The Right Tool for the Job

"A Yi! A Yi!"

The repeated calls pulled Ling Yi from his thoughts. He raised his head and looked toward the sound.

At that moment, a round little head poked up over the wall of Ling Yi's courtyard, peering curiously inside.

Zhang Lei, Ling Yi's cousin... or perhaps cousin on his father's side?

He was the son of Uncle Zhang Dahe and Aunt Ling He, and another treasured child of the Ling and Zhang families.

As a male descendant of the Zhang family, three-and-a-half-year-old Zhang Lei had a good chance of awakening the Zhang family's inherited "hoe" Martial Soul during the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony two and a half years from now.

Also a Tool Martial Soul, the "hoe" Martial Soul was far more useful than Blue Silver Grass. At the very least, it could barely count as a weapon.

Even if it was not used for battle, it was extremely convenient for tilling fields, making it a renowned high-grade Martial Soul throughout Ten Miles and Eight Villages!

Most importantly, compared with Waste Martial Souls such as Blue Silver Grass, morning glory, and Boston ivy, the "hoe" Martial Soul had a slightly greater chance of awakening Innate Soul Power.

Although no wielder of the "hoe" Martial Soul had ever awakened Innate Soul Power in the past several decades—or even century—and no one knew just how much greater that "slight" possibility truly was, the nearby villagers still firmly believed it.

"Lei Ge, you're climbing so high again. Be careful, or if Uncle sees you when he gets back, he'll tan your hide—"

As Ling Yi called out in a lowered voice, he released A'Huang and Meow Meow, who had been clinging to his lap, then got to his feet and headed toward the courtyard gate.

With a long creak, Ling Yi held the wooden gate open with one hand and shook his head at Zhang Lei, who slid down the bamboo pole and hurried over. "Get in here. Auntie should be bringing me food soon. If she sees you climbing all over the place, she'll definitely tell Uncle when she gets back—"

"Hehe—"

Zhang Lei bared his teeth in a grin as he ran through the gate. "As long as you don't tell them, it'll be fine—"

As he spoke, Zhang Lei entered Ling Yi's courtyard and swept his large, bright eyes around. When he spotted something resting on the kitchen windowsill not far away, his eyes widened and excitement appeared on his face as he walked over.

Ling Yi followed behind Zhang Lei, while A'Huang and Meow Meow circled around their feet, playing along with the two boys. Shaking his head slightly, Ling Yi said, "If you really want one, just ask Uncle..."

By then, Zhang Lei had already reached the kitchen window in two quick strides. Standing on tiptoe, he reached toward the windowsill, which was a head taller than him, and fumbled for the object before taking it into his hands.

Ling Yi said, "It's not hard to make, anyway."

As his words fell, Ling Yi looked at the object in Zhang Lei's hands—a slingshot.

It was a primitive slingshot, made with a Y-shaped Iron Birch Tree branch as its frame, elastic bands fashioned from tanned touch-me-not stems and leaves, and a small piece of Iron Birch Tree bark as its pouch.

Hearing Ling Yi's words, Zhang Lei rolled his eyes. "Not hard? I heard Dad say that making this slingshot for you took nearly four or five days. The blade of his 'hoe' Martial Soul was practically worn dull before he managed to carve the branch he cut from that Iron Birch Tree north of the village into the shape you wanted..."

Even so, that did not stop Zhang Lei from repeatedly playing with the Iron Birch Slingshot in his hands as though he could not bear to put it down.

"Hey—yah—!"

With a crisp shout, Zhang Lei held the slingshot's grip in his left hand and pinched the pouch with his right, pulling back with all his strength.

However, he was only three and a half years old. Although children on the Douluo Continent developed quickly, he still lacked the strength. He only managed to draw it back a little before his face turned red and he had no choice but to let go.

"Alright~" Ling Yi stepped forward, took the Iron Birch Slingshot from Zhang Lei's hands, and turned toward the main house. "Come inside and take the first one I made instead—"

"This one is like the one Uncle later made for your family. They're both for adults."

"Oh—" Zhang Lei nodded and followed after him.

After lunch, under Aunt Ling He's careful reminders, Ling Yi followed Zhang Lei toward the southern side of the village, with a yellow and gray little pair trailing behind them.

After passing several small courtyards much like Ling Yi's, the two boys and two little animals left the village.

In the distance, a quiet little river curved through the land, murmuring along on its own.

"Woof! Woof woof—!"

With a series of excited barks, the little yellow dog A'Huang darted out from beside Ling Yi's feet and charged ahead like a horse released from its reins.

"Meow—"

The little Li Hua Cat, Meow Meow, rubbed her head against Ling Yi's ankle again and again, as though urging him onward.

Seeing this, Ling Yi glanced at his cousin Zhang Lei, who had turned to look at him, then lifted his chin. "Let's go. We'll find Uncle first—"

With that, he moved his short little legs and followed the dirt path outside the village, circling toward the southeast.

Before long, the two boys and two little animals arrived at a pond beyond the village's southeastern corner.

"Dad—!"

"Uncle—!"

"Woof woof—!"

Zhang Lei called out first, then rushed toward a tall young man by the pond with his arms spread wide.

Ling Yi and A'Huang called out as well before running after him.

At the pond, Zhang Dahe turned at the sound. When Zhang Lei and Ling Yi came into view, a smile immediately spread across his face. He quickly crouched down and opened his arms in welcome.

Holding Zhang Lei and Ling Yi's small bodies against either side of him, Zhang Dahe rubbed both boys' heads and asked with a smile, "Why did you two come all the way out here in this heat?"

Then his expression suddenly changed as he pressed, "Don't tell me you want to play in the water?"

At that, Zhang Dahe's expression turned even more serious. "I'm telling you two, that is absolutely not allowed!!"

"No, no—" Ling Yi waved his hands repeatedly in Zhang Dahe's arms. "Lei Ge and I came here because we wanted to catch some frogs—"

Hearing this, Zhang Lei nodded again and again. "Right, right, right—"

As he spoke, he reached to his side and pulled out a small pale-yellow slingshot, waving it at Zhang Dahe before continuing, "Dad, we're going to use the slingshot to shoot frogs, then you can help us pick them up, okay?"

"Once we catch lots and lots of them, we'll send some to Grandpa and Grandma, and Maternal Grandfather and Maternal Grandmother too..."

"Hahaha—" Zhang Dahe burst into hearty laughter. "Alright, alright, alright... It's rare for a little rascal like you to be so filial, remembering your grandparents and maternal grandparents. Of course Dad will help you—"

"Hehe—" Zhang Lei shook the little slingshot in his left hand and scratched his head with his right, looking a little embarrassed. "A Yi was the one who told me we can't just think about ourselves..."

Without waiting for Zhang Dahe to respond, he wriggled his little butt free from Zhang Dahe's arms and ran ahead along the edge of the Pond.

"This brat—"

Watching his son's excited back, Zhang Dahe shook his head with an amused smile. Then he turned his gaze to the well-behaved Ling Yi in his arms, lifted him slightly with both arms, and said softly, "Little Yi, you came at just the right time. Help Uncle take another look at this Pond."

As he spoke, he supported Ling Yi with his left arm, letting him sit sideways in the crook of it. Zhang Dahe started walking forward, pointing at the Pond beside them with his right hand as he went.

"Before, you said we should dig a small canal from both the upstream and downstream sides of the Changlin River, then dig a Pond in between to connect the two ends..."

As he listened to Zhang Dahe's explanation, Ling Yi looked over the scene before him.

It was a Pond roughly thirty meters long and nearly twenty meters wide, located two li beyond the southeastern corner of Shan Hai Village.

On the western and eastern sides were canals about one and a half meters wide. A steady trickle of water flowed in and out from the Changlin River over two hundred meters away.

This Pond and the canals had been dug bit by bit by Ling Yi's eldest uncle, Zhang Dahe, using his "Hoe" Martial Soul.

On this summer afternoon, the Pond, which had only taken shape two months ago, was surrounded by flourishing aquatic plants. Frog calls and insect cries rang out everywhere in chorus.

Faintly, fish of all sizes could be seen beneath the surface, some chasing small shrimp and water insects, others rising to the surface to feed on duckweed.

At the outlet of the canal on the Pond's eastern side, a dark-green Vine Net could clearly be seen half-submerged in the water, blocking most of the larger fish and shrimp from following the current back into the Changlin River.

"Uncle~" The thriving scene before him reflected in Ling Yi's eyes, but his expression remained calm as he asked in a childish voice, "The water only has those grasses, and they aren't very pretty. Can we plant some flowers?"

Hearing this, Zhang Dahe looked toward the Pond, his face turning thoughtful as he muttered, "Flowers? Mm... I think the Pond in Second Uncle's village has some lotus flowers. We can transplant some over later..."