Golden Belly Ink Carp

Pfft!

Pfft!

Pfft!

The faint gunshots of the Desert Eagle 1.0 version sporadically rang out in bursts from beneath the shade of the trees by Little River Bay, then paused for a while before erupting in another series of shots.

The surrounding trees and passing birds all became imaginary targets for the Desert Eagle.

This was Duke, practicing his marksmanship under the scorching sun on the uncultivated farmland. To cover up his actions, he had bought a fishing rod and was pretending to fish by Little River Bay.

"It's so hot. It's 4 PM, and if there's no wind, I'll bake to death."

The fish were probably also avoiding the heat, as not a single one had bitten in half an hour.

Duke wiped the sweat from his forehead, unfazed.

He wasn't aiming to catch fish, only to improve his marksmanship day by day.

Practicing his shooting in the August heat gave him a sense of training through the coldest winter days and hottest summer days. Seeing his increasingly accurate aim filled him with a sense of accomplishment every day.

Suddenly.

The fishing float was pulled into the water; a fish had bitten the hook.

Duke waited for the float to stabilize before casting his rod. However, perhaps due to his poor fishing skills, as soon as he pulled a small, dark fish out of the water, it wriggled free with a splash.

"Bad luck!" Duke picked up the fishing hook, the earthworm on it already gone.

He re-baited the hook with half an earthworm and cast it again.

Before long, the float was pulled into the water again. When Duke cast his rod again, the small fish slipped off once more. Within an hour, Duke had cast his line seven or eight times and come up empty.

Even though he wasn't genuinely fishing, he was starting to get annoyed.

He placed the bait by the river, fixed his eyes on the water, and held the Desert Eagle 1.0 version in one hand, quietly waiting for the float to sink again. Within a few minutes, the float began to sink. A small, dark silhouette of a fish swam near the surface, occasionally nudging the hook but never biting.

It seemed to know someone was fishing on the bank and was merely toying with them.

"You think you can get away with that!"

Duke frowned slightly. The Desert Eagle's sights were already aimed at the dark shadow of the fish. When the fish came close to the surface, he channeled his fighting spirit into his hand. The powerful force kept the Desert Eagle steady, and at the perfect moment, he pulled the trigger.

Pfft!

The bullet instantly sliced through the water's surface, followed by a large bubble erupting from underwater.

When everything calmed down, several chunks of meat with black scales were slowly floating on the water's surface. Duke smiled slightly and used a fishing net to scoop up the pieces of meat.

"I'll stir-fry them when I get back."

Having dealt with the fish that had teased him, Duke's mood improved. He re-baited his hook and continued to practice his marksmanship while fishing.

The scorching sun began to set in the west, and the sweltering heat lessened. Duke fired nine shots in succession, skillfully reloaded, and then put away the Desert Eagle, recovering from the expenditure of firing.

Energy lines were endless, and Desert Eagle bullets were infinite.

He closed his eyes and looked inward at his Spirit Sea. In the starlit ocean, next to Nine-Ring Xiao Yi, a screen resembling a fluorescent display had appeared.

This was a process list that Duke had asked Xiao Yi to create specifically.

It outlined in text the processes Xiao Yi was currently running.

"Process One: Field Meditation, 50% power consumption for AFK. Current Spirit Sea level: 0-Ring Two-Star Spiritual Apprentice (Condensing Liquid into Line). Estimated advancement progress: 8.7%. Estimated time: 221 days."

"Process Two: Rainfall Breathing Technique, 25% power consumption for AFK. Current Qi Sea level: 0-Ring Spiritual Plant Servant. Estimated advancement progress: 2.1%. Estimated time: 1052 days."

"Process Three: Desert Eagle 1.1 Muzzle Compensator Version, 20% power consumption for development. Current development progress: 42.3%. Estimated time: 21 days."

"Process Four: Chat dialogue program, 5% power reserved."

The Rainfall Breathing Technique was not run 24/7, so the estimated days to advance to 0-Ring Spirit Plant Master would be much longer than the displayed 1052 days.

Duke only ran the Rainfall Breathing Technique continuously when he was out and needed to be vigilant.

At other times, he occasionally took time to cultivate a 0-Ring Spiritual Plant – the Earth Orchid. He had discovered it when hunting Black Jade Snakes; it was a small grass that looked like chives. He hoped to cultivate it to bloom soon, as it might be able to regulate spiritual energy then.

He was too lazy to cultivate at other times.

The reason was simple: Qi Sea Cultivation, like Blood Sea Cultivation, had very limited potential. Most people remained at the 0-Ring Spirit Plant Master level for decades after opening their Qi Sea, with only a very few managing to advance to 1-Ring Great Spirit Plant Master. As for the subsequent 2-Ring Spirit Envoy, it was almost impossible.

In the entire Chen Jiao City, the number of people who could advance to 2-Ring Spirit Envoy could be counted on one hand.

After all, Advancing to 2-Ring Spirit Envoy required contracting an Elf, and Elves were born from spiritual plants. The probability of their birth was much lower than that of spirit beasts evolving into Phantom Beasts.

Therefore, When the Rainfall Breathing Technique was not running, Xiao Yi's idle power was allocated to the Desert Eagle development series. Currently, as per Duke's instructions, improvements were being made to the silencer.

When he realized that a silencer could almost completely eliminate sound, Duke understood that he couldn't limit this First-Ring Arcane Artifact with real-world gun data.

A single accessory, the silencer, could achieve sound suppression, stabilize bullets, increase range, and more.

All it required was constructing the correct spell model.

Thus, the Desert Eagle 1.1 Muzzle Compensator Version was created, adding the effect of a compensator to the silencer, making bullets fly more stably, further, and even with greater power.

"Xiao Yi's processing power isn't very strong yet!"

After a moment of reflection, Duke opened his eyes and continued practicing his shooting and fishing.

Puff puff puff!

He fired three shots in quick succession. A small bird that had just flown by was hit precisely by one of the bullets, instantly exploding into a mist of blood.

The bullets from the Desert Eagle 1.0 were too ferocious for ordinary small animals.

Duke couldn't even shoot a small bird for a meal; if a bullet grazed one, it would end up as a bloody mess.

Just then.

The fishing float was once again pulled underwater, indicating another bite.

Duke focused his gaze and saw a small, dark fish below the surface, repeatedly teasing the hook by biting and spitting it out.

"Do you want to try exploding too?"

Duke repeated his previous action, pulling the hook to the water's surface. He then aimed the Desert Eagle at the water. When the small fish came to bite again, he suddenly fired a bullet.

Puff!

A string of bubbles rose from the water, but no shattered fish pieces floated up. A small fish with a black back and a yellowish belly was seen floating on the surface.

There was a bullet hole through its tail, shattering half of its fin.

"Hmm?" Duke smiled brightly and picked up the fishing net. "That shot was good, it even left a whole body. I can steam it tonight... It looks like a crucian carp, but also a bit like a carp. The color is quite nice."

As soon as the net scooped up the fish, it wriggled and, surprisingly, wasn't dead.

Blood was still flowing from the bullet hole in its tail.

"It's quite resilient." Duke happily poured the small fish into the bucket. "It's rare for a small prey to survive a Desert Eagle's shot with its body intact. This little fish is still alive!"

Xiao Yi suddenly reminded him, "Master, this small fish might be a 0-ring Spirit Beast - the Golden Belly Ink Carp."

"Spirit Beast? Golden Belly Ink Carp?"

Duke looked happily at the wiggling fish in the bucket. It was about thirty centimeters long, which wasn't small, but its body was somewhat flat. Upon careful sensing, he could clearly perceive a faint spiritual aura emanating from the fish.

It was indeed a 0-ring Spirit Beast, the Golden Belly Ink Carp.