"Was this extraordinary equipment?"
It was Lin Yuan's first time seeing an actual piece of extraordinary equipment. The information provided by the system was completely different from that of ordinary items.
First, it had an explicit grade. Grade E was probably very low, and he could foresee at least four grades above it, from D to A. Whether there were any higher grades was unknown.
Then there were the specially marked labels, "for ship use only" and "biologically active." Lin Yuan guessed these were very important classification criteria for extraordinary items.
Last were its specific functions.
There was not much to say about what this Seashell Pump Propeller did. It simply generated thrust to increase a ship's speed.
But consuming biomass rather than fuel was an extremely useful trait.
It also produced no smoke, which was very helpful for staying concealed.
Overall, this was quite a useful piece of equipment. Although it was not the weapon Lin Yuan wanted most, it was definitely a stroke of incredible luck.
Without hesitation, Lin Yuan installed it directly in the engine compartment of his right leg.
The next moment, he felt water automatically jetting out beneath his foot, pushing him forward.
He could control the propeller's thrust at will. At maximum thrust, it was powerful enough to propel him out of the water to a height of nearly ten meters.
The propeller itself could also store some seawater, enough to let him glide dozens of meters across the sea.
"That's some serious thrust. If feeding it the flesh and blood of magical creatures multiplies it several times over, couldn't I use it as a water cannon at close range?"
Pleased, Lin Yuan spent a long time testing it underwater, on the surface, and in midair, until he had fully mastered its functions.
He only stopped when a sense of hunger and weakness came from the propeller.
Lin Yuan returned to Lilia's coffin lid and sat down to rest. As he took some of the food he had just obtained from the treasure chests out of storage to feed the propeller, he looked at the doll girl beside him, who seemed a little bored:
"You don't seem at all surprised that I suddenly gained a new ability?"
"What's so surprising about that? There are plenty of stranger things at sea," Lilia replied casually, before adding with a hint of puzzlement:
"Besides, I vaguely remember that for humans like you who've just obtained a ship, conjuring things out of thin air and communicating remotely with who knows whom are perfectly normal. That lasts until... until... when was it again?"
As she spoke, she began thumping her head again. Her memories seemed to have grown hazy once more.
Lin Yuan was already used to Lilia behaving this way. The doll girl of mysterious origins seemed to know many things like the back of her hand, yet often had gaps in crucial memories.
He had no idea what purpose that mysterious box had in summoning her and making her his crew member.
Could it want me to help her recover her memories?
But Lilia herself had never shown any desire to do so.
Ever since signing the contract, Lin Yuan had kept part of his attention on that mysterious box, but it had shown no further signs of activity.
Forget it. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.
Lin Yuan set the matter aside and focused his attention on the regional chat channel in his mind:
"Selling large quantities of wood, cloth, and steel, plus one fully loaded revolver. Looking for large shipboard weapons. Anyone interested in trading?"
His message immediately drew plenty of attention.
Basic materials could be used to upgrade compartments and repair ships. The other players did not have a miraculous recovery item like Lilia's coffin, so naturally, they needed them badly.
Even more people wanted the revolver.
For Lin Yuan, who spent all his time in the water, a handgun was of limited use. After all, bullets lost much of their power underwater.
But for other players, if some dangerous creature climbed onto their deck at night, having a handgun could very well mean the difference between life and death.
Unfortunately, while many people wanted it, not one could offer a large shipboard weapon.
It was only the second day of the game, and most people were still penniless. Asking them to produce shipboard weapons really was a bit much.
A few people wanted to trade food and shell coins, but Lin Yuan refused without a second thought.
Just as the trade seemed about to fall through, Lin Yuan suddenly received a private message.
The sender was Never Skunked, who was very active in the channel.
"Brother Zero, I don't have any shipboard weapons, but I fished this up. Take a look-would you trade the revolver for it?"
He sent an image showing a dozen or so enormous, sharp teeth.
[Man-Eating Shark Tooth] [Magical material] [Sharp teeth shed by a man-eating shark. Sharp and sturdy, they are used by craftsmen to upgrade melee weapons.] [Tip: In the Paradise Sea, weapons can be upgraded directly without a craftsman.]
Seeing this information, Lin Yuan immediately thought of his steel harpoon.
Although the harpoon could inflict damage at range, it was still fundamentally a melee weapon.
"Sure, let's trade for that!" Lin Yuan replied at once.
Trading a revolver of little use underwater for an upgrade to his main combat skill was clearly a good deal.
The trade was completed quickly, and a dozen or so palm-sized Man-Eating Shark Teeth appeared in Lin Yuan's storage.
[Magical material obtained: Man-Eating Shark Tooth. Can be used to upgrade the steel harpoon. Upgrade?]
"Upgrade!"
At Lin Yuan's mental command, the shark teeth in storage turned into a streak of light and sank into the large harpoon housed in his weapons compartment, which emitted a dazzling glow.
Several seconds later, the light faded and the harpoon reappeared, but its appearance had changed-
Its previously conical head was now a triangular pyramid, with serrated cutting edges along its sides that gleamed coldly.
The once-smooth steel shaft now sported a ring of barbed spikes.
Lin Yuan noticed mechanisms at the bases of these spikes. They seemed capable of moving or locking into place.
[Sharp Man-Eating Shark Harpoon] [Shipboard weapon] [A harpoon reinforced with man-eating shark teeth. Inflicts continuous bleeding after striking prey.] [Has two firing modes: penetration and anchoring. In the latter mode, its barbs can spread after striking prey, lodging firmly inside its body and making escape difficult.]
"This is good!"
After reading the new harpoon's description, Lin Yuan was very satisfied.
With its bleeding effect, the harpoon's lethality had increased considerably, giving him the means to fight battles of attrition.
He continued asking around in the channel for a while, but found nothing else.
As for the high explosives he had obtained alongside the revolver earlier, he planned to keep them for his own use. They would make a decent trump card.
By the time he had finished all this, the sky was gradually darkening.
Since the system had already warned that there would be a "surprise" tonight, Lin Yuan had no intention of exploring underwater again. Instead, he stayed put on Lilia's coffin and rested with his eyes closed.
Escaping the dark shadow during the day had taken a considerable mental toll on Lin Yuan. He had not noticed while busy trading, but the moment he closed his eyes, weariness washed over him.
Lin Yuan soon fell asleep.
With Lilia there, she could warn him in time if there was any danger.
Besides, with that dark shadow unable to appear again for a while, Lin Yuan and Lilia might well be the greatest danger in the night.
After sleeping for an unknown length of time, Lin Yuan was awakened by the system notification sounding in his mind.
[...The dungeon is now open. Players, please proceed to explore.] [This is a solo dungeon and will remain open for 24 hours.] [All players are advised to find at least the "Paradise Sea Chart" in the dungeon. Otherwise, the difficulty of subsequent gameplay will be severely affected.] [Good luck to you all!]
A solo dungeon? The Paradise Sea Chart?
Lin Yuan shook his head to clear it while noting the key terms in the system notifications.
Just then, Lilia cried out in surprise:
"Sleepy captain, an island just surfaced over there!"
Before you continue