21: Chapter 21 Treasures Under the Persian Gulf

When the plane landed at Dubai International Airport, it was 3:00 PM local time. He decided to stop by Dubai before heading to Indonesia.

Li Xin walked out of the arrival hall with his old backpack, and a wave of heat hit him. In June, Dubai's temperature soared towards 45 degrees Celsius, and the air was as dry as an oven. However, with the system's temperature control, his perceived temperature remained at a comfortable 26 or 27 degrees, keeping him feeling refreshed.

Chen Hu was already waiting at the exit.

"Boss, the cars are rented. It's the same two off-road vehicles as last time." Chen Hu took his backpack with a swift motion.

"Thanks for your hard work." Li Xin nodded. "Let's go to the hotel first, then to the Gold Souk."

"Are we selling gold again?"

"No, not this time. I'm going to take care of something else."

Chen Hu didn't ask any further questions and drove toward the hotel.

Li Xin leaned back in the passenger seat, closed his eyes, and opened the system panel in his mind.

[Gold Search and Refining System 2.0]

[Host: Li Xin]

[Current Level: 7]

[Detection Range: 490 meters]

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.202 tons]

[Gold Required for Next Upgrade: 5 tons]

[Armed Squad: 5 people]

The 4.202 tons of gold in the system space were worth over a billion. But he hadn't come to Dubai this time to cash out. He was here to upgrade.

It took 5 tons of gold to reach the next level. He had 4.202 tons, leaving a deficit of 798 kilograms. He planned to take a tour around downtown Dubai and use the system to Scan, seeing if he could gather enough scattered gold to make up the difference.

Dubai is a global gold trading center, with hundreds of tons of gold circulating here every year. Deep underground, inside buildings, and even in the sewers of this city, there must be quite a bit of lost, hidden, or forgotten gold.

His system could detect all gold within a 490-meter radius. As long as he walked through the main areas of Dubai and collected all that scattered gold, gathering 798 kilograms shouldn't be difficult.

Upon arriving at the hotel, Li Xin dropped off his luggage, washed his face, and then headed out.

He didn't take a car; he walked.

Chen Hu followed behind, maintaining a distance of about ten meters—not too far, not too close. This was the professional standard of a bodyguard; he wouldn't disturb his employer while still being able to react instantly. Even though he was arranged by the system, he behaved exactly as a normal bodyguard should.

Li Xin walked south along Dubai's main road and activated the system's Scan function.

A 3D map immediately appeared in his mind, clearly showing the terrain, buildings, and underground structures within a 490-meter radius. Various colored dots flickered on the map—red for finished gold, gold for gold ore, and blue for cultural relics and treasures.

The first dot appeared about 200 meters to his front right.

[System: Gold reaction detected. Location: 192 meters to the front right, approximately 3.5 meters underground. Estimated gold content: 1.2 kg. Type: Finished gold (gold jewelry).]

Li Xin walked to that location, which was an alley behind a jewelry store. The ground was paved with tiles, and several trash cans were piled up nearby.

He looked around; there weren't many pedestrians on the street, and no one noticed him. He crouched down, touched the ground with one hand, and silently chanted in his heart: "Collect."

[Collection successful. Gold obtained: 1.2 kg.]

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.2032 tons]

He stood up and continued walking forward.

After walking about 500 meters, the second dot appeared.

[System: Gold reaction detected. Location: 320 meters to the front left, approximately 2.5 meters underground. Estimated gold content: 13.5 kg. Type: Finished gold (gold bars).]

This time, it was behind a bank. Li Xin went around to the side, confirmed no one was watching, crouched down, touched the ground with one hand, and silently chanted: "Collect."

[Collection successful. Gold obtained: 13.5 kg.]

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.2167 tons]

Just like that, he walked street by street and scanned area by area.

By the end of the afternoon, he had walked nearly twenty kilometers, from Dubai's old town to the Dubai Marina. Along the way, he had collected over thirty scattered gold deposits, obtaining a total of about 135 kilograms.

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.337 tons]

He was still 663 kilograms away from 5 tons.

Li Xin stood on the shore of the Dubai Marina, looking at the distant Burj Al Arab, and took a deep breath.

Tomorrow, he would continue.

Early the next morning, he changed direction and headed toward the southern part of Dubai.

That area was Dubai's industrial zone and new development area, containing many construction sites and abandoned factories. Places like these often hid more forgotten gold.

Sure enough, less than an hour later, the system prompted him about a big find.

[System: Large-scale gold reaction detected. Location: 400 meters ahead, approximately 7 meters underground. Estimated gold content: 45 kg. Type: Finished gold (gold bars, unmarked).]

Li Xin walked to that location, which was an abandoned construction site. Several half-finished buildings stood on the sand, surrounded by piles of construction waste. A rusty sign hung on the iron fence, the words on it no longer legible.

He climbed over the fence and walked to the spot marked by the system.

The ground was concrete, but it had cracked, and weeds were sprouting from the fissures. He crouched down, touched the ground with one hand, and silently chanted again: "Collect."

[Collection successful. Gold obtained: 45 kg.]

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.382 tons]

Forty-five kilograms of gold, just hidden like that under the abandoned construction site.

Who hid it? When was it hidden? Why hide it here?

Li Xin didn't know, and he didn't want to know. Anyway, the system said this was ownerless gold, so he would just take it.

He continued walking forward and discovered several similar gold hiding spots. Some were in the foundations of abandoned factories, some in the basements of buildings under construction, and some were even in the sewers beneath the roads.

By the end of the day, he had collected another approximately 220 kilograms of gold.

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.557 tons]

He was still 443 kilograms away from 5 tons.

On the third day, Li Xin went to the vicinity of the Gold Souk in Dubai. Although he had searched there before, because the system hadn't been upgraded yet, he had only done a rough search. This time, he had to search carefully.

This was the most densely populated area for gold trading in Dubai, with hundreds of gold shops squeezed into a narrow street. The system showed that a large amount of gold was hidden underground nearby—not hidden by someone, but settled into the soil.

During the processing and trading of gold, tiny amounts of gold dust would scatter. After decades of accumulation, this gold dust seeped into the ground, forming an "urban gold mine" with significant gold content.

[System: Urban gold mine detected. Location: 3-15 meters underground. Estimated gold content: approx. 300 kg.]

Three hundred kilograms!

Li Xin's heart rate accelerated. This amount was enough for him to complete the upgrade.

He found a secluded corner, crouched down, touched the ground with one hand, and silently chanted: "Collect."

[Collecting... Collection complete. Gold obtained: 298.7 kg.]

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 4.8557 tons]

He was still 144.3 kilograms away from 5 tons.

He continued wandering around the Gold Souk and collected several more scattered gold deposits, totaling about 150 kilograms.

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 5.0057 tons]

[System upgrade conditions met!]

[Do you want to consume 5 tons of gold to upgrade the system?]

Li Xin stood at the corner of the Gold Souk, watching the crowds passing by, and took a deep breath.

Five tons of gold, worth nearly 200 million USD.

If he used it to upgrade, he would lose a huge sum of money. But if he didn't upgrade, his detection range would remain at 490 meters, making it hard to find larger ore veins.

He gritted his teeth: "Upgrade."

[System upgrading... Upgrade complete!]

[Gold Search and Refining System 2.0]

[Host: Li Xin]

[Current Level: 8]

[Detection Range: 490 meters → 990 meters]

(Note: Every 5 tons of gold increases range by 500 meters—this is the normal variation of this system's upgrade rules.)

[Gold Required for Next Upgrade: 10 tons]

[Current Cumulative Refined Gold: 5.7 kg]

Li Xin looked at the numbers on the system panel, and the corners of his mouth curled up.

990 meters. Nearly a kilometer of detection range.

This meant the area he could cover was more than four times larger than before. The next upgrade required 10 tons of gold; while that sounded like a lot, he knew that with his current capabilities, finding 10 tons of gold was just a matter of time.

He walked out of the Gold Souk and sent a message to Chen Hu: "Returning to the country tomorrow."

Chen Hu replied instantly: "Understood."

Li Xin stood on the streets of Dubai, watching the distant Burj Khalifa glinting with golden light in the sunset. This city in the desert was the starting point of his life.

But his journey had only just begun.

He took out his phone and sent a message to Luo Maifa: "Returning to the country tomorrow, let's get together the day after."

Luo Maifa replied instantly: "Damn, you're in Dubai again? How many times do you go to Dubai in a month?"

"Had some business."

"Alright, we'll talk when you get back. By the way, Yang Hong has finished registering the company and says he wants to treat you to a meal."

"Okay."

Li Xin put his phone in his pocket and walked toward the hotel. Halfway there, the system notification sounded.

[System: Gold reaction detected. Location: Approx. 900 meters ahead, approximately 15 meters underground. Estimated gold content: 120 kg.]

He was stunned for a moment. That was a significant amount.

He looked around, confirming no one was paying attention. He crouched down, touched the ground with one hand, and silently chanted: "Collect."

[Collection successful. Gold obtained: 120 kg.]

[Cumulative Refined Gold: 125.7 kg]

Li Xin stood up and shook his head. Dubai really was full of constant surprises.

Returning to the hotel, he lay on the bed, opened the system panel, and looked at that number—990 meters.

A one-kilometer detection range. Global gold mines and treasures were already looming on his radar.

But he still needed more gold to upgrade the system to a higher level. 10 tons, 20 tons, 50 tons, 100 tons...

By that time, he would be able to detect all the gold within tens or even hundreds of kilometers.

By that time, all the gold mines and treasures in the world would be his for the taking.

He closed the system panel and closed his eyes.

Indonesia, Grasberg Gold Mine.

That was his next stop.

---

Back at the hotel, Li Xin was just about to fall asleep when suddenly, the system popped up a notification he had never seen before.

"Ding... Good news!"

"Special signal detected: Suspected ancient shipwreck treasure. Location: Persian Gulf waters, approximately 35 nautical miles from the Dubai coast. Estimated gold content: Over 3 tons. Do you want to initiate remote scanning?"

Li Xin sat up abruptly, staring at the notification for a long while. "35 nautical miles? Over 3 tons of gold. But the problem is, the shipwreck is in the sea—how do I collect it? The System 2.0 can directly collect gold underground, but what about underwater?"