Wasteland Development Diary.

Chapter 690 A Boat Across a Thousand Trees
Zhou Yi called Ni Ge aside and they communicated through their shared consciousness.

This is also to give him face as the minister and avoid affecting his prestige.

"Chairman, we are indeed playing a game. But it's for treating vegetative patients."

Nige gestured with his hands: "Currently, our company's technology for treating vegetative patients involves the cave people operating medical worms to implant in the brain, and then, in conjunction with the hospital's consciousness restoration, the brain is reactivated, gradually restoring the ability to think actively and integrate into the outside world... However, in the past two years, we have repeatedly tested and found that the treatment itself has some difficulties."

"The first problem is that there are very few treatable cyborgs. I asked you to let Haf take me back there, every two months, to look for cyborgs who can still be treated. But so far, we have only found four cyborgs whose brains have not been completely destroyed and who can be treated."

"The second is the aftereffects."

"Shuyu Mei is the one who has recovered the best, but she also shows some signs of not adapting to the new environment. She often feels dizzy and short of breath, and has intermittent internal bleeding. In severe cases, she may fall into a long coma, or even regress to a vegetative state."

"The medical department conducted multiple comprehensive physical examinations, but could not find the cause. It wasn't until Juemingzi advanced and used the computing power of the light core-level electromechanical life form that the cause was finally found: it was due to a lack of Panshusu."

"This is essential for Shuyu and the others, just like people need oxygen, but it's too thin here. There are only eight Pan Trees on Earth right now, and Pan Tree extract is severely lacking, which is why we have our office here. It's because we can't stray too far from the Pan Trees. Pan Tree extract isn't just found in the Pan Trees; they release it into the air."

Zhou Yi was taken aback: "But aren't you alright?"

"Because I am a normal Mud Tree Man, not a Plant Man."

Nige explained, "After Shuyu Mei and the others became highly integrated with the plants, the number of companion plants in their bodies increased, with more than 30% of their bodies being plants. Their demand for Panshusu became extremely high. They are no longer the same as before and are greatly affected by plant organs."

"I see."

Zhou Yi asked, "Do we have a solution at present?"

"To eradicate this problem, we need to plant pine trees on a large scale. But as you know, it takes hundreds of years for pine trees to produce fruit that can grow into trees. They are very stable, but their growth cycle is extremely long."

Nige said somewhat helplessly, "So all we can do is collect more Dead Sea Fruit, extract the pine resin from it, and then make it into a special injectable hormone. When they have symptoms of discomfort, we can give them an injection to relieve their pain and coma."

"However, the number of these Pan Trees and Dead Sea Fruits is still not enough. So, in order to solve this fundamental problem, there is only another way: to extract Pan Tree extract from the environment on Jupiter, or to transplant Pan Trees and Sky Trees here."

"Unfortunately, this is not possible at the moment."

"So it's stuck there."

Only then did Zhou Yi understand the predicament of the Mud Tree Civilization Department.

Blackthorn, a light-nucleated organism like Blackfiend, is a life form native to Jupiter and can indeed roam there, but due to its size, it is simply unable to bring over the remaining remnants of the Fiery Trees or the Towering Trees.

To obtain large quantities of taraxacin, a factory would need to be set up there to extract it from Jupiter's atmosphere, but this is not possible with current technology.

Because Jupiter repels extraterrestrial life, Crazy Dave of the Lunarians is a prime example. Even if a light core were to arrive there, its consciousness would be crushed by the planet's colossal structure, turning it into a dazed and confused monster.

"I was indeed playing a game with two colleagues, who are two of the five plant-like people in our department."

Guided by Nige, Zhou Yi also noticed it.

The other two employees, wearing gaming gloves, were wrapped in vines, but their shirts covered them up, making them look bulky and muscular.

These two individuals, one with braided, dark brown vine-like hair and the other with bark-like skin below the neck, were indeed cyborgs.

"Games can stimulate them, alleviate the discomfort caused by low levels of pectin, and stimulate the brain to secrete more and more..."

"Dopamine?"

"Yes, it's dopamine. Chairman, you know so much."

Nig nodded: "By stimulating the prefrontal cortex of the brain with dopamine, we excite them, and it's accompanied by endorphins, which act as a natural pain reliever. Although we Mud Tree People and Earth Humans have some differences in physiological structure, our hormones in this regard are quite similar..."

Zhou Yi had specifically looked into it.

It is no coincidence that both the Mud Tree Man and humans possess human-like physiological frameworks. According to ongoing research and analysis by the seeding ships of Hydrogen Flow and Hydrogen Blessing, it has been confirmed that the Ancient Pan Tree, this artificial primordial soup, also contains information related to human genes.

Therefore, although they have evolved according to different environments, the Mud Tree Man and Earthlings still share a high degree of similarity.

"It has been proven that playing games regularly can greatly help the new Mud Tree People alleviate physical pain and reduce the risk of reverting to vegetative state. So we play for two hours every day. Now it's our game rehabilitation time. You can see it on our schedule."

Zhou Yi checked and found that it was indeed the case.

That's fine.

Nige then wiped his sweat and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Zhou Yi turned his gaze to the building itself: "Why has this building been turned into an indoor botanical garden? Is it for convenience?"

"Chairman, these vines indoors are actually tree spirits and adventure vines."

"They are mainly exploration vines cultivated through artificial tillering, and they are very useful tools."

"Look."

After saying that, Nige grabbed a rattan cane with a plastic handle next to him, which had a mark on it [8].

After he grabbed it, the vine wrapped around Nige, turning it into a safety lock that secured his shoulders and waist, lowering him all the way down from the window to the ground below.

It's actually a biological elevator.

Nige then pulled up vine number 8 and demonstrated the function of vine number 4.

During this expedition, the vines were able to slide on the ground while carrying things.

Zhou Yi was somewhat surprised: "I remember the Adventure Vine was a companion plant, wasn't it? Can it survive independently of the outside world?"

"It is still a companion plant, but there are 99 of them here, with 3 available on each floor."

Nig grinned and said, "The accompaniment of the Adventure Vine is based on this Building No. 11."

A somewhat distant memory surfaced in Zhou Yi's mind.

When Sun Chonglai first encountered Emerald City, he led the Black Hand Mushrooms of the Mushroom Forest in an attempt to transform it into a walking mushroom castle, but ultimately failed.

After nine years of twists and turns, it was finally realized by the Mud Tree Civilization Department.

“It’s mainly thanks to the beautiful tree feathers,” Nige explained. “She used a large-scale plant modification technology developed by naturalists, which is called ‘Thousand Trees Sailing’ in the local language. This involves bringing together hundreds and thousands of towering trees and shrubs, connecting their root systems together, and turning them into a huge whole, like a navigable landmass sailing in a circular current.”

"The core of the Thousand Trees Boat is the connection of the root system. This can be achieved through underground grafting or aerial root induction, which is called root fusion here. So the now artificially cultivated adventure vines are connected through these two methods, and they live on the life of this building."

Zhou Yi pointed to the exploration vines on Nige's body: "But don't these companion plants need flesh and blood to provide nutrients? Now they can be completely converted from energy?"

"No, please come with me."

Nig led the way to a room that resembled a low-voltage electrical well. He opened the door, revealing a small interior with rows of thick black and white pipes fixed in place.

The black one is made of lacquer, and the white one is made of amber ceramic.

Nig pointed to the transfer valve in the pipeline, where there was a glass window through which streams of liquid could be seen flowing inside.

Zhou Yi immediately realized: "Soilless cultivation?"

"You really do understand at a glance."

Nig laughed and said, "We have adopted the lens transmission technology of the Legal Array and integrated it with our existing light-amber ceramics, which allows these liquids to circulate in an orderly and stable manner."

He pointed to a tube next to him from which flowed a colorless, transparent liquid: "This is liquid A of the element mother liquor."

Nige moved his finger to another tube next to it, which contained a milky white solution with a high viscosity: "Element mother liquor B. These two are essential mineral elements, and together with trace element mother liquor, they constitute the basic nutrient solution."

"The other tubes also contain pH adjusting solution, disinfectant, oxygen supplement solution, biostimulants and other combinations."

"Beneath the reinforced concrete shell of Building 11 lies a complex biological cycle system composed of these nutrient solutions. This biological cycle system is the key to the lush growth of the Adventure Vine and other companion plants!"

"Some of the substances used in hydroponics can be collected on most planets. They can be absorbed by Building 11 and then extracted by the internal equipment."

"Communication is no longer a problem. There are tree spirits, who are plant experts, and electric cats. Plant electrophysiology also exists in plants. Experienced electric cats can interpret the potential signals in the exploratory vines to understand their needs and current physiological conditions."

"We have already mastered these internal supporting systems."

"According to Shu Yumei, Building 11 in Emerald City is a brand new attempt, an organic integration of architectural life and plant life. Aren't we currently exploring habitats on the moon and Mars? If architectural life can achieve this kind of balanced symbiosis, a building is a small ecosystem, and wherever they are, these symbiotic organisms can continue to grow stably."

"Many companion plants have completed their replication growth in this way. These are the most important tools for the Mud Tree People. If there are enough of them, they can play a huge role."

"This is an extremely powerful biological base!"

"On the extraterrestrial planet where Emerald City will land in the future, various plants will be able to grow. As long as we use Building No. 1 to help deploy B-level or higher building life forms, it will be enough to support the current ecosystem."

"If combined with atmospheric modification using an artificial sun, it could truly change the ecological landscape of a planet. For example, there is a good chance of modifying Mars' two moons."

"If we can establish a base, we'll have more places to mine!"

Minister Mud Tree Man said with a hint of pride, "Chairman, it's not that our Mud Tree Civilization Department hasn't done anything. It's just that this project needs time to be promoted. We need to ensure that it is mature enough to be replicated in every Emerald City before I plan to bring it up at the meeting."

Zhou Yi did indeed have a refreshing feeling.

This is a path I never imagined.

Being able to remember such a complex process and details is no easy feat for an explorer like Nig, and he undoubtedly put in a lot of effort.

"What about Shuyu Mei?"

"She went to Mars to investigate Phobos and Deimos, and is currently there to determine which one is more suitable as a future deployment site."

This naturalist, as always, devoted himself wholeheartedly to his work.

Zhou Yi nodded: "Keep up the good work and take steady steps."

"Yes, Chairman."

……

The ninth winter brought frequent cold waves and freezing rain. In this frigid season, the world, which was originally running at full speed, had to slow down.

Zhou Yi achieved a small goal in the past few months.

He has finally replicated the hot pot broth!
Don't be fooled by this pot of seasonings and scalding hot broth; collecting all the ingredients and recreating it is even more difficult than dealing with the Celestial Substitute.

Let's start by talking about the composition of hot pot broth.

Oils are the simplest to find; butter and chicken fat are both readily available, even in the wasteland era.

Spices, however, present a significant challenge.

Sichuan peppercorns, chili peppers, and cinnamon were all found, but star anise, cardamom, and galangal seemed to have disappeared in this era. They could only find finished products preserved in the old human cities, but these were all dried spices, completely unsuitable for cultivation.

To this end, the company's investigators traveled almost all over the eastern and western continents, offering high rewards and negotiating with rulers in various places, but still could not find it.

In the end, Xie Xun's scavenging team discovered a seed bank hidden in the ice of the northern snow-capped mountains. More than half of the seeds inside had died due to the passage of time, but a batch of star anise seeds miraculously sprouted.

It was later confirmed that the mutation caused by ultra-low temperatures and death ray radiation allowed a small number of seeds to survive to this day.

Following the same approach, the Ministry of Agriculture continued its search in cold, icy regions, eventually finding seeds of cardamom and galangal, and completing the first harvest through hydroponics.

This is the end.

Hot pot has finally made its way back to the world!
Zhou Yi's biggest contribution this winter was making hot pot available to everyone. He's ensuring that young people can enjoy hot, spicy, and fragrant food during the cold season – simple and satisfying.

This simple and straightforward seasoning is compatible with all kinds of noodles and ingredients. Just boil water, throw in a piece of hot pot base, and then anything you put in will taste delicious.

The Ministry of Agriculture has decided to start the hot pot industry next year, and to mass-produce hot pot base as an important processed food through factories on the other side of the Legal Front, and sell it all over the world.

that's it.

The uneventful ninth year passed quietly amidst the snow.

(End of this chapter)