Chapter 65: Feeding on Fortune, Arriving at the Tutorial Village (Begging for Monthly Passes and Follows)

"So it's just like a gacha game; before pulling a golden item, you have to waste two pulls as a Sacrificial Offering!"

Jiang Yan complained, though the process was a bit... flavorful.

But the overall result was good.

At this moment, he was like most stock market investors: thinking they had lost everything and were utterly desperate, only to suddenly discover their account still had a third left.

Clearly still at a loss, yet he felt happier than if he had made money.

Surviving a dire situation, with a chance to turn the tables!

"This fellow really knows how to pick a spot; he even knew to seek out a large Disease Domain as a cesspit. Is this his nature, or does he have a grudge against this place?"

Jiang Yan pondered; although he had only caught a fleeting glimpse, he saw that this silver-hued Disease Domain was extremely vast, stretching endlessly.

Visually, its level was not low.

After the Mirror of the Heaven-Stealing Ghost fell into the world, it kept plummeting, the view blurred and unclear.

After an unknown duration, accompanied by a "plop," it landed in the water, washing away the filth on its surface.

The mirror body drifted constantly with the dark currents, finally settling on a patch of coral.

Jiang Yan manipulated the mirror's perspective and could see countless fish wandering around, of various forms; he saw no familiar river fish species, but based on the number of fish schools, he initially deduced it was a large river or shallow sea.

Among the fish schools, several fish were astonishingly large, visually estimated at one or two meters long, their bodies covered in thick, bright red scales, with faint silver lines visible like wandering spiritual light within the flesh beneath the gaps.

The larger the body, the more silver lines, and the thicker they were.

When they hunted, their bodies suddenly thrashed, creating a water ring that exploded outward, directly smashing small fish into bloody foam, then opening their gills to suck them into their bellies.

Water-attribute supernatural creatures!

"The current 【Mirror of the Heaven-Stealing Ghost】 only has a dialogue function now; it cannot even move. It must analyze the rules of the Disease Domain to unlock functions like free movement, transferring items, or even opening portals.

The fastest method is to absorb the plane's source, such as harvesting those with strong fortune within the Disease Domain, commonly known as causing trouble.

They are born holding the Disease Domain's source; fortune is both a gift and a constraint. They are responsible for promoting the continued evolution of the Disease Domain, sinking deeper into the river of history.

But once life becomes powerful, it will want to enter the mortal world, staying away from the disease, which contradicts the will of the Disease Domain. Therefore, fortune will not be extremely strong on a single individual; instead, it will constantly flow between different lives. When they die, they return to the Disease Domain, resembling a prototype of the Heavenly Dao."

Jiang Yan pondered, reviewing the information the Little Ghost had given him; now he was like a certain legendary, strange mirror evil god that feeds on fortune.

The Coffin Spirit leaned in close, worriedly saying, "But this is underwater; don't say anything about those with flourishing fortune, I feel like you can't even see a single living human."

Jiang Yan helplessly said, "Although the mirror cannot move, we can attract these fish to approach by changing the light and sound. If they swallow the mirror, we can then be taken to the shore."

"Master's wisdom surpasses all past and present!"

The Coffin Spirit paid a compliment, and the Little Ghost nearby nodded in agreement.

Two high priests of the Praise-God Sect.

Jiang Yan began operating, searching for special fish-attracting sonar, while making the mirror emit a faint glow to attract the large fish's attention.

However, after a long time, no fish approached.

Instead, a special vacuum zone formed within dozens of meters.

Even if large creatures approached, they would turn around and split the water to avoid it.

As if something terrifying existed here.

"I understand!"

Jiang Yan also thought he had fallen near some large creature, but after studying it carefully, he suddenly realized the truth.

Because the sub-mirror had been swallowed by that Disease Domain creature, the process of excretion inevitably carried a scent.

Similar to a tiger urinating to mark its territory, intimidating weaker creatures.

That Disease Domain creature itself was no ordinary thing; even though the mirror surface had been washed clean by the river, it still caused a large number of fish to dare not approach.

The more Jiang Yan fussed, the more afraid they became!

"It seems we can only wait for the scent to fade, and then wait for a destined fish!"

Jiang Yan, helpless, continued to cultivate.

Time flew; in the blink of an eye, several days passed.

A month had passed in the Disease Domain.

On this day, the wind was calm and the waves were still.

On the water's surface, an old, flat-headed wooden boat appeared, with two fishermen on board, one old and one young.

The old fisherman poked his head out and, through the churning water surface, saw the fish schools. With a worried expression, he said, "Jiang Jiang Shuiwa, go a bit further; that's the open sea. Although the probability of being discovered by the authorities is low, it's easy to run into water demons. Do you really want to go?"

"Grandpa Hai Rong, I have no choice. The village head already said that if we don't pay the taxes, we'll be conscripted as corvée laborers to build the Silver Great Wall. Uncle Gen from the next village went two years ago and never came back."

The youth had dark skin and a determined gaze. He spoke in a deep voice, "Do you think it's because we haven't worked hard enough? But last year, to pay the taxes, we already tightened our belts, yet this year they are demanding thirty percent more than last year. Where are we supposed to get the money?"

"Jiang Jiang Shuiwa... sigh!" Grandpa Hai Rong sighed and said, "You are not wrong; the world is wrong."

"I know you mean well, but time waits for no one."

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa looked helpless and sighed, "We can't become a pirate, can we?"

"That's absolutely not allowed!" Grandpa Hai Rong's expression changed. He looked around and whispered, "If you go, you will definitely be captured by Japanese pirates, forced to raid coastal people, and then serve as a scapegoat for the authorities, beheaded and displayed as a warning.

If you are unlucky enough to encounter those Japanese pirates who possess strange abilities, you will end up neither human nor ghost in the end."

"That's the logic. Besides, I have a mother and a sister; I can't just watch them starve to death."

Saying this, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa looked wistful and said, "If only we could catch a treasure fish and sell it at the market, everything would be resolved."

"A treasure fish? The most common Silver-Line Red Trout is incredibly strong in the water; even men skilled in swimming can be dragged into the deep and drowned by them."

Grandpa Hai Rong laughed and scolded, then stopped persuading. He picked up a fish spear from beside his feet, sharpened to a shine with a rope tied to its tail, and handed it to Jiang Jiang Shuiwa, saying, "This spear and this boat are my entire possessions. I will pass it down to my grandson in the future. You must bring it back to me!"

"Thank you, Grandpa Hai Rong!"

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa thanked him repeatedly; in these times, for commoners to lend iron tools was truly a bond forged in life and death.

With a sharp weapon, even stabbing a few times could kill many fish.

Picking up the patched-up net, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa leaped into the sea.

Relying on his powerful swimming ability, he swam a certain distance, then took a deep breath, plunged into the water, opened his eyes, and saw dense schools of fish.

Each one was plump and robust!

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa's eyes lit up; indeed, the resources of the open sea were far greater than those of the near shore.

He slowly approached, pierced a fish's body with a harpoon, and after its violent thrashing, it quickly lost all movement; then he placed it into the net bag.

Just following this pattern, occasionally surfacing for air, within a few hours, he filled the net bag.

'If I have such a catch every day, I can save enough tax money in just half a month.'

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa was delighted in his heart and was about to swim back to put the fish on the boat and fill another net bag; however, in the instant he turned, he met a pair of eyes emitting a faint red glow.

It was a one-and-a-half-meter-long big red fish, merely a few meters away from him.

"Silver-line Red Trout!"

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa was greatly alarmed in his heart; he never expected to encounter this treasure fish.

He had said that catching treasure fish could make money, but the water was their home turf; a single mistake would mean being buried in a fish's belly.

Even an iron net might not be able to catch it, let alone his mere mortal flesh and blood.

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa swam backward cautiously, not wanting to provoke the other party; however, the Silver-line Red Trout had already fixed its gaze on him, its fins fluttered, and it suddenly charged!

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa predicted in advance and dodged to the side, but his shoulder was still scratched by scales, drawing blood and causing fresh blood to seep out.

"So fast!"

He was greatly alarmed in his heart but did not freeze; he grabbed the harpoon and thrust forward with force, successfully hitting the treasure fish's side.

Did it work?

The next second, the harpoon struck the treasure fish; a full-force strike failed to even penetrate the scales, instead shaking his thenar muscles numb, and the harpoon nearly slipped from his hand.

It couldn't even pierce the fish scales,

What the hell is this!

Seeing this, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa turned and ran, dropping the net bag and taking only the harpoon.

However, the Silver-line Red Trout pursued relentlessly, giving him no chance at all.

'Damn it, Mother and Sister are also waiting for me to return!'

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa was also stirred to a fierce resolve; he swam forward with all his might, using numerous underwater rocks and corals as cover to dodge the opponent's attacks, but they were all smashed to pieces by the collisions.

Fortunately, he managed to shake it off in the process!

"Good... I'm still alive!"

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa was overjoyed in his heart, his face flushed purple-red from holding his breath; just as he prepared to surface, he saw five or six Silver-line Red Trout appear before him.

Oh no!

He forgot they were a treasure fish with a schooling habit!

Surrounded on all sides, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa was completely desperate; moreover, after prolonged diving combined with intense exercise, he now felt his chest was about to burst from holding his breath.

He would die so quickly due to greed.

'I won't be able to return the harpoon to Uncle Hai Rong...'

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa felt guilty in his heart and quietly waited for death to arrive; however, several Silver-line Red Trout swam back and forth repeatedly but dared not advance even a little, as if fearing something.

He turned his head in confusion and saw a mysterious bronze treasure mirror embedded in the underwater coral; its craftsmanship was exquisite, as if it had gathered all the spiritual beauty of heaven and earth.

At this moment,

It radiated brilliant clear light, dispelling the darkness of the seabed; like a crystal immortal lotus blooming, it scared away thousands of fish schools, and the Silver-line Red Trout quickly fled.

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa stared blankly at this mirror, and a poem seemed forcibly poured into his mind.

【Ten thousand zhang of scale abyss hides strange scenes,

The Dao-Realizing Treasure Mirror splits the Immortal Court.

Coral casts the shadow of the heavens,

Illuminating all the turbidity and clarity of the human world.】

"I... I don't understand..."

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa was dazed; although he had little education, he felt its power without understanding and knew this was absolutely a treasure.

"Wu..."

But very soon, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa realized he was about to suffocate to death, so he immediately swam over, picked up the bronze mirror, and rapidly ascended; on the way, he even encountered a small Silver-line Red Trout that had been scared into fainting.

Although already exhausted, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa feared poverty even more, so he dragged it along with all his might while ascending.

However, not far from approaching the water's surface, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa suddenly stopped moving; the scene before his eyes blurred, his limbs lost strength, and he began to sink.

Holding his breath too long had exceeded the limit.

"Am I going to die?"

Just at the moment he was about to lose his last breath, suddenly a cool flow of energy transmitted from the mirror, replenishing his strength.

He swam vigorously and successfully broke the surface, breathing in deep, heavy gasps.

Jiang Jiang Shuiwa looked at the sea before him and said excitedly:

"I'm alive!"

Then, under Uncle Hai Rong's shocked gaze, Jiang Jiang Shuiwa loaded the treasure fish onto the boat; the two of them, like thieves, covered it with a straw mat and rowed back.

In the present world, Jiang Yan, seeing them leave safely, let out a long sigh.

"It wasn't easy; finally, I can head to the Newbie Village!"

(End of this chapter)