Chapter 1: Farming Begins (Revised) Congratulations on obtaining a new pet...

It's sunny again.

The sun was blazing, and there was no wind or cloud. The oval white stones on the ground were scorching hot, and waves of heat rippled through the air.

[Warning: Low energy, about to enter hibernation mode, time remaining: 370 hours 35 minutes]

A five- or six-year-old child looked up in confusion: "Huh?"

His hair was messy, and his overly long hair covered his eyes and most of his nose. Most importantly, only his head was visible; everything below his neck was covered in dirt.

[Host, what are you doing?]

"Ouch."

Please don't do that; you are neither a plant nor a seed.

"Awooo?"

[Of course not! Not even two months, let alone two years! You're a zombie, zombies can't sprout!]

After the system explained word by word for a long time, the child-like zombie finally crawled out of the ground.

This is a square patch of soil, about one meter in size, abruptly embedded in a vast expanse of white pebbles.

On the other side of the soil are some short stems, two or three millimeters in diameter, with a few tender green buds peeking out from the tips of the stems.

In this crumbling rift in space, this piece of land and these few blades of grass are their only hope.

The little zombie was still curious about the announcement from the space earlier: "Huh?"

[It's okay, there's still time. Just do it the way you did before.]

The little zombie nodded.

He knew he was different from most zombies, but still not as good as a real human, so most of the time he just followed orders. Now that the system had said so, he would just do as it said.

This spatial rift also has day and night, but the sun here is a phantom projected from some other world. It is exceptionally large, and the temperature in the space is therefore ridiculously high.

After the little zombie crawled out of the soil, it couldn't go anywhere. It just curled up in a ball and stayed motionless in one corner of the square soil to avoid falling out of the soil and being burned to ashes.

The sun is finally setting.

In the normal world, the sun should only be the size of a disc, but now it almost covers the entire sky. The huge orange-red sphere is like the mouth of a blazing furnace, about to swallow this lifeless place up.

But this was the little zombie's favorite sight. His world was filled with yellow sand, so this was the first time he had seen the sun since he gained consciousness.

"Click, click, click."

As the giant sun grew larger, the temperature in the space rose steadily. The pebbles on the surface could not withstand the high temperature and cracked. Then, the entire stone disappeared completely in just a few seconds.

The system murmured, "[Please don't let it get any hotter...]"

But the next day, the sun was still shining brightly.

And every day that followed was unbearably hot.

In the blink of an eye, a week has passed, and the barnyard grass sprouts have grown and stretched again. This weed, which is disliked in many parts of the world, has finally ushered in the harvest time that people look forward to once again.

Just as the sun rose, the fields were bathed in the golden-red light of the morning sun, and the gray-green barnyard grass stood upright in the center of the land, casting shadows that seemed to stretch and groan.

Oh no!

The system's voice was urgent: [Host, dig them out! Root and all!]

The little zombie did as instructed.

He only had one arm left, and his joints weren't flexible enough, so by the time he dug out all the weeds, a third of the plants had turned completely white, the same color as the pebbles on the ground.

【bite--

Obtain Level 1 crop: Weeds x32

Quality: Damaged x21, Broken x11

Performable actions: Sell, Disassemble.

The little zombie had barely uttered the word "sell" when the system's voice rang in its mind: [Disassemble!]

"break down."

The little zombie could already pronounce the two words very well. At this moment, upon giving the command, the plants that were still a bit green turned into specks of light and scattered, while the dozen or so weeds that had turned completely white disappeared into thin air.

The sight of scattering glimmers of light was actually quite beautiful, but the little zombie didn't understand the concept of appreciation, and the system simply wasn't in the mood for it.

As the last glimmer of light disappeared into the air, an irregular, transparent particle appeared out of nowhere in front of the little zombie.

It floated quietly, appearing even more crystal clear under the sunlight.

The little zombie leaned closer to take a look, then looked up at the sky: "Huh?"

[You see the color of those plants? They're damaged, um... they're sick. Plants like that should just decompose.]

The reason is that regardless of the variety or quantity of the damaged crops, they can only be sold for 1 point at the package price. It's better to choose to decompose them and gamble on luck. However, the little zombie couldn't understand the logical connection, so the system could only explain it as simply as possible.

[What you have in your hand is a decomposition product; its use... is unknown.]

When the system uttered the last few words, its voice carried a clear sense of frustration.

Unfortunately, the decomposition products are completely random, and the battery was almost depleted, leaving no energy to identify what the decomposition products were.

But now, there's something even more troublesome.

There are no more seeds.

The weeds are of such a low level that no one would normally plant barnyard grass as a crop. But those grass seeds were the only thing the system could scavenge before, and now it can't even find a speck of dust in its warehouse.

[It's all my fault! If I had equipped you with combat capabilities, you wouldn't be stuck here! We could have just fought our way out!]

The system is just saying that.

The combat function is cool, but it used to be a one-sided home management system. The program data was all about gardening. Who would bother to equip a gardener with weapons?

When the system first bound itself to the host, it had a good plan. It was a legitimate product with all sorts of planting techniques, adorable farm pets, and synthetic breeding functions. Even if its host was clueless about grains, it was guaranteed to cultivate its host into a large-scale grower who could count points until his mouth was numb.

However, little did anyone know that its host was actually a zombie.

Later, when it fell into this spatial rift, the system was relieved that its host was a zombie.

The energy within the spatial rift has dried up; there is no soil, not even a drop of water.

They had to grit their teeth and change to a new soil with a built-in buff to plant grass, hoping to accumulate points and find a breakthrough. However, they only managed to accumulate tens of points before even the most resilient weeds couldn't withstand the pressure and all of them died.

All of this is because the space rifts are so scarce.

The system couldn't help but fantasize: [If only there were something that could generate energy...]

"Boom!"

A deafening roar shattered the silence of the space, and large clusters of white and purple flashes suddenly appeared in the sky.

The little zombie had never seen such a sight before. Before he could even ask a question out of curiosity, the light broke through the spatial barrier with tremendous force, and the light it emitted in an instant could cover the giant sun.

The purple lightning bolt suddenly struck, but halfway down it seemed to be attracted by something, and it actually veered off course and struck the little zombie.

The lightning bolt wasn't very accurate, only hitting a spot about three meters from the field, but it was extremely powerful, and the aftershock sent the little zombie flying.

The little zombie was thrown out of the farmland. He was only covered by a tattered cloth. As he rolled, his exposed skin collided with the pebbles.

A bizarre scene unfolded.

The cracks in the pebble were contagious, and in an instant, they spread along the points of contact with the little zombie's skin.

The little zombie's first instinct was to go check on his farmland, but the lightning, which seemed to come from nowhere, showed no sign of stopping, and another bolt struck down.

The system had warned the little zombie not to leave the farmland area, but now it actually turned and ran.

The system panicked: [Host, go back immediately! Your foot will break!]

The little zombie could only stammer, "Bad, bad."

He was afraid that lightning would damage the farmland.

Another fierce bolt of lightning struck down, even faster, obliterating the spot where the little zombie had just run away.

The system detected the following: [Throw away what you're holding! Go back!]

The brief command made the little zombie immediately release its grip. The decomposition product obtained a few hours earlier had just rolled to the ground when a bolt of lightning struck it.

The bang of two objects colliding can be so loud it can knock a person unconscious.

Fortunately, the little zombie wasn't human. Even though the zombie's keen hearing caused him to stumble for a moment, he quickly recovered.

However, something even worse happened.

At the site of the explosion, a dark purple sphere appeared out of nowhere without warning, even tearing cracks in the surrounding space.

[Warning: Space collapse, spatial decay rate: 50%, 68%... Remaining time... *sizzle*]

[run! ! ]

The little zombies could withstand the spatial cracks on the pebbles for a while, but they were powerless against this level of spatial energy.

Cracks kept spreading from the soles of his feet up his body. Even though he felt no pain or fatigue and kept running forward, he hadn't evolved into an agile race and couldn't outrun the expanding black sphere.

The system cursed loudly: "[What on earth got in here and created such a huge spatial passage!]"

The lightning continued to fall, but it no longer aimed at the little zombie; instead, it kept firing into the spherical space tunnel that the system had described.

The lightning initially appeared as a common purple color, but its color gradually turned bright red, and its power doubled dramatically.

When the ninth bolt of lightning struck, the scene was beyond description; it was as if the world was being destroyed.

*Snap*

The little zombie, who was running hard, suddenly fell down, and his leg shattered.

The zombie didn't bleed, and as the cracks continued to widen, his two legs scattered all over the ground like collapsed building blocks.

[Host, hurry, hurry...] The system's voice sounded like it was about to cry: [Get out of here...]

The purplish-black spherical objects had spread to within a meter of the little zombie.

Lei is here again.

This bolt of lightning was completely different from the previous ones; it was blood-red and, as it struck down from the void, it spread out like a blooming flower.

A dense net of lightning formed in the sky, enveloping the entire spatial rift.

Zombies have poor eyesight, but the little zombie saw clearly in that instant that something was struggling in the very center of the thickest bolt of lightning.

His eyes widened.

Suddenly, a streak of crimson lightning shot straight toward him.

[Host--! ! ]

In just a moment, the little zombie could neither hear nor see anything.

"boom!"

As lightning descended, the pebbles on the ground turned to dust, and the entire space was dyed a magnificent crimson by the lightning.

The sun may have risen, or it may have been engulfed by the lightning; no one knows for sure. It seems that apart from the lightning, there is nothing else in the world.

After an unknown amount of time, the thunder finally stopped.

The stray lightning bolts in the air were like small fish, spontaneously diving into the distortions in the air. They carried enormous power, causing ripples to spread throughout the space.

This place was originally a desolate and lifeless place, but after the lightning dissipated, several clouds actually gathered in the sky.

The clouds multiplied rapidly, filling the sky and obscuring the illusion of the giant sun in less than a minute.

In the blink of an eye, a torrential downpour, like a curtain of water, began.

A strange noise mingled with the sound of rain, growing clearer and clearer.

"Thump, thump..."

A gigantic, mountain-like figure approached from a distance.

It was completely red, its footsteps sounded like drums, and a strong fishy smell emanated from it, carrying a stench of decay and burntness.

This chaotic aura was unusual, even staining the air around it with an ominous color. From a distance, it looked like a huge blood cloud slowly moving forward.

In the direction it was traveling, there was a corpse.

It was the corpse of a child, the body already torn to pieces.

"Waaah..."

A low growl emanated from its body, and the acrid smell of burning and decay in the air grew stronger.

A gash suddenly appeared on the front of its body.

The slit, like a sickle, swiftly cut open to both sides, revealing countless sharp teeth.

Further inside was a maw that had been churned to pieces, filled with broken weapons, a sight that was terrifying. When the giant mouth opened completely, it was as wide as its body.

Blood-stained saliva kept dripping from its mouth and falling to the ground with a splattering sound.

Just as its enormous mouth was about to touch the corpse in front of it, it suddenly pulled back, lowered its head, and slammed its head against the ground as if it were trying to kill itself.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Blood splattered, but it continued to ram its head wildly until, with a crack, the massive, mountain-like body swayed, tilted to the side, and crashed heavily to the ground.

Blood instantly filled the huge crater it had smashed, and the blood mist around it spread, instantly turning the air here crimson.

It let out a low, mournful cry, the lingering sound hoarse and shrill.

The rain has stopped.

The world returned to its former desolation, with only warm blood flowing gently in the darkness.

Blood spilled over the crater, over the white sand, and soaked the child's mangled body.

Suddenly, the little hand that was soaking in the blood water moved slightly.

[Ding—Congratulations on obtaining a new pet]

[Quality: Rare]

A note from the author:

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Check out my next no-CP (no romantic pairing) management novel, "The Monster Apartment Management Guide"!

The following is the text:

Qi Chao stumbled upon a building by chance.

Qi Chao would never believe that he snagged the only remaining item, but to say he'd bought an entire building...

Qi Chao: Then I'll have to go and take a look.

Qi Chao looked at it.

He wasn't scammed; he actually got a great deal on a building.

However... the walls of that building are gone, the roof is leaking, and it doesn't really matter whether there's a door or not.

Qi Chao, who collapsed on the floor after taking only two steps and got stuck: ......

Qi Dynasty: Not a big problem

This is a building! He doesn't have to be a corporate slave anymore!

Qi Chao decided to open a low-priced apartment, with the rent collected just enough for him to buy groceries, cook, and pay utilities.

However, on the day they welcomed their first tenant...

In the newly created apartment chat group—

(Room 204) I have horns on my head: Boss, my nine kids are too noisy, could you please reinstall the soundproofing?

(Room 204) I have horns on my head. Transfer: 50,000 yuan

Qi Dynasty: ?

Remembering the cat carrier carried by the cool and stylish lady in room 204, Qi Chao said: "Oh, I see, it's nine furry kids."

And then—

(Room 303) Spinning and jumping without closing my eyes: @Boss Qi Chao, please build a karaoke room and a dance studio. I want to compete with that foreigner!

(Room 501) Flying very high: Come on!

(Basement) Sunny Traitor: The food here doesn't quite suit my taste, and I sincerely hope you can consider adding more catering options...

Qi Chao stared at his phone screen, wanting nothing more than to shout: This place is just a small, dilapidated building!

The next second—

(Room 303) Spinning, jumping, transferring money without closing your eyes

(Room 501) Flying very high, transfer money.

(Basement) Sunshine of wronged children transfer money

Qi Chao: Okay, sure. [Emoji: OK]

Much later, a reporter from the "Three Realms Special Report" approached Qi Chao.

Reporter: "How did you manage to build this place into the number one cave in the Three Realms?"

Qi Chao glanced at the reporter in front of him, whose entire body radiated a seven-colored halo, and then at the tenants with horns, wings, and all sorts of strange body parts...

Qi Chao: "Actually, I just wanted to open a simple small apartment building..."