One Cut to Poverty, One Cut to Riches

The Li Family acted swiftly, and the next day they sent people to clear out a Exhausted Mine.

Surrounded by mountains on three sides and bordered by a marsh on the other, it is extremely secluded.

Those still mining inside were refunded, while those who wanted to continue mining after this period were given vouchers. This domineering behavior angered the martial Martial Master who came to try their luck, but they dared not speak out.

Liang Qu followed the servant to the Mine Cave, looked around, decided on this spot, and told the servant to leave quickly.

The grass swayed.

After confirming that no one was around, Liang Qu sat cross-legged.

Fifteen minutes later, a colossal Giant Crab, over two meters tall, crawled out of the water. Its back was covered in yellow stripes, giving it a powerful and imposing appearance, and it gleamed with a steely luster under the sunlight.

Liang Qu picked up a stone with a few red veins.

"One strike can make you poor, another can make you rich; it's all up to your Fist!"

The Fist struck the iron clamp, producing a metallic clang.

Bearing a heavy responsibility, it moved its eight legs and entered the deepest part of the mine, where it dug a passage into the mountain and officially began its cave dwelling.

Seeing that his Fist was in the zone, Liang Qu dropped the ore in his hand, went to the side of the Great Marsh, and leaped in.

Everything on shore is set up; now it's time for the main event— the Mermaid Ruins! (I only made these dumplings for the sake of vinegar!)

Sunlight penetrated the water, scattering into linear beams that cast surging blue light onto the Liang Qu.

Looking around, you can see a few small fish swimming around.

The giant snake had been coiled up for three months, releasing its aura without any concealment, which frightened almost all the fish in the vicinity into fleeing and disappearing.

Just one day later, the nearby waters have not yet fully recovered.

Liang Qu, with its Golden Eye, meanders along its course.

Wherever it goes, it controls the area.

All the little fish looked into the golden light, their tails trembled, and they immediately swarmed in all directions, launching a carpet search.

Uncontrolled and yet possessing sentience, the little fish can only comprehend very basic commands, but this does not hinder its search for the Mermaid Ruins.

The true dragon has been gone for no more than a century. Even though the world has changed drastically, it is not enough to completely cover up a settlement.

It is possible to get the small fish to find a "larger, more unusual place".

Lianshui County.

The boatman picked up a fried peanut, popped it into his mouth and savored the taste. He glanced up and saw the smoke rising from the Fujian-style boat, and felt a little strange.

For several days now, smoke has been rising from the boat at mealtimes, clearly indicating that there are people on this Guanjiafu boat.

But for so many days, he never saw anyone get off the boat.

Such a large ship would require at least four or five boatmen to operate smoothly, so there must be men on board.

"If you're a man, you should at least go to Pleasure Quarter, right? The discipline on the ship is so good?" The shipkeeper recalled the young man he had met earlier, touched the silver in his pocket, and felt a deep respect.

If even his subordinates are like this, he must be a good official! On the deck.

The Great Beaver slapped its flat tail on the ground, grabbed a piece of metal ore and gnawed on it, sending up bits of metal powder that covered its chest with a layer of white dust.

This annoyed the Ta Ta Kai, who had to repeatedly send out the River Otter to patiently clean up the powder that had fallen into the cracks in the wooden planks with a broom.

It secretly vowed that if they met again, it would make the gods issue a decree that beavers would never be allowed to gnaw on ore on the deck again! While Ta Ta Kai didn't forget to flip the grilled fish in its hands. Just as it took out the seasoning box to sprinkle salt, a message came through its Mental Link.

After a few breaths, a long, sharp whistle echoed throughout the entire Fujian ship.

The large ship, which had been moored, awoke from its slumber.

Several River Otter darted out of the room and took up their posts, each performing its duties.

Two Little River Otter crawled across the kitchen doorway on all fours, but soon retreated, drooling over the grilled fish inside.

Ignoring the heat, Ta Ta Kai grabbed the grilled fish in its mouth and darted out of the kitchen, giving the two Little River Otter two sharp raps on the head. It then grabbed them by the scruff of their necks and threw them onto the ship's platform. Afterward, it quickly climbed the mast and, while gnawing on the grilled fish, issued one command after another.

Snap!

The peanuts rolled down.

The boatman stared in disbelief at the Great River Otter on the mast.

Strange, no wonder he didn't need to disembark to find women...

Noticing the gaze, the Ta Ta Kai its five paws together in a standard sailor's salute, then turned around to continue issuing commands.

The anchor was pulled up, and bamboo poles were used to propel the boat through the water.

The large ship slid out of the dock, and as it left the wharf and entered the Deep Water Area, the sails billowed, catching the mighty river wind and propelling the ship to gradually accelerate.

A cool river breeze swept over us, dispelling the heat of late April.

The Great Beaver brushed the powder off its chest, put the half-eaten metal ore into its small wooden box, went to the bow of the boat, spread its arms, and let its fur flutter.

How delightful!

noon.

Liang Qu controlled tens of thousands of small fish, and incidentally had Ta Ta Kai drive the Fujian boat to Fragrant Township County. Upon returning to shore, he retrieved large pieces of snake meat and placed them in front of Fat Catfish and other animals, letting them eat to their hearts' content!

When the Fat Catfish touched the Snake Demon's flesh with its fins, it looked hesitant.

After hesitating for a long time, it closed its eyes, tore off a piece of snake meat, and swallowed it without chewing.

The Marsh Essence contained in Water Beast is far less than that of Treasure Fish. A piece of meat of the same size not only takes up a lot of space in its belly, but also yields less Marsh Essence. Its only advantage is the large quantity.

But that's not important! The key is that the Snake Demon's corpse was contaminated with its own poison! During the battle, a large area of Poison Mist filled the water, and even Liang Qu was inevitably contaminated. Given the Snake Demon's large size, it was even more so.

Especially the wound caused by the Exploding Spear at the waist, which was originally just a thin membrane, was completely torn apart during the later battle, with venom flowing back in, comparable to brine used to marinate meat, it was so flavorful! The more he ate, the more his stomach hurt.

It didn't taste good either; you could say you were having diarrhea while eating it.

Never before has a meal made this Fat Catfish feel so uncomfortable.

But the thought of its enormous, Cannot Move body made it endure the abdominal pain and swallow with tears in its eyes.

The Fat Catfish was in such a state that it "Cannot Move," and the Round Head- headed beasts were no better off, their faces contorted from eating and their bodies aching.

The only one that can adapt is Awei, which has good venom resistance. It sucks snake blood voraciously, its abdomen bulging, then shrinks back after a burp, and it continues to suck voraciously.

As for Liang Qu, after offering his piece to the Fist, he politely declined the rest of the snake meat.

It was dry and tough, and after being contaminated with venom, it even smelled slightly bad. It was no good no matter how you cooked it.

He chose to go to a restaurant.

After yesterday's banquet, the Zhang Clan sent another batch of aquatic Treasure Plant, plus five thousand taels of silver, as a reward for their efforts.

The Li Family did the same, but instead of giving Treasure Plant, they gave a total of 10,000 taels of silver! With the giant snake dead, there was no need for either family to give any more benefits.

There's no stinginess involved, just a broad perspective.

Who knows if other fish demons or grass demons will cause trouble in the future?

It's no mistake to curry favor with the "future high-ranking officials" of the River Conservancy Office.

Last-minute cramming is not advisable.

Giving this now is a way of showing gratitude; if things get tough later, you won't have anything to give.

As a result, Liang Qu's accumulated wealth suddenly increased to a staggering 20,000 taels!

We'll eat out a few times, it'll be a piece of cake.

After finishing his meal, Liang Qu rinsed his mouth with tea leaves, had the waiter wipe the table clean, laid out a white cloth, and brought over an inkstone. He then began to write a book on the spot, reviewing the events from beginning to end.

They remained leisurely until noon on the third day, April 20th.

The Zhang Clan finally managed to disassemble the Snake Demon's skeleton completely, sort out the snake skin, and refine the snake bones.

Of the countless small fish exploring the Great Marsh, one sent a reply.