Chapter 330 - 303: Undersea Fishman
「A day passed.」
The hottest topic in the Gated Community was the Hundred Schools Book Tower.
After three months of trials, everyone now understood just how precious knowledge was.
Normally, learning a new skill was not only time-consuming, but there was also no guarantee of success.
But after many people tested it for themselves and confirmed the Hundred Schools Book Tower’s usefulness, the tower suddenly became the hottest destination.
After a day of buzz, many people—especially those who had already tried it—came flocking to get in line.
They were all racking their brains, trying to turn the various abilities they’d mastered into books.
Below the tower, the queue stretched out in a long line.
Jin Hao held a thermos in his left hand and a small leather bag in his right.
Jiang Shan, who was passing by, greeted him. "You here to see this, too?"
"Yeah." A smile appeared on Jin Hao’s face. "I heard Instructor Du put his Double Blade Technique in the Book Tower. I want to take a look."
"Nice. What’s that you’re carrying?" Jiang Shan noticed the small leather bag in Jin Hao’s hand.
"Some pancakes my wife made for me. This way, I don’t have to go home for lunch." The blissful smile on Jin Hao’s face was almost blinding to Jiang Shan.
Jiang Shan instantly regretted asking. ’Why did I have to bring this on myself?’
Still, he couldn’t help but feel a little envious.
He’d met Jin Hao’s wife.
She was beautiful and gentle—a really good person.
Jin Hao suddenly thought of something. His expression shifted, and he asked in a low voice, "By the way, are you still single?"
Jiang Shan’s face darkened. ’What’s with the sudden personal attack!?’
’Are we even friends?!’
Seeing Jiang Shan’s expression, Jin Hao got the hint. He thought for a moment and said, "My wife’s working at the Armor Workshop now, you know? There are quite a few single women there. If you’re interested, I could set up an introduction."
Only then did Jiang Shan realize he had misunderstood.
He hesitated for a moment. "Is this legit?"
"They’re all decent, respectable young women. It’s not like I’m a professional matchmaker," Jin Hao chuckled.
...
"Instructor Du, I feel like you *are* a professional at this!" Qin Ziwu said, standing nearby with a look of utter amazement.
He watched as Du Yu, inside the Hundred Schools Book Tower, materialized one book after another.
*Intermediate Linked Arrow Skill Explanation*, *Intermediate Fist and Kick Skill*, *Basic Staff Technique*...
"It’s like you’re a video game boss. You’re dropping way too many skill books," Qin Ziwu marveled.
’Doctor?’
A flicker of confusion crossed Du Yu’s eyes. ’Isn’t a doctor a scholarly title?’
But he didn’t ask. Having been around them for so long, he knew his lord and the others sometimes used strange, unfamiliar words or homophones.
While the rest of the Gated Community was bustling with activity, Qin Ziwen began preparing for an expedition into the sea.
"Chairman, a new batch of Deep Sea Oxygen has ripened. Including the fruits from the previous harvest, we now have 1,200 usable units."
"Get me one hundred for now." After taking a hundred to carry with him, Qin Ziwen selected a team of seven.
The team consisted of himself, Du Yu, Red Hare, the Yan Family’s Three Brothers, and Cao Biansheng.
Qin Ziwen called the three brothers over. "We used the last one on Yan Da. This time it’s for Yan San?"
"Give it to my brother," Yan Wu said without the slightest hesitation, cupping his fists.
Seeing this, Qin Ziwen took out a Constitution Enhancement Card and used it on Yan San. A nimbus of green light enveloped him, and when it faded, Yan San could feel power boiling within his body.
He immediately dropped to one knee, overwhelmed with gratitude. "Thank you, my Lord!"
"Mm. Make it count."
Arriving at the seashore, Qin Ziwen also summoned Pura to act as a translator. He then took out the scale and summoned a Fishman from the sea.
Qin Ziwen said, "Pura, please ask them: since we can’t breathe in the sea, how are we supposed to go meet them there?"
Pura nodded respectfully and turned to question the Fishman in the sea.
The two spoke for a moment before Pura translated. "Master, it says that they have a special Sea Vessel that can travel along the seabed."
But Pura immediately added without hesitation, "However, traveling in the Sea Vessel is extremely dangerous. If it gets damaged, you and your men won’t be able to breathe. Master, you must not agree to their proposal."
Qin Ziwen smiled when he heard this. ’How thoughtful of her.’
"Then please relay this for me: tell them I find that proposal very dangerous. That method isn’t safe enough. I require a safer way." Qin Ziwen’s expression remained neutral. Although he had Deep Sea Oxygen, it was his personal asset.
A single trip to the seafloor would consume at least dozens, if not hundreds, of Deep Sea Oxygen. He could use them, but he wasn’t about to waste them for no good reason.
After the message was relayed, the Fishman on the surface gurgled a response and then dove back into the sea.
"Master, it said it needs to return to the tribe and ask the chief," Pura translated.
"Mm, let it go back and ask then." Qin Ziwen wasn’t in a hurry. The Fishman Tribe had taken so many Cards from the altar on the seafloor.
He was just curious about what the Fishmen did with the Cards after taking them. Did they use them too?
While he waited, Jia Liangcai ran over to report that on another Island, many residents from the Urban Village were privately seeking them out, wanting to join the Qin Alliance.
"A lot of them?"
"A lot. At least a hundred people."
Qin Ziwen grew pensive. "What does Yang Long say about this?"
"Yang Long hasn’t stopped them."
Qin Ziwen narrowed his eyes. He believed Yang Long was a smart man, and a smart man would know what choice to make in this situation.
"Recruit the ones we accept as peripheral members for now. If they can cross over with the Gated Community..." Qin Ziwen left the rest unsaid.
But Jia Liangcai understood.
Only those who could cross over to the next map would be considered truly one of them.
If they couldn’t, they were just temporary labor.
After Jia Liangcai left, a head broke the surface of the water.
The Fishman that had dived into the sea had reappeared.
Qin Ziwen lifted his wrist and glanced at his watch. About forty minutes had passed—the time for a round trip.
That meant a one-way trip took about twenty minutes.
Based on the speed Pura had demonstrated underwater, he could roughly estimate that the straight-line distance from the Fishman Tribe to the Gated Community was about ten kilometers, or 10,000 meters.
The Fishman gurgled a long string of words, which Pura translated. "Master, it says they are willing to offer a treasure. This treasure can give a person the ability to breathe underwater."
"Oh?" Qin Ziwen’s interest was piqued. "And the treasure is?"
Pura turned her head and gestured imperiously at the Fishman.
𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
The Fishman swam closer to the island reef, climbed onto a rock, and raised its hands, presenting a palm-sized piece of coral as transparent as jade.
Qin Ziwen used Insight.
[Level 1 Marvel: Spiritual Coral (Hold one end in your mouth to gain the ability to breathe in water.)]
Qin Ziwen took the Spiritual Coral, turning the cool, jade-like Marvel over in his hand. ’Casually giving away a Marvel, are they? Looks like the Fishmen are quite wealthy. This Spiritual Coral is obviously an Aquatic Marvel.’
’My yet-to-be-built Wonder, the Abyssal Ruins, needs 99 Aquatic Marvels. And look who just showed up to be my top benefactor.’
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