127: Chapter 127 The Surge of Fish, A Strange Encounter!

After finishing breakfast, the four entered the workshop to continue organizing supplies and repairing equipment.

"What's so good about sleeping inside anyway!"

Wen Yiran grumbled while fiddling with the equipment she was about to put up for sale. "Brother Lin is restless when he sleeps at night; don't come begging me to swap back when the time comes!"

Jiang Wanwan and Tian Xiwei shared a smile and continued counting materials.

Meanwhile, Lin Xiao, who paid no mind to the sleeping arrangements, stood before the equipment bench repairing his gear, specifically his weapon, [calamity bane].

Though this weapon looked incredibly fierce, it required very frequent repairs.

After all, it possessed the [Fragile] trait, causing its durability to drop much faster than ordinary weapons.

It was fine at lower levels since the materials weren't expensive.

But as its level rose, the materials needed for repairs became rare as well.

By then, frequent repairs would incur exorbitant costs.

I need to find a way to remove this negative trait...

Just as Lin Xiao was pondering a solution, the long-absent train broadcast rang out.

However, it wasn't the announcement for the end of a round.

【Attention passengers, the train is approaching a sea area rich in aquatic products!】

【Within a limited window of five hours, you may use various means to harvest a catch, and you might even trigger surprise rewards~】

Lin Xiao's movements stopped as he tilted his head to listen to the broadcast.

The emotionless voice carried an eerie fluctuation in pitch, as if attempting to mimic a cheerful tone.

【Train Care Event <Fish Tide Surge> has officially begun!】

【5:00:00】

【4:59:59】

【4:59:58】

...

The countdown began.

Lin Xiao and The three women looked at one another.

As expected.

The fishing gear and bait they had obtained previously were indeed related.

"Xiao Lin," Jiang Wanwan leaned in and asked doubtfully, "does the broadcast mean... we should go fishing?"

Lin Xiao nodded.

It said fishing, but there was no telling what they would pull up.

He hoped it wouldn't be some high-level Calamity Creatures.

"Wanwan, can you draw an event card now?" Lin Xiao asked.

The calamity round hadn't ended yet, so he wasn't sure if an event card could be drawn again.

Jiang Wanwan nodded, but then shook her head. "It's strange. The first round clearly hasn't ended yet, but the star emblem is telling me I can draw an event card!"

Lin Xiao contemplated for a moment before initiating a trade request, transferring a sum of stardust to Jiang Wanwan.

"Thirty thousand?" Jiang Wanwan exclaimed in surprise as she looked at the amount on her panel.

Lin Xiao nodded, his expression calm. "The current situation is a bit special. I want to take a gamble."

"Alright." Jiang Wanwan did not try to dissuade him.

The team wasn't lacking stardust right now, so they could indeed afford to be bold and try a more daring approach.

She extended her hands, cupping them in front of her.

But soon, her brow slowly furrowed.

"Xiao Lin, this time... there's only one fixed event card."

Enveloped in brilliant starlight, a silver-white event card emerged above her palm.

Unlike the previous card faces.

This event card was engraved with pink patterns, and its name was quite special, carrying a prefix.

【Fortuitous Encounter · Merfolk Kingdom】

【Effect: This is an ancient kingdom shrouded in mystery, whose traces are rarely known. While exploring ocean regions, there is a chance to obtain scattered clues. Perhaps these can be used to find a path to this undersea empire, where one might find rare marine supplies or even trigger an Epic-grade public event.】

【Legend says they once built a Coral City on the seabed, weaving nets from moonlight and singing songs of Chao Yin. Later, the abyss churned, and the ancient kingdom sank into deeper darkness, leaving only ethereal ballads in the mouths of fishermen.】

A Fortuitous Encounter Card?

It looked far from ordinary.

Moreover, the reward for this event card directly pointed to an Epic-grade public event.

"Merfolk Kingdom... this might truly be a rare opportunity!"

Lin Xiao murmured.

The experience in Harbor Town was still fresh in his mind.

Sophia's wedding dress, the Harbor Town amusement park, and that thrilling battle of defense.

If this card pointed to a public event of a similar level, then both the rewards and the risks would be unprecedented.

And now, there was the five-hour limited fishing window.

Fish Tide Surge and the Merfolk Kingdom.

Was there a connection between the two?

Lin Xiao's gaze fell out the window.

Waves began to surge inexplicably across the pink sea surface.

Whirlpools of varying sizes emerged from the water one after another.

After the event card was selected, it vanished into the air, its card effects taking effect simultaneously.

"Brother Lin, the fishing event has started. Let's go take a look too?"

Wen Yiran finally couldn't help but speak up.

She had long been unable to contain herself, bouncing around the room with her eyes sparkling as she stared out the window.

Just as Lin Xiao was about to answer, his private message interface began flashing frantically with notifications.

【08-09 Fan Sinian: Brother Lin, Brother Lin! That Fish Tide thing the broadcast mentioned! What do we do?】

【05-05 Fang Yuan: Brother Lin, did you hear the broadcast over there?】

【03-03 Xu Shan: Brother Lin, how do we handle this Care Event? Do we need to go into the sea?】

【02-04 Zhou Jun: Big shot, big shot! Please carry us! Please carry us!】

Lin Xiao took a quick glance and donned his newly repaired equipment.

"Let's go!"

The four of them dressed and pushed the door open.

By now, quite a few people had already gathered in the corridor of Carriage 7.

Fan Sinian, Fang Yuan, Xu Shan, and Zhou Jun were squeezed at the very front of the crowd with their respective core members.

Seeing the security door open, they immediately swarmed forward.

Not only them, but passengers from other carriages were there too.

There were familiar faces, such as the new passengers from Car 07 who had paid the seat fees, as well as strangers who likely came from the latter half of the train to join the commotion.

The scene of Lin Xiao fighting the giant beast alone yesterday had left many people shaken to their core.

Now that a Train Care Event had appeared, everyone wanted to see what this top supporter big shot would do.

Observe first and then follow suit—it was the same old routine.

The corridor was incredibly noisy.

It wasn't just because they were seeing the top supporter big shot's weapons and equipment with their own eyes, but also because of The three women behind him who possessed exceptional temperaments and were wearing matching sets.

Lin Xiao ignored the scrutinizing gazes, parted the crowded mass of people, and arrived at the corridor's side window.

Countless whirlpools, large and small, had already appeared on the surrounding sea.

Some rippled with deep blue patterns, some were silver, and some even reflected a faint golden light.

The large ones were estimated to be over ten meters in diameter, while the small ones were only the size of a washbasin, densely covering everything within sight.

Shadows of fish schools could be seen flickering through the centers of the whirlpools.

For safety's sake, Lin Xiao put on the [spirit realm lens].

His vision instantly shifted.

The massive shadows he had seen before were still there.

But they were lurking in the extreme depths, almost motionless, as if they had no interest in the commotion on the surface.

Only the schools of fish were surging within the whirlpools.

"Brother Lin!"

Fan Sinian squeezed to Lin Xiao's side, his face full of woe. "How did this Care Experience turn into fishing?"

Lin Xiao glanced back.

It wasn't just Old Fan; the surrounding passengers had all crowded in as well, all of them carrying inquisitive gazes.

"Since it's a Care Reward, it definitely won't screw you over." He smiled and said casually, "Just go ahead and fish with peace of mind."

"But..."

Fang Yuan rummaged through his backpack and pulled out a pile of equipment and materials, also looking distressed. "We don't have anything for fishing!"

Xu Shan and Zhou Jun also nodded in agreement.

They were all holding blades, spears, and clubs; not a single fishing rod among them.

Before they could even see the Care Reward, they were stuck at the most crucial first step.

Wasn't this just nonsense?

The other passengers were in a similar boat.

Some had better luck, holding onto tattered fishing nets scavenged from who-knows-what shipwreck, standing by the window hesitantly.

Some simply clung to the window sill, searching everywhere for traces of ice floes, preparing to jump into the sea to catch fish with their bare hands.

Fang Yuan was even more ridiculous; he pulled out his horse-slaying saber, leaned out the side window, and swung the handle back and forth over the sea, attempting to hack at the fish with the blade.

"Hahaha..."

Fan Sinian was laughing so hard nearby that he couldn't stand up straight.

"Yuaner, are you freaking kidding me? Hacking fish with a blade?"

Bursts of laughter came from the crowd.

Fang Yuan's face turned red. "Shut up! If you have a way, you do it!"

"Tch!" Fan Sinian smugly waved his hand. "Move aside, move aside, watch me!"

He pulled a long spear out of his backpack.

It was that heirloom weapon he had been using since the first day.

His upper body leaned out the window as he aimed at the nearest medium-sized whirlpool and started stabbing wildly.

"Splash, splash, splash..."

Everyone watched his performance.

A dozen seconds later.

Fan Sinian suddenly let out a strange cry and then pulled the spear out of the water.

The tip of the spear was actually impaling a fairly large sea fish!

It was quite lively, its tail still thrashing desperately.

Its silver-white, streamlined body glinted brightly under the slightly dim sky.

【Alaska pollock, White Quality】

【A cold-water fish with firm, garlic-clove-like flesh. When eaten fresh, it requires a longer cooking time to become tender and flavorful. It can also be freeze-dried into jerky that can be torn and chewed directly; it is full of flavor and gets tastier the more you chew. It is high in protein and low in fat, and every part is useful, from fish-skin rice wraps to fish-roe side dishes.】

Fan Sinian held the fish with an expression that could only be described as smug.

He deliberately held the fish high and said loudly, in a voice for fear those around him wouldn't hear, "This fish is really fat! Brother Lin, how about we just grill it and eat it?"

Eat the fish?

There was a major problem with this sea area.

Lin Xiao and the two women, who had seen the true situation through the [spirit realm lens], shared a knowing look.

"Xiao Lin, do we... have to eat it too?" Jiang Wanwan's face was full of resistance.

Wen Yiran shook her head quickly, her refusal clear beyond words.

Then, she leaned into the ear of a bewildered Tian Xiwei and recounted the scene they had seen back then with added embellishments.

As she listened, Tian Xiwei couldn't help but frown, then quickly raised her hand to cover her mouth, nearly vomiting on the spot.

Meanwhile, Fang Yuan, who was completely unaware of this, scratched his head gloomily. "For real, Old Fan? You just got lucky, didn't you?"

"Stop faking it!" Xu Shan also looked like he had seen a ghost. "Tell the brothers from the prop team in the sea to come up first; it's so cold, don't let them freeze!"

Hearing this, Fan Sinian laughed even harder.

He dangled the fish in front of Lin Xiao. "Brother Lin, Brother Lin! Look, aren't I awesome?"

"Not looking..."