Chapter 37: Becoming the Seafood King of Min City!

“President Chu, I’m heading off now,” Liu said as his workday ended, bidding farewell to Chu Lin before leaving the farm.

“Alright, drive safely on your way back,” Chu Lin reminded him.

Watching as the sun shyly hid itself in the embrace of the distant mountains, Chu Lin thought it was time for him to find his own peak and bury his bashful face deep within its folds.

He recalled the photos sent by Li Qian and felt a surge of anticipation. But before indulging himself, he needed to stock up on his own ‘ammunition.’ The tank had to be filled to the brim, and an extra canister prepared—just in case.

With that in mind, Chu Lin entered the game and picked up a specially stored Grade 2 Atlantis Oyster.

[Atlantis Oyster: Grade 2!]
[Note: This oyster hails from the Atlantis map. It not only grows rapidly and boasts a flavor far superior to ordinary oysters, but also possesses extraordinary effects: Size +1, Taste +1, Umami +1, Kidney Tonic +2!]

Tonight, it would prove its greatest worth, and he was eager to see the difference between Grade 2 and Grade 1.

Chu Lin brought the Grade 2 oyster out of the game and bestowed upon it the highest honor an oyster could receive: steaming.

Soon enough, the oyster became fuel for his body, entering his stomach.

After a refreshing bath, the warm water invigorated his blood and sped up digestion, and a wonderfully comfortable sensation quickly spread to his waist. Along with it came a surge of vitality—stronger than when he’d eaten a Grade 1 oyster.

He felt like a wild bull, full of unstoppable power, as if no land was too tough for him to plow.

Dressed and ready, Chu Lin drove out of the shrimp farm and headed to Li Qian’s apartment.

When Li Qian opened the door, his eyes lit up. At last, he saw in person the scene from the photos.

Absolutely perfect.

Li Qian’s looks and figure were perfectly suited to a soft, pure-yet-alluring style. Dressed in that ensemble, she was beautiful, innocent, and enticing all at once.

His heart fluttered inexplicably. He wanted to bury his blushing face deep in those lofty valleys.

“Do I look good?” Li Qian noticed his heated gaze and asked with a hint of delighted mischief.

A woman adorns herself for the one who loves her.

They might loathe the lewd stares of strangers, but when it comes to their own man, the more desire, the better.

“Of course. I picked this out of ten different outfits—how could it not look good?” Chu Lin teased, a playful smile on his face.

In truth, each of the ten had its own charm, but this one had caught his eye at first glance and become the lucky winner.

“You mean the outfit?” Li Qian pouted, her tone coy and coquettish—just as she’d learned online, knowing men were powerless before such sweetness.

“Did I say I was only talking about the outfit?” Chu Lin closed the door, scooped her up in his arms, and strode straight toward the bed.

“I made you something to eat,” Li Qian whispered nervously.

“There’s something even tastier right now!” Chu Lin grinned, his appetite thoroughly aroused.

(…)

The next morning, Chu Lin woke up early. Gazing at the sleeping, limp Li Qian beside him, he couldn’t help but feel smug.

There’s no such thing as land that can’t be tilled—only bulls that tire too soon.

Grade 2 Atlantis Oysters are truly remarkable.

Today he planned to return to his hometown, but before that, he needed to swing by the farm to collect the day’s fresh Atlantis prawns and oysters.

Not wanting to disturb Li Qian’s sleep, he slipped out quietly and drove back to the farm. Still, he sent her a message on WeChat, telling her he’d pick her up once everything was done.

Upon arriving, his first move was to enter the Atlantis map and transfer the prawns and oysters out of the game.

Today, he didn’t spot any Grade 2 oysters. It seemed the odds of high-grade items appearing on a Level 2 Atlantis map were very low.

He brought out only 300 full-grown Atlantis oysters, leaving the rest for future artificial breeding.

Not long after he’d finished, Liu arrived right on time and began transporting the prawns and oysters.

Chu Lin, meanwhile, went to check on the Neptune grouper that had just spawned in one of the rearing tanks.

The spawning was complete, and the tank was now dense with eggs. The problem was, this fish was truly clueless—he caught it eating its own eggs!

What a disaster.

Seeing this, he quickly netted the Neptune grouper out of the tank.

According to online sources, these fish can lay twenty to fifty thousand eggs, though few survive—most are eaten by other fish.

Judging from the scene, Chu Lin figured the fish itself had probably devoured quite a few.

After returning the Neptune grouper to its dedicated pond, he went to survey the other tanks.

Each pond was stocked with fertilized, egg-bearing Atlantis prawns. Some had already spawned and hatched shrimp larvae.

In other farms, the water quality would make it impossible to see these larvae underwater, but thanks to the Atlantis Blessing Stone’s purifying power, his water was crystal clear, offering an unobstructed view.

Watching the shrimp fry, Chu Lin suddenly had a thought.

Because of the Blessing Stone’s special properties, the quality of the offspring would not degrade—meaning all these larvae were Grade 1.

But what if he took these Grade 1 fry and raised them in regular water? Would their quality drop?

Most likely, yes. But even so, starting from Grade 1 should still yield better results than ordinary prawns—some of the quality should remain.

Only experimentation would reveal the truth.

With this in mind, Chu Lin entered the very first pond where he’d installed rearing equipment, removed the Atlantis Blessing Stone, and allowed the water quality to return to normal. He was eager to know the outcome.

As the Atlantis map leveled up, higher-quality animals would start appearing more frequently—like that Grade 2 oyster.

It was only a matter of time before Grade 2 Atlantis prawns showed up as well.

If he could get his hands on a Grade 2 egg-bearing prawn, then even if the Grade 1 fry downgraded a bit in regular ponds, they’d still be superior to normal prawns.

In the future, he could use the Atlantis Blessing Stone pond exclusively to breed Grade 2 fry, and then rent large tracts of land elsewhere for mass cultivation.

If he could expand to tens of thousands of acres, and artificial oyster breeding went smoothly, he could very well become the seafood king of Min City.