8: Chapter 8 Li Jun

As the last wooden treasure chest dissipated in a flash of light, the smile on Li Taiping's face gradually froze.

Are you kidding me?

Nine boxes in a row, and apart from a bunch of bread, mineral water, and upgrade materials, he hadn't even seen a single scrap of an energy stone.

You have to realize, this was a 100% success rate boosted by the "Bullseye" trait.

If it were an ordinary person, with a 10% fishing success rate, trying to gather these 10 energy stones would likely result in them breaking their arm before they even saw a shadow of one.

It seems this energy stone is still a scarce strategic resource.

Li Taiping rubbed his chin and pondered for a moment.

Opening the [trading post], he looked at the empty interface and quickly listed the excess supplies he had just opened.

[Seller: Li Taiping]

[Item: Wooden Plank (Normal) x3] Demand: [energy stone (Normal) x1]

[Item: Pearl (Normal) x1] Demand: [energy stone (Normal) x1]

[Item: sulfur (Normal) x1] Demand: [energy stone (Normal) x1]

[Item...]

...

Wooden planks were a necessity for those who chose the [heavy battleship], pearls were essential materials for upgrading fishing boats, and as for sulfur, that was the lifeline of the [warship] lunatics.

After listing the items, Li Taiping didn't expect an immediate transaction.

After all, everyone was a newbie who had just arrived less than an hour ago; it was good enough that they could even find a treasure chest, and the probability of opening an energy stone was pitifully low.

This move was essentially a case of 'Jiang Taigong fishing'—waiting for the fish to take the bait.

Li Taiping closed the trading interface and casually opened the area channel.

It was still a gathering place for negative energy.

Are you kidding me! The durability of this crappy normal fishing rod drops way too fast, right? I only cast the line three times, and the durability already dropped by 3 points! The key is that I didn't even catch a single hair!

Be content, poster above. I just fished up a wooden treasure chest, and I only opened a bottle of mineral water. It's pitifully poor.

This game doesn't give us a way to live at all! If you don't catch something every five minutes, 1 durability point is deducted. How long will 100 durability points last? What will we eat without a normal fishing rod? Drink the northwest wind?

Amidst the wailing filling the screen, a message that appeared exceptionally calm was mixed in.

I am Li Jun, from the military. I warn everyone, do not try to go into the sea to fish for treasure chests. I have a background as a winter swimming champion, and I just tried to go into the water; in less than ten seconds, my limbs started to stiffen. The temperature of this seawater is extremely low, and the salinity seems to be problematic, which will accelerate physical exhaustion. If you don't want to die, just honestly fish.

Once this message appeared, a flurry of responses followed immediately below.

Damn, thanks for clearing the path, big boss!

You're actually a pretty good person; this is equivalent to saving my life!

Looking at the name "Li Jun," Li Taiping secretly took note of it.

In an extreme environment, a person who has both ability and the willingness to share information is either a saint or an extremely confident powerhouse.

Regardless of which one it is, it's worth keeping an eye on.

Just then, the calm channel suddenly exploded.

Holy crap! Look at the trading post quickly!

What's wrong? Is someone selling water?

It's not selling water! There's a lunatic who listed a bunch of supplies to collect energy stones!

Damn... wooden planks, pearls, sulfur... has this person treated the Treasure Chest Sea as their own backyard? We can't even fish up a scrap of wood, yet he's selling them in bulk?

Confirmed! This guy definitely has a cheat! Where is the report button? I want to report him!

Don't be salty, poster above. You'd be better off casting your line a few more times with that energy.

Watching the envious condemnations of himself in the channel, Li Taiping felt no guilt, and even wanted to laugh a little.

Be salty, be salty. The fiercer you are, the better I'm doing.

Li Taiping stretched and tightened his grip on the normal fishing rod again.

The current clamor is only temporary; the real challenge is still ahead. He still needed nine energy stones; he had to hurry.

...

Time passed quietly amidst the sound of the crashing waves.

More than two hours later.

Li Taiping mechanically repeated the "cast line—reel in" action, his whole being like an emotionless pile driver.

Finally, after casting again, the normal fishing rod in his hand emitted a soft "click."

[normal fishing rod Durability (1 / 100)]

Phew...

Li Taiping let out a long breath and rubbed his sore shoulders.

Looking at the spoils of war that almost filled the entire raft, an indescribable sense of accomplishment welled up.

This was probably the gospel for those with hoarding syndrome; the sense of security brought by stockpiling was something nothing else could replace.

Counting the harvest:

wooden treasure chest: 85.

stone treasure chest: 4.

"Bullseye" did not deceive me; if this efficiency were placed in the circle of fishermen before the transmigration, he would at least be crowned with the title of "Dragon King of the Reservoir."

Li Taiping opened the four stone treasure chests first.

In addition to regular supplies, his luck exploded again, and he opened another scroll glowing with green light.

[Item Upgrade Scroll (good grade)]

Adding the diving suit he opened earlier, a thought flashed through Li Taiping's mind instantly.

Since this ocean is so dangerous, there must be huge opportunities hidden underwater.

Li Jun said the water temperature is extremely low, so what if I could solve the water temperature problem?

Without any hesitation, Li Taiping directly used the scroll on one of the diving suits.

A flash of light passed.

[Deep Sea Thermostatic Diving Suit (good grade)]

[Feature 1: Constant Temperature. Internal self-contained heat circulation system, can resist extremely cold water temperatures, keeping body temperature constant.]

[Feature 2: Underwater Breathing. The mask integrates a micro-gill filter, which can provide 30 minutes of oxygen circulation underwater (requires surfacing to recharge).]

[Evaluation: Put it on, and you are the coolest guy in this shallow sea.]

Artifact!

Li Taiping's eyes were shining.

Having this item meant he possessed the ability to operate underwater; this was definitely a huge strategic advantage in the early stage!

Suppressing the urge to go into the water and try it out immediately, he began to frantically open the remaining 85 wooden treasure chests.

The light rose and fell, as if a disco was being held on the raft.

Ten minutes later.

Li Taiping looked at the classified and organized supplies and fell into deep thought.

There was already enough food and water for him to eat and drink for a month; he could even open a small supermarket with it.

As for upgrade materials: Tough Vines x30, Coral Stone x24, Waterproof Resin x28, Shells x32.

There were also two black cards: [trading post VIP Card].

[Effect: Daily trading limit +10.]

This thing couldn't be used now; after all, no one had so many things to trade with him, so he threw it into the warehouse to collect dust first.

What left him most speechless was...

sulfur.

A whole 18 units of sulfur!

He thought it was the hardest material to obtain, yet he had actually obtained nearly 20 units!

And the energy stone he needed most urgently...

Adding the one from before, there were only 9 in total now.

[energy stone (Normal): 9 / 10]

Just one short!

Li Taiping was so angry he wanted to throw that pile of sulfur into the sea to feed the fish.

This was like collecting the first six of the seven Dragon Balls, only to find that the seventh one couldn't be found no matter what; this feeling of being stuck with OCD was simply maddening.

He opened the trading post again.

The previous listing was still hanging there lonely; the views had exceeded ten thousand, but the transaction volume was zero.

Obviously, no one had any stock.

Li Taiping sighed and decided to take the initiative.

He entered a line of text in the area channel:

Buying energy stones. The ratio is negotiable; those who have stock can private message me, or go directly to the trading post to exchange, or bid at the auction house.

As soon as this sentence was sent, the channel, which was originally bragging and chatting, fell silent for a second.

Immediately following that, the screen was flooded.

Holy crap! The real person has appeared!

Big boss! It's really a big boss!

Big boss Li Taiping, do you need an accessory on your leg? I can shout 666, and I can also warm the bed (male)!

Big boss, I have a private photo; can I exchange it for some water to drink?

Get lost, poster above! Big boss, I have wood here; can I exchange it for something to eat?

Various messages of flattery, begging to be carried, and begging to be supported poured in like a tide.

Li Taiping looked at these messages, his heart completely calm.

Developing too fast, exceeding the same batch of people by too much; is it possible to have such troubles of being lonely at the top?

He sighed in a 'humblebrag' way and was about to close the chat box.

Just then, a friend request popped up.

[Li Jun requested to add you as a friend.]

Li Taiping raised an eyebrow.

That good person from the military?

Accepted.

Li Jun's message was returned almost instantly:

Brother, I saw the exchange you listed on the trading post.

[Item Information: energy stone (Normal) x1]

Can we discuss this? I need to trade for sulfur! But I see you listed it as 1:1; can you... give a bit more?

Li Taiping stared at this message, his eyes narrowing slightly.

This person actually has an energy stone in their hand?

However, this tone... are they trying to hold me to ransom?

Li Taiping tapped his fingers gently on the edge of the raft.

Although he urgently needed this energy stone and was even willing to pay 3:1 or even a higher price, that was based on the premise of "I am willing to give."

If the other party wanted to take advantage of the situation to extort him, the nature of the matter would change.

In the dark forest, showing weakness is asking for death.

He didn't reply immediately, but quietly watched the dialog box, creating a psychological game atmosphere of "I'm actually not that anxious."

A minute passed.

The other side seemed more anxious than him.

Ding!

The system notification sound suddenly rang out.

[Transaction successful!]

[You lost: sulfur x1]

[You gained: energy stone (Normal) x1]

Li Taiping was stunned for a moment.

The listing on the trading post was snapped up instantly?

Immediately after, Li Jun's message was sent again:

Brother, I took that listing just now. I really urgently need sulfur, but I only have this one energy stone in my hand. I saw you didn't reply, and I was afraid you would withdraw the listing, so I traded it first.

But my shortage of sulfur is still quite large... uh, I have a special item here; can you see if you can trade some more sulfur with me?

Looking at this message, a flash of light appeared in Li Taiping's eyes.

This Li Jun is interesting.

Willing to suffer a loss himself just to get the transaction done, this decisive style is indeed like someone from the military.

Moreover, he actually needs a large amount of sulfur?

Could it be that he also chose some kind of heavy firepower ship?

Li Taiping took a look at the 10 energy stones finally gathered in the warehouse, feeling great.

Send it over and let me see. He replied.

In the next second, an item illustration was sent over.

When he saw the attributes of that item clearly, Li Taiping's originally nonchalant expression froze instantly.

...