Tang Ruan and the others' little bellies had flattened.
Their stomachs were smooth and flat again.
Although they had eaten quite a lot at noon, most of it had been consumed by their "newborn" state.
After fighting and hauling supplies, they were all hungry again.
Zhao Chi said, "Everyone, take a break. We'll eat soon. Tonight, we're having roast venison."
The women were all delighted.
Tang Ruan had already started licking her lips.
Having meat to eat was always good.
Especially roasted meat, with its distinctive, slightly charred aroma.
As long as it was roasted properly, it would taste delicious without any complicated preparation.
Earlier, while they were cooking porridge, Gu Qing had led the others in filling all the kitchen's water jars.
Tang Ruan fetched some water and washed the venison clean.
The other women brought over some thick firewood and built a bonfire in front of the Lord's House.
They could have used the kitchen.
But grilling was better done outdoors.
The women cut the venison into small pieces and threaded them onto split bamboo skewers.
Then they stuck the skewers beside the bonfire to roast slowly.
Gu Qing sprinkled salt evenly over them.
The venison would take a little longer to cook.
Zhao Chi took out the Rapid Construction Talisman.
It would be dark soon. There was little working time left today, certainly not enough to finish a building.
He might as well build it directly with the Rapid Construction Talisman.
After all, items were meant to be used once obtained. Hoarding them would only leave their value unrealized.
The sooner he used them, the sooner he would reap the benefits.
There would also be plenty of ways to obtain more later.
There happened to be open ground beside the Lord's House, with suitable spots for construction.
He tapped to use the Rapid Construction Talisman.
The thin paper talisman glowed and floated up from Zhao Chi's hand.
A moment later, a system prompt appeared:
[Please select a building]
Images of several buildings appeared in his field of view.
Zhao Chi instinctively tapped around.
But he could not activate Transplant Flowers, Connect Jade.
It had become a habit by now: whenever he saw any information, he wanted to tap it. Yet nothing had triggered the skill again.
There were many buildings in his field of view.
But the most important were the barracks, blacksmith shop, carpentry shop, and tailor shop.
Some of the other buildings were quite important too, but these production buildings still took top priority.
Zhao Chi selected the barracks first.
A large red outline appeared in his field of view.
[There are obstructions within the selected area. Please select another construction site]
Zhao Chi adjusted its position with his mind.
He discovered that trees, buildings, and even large, half-buried rocks counted as obstructions and prevented him from building directly.
After some careful adjustments, the red outline in his field of view turned green.
[Construction is possible at the current location. Confirm?]
Zhao Chi selected no.
The barracks took up too much space.
If he built it, there would be no room left for the other buildings.
There were no powerful enemies left in the territory anyway, so the barracks could wait until tomorrow.
Tomorrow, they could cut down the surrounding trees, dig up the large rocks, and clear some open ground.
He would build the other buildings first.
Chapter 26: Constructing buildings
Zhao Chi selected the carpentry shop instead.
The carpentry shop's outline was much smaller.
Finding a suitable spot was easy.
[Construction is possible at the current location. Confirm?]
This time, he selected yes.
[Required materials detected nearby. Use automatically?]
He selected yes again.
The pile of materials beside the Lord's House also began glowing white.
The glow grew brighter and brighter.
Some of the materials vanished, turning entirely into white light.
Some of the soil on the ground turned into white light as well.
A moment later, the white light shone onto the construction site he had just selected.
A glowing outline of the building appeared there, slowly rising as the white light gradually faded.
As the light rose, the carpentry shop's foundation appeared first.
Next came the carpentry shop's steps and walls.
Then came the various carpentry benches and equipment inside.
Last was the roof.
The roof closed completely, and the white light vanished.
[Carpentry shop construction complete]
Zhao Chi was amazed.
This item really was convenient.
It had completed a building in just a few dozen seconds, and the quality was up to standard. It was excellent indeed.
Zhao Chi took out a Rapid Construction Token.
This time, he would build the blacksmith shop.
The blacksmith shop was similar in size to the carpentry shop. Neither was particularly large.
Zhao Chi looked around, searching for a suitable spot.
Suddenly, he noticed that everyone was watching him.
Tang Ruan's little mouth had already fallen open in an O.
Gu Qing looked astonished too.
He could hardly blame them for being surprised.
Although they had some knowledge of everyday life, this was their first time seeing such a miraculous item.
Never mind them-even Zhao Chi had only heard about it in class.
Today was his first time seeing it too.
Zhao Chi smiled and continued searching until he found a construction site for the blacksmith shop.
He tapped to build it.
Then he found another patch of open ground and started building the tailor shop as well.
Two streams of white light swept over the materials.
Two buildings rose from the ground.
The white light vanished, leaving the blacksmith shop and tailor shop fully built.
The area around the Lord's House had originally felt spacious.
Now it felt a little crowded.
Starting tomorrow, they would cut down trees, pull up weeds, and clear more ground.
The women whispered excitedly among themselves, all feeling that they had seen something new.
Just then, the aroma of meat began to drift through the air.
Fat from the venison kept dripping onto the coals, sending up wisps of fragrant smoke.
The aroma drifted far away.
Now, Zhao Chi was no longer afraid of wild beasts following the scent over.
If any really did come, they would become the next meal.
Gu Qing stood up beside the bonfire.
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