Chapter 7: Inadequate Service

~~~~~

Finally, Shen An compromised and cleaned the leaves in the trash can again before placing the insects clinging tightly to the bin into a portable feeding box. All of this wasted half an hour of her time.

Taking a deep breath, Shen An took out her school bag and opened her textbooks and exercise books.

Regarding her first day, Shen An felt it was utterly meaningless and of no value.

The way of raising creatures in the new world was not much different from what she had imagined, but without capital and strength to support her, she was obviously finding it difficult to make a breakthrough.

And currently, she lacked the necessary funds and power. The only thing she could do was to make the most of her limited resources and maximize the results of her efforts.

Although the path to the college entrance examination (gaokao) was difficult and arduous, Shen An had no other viable options.

"Doing homework?" Qin Yan was somewhat surprised by the staff's report, and the staff felt awkward, unsure how to explain. To protect the privacy of the raisers, only the raisers themselves had the right to access the monitoring in their aerial cabins.

However, since this matter involved District 87, they paid attention to it and gathered information discreetly during the meal delivery time, managing to capture images of five or six exercise books on the desk.

"In these three years, we've had quite a few raisers who were still students, but this one seems... quite special." Some people were declined, like a young elementary school student who was selected but gave up due to concerns from their parents about their young age.

But over the past two years, such cases had decreased significantly. However, among those who came, there had been none who brought their homework from Earth.

With such talent, even if they couldn't become official raisers, finding a job like theirs in the new world would still ensure a worry-free life.

Qin Yan didn't ask further questions. The technology in the new world had reached a bottleneck several hundred years ago and had not made any breakthroughs since. This meant their level of technology and the latest achievements were fundamentally no different from Earth's. Even this passage was only opened by accident during a solar disturbance.

In the early days when they could still absorb technological benefits, they attached great importance to education. However, as the limitations of the bottleneck grew stronger over the centuries, they were practically stuck in place, and education gradually lost its importance.

Yet, the actions of Raiser No. 86 doing exercise books left him with some emotions.

Two hours later, Shen An put down her pen and started measuring the data of the insects.

According to the Raising Manual: two hours after feeding was when the insect's attribute values increased most accurately. During these two hours, the insects would convert the moisture in the food into their body's water attribute. The more attribute values they converted, the higher their innate talent.

Name: Silver Moon Leopard Phoenix Butterfly Larva

Nickname: Strawberry (198237420)

Growth Cycle: 15 days

Stage: Larva

Attributes: Water - 32

Fire - 1

Gold - 0

Wood - 5

Earth - 0

Shen An looked at the data on her phone and fell into contemplation. Strawberry had only eaten three or four pieces of soft white leaves, while the appetite of each insect varied. Such a large difference indicated that something was wrong.

From what Shen An observed, there were three factors affecting the insect's attributes: the food, the insect's innate talent, and the talent of the raiser. All three were crucial. At the moment, neither the insect nor she possessed an advantage, leaving the food as Shen An's only way to improve the situation.

However, during the larva stage, insects could only eat level 1 and 2 ingredients, and currently, apart from the soft white leaves, the other level 1 food in Area 86 had not matured yet.

Shen An also measured the insect she had picked up.

Name: Silver Moon Leopard Phoenix Butterfly Larva

Nickname: 198237421

Growth Cycle: 15 days

Stage: Larva

Attributes: Water - 18

Fire - 0

Gold - 2

Wood - 0

Earth - 1

This meant that the insect she had picked up had gained two points in water attributes during those two hours, while Strawberry had only gained one point, indicating that the amount eaten also played a role.

Shen An carefully took her own insect out of the feeding box. That small and soft creature seemed extremely lazy, not even having the strength to flip over in her palm.

This is not a matter of having a small appetite, Shen An thought. If the insect she picked up could increase its attributes by 2 points, then her Strawberry should also have increased its attributes by 2 points.

Carefully, Shen An poked Strawberry with her finger, and Strawberry shook its head lightly as if it was displeased. However, to Shen An's surprise, Strawberry began crawling, and its direction was towards her finger that she had just touched.

Shen An was puzzled but decided to touch Strawberry again. Strawberry responded by rolling around in her palm, revealing its yellow and black striped belly. Its eight tiny legs and claws on both sides moved cutely, looking incredibly adorable.

Is it happy?

Shen An suddenly felt that Strawberry enjoyed her touch. Subsequently, Strawberry's reaction confirmed her guess. Its slowly wriggling belly seemed like she was giving it a massage. When happy, its short legs and claws playfully scratched the air, as if stretching lazily.

For several minutes, Shen An continued touching Strawberry, wondering if it would eat more in this "happy" state. When Shen An offered a piece of leftover leaf to Strawberry, to her astonishment, Strawberry started eating, and its speed was much faster than before.

Shen An was moved, realizing that Strawberry wasn't refusing to eat; it just needed proper care.

She was lacking in her service.

Filled with determination, Shen An immediately started giving Strawberry a comprehensive massage, particularly focusing on its belly. As a result, Strawberry's eating speed noticeably increased.

Though it still couldn't match the wolfing down of the insect she had picked up, Shen An felt that it was now quite acceptable.

Strawberry ate four or five leaves in a row before stopping. In total, it had eaten eight or nine leaves, which was basically reaching the standard amount.

After Strawberry finished eating, Shen An gently massaged it again for a while before placing it back into the feeding box. This time, Strawberry fell asleep after a short while.

After doing some exercises for a while, Shen An waited for two hours and immediately went to check Strawberry's data.

Name: Silver Moon Leopard Phoenix Butterfly Larva

Nickname: Strawberry (198237420)

Growth Cycle: 15 days

Stage: Larva

Attributes: Water - 34

Fire - 2

Gold - 0

Wood - 6

Earth - 0

Shen An's eyes were filled with tears of joy. This was the result of her hard work; Strawberry had gained 3 points in attributes!

Though surprised, Shen An didn't want to wake up the two insects already asleep. She quietly tidied everything up and went to bed, feeling content.

The night passed without any issues. The next morning, Shen An first collected some soft white leaves nearby and fed the two insects. Before eating, she patiently gave Strawberry a massage, just like the previous day, until it had eaten seven or eight leaves. Then, she put Strawberry back into the feeding box, satisfied.

Without delay, Shen An took the portable feeding box and returned the insect from Area 87 to its habitat.

The balanced scooter is indeed amazing. On the navigation, it showed a five-hour distance, but riding this scooter only took a little over an hour. It's truly a fantastic device.

After an hour, Shen An arrived below the aerial cabin of Area 87. It looked identical to her own cabin, and she climbed the stairs step by step towards the entrance.

The door was open?

Shen An walked in cautiously, knowing nothing about the raiser of Area 87.

"Is anyone here?" Shen An spoke again, and the response she got was the strong scent of alcohol. She furrowed her brows, realizing that her speculation was incorrect. The person inside was not a child, but then, what could be the reason for losing such important insects?

As Shen An reached the door of the cabin, she frowned again because inside, it was a mess.

The original arrangement inside the aerial cabin was minimalistic, with almost all facilities being basic and without any unnecessary decorations. The color scheme consisted of monotonous white and metallic tones.

Shen An couldn't even imagine how this space could become such a mess. The feeding boxes, control table, and several empty liquor bottles were scattered all over the place.

Amidst the chaos lay a person, a...

Shen An took a step forward and tried to lift the person from the ground. However, to her surprise, she couldn't move him. The seemingly frail young man was much heavier than she had imagined.

Moreover, the person was quite young. Shen An's hands felt somewhat stiff; she had never experienced any close interaction with boys before. The boy lying there, even in such a state, was undeniably handsome... a bit too much.

Shen An averted her gaze, and her face turned red involuntarily.

In the next moment, she wanted to put him back where he was. He was still warm, so he couldn't be dead. She must have been overthinking things.

"Your insects escaped, and I helped you bring them back..." Shen An quickly pushed the portable feeding box forward, her heart pounding.

At this moment, she didn't know why she was so flustered. Was it because of his overly handsome and charming face, with skin even fairer than hers? Or was it because she had never encountered such a situation that made her feel uneasy and jittery?

Being a top student, Shen An had an advantage that others didn't have: her teachers protected her well, and no one dared to approach her among the boys.

However, she could tell that the boy in front of her was not from her circle. Shen An trusted her judgment. This feeling was just like when she saw Zhong Han, Han Chengyi, and Liu Siyan...

But wait, his clothes? Shen An was taken aback. Was he from this planet?

Shen An stood up, and her task was to deliver the insects. Now that she had done that...

This planet was beyond her reach, and besides, her plan didn't include the new world.

Shen An tried to step away, but she suddenly found that her foot had been grabbed by the boy. Shen An nearly stumbled; it felt as if she couldn't control her own legs or even her tongue. She wanted to shake him off, but he seemed as solid as a rock.

"Don't... leave me..." The voice was hoarse, filled with heartache that made Shen An feel the pain too. The sobbing tone in his throat made Shen An feel uncomfortable.

"That, you've mistaken me for someone else." Shen An stayed calm and composed, a rare steadiness for someone her age. She managed to suppress the emotions that were almost stirred up, patted the boy's shoulder, and tried to pull him away. The boy opened his eyes slightly, and they were bloodshot. He looked at Shen An, and a tear fell from his eye.

Shen An's nose tingled, and her hand, as if being shocked, retreated. Her gaze, too, felt as if it was an electric shock, filled with guilt and remorse that she couldn't explain even to herself. It was as if she had just glimpsed into someone's private life.

The boy turned out to be the male lead, not the usual domineering CEO or powerful official type. This is just the lowest point for the male lead, but don't worry, this is not the true side of the male lead; there's another reason for his situation.

------------