He spoke in a confident voice, but no reply came. He tried to call out in his mind, but was just met with silence. He would help, but feel ashamed as his face turned a little red.
Looking at one of the pigs staring at him, he couldn't help but feel that it was judging him. He knew it was his own imagination, but still felt embarrassed.
'Status.'
He called out in his mind, this time a little unsure. After all, he didn't understand this system's function, so he wasn't sure if it had a status screen.
-=-=-=-
[Name: Lixin He]
[Species: Human]
[Cultivation Rank: Mortal]
[Soul Rank: Mortal]
[Body Rank: Mortal]
[Lifespan: 10/70 yrs]
[Spirit Roots: None]
[Special Body: None]
[Skills: None]
[Stats: Body: 0.2 || Comprehension: 2 || Will: 3 ]
[Specialty: A less than average human child with a frail body; the only good thing is a strong will.]
-=-=-=-
His status appeared as he couldn't help but feel a little ashamed looking at this. He truly has no good quality except his will.
His comprehension was two whole points, but he wasn't sure what the average points of a mortal or normal person were.
[Would you like to extract its Lifespan: Yes ..... No]
Looking at this panel, he chose 'yes' in his mind as the system asked how much lifespan to extract. To be safe for now, he chose one year; after all, he wasn't sure if this would give the pig any negative effect.
[Lifespan +1 yrs]
Such a notification appeared, but he didn't feel anything. He looked at the pig who was still enjoying its food. It seems that the lifespan extraction didn't affect it.
In his status, his lifespan increased by one point, but that was about it. He tried to check if he could give a life span, but found that it was not possible.
Wondering what the limit was, he continued to extract the pig's lifespan one year at a time. He extracted five years of its lifespan, but nothing happened.
He extracted four more years, but the pig didn't even react. He himself did feel a change. he seems to feel healthier if that's the correct word.
Finally, he extracted the tenth year from its lifespan. As it reacted, it felt limp on the ground as it oinked in pain.
It seems to have lost its appetite as it lay restless on the ground. Its skin had become noticeably paler as it seemed to have lost some of its strength.
He checked its status again, and it had changed as a new special status condition had appeared.
-=-=-=-
[Species: Spirit Fat Pig]
[Rank: None]
[Lifespan: 15/40 yrs]
[Special Condition: Age of Decline]
[Specialty: Its meat is quite juicy and contains spirit energy.]
[Would you like to extract its Lifespan: Yes ..... No]
-=-=-=-
He wondered about the information about the Age of Decline as the information appeared.
-=-=-=-
[Condition: Age of Decline]
[Type: Heavenly Curse]
[Effect: For every day that passes, it loses one year of its lifespan. With time, it would also lose its spirituality.]
-=-=-=-
Looking at it, he understood its condition. After absorbing ten years of its lifespan, it seems to have given it a special curse.
Well, for now, he put aside the system and walked toward the hut. He would tell the Old Shu about the pig's condition and see what he had to say.
He shouldn't associate it with him, thinking that he walked inside the hut and found a rustling sound coming from the kitchen. The temperature had also increased, as it seems Old Shu was cooking something up.
"What, tired already, lad?"
Old Shu asked as he walked out of the kitchen. His eyes showed a look of displeasure as he didn't expect the strong-willed boy to give up so soon.
"No, well, something happened on the farm."
Lixin quickly explained as he also told him the condition of the pig. Hearing his words, Old Shu nodded his head as he seemed to understand what was happening.
"Follow me, lad. This shall be a good learning experience for you."
Old Shu muttered as he walked inside the kitchen. He lessened the fire and walked out. Lixin looked at the boiling pot with curiosity before following Old Shu out.
After a few seconds, he reached toward the pig's den as Old Shu was kneeling on the ground, checking the pig's condition.
"Hey, lad, do you know how long this type of pig lives for?"
Old Shu asked as he looked at Lixin, waiting for his answer. Lixin had seen its lifespan but still refrained from giving an answer. Seeing that Lixin was silent, he started to answer the question himself.
"This type of pig lives for thirty years."
"Just before it reaches thirty, it will be completely healthy, but after reaching thirty, its health will decline by the day."
"This is a natural condition called the Age of Decline. Most people call it a heavenly curse."
"That's why most spirit fat pigs are slaughtered before they reach twenty years of age. This is the best time to eat them as their spiritual energy is highest at this point."
"Per year, we have to give the sect ten Spirit Fat pigs, and it's best to give the pigs within the age range of fifteen to twenty."
"Their pregnancy cycle lasts for about ten months, and in one litter, three or four pigs are born."
"In three years, they can fully mature as long as their food supply isn't cut."
"Any question, kid?"
"Hmm, What about the excess pigs?"
"The sect won't care about the excess as long as you meet the quota. It's best to keep fifty pigs, thirty male and twenty female, for safety, and others can be sold."
"Though it's best to sell those who are about the reach the age of twenty."
"A single pig can be sold for one Spirit stone of the lesser quality."
"We also grow Blue Feathered Chicken and Green Scaled Fish here. As for information about them, you can find it in the book that should be in the living room on the first floor."
Old Shu said as he squatted down and put his hands around the pig as if to pick it up. This suprise Lixin as there is no way an old man like this could pick up such a heavy animal.
But to his shock, he picked it up with ease as he chuckled at Lixin's expression.
"Just about four hundred kilos, no big deal."
"Hahaha, Lad, if you practice the Body Building Manual, you should also be able to do this."
Old Shu laughed as he walked toward the cottage. As if remembering something, he stopped and looked back at Lixin before shouting.
"This time, only return after finishing your job."
Lixin watched all of this with shock as he wondered if Old Shu was a cultivator. After all, there is no way a normal mortal could do such a thing.
'I wonder how strong Old Shu is..'
He thought in his heart as the system seemed to respond. A panel detailing Old Shu's information appeared in front of him.
-=-=-=-
[Name: Old Shu]
[Species: Human]
[Cultivation Rank: Mortal]
[Soul Rank: Mortal]
[Body Rank: Body Strengthening- Muscle Forging(Perfection)]
[Lifespan: 90/130 yrs]
[Spirit Roots: None]
[Special Body: None]
[Skills: Body Building Manual(200/1000), Heavy Punch(Perfection)]
[Stats: Body: 0.5 || Comprehension: 0.3 || Will: 0.5 ]
[Specialty: A man who practiced body forging, although due to his age, his strength has started to decline.]
-=-=-=-
Looking at the panel, he was correct. Old Shu was a cultivator, but he also didn't seem to have any spirit root. It seems it had to do with the Body Building Manual learned by Old Shu.
He also understood that his comprehension and will were far greater than that of Old Shu. He then focused his attention on his skills by commanding the system in his mind. He checked its information.
-=-=-=-
[Name: Body Building Manual]
[Type: Body Cultivation]
[Rank: Yellow(Top)]
[Introduction: A basic book that contains a way to cultivate the body and strengthen it through the path of body cultivation.]
......
[Name: Heavy Punch]
[Type: Martial]
[Rank: Yellow(Low)]
[Introduction: A martial arts technique that can be barely considered a cultivation technique and allows one to throw a punch with twice the body's strength at once.]
-=-=-=-
"Hmm, I should also try the exercise."
Lixin muttered as he looked at the information. His eyes shone with excitement. It seems there was a path of cultivation for him to follow.
He slapped his cheeks to calm himself down. He can practice the technique later; for now, he needs to do his job.
Dragging the trolley, he went toward the warehouse. Putting the bags of grains on the trolley, he walked toward the grazing field.
Looking at the various metal bowls spread around, he started to pour the grains. Knowing that food had arrived, the chickens started to gather. He checked the information of one of them.
-=-=-=-
[Species: Blue Feathered Chicken]
[Rank: None]
[Lifespan: 7/30 yrs]
[Specialty: Its meat is quite tender and has some healing properties; its feathers are soft to the touch.]
-=-=-=-
There was no lifespan extraction option. He bent down and touched the chicken; the extraction option appeared. It seems he can see the information from a distance, but if he wants to extract lifespan, he needs to make contact.
Also, the animals here seem to be quite strangely friendly; it seems they have no sense of safety. If this was in the wild they would have been the easiest prey.
He didn't extract its lifespan for now. He still doesn't know the complete function of the system, and he can explore it when he finishes his job.
Making another trip, he picked up a three kg bag of worm powder and walked toward the lake in the far back of the farm. The lake was quite small, it's total size of should be one third of the entire farm.
Using a bowl, he started to spread the worm powder as shining green salmon-like fish appeared quickly, eating the provided food. He also checked its information.
-=-=-=-
[Species: Green Scaled Fish]
[Rank: None]
[Lifespan: 3/30 yrs]
[Specialty: Its flesh and bones are soft, and eating this fish daily can protect the body from most mortal diseases. Its green scale is one of the ingredients for Youth Preserving Pill.]
-=-=-=-
After having finished all his work, he washed his hands and legs with well water before walking toward the cottage. Looking up, he could see that the sun was setting and night was upon them.
Walking inside the cottage, he was hit by a strong aroma coming from the kitchen. His stomach growled. He hadn't eaten much this entire day, so with a salivating mouth, he walked toward the kitchen.
Old Shu was placing the food just as Lixin walked him; he didn't even turn back before saying.
"Sit down. I shall serve the food."
Lixin didn't complain as he sat on the mat. Old Shu poured him a bowl of soup filled with chicken meat and releasing a herby aroma.
He also handed him a plate of pork and a plate of fried fish. The food was made of all the animals on the farm.
"Eat up."
Old Shu said with a smile as he sat opposite Lixin, his plates filled with food three times that of Lixin's. After all, Lixin was just ten years old, so he could only consume so much.