Farming Games are All About Grinding-Chapter 46: Discovering the Mine

After letting the chickens out, Han Qiwu was about to leave the chicken coop when his gaze briefly swept over the storage compartment of the automatic droppings collector, and he suddenly realized something.

Fertilizer! Of course!

Chicken manure is one of the most nutrient-rich animal fertilizers. Due to a chicken’s poor digestion, around 40% of nutrients get excreted.

However, like other fertilizers, it can’t be used directly. The nitrogen content is too high, and using it as is not only introduces too much bacteria but could also burn roots. It needs to be decomposed first.

I’ll deal with that later. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓

With the chicken coop all set, Han Qiwu glanced at the time. It was already 10:14 AM.

Time to catch some mandarin fish!

Early fishing means early respawns!

Before heading out, Han Qiwu didn’t forget to water all the plants.

When things aren’t in your direct sight, they’re easy to forget. The more he watered, the more Han Qiwu thought about finding that mine.

Without mining, how am I supposed to get a sprinkler?

The march of progress is urgent!

Fueled by this drive to know, Han Qiwu found himself growing impatient even while fishing by the river.

By the time it was past noon, he still hadn’t caught a single mandarin fish.

"Forget it. I’ll stop fishing for now. I’ll grab a bite and check out that mine." Han Qiwu packed up his fishing rod, ate something casually in town, and hopped on his bike toward the small path leading to the mine.

When he biked back to the spot that had been blocked the day before, the area was now clean and clear. The rocks and dirt blocking the road had been pushed to the sides, forming makeshift barriers to prevent potential rockslides from the nearby cliffs.

"The efficiency—truly worthy of the title ’Infrastructure Maniacs.’" Han Qiwu rode his bike straight through and noticed that beyond this stretch, the surroundings became noticeably desolate.

Mountain farms were but small patches; most of the area was thick forests and wasteland. Due to the inconvenient terrain and the distance from town, in over ten minutes of cycling, Han Qiwu only encountered one or two people.

"Hey, young man, got anything to eat?"

As Han Qiwu stopped to rest, a homeless man suddenly appeared before him. His hair was yellowed and matted, and his clothes were tattered, but his eyes gleamed brightly, which felt strangely out of place.

Han Qiwu thought about it for a moment. He had some pancakes and water with him. He pulled out two large pancakes and an unopened bottle of water, handing them to the man.

Everyone’s got their struggles, right?

"Thank you, thank you." The homeless man accepted the pancakes and water but didn’t eat right away. Instead, he glanced around, bent down, and plucked some wild greens from a nearby bush. With a few quick swipes of his hands, he wrapped them in the pancake. Then, he crouched again, found two small chili peppers from another bush, and threw them on top of the pancake before finally rolling it up and taking a bite.

Han Qiwu was stunned watching this.

So, there are this many wild greens around here?

But the game’s foraging map didn’t load this information.

Figures—the incomplete version is a total scam.

Han Qiwu patiently waited by his bike until the man finished eating. Then he asked, "Excuse me, could you tell me what wild greens you just foraged?"

"Purslane, fiddlehead ferns, and shepherd’s purse—and at the end, I grabbed some wild mountain peppers." The homeless man’s voice became louder after he was full. "The pancake was good. Did you make it yourself?"

"Yes, I made it myself. Here, take the last two pancakes as well. They don’t spoil easily. Could you teach me how to identify wild greens?" Han Qiwu handed over the rest of his pancakes.

The homeless man’s eyes lit up as he swiftly took the pancakes and stuffed them into his chest pocket.

"Sure, no problem. Come, I’ll show you how." The homeless man crouched down and began explaining while pointing at the surrounding shrubs and weeds.

The explanation went on for half an hour.

[You’ve learned partial spring wild vegetable foraging methods from the homeless man, Liu Lang.]

[Your foraging map has been updated with the following collectible items: shepherd’s purse, purslane, fiddlehead ferns, and wild mountain peppers.]

"Thanks." Han Qiwu wanted to give him some fish as thanks, but he didn’t have a bag with him. He couldn’t just pull the fish out raw, right? As Han Qiwu pondered what to do, the homeless man spoke up.

"No need—mutual gain. Maybe we’ll cross paths again." The homeless man was quite open-minded, waving as he walked off into the fields and disappeared.

Han Qiwu had a feeling this man had a lot of stories to tell.

Unfortunately, Han Qiwu didn’t have wine.

Next time, he’d bring some extra food for him. Knowledge about wild foraging could be super useful.

Opening the foraging map, Han Qiwu noticed that about 80% of the wild greens in this area had already been picked by Liu Lang.

All Han Qiwu managed to scavenge were three or four system-recognized wild mountain peppers.

[Wild Mountain Pepper]

[+10 Stamina]

[-1 HP]

[Note: Spiciness is a form of pain.]

The attributes on this wild pepper were ridiculous. Add stamina, lose health.

Truly, enjoying spice is fleeting; the repercussions come later.

But solving this problem was easy—just use the peppers as condiments in other dishes. No big deal.

After pocketing his unexpected finds, Han Qiwu continued cycling for another ten minutes along the small path before finally coming across a dark, shadowy mineshaft entrance.

Judging by appearances, the mineshaft was dug directly into the mountainside. The entrance was pitch black, with no trace of light, and he could occasionally hear faint gusts of wind blowing out.

"Wind? That means it’s ventilated." Han Qiwu looked around to make sure no one was nearby, then raised his hand to pull out his makeshift torch 2.

Its predecessor, makeshift torch 1, had tragically met its end during the honey-gathering operation.

Holding the torch, Han Qiwu cautiously stepped into the mineshaft. The moment he entered, system messages appeared in his field of vision.

[You’ve discovered an abandoned mineshaft.]

[Nobody knows what might have spawned in this abandoned mineshaft.]

[You’ve received: Mineshaft Guide ×1]

[You’ve received: Weapon – Rusty Sword]

Hearing the system prompts, Han Qiwu felt a sense of relief.

Finally found it.

This game really loves trying to scare people. "Unknown dangers," "who knows what..."

Who’s afraid of who?

Worst case, I run for it.

That said, the mineshaft guide was definitely worth a look.

[Mineshaft Guide]

[Each level of the mineshaft contains ores and subterranean creatures.]

[Breaking ores or defeating subterranean creatures gives you a chance to uncover stairs leading to the next level.]

[At certain levels, such as the fifth or tenth, you can use an elevator to return to the entrance.]

[Be mindful of your health. If your HP reaches zero, you’ll be forcibly sent to the town clinic for costly treatment and will lose some items.]

[Guide incomplete...]

Han Qiwu couldn’t help but suspect that the same person wrote all these guides. Why are they always so incomplete?

Still, the information here was crucial.

So mining and combat go hand in hand—makes sense when you think about it. Combat rewards treasure.

And apparently, losing all HP in the mine just sends you to the town clinic—nothing catastrophic. No reason to worry then.

I’ve only got four bucks and a few fish on me. Take whatever you want.

First mining expedition! Let’s do this!

Before venturing in, Han Qiwu pulled out the weapon gifted by the system from his storage.

[Rusty Sword]

[Attack Power: 10]

[Note: A rusty sword only beginners would use.]

Is this the legendary Tetanus Sword?

Where’s the magical attack effect? Why isn’t it listed?

A pitiful 10 attack power—it doesn’t even compare to the 25 attack power of the Longsword back home.

Oh well. Can’t be helped. Home’s too far away. This will have to do for now.

Into the mine I go.