Take Luo Liuzi. He was indeed the worst of the four, but he was still a skilled hand at the logging yard. His base score would be seventy or eighty at least, and with another twenty percent on top...
It felt like flying!
Liu Mu should have been wiping the floor with Luo Liuzi, yet Luo Liuzi had become the main force on their side instead.
Sweat poured off Liu Mu's forehead, and he was panting terribly.
Luo Liuzi was sweating too, but the difference in their conditions was enormous.
It was like a long-distance race: Liu Mu had held nothing back at the start and was exhausted enough to wish he were dead halfway through;
Luo Liuzi looked as though he was giving it everything, but he was actually just performing as usual. With the added help of running shoes, he felt especially relaxed, squeezing out a little more potential for free.
Seeing that they were making good progress, Tian Man called out, "Let's take a break!"
Liu Mu nearly collapsed to the ground, while Luo Liuzi actually looked reluctant to stop.
Tian Man walked over and sized them up. "You two are doing pretty well."
Then he looked at Liu Mu. Seeing how exhausted he was, his face pale and his arms trembling, Tian Man said disapprovingly, "Muzi, you... how did you get this tired? You're no rookie. Why are you still relying on brute force?"
They had a whole day of work ahead of them.
Even allowing for the time spent hauling back and forth, they still had to cut down at least four trees.
They had yet to finish even one, and he was already this exhausted. What was he going to do later?
Liu Mu couldn't voice his misery. He had never imagined that a weakling like Luo Liuzi had been hiding his abilities all along. If he was this capable, why the hell was he still simping for Qiu Shuyu? Why not just take an iron axe and go all out himself?
Luo Liuzi wiped the sweat from his forehead and ran over to Qiu Shuyu, his voice even more eager. "Xiao Qiu... ahem, Xiao Yu, where did you get this axe?"
Qiu Shuyu was gulping down water. All that hard work chopping had drained her stamina while also venting her emotions, leaving her less angry.
But hearing Luo Liuzi bring up the axe again instantly darkened her mood. She looked at him. "Give it to me. I'll use it."
Xiaozhu had worked hard to make this axe. Even if it wasn't easy to use, she didn't want anyone looking down on it.
What was there to look down on? Everyone started as an apprentice.
Xiaozhu had only just become a "craftsman." Being able to make anything at all was already impressive!
She hadn't wanted to switch axes in the first place. She had only done so because everyone wanted her to pull her weight, and she did feel somewhat in the wrong.
To her surprise, Luo Liuzi clutched the stone axe
tight, as though afraid she would snatch it away, and said quickly, "No, no, no, I'll use it... heh, I'll use it..."
Qiu Shuyu frowned, noticing something odd about Luo Liuzi.
Luo Liuzi also realized he wasn't behaving very well. This precious little axe belonged to Qiu Shuyu, and here he was, looking like he wanted to keep it for himself... Wasn't he asking for a beating?
Remembering how fierce Qiu Shuyu was, he gave a couple of dry laughs and reluctantly handed over the stone axe. "Well, I'm not trying to steal yours. I just want to know where you bought it so I can buy one too!"
Qiu Shuyu took the stone axe and eyed him suspiciously.
Luo Liuzi was much better than Liu Mu, but the guy loved joking around. Despite his honest-looking face, he was the biggest prankster.
Luo Liuzi blinked as it dawned on him. "You haven't used this axe?"
Hearing their conversation, Tian Man came around too and asked, "What's going on?" Then he shot Luo Liuzi a look, signaling him not to take things too far. If things got too ugly, they would all have to pay for it.
Luo Liuzi had no intention of hiding it-and couldn't have anyway. He smiled wryly. "Man, Xiao Yu's axe is really good. It may be made of stone, but the way it feels to use... I don't think it's much worse than Lao Mu's 'divine axe.'"
Lao Mu was in charge of the logging yard. They called him Boss Mu to his face and simply Lao Mu behind his back.
Mu Qing was a rare fair-minded man on Garbage Mountain.
He was quite principled in how he conducted himself, treated everyone impartially, and never shortchanged anyone. Nor was he like Old Madam Hu from the community, who had gathered a bunch of thugs and resorted to "armed suppression" at the drop of a hat.
Tian Man didn't believe a word of it. "Lao Mu bought that axe in the city. Never mind this stone axe, even... ahem..."
Considering Qiu Shuyu's temperament, he didn't want to provoke her, so he cut himself off. "All right, all right, stop going on about the axe. If you don't like using it, give it to me!"
Luo Liuzi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He knew words alone were useless. They would understand once they tried it.
He said, "Xiao Yu, let Man try it. Then he'll know what I mean."
Qiu Shuyu was examining the stone axe in her hands.
Her temperament was indeed straightforward, but she was perceptive enough. Now that the anger coiled in her chest had dissipated and her reason had returned, she noticed it all the more.
Luo Liuzi wasn't joking. He meant what he said.
The stone axe was actually really good?
Better than an iron axe?
How was that possible?
Qiu Shuyu had let her preconceptions get the better of her too. For one thing, she had decided that "craftsman" was a pretty useless occupation,
and that the things they made were no different from ordinary ones. For another, after working as a logger for so long, she was extremely familiar with axes. She could tell at a glance whether one was good or bad.
So when she saw the stone axe, she had taken it for the most ordinary, commonplace stone axe.
Now...
It was dawning on her...
Right, the wild vegetable mush had tasted wonderful!
Could Xiaozhu's "craftsman" occupation be more impressive than she had imagined?
Qiu Shuyu tightened her grip on the stone axe and swung with all her strength at the tree, which had already been chopped more than halfway through.
The muscles in her back tensed, gathering strength and releasing it in one seamless motion.
There was a crack.
Everyone was stunned.
Luo Liuzi's mouth fell open wide enough to fit an egg. "H-h-holy shit!"
Tian Man froze too.
There was a crash.
The tree toppled to the ground.
Resting off to the side, Liu Mu had only just regained a little color in his face before the fright turned him pale again.
This woman...
She had the strength to uproot mountains and a might unrivaled in the world!
Qiu Shuyu was stunned for a moment too. She lowered her head to look at the stone axe in her hands, her eyes full of astonishment.
The way it felt...