I was just fishing, how did I become a Great Old One?

Royal Dragon Bay, Villa No. 13.

The morning sunlight streamed into the living room through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the golden mound on the coffee table and reflecting a hazy, eerie glow.

Jiang Xiaoyu was sitting cross-legged on the carpet, stacking up the gold coins with strange patterns (abyss runes) one by one like a child building blocks, forming a crooked castle.

"strangeness……"

Jiang Xiaoyu muttered, poking the newly built coin tower with her finger, "Brother, why are these coins so warm? And... they seem to be moving?"

The moment her fingertips touched the gold coin, the coin, engraved with an octopus tentacle relief, suddenly twitched subtly. The tentacle patterns on it seemed to come alive, trying to entwine the girl's fingers and instill in her ramblings about greed, sinking, and eternal enslavement.

[Mortal...offer your soul...]

A soft murmur echoed in the air, and the temperature in the living room dropped several degrees instantly. Something seemed to be spying from the shadows in the corner.

"Snapped!"

Suddenly, a large hand reached out and slapped the gold coin tower.

"Splash—"

The gold coin castle collapsed instantly, and the gold coin that tried to cause trouble was pressed firmly onto the coffee table by Jiang Li's big hand, making a "squeak" sound of metal friction (a scream).

"The heat is from friction! The movement is because you haven't handled it properly!"

Jiang Li held a dripping rag in his hand and lecturing his younger sister with a serious expression.

"Also, stop touching it. This thing has been sitting at the bottom of the sea for who knows how many years. It's covered in bacteria and microorganisms. I even saw some mold growing on this gold coin just now (actually, it's the black aura that manifests as a curse). It's filthy!"

He picked up the gold coin that had just tried to "bite" him and gave it a disgusted look.

"Look, the patterns on this are all rusted, it looks like it's covered in moss. Big Yellow! Go get me that bottle of bleach! And a steel wool pad!"

Upon hearing this, Big Yellow, who was lying next to him gnawing on a bone, immediately spat out the bone and trotted happily towards the bathroom.

It had long disliked this pile of gold, which reeked of the stench of that giant octopus (Dagon). It was only because its owner was bold enough to bring it home that it dared to do so. If it were any other city-destroying level powerhouse, it would probably have sealed it away in a lead box.

"Woof!" (Here! Powerful disinfection! Scrub them to death!)

Dahuang placed the 84 disinfectant and steel wool on the coffee table.

Jiang Li put on rubber gloves, poured half a bottle of disinfectant into the basin, added some toilet cleaner (this was an extremely dangerous chemical mixture, but in Jiang Li's hands it became a strong acid solvent against evil spirits), and then dumped the pile of [Abyss Ancient Gold], enough to buy a city, into it all at once.

"Zzzzzzz—!!!"

Thick yellow smoke and black fumes instantly billowed from the basin.

That's a phenomenon caused by the violent reaction between the strong oxidant and the curse of the abyss.

Countless tiny wails burst within the foam, and the ancient vengeful spirits clinging to the gold coins vanished in less than a second under the modern industrial magic attack of "84+ Toilet Cleaner".

"Cough cough! This flavor is really strong!"

Jiang Li coughed twice from the choking, and quickly opened the window to ventilate the room. "Looks like there's a lot of dirt on this gold. It's all reacted chemically."

He picked up a steel wool pad and began scrubbing the gold coins that were still stubbornly resisting (emitting a ghostly glow).

"Light it up! Light it up!"

"Squeak—squeak—"

Ten minutes later.

The ancient gold from the abyss, which originally carried an ancient, mysterious, and eerie aura, is now shiny and even a little white. The curse runes on it have been polished clean, leaving only the pure gold texture.

"This looks much better."

Jiang Li wiped his sweat with satisfaction, took out the gold coins, dried them, and put them into a snakeskin bag.

"Little Fish, you stay home and watch the house, and do your homework while you're at it. I'm going out for a bit, to exchange this gold for money, and I'll buy you something delicious when I get back."

"Oh...brother, come back soon."

Jiang Xiaoyu nodded obediently, staring blankly at the snakeskin bag containing dozens of kilograms of gold.

What if it gets robbed...

No, recalling the scene of her brother nailing the bully to death with a fork in the mall, Jiang Xiaoyu felt that she should be worried about the robbers.

……

Jianghai City, Antique Street.

This is the most prosperous and deepest part of Jianghai City.

The streets are lined with various antique-style shops, many named "Xuan," "Zhai," and "Ge." This place is not only a trading hub for antiques and calligraphy and paintings, but also an important venue for awakened individuals to privately trade spiritual materials.

Because yesterday's "antique appreciation event" was canceled (the masters all ran away), the antique street was unusually deserted today, with only a few bored shop owners playing chess at their doorsteps.

"Rat-a-tat-tat—"

A black Range Rover parked arrogantly at the street corner.

The car door opened, and Jiang Li, carrying the still-dripping snakeskin bag (he hadn't dried it after washing the gold coins), and leading Big Yellow, who was wearing sunglasses and a large gold chain, swaggered out.

"This place looks quite cultured; people here should know their stuff."

Jiang Li looked around and his gaze settled on a three-story building called "Jubaozhai".

This shop is the largest and most luxuriously decorated, with two stone lions (actually two sealed gargoyles) standing at the entrance, clearly indicating that it's owned by a wealthy person.

"This is the place!"

Jiang Li tugged at Da Huang, "Come on, let's go in and let the boss take a look at us."

Big Yellow walked to the door, glanced at the two stone lions, and snorted disdainfully.

"Click."

Suddenly, a slit appeared in the eye of the stone lion on the left.

That's because they were scared.

……

Inside Jubaozhai.

The shopkeeper was an old man with a goatee and round-framed glasses, named Ma Sanyan.

This nickname wasn't given lightly, because he was one of the few C-level appraisers in Jianghai City, born with a "spiritual eye" that could see through the essence of spiritual objects, which he usually hid behind sunglasses.

At this moment, Ma Sanyan was holding a magnifying glass, studying a piece of "blood jade" that he had just acquired.

"Boss, do you take gold?"

A loud voice shattered the tranquility of the shop.

Ma San's hand trembled, and he almost dropped the blood jade. He frowned and looked up, seeing the young man carrying a snakeskin bag and dressed in casual clothes.

"Go to the gold shop next door if you want to buy gold. This is an antique shop; we only buy old items."

Ma San waved his hand impatiently; he'd seen plenty of these hotheads who tried to sell their gold jewelry for money.

"This is an old item! It was fished out of the sea, it's very valuable!"

Jiang Li wasn't angry; he just chuckled and slammed the snakeskin bag onto the counter.

"Thump!"

The deep, resonant voice made Ma San's eyelids twitch.

This weight... must be several tens of kilograms, right?

If it's real gold, then it's a business worth millions.

If it's a gold-plated iron lump... then it's here to cause trouble.

"Did you fish it out of the sea?"

Ma Sanyan became interested. "Is that salvaged porcelain? Or gold from a shipwreck?"

"Pretty much, anyway, I found it in a collapsed, dilapidated temple."

Jiang Li untied the bag. "Could you take a look?"

Ma Sanyan pushed up his sunglasses and glanced casually into the bag.

Upon seeing this, his body instantly stiffened.

The bag was filled to the brim with gold coins. Although they had been washed until they were shiny and even a little white, their ancient shape and the faint, unsettling abyssal energy that lingered even after physical erasure could not escape his spiritual eyes!

"This...this is..."

With trembling hands, Ma Sanyan removed his sunglasses, revealing a vertical mark (spiritual eye) between his eyebrows.

Open your spiritual eyes!

"boom!"

In his view, this was hardly a bag of gold coins.

This was clearly a churning black ocean! Countless desperate and wronged souls were wrapped around each gold coin, and a huge octopus monster could be vaguely seen roaring in the pile of gold coins!

That's [Abyssal Ancient Gold]!

Moreover, it is a top-grade ancient gold that was just unearthed, has extremely high activity, and is even imbued with the aura of the ancient rulers!

"puff!"

Ma Sanyan only glanced at it before feeling a stinging pain in his eyes, as if he had been pricked by needles, and two streams of bloody tears instantly flowed down his face.

Mental backlash!

"Ouch! Boss, what's wrong?!"

Jiang Li was startled. "How can looking at gold cause conjunctivitis? Did you not sleep well last night and are feeling hot?"

Ma Sanyan covered his eyes, trembling with pain, but he ignored the pain and knelt down behind the counter with a thud.

"Great...Great Master! This thing...this thing is too hot to handle! My shop...my shop can't afford it!"

He was terrified.

Anyone who can carry such a large bag of ancient gold, tainted with the scent of the past, around and even bathe it with bleach (he could smell that pungent odor) is definitely a monster in human skin! A walking, breathing forbidden zone!

"Too hot to handle?"

Jiang Li reached out and touched the gold coin. "It's not hot, it's cool. Oh, are you saying this gold is of dubious origin?"

His face hardened, and he said righteously, "Boss, don't talk nonsense. I found this in the sea with my own skills! I didn't steal it! It's legally obtained!"

"Yes, yes, yes! It's legal! Absolutely legal!"

Ma Sanyan dared not refute, "I mean... this thing is too valuable, and the shop's cash flow... isn't enough."

"not enough?"

Jiang Li was somewhat disappointed. "Your shop is too small. I thought it would be much more impressive."

He sighed, picked up the bag, and was about to leave.

"Forget it, I'll go ask at the gold shop next door. Selling by the gram will result in a loss, but it's still better than having it stuck in my hands."

"No! Absolutely do not go to the jewelry store!"

Upon hearing this, Ma Sanyan was terrified.

If this thing were to end up in an ordinary jewelry store and be bought and made into jewelry by unsuspecting ordinary people, their entire family would mutate within three days, and a biohazard would erupt throughout Jianghai City!

This is what makes pollutants at level C and above so terrifying!

As a black market dealer with principles (mainly because he fears being implicated if the Night Watch finds out), he must stop this disaster.

"Master! Please wait!"

Ma Sanyan scrambled out and blocked Jiang Li's path. "This thing... I can't afford it myself, but I know someone! He can definitely afford it! And the price he'll offer is absolutely fair!"

"Oh? Who is it?" Jiang Li stopped in his tracks.

"Qian Duoduo, the richest man in Jianghai City and owner of Wanbaolou!"

Ma Sanyan wiped the blood and tears from his face. "He's a great collector, specializing in these... these rare and strange treasures. And he's right here, hosting a private appraisal event!"

"The richest man? An antique appreciation club?"

Jiang Li's eyes lit up. "That's great! Sounds like money! Lead the way!"

……

Ten minutes later.

In the backyard of Jubaozhai, in front of the entrance to an extremely hidden basement.

"It's downstairs," Ma Sanyan said respectfully. "Please, sir, I won't go in (I'm afraid of dying)."

Jiang Li nodded and walked downstairs with Da Huang.

The basement was large and decorated like a museum, with antique shelves all around filled with all sorts of rare and precious treasures.

At this moment, several distinguished elderly men were sitting around a round table in the center of the room. In the middle of them was a middle-aged man dressed in a Tang suit, who was as fat as Maitreya Buddha. He was none other than Qian Duoduo, the richest man in Jianghai.

They are examining a newly unearthed bronze ding (a type of ancient Chinese cooking vessel).

"This is a good item. The inscriptions on it faintly show traces of spiritual energy flow. It should be a D-grade sacrificial artifact."

Qian Duoduo stroked the bronze cauldron, looking completely captivated.

"That's right, I went through a lot of trouble to get this." A tall, thin man opposite him said smugly.

Just then, the basement door was pushed open.

"Excuse me, I heard this place collects old items?"

Jiang Li's voice shattered the elegance of the moment.

All eyes turned to him, and when they saw that he was an ordinary-looking young man with a dog and carrying a snakeskin bag, their faces immediately showed displeasure.

"Where did this wild brat come from? Doesn't he know any manners? This is a private party!"

The tall, thin man stood up and shouted, "Where's security? How could they let someone like this in?"

"Hey, don't be in the rush to kick them out."

Qian Duoduo was quite well-mannered (mainly because he saw the big gold chain on the dog behind Jiang Li and felt that the dog was unusual), and smiled as he gestured for him to stop.

"Young man, since you're here, you're a guest. You said you have some old items? Why don't you show them to us and let us have a look?"

"Alright, since the boss has spoken."

Jiang Li didn't waste any words and simply dumped the snakeskin bag onto the priceless rosewood round table.

"Splash—"

With a crisp metallic clang, hundreds of gold coins poured out like a waterfall, instantly filling half the table and even pushing the bronze cauldron to one side.

It was dazzlingly golden, blinding everyone.

"this……"

Those present were all experts, and they immediately noticed that something was wrong.

The purity of this gold coin, the bizarre pattern...

"This is... ancient gold?!"

Qian Duoduo suddenly stood up, his fat face trembling.

He picked up a gold coin, examined it closely, his expression growing increasingly solemn, until it finally turned to horror.

"This is... the common currency from the R'lyeh era?! And it's so well preserved? Even the curse on it has been... mostly erased?!"

He suddenly looked up at Jiang Li, his expression changing.

This isn't a place to sell scrap metal; this is a place to blast fish!

"Young man, where did you get this thing?" Qian Duoduo's voice was a little hoarse.

"I already said, I found it in the sea."

Jiang Li shrugged. "So? Is it valuable? If it's not, I'll melt it down and make a gold ring."

"It melted?!"

All the old men present nearly suffered a heart attack.

A violent thing!

Each of these gold coins is a priceless treasure for researching that lost civilization! They're also top-tier materials for crafting advanced magical artifacts! You're going to use them to forge rings?!

"No! Please don't!"

Qian Duoduo clutched the pile of gold coins as if protecting his own lifeline.

"I'll take them all! Name your price!"

"Really?" Jiang Li laughed.

He likes bosses who are generous and easygoing.

"I see this bag weighs about a hundred pounds. At the current gold price... never mind, I'm not greedy. One price, ten million! How about it?"

Jiang Li quoted what he considered an exorbitant price.

He checked on the way and found that a pound of gold is worth about 200,000 yuan, so 100 pounds would be worth about 20 million yuan. But he felt that his gold was a bit worn (from being scrubbed with a steel wool pad), so a discount was reasonable.

"Ten million?"

Qian Duoduo was stunned.

The old men around were also stunned.

That's hundreds of [Abyssal Ancient Gold]! On the international black market, one could fetch hundreds of thousands! This whole pile... is worth at least several hundred million!

Is this kid... doing charity?

"What? You think it's too expensive?"

Jiang Li frowned when he saw they remained silent. "Eight million? That's the lowest I can go! I risked my life diving to retrieve this! And you have to factor in the cost of the detergent and disinfectant!"

"Not expensive! It's so cheap!"

Fearing that Jiang Li might change his mind, Qian Duoduo pulled out a Supreme Black Card from his pocket and slammed it on the table.

"Ten million, right? I'll give you twenty million! The extra ten million is just to make friends!"

"Twenty million?!"

Jiang Li's breath hitched.

Is this billionaire... not quite right in the head? Someone actually raised the price voluntarily.

"Great! Boss, you're so generous! I'm definitely making this friend!"

Jiang Li grabbed the black card, grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh, by the way, I have a little gadget here, I don't know if you'd be interested."

Jiang Li was in a great mood and decided to take stock of the inventory again.

He took out the [Golden Bowl] (actually the Holy Grail containing [Blood of the Ancients], an A-grade sealed artifact) from his backpack.

"Bang!"

The golden bowl was placed on the table, with a little red liquid (divine blood) still remaining inside.

"This bowl is a bit heavy for eating, but you can take it if you like."

An extremely terrifying divine pressure instantly swept through the entire basement.

"Snap!"

The bronze cauldron cracked open.

All the porcelain on the display shelf was shattered.

The old men's eyes rolled back, and they fainted on the spot.

Qian Duoduo plopped down on the ground, his fat trembling violently. He pointed at the golden bowl, making a "clucking" sound in his throat, unable to speak.

The Holy Grail?!

This is an artifact that can summon the Great Old Ones!

Who exactly is this kid?!

Jiang Li looked at the people scattered all over the room and scratched his head.

"What... what's going on? Is this bowl poisoned? I didn't eat from it."

"Dahuang, look at these people, their physical condition is really bad. They can faint from excitement just by seeing a golden bowl."

Big Yellow lay on the ground, looking at the Holy Grail with a look of fear.

"Woof..." (Master, that thing is really poisonous, it's divine blood...)

"Forget it, it seems this bowl won't sell. Let's take it back and give it to Big Yellow as a food bowl."

Jiang Li sighed and put the Holy Grail back into his bag.

"Boss Qian, I've taken the money, and the goods are yours. I'll take this bowl with me, and I'll come back to you next time I have something good!"

After saying that, he took Big Yellow and left gracefully in the dead silence.

Qian Duoduo was left alone sitting on the ground, looking at the pile of gold coins and then at the mess in the room, shedding tears of happiness mixed with fear.

"Mom...I saw a living god..."