Bizarre Survival: I Can Devour Thousands of Talents

Chapter 238, Section 237: Don't subscribe!

Cold... damp... hard...

And a little... salty and fishy?

As he gradually regained consciousness, Ling Yuan vaguely felt as if he was being constantly turned over.

"Wait a minute...aren't I unemployed and holed up in my rented room like a mouse...how come there's someone next to me?"

An absurd and ominous thought flashed through his mind, forcing Ling Yuan to force open his heavy eyelids!

He struggled to support his aching body with his arms, but was shoved back to the ground by a strange force.

"An earthquake!? Wait! Where am I!?"

The panic and unease brought Ling Yuan to his senses.

He staggered to his feet, and besides the creaking of the wooden planks, he could hear... the continuous sound of the ocean waves!

Wait... the sea!?

Ling Yuan staggered out of the cabin.

Before me stretched an endless expanse of dark green sea, with waves surging and piling up. The horizon where it met the sea was much brighter, as if something was about to rise from there.

Hai Bo swayed Ling Yuan, who was standing on the small sampan, and pulled him out of his dazed state.

"Calm down... calm down! No matter where God threw me, at least I wasn't thrown directly into the sea!"

Forcing himself to think rationally, Ling Yuan wasted no time and immediately began to check what else was on the small boat.

Two fishing rods, two fishing nets, and four oars.

And... a uniquely shaped booklet.

Sitting in the somewhat cramped cabin, Ling Yuan opened the booklet that should have been placed beside him originally.

The skin is tough and yellowish, with water stains on the edges.

The title page was blank at first glance.

But after Ling Yuan's gaze met the paper, dark red ink began to appear on the page!

【Navigation Diary】

[A tranquil island called ignorance is surrounded by an endless black ocean; perhaps we should never have set sail. But is it right just because it has always been this way?]

Will the malice from the dark depths of the sea eventually engulf all the land we cling to, forcing us to eke out a living on ever-shrinking islands? Or will a new sun rise before the twilight of a glorious era is completely extinguished?

Captain, embark on your magnificent exploration!

With the final exclamation mark, the blood-red ink began to burn!

Ling Yuan instinctively wanted to get rid of the fire, but the flames clung to his hand as if they were alive.

Fortunately, the flames weren't scorching hot, and they disappeared after enveloping my hand for only a few seconds.

The booklet vanished without a trace along with the flames, replaced by a crest branded on the back of Ling Yuan's hand.

With a thought, the illusory pages of the book appeared before his eyes.

Turning the page I had just read, the most eye-catching element in the main text was a human figure projection shaped like the Chinese character "太".

Most of them are a healthy green.

The arms and back were slightly yellow, which was obviously a minor bruise caused by rolling and bumping during the previous unconsciousness.

Next to it are listed concrete information about itself:

[No ship currently bound to Lingyuan]

Bloodborne: The Gluttonous Bloodline

Bloodborne Effect - Greed (Upon killing, there is a high probability of randomly stealing the target's attributes; a small probability of randomly stealing the target's skills; and a very small probability of stealing the target's bloodline power.)

Curse Effect - Gluttony (A terrifyingly demanding requirement for the quantity and quality of food; failure to meet this requirement leads to decreased stamina and a continuous drop in sanity; immunity to some contamination contained in food)

【property:

力量4/敏捷5/体质5——体力值[140/140]（体力较低会出现疲惫乏力，过度疲乏会导致体力恢复缓慢）

灵性5/灵感6/精神6——灵力值[170/170]（灵力较低会影响神智清醒，过度昏聩会导致灵力恢复缓慢）

理智值——[100/100]（当前理智低于60会出现幻视幻听；低于30会陷入暴躁癫狂；低于10则会产生投海自尽等疯狂想法且极难回升）】

Job Rank: None

[Skills: None]

[Strange Item: None]

"What's the difference between rationality... reaching its lowest point and death..."

Ling Yuan felt a vague unease.

Since this "Navigation Log" has already indicated my sanity level, it means that I will definitely encounter situations where my sanity decreases in the future.

"How can I stay rational? And how can I regain it if I lose it? Can I just close my eyes and sleep it off...?"

Suppressing his confusion for the time being, Ling Yuan skipped over the few empty labels and turned to the next page.

[Captain's Forum]

So it turns out I wasn't the only one who traveled through time...

Ling Yuan, who had been trying to appear calm, immediately stopped panicking.

A quick glance at the most popular posts revealed that they were mostly filled with panic, anger, and helplessness; even when someone spoke calmly, they couldn't offer any valuable information.

Ling Yuan didn't waste too much time; the "good" news that there were other unlucky people had already provided some reassurance.

Continue turning the page.

【Task Index】

[Initial Mission - First Catch]

[Note: The treacherous waves of the sea not only conceal unimaginable risks, but also hold boundless treasures! See those fishing rods and nets? Try whatever method you can to get those little sea creatures onto your boat!]

[Content: Caught ten ordinary fish [0/10]]

[Rewards: Unlock [Sea Chart]; Unlock [Illustrated Guide]; Bind to Ship]

Ling Yuan flipped through the pages and, finding little information, closed the [Navigation Log].

"Fishing... It's a pity I wasn't a fisherman before I transmigrated, but it's never too late to start!"

Stepping out of the cramped cabin, Ling Yuan sat in the middle of the small boat.

This is a "sampan" about five meters long and two meters wide, with a canopy about two meters long at the stern, which is the "cabin" he found when he woke up.

Judging from its shape, it looks a bit like the awning boat that Ling Yuan had only seen in videos.

Ling Yuan looked around but couldn't find anything that could be used as bait.

He simply cast his fishing rod, letting the empty hook sink into the seawater and wait for someone to bite.

In fact, Ling Yuan originally wanted to cast a wide net, hoping to catch ten fish with just one scoop.

But the words in the "Sailing Log" are all strange, and there must be something strange in the sea that is beyond his understanding.

To be on the safe side, it's best to try it with a fishing rod first.

Fishing is a very boring thing, at least that's what Ling Yuan thinks right now.

Just as he was pondering the effects of his [Gluttonous Bloodline] curse, a strange force suddenly came from the fishing rod in his hand!

The fish is on the plate!

So fast!?

A notification flashes before your eyes that does not obstruct your vision:

[Power assessment in progress...]

[The target's strength exceeds the target's, causing the target's stamina to deplete rapidly...]

[Stamina -2...-2...-2...]

Ling Yuan didn't understand techniques like playing a fish; he just gripped the fishing rod tightly and kept pulling hard!

The fishing line was being pulled from side to side by something underwater.

But Ling Yuan could keenly sense that the frequency and intensity of the other party's struggles were beginning to slow down.

I still have the physical strength to hold up, and judging from the trend, I am far from being exhausted!

After two more pulls, the fishing line was no longer as taut as it had been at the beginning.

It's now!

Ling Yuan decisively lifted the fishing rod!

pat-

A small fish with brown and yellow stripes on its body was pulled out of the sea by a fishing hook and fell into the small boat with water droplets on it!

Ling Yuan curiously leaned closer to take a look, but he didn't expect the little thing to use the force of its struggle to bounce towards him.

The fish's mouth, filled with tiny, sharp teeth, suddenly magnified in my field of vision!

However, after realizing the strangeness of the place, Ling Yuan became cautious, dodged the attack, grabbed the oar, and swung it down in a wide arc!

splat—

The vicious little fish was instantly flattened, its skin torn open, and blood splattered everywhere!

The oars were moved aside.

This mass of fish paste, clinging tightly to the boat deck, probably can't jump up and take another bite.

Just as Ling Yuan breathed a sigh of relief, another notification appeared before his eyes.

[Defeat the Sharp-Toothed Sushi [Normal] to gain 0.05 Strength]

"Hiss... I see, this is interesting!"

[Content: Caught ten ordinary fish [1/10]]

It seems the task statistics are quite lenient, not requiring the fish to be live.

Looking at the bloody, mangled fish paste, Ling Yuan suddenly felt a strange hunger, and his mouth began to involuntarily secrete saliva.

But those crooked, tightly packed, sharp teeth helped him suppress his strange appetite.

"That must have been the bloodline effect of 'Gluttony,' but now it's most likely the curse taking effect..."

Ling Yuan checked the [Navigation Log] and found that although his strength had increased by 0.05, his stamina had not changed.

The magnitude of the numerical change is too small...

The latest novel is first published here!

Perhaps we need to wait until we accumulate enough power ("1") before our stamina will also increase.

Despite the sudden hunger that was constantly assaulting his reason, Ling Yuan knew very well that he couldn't just eat the fish paste in front of him.

Just because you don't dare to eat it doesn't mean the meat is useless.

I was just worrying about how to fish with an empty hook, and now there's ready-made bait!

Ling Yuan pinched a small ball of fish paste in his hand, hooked it onto the fishing hook, shook it, and found that it was sticking quite well, so he threw it directly into the water.

The bait worked immediately!

Just a few seconds later, the fishing line, swaying with the seawater, tightened!

[Power assessment in progress...]

[The target's strength exceeds the target's, causing the target's stamina to deplete rapidly...]

……

A familiar prompt appeared.

Although I used up some energy just now, the target's strength is lower than mine this time, so there's nothing to worry about.

Ling Yuan held the fishing rod steadily, without actively pulling it, but simply continued to nibble away at the fish underwater.

Before long, the other end of the fishing line showed signs of weakness.

The time has come!

As he quickly reeled in the line, another brown-striped sushi "flew" out of the sea and landed on the small boat.

splat—

Before the sharp-toothed sushi could recover from its brief dazed state, it was slapped quite evenly by the powerful oars.

[Defeat the Sharp-Toothed Sushi [Normal] to gain 0.08 Strength]

Ling Yuan tossed aside the oar, a hint of joy flashing across his face.

The improvement wasn't significant, but one could clearly feel wisps of heat flowing into every part of the body.

He came to understand why fitness could be addictive, and why some exceptionally gifted individuals could disregard the allure of steroids and relentlessly pursue them.

This power boost is simply irresistible!

"The attributes that fish of the same species acquire aren't fixed, but judging from the trend, about eighteen more Sharp-toothed Sushi Fish should be enough to gather some strength, and it'll be done soon!"

It's not just a task requirement, but also a path to personal growth.

Ling Yuan spent over forty points of stamina fighting against the two sharp-toothed sushi.

To be on the safe side.

Although he was eager to catch a fish, he didn't rush to cast the line again, but instead sat quietly for a while to recover his strength.

Not far away, two pools of minced meat emitted a faint aroma, making Ling Yuan's Adam's apple bob repeatedly.

A voice kept screaming in my head:

"Eat! Eat! Don't worry about what it is! Just one bite will help you recover your strength faster!"

However, after experiencing the benefits of the [Gluttonous Bloodline], Ling Yuan became even more hesitant to take a bite.

The negative impact of "gluttony," which is the opposite of "greed," is currently only an abnormally large increase in one's appetite.

Ling Yuan felt that the [Illustrated Guide] unlocked after completing the mission should provide more information.

For example, is this kind of fish safe to eat? Will it cause the "fish paste" to start gnawing at your stomach after you eat it?

of course……

If I get so hungry later that I can't stand it anymore, then I'll still have to take the risk!

My strength has almost recovered.

Ling Yuan discovered that as he approached the peak state, the recovery of his stamina would slow down.

However, 130 points is enough.

The fishhook, with fish paste attached, sank into the seawater.

Soon, the fishing rod bent slightly, and the fishing line straightened again!

……

……

"call!"

Ling Yuan, breathing heavily, raised the oar and slammed a slightly larger, sharp-toothed sushi back onto the deck.

[Defeat the Sharp-Toothed Sushi [Normal] to gain 0.17 Strength]

"Good heavens! No wonder it was so difficult to handle! This fish is much stronger than the others!"

This largest shad so far not only directly increased Ling Yuan's strength by 0.17, but also marked that he had caught the required ten fish for the mission!

Double happiness!

[Initial task completed!]

[Sea Chart] Unlocked; [Encyclopedia] Unlocked; Ship Binding Ready.

Ling Yuan didn't look at anything else; he directly opened the encyclopedia in the [Navigation Log].

The only item that was lit up was the sharp-toothed sushi!

【Sharp-toothed Sushi [Common]】

【Attribute: Strength [1~5]】

[Skill: Bite]

[Description: A diurnal fish species widely distributed in shallow waters near land. Slight erosion from the abyss has led to the development of sharp teeth, making it not very aggressive. Its flesh is bland and slightly fishy, ​​but it can be eaten raw and is virtually pollution-free.]

"Edible!?"

My cautiousness could no longer suppress my burgeoning appetite.

His stamina was repeatedly depleted and restored, and his own strength was continuously enhanced under the effect of [Greed].

Ling Yuan's craving for food has reached its peak!

He lunged at the blood-soaked minced meat, scraped off a clump, and put it in his mouth. Before he could even taste it, it had already slid down his throat.

My burning stomach was instantly satisfied!

Although it wasn't particularly delicious and even had a slightly fishy taste, Ling Yuan quickly devoured all the sushi he had caught.

Only the fish heads with sharp teeth remain as proof that they existed not long ago.

Ling Yuan licked his somewhat dry lips.

Not full... not enough at all!

The sushi has a very low meat yield, or perhaps I'm just having too much of an appetite right now.

In short, eating ten sushi only relieved his hunger pangs.

At this moment, [Taotie] seemed to come alive, banging on the table and shouting for the food to be served quickly!

Ling Yuan chewed on the remaining shredded meat, not in a hurry to continue, but instead opened the [Navigation Log] again.

The illustrated guide is very useful, but what about the sea charts...?

A pale blue, illusory page unfolds, with a golden light shining in the center, representing Ling Yuan's current location.

As the mind zooms in and out, simplified information such as coastlines, islands, ocean currents, and water depths emerge one by one, but the more distant areas are shrouded in a hazy mist.

(End of this chapter)