novelraw Chapter 60: The Deep Sea Colossal Tree
Chapter 60: The Deep Sea Colossal Tree
The white colossal tree...
Chen Qi stood upon the white tree roots, carefully running his fingers across the rough bark.
He picked up his black blade and made a light cut, causing some white sap to flow out...
This should be nutritious... He lifted his lantern to examine it more closely.
Additionally, many of the submerged branches bore large quantities of algae.
Squinting, Chen Qi could see schools of fish feeding on the algae.
From their appearance - they were the Ghostfire Fish from earlier!
After having their Ghostfire Oil harvested by Chen Qi, these fish had nearly lost all ability to prey on smaller fish.
Left with no choice, the poor creatures could only come here to feed on seaweed for sustenance.
Chen Qi excitedly rubbed his hands together.This place was absolutely perfect!
Without question, for sea creatures this was a natural buffet.
The big tree attracted small fish, which in turn attracted larger sea beasts.
And those sea beasts attracted him!
The unique terrain meant this area hosted far more sea creatures than anywhere else.
This was essentially a natural sea beast breeding ground!
Chen Qi observed the Ghostfire Fish.
As expected, until they regrew their Ghostfire Oil, these fish would be stuck here eating seaweed.
Which meant he could return periodically to harvest their Ghostfire Oil and make a tidy profit.
If he had a net, he might even be able to farm the Ghostfire Fish here.
In the future, he could simply dump weaker sea creatures here as feed.
"Excellent, excellent. I'm claiming this spot. Any objections?"
The Deepsea Water Spirits nodded in agreement - unanimous approval.
Seven votes in favor, and even the local boss, the Blackship Sea Dragon, had no objections!
After memorizing the location, Chen Qi turned his gaze to the tree roots deep below.
At the base of the white colossal tree, where the Blackship Sea Dragon dwelled, there was a shimmering white fruit.
"This is..."
Chen Qi's heartbeat quickened.
His intuition told him that fruit at the tree's roots was likely an extremely powerful supernatural material.
The distance was simply too far - with his current diving skills, retrieving it would be quite difficult.
"Deepsea Water Spirits! Go get it!"
Chen Qi commanded.
However, the seven water spirits froze, their round blue eyes widening comically.
Their expressions seemed to say 'Me go?'.
That area was the resting place of the coastal apex predator, the Blackship Sea Dragon!
"Wuu wuu wuu!"
The Deepsea Water Spirits blinked their big blue eyes pleadingly at their master.
No way! (>﹏<)!
They genuinely didn't want to do it!
These guys were quite good at acting cute... For a moment, Chen Qi actually felt reluctant to force them.
At that moment, the waiting Blackship Sea Dragon locked eyes with Chen Qi.
The clever creature understood!
With a thunderous splash!
It instantly dove into the sea, used its massive jaws to pluck the fruit, then resurfaced!
The entire maneuver was as fast as a husky chasing a frisbee!
"Ha, ha, ha..."
The Blackship Sea Dragon surfaced, opening its gaping maw while giving the terrified water spirits a triumphant glare with its bell-like eyes.
Resting on its enormous tongue was the glowing fruit from the white colossal tree.
Chen Qi started in surprise, then shot an exasperated look at the panicking water spirits.
See? This is what I call efficiency!
If you won't do it, there are plenty of sea beasts who will!
Blackship Sea Dragon, you're absolutely amazing... Overjoyed, Chen Qi took the white fruit into his hands.
An extraordinary notification appeared before his eyes.
[Pale Scale Fruit:
Aspect: Cup, Lantern
Description: A legendary ingredient for supernatural potions. Cannot be consumed directly. When combined with other ingredients, can produce potions that greatly enhance physical defense, inspiration, and constitution.
Direct consumption will cause excessive inspiration leading to temporary spiritual madness, along with uncontrollable growth of white scales.
Note: A fruit that absorbs the essence of the ocean. Those who consume products made from this fruit gain flesh rivaling sea beasts and vision perceiving spirits!]
Chen Qi clicked his tongue.
He recognized this fruit - it was quite famous on the forums.
Ordinary people who consumed potions made from this could achieve physical strength rivaling supernatural practitioners who had mastered Body Forging Techniques!
Additionally, it could significantly boost one's inspiration.
Chen Qi swallowed hard.
Without doubt, this was the rarest supernatural material he'd encountered so far!
The only drawback was its overly potent nature - it had to be processed with other ingredients into potion form before consumption.
Biting into it now would be no different from eating poisonous mushrooms raw.
"To process this fruit, I'll need an alchemist..."
Chen Qi pondered.
Ordinary pharmacists couldn't handle materials at the Pale Scale Fruit's level.
At minimum, it required a third-tier [Alchemist] with the Flower-Cup aspect.
He only knew two people capable of making potions - Little Crow and the Flower Witch.
No, Little Crow probably couldn't handle the Pale Scale Fruit yet!
That left only the Flower Witch.
The Flower Witch's third-tier profession was precisely [Alchemist], with skills far surpassing others.
Her exceptional pharmaceutical abilities ranked among the best even in all of Moonstone City!
Her potions were at least 30% more effective than those of ordinary third-tier alchemists.
Chen Qi shook his head. The Flower Witch's skills were indeed top-notch.
But he currently had no idea where she'd disappeared to.
Finding her would likely require help from the miracle reporter Pelu.
Of course, Moonstone City wasn't without other skilled alchemists.
But the fees charged by third-tier alchemists were terrifying to contemplate.
Their prices could bankrupt an ordinary city family.
Moreover, not everyone in this world was as kind-hearted as the Flower Witch.
Power was this world's universal currency.
If given the choice between the life of a powerless first-tier supernatural and the Pale Scale Fruit that could dramatically enhance physical strength, most would choose the fruit without hesitation.
Commission them to make medicine? You'd be lucky if they didn't turn you into ingredients!
Chen Qi stored the Pale Scale Fruit in the deepest part of his Backpack Card.
This voyage had yielded tremendous rewards just by obtaining this fruit!
"Ha, ha, ha—"
The Blackship Sea Dragon opened its mouth wide.
It eagerly awaited Chen Qi's reward of supernatural bait.
"Ahem..."
I didn't bring a fishing rod... Chen Qi coughed awkwardly.
He still lacked the knowledge to dismantle or understand the principles behind supernatural bait.
Therefore, he needed a fishing rod to properly use the bait.
"Don't worry, follow me, little sea dragon..."
Chen Qi activated his Water Walking again and headed toward his small houseboat.
Thus, the Blackship Sea Dragon followed behind him.
As he walked, he continued scanning the surroundings.
Besides the Ghostfire Fish, this area hosted two main types of sea creatures:
Bullet Squids and Black Sludge.
Bullet Squids could use a 'Bullet Rush' skill to hunt like projectiles in the water.
Their bodies contained a special oil useful for making speed-enhancing potions, but extraction was too difficult and time-consuming.
Black Sludge, true to its name, resembled giant black mud. Despite its soft appearance, it was actually the most aggressive sea creature here.
Especially toward humans - it would climb aboard ships to devour every person in sight.
Unfortunately, this creature had almost no value.
The most valuable remained the Ghostfire Fish!
Easy to harvest materials from, and relatively docile.
A single Ghostfire Fish was worth eight thousand Shell Coins!
Chen Qi considered - the more Ghostfire Fish he collected, the more would gather near the white tree.
And the more that gathered, the more Ghostfire Oil he could harvest.
Upon reaching his houseboat, he took out his fishing rod and prepared two portions of supernatural bait for the Blackship Sea Dragon.
The delighted sea dragon circled him several times before returning to its rest.
He'd spent considerable time in these dangerous waters already.
Before dawn, Chen Qi harvested another barrel of Ghostfire Oil, casually collecting ten Moonlight Fish and some Bullet Squid materials.
Busy hours passed quickly - before he knew it, daylight burned across the sea's surface.
Sunlight painted golden hues across Chen Qi's back as he wiped sweat from his brow.
Time to return... He adjusted course to normal shipping lanes.
In the distance, fishing fleets gradually approached.
Fishermen who had worked through the night celebrated with raised cups, cheering their good fortune and bountiful catch.
Aside from last night's fog, they'd encountered neither the vicious Black Sludge nor the terrifying Ghostfire Fish!
Returning fully loaded without casualties was cause for greatest celebration.
My haul isn't bad either... Chen Qi steered his houseboat to follow behind the fleet toward Moonstone City.
After selling the Ghostfire Oil, he'd have funds for equipment upgrades.
An hour later, the bustling harbor came into view.
Chen Qi guided his boat toward his usual mooring spot.
However, he spotted a familiar figure on shore.
The elderly newsstand vendor who provided him information.
Amid the crowd, the old man frowned and made a "shh" gesture.
Is he telling me to keep quiet? Why are you here? Chen Qi tilted his head in confusion.
The old man remained grim but said nothing further.
Just then, a crew-cut man in light blue uniform and beret approached Chen Qi's boat, carrying an iron rod.
His attire marked him as harbor police, responsible for maintaining order.
The storm emblem on his chest symbolized both authority and martial prowess.
These were figures most ordinary fishermen preferred to avoid!
Being targeted by Moonstone City's police meant serious trouble.
Looking for me? Chen Qi stroked his chin, studying the approaching man.
The harbor policeman's cigarette and scarred left eye gave him an exceptionally fierce appearance.
Stopping before Chen Qi, he coldly produced his badge and declared:
"Do you know you've committed murder?"