Chapter 25: Underwater monster
On the sea surface, a bluish portal stood tall and floated, displaying its misfit with this world.
Players streamed through the portal into this oceanic plane, which was aptly nicknamed the "Ocean Plane" by the players due to its predominantly aquatic nature.
However, the subsequent players fared better than the first batch. Some who couldn't swim had received advance notice and prepared accordingly with various props. Some used wood, while others crafted airbags from animal skins.
The most extravagant one among them actually brought out a coffin from the previous skeleton graveyard and used it as a boat, drawing a crowd of curious onlookers from nearby players.
Nonetheless, they were unaware that a few proficient swimmers mysteriously drowned mid-swim, never to resurface. With so many players around, it was considered normal for some to lack swimming skills.
Meanwhile, Laotan Sour Pickle had finished processing the wood and re-entered the Ocean Plane, intent on collecting more wood to make a profit. As soon as he emerged from the portal, he began swimming towards Pickle Island.
Halfway through his journey, he noticed a player swimming ahead of him who suddenly vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving only bubbles on the surface. He found it strange since the player appeared to be a good swimmer.
However, he didn't stop and continued swimming, considering the disappearance of a competitor to be a good thing. Moments later, he discovered how the previous player had vanished.
A large hand suddenly emerged from underwater, grabbing Laotan Sour Pickle's leg. Before he could react, he was pulled underwater. Attempts to call for help were futile.
The players on the surface were still unaware of the danger and continued swimming towards Pickle Island. Laotan Sour Pickle desperately struggled, kicking the monster's blue claw with his other foot.
But the monster's strength underwater was too great, and it continued to drag him deeper. Despite his frantic efforts, Laotan Sour Pickle couldn't break free.
Seawater slowly filled his respiratory tract and flowed into his body. His strength dwindled until he finally lost consciousness.
Just as Laotan Sour Pickle was about to be sent to the resurrection pool, the monster that had grabbed him roughly shoved a red piece of seaweed into his mouth.
After a long time, Laotan Sour Pickle groggily regained consciousness. He felt as if his body wasn't his own anymore, aching all over with dizziness and blurred vision.
His body was tightly wrapped in layers of unknown seaweed, rendering him unable to struggle free. However, there was some good news: he seemed to be able to breathe underwater now.
But he was still being held captive by the monster. It was only then that Laotan Sour Pickle had the chance to observe the appearance of the monster that had attacked him.
It had a fish head and a human body, covered in silver scales. Fins extended from its head, trailing behind its back, and its wrists and ankles were also adorned with fins.
Its fingers and toes were long and thin, webbed, making them more suitable for swimming underwater. Its waist was wrapped in seaweed, with a spear tucked into it.
The monster resembled the legendary mermaid, except its head and body were reversed. At best, it could be called a fish-headed person, or simply a fish-person.
At that moment, it was dragging Laotan Sour Pickle towards an unknown destination. Unable to resist, Laotan Sour Pickle had no choice but to send a message to Fish Tastes Good, warning him to be careful and not approach lightly.
He had previously entrusted the wood he had cut to Fish Tastes Good. Originally, he had planned to seek advice from his classmates at school.
However, unexpectedly, one of them mentioned having a relative who was a shipbuilder and offered to consult with him. Thinking that Fish Tastes Good couldn't swim and wouldn't be able to come to this plane for the time being, Laotan Sour Pickle asked him to build a ship while he went to cut trees and collect wood.
Unfortunately, as soon as he emerged, he was kidnapped by the fish-person, just like his previous encounter with the skeletons. He couldn't help but feel extremely unlucky.
Nonetheless, the underwater scenery was quite beautiful, offering a unique charmUnlike the beauty of land.
Bored, Laotan Sour Pickle decided to open his live stream and chat with his viewers. As soon as the live stream started, hundreds of people flooded in, quickly reaching thousands.
The viewers in the live stream saw Laotan Sour Pickle's miserable state and couldn't help but tease him.
"I have to admit, among all the live streams in the entire Creator Game, I only admire Brother Tan. First, it was skeletons, and now it's fish spirits. Your taste is truly unique," one viewer commented.
"Kidnapped again? This is too unlucky. Allow me to laugh first," another viewer added.
Laotan Sour Pickle, unable to speak underwater, could only type to explain to his viewers: "I was deliberately captured. Look, this fish-person might be a native of the new plane, our future enemy. I'm infiltrating their camp to gather intelligence..."
While chatting with his viewers, the fish-person seemed to have finally reached its destination as its swimming speed slowed down. After passing through a coral reef, Laotan Sour Pickle caught sight of the fish-people's village.
The houses here were crudely pieced together by the fish-people using coral reefs, giving the impression that they would collapse with just a gentle shake.
Two adult male fish-people were patrolling at the entrance of the village. The fish-person who had captured Laotan Sour Pickle briefly exchanged words with them before bringing him into the village.
Some small and seemingly helpless fish-children were playing in an open space, and as soon as they saw the adult fish-people approaching, they eagerly surrounded them. To the female viewers in the live stream, these little fish-children appeared quite adorable, and many expressed a desire to keep one as a pet.
However, one of the adult fish-people pretended to scold them with a spear in hand, scaring most of the little fish-children away. A few slightly larger ones still lingered, but an adult fish-person blocked their way.
Unexpectedly, one small fish-child managed to slip through the gap and, taking advantage of the adult fish-person's inattention, viciously bit Laotan Sour Pickle's hand, drawing blood and turning the surrounding seawater red.
The other little fish-children, smelling the blood, became frenzied and swarmed towards them. Even the adult fish-people's eyes turned slightly red, but one of them quickly regained its composure.
With a swift movement, it impaled the hand of the initial fish-child with its spear, pinning it to the seabed and rendering it immobilized. The sight of this scared away all the other little fish-children, who fled back to their original spot to continue their games.
The adult fish-person withdrew its spear, and the injured fish-child licked the blood off its sharp teeth before walking away with a look of reluctance in its eyes.
After witnessing this scene, both Laotan Sour Pickle and the viewers in the live stream lost their initial perception of the fish-children as cute creatures. Some female viewers couldn't bear to watch and left the live stream.
Fortunately, this was a special live stream feature of the game, or it would have been banned long ago. From the fish-people's treatment of their own kind, Laotan Sour Pickle could tell that they were a cruel and cold-blooded race.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone