Tong Niu remained silent throughout the trip.
Tie Ma and Zhou Yi, however, were actively engaged in negotiations.
The Agricultural Machinery Brothers observed the soil and climate conditions along the way and considered the nearby area to be sandy, suitable for planting sweet potatoes and peanuts, and then using legumes for nitrogen fixation. However, if they were to provide the seeds, there would be an additional cost.
Tie Ma said, "I suggest using 100 mu (approximately 16.5 acres) of land as an agricultural experiment zone. This way, the risk is manageable, and we won't waste labor."
"Two types of crop seeds, according to the market prices in Recursive City. For the initial planting, 2 Light Seeds for sweet potatoes and 3 Light Seeds for peanuts. The subsequent resowing can extract seeds and seedlings from the first planting."
"In addition to that, including some legumes for nitrogen fixation to enrich the soil will require an additional 1 Light Seed."
"Next is the issue of water and fertilizer. There is a water source not far from here, and we can divert water to the agricultural zone near the water source for irrigation. The construction distance is short and won't incur extra charges."
"But fertilizer is indispensable; you need to provide a minimum baseline quantity of fertilizer. If there isn't enough fertilizer, the yield will be much lower than your worst prediction."
"Lastly, there are the safety issues of the farmland. No highly destructive dangerous creatures have been found nearby; it's within a controllable range, so my brother and I won't charge extra for that."
At the same time, an electronic spreadsheet popped up on the remote control's screen.
"Recursive City Agricultural Service Pricing Standards"
It listed very detailed various services, each with a corresponding detailed price; there were many items.
Zhou Yi briefly checked and found that Tie Ma's prices were indeed by the book.
"No other issues, just the fertilizer. Do you think this manure will do?"
Tie Ma moved to the container warehouse, and the two spherical cameras on top emitted green light, scanning the materials inside.
"Although it's quite primitive organic fertilizer, it can be used. A pity the quantity is far from sufficient, and the soil here is not fertile."
After calculating, it provided a quote, "For reclaiming and deep plowing 100 mu, dividing 50 mu each for sweet potatoes and peanuts, including legume nitrogen fixation, the total cost would be 3 Light Seeds."
Zhou Yi was more concerned about, "What if I buy fertilizer from you?"
Tie Ma replied, "The current price of fertilizer is not cheap. We can source very little on-site; more than 95% of the fertilizer needs to be purchased and transported. For 100 mu, one year's worth of fertilizer costs 10 Light Seeds; the expense is quite high."
Zhou Yi nodded, "As long as it helps the farm to form better. With standard-equipped fertilizer, you should be able to cultivate this land better, right?"
"Of course, as long as there are sufficient resources and conditions, the land will give a matching response."
Tie Ma also said, "If you are sure, I will update the supplemental clause of the agreement with Red Kestrel. You need to first pay this extra expense, a total of 13 Light Seeds, before we can purchase the fertilizer."
Moments later, Red Kestrel displayed the supplemental agreement to Zhou Yi through the screen, confirming the fertilizer transaction.
Zhou Yi entered the Dead Sea, activating the hunting mode.
The Dead Sea was still speckled with light and shadows, enveloped in thick mist.
However, with the navigation of the Red Kestrel, these were no obstacles.
Since arriving here, Zhou Yi had been very restrained, only eliminating small creatures that actively attacked him.
Now it was time to make a withdrawal.
Through the vision of Red Kestrel, he saw a red dot slowly moving in the distance.
The camera zoomed in.
The outline of the other party gradually became clearer—it was a Bone Fish.
Its body was made of various bones connected together, resembling the skeletal specimen of some large water snake.
The Bone Fish was rapidly spinning its body, using its sharp skull to dig through the underground soil layers, stirring up a lot of dust.
This was a habit of the Bone Fish species; they dug up bones from underground and attached them to their own bodies to enhance their physiological functions. They grew themselves in this way, which was much faster than orderly and slow growth.
The larger the Bone Fish, the higher its strength. They could freely change their physiological structures, some resembling octopuses, some like coral, and some even taking on humanoid forms.
The Bone Fish were numerous on the sea floor, belonging to low-level Guangna Species, and Zhou Yi was quite familiar with them as part of his hunting list.
The samurai crabs quietly surrounded the target, then launched a swift assault, stabbing the Bone Fish with spears and harpoons, making it twist and turn frantically, flinging sand and mud everywhere.
Zhou Yi quietly waited.
The Bone Fish's body continued to shake, but its movements were becoming slower and slower.
Zhou Yi walked over and placed his hand on the snake-shaped fish bone, and a halo gradually emanated from it, eventually condensing into a small Light Seed.
He took out a tin can with an iron lid from his pocket and approached it, drawing the Light Seed into the can.
Slowly, a ring of light completed its loop around the top of the can, within which the number 1 appeared, signifying the Light Seed was stored.
This was the Guangna Box he had gotten from the Red Kestrel.
Without the sustaining power, the bones also disintegrated and scattered on the ground. Fresh chapters posted on NoveIꜰire.net
However, a hole had been drilled in the ground; the Bone Fish had already been decapitated, its head having made a swift escape.
Zhou Yi was not surprised by this.
What he wanted was sustainable harvesting.
In the early days of hunting Bone Fish, he chose the traditional method of killing, which was indeed efficient and quick. However, the "high-pressure mutation phenomenon" caused a large number of mutated Bone Fish to appear, causing quite a bit of trouble for him.
After numerous battles, confrontations, and attempts, Zhou Yi found a way.
To harvest, not to kill.
When facing a deadly threat, the larger, mature Bone Fish would choose to survive by shedding their tails, abandoning their bodies, while their core heads found ways to escape.
To attract and hold the enemy's attention, the abandoned bodies still carried a substantial amount of energy, which was sufficient to extract Light Seeds. If the Light Seeds were not quickly collected, this high-purity energy would dissipate back into the Dead Sea.
By harvesting Light Seeds from an enemy, the Bone Fish heads with retained self-consciousness and a wealth of experience had the room to escape.
After repeatedly confirming this mechanism, Zhou Yi started to specifically target the larger Bone Fish for harvesting, allowing their heads to flee while collecting Light Seeds from their discarded bodies.
He left the juvenile Bone Fish untouched.
Unfortunately, the Bone Fish were ultimately low-level monsters at the bottom of the Dead Sea's food chain. Their energy collection efficiency was extremely low, and their growth rate was severely limited.
Zhou Yi specially marked more than a dozen Bone Fish and found that it took them at least three months to go from losing their bodies to replenishing their shells and condensing enough Light Seeds.
Even with sustainable harvesting of Bone Fish, at best, one could harvest four times a year. Considering that the Bone Fish that were caught multiple times would flee elsewhere, it would be good to get two harvests a year.
But in need of money, Zhou Yi immediately set to work.
He was quite experienced in harvesting Bone Fish.
Zhou Yi rode back to the surface and handed over the Guangna Box.
"Here are two years of your salary and the extra expenses for farming. Any other issues?"
"As long as the pay is enough, there are no problems. We brothers will handle the rest."
A mechanical claw shot out from the side of the Tie Ma, interfaced with another, larger Guangna Box, and then the numbers on Zhou Yi's Guangna Box reset to zero, while the Agricultural Machinery's changed to +13.
The transaction was complete.
"Don't worry, we brothers will guarantee both quality and quantity."
"Tong Niu, make a trip back to haul fertilizer; I'll go select the land and do the preliminary planning."
Tong Niu turned around and drove back down the route it had come from the north.
Tie Ma also rumbled as it headed towards the Oasis in the west.
The Red Kestrel lowered its altitude, hovering in front of Zhou Yi.
"Aren't you going to take a look?"
Zhou Yi shook his head, "Even if I looked, I wouldn't understand. I don't know the first thing about agricultural technology; I'd just be in the way. Since they're your trusted professionals, let them put their skills to use."
He looked at the drone, "One thing I don't understand is, with your capabilities, it should be easy for beings like Tie Ma and Tong Niu to hunt low-level Guangna Species, right? Hunting alone should yield a large number of Light Seeds without such long operations. Why not go directly into the Dead Sea to hunt?"
"The first is about instinct; Electromechanical Life inherently possesses a strong order structure."
The Red Kestrel replied, "To work according to one's function and specialty, create value, earn wealth, and enhance personal skills; labor is a normal way of life for Electromechanical Life."
"Our order structure enables us to trust each other, work together, reduce unnecessary internal losses, and increase the efficiency of survival and evolution. It also allows us to deal with more challenges and crises in various ways. And because of this underlying foundation, signing an agreement with city-certified Electromechanical Life can be highly reliable."
"The second reason is that the Dead Sea is equally dangerous for Electromechanical Life."
"Being in the Dead Sea for an extended period without isolation protection equipment, Electromechanical Life can also be continuously affected by the Death Light, leading to unpredictable mutations and chaos, ultimately resulting in the destruction of the order."
Zhou Yi hissed, "Next time, you better not go into the Dead Sea."
"Please don't worry, my shell has certain isolation and protection functions. Although it's an older model, it's still usable as long as I don't enter extremely chaotic areas. If I exceed the threshold, I will issue a warning."
The Red Kestrel explained, "I'm a rescue robot; I'm meant to operate in various dangerous environments, searching for those who can be rescued. These enhancements are modifications based on job requirements, and they're standard issue among the members of the rescue team."
Only then did Zhou Yi feel reassured.