Can't Let Your Mind Wander

[Essence Construct: Rock Golem]

[A self-reliant puppet created using superb skills. Thanks to its inherent materials and Essence, it can freely traverse the earth.]

[Completely controlled by the maker, extremely difficult to sell.]

Linsey tells Red about the attacker, but the girl clearly doesn't understand some of the concepts:

"Autonomous puppets? What are those?"

Linsey explained, "Something that can't act on its own, something that's controlled by others."

After answering Red's question, Linsey began to examine her surroundings.

Of course, he couldn't keep his attention on the map in the Attribute Panel all the time.

But before setting up the temporary camp, Linsey had done some reconnaissance and found no hostile individuals within about 300 meters.

Perhaps this guy just happened to seize the opportunity.

Or Map Scouting these lifeless puppets? Linsey has only encountered living enemies before, and knows very little about these manipulated puppets. To confirm the actual situation, she'll definitely need to encounter another one for testing...

"Linsey, I'm hungry!"

While Linsey was pondering the problem, Red stepped forward and kicked the corpse of the Rock Golem.

Seeing that the attacker had completely stopped moving, she remembered the bird eggs she had just thrown away.

As a result, they turned back and all three bird eggs broke on the ground.

White and yellow gravy were scattered all over the floor, and even the wish for a red dinner was shattered within them.

"..."

"Linsey, what are we having for dinner tonight?"

Linsey was still studying the Rock Golem in front of her.

This creature isn't considered prey in the hunting system, so no materials can be collected from it, and it doesn't have an achievement list.

Hearing Hong's voice, Linsey turned her head and saw only the girl's somewhat forlorn back.

"Hong, don't rush, I'm still scouting the surroundings."

Red returned to camp and threw the captured vulture on the ground:

"Wasn't this puppet already dead? Did you find any of its companions nearby?"

"Not an ally." Linsey shook her head, rejecting Red's choice of words. "This is a puppet. Killing him doesn't mean we're safe. Besides, the person behind this guy isn't an ally; he should be called the manipulator."

Hong started complaining. "So what!"

"Does the presence of enemies mean we shouldn't eat?"

Without the bird eggs, Red was in a terrible mood, and her dissatisfaction was written all over her face, a testament to her straightforward personality.

Seeing the girl's sullen expression.

Linsey recalled the previous ambush and the enemy's heroic rescue efforts.

Let's think of a solution.

Linsey scratched her head and began to inspect her luggage.

In the top left corner, he actually found something that could improve his meals.

Crop seeds! After cultivating the plants in Hidden Borderlands town, they were kept as souvenirs, and Linsey kept some as well.

He was initially reluctant to use it.

But now...

"Although the quantity is not large."

"But with my abilities, it's only a matter of time before I can cultivate enough food!"

Linsey was full of confidence and immediately assured Hong next to her, "Don't worry, we'll have a better meal today!"

At this point, Linsey had also checked the surroundings using the map and found that there were no other dangerous enemies nearby.

He waved his hand to send the bats into the air as a warning.

He dug out clods of soil, water, Bone Meal, and seeds, and began Sowing on the spot, utilizing his Resource Conversion! "What are you doing?" Hong asked curiously, crowding around. "Is improving your meals just eating dirt?"

Linsey answered seriously:

"I'm farming."

"Go and kill that vulture, pluck its feathers, bleed it, and gut it."

Red followed instructions and processed the prey in the river at the bottom of the canyon, then returned to camp with the processed vulture.

What came into view was Linsey, who was still squatting in the camp, and the crops growing rapidly next to him.

"Well?"

Although she had lost her memory, Hong understood the abnormal growth rate of the plants in front of her.

She recalled Linsey's earlier actions and reacted quickly, "Linsey, is this an effect that your skills can achieve?"

Linsey nodded:

"That's right, I changed the properties of the seeds and soil to make it grow faster."

The girl gritted her teeth with obvious envy and said:

Are you sure I really can't learn your skills?

Linsey retorted, "Do you want to lose your memory again?"

"..."

Hong was completely deflated.

She tossed the cleaned-up vulture in front of Linsey, then ran to the makeshift camp she had prepared, lay down on the ground, and spread her legs out in a starfish shape. "The world is so unfair!"

Linsey just rolled her eyes at him and ignored Red's complaints.

At this time, the crops were growing well, and he went over to prepare for the harvest, while also storing up grain for the next planting.

Although some Essence are consumed every few times of cultivation.

But given the chance to improve her meals, Linsey's underlying thoughts were no different from those of the girl lying on the ground next to her.

Hong only ate barbecue for a month, but Linsey ate it for almost half a year!

To celebrate this special moment, he even made a new pot on his Workbench.

Normally, processing wheat is quite troublesome.

But Linsey's Survival Module can handle this problem perfectly; wheat, from seed to flour to noodles, consumes only Essence and a small amount of time.

As Linsey arranged the noodles and vulture meat in the pot, preparing for today's braised noodles, she began to stare at the pointer of her cooking skill.

Seeing this scene for the first time, Hongye couldn't help herself.

She was only halfway through cooking when she smelled the aroma, got up from the floor, and rushed to Linsey's side.

"Linsey, what is this?"

"Noodles," Linsey explained, "Simply put, they are a type of food made by grinding wheat into flour and then processing it."

The scene with the red general was completely interpreted as Linsey taking care of him.

She wasn't embarrassed at all.

Instead, he reached out his elbow and nudged the soft flesh around Linsey's waist.

"Didn't you just say you were going to pay attention to your surroundings? Why are you cooking for me so obediently now?"

Linsey began to recount her personal journey:

"Because I thought about it, if a person is cooking while keeping watch over their surroundings, they will definitely be distracted."

Hong continued:

"So...?"

Linsey smiled.

"So I focused on cooking and stopped being on guard!"

Upon hearing this answer, Hong's eyes widened, and she began to re-evaluate the man before her:

"How come you suddenly got it all of a sudden?"

"Because what you just said does make a valid point," Linsey explained in detail. "You can't just stop eating because someone's watching you, can you?"

"Moreover, the enemy is in the dark, while we are in the light."

"Let's relax. In the end, only this coward who doesn't dare to show his face will be exhausted."

Hong chuckled.

At this point, the cooking indicator has reached the perfect range.

Linsey made a quick move, and a delicious and visually appealing Vulture Braised Noodles dish was ready.

Linsey and Red have a great rapport.

The two of them sat around the iron pot, watching over each other from above, and began to cook with great concentration.