Chapter 66 of 100

Chapter 66

14 min read3,447 words

——On May 28th, 889th year of the Black Iron Calendar, the handsome and mighty Lord of the Castle invested 300 spirit points, 5 merit points, and 0.1 basic energy reserve into the mutation and evolution of a bottle of yeast.

——The estimated completion time for this mutation and evolution is 360 hours. Please, the handsome and mighty Lord of the Castle, be patient!

Seeing this information, Zhang Tie estimated that the time it took for the mutation and evolution to produce results was likely related to the growth cycle of the organism. Potatoes would probably take about two months to show results, while yeast would take about two weeks.

This attempt also made Zhang Tie realize another thing: a certain number of organisms had a limit to the maximum amount of spirit points, merit points, and basic energy reserve that could be invested in them at one time. For this half bottle of yeast, when he pulled the three sliding control bars all the way to the right, the maximum single investment of spirit points it could withstand was 7600, the maximum merit points was 860, and the maximum basic energy reserve was 340. These "huge numbers" left Zhang Tie stunned for a while. In the end, he had to carefully calculate and make a small-scale investment that he could barely afford to see how it would turn out.

Leaving the Black Iron Castle, his father had already returned home, and it was time for dinner. Tonight's dinner was especially abundant, with ham and beef on the table. His mother had prepared a full table of dishes, making Zhang Tie's mouth water. At the dinner table, his mother kept serving him food, while his father kept reminding him of the things to pay attention to during the survival trial.

"Whatever you do, never act alone in the wild, especially not at night, understand?"

Zhang Tie nodded while eating.

"Also, don't try to show off..." his mother added.

"Mom, with my skinny arms and legs, there's nothing much I can show off about!" Zhang Tie exclaimed, and then his father tapped him on the forehead with his chopsticks.

"Of course, your mother knows you can't show off much, but she means you should act within your capabilities. The wild is not like the city; many things there can be deadly!"

"I understand!" Thinking of how his mother looked at the photo of that deadbeat brother, Zhang Tie swore that no matter what, he would come back alive.

Throughout the meal, Zhang Tie's head nodded like a little chick pecking at rice, as his parents kept giving him instructions.

...

As the meal was about to end, Zhang Tie took out three gold coins from his pocket, pulled his mother's hand, and placed the coins in it. The three heavy, shiny coins immediately startled his parents and his sister-in-law, who stared with wide eyes.

His father's eyes were wide open, looking at the three gold coins and then at Zhang Tie, picking up one of the coins to examine it, "Where... where did you get so much money?"

Zhang Tie said nonchalantly, with a proud expression, "Of course, it's from the Iron Thorns Battle Hall. There are many rich people there, and sometimes, if you provide good service, those rich young masters will casually give you a gold coin or two!" Zhang Tie's words were half true and half false. In the Iron Thorns Battle Hall, it was indeed common for sparring partners and other service staff to receive tips, which varied from a few silver coins to a few gold coins. Girls like Mary often received astonishing amounts of tips each month. Although Zhang Tie had never received any tips or rewards, this lie was hard to expose, and even the battle hall couldn't ask all the guests on the sixth floor how much they had tipped Zhang Tie.

"But... that's too much!" His mother still couldn't believe it. These three gold coins were roughly equivalent to his father's quarterly salary, a significant amount of money for the family.

"Mom, those rich young masters wear shoes that cost over ten gold coins. Look at the prices on Radiant Street; everything is sky-high. This money is a lot to us, but to them, it's nothing. Otherwise, why would so many people like to go to the battle hall? I'm growing up, and I'll earn more money in the future. During my survival trial, don't save money, Dad and Mom. Buy more good food and nutritious things for my sister-in-law. My future nephew or niece will grow up strong. You two should also take care of yourselves and prepare to enjoy the good life I'll provide for you."

After hearing this, Zhang Tie's parents finally believed him. They had heard some things about the battle hall and knew that there were indeed many rich people there who spent money like water, far beyond what ordinary people could afford.

Seeing his mother finally put away the three gold coins carefully, Zhang Tie felt a great relief. With this start, things would be easier. If he brought back a little "tip" every now and then, it would ease his parents' worries. With the rice wine business slowing down, the money to support the family had decreased, and his parents' smiles had become less frequent. As his sister-in-law's belly grew bigger, the family would soon have another mouth to feed, and the expenses would only increase. The pressure on his parents was evident, and Zhang Tie, as a son, understood this better than anyone. Seeing his mother put away the money and his father's relieved smile, Zhang Tie felt a warm feeling in his heart.

The next day, the whole family was busy. The Zhang family's rice wine shop was closed for a rare day as everyone prepared for Zhang Tie's survival trial.

A sleeping bag, a set of light protective leather armor, a raincoat, a helmet, an aluminum water bottle, a leather strap, a backpack, and a multifunctional engineer's shovel—these items were all at home, used by Zhang Tie's older brother, Zhang Yang, during his survival trial. His mother had carefully stored them, and now she took them out for Zhang Tie to use. In families like the Zhangs, many items were passed down from one generation to the next, from brother to brother, and from brother to son, until they could no longer be used. These items were a bit old, but because his mother had taken good care of them, they were all still usable. These were the items most families in Black Flame City prepared for their children's survival trials.

His mother aired out the sleeping bag for a day and secretly hid a bag of fried rice in it—there was a limit to the amount of food one could bring for the survival trial, not exceeding five kilograms, but many people would secretly hide a little extra, and as long as it wasn't excessive, the teachers would turn a blind eye...

His father oiled the leather armor, sharpened the engineer's shovel, and then went out to buy four kilograms of compressed biscuits and one kilogram of beef jerky...

His sister-in-law helped adjust the soft padding inside the helmet to fit Zhang Tie's head size, washed the water bottle, and prepared a set of spare clothes and a sewing kit for Zhang Tie...

...

After a busy day, the family finally prepared everything Zhang Tie needed for his survival trial. The last dinner at home before the trial was still abundant, but his parents were both worried and sad. There were fewer words at the table, except for his mother's repeated and nagging instructions.

Zhang Tie was also a bit sad. The survival trial was not only a test of an adult's abilities but also a prelude to his leaving home and living independently. The meal started well, but as it went on, his mother's tears couldn't help but fall into her bowl, making it hard for Zhang Tie to eat.

"Mom, don't worry, I'll be fine!" Zhang Tie had to comfort his mother. Although he couldn't fully understand a mother's feelings when preparing survival gear for her son, his mother's tears revealed the hidden sorrow of the family's impending separation. As the second son, Zhang Tie's time in Black Flame City was already limited. With his mother's sobs, his father's eyes also turned red, and Zhang Tie's eyes reddened as well. The last meal at home ended hastily.

...

After dark, Zhang Tie found a time to go out. He wandered through the streets and finally arrived at a post office near the bustling Civic Square in the center of Black Flame City. When no one was paying attention, he put an envelope into the mailbox at the post office and then took a roundabout way back home.

The envelope was brought home by his older brother, part of the Black Flame City Guard's living supplies. As a soldier, there were times when he needed to contact his family, so his brother received two special envelopes each month that could be sent without stamps. His brother had brought a few of these envelopes home, and the extras were sold on the black market, where they were in high demand. Inside the envelope was a red scarf hood and a letter written by Zhang Tie in standard print. The letter was sent directly to the headquarters of the Black Flame City Coal and Steel Federation. In the letter, Zhang Tie wrote only one sentence without a signature: "The Red Scarves are colluding with the New Moon Merchant Guild to plot against Black Flame City!"

For Zhang Tie, this was the best he could do. In this conspiracy, whether it was the Red Scarves or the New Moon Merchant Guild, they were all superpowers and behemoths compared to Zhang Tie and the entire Zhang family. A small person getting involved in the war between these behemoths was like an ant getting caught in a fight between elephants, and at any moment, they could be crushed.

Not to mention, there seemed to be an even more terrifying figure behind these two major forces, the "Lord" mentioned by Sneider and Hack. The mere mention of this "Lord" by Sneider and Hack sent a chill through Zhang Tie's heart, completely dispelling any侥幸 thoughts he had of using this matter to gain greater benefits for himself...

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