Treasure (2)
Ambergris, the jewel of the sea.
Formed within the digestive tract of sperm whales from secretions or transformed gastroliths, it looked like nothing more than an ordinary rock at first glance. Yet, true to its poetic epithet, it commanded astronomical value. Back home, a single kilogram easily fetched forty to fifty million won, and because most lumps were quite large, their prices routinely soared into hundreds of millions. If ordinary ambergris from my old world was worth that much, what value would one place on the ambergris of a mythical Sky Whale?
Frankly, it was something money couldn't buy.
Not only was it an invaluable specimen that scholars would give an arm and a leg to research, but it originated from a genuine mythical entity. It defied pricing altogether, and selling it would invite an unimaginable backlash from the academic world.
The mention of potential purification abilities gave me pause. Even if it possessed such properties, what would I even use them on? There might be other unknown traits waiting to be discovered, but figuring them out would take far too long.
I can't just leave it sitting around collecting dust, either.
I had my subspace bag, but items inside still retained their weight, and its capacity was hardly infinite. It was undeniably a priceless treasure, yet practically useless to me in my day-to-day survival. Letting out a dry chuckle at the sheer irony of the situation, I decided to figure out what to do with it for now.
I still had plenty of time, so there was no need to rush. Besides, an idea had sparked in my mind ever since I saw the swarm of ants swarming over the ambergris.
If ants were drawn to it, wouldn't fish react the same way?
It sounded a bit absurd on the surface, but in survival, you never knew until you tried. Allfather would probably pound his chest in sheer despair if he saw me, but I didn't care.
They seemed unexpectedly intrigued. Then again, who else across all dimensions would ever attempt something this unhinged?
I carefully examined the fishing rod sent to me by a sponsor. Crafted from thick bamboo, it lacked a reel to adjust line length—likely a technological limitation of the era it came from. Still, the material felt sturdy and dependable, which was more than enough for my purposes.
[Attached: Photo of the bamboo fishing rod and a small chunk of ambergris being mounted as bait]
Gonna use this as bait and cast a line. Wonder what'll bite?
No matter how many times I saw it, I could never wrap my head around the mood swings on this forum. One second they were relentlessly clowning on me, and the next, they were looking at me with mournful sympathy.
Shaking my head, I closed the Gallery interface and headed down toward the riverbank with my animal companions. After checking and pulling up the submerged fish traps, I inspected the condition of the water.
Rumbleeee!
The rapids rushed on just as violently as ever. Across the river, the vast desert stretched out into the distance under the sweltering heat. Seeing nothing unusual, I prepared my fishing gear and made sure to generously spray repellent around our spot to keep any lurking insects away.
"Wonmo, go play with this for a bit."
"Kkyuu!"
I handed Wonmo a stuffed puppy doll. A toy dog in a primordial forest seemed bizarre, but it had also come from a sponsor who claimed it was crafted from a specialized fabric beloved by beasts. True to their word, Wonmo rolled around happily with it, thoroughly entertained.
"Ggobongi, if something bites, you help me yank the rod. Got it?"
"..."
"Answer me."
"Yes."
With Ggobongi assigned as my heavy-hauling assistant, preparations were complete. I secured a small piece of ambergris onto the hook. Instantly, an intoxicating, sweet fragrance drifted up into the air, making it clear why people treasured it as high-end perfume.
To think whale droppings could smell this heavenly. What a bizarre world.
Smirking at the thought, I gave the rod a vigorous cast. The baited hook arced gracefully through the air before dropping into the water with a crisp plop! Given the sheer speed of the river rapids, I had worried the lure might get swept away in an instant, but my concern proved entirely unfounded.
Splash! Splatter!
An unbelievable frenzy of fish swarmed toward the bait all at once. The rod bent violently, the pull nearly tearing it from my hands.
"Pull, Ggobongi! Pull!" I shouted in shock.
Ggobongi grabbed the bamboo shaft and pulled backward with immense strength. Whether because multiple fish were tangling over the bait or because the river creatures were monstrously strong, the rod refused to budge easily.
"Gaaaaah!"
"Uwoooooh!"
With our combined muscle, however, the balance tilted. Straining every sinew, we yanked the rod skyward in unison.
Splaaash!
A massive fish burst out of the water, thrashing against the sunlit air. For a fleeting second, I reveled in the thrill of landing a monster catch, only for instant disappointment to settle in.
"Wait... that's it?"
The fish flapping at the end of the line was the exact same species I routinely caught in my traps. It seemed the ambergris worked better as an attractant to draw a school of fish into an area rather than as direct hook bait. Still, securing our daily meal was nothing to complain about, so I pushed my disappointment aside and gathered the gear.
It works as bait, sure, but...
It felt like using a block of pure gold to hammer in a tent peg. Why waste priceless mythical ambergris when ordinary traps caught the same fish automatically without any bait at all? Hopefully, Allfather would discover far more practical applications as his research progressed.
Tossing the flopping fish to Ggobongi, I headed back up to the shelter.
Summer days really do drag on.
Normally, dusk would have started creeping across the sky by now, but the sun remained blazing overhead. If nothing else, longer daylight meant more productive hours to get work done—provided the monsoon season didn't roll in and drown everything.
I wonder how long Allfather's research will take.
It was a specimen even an archmage had never laid eyes on, produced by an entity out of myth. It had to possess some extraordinary property. Until he figured it out, patience was my only option.
Why were the ants trying so desperately to haul it away, though? Was it really just because of the sweet scent?
Ants weren't the only creatures that loved sweetness. Perhaps the ants had laid claim to it first, scaring off other insects and beasts with their sheer numbers. Pondering such idle thoughts, I turned my gaze toward the cave wall where I had been tallying my survival days.
Day 26 already?
Three more days and it would mark a full month. Time had flown by with surprising speed. The outside world, as glimpsed through the Gallery, was far from peaceful. El Dorado was teetering on the brink of an all-out civil war, while the Blood Cult was stirring up ominous movements in Murim. For my part, my greatest hope was that Ludwig would safely make his way through the Four Seasons Forest so we could finally meet.
Come to think of it, wasn't there a match today?
Having some free time on my hands, I pulled up the Gallery interface. Right on cue, Princess Chaeng-gu had posted a thread announcing kickoff.
Leaving them to their passionate banter, I settled down quietly. Since the matches would take hours to conclude, I decided to focus on circulating my Mind Cultivation Method.
The core of cold energy has grown to the size of a fist now.
Over time, my control over the icy energy within my body had progressed by leaps and bounds. What had once started as a tiny speck no larger than a grain of millet had steadily condensed into a solid fist-sized mass. Furthermore, the rate of its expansion had begun to slow down, signaling that it was approaching full stabilization.
Once I master this cold energy, I'll ask the Heavenly Demon for the next oral mnemonic formula.
Asking her on Day 30 felt like the right milestone. I spent the intervening hours rotating my breathing techniques and tidying up the shelter before logging back into the Gallery around dinner time.
[Chaemes United vs. Cadroll: Full Time! Chaemes United Closes 3-2 Exactly as Prophesied by the Saint!]
[Leor vs. Junin: Both Sides Settle for a Draw Following Stoppage-Time Equalizer]
"Oh?"
I nailed it again. The exact scorelines, and even the exact flow of the matches.
Getting it right once or twice could be brushed off as luck, but hitting the bullseye three times in a row felt downright surreal.
As expected, the thread had rapidly devolved into a superstitious wishing shrine. Chuckling at the chaotic forum antics, I logged out. Some users were posting about striking it rich through sports betting, but I ignored them entirely. Gold or continental currency meant nothing to me here—surviving day-to-day was all that mattered.
I pushed myself up and stepped outside to prepare dinner.
Gasp... gasp...
Right before my eyes, the fish I had pulled from the river earlier was gently flapping its gills.
...Floating through empty air, leisurely swimming across the sky.
...What the hell? Is the world bugged?
Truly, the apocalypse was upon us.