C3 Activate the Desert Farming System

"Everett, grab me two bottles of mineral water; I'm absolutely parched. And fetch me a couple of burgers too—the ones from Burger King, please!"

"Scram!"

Fatty waddled over, prompting Everett to keep his distance. He had heard that stupidity might be contagious, and the last thing he needed was a dip in IQ while stranded in the desert. That would be a death sentence.

Moreover, there's no way there could be a signal out here, right?

"Wait, is there actually a signal?"

Everett gaped at his phone in disbelief. He dialed the number for Yao Yao Spirit and, to his amazement, the call connected.

"Yao Yao Spirit Emergency Center, how may I assist you?"

"I'm stuck in the Limesvilles Desert. Please, you've got to send help!"

Everett was ecstatic.

"Sir, filing a false report is a serious offense. Do not misuse emergency services. Goodbye."

The call ended abruptly...

No one would believe there was a signal in the Limesvilles Desert, just as no one would expect satellites to scan the vast Ironwharf.

"We're doomed."

Everett slumped onto the scorching sand, seeking solace from its heat against the cold night air.

Ding dong!

Just as despair set in, his phone chimed again. It was that tedious desert farming game. Reluctantly, Everett opened the notification, which urged him to plant a desert cactus.

"Try, try, try, I'll give your 'try' a whirl!"

Muttering under his breath, Everett scattered the seeds. Suddenly, with a thunderous noise, a massive desert pillar cactus sprouted before him!

Everett was dumbfounded!

And so was Fatty, who found himself clinging to the cactus, nearly in tears.

"Everett, what's happening? How did I end up in this tree?"

As night enveloped them, Everett's despair turned to delight. He eagerly opened the desert farming app, feeling as though he'd discovered a new world.

He planted another seed, and instantly, a second desert pillar cactus burst forth. Everett slapped himself twice to make sure he wasn't dreaming. It hurt—a searing pain!

"This is all real! The app is actually a system! An incredible system!"

Everett delved into the desert farming system, examining it closely. Strangely enough, since downloading the app, his phone, which should have been dead, was still fully charged.

Not only that, while other phones had no signal in the desert, after installing the system, Everett's Pear phone miraculously received a signal in the Ironwharf Desert!

Furthermore, this system could actually grow trees in the desert. Do you realize what it means to grow trees in the desert?!

"Stay cool, stay cool, I'm going to try planting another one."

Everett contained his inner jubilation as he tapped on the seed of the desert pillar cactus, sliding it into the small square in the bottom right corner where the camera light was focused.

As the seed settled in, it burst into a golden glow, and before Everett's eyes sprouted a towering desert pillar cactus over a hundred meters tall!

You might not be familiar with the desert pillar cactus; it's not native to our region. It's an impressively tall plant, much like the ones you'd see in cartoons about unlucky bears.

Seed description: The desert cactus, originating from South America, stands out remarkably in the desert. The desert pillar cactus has the unique ability to collect rainwater and regulate temperature. If harnessed correctly, it can provide drinking water for desert dwellers.

Holding his Pear phone in the chilly desert night, Everett thought, "It's time to banish this dreadful cold!"

With that, Everett planted a ring of desert pillar cacti around himself and Fatty. Once the cacti were in place, the temperature within their circle rose significantly.

April had arrived, and while Shaoland was already enjoying short-sleeve weather, Everett lay on the somewhat warm sand, feeling a surge of contentment.

"Everett, Everett, help me out here! There's a monster growing in the Ironwharf Desert, get me down from here!"

Everett had just settled down to relish the desert evening when Fatty's cries rang out. Indeed, Everett had nearly forgotten that Fatty had been suspended atop the giant cactus all day.

Everett pulled an axe from his bag – don't ask where he got it; it was just part of his self-defense kit.

"Hang in there, I'm coming to get you down," Everett called out to Fatty as he began to chop at the cactus.

With a swing of his axe, the cactus burst, releasing water. Desperate for a drink, Everett quickly caught the water in a cup and took a gulp. Surprisingly sweet, it tasted better than any bottled water back home. A thought struck Everett: if he made it out alive, he'd plant more of these trees and start selling Cactus brand mineral water. What a great idea that would be!

After quenching his thirst with a jar of water, Everett's thoughts returned to Fatty. That guy was a handful, to say the least!

So Everett got back to work, hacking away at the cactus. Thankfully, it wasn't as tough as wood, and within a dozen or so swings, he had it toppled. With the cactus down, he rescued Fatty, who was visibly grateful as he curiously eyed the cactus in the desert.

"Everett, what's all this about?" Fatty asked.

"Maybe it's a miracle," Everett replied.

That night, Fatty, who hadn't had a good night's sleep in ages, drifted off. Everett, however, wasn't feeling sleepy at all.

Sitting atop a sand dune under the vast starry sky, he noticed the moon had risen at some point, casting a long, elongated shadow of the cactus on the sand.

Everett pulled out his phone and launched the desert farming app, eager to explore it under the cover of darkness. After all, this could be his ticket to becoming the first person to ever conquer the desert!

The app wasn't much different from other gaming apps. It featured three main sections, the first being "My Seeds."

In "My Seeds," there were sixteen seed boxes, though most were empty.

Moving on to the second section, "Shopping Mall," he found it was split into two parts: seed boxes on the left and descriptions on the right. Clicking on a seed box revealed its details, including features, price, and how to purchase it.

Everett browsed through the Seed Pane in the mall, noting that only two slots were unlocked, the rest secured with chains. He tapped on the first seed, and its description popped up on the right.