Chapter 16 (continued)

Every one of them floated safely on the water's surface. Even if they weren't very good swimmers, they weren't about to sink.

When they saw Xie Juanhan looking at them, they immediately squeaked, "Chirp, chirp."

The little ones paddled with all four paws, even wriggling their tails.

Unfortunately, it didn't help much.

They had barely swum a few meters forward when a wave came along and swept them a long way back.

Xie Juanhan smiled, swam back a few meters, and reached out to grab one of the little ones.

The little one clung to his arm with its front paws, finally steadying itself somewhat in his embrace.

When one of the little ones saw that its companion had steadied itself, it immediately swam forward, darted several meters, and clamped its mouth around its companion's tail.

The others followed suit, all rushing up to grab a companion's tail in their mouths.

Soon, they were linked together in a chain, looking just like another rope in the sea.

Xie Juanhan scooped up all the little ones, settling some on his shoulders and holding the others in his arms.

Seeing that Xie Juanhan could barely hold them all, Telingewei opened his great hand, picked up four of the little ones, and put them on his shoulders. "Let's go."

Both dragons were excellent swimmers, and they soon reached the thick rope covered in Demonic Oysters.

The rope was thicker than Xie Juanhan's arm. One end was tied to a reef at the foot of the cliff, while the other was attached to a string of "floats."

Quite a few "floats" were also tied along the middle of the rope.

Meeting Xie Juanhan's gaze, Telingewei explained, "Those are seeds from the Budemi Tree. They're full of fluff, so they float when you put them in the sea."

Xie Juanhan immediately thought of the enormous seeds he had seen. "So they're those seeds. They're covered in seaweed, so I couldn't tell."

The Budemi Tree seeds were so covered in seaweed that their original pale yellow color was no longer visible.

Plenty of seaweed had grown on the rope, too.

The entire rope was green, floating beneath the surface and almost blending into the seawater.

The Demonic Oysters growing on it, however, were pure white.

Because they were attached to the rope, they never came into contact with mud.

Their shells were white and rough, and nearly every one was bigger than Xie Juanhan's palm. They were plump and much rounder than ordinary oysters.

He could imagine how fat and succulent the meat inside must be.

Telingewei turned the rope over, picked off the best-looking Demonic Oysters, and put them into a cloth bag.

Xie Juanhan followed his example, choosing the biggest, plumpest Demonic Oysters and putting them in a bag.

In no time, they had filled two large bags.

The little ones watched from the side, occasionally growing impatient and jumping into the sea to paw at the Demonic Oysters.

The Demonic Oysters they picked were excellent, too.

There were hardly any poor specimens on the rope.

As Xie Juanhan filled the bag, he said, "Foraging by the sea like this is so satisfying."

Telingewei said, "We came late. The best Demonic Oysters were probably taken not long ago."

As he spoke, Telingewei turned the rope over to show Xie Juanhan.

Xie Juanhan looked closely and found that there were indeed marks on the rope.

Since it had been in the sea the whole time, the marks were also covered in seaweed.

But the seaweed was lighter in color and less dense, so he could make out the size of the marks.

Xie Juanhan held up his palm for comparison.

The marks were a full one and a half times the size of his palm. He could imagine how plump the Demonic Oysters that had been taken must have been.

Xie Juanhan was instantly distressed. "Who took them? An adventurer actually dared steal Demonic Oysters raised by a dragon?"

Telingewei shook his head. "It wasn't an adventurer. It was a magical beast squid, the level-four magical beast I told you about."

Telingewei's expression didn't change as he said it, and he looked very calm.

Xie Juanhan couldn't help raising his voice a little. "How can you put up with that?"

Telingewei said, "It's especially deep down there. Whenever I come, it dives into the sea, and I can't catch it."

"I'll catch it," Xie Juanhan said immediately. "Wait here. I'll go down and take a look."

As he spoke, Xie Juanhan took all the Companion Beasts off himself and bundled them into Telingewei's arms. "Wait for me a moment. I'm going to catch that Demonic Squid!"

Telingewei immediately grabbed him. "Be careful!"

Xie Juanhan waved his hand away with an easy air. "Don't worry. As long as it's weaker than you, it definitely can't do anything to me."

With that, Xie Juanhan transformed into an agile white dragon and dove straight into the sea.

He vanished from Telingewei and the Companion Beasts' sight.

For a dragon, diving into the deep sea was no more than taking a stroll.

The white dragon wasn't at all flustered, and he relaxed even more when he saw the surroundings below.

The water here really was clear, with an almost glasslike quality.

He dove into the sea and looked around.

Emerald green, deep blue, dazzling white, brown-all sorts of colors blurred together like a kaleidoscope, shifting endlessly.

Because it lay beside the cliff, this part of the sea was quite deep.

Even with a dragon's eyesight, he couldn't see the bottom.

Xie Juanhan swam downward. The deeper he went, the darker it became and the less he could see.

However, he could discern a great deal from the scent of the seawater.

Unfortunately, the magical beast squid wasn't there.

He circled through the sea several times, but only found its lair and sensed its lingering scent.

It had probably gone hunting.

It had gotten off easy.

The white dragon flicked his tail and began swimming back to the surface.

With a splash, he broke through the water, emerged, and returned to human form. "The Demonic Squid isn't down there."

"It may have sensed our presence and fled for the time being," Telingewei said. "It's like this every time."

Xie Juanhan slapped the water and sighed. "What a crafty Demonic Squid."

Telingewei patted him on the back. "Let's go up and taste the Demonic Oysters first."

They had gotten up early that morning, and now it was already noon. They were both hungry.

His hunger made Xie Juanhan look forward to the Demonic Oysters even more.

They returned to the top of the cliff.

Telingewei found a clean, flat rock and prepared to open the Demonic Oysters.

Xie Juanhan stared at him without blinking, like a cat watching food.

Telingewei glanced at him, took out a knife, picked up a Demonic Oyster, and opened it like a watermelon.

Inside the Demonic Oyster's pure white shell lay a plump mound of oyster meat, with juices pooled around it.

The smell alone was delicious.

Xie Juanhan asked expectantly, "Can I eat it now?"

"Just a moment." Telingewei took a lemon-like fruit out of his Dragon Scale Space, squeezed some juice over the oyster, and sprinkled on a small pinch of fine salt. Only then did he hand it to Xie Juanhan. "Try it."

The little ones watched Xie Juanhan from the side, their eyes shining. "Chirp, chirp."

They, too, were urging him to hurry up and taste it.

Xie Juanhan glanced at them and, without further ado, carefully held the oyster shell up to his lips.

The Demonic Oyster meat had the delicious scent unique to sea creatures, and the freshly squeezed fruit juice around it smelled wonderfully refreshing.

Xie Juanhan tentatively took a small bite.

The Demonic Oyster meat was incredibly soft and tender, with no fishy taste at all, only a distinctive smooth richness.

When he bit down, the juices burst forth, followed by the oyster meat.

Xie Juanhan instantly tasted the flavor of the sea mingling with the saltiness of the fine salt and the tartness of the fruit juice, creating a distinctive clash of flavors.

His entire mouth came alive.

"Delicious!" Holding the oyster shell, Xie Juanhan said in amazement, "It's so much better than I imagined. So fresh and sweet!"

Telingewei said, "That's what Demonic Oysters taste like."

Xie Juanhan took another bite. "It doesn't seem to have a Demonic Core inside?"

Telingewei said, "Its level is too low to grow a Demonic Core. It's generally just eaten as a snack."

Xie Juanhan thought of how they had picked the Demonic Oysters off the rope like fruit. "Looks like raising some Demonic Oysters is a great idea. They don't seem to need much looking after, either."

Telingewei said, "That's not quite true. You have to protect them from typhoons and freezing, as well as other magical beasts. There's a lot to do."

Xie Juanhan said, "Looks like raising Demonic Oysters isn't easy either."

Telingewei opened the Demonic Oysters, and everyone ate together.

The little ones held Demonic Oysters in their paws, eating obediently at the side.

They always sucked up the juices first, then ate the meat in little bites. They could almost be called elegant.

Watching them, Xie Juanhan casually stroked the head of the nearest little one. "These Demonic Oysters are already delicious enough. It's hard to imagine what even better ones would be like."

Telingewei said, "They're plumper, with almost no fishy taste, and they contain a lot of energy. They're a great pleasure to eat."

Xie Juanhan imagined it longingly for a moment. "How do you raise better Demonic Oysters?"

Telingewei said, "I don't know. I'm still figuring it out myself. I'm going to raise a new batch soon. The new ones should turn out a little better."

"Soon?" Xie Juanhan caught the key word and looked at him in surprise. "You're going to raise more?"

Telingewei nodded. "I raise a new batch every year. These Demonic Oysters take three to five years to grow as big as a palm. If I raise new young ones every year, I can come and pick them whenever I want to eat them."

Xie Juanhan had never thought of it that way.

Pick them whenever you wanted to eat them.

Wasn't that how some small farms operated?!

With an ocean this vast-

Xie Juanhan looked up at the sea before him and quickly revised his thinking.

Not a small farm, but a farm!

Xie Juanhan was very interested. "When are you going to collect them? I'll go with you."

Telingewei hesitated. "You're interested?"

Xie Juanhan looked at him with shining eyes. "Very interested! I'm interested in all kinds of ingredients."

"I originally planned to take you all back, carry the whale oil back while I was at it, and then come collect them. If you're interested-" Telingewei suggested, "Shall we go take a look in the next couple of days? It's right nearby. It's breeding season now, and there are lots of Demonic Oyster larvae in the sea."

Xie Juanhan said, "Wait, they're worms when they're little?"