Chapter 268 - 258: Elf and Sugar 9

Looking away, Moira Lynch began to diligently chop down the giant sugarcane.

After a full day of exhausting labor yesterday, it was clear that everyone hadn’t recovered.

Aside from those with body enhancement talents, everyone else was rather listless.

But these people weren’t slacking off; they were still working hard.

Seeing this, Moira Lynch, not wanting to be outdone, kept her hands moving, felling a stalk of giant sugarcane in just a few swings.

Just as Moira Lynch was getting into her groove, a scream suddenly pierced the air from nearby.

"AHH!!!"

Immediately after, screams rose and fell, one after another, from both men and women.

Moira Lynch was about to go see what was happening.

But she retracted her foot after taking just one step.

’Those people screamed so horribly. I’d better check it out with my spiritual power first, just in case I see something I’m not supposed to and scar my eyes and mind.’

After Moira Lynch had investigated the situation, she was incredibly thankful that she hadn’t gone over.

Because the ground over there was scattered with egg-sized bugs.

’No wonder they were screaming so loudly.’

’If it were me, I’d be screaming too.’

’Still, what’s the deal with these bugs?’

There was also a stalk of giant sugarcane on the ground, shattered into pieces.

Unlike the other stalks, the core of this particular giant sugarcane seemed to have been completely eaten away.

As for who ate it, the answer was self-evident.

"Patience, can these giant sugarcane stalks have bugs inside?"

[Yes. This type of bug is called a Cane Borer. They are the most troublesome pest for The Elven Race. Adult Cane Borers lay their eggs on the giant sugarcane, and after the larvae hatch, they grow by eating the sugarcane.]

[A single stalk of giant sugarcane can provide nutrition for hundreds of Cane Borers.]

Hearing what Patience said, Moira Lynch suddenly remembered that she had collected quite a few giant sugarcane stalks yesterday.

’Could those giant sugarcane stalks have these bugs inside them too?’

Fortunately, Patience quickly negated this speculation.

[Once a giant sugarcane stalk is infested, its exterior becomes extremely fragile. It will immediately burst open with just the slightest external pressure.]

Thinking of the shattered sugarcane stalk she had detected with her spiritual power, she couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

[By the way, Cane Borers are edible!]

Based on its understanding of Moira Lynch, Patience gave the answer this time without her even having to ask.

[Because they grow up eating giant sugarcane, Cane Borers are edible during their larval stage. They are also highly nutritious, with dozens of times the protein of meat, and they even taste sweet.]

"That’s enough, don’t say any more."

Moira Lynch was already starting to feel sick.

’Back on Caelus, people have already come up with every way imaginable to cook bugs. Even if I brought these back, they probably wouldn’t sell for much.’

Moira Lynch reasoned to herself.

"Do these bugs have any other uses?" Moira Lynch asked.

Only then did Patience realize that Moira Lynch doesn’t eat bugs.

[They can also be used as animal feed or fishing bait. The taste of Cane Borers is very popular with large fish.]

[To prevent them from growing up and pupating, it is recommended to freeze them immediately after capture.]

"Okay, I understand."

Previously, Moira Lynch would just find any random stalk of giant sugarcane and start chopping.

But ever since learning about the Cane Borers, Moira Lynch added an extra step before chopping: she would first scan the stalk with her spiritual power.

If there were any, she would directly collect the Cane Borers inside into a refrigerator she had already prepared in her space, and then she would move on to chop a different stalk.

’She would absolutely never eat bugs, but they would be great as feed or bait. Who knows when they might come in handy?’

The sound of giant sugarcane stalks bursting open constantly echoed from all around, immediately followed by screams as countless egg-sized bugs rained down from above.

Moira Lynch discovered that the further they went, the more Cane Borers appeared. Yesterday, there hadn’t been a single one.

Gradually, the ground became covered with more and more Cane Borers.

Moira Lynch looked at the white, plump Cane Borers wriggling on the ground and couldn’t help but shudder.

’Seeing them alive is even more unsettling than seeing them dead. Collect them, collect them all.’

Moira Lynch secretly used her spiritual power to collect the fallen Cane Borers from the ground, but she didn’t take all of them. Instead, she maintained a certain number so that no one would notice anything unusual.

When lunchtime finally arrived, two Sea Sprites brought lunch.

They looked at the Cane Borers on the ground, their brows furrowing slightly. "This year’s Cane Borer infestation seems particularly severe," one whispered.

"Tell me about it."

As usual, the refined young man came to find Moira Lynch, bringing his lunch with him.

Moira Lynch accepted his lunch and, in return, took out two disposable containers of egg fried rice mixed with minced meat, ham sausage, and green vegetables.

After taking the boxed meal, the refined young man said a word of thanks and went to eat.

As for Moira Lynch, while everyone was busy eating, she followed the two Sea Sprites away to another location.

Feeling hungry on the way, she ate an Energy Bar to tide herself over.

Moira Lynch had originally thought they would take her to a warehouse similar to yesterday’s, but she was dumbfounded when they arrived at their destination.

’What’s with all these rows of machinery?’

’Don’t the Sea Sprites always insist on making things by hand?’

"You can take all of these," one of the Sea Sprites said.

Moira Lynch walked closer for a look and asked doubtfully, "These machines all seem to be new. Are you getting rid of them because there’s something wrong with them?"

The other Sea Sprite shook their head. "The sugar we Elves eat is all handmade to preserve its original, authentic flavor. But some of the more radical members of our race wanted to replace manual labor with machinery."

"As a result, after those people bought the machinery, the things they produced were completely unpalatable. What’s more, they caused irreversible damage to the surrounding treehouses."

"Before long, the project was shut down, and this machinery has been sitting here idle ever since."

Hearing this, Moira Lynch suddenly recalled that on their way here, the leaves on the surrounding treehouses were indeed a lighter shade of green than the ones she had seen before, and some were even slightly yellow.

She looked again at the machinery, which was covered in a thick layer of dust.

But when the dust was brushed away, the parts underneath were indeed brand new.

This batch of machinery was at least ninety percent new, perhaps even ninety-five percent.

’As for the models and functions of the machines, she could study them slowly after she got back. After all, she had the all-powerful Patience.’

"By the way, how long will it take you to collect all this machinery? Maybe you should just skip your afternoon work. After all, there are several more places like this."

’Several more places!’

Moira Lynch’s eyes lit up instantly. Her tone firm, she said, "Don’t worry, I work very quickly."

As she spoke, she stopped holding back and directly unleashed her spiritual power, enveloping all the machinery in the warehouse.

The next second, the machines vanished from the warehouse, reappearing inside her space.

Moira Lynch felt a wave of dizziness.

The Healing Device kicked into full power, continuously helping her recover her spiritual power.

’Good thing I didn’t come this morning. Mornings are when my spiritual power is at its weakest.’