“I was too impatient. Next time we get another crystal core, I’ll check again, okay?”
Lin Fangzhi looked a little disappointed but still nodded obediently before quickly getting ready for Xiao Sheng’s early morning class.
Su Tao noticed his reaction and became more curious.
After some thought, she called Pei Dong.
“Sister Pei, I wanted to ask—what does Dongyang do with the crystal cores it collects?”
Pei Dong replied:
“A small portion is used for research, another portion is consumed by energy weapons, and the rest is stored.”
“How many do you have now?”
“Less than ten. Do you need some?”
Su Tao hesitated but admitted, “Yes. If possible, I’d like to trade for a few.”
Pei Dong was silent for a long time before asking, “How Taoyang’s vegetable production? I heard you’re self-sufficient now. Do you have surplus?”
Su Tao’s eyes lit up. “Yes! We have about 60–80 pounds of extra vegetables per week, and that number is still increasing.”
Pei Dong said, “Alright. I’ll talk to the commander later and see if we can trade. Ever since Dongyang’s farm burned down, we’ve had to import vegetables from other bases—at ridiculously high prices. The commander even tried negotiating, but it didn’t work.”
Su Tao nodded. “Yeah, I heard about that. The few bases that can still grow crops are price-gouging like crazy.”
“Sister Pei, I’ll leave the exchange rate up to you. Whatever you decide is fine.”
Pei Dong reassured her, “We won’t shortchange you. If there’s nothing else, I have to go—evolved zombies have been appearing more frequently, so we’re on 24-hour alert.”
Before she could hang up, Su Tao quickly stopped her.
“Wait! One more thing—can crystal cores suddenly heat up?”
Pei Dong was confused. “Never heard of that. Why?”
Su Tao explained, “It’s about Lin Fangzhi. You know him, right? The kid with spatial abilities. Lately, he’s been telling me that crystal cores feel hot, but I can’t feel anything. I was wondering if only ability users can sense it, so I wanted to ask you.”
Pei Dong thought carefully and said, “The research institute hasn’t given us any conclusions on that. I’ll call them later and ask them to look into it.”
After hanging up, Su Tao immediately rushed to the new area.
This 500-square-meter plot was right next to Building No. 2—she just had to climb over the wall to get there. The land was completely barren, with nothing on it.
The first thing she did was build a wall to fully incorporate the new land into Taoyang’s territory.
Next, she opened the Agricultural Supplies Store. There weren’t many items, but they were all very practical.
The first thing that caught her attention was a greenhouse.
According to the product description, this greenhouse could maintain optimal temperature and humidity for most crops. It also had high light transmission, strong wind resistance, and could withstand heavy rainstorms.
Not only that, but the aesthetic was impressive—it was a fully transparent glass structure that prevented water condensation, ensuring consistent light penetration.
The size of the greenhouse was adjustable—even small enough to fit on a balcony.
However, the bigger the size, the higher the cost. The price was 3,000 Federal Credits per square meter.
That meant covering 500 square meters would cost 1.5 million credits.
Su Tao did the math and almost choked on her own breath.
After the last upgrade, her personal savings had shrunk to just over 60,000 credits.
The public funds still had a decent balance, though. The plantation and Panliu Mountain had been profitable over the past half-month, bringing in roughly 600,000 to 700,000 credits—though she’d have to confirm the exact amount with Qian Rongrong.
But she was reluctant to touch that money, since she was saving it for the next upgrade.
