Chapter 64: Sunny Vale

Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Sunny Vale

Rowan spread the municipal documents across the smooth pine counter, studying the details under the warm store lights. Arthur leaned over his shoulder, while Martha stood beside them, tapping her pen against her notepad.

"Mist Hollow’s mana spring is tempting for delicate herbs," Arthur admitted, tracing a finger down the page. "And Iron Terraces has plenty of room for heavy roots. What do you think, Rowan?"

Rowan gently tapped the section marked Parcel A: Sunny Vale.

"Sunny Vale is our best foundation," Rowan said, his voice calm and decisive. "Fifty acres of open, fertile topsoil with maximum sunlight exposure gives us the exact environment we need to scale up our core crops—especially Spirit Wheat and Azure Dew Berries. It lets us fulfill both the City Hall Canteen contract and Crestview’s doubled order without pushing our soil past its limits." ℴℴ𝘮

Martha nodded in agreement, marking a bold check next to Option A. "Fifty acres gives us room for structured crop rotation and proper storage barns. It’s practical, expandable, and close enough to our main transport routes to guarantee same-day freshness."

"It’s settled then," Arthur smiled, placing a hand on Rowan’s shoulder. "Sunny Vale it is."

The next morning, Martha delivered the signed acquisition agreement directly to Director Harlan at City Hall. By noon, the municipal deeds were officially stamped, transferring the fifty acres of prime southern farmland to Eden International.

Later that afternoon, Rowan stood at the crest of Sunny Vale, looking out over rolling hills of rich, golden topsoil stretching toward the horizon. He adjusted his Enchanted Straw Hat, feeling the gentle hum of natural vitality sleeping beneath the earth. With fifty acres of physical land secured and The Virgin Soil acting as his master seed sanctuary, Eden International was ready to step onto the grand stage.

***

The morning sun rose over Sunny Vale as the last of the family’s wooden trunks were loaded onto the transport. Standing by the front gate, Martha turned back to take one final look at the old cottage house—the quiet home where they had spent so many years dreaming of a better future.

Arthur placed a comforting arm around her shoulder, offering a warm, reassuring smile. "It served us well, Martha. But our new Chapter starts today."

A short drive south brought them to the pristine borders of Sunny Vale. Sitting atop a gentle, elevated rise overlooking the fifty acres of rolling farmland stood their new home: a spacious, modern two-story homestead constructed from dark timber and reinforced stone. Designed with wide windows that caught the morning light, the house featured an expansive front porch, a dedicated rear workshop for processing crops, and direct access to the surrounding fields.

Rowan helped his father carry the heavy wooden storage chests into the main living room, where the crisp scent of fresh cedar filled the air. Outside the back door, the endless rows of Sunny Vale stretched into the distance, perfectly situated beside their new doorstep.

Unpacking his desk in his new bedroom, Rowan placed his Enchanted Straw Hat on the peg beside the window. Looking out over the vast, sunlit fields, he felt a quiet sense of accomplishment. The humble cottage was now behind them, and beside Sunny Vale, the Vance family had finally built a home worthy of Eden International.

As the sun began to dip below the horizon, casting a warm violet hue across the fifty acres of Sunny Vale, Rowan stepped off the back porch of the new homestead. The cool evening air rustled through the pristine grass, but Rowan knew that as Eden International grew in prominence, fifty open acres of high-purity spirit crops would inevitably draw unwanted eyes—both from wild mana beasts and human opportunists.

He unslung the Hoe of the World-Tiller from his back and rested its haft against the fertile earth. Setting his Enchanted Straw Hat firmly on his head, he focused his consciousness inward, drawing upon his awakened bloodline and core domain authority.

[Activating Skill: Earth-Pulse Marking]

Rowan took a deep breath, channeling a steady stream of rich terra-mana through his feet and directly into the soil beneath the house. A low, resonant hum echoed through the ground as thin, glowing lines of golden light erupted from where he stood, shooting outward across the perimeter of the property like veins of liquid sun.

He walked the four main cardinal boundaries of the land, embedding four high-grade mana cores acquired from his recent Tower raids deep into the earth.

[Forming Structural Layout: Sovereign Terra-Barricade]

Defensive Layer (Earth-Sovereign Barrier): At the edge of the property line, the ground gave a subtle pulse as an invisible force field locked into place. Any unauthorized entity entering the perimeter without a family crest marker would trigger a heavy gravitational suppression field, instantly pinning intruders to the earth while alerting Rowan.

Vitality-Attracting Core (Giga-Floral Resonance): At the center of the homestead, right beneath the foundation of the house, Rowan planted a pristine seed vessel from The Virgin Soil. The node immediately began drawing in ambient environmental mana, converting raw, untamed atmospheric energy into pure, purified vitality that pooled over the fifty acres.

A gentle, refreshing mist drifted across the fields of Sunny Vale as the layout stabilized. The air around the house grew light and fragrant, thick with vitality that made breathing effortless and invigorated the body.

Standing on the back porch, Arthur and Martha watched as the faint golden runes along the perimeter faded into the dark earth, leaving behind only an overwhelming sense of tranquility and absolute safety.

Rowan adjusted the brim of his hat, feeling the unbroken connection between his personal domain, the array, and the vast soil of Sunny Vale stretched out before him. The new home was no longer just a house—it was an unassailable sanctuary.

***

The next morning, as the first rays of dawn broke over the horizon of Sunny Vale, Rowan stepped onto the wide open field. The autumn air was crisp, and fifty acres of unworked, rich topsoil lay before him, waiting to be awakened.

Rowan gripped the smooth wooden handle of the Hoe of the World-Tiller, closing his eyes as his core mana surged through his arms and into the implement.

[Skill Activated: Earthbreaker Plough]

With a single fluid sweep of the hoe, a localized shockwave of golden terra-mana rippled across the earth. The ground split open cleanly, overturning stiff turf, breaking up dense clumps, and carving out perfectly straight, nutrient-rich furrows that stretched down the full length of the field. Rowan moved steadily across the acreage, his awakened bloodline making short work of what would normally require days of heavy machinery. Within a few hours, all fifty acres were perfectly tilled and primed for planting.

Rowan reached into his storage pouch, retrieving the bulk crates of certified high-grade spirit seeds. Walking down the fresh rows, he sowed the first massive batch across Sunny Vale: thirty acres of Spirit Wheat, fifteen acres of Azure Dew Berries, and five acres of heavy Earth-Core Roots.

[Skill Activated: Breath of Eden]

As the seeds settled into the dark soil, Rowan released a gentle, sweeping wave of vitality mana across the entire field, sealing the soil and triggering immediate germination.

With the planting complete, Rowan turned his attention to long-term irrigation. Drawing on his domain knowledge, he began setting up an automated crop-watering network across the four corners of the property.

He installed a series of elevated brass mist-cannons along the perimeter, connecting them via underground conduits directly to the vitalized water reservoir he had anchored beneath the homestead. Rowan embedded small mana-transduction crystals into the control hubs, tuning the system to operate automatically.

[System Configured: Eden Auto-Irrigation Network]

Schedule: Bi-daily automated misting (5:00 AM / 6:00 PM)

Water Source: Vitality-Infused Reservoir

Coverage: 50/50 Acres (Variable Pressure Adjustment)

With a soft hiss, the overhead nozzles activated for a test run. Fine, ambient clouds of cool, mana-enriched water vapor sprayed high into the morning air, settling softly over the newly planted rows.

Rowan wiped a light sheen of sweat from his brow and rested the Hoe of the World-Tiller against his shoulder, watching the mist catch the rising sun over the fields of Sunny Vale.