IMC Chapter 23

Shu Bao’s idea is quite simple: invite the snake teammate out now, and when it rains later, the snake won’t have time to avoid getting wet. That way, the black layer on its head will naturally be washed away. Then, the mouse can express regret at the right time, and the matter will definitely pass like that.

Upon hearing the invitation from the furry teammate, Lan Qing naturally wouldn’t refuse. However, after looking up at the sky and noticing it was a bit overcast, Lan Qing said to the mouse teammate, “Wait a moment.”

“Okay,” the mouse replied. Seeing Lan Qing agree to go out, the fluffy little creature was quite happy, though it tried to maintain a reserved demeanor and not appear too excited.

Before long, Lan Qing returned. However, when Shu Bao saw Lan Qing all ready for the outing, its happiness seemed to wane a bit. Shu Bao pointed a paw at Lan Qing’s head and asked, “What’s this?”

“This is a hat,” Lan Qing explained, pointing to the large leaf they had just picked by the roadside. “It’s waterproof. You might want to take one too. It looks like it might rain soon.” Lan Qing even handed Shu Bao another leaf.

Shu Bao blinked. Despite the snake’s seemingly less-than-brilliant appearance, it was surprisingly thorough in its thinking.

In the end, the snake and the mouse each wore their leaf hats and set off. From above, they looked like two leaves bobbing along.

Back in the tribe, everyone continued to busy themselves collecting supplies. If it weren’t for the high priest calling everyone to eat, they’d probably go hungry until noon.

Lan Qing and Shu Bao hadn’t ventured too far from the tribe. After all, they had stirred up trouble with the Long tribe yesterday. Although they weren’t afraid of the dragon themselves, there were still plenty of other people in the tribe, so they couldn’t afford to be careless.

“This fruit is delicious. Shu Bao, do you want some?” Lan Qing, with its green leaf hat, scanned the surroundings, drawing on its extensive foraging experience.

Shu Bao nudged the green cap—or rather, green leaf—on its head. It took a bite of the wild fruit and found it quite tasty. The two continued walking and eating. Shu Bao occasionally glanced at the top of Lan Qing’s head, pondering how to reasonably convince it to remove the “hat.”

The two strolled leisurely around the outskirts of the tribe, familiarizing themselves with the environment. Shu Bao had been outside before, but this thorough exploration yielded some new discoveries. Their biggest find was probably a few young shoots of wild wheat.

In addition, Shu Bao spotted a fruit that looked remarkably like a dragon fruit. About the size of a strawberry, it hung from the tip of a plant’s leaf like a miniature lantern. “Is this a dragon fruit?”

“What? A dragon fruit!” Lan Qing, not far away, straightened up and marched over, teeth gritted. “I want to eat it!”

The snake swiftly swam over and snapped at the red fruit. Shu Bao jumped in surprise and immediately grabbed Lan Qing’s neck, shaking it. “Do you even know what that is? You can’t just eat things without knowing if they’re poisonous!”

Lan Qing stubbornly clenched its mouth shut, defiantly tilting its little head upward and refusing to let go. Then, it forced itself to swallow and finally spoke, “Dragon fruit! It doesn’t sound like a good fruit, but I must eat it!”

Shu Bao blinked. Was Lan Qing really upset because of the name? And that name was just something Shu Bao had casually mentioned.

“Besides,” Lan Qing continued, “I’m a venomous snake. Immunity to all poisons is a basic skill. I’m not afraid of anything…” Its words suddenly halted, and its expression slowly stiffened, then twisted.

Shu Bao panicked, searching for Lan Qing’s wrist to check its pulse.

Lan Qing’s expression contorted further, eyes slightly reddening. It began to tear up and frantically opened its mouth, twisting around, “Too spicy! Too spicy! Water! I need water!”

Unfortunately, the nearest water source was the small river. Just as the two were about to rush there, a thunderous sound echoed—the long-overdue rain finally arrived, and it was pouring.

Lan Qing didn’t need any reminders. It immediately tilted its head to catch rainwater. In the process, its hat fell off. However, the now teary-eyed Lan Qing paid no attention to it.

Shu Bao took cover under a large leaf, watching as Lan Qing’s head gradually returned to its normal color. The mission was complete; they could head back now. Shu Bao protected its furry paws, trying to avoid getting wet from the rain-soaked ground.

Once Lan Qing recovered from the searing spiciness, its mouth had swollen like a sausage. It muttered, “Why doesn’t immunity cover spicy things?”

Shu Bao sighed. “Your speech is all muddled now. Stop complaining.”

“Ah! My hair!” Lan Qing belatedly touched its own head with its tail tip, looking even more disheartened. “Dragon fruit… truly detestable.”

Shu Bao picked up the green hat Lan Qing had discarded and placed it back on the snake’s head. “Don’t be upset. In the future, when technology advances, I’ll make you a proper wig.”

Hearing this, Lan Qing was deeply moved. Indeed, in this world, only a furry companion was the best. “Okay.”

The two returned to the tribe in the torrential rain with green leaves. When they entered the tribe, they were surprised to find that there were no people in the tribe taking a break due to the rain. Instead, everyone was diligently working, chopping trees and carrying loads while still wearing their leaf hats.

Shu Bao and Lan Qing exchanged glances. Seeing everyone’s hard work, they decided not to slack off either. So, they braved the rain and ran to the cultivated land where they planted the wild wheat they had discovered.

After planting the seedlings, they returned to the tribe and sought out the high priest. They informed everyone not to get caught in the rain and not to worry about working urgently.

The high priest remained indifferent. “I’ve already given this warning twice during the rain, but no one listened.”

Lan Qing cast an admiring look at Shu Bao. Truly a resourceful mouse teammate—able to motivate the entire tribe so effectively.

Shu Bao understood the meaning in Lan Qing’s eyes. He sighed, realizing that the mouse hadn’t done much; it was just lucky that its crash landing was mistaken for divine intervention.

Despite repeated warnings, the people persisted. Shu Bao ended up joining the high priest in brewing herbal remedies to prevent the tribe from catching colds.

The situation in Shu Bao’s base puzzled the viewers in the live stream.

“Coming from the neighboring Yu Lingqi live stream, the dragon he tamed went on strike. It refuses to follow orders during rainy weather and insists on squeezing into tents to avoid getting wet. Several tents have already collapsed—hilarious!”

“From Fu Qing’s stream, Fu Qing himself remains unyielding. The residents in his base are working in the rain, but their efficiency is unusually low.”

“By comparison, this place is abnormal!”

Clearly, there were many things Shu Bao and Lan Qing hadn’t fully explored, but the viewers had a clearer perspective.

As for the dragon that appeared in the Sishe tribe, it was indeed a native dragon. However, a participating player had tamed it. Yu Lingqi intentionally followed Shu Bao to this planet after crash-landing nearby and established a base.

The reason is quite simple: it’s because of Shu Bao’s inherent popularity. Without a doubt, whoever manages to absorb or eliminate Shu Bao first will gain immense popularity.

Many others have similar intentions, just like in the case of Yu Lingqi. He is the only one who dared to approach Shu Bao so early and so closely. After all, he tamed a dragon with strength surpassing even that of Lan Qing shortly after landing.

Under the efficient work of the Xia Wang tribe, the resource bar for the blueprint in the mission hall finally reached 100% by noon that day, prompting cheers from the tribe members.

The people of the Sishe hunting team, unable to see the blueprint, were puzzled about the cause of the celebration. Even after learning that they no longer needed to collect resources, some felt anxious. How would they prove their worth without work?

Amid the expectant gazes of everyone, Shu Bao approached the blueprint of the mission hall. He took out all the black stones from his system bracelet and placed them into the resource pool, then clicked on the “construct” button.

The resource bar disappeared and the construction progress bar appeared. Shu Bao stared at it with anticipation, only to find that progress was slow.

Lan Qing, with some experience, reminded him, “Based on the quality of the resources, constructing the mission hall usually takes anywhere from twelve to forty-eight hours.”

Shu Bao: “…”

The Xia Wang tribe members: “…”

What to do? They all wanted to see the results immediately.

The Sishe hunting team, unable to see anything, stood there in confusion. Should they also follow the example of the Xia Wang tribe and eagerly watch the pile of stones and wood in front of them?

After reluctantly tearing his gaze away, Shu Bao checked the time and said, “Let’s have lunch first.”

And so, with dashed expectations, the crowd followed behind the deity, ready to collect food and return to their tents for a meal.

In the afternoon, during their downtime, the group set up two large tents for the slaves. However, since there were no extra animal hides available, they used black snake skins for the tent material.

Once the tents were ready, the Sishe hunting team members hesitated, pushing and shoving each other, reluctant to be the first to step into the new tents. But as the daylight faded and the temperature dropped, they eventually entered.

Inside the tents made from the former tribal deity’s skin, the Sishe hunting team members felt like they were in a scene from a horror movie. It took them a while to settle down and finally fall asleep.

The next morning, they woke up to a chorus of surprised exclamations. They looked at each other and realized that everyone had slept quite well despite the unusual circumstances.

Venturing outside the tent toward the source of the commotion, they were stunned by what they saw. The area where they had piled up resources the previous day now held a tall, spacious structure made of stone and wood—a solid and orderly building.

“What is that? A stone tent?”

“It’s so tall!”

The Sishe hunting team members were utterly perplexed, while the Xia Wang tribe members cheered and danced around the building. This was the long-awaited miracle they had hoped for!

Amid the Sishe hunting team’s astonishment, a voice came from nearby—the fluffy little creature: “How was it? Did you sleep well last night?”

Nervously, the Sishe hunting team members nodded, affirming that their sleep had been satisfactory.

Shu Bao turned to Lan Qing and said, “See? I told you snake-skin tents are great. They’re warm, breathable, and durable—nothing to be afraid of.”

Lan Qing remained steadfast in their opinion: “No! Snake-skin tents are the most terrifying kind in this world! I absolutely refuse to switch our tents to snake skin!”

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Moonlit: I think the dragon fruit mentioned here is chili. I’m not sure. The dragon fruit I know, although I haven’t eaten one yet, is not spicy. Also, the word chili couldn’t possibly trigger Lan Qing unless it had the word ‘dragon’ in it. So, I decided to stick with dragon fruit.