New Pet

These past few days, with nothing else to do, Ye Yuan resumed his life of foraging along the shore.

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He steered a sampan to an island some distance from Fishing Bay Island. The island was called Nanlin Island.

Fishermen used to come here often because it had a specialty product: Goose Barnacles.

Goose Barnacles, also known as goose-neck barnacles, were delicious and expensive shellfish. They looked very much like dog paws.

They usually clustered together in crevices among underwater rocks, staying in place year-round and growing by feeding on microorganisms in the water. They were known as seafood from hell.

For many people who had never eaten Goose Barnacles, their first sight of them often gave them a fright because of their appearance.

Only after eating them did they realize they were an absolute delicacy. Even simply steamed, they were incredibly fresh, sweet, and tender.

When eating them, you peeled away the rough outer tube and ate them like river snails. The exposed meat was only about the size of a peanut each time, but its rich freshness lingered in the mouth for a long time.

Because people had overharvested them in previous years, they had become very rare. Later, this island had been leased out for tourism development, but the developer ran out of funds and left behind an unfinished project. Few people came here anymore.

Ye Yuan had come this time to try his luck and see whether he could find some Goose Barnacles. He wanted to raise some in his space. Not only were they valuable, they were also delicious, making them a fine choice for entertaining friends in the future.

Ye Yuan found a sheltered spot to moor the boat, then plunged into the sea. Countless little fish swam past him, and he soon reached the reef.

His hands slowly felt along the cracks in the reef. After searching for a long time without finding a single Goose Barnacle, he continued downward. Finally, deep in a crevice between the rocks, he found a small number of them.

But the Goose Barnacles were tiny, only about three centimeters long. It seemed there were no large ones left here. He did not know whether they had been caught already or whether there was some other reason.

After searching among the reefs for over an hour, he had found only around a pound of small Goose Barnacles.

He placed the Goose Barnacles into his space and scattered feed at the same time. Ye Yuan had observed that the abalone feed did not just work on abalone; it also worked on certain shellfish and snails, though its effect on fish was not obvious.

After going ashore to rest for a while, he found that no one had visited this island in a long time. All kinds of vines covered the dilapidated buildings, sand had been blown everywhere by the sea breeze, and the wild grass stood taller than a person.

Ye Yuan started the boat and prepared to head back. Not long after he set off, he sensed the fish below frantically fleeing. Behind the school, a shark over four meters long was rapidly closing in.

Sharks generally traveled in groups, yet there was only one here. He did not know whether it had become separated from its school or had always lived in these waters.

Because he had Spirit Opening Pills, Ye Yuan had always wanted to tame a shark as a pet. But during his previous trips out to sea, there had always been other people around, so he had never been able to put that plan into action.

Now that he had encountered one here, he naturally could not let the opportunity slip away. With a leap, Ye Yuan shot into the water.

It would have been a lie to say he was not afraid. After all, standing before him was a massive creature four meters long—a shark, known by many as an ocean killer.

His greatest advantage was his space. Whenever he was threatened, he could directly pull the shark into it. Once it entered the space, it would be on his turf.

After entering the sea, Ye Yuan quickly swam toward the shark. From afar, he could not make out its species, but once he got closer, he saw that it was a Sawshark.

Sawsharks were a type of shark. Their mouths were very long, with sharp teeth on either side used to attack prey, resembling a saw. Above their mouths were two fleshy barbels used to detect prey.

Sawsharks generally lived forty meters below the surface and fed on bottom-dwelling creatures and fish.

Swimming up before the Sawshark, Ye Yuan was face-to-face with a shark at such close range for the first time.

The Sawshark did not pause at all. The instant it saw Ye Yuan, it charged straight at him with a powerful current, and Ye Yuan hurriedly dodged aside.

Bang~! The Sawshark's long snout slammed into the seabed. The soft sand did not harm it, but the huge cloud of sand it kicked up showed just how powerful the impact had been.

Visibility underwater had already been poor, and now the stirred-up sand clouded this stretch of sea even further.

Ye Yuan swam out of the murky water as quickly as he could, with the Sawshark close on his heels.

As he dodged the Sawshark's repeated attacks, he realized that his agility underwater had improved considerably.

Gradually, man and shark tangled beneath the sea for over ten minutes. By then, the Sawshark was no longer as ferocious as it had been at the start, and each charge was no longer as fast.

Seeing that the time was about right, Ye Yuan took advantage of a moment when he brushed past the Sawshark and directly pulled it into his space.

Inside the space, the Sawshark was restrained in the seawater and 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 became noticeably more humanlike. Its two narrow eyes moved about as though it were pondering something.

From the Sawshark's appearance, it should have gained intelligence, but it showed no sign of submission.

The first two times, one had been Big Yellow dog, who had been raised by his family since it was little, while the other had been Little Gold, whose life he had once saved. Both had naturally been close to him.

This Sawshark, however, seemed unwilling to acknowledge him. Thinking of the Loyalty Pill in the system shop, he immediately exchanged for one and tossed it into the Sawshark's mouth.

After the Sawshark swallowed the pill, its obvious agitation vanished. Ye Yuan slowly released its restraints, and the Sawshark immediately rushed toward him.

Ye Yuan did not move, because nothing in the space could harm him. Besides, he was only a soul body now, an existence without physical substance.

When the Sawshark reached Ye Yuan, it did not attack him. Instead, it extended its head, wanting to rub against his body. But the Sawshark's head passed directly through Ye Yuan's body, startling the big fellow badly.

Ye Yuan did not care about that. What mattered was that this fellow seemed completely tamed, so he sent it straight back into the sea outside.

Back in its familiar environment, the Sawshark first swam around the area, then circled Ye Yuan. Finally, it cautiously brought its head close. Ye Yuan reached out and stroked the Sawshark's head, and as if encouraged, it happily swam circles around him.

After playing with the Sawshark underwater for a while, Ye Yuan returned directly to the boat. The Sawshark also came to the side of the boat, sticking out its head and continuing to circle it.

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

The Sawshark nodded at Ye Yuan, as though responding to him.

Ye Yuan headed the boat toward Fishing Bay Island, with the Sawshark following behind. Ye Yuan glanced back at Little Shark and said to it,

"You can't follow me. My place isn't very suitable for you. Stay near the islands here for now. When I get the chance later, I'll find a way to settle you somewhere."

After hearing Ye Yuan's words, the Sawshark swam around the boat several times before reluctantly heading toward Nanlin Island. After swimming a few meters, it turned back to look at Ye Yuan, then continued on, looking just like a child abandoned by its parents.

Ye Yuan did not leave until he watched it disappear into the sea.

PS: Thanks to brother 08a for the reward.