Chapter 4: Blueprint +2

Chapter 4: Blueprints +2

The scarecrow is knocking on the window.

And he winked at me!

Little Mushroom shrank inside the tent cat bed, trembling with a "duang duang" wobble like a translucent jelly.

"Man Who Wants to Be the Smoked Fish King": Aaaaah! I'm so scared!

"Lu Ban, 1.5 Meters Tall": What's there to be afraid of? Don't be a coward.

"Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": Are you guys hallucinating from eating poisonous mushrooms?

Jiang Ye: ...

Jiang Ye thought, I *am* a mushroom—whether I'm poisonous or not is still unclear.

The five-centimeter-tall little mushroom extended eight fungal threads, ready to quickly type a reply in the chat, when it suddenly froze.

A mushroom sending chat messages...

A scarecrow knocking on the window...

Both belong in a horror story, right?

Jiang Ye's head ached. Could it be that he was also part of this town's weird tales?

"Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": Speaking of weird tales, this town really is strange.

"Man Who Wants to Be the Smoked Fish King": Aaaaah! What did you find now?

"Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": Today I was exploring the map and found a tattered book—a merchant's diary.

In the open world outside each player's farm, you can find not just treasure chests, but also weapons, food, junk, and so on.

"Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": The diary said a merchant used to come to a nearby town every year to do business. Then one year, he discovered the town had vanished—he couldn't find it no matter how hard he tried.

"Cold-Faced Pig-Raising Succubus": He asked around for a long time before he heard that a volcano had erupted nearby. A town had been buried overnight, leaving only a few broken walls with sun totems carved on them.

"Man Who Wants to Be the Smoked Fish King": Aaaaaah!!!

"Lu Ban, 1.5 Meters Tall": Aaaaah

"Lu Ban, 1.5 Meters Tall": Aaaaah

Jiang Ye was almost overwhelmed by the flood of messages and was a bit surprised—so even this "young master" Lu Ban was scared too?

"Lu Ban, 1.5 Meters Tall": I just accidentally hit the wrong button!

"You Got Nothing Better to Do?": Everyone, don't be afraid.

"Man Who Wants to Be the Smoked Fish King": I'm scared to death. I probably won't be able to sleep tonight. What do I do!

"You Got Nothing Better to Do?": Don't worry, pal. You won't lose a wink of sleep.

Jiang Ye didn't dare look out the window. The scarecrow still hadn't left. Thankfully, it was only knocking on the window, with no intention of coming inside.

The night was too dark. Jiang Ye regretted selling all his firewood—if only he'd kept some to make a fire, at least a little light would have given him some courage.

"I really might not be able to sleep ton—"

Sleep.

Before Jiang Ye could finish his sentence, the white mushroom wobbled back and forth, as if its head was too big and heavy to keep its balance.

Thud...

The little mushroom collapsed into the soft cat bed and fell into a deep, graceless sleep.

"Friendly reminder: At 2 AM, you will be forced to sleep."

A full day in Sun Town wasn't 24 hours. Both players and NPCs lost the time after 2 AM.

At 2 AM, no matter what you were doing, you'd immediately fall asleep. In Sun Town, insomnia was strictly forbidden.

Jiang Ye felt drowsy, his consciousness beginning to fade like rising steam, drifting far, far away.

He was dreaming.

Jiang Ye's body relaxed completely. He knew he was dreaming.

Inside the wooden cabin was pitch black, but outside it was bright and sunny—a stark contrast. Curious, Jiang Ye crawled out of the cat bed, pushed open the door, and stepped out of the cabin.

His eyes widened in surprise, his mouth hanging open. Outside wasn't the desolate farm—it was a vast ocean.

Crystal-clear blue water, golden sand, and the occasional seabird circling overhead. Sunlight danced across the waves, casting dazzling glimmers. Suddenly, a few small fish jumped out of the water, leaping and splashing one after another.

"Wow..."

Jiang Ye sighed: "Fish! If only I had a fishing rod right now."

Then he could fish, grill, stew, and smoke fish!

Since it was a dream, Jiang Ye tried closing his eyes. In dreams, anything you wish for should come true, right?

Three seconds later, Jiang Ye opened his eyes again and looked at his hands. His palms were empty—nothing there.

"That's not scientific." Jiang Ye rubbed his hands together. Not even a fishing rod in a dream? Is that scientific?

"How am I supposed to fish without a rod?"

He stood on the beach with his arms crossed when a flash of inspiration struck. He clenched his right fist and smacked it against his left palm, letting out an exaggerated "Aha!"

I've got an idea!

Wait...

Jiang Ye clapped his hands, unable to stop himself from cringing. That was way too cheesy, but he had absolutely no control over it.

The next second, Jiang Ye reached behind his back with his left hand and pulled a blank notebook out of thin air, while a quill pen suddenly appeared in his right hand.

Nothing weird about that...

Jiang Ye couldn't help but complain again. After all, it was a dream—in the dream, he'd even transformed from a mushroom back into a human form.

Scratch, scratch, scratch! Scratch, scratch, scratch!

Jiang Ye scribbled nonstop in the notebook. Half a minute later, he nodded solemnly.

Riiip!

Jiang Ye's hand moved on its own, tearing the page covered in writing from the notebook.

Damn it all!

Jiang Ye almost shouted—tear it neatly, his OCD was about to kick in.

"Congrats! Dreamweaver skill activated!"

"Congrats! Got the Fishing Net Blueprint!"

The blueprint was torn all crooked—a corner was missing, but that didn't stop it from working.

Whatever. Jiang Ye held the blueprint up and gave it a good look.

"Blueprint: Fishing Net"

"Materials Needed: Mycelium (3)"

Mycelium—like, mushroom mycelium. But now Jiang Ye was human again.

Jiang Ye was a little stumped. He raised his arm and checked—yep, it was an arm, not mycelium.

Whoosh!

White mycelium poked out from the tip of his fingernail.

Jiang Ye sighed, "Man, dreams really do have everything."

Three strands of mycelium were nothing for Jiang Ye—easier than picking up three hairs.

"Craft the Fishing Net?"

"Fishing Net crafted!"

The three strands of mycelium disappeared from his hand, and a new item appeared in his inventory—Mycelium Fishing Net.

"Mycelium Fishing Net"

"A fishing net made of special material—looks way easier to use than a fishing rod!"

Now he could go fishing.

All he had to do was head to the beach, tap the net in his inventory, and the net would do everything automatically—unfolding and casting itself into the water in an instant.

Jiang Ye set the net, lay down on the sand nearby, soaking up the sun and sea breeze, waiting to haul in a big catch—maybe enough to last a whole week.

"Spicy grilled fish..." So good, so good.

"Creamy fish soup..." So tasty, so tasty.

"Salmon sashimi sounds pretty good too."

Jiang Ye kept daydreaming, swallowing every now and then. His stomach was working faster than his brain, and hunger slammed into him all at once.

The sea was calm, and the net was calm too. Jiang Ye glanced over three times—still no fish biting. He waited until his eyes went sore and he yawned twice in a row.

All this waiting was making him sleepy.

But he couldn't doze off.

Jiang Ye figured—if he fell asleep in a dream, wouldn't the dream just end? At least let him wake up after he ate the salmon sashimi.

Half an hour went by.

An hour went by.

Three hours went by.

Jiang Ye rolled from one side of the beach to the other, then back again. Still no fish in the net.

He stood up, staring at the motionless net with a look of pure misery, and then...

A burst of colorful light went off in his head. His body started acting up again—a grin spread across his face before he could stop it, his right fist slammed into his left palm, and an over-the-top "A-ha!" slipped out of his mouth.

Jiang Ye was speechless.

And just like that, inspiration hit again.

Jiang Ye scribbled like crazy in his notebook, his right hand shaking so fast it left afterimages. Then, sure enough, he ripped out a page, and a new blueprint was born.

He stared at the blueprint in his hand and muttered, "This is gonna kill my OCD—the torn corner is exactly the same."

"Congrats! Got the Bait Maker Blueprint!"

"Blueprint: Bait Maker"

"Materials Needed: Coral (1), Slime Gel (1), Iron Ingot (3), Small Branch (5), Small Stone (5)"

Jiang Ye's head was about to explode. The materials for the Bait Maker were way too complicated—everything on the list was stuff he'd never even seen before. With where he was at right now, there was no way he could craft it.

"No worries." Jiang Ye thought to himself—he could sell the blueprint to the Angler. The Angler would definitely need it, and maybe he could fetch a hefty price.

"Friendly Reminder: The Bait Maker Blueprint can be placed in the Shipping Bin and sold to the town's fisherman for 2,000 Rupees."

That much money? Jiang Ye was thrilled. 2,000 Rupees could directly upgrade his inventory to a 24-slot medium backpack. What an unexpected windfall—the kind that would make you smile even in your dreams.

He kept smiling, and then...

Dawn broke.

Jiang Ye woke up abruptly from his dream.

"Spring, Day 2, Sunday"

"6:00"

No sea, no beach. A tiny mushroom sat in the soft tent cat bed, rubbing its springy mushroom cap with mycelium.

Jiang Ye's mind was foggy. He instinctively opened his inventory to check.

"Blueprint: Fishing Net"

"Blueprint: Bait Maker"

The two blueprints sat side by side in his inventory.

The mushroom bounced and leaped out of the cat bed in excitement—so last night wasn't just a dream after all.

Jiang Ye seemed lost in thought, and the little mushroom tilted its head to glance at the tent cat bed behind him.

"Tent Cat Bed"

"A cleverly designed cat bed, breathable and cozy. Tonight, sweet dreams are waiting for you.

+999 Stamina

+999 Health

+∞ Creativity"

The cat bed from the novice chest wasn't just for sleeping—it was an item that could restore stamina and health, but it turned out to have a hidden function as well.

Certain experiences the cat bed's owner had during the day would trigger its hidden ability, so that at night, Jiang Ye would enter a dream, be struck by inspiration, and unlock new blueprints.

The little mushroom reached out with its delicate hyphae, gently patting the tent cat bed, and sighed, "Turns out it's a real treasure."