The crisp and ethereal sound of the system prompt echoed in Norman's mind following the death of the anglerfish.
At that moment, Norman was in a daze. The brief struggle, like a dance on the edge of life and death, had drained all his strength. During the ordeal, Norman even thought he might die here, and it would have been a painful death too.
After all, in a deep-sea cave more than 2,000 meters below the surface, he had to fight a colossal abyss creature up close. Given that, human reaction speed underwater is impossible.
Yet, against all odds, Norman narrowly emerged victorious, killing the massive anglerfish! Such an achievement was simply incredible to him.
Now, thinking back, Norman couldn't help but feel a chill of fear. The only reason he was able to kill the anglerfish was due to the fish's own actions, underestimating the power of the harpoon. If the creature hadn't recklessly charged into the harpoon, trapping itself, no matter how skilled Norman was, it would have been difficult to even harm it.
Gazing at the massive black shadow in the murky, blood-stained water before him, Norman's hands trembled slightly as he let out a long breath. Though this underwater resource run had yielded a bountiful harvest, it was a close brush with death.
This sudden danger also served as a stern warning to Norman. Even though he had always maintained a level of vigilance against potential threats in the deep sea, it was still insufficient. Various unknowns lurk everywhere. During any underwater resource run, he must remain constant alert and not let his guard down for even a moment. Otherwise, a scene like the one that just occurred could easily happen again. Next time, he might not be so lucky.
In the dark and lifeless underwater cave, a beeping alarm interrupted Norman's thoughts. Looking down at the oxygen gauge on his arm, Norman realized that twenty minutes had passed since he entered the water. The diving suit's automatic alarm system reminded him that the current oxygen level would last only ten more minutes; he needed to return quickly.
Norman composed himself and stopped delaying. He hurriedly dragged the corpse of the anglerfish and swam back the way he came from. Following the marks he had carved on the rock walls, it took another five minutes for Norman to finally return to the cave entrance. Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened along the way.
Seeing the Tartarus submarine hovering quietly at the entrance of the cave, Norman's tension finally eased. The Tartarus, which resembled an ostrich egg, brought him an unprecedented sense of security in his journey to the deep abyss. This submarine was his sanctuary, his last refuge.
"Shh!" The hatch opened, and a rush of seawater enveloped Norman, pulling him into the airlock along with the fish. As the water level receded, Norman, exhausted, removed his heavy diving suit. Then he dragged the angle fish's corpse into the living quarters.
The nearly one-meter-long angle fish lay motionless on the metal floor. Its entire body was dark brown, with sharp fangs that glinted menacingly under the light, making it look extremely grotesque.
Norman wasn't in a hurry to manufacture the fresh water extractor. After collapsing onto the bed and resting for a while, he tossed the fish's body onto the crafting station. The materials for making the fresh water extractor were already collected and could be assembled at any time, so there was no need to rush.
He was now curious to see what he could get from the body of this anglerfish. With a flick of his finger, he pressed the deconstruct option on the interface that appeared on the crafting station.
"Deconstructing..."
After a brief wait, a white light flashed out of thin air. The massive fish corpse vanished.
[System: Acquired clean fish meat x5]
[System: Acquired 5 kg of bone meal]
[System: Acquired light element x1]
The three shimmering materials appeared on the crafting station table as the white light faded, replacing the fish's corpse. Despite the fish being nearly a meter long, only these three materials remained after deconstruction. Combined, they weren't even the size of a human head. It was clear that these were the concentrated essence of the angle fish.
Curiously, Norman stepped forward and examined the three materials closely. As he focused his gaze, the golden text from his cheat provided a description.
(Info Drop: The meat of the anglerfish had its impurities and toxins removed and is safe to eat. Whether grilled or served as sashimi, it's a delicious choice. Not only will it satisfy your hunger, but it will also please your taste buds—a great value.)
(Info Drop: Bone meal, which can be used as a base fertilizer for growing plants and crops, is a relatively common material—not rare at all.)
(Info Drop: The luminescence extracted from the light-emitting organs of the anglerfish can be used to craft flares. These flares can provide illumination over a wide area for an extended period, far surpassing ordinary light rods in effectiveness and value.)
After reading the descriptions of the three materials, Norman nodded thoughtfully. Relatively speaking, aside from the fish meat, the other two materials weren't particularly useful at this stage. However, through these brief descriptions, Norman keenly picked up on some special information.
Bone meal could be used to make base fertilizer and cultivate plants and crops. This implied that in this deep abyss, there were other sources of food besides fishing. Although it was still unclear how crops could be grown underwater, the fact that the system mentioned it and specified that bone meal could only be used as base fertilizer indicated that there must be a way to cultivate crops underwater. It's just that pioneers like him hadn't had the chance to explore this option yet.
"This game is getting more and more interesting," Norman mused, lightly stroking his chin. "Growing vegetables in the deep sea—what a fascinating idea."
Norman chuckled as he stored the three materials in the submarine's storage compartment. Then, he accessed the crafting panel on the crafting station and found the fresh water extractor in the list. The crafting interface for the fresh water extractor had changed.
[Fresh water extractor: Iron 5/5; Copper 5/5]
All the required materials were ready, and the "Crafting" button glowed faintly. Without hesitation, Norman pressed the button. In an instant, the crafting table began to make precise mechanical sounds, clicking and whirring as it worked.
Soon, on the metal wall of the submarine's living quarters near the bed, a translucent outline gradually solidified. Before long, a mechanical device resembling a water dispenser appeared in the living quarters out of thin air.
Norman was taken aback, rushing to inspect the new device with excitement. At the same time, a system introduction appeared before him.
[Fresh water extractor: Basic version, capable of extracting 5000 ml of fresh water per day, but with the current submarine structure, it cannot be upgraded.]