Gu Ning currently ranked first, 100 points ahead of the second place. He guessed it was due to Xiao Lan and Windsor.
Next, Gu Ning checked the wooden boat's information and found its special ability had changed:
Special Ability: Diving (temporary, unused.)
Opening the [Chat Channel], he saw discussions had already started:
"Who is this Gu Ning? Scoring so much higher than first place!"
"Total boss material! Can I hitch a ride?"
"Come on, it's only been a day. How can we tell if they're really good?"
"Gu Ning, I'll definitely surpass you."
"Guess where I am? Hahaha, I sailed into the sea! It's amazing—the ocean is stunning."
"Guys, I'm doomed! A 30-meter shark has me in its sights!"
After skimming through, Gu Ning found little useful info. There were many friend requests with bizarre notes, even explicit photos. He reviewed them critically before deleting them all. Not that I'd ever go for that, he thought. Why would I when Windsor's right here—100% loyal, no chance of betrayal.
As for others vowing to surpass him, Gu Ning didn't care. Let them vent—they're already struggling enough.
His [Variable Talent] triggered positive changes. Using green-quality materials could yield anything from green to golden legendary items; blue-quality materials guaranteed at least rare-grade results. Yesterday, with only basic wood, he'd lucked into a golden legendary item! Today, he'd wait until night to use higher-grade materials—hoping for at least a purple epic, if not another golden legendary.
"Master, I found a blueprint." Windsor interrupted his thoughts, handing over a scroll with her delicate white hand.
Gu Ning took it and activated [Spirit Vision]:
Ship Drainage Technology Blueprint: Unlocks ship drainage technology—critical for rainy weather.
Requirement: Unlock the ship tech tree.
This must be the core blueprint for surviving the upcoming disaster. Since it dropped from the starting fishing rod, most players likely had it. The catch? Unlocking the ship tech tree cost 500 white stones in the shop, forcing everyone to fish frantically. Fail to gather enough, and their ships would sink before the tech was unlocked.
Many would likely obtain this blueprint today, and with the新手福利 (newbie bonus) allowing sea hunting, countless players would risk hunting monsters. Lots of deaths incoming, Gu Ning thought.
Checking the regional chat, 9,841 players remained—over 100 had died yesterday, likely unlucky enough to encounter high-level mobs.
Gu Ning called Windsor inside. They ate the two leftover chicken legs, shared half a bottle of water from the seawater purifier, and refilled it.
He then woke Xiao Lan, the whale resting at the bow. After a night of pulling the ship, it was exhausted but only needed minimal sleep.
Activating the [Diving] ability, a blue梭形 (shuttle-shaped) shield enveloped the ship. "Xiao Lan, dive—let's go!" Gu Ning shouted, voice brimming with anticipation.
Xiao Lan roared, bit the rope, and began descending.
As the ship submerged, Gu Ning was stunned by the view: colorful fish of all shapes, some glowing, others crackling with electricity, or dripping black sap… Windsor, too, marveled at the alien beauty.
Spotting a nearby school of fish, Gu Ning used [Spirit Vision]. Mostly level-2 white minnows, 0.5 meters long, 300–400 in number, with base stats of 5–6. He signaled Xiao Lan to charge in.
The minnows swarmed, attacking Xiao Lan with water arrows. The whale bit back, swallowing dozens. Though Xiao Lan sustained minor wounds, its 18 defense made the level-1 attacks negligible.
Gu Ning and Windsor fired water and light arrows—one light arrow per kill. When mana ran low, they rested safely behind the diving shield (rated to withstand forces under 60).
Soon, the school fled. Gu Ning collected 30-odd corpses, selling them for 60+ white stones. A wooden crate dropped, yielding basic wood. The rest were eaten by Xiao Lan—Gu Ning hoped the feast would speed its leveling and boost its pulling power.
"Getting so many stones this fast—maybe tech cards aren't too pricey?" He quickly realized his mistake: Most players can't rely on a whale to tow their ships or hide behind a shield. They have to row slowly, hunt manually, and lack a legendary hero's help. Calculating his own gains (12 stones from 10 arrows, with Windsor doing most the killing), he saw white stones were far from easy to farm—though still better than fishing alone.
He ordered Xiao Lan to seek out level-matched, low-attack schools. Killing lower-level mobs gave no XP; only equal or higher levels counted.
As time passed, their haul grew. Gu Ning spotted oddities—sea-dwelling bears, monkeys… Do they have gills? He laughed at his own human-centric assumptions.
An hour later, Xiao Lan leveled up, growing larger; Windsor soon followed. Another hour, another level for Xiao Lan—and finally, Gu Ning leveled too.
Gu Ning (ID: 00)
Level: 2 → 3 (16/300)
Stats:
- Strengt: 9 → 13 (+2)
- Agility: 9 → 13
- Defense: 9 → 13
- Wisdom: 10 → 14
- Mana: 140
Class: Hero, Ice Elementalist
Skills: Spirit Vision, Water Arrow
Equipment: Staff (white)
Talent: Variable (epic)
Title: None
Xiao Lan/Deep Sea Whale (blue)
Level: 2 → 4
Stats:
- Strength: 20 → 26
- Agility: 18 → 24
- Defense: 18 → 24
Skills: Ramming, Biting
Windsor (legendary)
Level: 2 → 3
Stats:
- Strength: 30 → 35 (+10)
- Agility: 30 → 35
- Defense: 30 → 35
- Wisdom: 30 → 35
- Mana: 350 (+35)
Class: Hero, Lightbearer
Skills: Healing, Light Arrow, Light Shield
Equipment: Staff (green)
Loyalty: 100
Affinity: 62 (friendly)
Though expected, Gu Ning felt a twinge of envy—Windsor's stats outpaced his after just two levels. She'd likely level again soon, having killed nearly three times as many mobs. Legendary heroes live up to the hype… Am I gonna be a kept man?
He summed up:
- Level-ups auto-distribute stats evenly.
- Higher rarity (white→green→blue→epic→legendary) grants more stat points per level: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5 respectively.