New Pet

These past few days, Ye Yuan had nothing to do, so he started his beachcombing life again.

Driving a small sampan, he arrived at an island quite far from Fishing Bay Island. This island was called Nanlin Island.

Fishermen used to come here often, all because of one specialty product: dog-claw snails.

Dog-claw snails, also known as goose barnacles, are a delicious and very expensive type of shellfish. Their shape is very similar to a dog's paw.

They usually gather in clusters, squeezed into crevices between rocks on the seabed, never moving for years, surviving by eating microorganisms in the water. They are known as seafood from hell.

For many people who have never eaten dog-claw snails, the first time they see them, they are often frightened by their appearance.

Only after eating them do they discover they are absolutely exquisite. Even simply steamed, they are incredibly sweet, tender, and smooth.

When eating, you peel open the rough tube and eat it like a snail. The bit of meat exposed is only the size of a peanut, but the umami flavor lingers in your mouth for a long time.

Because of overfishing in previous years, these things had become rare. Later, the island was contracted out for tourism development, but the developer ran out of funds, leaving an unfinished project on the island, and few people came here anymore.

Ye Yuan's purpose this time was also to try his luck and see if he could find dog-claw snails. He wanted to get some to cultivate in his space. Not only were they valuable, but they were also very tasty, making them a good choice for entertaining friends later.

Ye Yuan found a sheltered spot to anchor his small boat, then plunged into the sea with a splash. Countless small fish swam past him as he quickly reached the reef.

He slowly groped along the crevices of the reef with his hands, but for a long time, he couldn't find a single dog-claw snail. He continued searching downward, and finally, in a very deep crevice of the reef, he found a small number of dog-claw snails.

But the dog-claw snails were very small, only about 3 cm long. It seemed there were no larger ones left here. He didn't know if they had already been caught by someone or if there was another reason.

After searching this reef for over an hour, he only found about a catty of small dog-claw snails.

He put these dog-claw snails into his space and sprinkled some feed. From Ye Yuan's observations, that abalone feed was not only effective for abalone but also worked on some shellfish and snails, though its effect on fish was not obvious.

He went ashore to rest for a while and found that no one had been to this island for a long time. The dilapidated buildings were covered with various vines, sand was blown everywhere by the sea breeze, and the weeds were over a person's height.

Ye Yuan set sail to go back. Just as he was not far out, he sensed that the fish below were frantically fleeing. Behind the school of fish, a shark over four meters long was rapidly approaching them.

Sharks are generally schooling fish, but here, there was only one. He didn't know if it had gotten separated from its group or had always been living in these waters.

Because of the Spirit Opening Pill, Ye Yuan had always wanted to tame a shark as a pet. But since there were always outsiders around on his recent sea trips, this plan had never been realized.

Since he encountered one here this time, he naturally couldn't miss the opportunity. Ye Yuan did a dive and plunged into the water.

To say he wasn't afraid would be a lie. After all, what was appearing in front of him was a four-meter-long big guy, a shark known to many as the "killer of the ocean."

His greatest reliance was his space. When he felt threatened, he could directly move the shark into his space, and once inside, it was his territory.

Once in the sea, Ye Yuan swam swiftly towards the shark. From a distance, he couldn't see the shark's species clearly. Only when he got closer did he see that it was a sawshark.

Sawshark: A type of shark with a very long snout that has sharp teeth on both sides, used to attack prey, similar to a saw. Above the snout are two fleshy barbels, used to detect prey.

Sawsharks generally live at depths of 40 meters on the seabed, feeding on benthic organisms and fish.

Swimming right up to the sawshark, this was the first time Ye Yuan had been this close to a shark.

The sawshark didn't pause at all. Seeing Ye Yuan, it charged at him with a powerful current. Ye Yuan quickly dodged to the side.

With a Boom~!, the sawshark's long snout slammed into the seabed sand. The soft sand didn't cause it any harm, but the large cloud of sand it kicked up showed just how strong the impact was.

Visibility in the water wasn't great to begin with, and now this stirred-up sand made the seawater in this area murky.

Ye Yuan swam out of this murky water as fast as he could, with the sawshark hot on his tail.

While dodging the sawshark's repeated attacks, he realized that his agility in the water had increased significantly.

Gradually, man and shark tangled in the sea for over ten minutes. By now, the sawshark was no longer as ferocious as at the start, and each charge was slower.

Ye Yuan felt the time was right. Seizing the moment when he and the sawshark brushed past each other, he directly pulled the sawshark into his space.

Once inside the space, the sawshark was bound in the seawater, unable to move. Ye Yuan took out a Spirit Opening Pill and fed it directly to the shark.

After swallowing the Spirit Opening Pill, the sawshark seemed much more human-like. Its two small eyes rolled around as if it were thinking about something.

Judging by the sawshark's appearance, it should have already awakened its intelligence, but it showed no sign of submission.

The previous two times, one was Big Yellow, the dog he had raised since it was a puppy, and the other was Little Gold, who he had saved. Both were naturally close to him.

This sawshark, however, didn't seem to acknowledge him. Thinking of the Loyalty Pill in the system shop, he directly exchanged for one and tossed it into the sawshark's mouth.

After the sawshark ate the pill, its obvious agitation disappeared. He slowly released the restraints on the sawshark, and it immediately rushed towards him.

Ye Yuan didn't move, because nothing in the space could harm him. Moreover, he was currently just a soul body, an entity without a physical form.

The sawshark came to Ye Yuan's side. It didn't attack him but instead stretched out its head, trying to rub against Ye Yuan's body. As a result, its head passed right through Ye Yuan's body, giving the big guy quite a fright.

Ye Yuan didn't care about that. What he cared about was that this guy seemed to be completely tamed. He directly moved it back to the outside sea.

Back in its familiar environment, the sawshark first swam a lap around the area, then circled around Ye Yuan. Finally, it cautiously brought its head close. Ye Yuan reached out a hand and touched the sawshark's head. The sawshark, as if encouraged, happily swam around Ye Yuan.

After playing with the sawshark underwater for a while, Ye Yuan returned to his boat. The sawshark also came to the side of the boat, sticking its head out of the water and continuing to swim around it.

"I'll call you Little Shark from now on," Ye Yuan said to the sawshark.

The sawshark nodded at Ye Yuan, as if responding to him.

Ye Yuan piloted the boat towards Fishing Bay Island, with the sawshark following behind the boat. Ye Yuan looked back at Little Shark and said to it:

"You can't follow me. It's not really suitable for you where I am. First, live near this island. I'll find a way to settle you later."

After hearing Ye Yuan's words, the sawshark first swam a few circles around the boat, then reluctantly swam towards Nanlin Island. After swimming a few meters, it turned back to look at Ye Yuan, then continued swimming, looking just like a child abandoned by its parents.

Ye Yuan didn't sail away until he saw it disappear into the sea.

ps: Thanks to brother 08a for the reward.