Chapter 974: Yielding A Fish For The Good Of Humanity

So that was it

, Li Xiaofei came to a sudden realization.

No wonder he had felt something odd when he looked at the large white fish earlier. The young fisherman finished eating the two complete sets of fish bones laid out on the white porcelain plate.

He chewed very carefully. He crushed the bones bit by bit and then swallowed them. His movements were graceful. But the sight made Li Xiaofei feel a little uneasy. It was the first time he had seen someone eat fish like that. Not even the bones had been spared.

The young fisherman smiled. “The Chaos White Fish is a treasure from head to tail. It's extremely rare in this Land of Sacred Fall, so nothing should be wasted. Even the fish bones contain pure elemental energy from heaven and earth.”

Li Xiaofei suddenly felt a little foolish. He had actually returned that grilled fish from earlier without taking a bite.

Gurgle, gurgle.

The fish soup in the black pot was bubbling and steaming.

The young fisherman lifted the lid, took a deep breath, and said, “Delicious. I’ve been fishing for so many years, and this is the first time I’ve ever caught three this big... Hahaha, you, kid, are my lucky star.”

He carefully pulled out a few small bottles and jars from his person. They were all filled with seasonings. He sprinkled the seasonings into the fish soup. Immediately, a tantalizing aroma spread through the air.

The originally cold and gloomy cliffside suddenly seemed to grow warmer. Even the surrounding wind, rain, and thunder seemed to fade into the distance. The young fisherman then took out two rough porcelain bowls and filled them with soup.

One for himself. One for Li Xiaofei. This time, Li Xiaofei didn’t hesitate. He picked up the bowl and took a careful sip. The warmth and umami spread through his mouth. Li Xiaofei’s eyes lit up from the deliciousness.

Seeing the young fisherman on the side gulping down the soup by the mouthful, Li Xiaofei quickly slurped his own down in one go, then rushed to the black pot and ladled himself another bowl.

“Hey? You brat—” The young fisherman shouted, “You’re like a cow chewing peonies. This fish soup is exquisite. You need to savor it slowly. Drinking it like that is a complete waste.”

Li Xiaofei didn’t care in the slightest. He could feel the fish soup turning into a surge of pure energy the moment it entered his stomach. Its effects were comparable to the legendary Peaches of Immortality and the Sanqing Dahua Pill. With results that good, anyone not scrambling to drink it would have to be out of their mind.

“Damn it.” The young fisherman, who had been leisurely sipping his soup just moments ago, could no longer maintain his grace after witnessing the scene. He downed the rest of his bowl in one gulp and rushed to the pot to grab another.

And so, the two of them began scrambling around the black pot. Before long, Li Xiaofei simply picked up the pot itself and started pouring the soup straight into his mouth.

“This is an utter disgrace, an utter disgrace.” The young fisherman stomped his feet in anger. They nearly came to blows.

Burp.

Li Xiaofei let out a burp, set down the black pot, and patted his belly in satisfaction. The young fisherman leaned in for a look. His face instantly darkened. The bottom of the pot had been licked clean. Even scraping it with a razor wouldn’t yield a single drop more.

“You brat, I misjudged you.” The young fisherman gritted his teeth in frustration.

He had seen Li Xiaofei turn down the grilled fish earlier and assumed the kid was considerate and polite. Who would have thought he would be this shameless?

𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

“Senior, didn’t you say we’d split everything evenly when we met?” Li Xiaofei wiped his mouth and said, “Actually, you still got the better end of the deal. Think about it. You ate the entire grilled fish, and you still got two bowls from the soup made with the second one.”

“You—” The young fisherman looked like he was about to laugh from sheer exasperation.

He had caught the fish, grilled the fish, and brewed the soup, and in the end, he was the one taking advantage?

“Then what about the last fish...” said the young fisherman, glancing toward the fish basket nearby.

But at some point, it was empty. A plump white fish hung at Li Xiaofei’s waist.

“You brat, don’t push your luck.” The young fisherman was nearly fuming.

Li Xiaofei smiled cheerfully and said, “Senior, don’t get angry just yet. Let me explain the reasoning behind this. If you still think I was wrong after hearing me out, I’ll return the fish to you.”

“Speak.” The young fisherman clenched his teeth.

Li Xiaofei said, “To you, Senior, this fish is just a delicacy. You’ve already reached the pinnacle of cultivation, and this fish won’t increase your strength in the slightest. But for me, and for the friends around me, this fish is not just delicious. It holds great value for advancing our cultivation realms. It also has significance for the future of the human race. Am I right?”

The young fisherman’s expression softened slightly at those words. “There’s a bit of twisted logic in what you said. But I was the one who caught that fish.”

Li Xiaofei continued, “Of course the fish is yours, Senior. But by offering this fish for the benefit of the human race, your generosity will become a legend. No matter how many years pass, people across the universe will praise the tale.”

“Offering one fish for the good of humanity?” The young fisherman chewed over the words for a few seconds and said, “That line of yours is quite something. Fine, fine. Am I really going to squabble with a clueless little brat like you? Just for that sentence, you can keep the fish.”

Li Xiaofei immediately cupped his fists and bowed. “Many thanks, Senior.”

Outside the cliff, wind and rain raged. The world-destroying forces between heaven and earth grew increasingly violent. Countless raindrops pounded the cliffside furiously as if they intended to shatter it entirely. Howling winds crashed again and again against the cliff. As though they wished to tear it down.

“Senior, are you going to keep fishing?” Li Xiaofei asked.

The young fisherman shook his head. As he packed up his fishing gear, he replied, “The Chaos White Fish is a rare treasure of heaven and earth. Catching three was already pure luck. How could I drain the lake just for more? These ten years are done. I’ll come back to fish again... in another ten years.”

Li Xiaofei asked, “Senior, are you leaving now?”

The young fisherman answered, “I’ve finished fishing and eaten my fill. Of course I should leave. What else is there to stay for?”

Li Xiaofei asked, “Where are you going, Senior?”

The young fisherman replied, “To visit an old friend.”

Li Xiaofei was slightly surprised when he heard that.

Does Lin Beichen actually have other friends in this Land of Sacred Fall?

“May I come along with you, Senior?” Li Xiaofei asked tentatively.

The young fisherman turned and gave him a smile. He said, “Sure, then follow me.”

After tidying up his fishing gear and hanging the fish basket at his waist, he began walking slowly along a narrow path that ran beside the cliff. Li Xiaofei followed closely behind him.

The winding path clung to the cliff face and gradually descended. Only after trailing behind the fisherman did Li Xiaofei realize that the visible part of the cliff had merely been the tip of the iceberg. As he followed the path down the stone steps that seemed perfectly natural, he soon discovered it was actually a road leading underground.

Li Xiaofei couldn’t even tell how this path had appeared. It felt as though the moment the young fisherman lifted his foot, the road simply formed ahead of him, as if it had always been there.

And yet, calling it a path into the underground wasn’t quite right either. No matter how far down they went, they never seemed to pass below the horizon. The surroundings remained filled with cascading waterfalls, violent gusts of wind, torrential rain, and flashing lightning.

Only one thing caught Li Xiaofei’s attention. The pool of water was now above him.