Luminous Pearl… Exotic Fragrance… The restless fish… Most people would think these keywords combined suggest the emergence of a treasure.
Moreover, the pervading fragrance was truly irresistible to the extreme.
It was a scent that completely overwhelmed instincts and stirred desire to its core, meaning that once one smelled it, self-control became impossible.
The reaction of the fish confirmed this.
Tao Qian was also unable to restrain his own desire, thrashing about madly, swaying his fish tail, wanting to rush over and swallow that "Bead."
But at the same moment, a stream of information exploded within his soul.
In an instant, it manifested into a format Tao Qian could understand.
"Exempted!"
Simple and crude, these three large characters felt like a big bucket of ice water had been poured over him, jolting Tao Qian to his senses and making him realize what was happening.
The last page of the Nameless Secret Manual, those crazy, bright red ancient seal characters emerged from the depths of his memory.
"Fish? Or bait!"
A chilling sensation suddenly climbed up Tao Qian's soul.
Had he not felt a sense of absolute autonomy at that moment, he would have likely desperately tried to escape this Light Fish form in madness.
"What Immortal Fish roaming the Heavenly Dao, isn't this turning into a fish and actively leaping into a fishpond dug specifically by some terrifying being?"
"All cultivators who have practiced the Immortal Fish Technique, are they just fish in someone else's pond?"
"That Bead, is it bait?"
As these questions arose, Tao Qian suddenly felt his worldview being refreshed.
Even in such a critical moment, he couldn't help but indulge in a sarcastic thought.
"Damn, others cultivate to truly achieve immortal cultivation, but the creator of the Immortal Fish Technique has a serious lack of virtue, sitting here fishing?"
"You're fishing, fine, but using just a single piece of bait is shameless, don't you prepare the fishing spot before casting the line?"
Angry as he was, Tao Qian, who had already freeloading once, did not plan to exit immediately after a swift moment of contemplation.
"I'm here anyway."
A distinctive thought from his previous life surged at the bottom of Tao Qian's heart.
Then his fish tail violently thrashed, perfectly imitating a fish gone mad because of the exotic fragrance, blending into the restless school.
The moment he blended in, it was perhaps a coincidence.
He just so happened to brush against his initial target, which was the unusually beautiful Red Fish.
Following the logic of novels and TV dramas, Tao Qian thought that the true identity of that "Red Fish" would be a beautiful yet arrogant female cultivator.
Tao Qian thought since it's just a brush to trigger his Extraordinary Perception and peek into the secrets of the Cultivation World and this place, then why not touch anyone?
As the big and small fish collided, Tao Qian, who had just entered the pond and was merely the size of a thumb as a Light Fish, was unsurprisingly knocked away.
However, Tao Qian was thrilled when, in the moment he touched Red Fish, a familiar stream of information exploded and quickly sorted itself into that strange format.
Without hesitation, Tao Qian focused his gaze.
[Record Name: Lin Xiaohua.]
[Record Type: Cultivator.]
[Record: Male human cultivator, thirty-nine Sui, an abandoned disciple of the "Heavenly Talisman Sect" from a great Daoist Sect. This individual's Human Dao Technique is profound; although he often appears arrogant towards others, he is actually kind-hearted and has a penchant for rectifying injustice. His cultivation has reached the Qi Refining Realm; he is skilled in talisman crafting and ghost hunting, especially fond of charming techniques or owning Divine Skills of beautiful female ghosts.]
[Note 1: His expulsion from the Heavenly Talisman Sect was due to his encounter with a female ghost of Ghost King Level in the back hills of the Sect. He willingly allowed the Demon Path female ghost to ravage his body for days without alerting the Sect, leading to both his qi and blood depleting, and the female ghost, who practiced Heterodox Magic, to break the seal and escape.]
[Note 2: Days after being exiled from the Mountain Gate, he received compensation from that female ghost; not only was his cultivation fully restored, but he also obtained a top-grade ancient book, the "Primordial Spirit Secret Soul Scripture." If he were to switch to cultivating this Lifebound Scripture, in the future he might achieve the status of Ghost Immortal. Yet, he hesitated only for a moment before refusing and continued to act with kindness and accumulate virtue under the identity of an Abandoned Disciple from the Heavenly Talisman Sect.]
[Note 3: Since he has reached the Qi Refining Realm, he has a certain resistance to the exotic fragrance of the Bo Dragon Pearl.]
...
Once again, Tao Qian was momentarily stunned.
The reason was simple: the amount of information in his mind was overwhelming.
"This one clad in red scales is a male cultivator, named Lin Xiaohua?"
"Already a Qi Refining Realm cultivator, skilled in talisman crafting, fond of ghost hunting."
"That Bead is called the Bo Dragon Pearl."
Several thoughts flashed through Tao Qian's mind as he extracted the keywords.
He didn't want to mention the first two thoughts again. As for the so-called "Qi Refining Realm," it again touched on common knowledge within the Cultivation World.
The realms of cultivation!
Tao Qian, who learned from Wu Ming's Nameless Secret Manual, also knew of the existence of such a hierarchical system in the Cultivation World.
Allegedly there are Nine Realms, starting with the Energy-Introducing Realm.
Only those who enter this realm can be considered truly transcendent and real cultivators.
After Energy Introduction comes the Qi Refinement Realm.
And beyond that, as Wu Ming's own level was too low, neither he nor Tao Qian knew any further details.
However, Tao Qian also knew that this so-called hierarchy of the Nine Cultivation Realms was seemingly only common within the "Daoist Sect" and "Side Door Heterodox" factions.
As for whether other factions like the Buddhist Sect, Martial Arts, Divine Dao, Demon Path, and many other traditions that came from the West acknowledged it, remained unknown.
But these were sufficient for Tao Qian, who truly was a novice in the Cultivation World. For him, the senior Lin Xiaohua, who was already at the Qi Refining Realm and fond of ghost hunting, was definitely a big shot.
Subconsciously, Tao Qian moved closer, contemplating how he should strike up a conversation and get familiar with him.
Suddenly, his vision blurred.
A strikingly red "fish tail" slapped right across Tao Qian's face.
With a smack, the little fish he had transformed into was swept out of the school, pitifully dropping towards the bottom of the pond.
Meanwhile, Senior Lin Xiaohua, who had successfully slapped him, lifted her fish head arrogantly and coquettishly blended back into the school.
They were packed densely, drawing near the "Bo Dragon Pearl," which emitted a frighteningly exotic fragrance.
"Dammit..."
Below, Tao Qian, who had been knocked senseless, cursed halfway before suddenly remembering something.
"According to that weird description, this person appears haughty on the surface but is actually kind-hearted."
"Slapping me, could it be to prevent me from blindly joining in and needlessly losing my life?"
Tao Qian had an epiphany in a moment, but wasn't quite sure.
What if the Senior just felt an itch on their tail and wanted to slap your face?
Of course, even if it was true.
Tao Qian had to decline this well-meaning gesture.
If he were truly just a foolish newcomer who had been conned into cultivating the Immortal Fish Technique, then not getting involved would be a very good thing.
But Tao Qian wasn't; he had come to freeload and had already managed to get in without paying.
Having come all this way, yet not being able to touch the "treasure," would be an intolerable regret.
With this thought in mind, Tao Qian took a deep breath and his fish tail began to wag frantically again, perfectly imitating a crazed fish drawn by the exotic scent.
In a whoosh, Tao Qian darted into the school of fish.
Leveraging his small size, he moved through the cracks with ease.
While drawing closer to the "Bo Dragon Pearl," Tao Qian also took the opportunity to observe.
Soon, he had his results.
All the "Light Fish" transformed by the cultivators were driven mad by the pearl.
But none had appeared yet who truly disregarded everything and outright swallowed the Bo Dragon Pearl.
Most of the fish, regardless of size, tried their best to approach the pearl as it continued to sink, sometimes quivering, sometimes shifting side to side.
Then, with their fish mouths open, they would frantically swallow and absorb a certain essence seeping from within the pearl.
A bolder and considerably larger group of cultivators—
They would cautiously and tentatively suck off the fragments that fell from the Bo Dragon Pearl.
The most crazed and least patient were a few fish the shape of sharks.
Their real identities unknown, from which realm they hailed, neither essence nor fragments were enough; they began to nibble at the Bo Dragon Pearl in small bites.
It was during the nibbling that a hair-raising image began to emerge hazily before Tao Qian:
The Bo Dragon Pearl trembled and swayed as it was nibbled, beneath the light's reflection an "invisible thread" slowly revealed itself above the pearl.
"Hiss,"
Tao Qian's prior guesses proved accurate in an instant.
He could almost see a big fish that thought it was being careful take a small bite, only for it to be pierced through the mouth by an invisible hook and with a "whoosh," dragged along the thread to an unknown and terrifying place.
The image was as harrowing as the most heart-stopping scenes from a horror film.
While weaving his way through, Tao Qian planned to repeat his old tricks.
Just like peering into Senior "Rigui Daoist Lin Xiaohua," he intended to thoroughly uncover the secrets of the Immortal Fish within this Immortal Realm.
But before long, Tao Qian realized he had failed.
Despite rubbing up against them, he still couldn't find out the identities of the big fish, nor their level of cultivation.
Each touch did trigger a burst of information in his mind.
But most of it was like this:
[Record Name: ???]
[Record Type: ???]
Tao Qian actually understood this situation.
"Level too high; unable to discern."
"This is equivalent to clearly showing that I am currently nothing more than a newbie."
While Tao Qian was feeling disheartened, he finally mustered up the strength to push to the very front of the school of fish.
He was now extremely close to the ultimate treasure of this Immortal Realm, the "Bo Dragon Pearl."
Although the next second, he was accidentally sent flying by the tail of a Senior who resembled a large black fish.
But before that, Tao Qian had the incredible luck of coming into contact with a wisp of "green-colored" strange and visible essence seeping from the Bo Dragon Pearl.
The instant he touched it, his mind.
Information burst forth once again.
[Record Name: Bo Dragon Driving Origin Qi (bó).]
[Record Type: alien.]
[Record: A wisp of Origin Qi leaking from the "Bo Dragon Pearl," this qi is pure without any impurities, a truly top-grade Origin Qi, consumable by any life form, immediate efficacy upon entry into the body, consumer will randomly receive 'Strong,' 'Flying,' 'Life Extension,' 'Sound Attack,' among other Divine Skills, if consumed with the same origin qi, the power stacks.]
[Note One: Consuming this Origin Qi will cost: the body's soul will gain certain Bo Dragon characteristics and will be influenced by the Bo Dragon's instincts, acquiring its cravings and fears, the intensity increasing with the amount of qi consumed.]
[Note Two: Cost can be exempted!]
...
When this information appeared, Tao Qian's eyes suddenly widened, and a strong possessive desire surged up.
ps: Writing fantasy is very satisfying, but as "Fat Fish" hasn't been written in a long time, being slow is... normal, right? Just need to adapt a bit.