The air was filled with dead silence.
At first, everyone thought that "Poison Chicken" was an amazing evolutionary reward, but after seeing what just happened, they were stunned.
Comments flooded in:
"Damn, that's brutal! You tried poisoning the Boss once; now he remembers your flavor!"
"Congrats on unlocking a new race—menu item! Chicken flavor, crispy, high protein content!"
"He spent fifteen minutes customizing a gorgeous rooster, but it's just food to the boss—such beauty only makes it tastier!"
"I was literally eating a midnight snack, and I laughed so hard I spat out my noodles!"
"Sorry bro, your Poison Chicken is officially ruined."
Looking at the mocking comments in the livestream, Chen Wenshan stood there completely stunned. Seeing most of his chickens snatched away by the giant, deep regret rose in his heart. Why the heck did I evolve something so tasty?
"My race really is ruined…"
Joy had turned to bitter tragedy.
But the Boss's incredibly realistic memory feature sparked further amazement among players. Discussions broke out about how the Boss NPC could remember past interactions. Everyone agreed—this was definitely something to keep in mind!
Meanwhile, Xu Zhi was utterly relaxed.
After leaving the orchard courtyard and returning to the house, he casually brought a basket containing dozens of tiny quail-sized Poison Chickens to the kitchen. He rinsed them thoroughly and quickly plucked off their feathers, preparing a nice midnight snack.
To be fair, this highly toxic species really was delicious. Clearly, the player who evolved them had studied food-related biology extensively.
Xu Zhi felt his actions were completely natural. After all, wasn't it perfectly normal for a farmer, when feeling hungry, to grab some vegetables from his garden?
These chickens were just another kind of vegetable from his backyard sandbox garden.
He even generously left the player a few chickens to continue breeding. He wasn't that heartless, after all.
Putting the chicken soup on the stove to cook gently, he added two fresh eggs and smiled to himself. "I knew he'd definitely choose the first option. I've been waiting right here for him."
Buddy, from now on, you're part of my menu.
After simmering gently for half an hour, the delicious aroma filled the room. Xu Zhi sprinkled a bit of green onion, savoring the incredible flavor. The taste was unexpectedly perfect.
"Maybe I should encourage these players to evolve more delicious species in the future," Xu Zhi muttered. After all, with his advanced stomach cancer, treating his stomach well was his first priority.
After practicing magic, a refreshing shower, and now a tasty midnight snack, life in the countryside felt quite comfortable indeed.
Suddenly, a new thought occurred to him. "Wait a second—maybe they could evolve plants that produce tasty fruits and vegetables?"
Truthfully, Xu Zhi loved sitting near the sandbox eating fresh apples and pears. If he could get tastier fruits from the players' evolution efforts, his life would be even more comfortable.
"It's definitely doable."
Xu Zhi considered the issue. Most players hadn't even thought about evolving into plants. Being immobile sounded boring, and their main goal was typically something with eyes, limbs, and movement capability.
But this was a huge oversight!
Xu Zhi smiled. "Maybe I should nudge them a bit. These guys have proved way more patient and persistent than I expected. I'm sure some of them would gladly endure being stationary, doing photosynthesis…"
He quickly logged onto the forum using his alternate account, "Taking Names of Trash Talkers," and made a casual post:
"I've been watching you guys play, and I'm surprised no one's thought about evolving into plants yet. After all, life on earth consists of two big categories: plants and animals. Has nobody considered exploring the plant evolution pathway?"
His words hit the forum like lightning. Instantly, discussions erupted:
"Holy crap! How did we overlook plants!?"
"He's right! I'm already restarting from spore stage anyway—I might as well try evolving into a plant this time. Time to study leaf chlorophyll and photosynthesis overnight!"
"Tomorrow I'll start a new life as a tree: half in peaceful earth, half soaring towards the sun. Proud and eternal."
Satisfied with his subtle guidance, Xu Zhi withdrew silently, enjoying the effects of his casual hint.
Indeed, lurking in the forums and subtly steering player discussions was incredibly effective. Soon, these unpaid laborers would eagerly develop new delicious plant species for him to enjoy.
Tasty fruits were just around the corner now.
"My backyard garden plan is underway…" Xu Zhi chuckled happily, eating Poison Chicken soup as he continued browsing the forum, secretly investigating other interesting player evolutions. Soon, another rising star caught his attention:
A player named "I Have a Big Fist, I Want to Evolve into a Kun".
This guy was becoming famous. But unlike "AutumnMountainSpeed," he didn't want to create a powerful predator or a bizarre creature—he was a casual, laid-back gamer obsessed with crafting and building, a veteran from games like Minecraft.
His goal wasn't to evolve some fierce monster—he simply wanted to evolve the perfect "craftsman."
This guy had evolved a creature with five specialized tentacles:
Two razor-sharp, mantis-like blades for quickly cutting wood.
One shovel-shaped limb for digging.
Two dexterous tentacles for fine manipulation.
His entire creature was effectively a robotic assembly line, specialized solely for building!
As Xu Zhi watched, utterly stunned, this player began to rapidly craft a tiny wooden chair:
Swish, swish, swish!
Wood was sliced and shaped within seconds, tentacles whipping around in a blur, completing the entire chair almost instantly.
Xu Zhi was shocked speechless.
"What the heck kind of evolution is this?"
This wasn't some organic creature—it looked like a fully automated industrial robot arm!