Chapter 355 - 327: Power-Generating Coconut Crab
"You can keep that for yourselves. Are you getting used to things here?" Qin Ziwen remembered Guo Xiaochun. He used to run an information consulting business in the Gated Community. Then, somewhere along the line, he had joined the Qin Alliance.
Because many of the original senior members within the alliance had their own duties, it was necessary to promote from the newer recruits. They needed someone who was clever, capable of managing affairs, and skilled at communication.
In the end, Guo Xiaochun was chosen.
Guo Xiaochun gave the person next to him a meaningful look, then obsequiously led Qin Ziwen a few steps toward the house. "President, I’m getting used to it here. The wind just gets a little strong at night, but the house is sturdy. We’ve applied windproof film."
A stout man emerged from the house, carrying an opaque plastic bag, which he handed to Guo Xiaochun.
Guo Xiaochun took the bag and offered it to Qin Ziwen.
Qin Ziwen didn’t accept it. "It’s not easy for you all out here. Just take it back to be registered later. This seafood is collected based on its type and quality. I’m just here to check on the situation."
Since the President had refused twice, Guo Xiaochun didn’t press the matter. He casually handed the bag back to the stout man and extended an invitation, "President, why don’t you stay for dinner tonight?"
"Alright." Qin Ziwen didn’t refuse this time.
Qin Ziwen asked, "Are there any dangerous beasts on the island?"
Standing nearby, Guo Xiaochun shook his head. "Nope. We haven’t even seen any snakes on the island. There are plenty of seabirds, though. Besides that, there are just some Sea Lizards, but they’re not big. They’re dark, ugly things, and no one’s tried killing them for food yet. I reckon this island is pretty much safe."
The words had barely left his mouth when hurried footsteps rushed in from outside.
"Team Leader, it’s bad! Two workers were clearing the area on the island when they were electrocuted and knocked unconscious by a crab from a tree!"
Guo Xiaochun opened his mouth, then closed it, at a loss for words. He glared at the person who had just barged in, wishing he could shove him right back out the door.
’I just guaranteed to the President that everything was safe, and my words haven’t even had time to cool before you, you bastard, run in here to make a fool out of me!’
"Let’s go see." A thought flashed through Qin Ziwen’s mind. ’A crab in a tree? A coconut crab?’
But he had never heard of a coconut crab that could knock people out with electricity.
At any rate, nothing like that had ever been heard of on Earth. It might be some kind of evolved Extraordinary Creature.
"Let’s go, quick!" Panicked, Guo Xiaochun grabbed a nearby Iron Fork. He took two steps, thought for a moment, then put the Iron Fork down and picked up a long, dry wooden stick instead.
After gathering a dozen or so men, Guo Xiaochun led the team deep into the island. Qin Ziwen followed within the group, noticing that the surrounding trees were somewhat sparse, many of them coconut palms.
However, the coconuts on the trees were few and far between, and small in size, possibly due to the variety.
"How big is that crab?" Guo Xiaochun asked, having calmed down a little.
"I don’t know, but I heard it’s pretty big. Much bigger than a normal crab."
Hearing that the crab was big, Guo Xiaochun stopped in his tracks. "Is it as tall as a person?"
’If it’s really that big, aren’t we all just walking to our deaths?’
"No, no, it’s not that exaggerated. Maybe a meter long at most." The messenger was a middle-aged man in his early forties, wearing a short-sleeved shirt, sun-protection sleeves on his arms, and a wide-brimmed straw hat.
Hearing this, Guo Xiaochun finally relaxed.
The group hurried on, covering several hundred meters at a quickened pace. After crossing a small hill, the vegetation grew denser, with many more shrubs appearing in the environment.
Before long, Qin Ziwen saw two people lying in a small clearing in the woods ahead, either dead or unconscious.
Beside them, two grown men held long sticks, waving them continuously at something in front of them.
On the ground directly opposite them, a vividly colored coconut crab of considerable size was raising two absurdly large claws in a defensive posture.
Qin Ziwen used Insight on it.
[Ordinary Electric Coconut Crab: ☆☆☆☆]
After seeing the panel clearly, Qin Ziwen was a little disappointed. He had thought he’d found another Extraordinary Creature, but it turned out to be just an ordinary beast.
’So it’s an electricity-generating coconut crab, just like an electric eel.’
This thing was quite large. Not only did it have a pair of large pincers that could easily crack open a coconut, but it could also discharge electricity, making it a relatively dangerous ordinary beast.
But its weaknesses were also obvious. It wasn’t enormous, and even its hard shell had its limits. It could be hunted using long-range attacks or by using insulators as weapons.
"Give me the stick." Qin Ziwen took the stick from Guo Xiaochun’s hand and stepped forward.
Seeing this, the Electric Coconut Crab quickly raised its large pincers high in the air, remaining on high alert.
WHOOSH—
The stick became a blur.
CRACK.
The stick snapped on the spot.
The Electric Coconut Crab’s head also shattered with a loud CRUNCH.
Red, yellow, white, green...
The coconut crab’s raised claws fell limply.
The two men standing by with sticks, on guard, stared in disbelief. They had also hit the coconut crab with their sticks earlier, but it had only been counterproductive. The more they hit it, the higher the coconut crab raised its head, like a stubborn mule.
’To smash its head with a single blow... just how strong is he?’
"Are these two alright?"
"They just fainted."
Qin Ziwen said to Guo Xiaochun, "Have them carried back for a proper check-up later. Make sure they get all the subsidies they’re due; treat it as a work-related injury. Tell the brothers on the island to be careful. This thing isn’t an Extraordinary Beast, just a type of electricity-generating coconut crab. Tell them if they see one, don’t touch it with their bare hands or any metal objects. They can throw rocks or hit it with a dry wooden stick."
"Yes, President." Guo Xiaochun hurriedly committed the instructions to memory.
’Good, good. Judging by the President’s reaction, he doesn’t seem to be angry with me.’
Guo Xiaochun secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"You need to pay more attention to the resource development on the island." Qin Ziwen patted Guo Xiaochun on the shoulder. As his position grew higher and he had more people under him, Qin Ziwen could clearly feel his own energy being stretched increasingly thin.
Most of the time, he could only handle the overall strategy; the finer details had to rely on middle management for supervision and the ground-level members for implementation.
"President, everyone on the island is working really hard. It’s just... could we get a few more fishing boats for support?" Guo Xiaochun asked, shamelessly pushing his luck.
Qin Ziwen said, "The boats are needed for deep-sea fishing. Every vessel has its purpose."
Guo Xiaochun quickly added, "Not the big ships, small boats are fine! Just something to make it easier to cast nets and fish in the coastal waters. There’s a lagoon on the east side of the island with a great environment. The fish resources there are abundant. When a boat passes over, you can see schools and schools of fish in the water below. We could fish there for a month and not even make a dent."
"Let’s go, we’ll take a look." The whole reason Qin Ziwen had come this time was to inspect the island’s resource abundance. This island could become a key plank in the next phase of resource development. Although time was limited, and they might not be able to develop every island in this archipelago, they could intensify their efforts on the key surrounding islands that were convenient for harvesting.
They had to take advantage of the time they had in this current stage to scramble for as many survival resources as possible. The next stage was subterranean caves, and just from the name, one could imagine that resources would definitely not be plentiful.
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