The two young dragons fell into a默契 silence, continuing to lurk deep within the dark green grass. Their round, curious pupils gleamed with a mix of intrigue and cunning as they closely watched Seratus’s every move. A gentle breeze rustled the grass, filling the air with the earthy scent of soil mingled with the fresh fragrance of plants.

  Seratus straightened slightly, surveying the newly cleared field. The sun generously bathed the land in its light, causing his crimson scales to shimmer brilliantly under its rays. Yet, before he could fully savor this moment of joy, a sudden gust of wind interrupted him.

  A wave of gray dust surged toward him, forcing him to narrow his dragon eyes. As the wind subsided, he lowered his head and noticed a few freshly sown seeds lying helplessly on the edge of the field, as if silently protesting their fate. Seratus’s heart sank at the sight.

  “These carrot seeds are expensive! Each one costs a whole system point…” he thought to himself, a note of frustration and anxiety in his tone. He knew better than anyone how precious system points were—they were the reward for his hard work!

  His gaze swept across the surroundings. The dense forest rustled in the wind, its leaves fluttering like scattered birds. He approached a sturdy tree, extended his sharp claws, and effortlessly severed it at the trunk. With a loud *crack*, the tree toppled, stirring up a cloud of dust and filling the air with the fresh scent of wood, as if declaring a small victory.

  However, just as he began to break down the trunk, something unexpected happened—a sharp, hidden branch, like a lurking snake, suddenly sprang up and shot straight toward his face!

  Caught off guard, Seratus felt a sharp pain on his cheek, and his earlier joy was quickly shattered by this sudden turn of events.

  He took a deep breath, suppressing his irritation, and continued breaking down the trunk into slightly crooked wooden planks. His movements remained steady, but a sense of inexplicable fatigue began to creep into his heart.

  Soon, a small mountain of planks lay before him, emitting a faint woody aroma. Yet, as he prepared to move them, he found the soil too loose, causing the planks to tilt and wobble, as if the land itself was resisting his efforts.

  Frowning, he thought for a moment and decided to drive the planks deeper into the ground. After some effort, the fence was finally complete. Though it looked rough, it would suffice for now, enough to keep small beasts at bay. As for larger magical creatures? Seratus glanced at his small, young body and sighed in resignation. That would be left to fate.

  Satisfied, Seratus clapped his claws together and began the final task—irrigation. He lifted the heavy water flask, the cool lake water sloshing gently inside. Tilting the flask, he let the water flow out steadily, carrying the faint scent of aquatic plants as it evenly soaked the newly tilled soil.

  The thirsty earth emitted soft *sizzling* sounds, as if greedily drinking in the moisture, or perhaps whispering its hopes for the future. Seratus watched quietly, a sense of indescribable satisfaction welling up in his heart.

  However, as he focused on watering, time slipped away unnoticed. It was already noon, and the sun had grown intense, scorching the land. Seratus wiped his brow with a claw, though no sweat was there, and suddenly remembered—he had forgotten to water the original field of Radiant Blossoms!

  “Oh no!” he muttered, a pang of worry rising in his chest. That field had cost him a lot of effort and was worth over 100 system points. He couldn’t afford to let it suffer due to his oversight. Without a moment’s rest, he stashed the water flask in his system space and hurried back toward his cave.

  By the time he reached the original field near the cave, Katelya and Agnas, who had been secretly following him earlier, had already returned to the cave and were comfortably enjoying their mother’s care. The two young dragons had clearly figured out Seratus’s “farming plan” and now saw his hard work as nothing more than free labor.

  In their eyes, Seratus was merely toiling away for their benefit. All they had to do was wait for the crops to mature and then “claim” the fruits of his labor at the right moment. The thought of Seratus being completely unaware of their scheme filled them with a sense of gleeful anticipation, their eyes glinting with mischief.

  Seratus, oblivious to his siblings’ plotting, arrived at the Radiant Blossom field and began watering diligently. As the clear water nourished the parched soil, his gaze fell on the carefully nurtured seedlings.

  To his delight, he noticed that the first Radiant Blossom seedling he had planted had grown to about five or six centimeters tall. Its emerald leaves looked especially tender in the sunlight, like pieces of jade embedded in the soil, exuding vitality. Seratus’s heart stirred as he recognized this as the first blue-quality Radiant Blossom he had planted—a plant of great significance.

  Even more pleasing was the sight of the potato plants thriving nearby. Their sturdy stems bore plump buds, promising a bountiful harvest of potatoes in the near future.

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  Seratus crouched down to inspect the growth of the Sun Mushrooms and carrots. According to the system panel, neither plant had reached maturity yet. The Sun Mushrooms’ caps had grown considerably, but they still seemed a ways off from full maturity. The carrot leaves remained green, their roots still buried deep in the soil, making it impossible to gauge their progress.

  Though the land had been magically enhanced by the system’s mysterious and powerful forces, granting it a sevenfold acceleration in growth, plants still needed time and nutrients to develop fully. Nothing could be rushed—even with the system’s seemingly omnipotent abilities, the laws of nature could not be entirely circumvented. Perhaps the fertilizer supply was insufficient? Or maybe he hadn’t been watering enough? No, that couldn’t be. He worked diligently every day; it couldn’t be his fault.

  With that thought, he dismissed his self-doubt and immediately retrieved fertilizer from his system inventory, spreading it evenly across the field.

  Seratus checked his system backpack. He only had half a bag of high-grade fertilizer left and two packets of low-grade fertilizer—not much in stock. After some consideration, he decided to use some of the high-grade fertilizer on the blue-quality Radiant Blossom field. After all, these flowers were his primary source of income, and once they matured, they would fetch a good price.

  By the time he finished, it was already afternoon. The scorching sun filtered through the trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Seratus felt a wave of exhaustion. He walked over to a large, leafy tree, leaned against its sturdy trunk, and slowly lay down, gazing peacefully at the field he had worked so hard to cultivate. Watching the plants thrive under the sunlight filled him with a sense of tranquility and fulfillment, as if all his fatigue had vanished in that moment.

  After a brief rest, Seratus suddenly remembered the system’s tasks, particularly the long-term mission to “Comprehend the Power of Love.” It still left him at a loss. “Communicate with plants sincerely…” The task’s requirements were too abstract. He had tried various methods, but the progress bar hadn’t budged.

  “Do I really have to confess my feelings to the plants?” Seratus muttered to himself, his dragon face filled with reluctance. But to complete the task and earn the reward, he decided to muster his courage and try this seemingly absurd method.

  Feeling slightly nervous and even a little embarrassed, he glanced around, his sharp eyes scanning every inch of the land and every tree to ensure no magical creatures or other beings were nearby. Then, with a deep breath, he tried to calm his restless heart, striving to reach a state of unprecedented peace—a state that would make his words seem more… “sincere.”

  After taking another deep breath, he focused his gaze on a few nearly mature Sun Mushrooms. Clearing his throat, he spoke in slightly awkward draconic, “Sun Mushrooms, you must absorb nutrients diligently and grow… grow healthily!”

  As these somewhat cringeworthy and even cheesy words left his mouth, Seratus felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him, his red scales bristling. He felt like a fool talking to thin air. Had this young red dragon truly lost his mind?

  Just as Seratus was about to bury his face in his claws out of sheer shame, he noticed the Sun Mushrooms seemed to tremble slightly! His eyes widened in disbelief, and he rubbed them with his claws to make sure he wasn’t imagining it. The mushroom caps had indeed swayed ever so slightly—it wasn’t an illusion!

  “Could it be… it actually worked?” Seratus’s heart surged with excitement. Had he truly “communicated” with the plants? To verify his suspicion, he quickly opened the system task panel to check the progress.

  **Task Two Description:** Truly comprehend and master the power of love!

  **Task Requirement:** Communicate with plants using the most sincere heart, allowing them to feel the power of love! [Daily Progress: 1/10]

  **Progress Reward:** +100 points!

  **Task Completion Reward:** System level +1

  When Seratus saw that the progress bar, which had previously shown “0/10,” had now changed to “1/10,” his mind was blown. The progress bar had actually increased! Did this mean that his earlier words to the Sun Mushrooms had been judged as “sincere communication” by the system? This seemingly absurd task might actually be achievable! Moreover, it was a daily recurring task, meaning he could earn 100 points every day. This was incredible!

  The thought of “system points” instantly lifted Seratus’s spirits. He recalled the tempting items in the exchange store and the recent limited-time offers, each costing hundreds of points. With his current balance, he couldn’t even think about buying them. Clearly, this daily 100-point task was the system’s way of throwing him a bone.

  “It seems this ‘power of love’ task is simpler than I thought!” Seratus thought to himself, feeling a newfound enthusiasm for the seemingly bizarre mission. To complete today’s progress quickly, he decided to press on, continuing his “loving communication” with other plants.

  “Sun Mushrooms, grow quickly! I believe in you!”

  “Carrots, absorb nutrients diligently and grow thick and strong!”

  “Radiant Blossoms, bloom into the most beautiful flowers! I’ll always protect you!”

  Seratus poured out words of encouragement and hope to over a dozen plants in one go. However, when he checked the system panel again, the progress bar had only advanced to “3/10,” far from completion.

  “What’s going on?!” Seratus frowned, filled with confusion. Was his “sincerity” still insufficient? Or was the system’s standard for “sincerity” even stricter than he imagined? He recalled the feeling he had when he first communicated with the Sun Mushrooms. It had felt more genuine, more heartfelt than his subsequent attempts.

  To test his theory, Seratus decided to try again. He walked over to the Radiant Blossom field and focused on the first seedling he had planted. Taking a deep breath, he cleared his mind, striving to reach a state of inner peace—a state that would make his words more “sincere.”

  He gazed at the tender seedling as if it were a beloved family member, speaking in the softest, most earnest tone, “Radiant Blossom, grow healthily. I… I hope to see the day you bloom into a beautiful flower.”

  As the words left his mouth, Seratus held his breath, anxiously watching the seedling for any sign of movement. Just as he was about to lose patience, the seedling’s leaves trembled ever so slightly—a subtle but undeniable movement!

  Seratus’s heart leaped. He quickly opened the system panel and saw that the progress bar had indeed advanced! It had moved from “3/10” to “4/10”!

  “So that’s how it works!” Seratus clenched his claws in excitement, finally understanding. The system’s requirement for “sincerity” wasn’t about empty words but genuine emotion. Only by truly pouring his heart into the communication could he earn the plants’ recognition and advance the task. His earlier half-hearted attempts had naturally failed to meet the standard.

  With this realization, Seratus felt a surge of confidence. He continued to speak to the remaining plants, using the same heartfelt tone to encourage their growth.

  After delivering over twenty slightly embarrassing but deeply sincere “loving communications” to the plants in the field, the system panel’s progress bar finally reached “10/10”—complete!

  “Task complete!” Seratus let out a long sigh of relief, filled with both satisfaction and a hint of… awkwardness? He rubbed his slightly flushed cheeks, feeling that such sappy words didn’t quite suit his identity as a young red dragon.

  However, when he thought about the daily 100-point reward, all his discomfort vanished. 100 points! Though it might not seem like much, over time, it would add up to a significant amount.

  Seratus claimed the daily task reward, and his system points, which had been at zero, instantly jumped to 100. Seeing this sudden increase, he felt a small sense of accomplishment. While it still wasn’t enough to splurge on the expensive limited-time items in the exchange store, it was a start. After all, this was a long-term task, and a little indulgence was now within reach.

  As evening approached, the setting sun painted the sky in hues of red and gold, casting a warm glow over Seratus’s field. After a day of farming and “loving communication,” he felt both physically and mentally drained. He stood up, stretched, and took one last look at the peacefully growing plants under the sunset. Satisfied, he turned and began his journey home. It was time to rest and prepare for another day under the sun.