Over the past six months, Wang Mu had discovered that his action points recovered at a fixed rate of one point per month.
Just one point.
He could either use it for Cultivation or for "Travel."
In the past six months, apart from that one time with Yan Qingwu, there were no other "Travel" events to trigger.
After fishing for a month, Wang Mu felt his proficiency in Fishing was increasing very slowly. Although he was able to catch one or two fish every day, which Grandpa Yu thought was quite good, Wang Mu was somewhat unsatisfied.
That night, Wang Mu lay in bed, waiting for his action points to recover.
The hour arrived, and Wang Mu focused his mind.
[Action Points: 2]
[Cultivation: Chopping (10) Fishing (3) Hundred Refinement Body Technique (X)]
[Travel: Ancient Well (!)]
Eh! It turned into 2 points? Wang Mu was startled.
It had been consistent for more than six months, one point per month, but this month it had actually recovered two points?
Could it be… is it related to my spirit?
Wang Mu was lost in thought. Wait, there's a "Travel" update!
Ancient Well!
The Ancient Well? Could it be the well in the village?
Wang Mu pondered for a few seconds. For the past six months, there had been no "Travel" events to trigger.
That well is just used by the villagers to draw water… What could it trigger?
Wang Mu considered for a moment, then got out of bed and set out.
By now, it was deep into the night, and most of the villagers were already asleep. The village well wasn't far from his own statue.
Arriving near the Ancient Well, Wang Mu found nothing unusual.
Hmm, there must be some element I haven't noticed…
Wang Mu looked down into the well, catching a glimmer of faint light. I remember there's an underground river below here, connecting to Yunlai Creek… Could it be…
Wang Mu's heart stirred. Could it require Fishing?
With that thought, he immediately returned to his cabin, grabbed his fishing rod, prepared the bait, and cast it into the well.
He waited quietly. Having fished for over a month, Wang Mu was extremely patient. He believed that his golden finger wouldn't deceive him.
One hour later, with the moon hanging directly overhead, a rainbow light flickered from beneath the well, and a strange force transmitted upward from below.
Wang Mu's thoughts stirred, and he began to pull the fishing rod.
It must be a new species of fish... one I haven't caught before.
As soon as the fish exerted its strength, Wang Mu understood. He remained calm and unhurried, figuring out the swimming patterns of the fish below. Then, he quickly adapted and continued the struggle. Catching these particular fish was all about the art of the struggle, the give-and-take.
Moments later, Wang Mu flicked his wrist, and the fishing line swiftly ascended.
SPLASH!
Accompanied by the sound of rushing water, the well seemed to shine with a rainbow-like light. Shortly after, an incredibly ugly Jinlong Carp, with the hook in its mouth, leaped out!
This was indeed an ugly fish. Its body was covered with scales pitted like the surface of the moon, and its fins were tattered. Even its fins were stained with a blotchy and intricate pattern. However, the fish's eyes seemed intelligent, though now wide with panic. What was peculiar was its body shimmering with faint light—ugly, yet special.
"This is…" Wang Mu was taken aback, then blurted out, "Holy shit, a Jinlong Carp?"
Perhaps realizing it had been recognized, even more panic filled the ugly fish's eyes. Wang Mu observed the fish on the hook, barely the size of his palm, squirming and struggling incessantly.
Indeed, this was the Jinlong Carp that Grandpa Yu had spoken of—a spiritually endowed Divine Fish. It was just very ugly, its body shimmering faintly with light and marked with dragon-like patterns. However, this one seemed very small, and its patterns were not yet fully formed.
The Jinlong Carp that Grandpa Yu hasn't caught in decades... I actually encountered it? Wang Mu's eyes gleamed as he looked at this Little Dragon Carp. Incredibly, it had been caught from the well. Grandpa Yu would probably never figure this out in his lifetime.
This must be the "Travel" event. Wang Mu grasped the Little Dragon Carp with one hand, removing it from the hook.
The difficulty of catching it wasn't actually that high. According to Grandpa Yu, catching this mysterious fish depended more on luck. Skills didn't matter much.
Hmm… this fish is quite spirited… really? Wang Mu thought, looking at the Jinlong Carp struggling in his hand. Then he said aloud, "If you keep struggling, I'll eat you."
Suddenly, the carp stopped moving, as if it had died.
"..." Wang Mu.
It indeed had spiritual awareness—it even understood human speech.
"Very good." Wang Mu nodded. "Now I'll let you go. Little one, don't run around anymore."
The Little Dragon Carp wagged its tail, seemingly in response.
Seeing this, Wang Mu seemed to recall something. In the game, he had kept pets before. As a pet-raising game, characters in Heroic Road Dust could keep pets, even teach them Martial Arts, and have them help in battles.
Among the many endings, there was one called the 'Wuxia Pokémon' ending. In it, the character wouldn't romance any female leads but would instead focus on raising a bunch of pets, training them in Martial Arts, and clearing the game. It was quite an entertaining type of ending.
During the Love Saint ending, he had kept three pets. A black bear absorbed damage and was very practical in the early stages. A monkey, trained in swordsmanship, dealt damage. An eagle was responsible for harassing enemies. This was all to clear the game. Romancing some female leads involved enduring some extremely tough battles, and relying solely on the protagonist wouldn't suffice, so he needed to keep some pets to share the burden.
He wondered if those pets still existed in this world. It unexpectedly brought back quite a few memories.
Wang Mu patted the Little Dragon Carp and threw it back into the well.
PLOP.
Water splashed high.
Wang Mu looked down. The Little Dragon Carp was happily wagging its tail on the water's surface and even opened its mouth.
After a moment's thought, Wang Mu threw some fish bait down. The Little Dragon Carp quickly opened its mouth and gobbled it up, then suddenly spat out a bubble shimmering with rainbow colors. The bubble soared up from the well, burst open, and a shower of mist sprinkled on Wang Mu.
Wang Mu laughed. "You little rascal! I feed you, and you spray me in return?"
Spiritual creatures were truly interesting.
He returned to his wooden cabin, rested, and thus ended the day.
「The next day.」
Wang Mu washed up, ate breakfast at Aunt Hong's house, and then, carrying his fishing rod, headed to Yunlai Creek as usual to start the day's fishing with Grandpa Yu.
"First cast of the day!"
Wang Mu cast his line. In no more than ten breaths' time, the hook twitched. He focused his mind and gathered his energy.
Lift!
Rainbow light flashed!
Nearby, Grandpa Yu's eyelids twitched. Goodness, Mu Guy is a bit odd today, he thought. Looking at the type of fish, he then froze.
"A Top-grade Jinhua Sword Sturgeon!"
"My goodness!"
Top-grade Fish Species! Those are extremely rare in Yunlai Creek. These types of fish are encountered as infrequently as once every ten years, or even once every few decades!
Yu Li almost cursed out loud. He had fished for decades but had only caught a little over ten Top-grade Fish Species! This kid had only been fishing for a month… And he caught it so effortlessly! When he himself fished for those Top-grade Fish Species, it took an immense effort! It felt as if the fish had willingly let itself be caught by him.
With Mu Guy's skill level, it was highly unlikely he could catch this kind of fish! Too strange!
"The Jinhua Sword Sturgeon! This is a Top-grade Fish Species that even disciples of the Immortal Sects yearn for!"
"Consuming it can enhance one's aptitude for Sword Cultivation..."
Yu Li was dumbfounded.
Then, Wang Mu made his second cast.
And this time, the force was immense! The rod almost snapped!
When the fish finally surfaced, both Wang Mu and Yu Li's expressions changed drastically.
It was a fish more than a meter long with a human face! Upper body human, lower body fish.
Is this the Manatee, the Mermaid? A real mermaid? Wang Mu was stunned.
Yu Li, however, shouted and strode over, saying, "Mu Guy, let go of the bamboo rod! Quick! You can't handle this fish. Let Grandpa Yu do it!"
"..."