Chapter 51: Meeting Other Players Again

Immediately after, the fruits and vegetables began to expand at a visible rate, stopping only when they grew to several times their original size.

Witnessing this, Lily walked over to a cabbage.

It was now as high as her chest. Tiny specks of golden light sprinkled across its emerald leaves, making it look as beautiful as if it were carved from premium jade.

[Golden Cabbage: A cabbage blessed by the School of Golden Fish. It has undergone a benign mutation, increasing in size. Long-term consumption can rapidly restore stamina, relieve fatigue, accelerate wound healing, and enhance constitution.]

Lily’s eyes lit up at the sight.

She then checked the Introduction of the other golden fruits and vegetables. The degree of mutation was almost identical across the board, with only a few exceptions. For instance, the chili peppers, blueberries, and starfruits could boost the power of Fire Element, Water Element, and Wind Element Skills, respectively.

The quantity wasn’t huge, but it was enough.

After settling the School of Golden Fish, Lily returned to that stretch of water. Her attention had entirely been on the golden fish earlier, but such a vast expanse of water surely had a Treasure Chest hidden somewhere.

With that in mind, she closed her eyes.

A long moment later, she slowly opened them. Her eyes sparkled. "Found it."

Surprisingly, the Treasure Chest wasn’t out in the open this time but hidden away. No wonder she hadn’t spotted it before.

Besides the chest, there was also a sunken ship. It didn’t belong to the Survivors in their village; the seaweed growing around the wreck told her that this ship had been sitting on the ocean floor for over a century.

Lily readjusted her gear. This time, she didn’t stow Shelly away. She didn’t plan on staying out too long, for although the sea storm had stopped, the weather hadn’t cleared up. For her own safety, she refused to linger outside in such conditions.

She waded straight through the shallows and headed onto the island.

Even though it was an island, it held absolutely no resources other than sand. The entire place was completely barren, offering far less bounty than the waters below. The sand here was nice, however—pure white, incredibly fine, and completely free of impurities.

Operating on the principle of never passing up a freebie, Lily pulled out a Bronze Treasure Chest and started filling it with sand. Even if she didn’t pack it now, she would have to dig through the surface layer anyway.

While Lily busied herself collecting sand, she failed to notice a vessel made of several rafts tied together slowly approaching the opposite side of the island.

The people aboard hadn’t discovered Lily’s presence, but they did spot the Mother Orca. Seeing a suspicious orca moving freely between the air and the water, the lead man’s eyes gleamed greedily.

Evan Lancester eagerly ordered the two cronies behind him, "Quick, bring me that Beast Taming Collar I opened earlier. I’m gonna tame this orca."

His breathing grew heavy at the mere thought of owning an orca as a pet.

As they drew closer, they soon noticed Lily continuously digging in the sand. The next second, they watched her unearth a purple Treasure Chest and stash it away.

The sight made the three men on the raft see red with envy. Evan in particular glared at Lily as if she were a bandit who had just stolen his own property.

They had finally stumbled upon an island and an incredible pet, thinking they had struck it rich, only to realize someone else had beaten them to the punch. The island wasn’t small, but it was completely barren save for the sand. That chest was likely the only one there, and even the orca probably belonged to that person.

A ruthless glint flashed across Evan’s eyes.

"Go, fetch my Fish Spear, Crab Shell Armor, and Shrimp Shell Helmet."

On his very first day in this world, he had figured out the rules. It was the law of the jungle—the strong took all. By living according to this code, he quickly amassed his initial capital right after the novice period ended, later recruiting two lackeys to do his dirty work.

Back on Azurea, he was just a bottom-tier corporate slave, but here, he was a future emperor sitting on heaps of resources. If this person knew what was good for them, he might spare their life. If not, they couldn’t blame him for getting ruthless.

On the other side, although Lily hadn’t noticed their approach at first, the Mother Orca quickly alerted her upon spotting them.

The group was still some distance away, but the red armor and distinctive helmet worn by the man in the center caught her eye immediately. She recognized them at a glance as the Crab Shell Armor and Shrimp Shell Helmet she had sold. And wasn’t that the Fish Spear she had peddled in the very beginning resting in his hands?

While she had anticipated that the items she sold might one day be pointed at her, she never expected it to happen so fast.

"Boss, this one might be tough to handle. She’s wearing some black armor that looks pretty Advanced. Probably a prop popped from a Treasure Chest."

One of the two lackeys had the Hawkeye Talent, allowing him to see vast distances.

"Armor? Perfect. Anything produced by the System is top-tier. We’ll make him hand that over too. You boys can have the Crab Shell Armor and Shrimp Shell Helmet I swap out," Evan declared, waving his hand magnanimously.

Because Lily was crouching with most of her body obscured by the sand, and due to the distance, he hadn’t realized her gender.

Realizing these people had ill intentions, Lily naturally wasn’t going to just let them approach. She directly issued a command to the Mother Orca to take them out.

The three men were still plotting how to rob Lily when they saw the massive orca suddenly change direction, charging at them like a speeding truck.

"Don’t sweat it. Our ride is a Level 5 Vehicle with a protective shield. We ain’t even scared of a Sea Beast Frenzy or a sea storm." Let alone one measly orca.

They comforted themselves with these thoughts, failing to realize that the creature before them was no ordinary orca.

The Mother Orca lashed her tail fiercely through the water, whipping up a ten-meter-high wave that crashed directly down onto the trio.

A Level 5 Vehicle’s shield could withstand even a sea storm, to say nothing of a mere wave. The real problem, however, was that the Mother Orca’s massive tail came crashing down right alongside it.