Mountains and giant beasts, cabins in the woods

The clam shell snapped open.

The tender yellow clam meat lay trembling inside the shell, carrying the earthy smell of the river.

Liu Xingmo bent down and reached out, searching through the soft flesh that weighed several hundred pounds.

It feels smooth and slippery to the touch, and it's even slightly wriggling. It's soft and yielding, but you can press it firmly with your body.

Left, right, front, back...

Those who had gathered to watch held their breath, waiting for the exciting moment.

However, Liu Xingmo searched the area thoroughly but couldn't find even a trace of a hard stone, let alone any pearls.

He straightened up and cleared his throat: "Ahem! Bad luck, nothing to be found. Everyone, let's go!"

The onlookers were of various appearances.

One person looked disappointed: "Hey! I knew it would turn out like this."

Some people gloated: "There are only fish eyes in the market, where are the pearls? It would be a waste if we couldn't eat all these hundreds of pounds of meat."

Some people shook their heads and sighed, "One should be down-to-earth in life. Those who gamble never have a good ending..."

Liu Xingmo looked up and pondered.

The clouds are incredibly white today, and the sky is as blue as a lake. This is what you call a crisp, clear autumn day.

The fish market vendor spoke up: "Brother, let me tell you, that old beaver who harvests clams has been in this business for a long time. He can tell whether there's any stock or not just by smelling it. Plus, he has his family's ancestral skills in opening clams, adding sand, and cultivating pearls. All the clams in that entire river are basically farmed animals..."

"It's nothing, I'm just giving it a try." Liu Xingmo waved his hand magnanimously.

The boss put down his long knife and wiped his hands on his leather apron: "We're not trying to fool you. Everything is sold as meat."

"I know I need these clam meats, and I'll take them away," Liu Xingmo said, maintaining his nonchalant demeanor.

The onlookers laughed and dispersed.

The boss and Liu Xingmo worked together to lift the river mussels onto the cart.

Liu Xingmo drove home.

The owner then continued to serve the next customer.

That little gathering was just a minor interlude in the bustling market.

……

Three rhinoceros beetles vigorously waved their claws, pulling a heavy cart along the mountain stone path.

Liu Xingmo saw his own nectarine tree, untied the reins of the three beetles, then walked to the treehouse and lowered the hook of the pulley assembly.

He directed Big Black to hang the hook on the cart, and then had three rhinoceros beetles fly up the tree to help pull the rope and lift the heavy clam up.

With his current cultivation level, plus the effects of the Bone-Strengthening Root and Tendon-Benefiting Grass, Liu Xingmo has the strength of five or six people and can move this thing weighing several hundred kilograms.

They dragged the clam to the turtle's nest.

Liu Xingmo rushed over and confronted his contracted beast: "Bao Hei, Bao Hei! What happened to you? What happened to your luck? Why didn't anything drop?"

The old turtle blinked its big eyes, looking quite innocent.

Liu Xingmo used his soul imprint to sense and examine his body.

He lacked the ability to perceive the existence of luck; only Bao Hei could.

His ability is to understand the thoughts of his contracted beast through the spiritual link of the Soul Imprint, which means he treats Bao Hei as an extra pair of eyes and ears.

Under the old turtle's senses, there was a faint but persistent aura within its master's body.

Like a great river originating from the snow-capped mountains, it gathers springs and streams along the way, eventually rushing down and flooding thousands of miles.

This is Liu Xingmo's own luck, which only became clear after Bao Hei advanced to the second rank last night.

As for the golden good fortune that the old turtle temporarily transmitted this morning, it has vanished without a trace; it must have been used up...

Liu Xingmo couldn't help but roll his eyes: "Bao Hei, are you even capable?"

At this moment, Sumali was also attracted by the noise of the clam shells being moved.

She looked at the large, black, saucer-shaped object, her eyes flashing with delight: "Great! My alchemy experiments need a large, sealed reactor, and this seashell can make do!"

Liu Xingmo's eyes lit up: "Really? So, that means I made a lot of money?"

Sumali held up three fingers: "It would cost about 3 yuan to order a section of bamboo from a bamboo craftsman to use as a reactor."

"Three pieces?" Liu Xingmo's lips trembled. He glanced sideways at his contracted beast, "Bao Hei, Bao Hei, give it your all!"

The old turtle lazily squinted its eyes, used its pointed nose to pry open the clam shell, and opened its mouth to tear at the soft clam meat.

Logically speaking, a second-tier mythical beast, a rare seedling, or a second-tier powerhouse should be able to earn double digits of money every day.

Baohei is too special; it is a purely auxiliary product and lacks direct means of making money.

Further development of transportation capabilities also requires wisdom.

The problem is that there is currently no relevant knowledge, and using it rashly might lead to real disaster.

As a novelist and storyteller, Liu Xingmo has read a large number of folk tales and ancient biographies over the years.

Those who try to divulge secrets and offer unsolicited advice never have a good ending. Even blind fortune tellers on the street know to offer hints without revealing the truth.

As the saying goes:

Misfortune may be a blessing in disguise, and a blessing may be a misfortune in disguise.

To identify talented individuals with great potential or powerful figures facing great calamities, and to provide timely and helpful assistance.

It's possible to do this, but it's best not to try it, or you might end up taking the blame for someone else's misfortune.

I've heard that the destiny passed down in Ba Kingdom has the power to defy fate, but for now, it simply doesn't exist.

Liu Xingmo looked down at Bao Hei, who was wolfing down his food.

After resting for half a day, this guy managed to accumulate a bit of luck within him.

Liu Xingmo ordered Bao Hei to separate this chaotic luck into fortune and misfortune, and to bestow the fortune upon himself.

Let's just do this for now, gradually increase our good luck, and maybe it will play a big role in the future.

Baohei opened its mouth and spat out a beam of golden light, then began to bury its head in its food again.

Liu Xingmo suddenly noticed that black mist was faintly rising from the old turtle's body.

This misfortune feels terrifying.

"Bao Hei, get rid of this bad luck."

The old turtle opened its mouth, turned its head towards its owner, and pretended to spew out black smoke.

"Stop it! Don't pass the bad luck on to me! Spit it out into the air, understand?"

Bao Hei shook his head, conveying a clear message: If you can't do it, you can only pass it on to someone else.

"Then you can keep it for now."

Liu Xingmo reached out and stroked his chin, his mind filled with countless thoughts.

Organize intelligence, make assumptions, deduce the results positively, and provide counterexamples...

Let's confirm Bao Hei's abilities.

Luck can be created out of nothing, but it cannot be destroyed if it already exists.

Perhaps it didn't come from nothing, but rather absorbed the energy of the weather, the earth, and people, and then transformed it.

Luck can influence a person's future development. Only living beings can receive luck; inanimate objects cannot.

Perhaps it's possible to change the feng shui of mountains and rivers, but that's not possible at the moment.

……

Once you can gradually grasp a bit of the underlying principles, all that's left is experimentation.

Liu Xingmo reached out and patted the tortoise shell:

"Baohei, let's go! Let's go outside and test your luck!"