Shepherding Humanity

The atmosphere was deathly silent.

At first everyone felt that this Pallbearer Chicken species was a great reward, but now that they’ve seen this scene with their own eyes, they couldn't help but shiver inside.

"What a tragedy! After the boss had a taste of you, not only did he not get poisoned, he actually remembered how delicious you were…"

"Congratulations bro, you’ve managed to obtain the initial starting race ―― The Tasty Spring Chicken, and have class-changed into food. It tastes like chicken, is extra crispy, and has eight times the protein of beef!"

"You’ve taken dozens of minutes customizing your character to look pretty… only to make yourself look even more delectable. LOL."

"Honestly, I was having a late night snack and couldn't help but spit out my food when I saw that. Although I felt really sorry for him, I couldn’t help but laugh like crazy!"

"I’ll speak honestly bro, it looks like your first starting species, the Pallbearer Chicken, is now useless…"

…….

When he saw the people laughing and joking around on the forum, Akina’s Speedster was lost for words. He looked at the flock of Pallbearer Chickens which had lost most of its members and once again felt deep regret. Why did I have to feed him? Now he remembers my taste, and will seek out my species every day for his meal…

"This species is probably useless now…"

At that moment, he has fallen from the heights of happiness down into the pits.

Meanwhile, the boss had caused a big stir among the players with his realistic behavior and ability to remember. They excitedly discussed among themselves how the first species to get an Achievement had become an item on the boss's menu.

They must take heed of this example!

……..

Xu Zhi was very relaxed when all this was going on.

He had just returned from the courtyard, with dozens of Pallbearer Chickens the size of quail eggs in hand. He entered the kitchen, put them in a basket, washed them clean, and plucked their feathers in a few strokes. "I happen to be hungry right now, I’ll eat them for supper."

As expected of a species evolved by an expert to be delicious, the Pallbearer Chicken tasted incredible.

Xu Zhi considered this situation to be perfectly normal.

After all, which farmer didn’t prepare his meal using the products from his farm when he got hungry?

This Pallbearer Chicken was a product of his farm.

It was already very considerate of him to leave Akina’s Speedster with the king of his species.

Xu Zhi stewed the chickens and cracked two eggs on top of them. He smiled calmly while preparing his meal in the kitchen. "I knew this guy would definitely choose the first option, and have been waiting for him."

Dude, you'll be an item on the menu from now on.

He let the food simmer for half an hour, then sprinkled some chopped scallions on top, and savored it one bite at a time. It was delicious beyond belief, Xu Zhi felt true bliss.

"Looks like I'll have to encourage them to evolve more delicious species in the future." Xu Zhi muttered. He never forgot how he was in the late stages of stomach cancer and needed to be nice to his stomach.

Xu Zhi was very content at the moment. He had just finished practicing sorcery and enjoyed a delicious evening meal after taking a bath. He loved his current idyllic lifestyle.

An idea suddenly struck him: "Right, I should make them evolve plants, and grow some delicious fruits and vegetables."

Honestly, Xu Zhi truly loved to eat fruits while sitting in the yard observing his sandbox, and felt that it was a wonderful way to pass the time. Now, if those players could create even more delicious fruits…

"It's doable."

Xu Zhi considered the problem. Currently, most players wouldn't choose to evolve into plants. After all, not being able to move would negatively affect the game experience too much. They all wanted to evolve eyes and limbs, and be able to move around. Not one of them had considered becoming a stationary plant. This mistaken way of thinking was the main issue.

"Maybe I should remind them…. These people are even more persistent and hard working than I thought. Even if they turn into photosynthesizing plants that cannot move, they should be able to tolerate the boredom…" Xu Zhi thought for a moment, and secretly logged into the account he had previously made in order to enter the sandbox. "Vengeful Creator" thus posted:

"I've been watching you guys play the game all this time. Why didn't anyone choose to evolve into a plant? After all, in this world, there are two main categories of life: plants and animals. So why didn’t anyone take the evolutionary route of plants?"

These words startled everyone and began a heated debate amongst the players.

"F*ck, why didn't I think of that! Plants! We forgot about plants!"

"Yes, this will be a brand new frontier. I’ve already died in the boss battle anyway and am starting over as a spore, so I might as well give it a try. Today, I will stay up all night studying the evolutionary structure of plants: chlorophyll, photosynthesis, plasmolysis… I want to create the perfect plant!"

"Starting tomorrow, I’ll start life as a tree. I’ll stand eternally in peaceful repose, half of me buried beneath the earth, the other half swaying in the wind. I’ll become a proud and solemn existence, half covered in shade, half bathing in sunlight."

…….

Xu Zhi was satisfied. There was already someone who seemed very interested in taking the plant route. It was time for him to quietly leave after accomplishing his goal.

It really was important to keep track of what went on in the forum. This helped him know the enemy and guide public opinion in the desired direction.

Now that his free labor force had decided to dedicate themselves to the task, delicious fruits shouldn’t be far off. May each of them study so hard that they go bald, turning into Edison, and use their “Ninety-Nine Percent Perspiration” to evolve for him his desired species.

…….

Xu Zhi laughed and continued to eat his Pallbearer Chickens. As he browsed the forum and scouted behind enemy lines, he found another noteworthy player other than Akina’s Speedster among the newcomers.

He was the person with the nickname: "Future Skywhale", and was also a well known player. At the moment, he was messing around and didn’t seem interested in evolving into a skywhale. He didn’t seem interested in evolving at all.

As a veteran of "Minecraft", he was a true fan of relaxing games, and loved farming and construction work.

He had previously evolved five tentacles to be a better "inventor" and "artisan".

Among his five tentacles, two were serrated like mantis claws and were used to cut wood, one was shaped like a shovel and used to dig, and the two dexterous remaining tentacles were there to assist them.

This creature was like a robot dedicated to making tools.

He was making a chair at the moment.

Whoosh!

He chopped down a tree, sorted the parts, then assembled and fixed them in place in only a few minutes. The five tentacles worked together as each of them performed their separate tasks. They moved so fast they left behind afterimages, and completed the work in an instant. When Xu Zhi saw this scene, he was stunned!

What the hell had he evolved?

This was an assembly line! Those tentacles were like the mechanical arms found in factories!