"Oh dear, Miss Ji should've told us earlier if she wanted a chicken leg! I'll arrange it for her right away!"
"Brother Lu Kun, don't move, let me do it!"
Du Ran and two other crew members were picking up trash on the beach, cleaning up, and bringing back frames of garbage to the ship, only to see their captain diligently taking out stored food from the ship and offering it to the rich heiress.
This left the three crew members completely befuddled.
Watching the captain and Lu Kun with their arms around each other, looking very friendly and close.
The three crew members instantly felt a pang of resentment.
Oh well...
You sent us away just to engage in some shady deal with Lu Kun?!
Why can't we be privy to this?!
Fine, fine, we've been sidelined, totally misjudged you!
Despite our serious efforts to clean up the trash.
Purifying the ocean? Environmentalism?
Like hell I care!
Feeling the three resentful gazes fall on him, Fang Yu paused, turned his head, and saw his three crew members standing in a row, angrily glaring at him.
Like wronged wives.
Fang Yu's actions stiffened, with a hint of embarrassment on his face, and then he lightly coughed and spoke to the three:
"Well... Brothers, set the trash aside first. Let me introduce you—this is Miss Ji, the heiress of Ji Clan Trading Association!"
"We didn't know Miss Ji's identity earlier, hence the lack of proper hospitality. Now everyone should pull themselves together and take good care of Miss Ji!"
The trio initially had some complaints.
But upon hearing "Heiress of Ji Clan Trading Association," their eyes immediately widened.
What?!
Are you telling me the wealthy heiress we casually rescued is actually the heiress of Ji Clan Trading Association?!
Woah!
Men can change faces faster than women.
Now none of the three held grudges, and they were eager to hold Fang Yu's leg and cry with gratitude.
Our captain has managed to connect with Ji Clan Trading Association?!
With the debt of a life-saving gesture at sea, getting a foot in with Ji Clan Trading Association should be a cinch!
The trio, each more fawning than the last, rushed to Miss Ji's side, offering their attentiveness, pushing Fang Yu aside.
Fang Yu glared at the three, muttering that they were spineless, then turned and left. Might as well let these three serve Miss Ji.
Back in the captain's cabin, Fang Yu immediately ordered Salted Fish to change direction and set sail for Qiyun Port.
Meanwhile, Fang Yu casually grabbed the dice and tossed it into the air.
As the trio finished picking up trash, a notification simultaneously appeared on everyone's panel.
"Completion of 'Trash Cleanup': All crew receive 15 experience points, captain gets 20 Copper Coins, crew members earn 10 Copper Coins."
Experience points are earned through maritime activities.
Cleaning up island trash is one such activity.
Fang Yu's arbitrary arrangement of tasks wasn't haphazard but ensured rewards to motivate the crew to collect trash on the island.
I, Fang Yu, (pre)tend to love (the) envi(ron)ment!
As the dice spun through the air, it quickly fell onto a number.
6!
"Whoa!"
Fang Yu gasped and didn't feel lucky, but rather...
Like he's used up all his luck in advance!
Dammit, overspending luck requires payback.
Why do I feel the vibes of misfortune waiting for me...
Fang Yu felt a chill internally, but the only consolation was that his experience points would be multiplied by 6 this time!
Experience: 15→90.
Copper Coins: 20→120.
Adding in the gains from days of sailing, Fang Yu's total experience points had now reached an impressive 420 points.
Unfortunately, it takes 500 points to level up from Level 3 to Level 4.
He needs 80 more experience points to continue leveling up.
It requires 500 points to advance from Level 3 to Level 4 and 800 points for Level 4 to Level 5.
The future experience requirement will keep increasing, making level-ups slower.
However, as the captain develops, integrating more into this world, the routes to earn experience will broaden.
At least for Fang Yu now, successfully connecting with Ji Clan Trading Association means potential collaboration deals and possibly securing their distribution rights, paving the way for his own business.
Then, money and experience will flood in like a river.
Ahem...
Calm down!
Fang Yu cleared his throat, set his thoughts aside, and focused on navigating.
...
Salted Fish wasn't slow, and it soon neared Qiyun Port. The demanding and pampered Miss Ji finally wore a long-awaited smile.
Fang Yu looked at his three crew members, noticing some slight changes in their auras.
Du Ran's strength had increased!
But his physique shifted from a muscular hulk to a sturdier form, with a more solid aura.
Fang Yu once witnessed Du Ran throw a punch fiercely, powerful enough to cripple a person instantly.
Luu Yuan and Ma's auras also changed a bit, but not as noticeably as Du Ran's.
That's normal, as Du Ran is gifted with strength, whereas Luu Yuan has Ocean Affinity Talent, and Ma has management talent. In terms of utility, Luu Yuan and Ma's roles undoubtedly surpass Du Ran.
But if we're talking combat power, Du Ran could easily whup Luu Yuan and Ma.
To the point of tears.
However...
Fang Yu knew that later, any talent could create significant combat power.
Luu Yuan is suited for water-based Extraordinary Abilities, such as water control, water blades, and tidal waves—enhanced in Luu Yuan's hands.
Ma is suited for mental-type Extraordinary Abilities, like mind control, mental obliteration, etc. Management talent gives Ma innate strong mental powers.
And the improvement of crew members' Extraordinary Abilities differs from the captain's.
The captain relies on talent points, allowing them to learn various Extraordinary Abilities.
Meanwhile, crew members rely on their inherent talent.
Simply put, Luu Yuan's Ocean Affinity Talent going from Basic to Intermediate, even Advanced, leads to a qualitative change in his Extraordinary Abilities.
However... this qualitative change applies only to water-type Extraordinary Abilities.
If Luu Yuan learned a fire-type Extraordinary Ability, his talent upgrades would have no impact.
The captain has comprehensive, omnidirectional improvements.
Crew members have specialized upgrades enhancing one path only.
No choice—the reality is crew members inherently lag behind captains.
Otherwise, equal abilities between captains and crew could easily spark mutinies.
Our crew, now all Level 3, are relatively fast compared to other contemporaries.
And as for myself...
"Congratulations, Lord, on reaching Level 4, gaining 1 Lord Point..."
Mere Level 4, nothing remarkable...