97: road construction
A light mist rose from the knee-deep green grass. The bodies of the “Illusionary Light Mica” emitted colorful halos, drifting across the sky like clouds.
Those low-level Illusionary Light Mica that were not yet mature, only palm-sized, floated up and down in the mist, supported by their small umbrella-shaped bodies.
It had already been twelve hours since Chu Shengyuan arrived at this mysterious grassland. The Source Beast that had dragged him from the mountains contemptuously tossed him aside the moment it captured him, seemingly quite uninterested in him.
After the initial panic subsided, Chu Shengyuan felt a surge of anger. If it wasn't interested in him, why bring him to this place?
Fortunately, his two good partners, Sensen and Little Jing, followed him. Otherwise, in this unfamiliar place, he truly wouldn't know what to do.
After the jellyfish threw him here, it flew back into the sky. Chu Shengyuan could only wander aimlessly. Without direction, Chu Shengyuan had no idea which way led home.
He hadn't seen any other Source Beasts on this plain—only grass and jellyfish. Some were as large as clouds hanging from the sky, some were only palm-sized, and medium ones were like houses.
The jellyfish came in various colors, and the light emanating from their bodies penetrated the mist, giving the grassland a hazy, neon-lit night feeling.
After a day of observation by Chu Shengyuan, the Source Beasts here seemed very gentle; if you didn't provoke them, they would simply treat you like air.
Even when provoked—for instance, Chu Shengyuan raising his hand to pat an umbrella-sized jellyfish—it merely shook its body and moved a considerable distance away from Chu Shengyuan, without actively attacking.
Chu Shengyuan lay on Little Jing, letting it carry him forward, while he himself sighed long and miserably.
He missed home so much. He didn't know where this place was, how far it was from home, or if he would ever be able to go back.
The small child, lying on a seven or eight-meter-long giant python, gazed wistfully at the sky, experiencing the taste of sorrowful sighing for the first time... The atmosphere in the Chu Family Residence had been extremely oppressive these past few days.
The servants moving about inside were very careful to minimize their movements, afraid of disturbing the Master of the House. Although the masters were usually generous, no one wanted to incur misfortune at this critical time when Young Master Yuan was missing.
On January 3, 3398, Jiang Nian, as usual, brought Chu Shenghan to the small courtyard where Xu Yinyue lived.
Xu Yinyue was not surprised to see Jiang Nian. She and Jiang Nian sat down one after another at the wooden table.
“I have to trouble you again.”
Xu Yinyue gently shook her head. “It's no trouble at all. It's what I should do.”
Spiritual Radiance gathered in her eyes, and then she spoke softly, describing the scene she saw:
“Young Master Yuan is lying on a grayish-blue giant python, gnawing on a red berry. Not far from him, an irregular vine hut has been built. It looks like Young Master Yuan intends to settle there.
The surrounding environment is still that plain, and those jellyfish-like Source Beasts seem very gentle, with no intention of harming Young Master Yuan.”
After saying this, the Spiritual Radiance in Xu Yinyue's eyes slowly dissipated. Since she had to check on Chu Shengyuan almost every day recently, the duration she could maintain her Spiritual Sight was greatly shortened.
After hearing Xu Yinyue's description, Jiang Nian wiped the corner of her eye and placed a few Origin Rune Stones on the table.
“Thank you, Little Yue. If I didn't have you to help me see how he's living now, I truly wouldn't know what to do.”
Xu Yinyue gently shook her head. “No need to thank me. I merely relayed his current situation; I didn't actually help in any significant way.”
Jiang Nian sat for a little longer, but not wanting to disturb the young girls' private time, she left Chu Shenghan behind and departed the small courtyard with Nanny Liu... At the entrance of Fuhe Village.
Many Villagers gathered under the Banyan Tree at the village entrance, having heard that the ‘Highway’ being built by the Chu Family was reaching their village today.
They had heard of Carriage Roads—the kind with two deep ruts, specifically used for horse-drawn carriages.
But they had never seen this 'Highway.' According to the news passed down by the Chu Family servants, this Highway was meant for everyone to walk on. It was flat and wide, and walking on it would be incredibly convenient.
Following the tremor of the ground, over a dozen Stone Monsters of varying sizes appeared around the corner of the Mountain Path.
With every step they took, the surrounding ground sank by nearly a meter. Brownish-yellow energy fluctuations could be seen flashing across the Stone Monsters' feet as they touched the earth.
The shorter, lower-Realm Stone Monsters walked ahead, and when the significantly taller Stone Monsters behind them passed, the ground sank even further.
The ground, which was originally somewhat rough, had been completely transformed by their skills into hard, stubborn rock, as if hammered by a thousand years of wind and frost.
This road surface was guaranteed not to be damaged, even if carriages rolled over it ten million times, or if Villagers pounded it with massive hammers.
Of course, if other Source Beasts attacked with skills up to a certain limit, the road surface would still be destroyed. But for these ordinary Villagers, destroying the road was practically a fantasy.
The Stone Monsters walked quickly and soon arrived at the village entrance. The Villagers gathered there hurriedly moved to the sides, clearing the way.
As they drew closer, facing the oppression from the Stone Monsters' higher lifeforms, the Villagers involuntarily retreated into the courtyards lining the road. Their initial curiosity turned into nervous apprehension.
Seeing the Villagers' reaction, some of the Contract Masters sitting on the shoulders of the Stone Monsters revealed disdainful smiles.
They truly didn't understand why the Chu Family was willing to spend so many Origin Rune Stones to hire them to build this so-called Highway.
Whether the road was built or not made no difference to them as Contractors; their transformed physical capabilities allowed them to disregard the paths within this Realm, which were barely even winding.
On the contrary, once the Highway was completed, it seemed only to offer convenience to ordinary people.
They really didn't know if the Chu Family was showing off its wealth, or if they simply had too many Origin Rune Stones to spend, to put such a great effort into this project.
Although they thought this way, they didn't show it too much on their faces. After all, jobs that allowed them to earn Origin Rune Stones so easily were hard to come by in the current world.
The dozen or so Stone Monsters walked from the beginning of the village to the end, and then, guided by the Guards arranged by Chu Qinhui, they continued constructing the road toward Qingsha Village.
Only after the Stone Monsters had left the village and gone far away did the Villagers dare to step out of their courtyards, curiously observing how the formerly muddy street had been transformed into a smooth, level surface.
They hesitated to step onto it immediately. Some only dared to poke the ground with a finger, while others patted the surface with their palms, producing “pa pa pa” sounds.
The hard sensation informed them that the ground was indeed extremely tough.
“Oh my heavens, this ground is too flat! It's better than the Kang I sleep on at home. I truly don't want to step on it.”
“Our Threshing Ground has been used for hundreds of years, but it's not this flat or this hard.”
A figure walked from the village entrance along the flat road. Many Villagers turned their heads, wanting to know who was the first person to stand on this solid ground.
But upon seeing the person's face, the Villagers instantly became even more excited. “Young Master Chu.”
“Don't say 'Young Master Chu,' you should call him 'Master of the House'!” An elderly person chastised and educated the younger generation.
Chu Qinhui walked along the road and approached the Fuhe Village Chief.
The Fuhe Village Chief trembled as he bowed and cupped his hands. “Thank you, Master of the House, for building this flat Highway for our Fuhe Village.”
Chu Qinhui gave a faint smile. “Village Chief Chen, no need for thanks. I came here this time to arrange some other matters.”