I Became the Alchemy Master by Picking Up Trash-Chapter 89 - 88: Preliminary Round (Part 6)

The surface of the Peterson River was wide, with a gentle breeze rustling, causing the water to shimmer. Beneath its calm exterior, much like the depths of a tranquil forest, lay countless hidden dangers.

A water eel over ten meters long had just had a full meal and was leisurely swimming to digest its food, carelessly wandering into a small fish shoal no longer than a finger.

The small fish bared their disproportionately large teeth and surrounded the water eel, frantically gnawing it. Within seconds, only a complete skeleton was left, which slowly sank to the riverbed, buried by silt.

The satiated school of fish drifted lazily with the current but got tangled in carnivorous water plants. Sharing the water eel’s fate, they were soon drained and turned into nourishment, while the water plants were uprooted and consumed by the dugong beast...

The food chain is tightly interconnected, and the weak falling prey to the strong is a constant occurrence in the water. No one knows which victor may end up in the belly of another in the next moment.

While the underwater scene was breathtakingly intense, the surface was entirely serene, with a beautiful wooden boat quietly gliding along the river. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

With the escort of the doughnut, the journey of the "Trouble with the Unyielding Team" was exceptionally smooth. Aside from the occasional high-level water beast delivering itself as food, the four of them spent the entire day either eating or sleeping, even beginning to feel bored.

At this moment, Cui Tianxiao stared at the water horseshoe beast in front of him with a constipated expression.

"Li Xing, is this thing really edible?"

Not only did Cui Tianxiao doubt, but even Ye Qingting and Qi Ming found it hard to stomach the sight of such an ugly water horseshoe beast.

"Not only is it edible, but it’s also very nourishing. You’ll regret not trusting me!"

Despite its ugly appearance, resembling a facehugger, the water horseshoe beast’s crystal stone is quite small, with limited ability to purify Chaos Qi. Thus, the water horseshoe beasts have high survival environment requirements. This also makes their meat incredibly delicious, and simply boiling it in saltwater turns it into a delicacy.

The Shennong Cauldron emitted steam, filled with various sizes of the hard-shelled water horseshoe beasts, making one’s scalp tingle at the sight.

Li Xing carefully selected the largest one, used her thumb to forcefully open the circular, saw-toothed back shell, revealing the steaming horseshoe meat within.

Seeing the peeled water horseshoe beast, Cui Tianxiao turned pale: "Urgh—"

Quick-handed Ye Qingting covered Cui Tianxiao’s mouth to prevent him from vomiting, though he himself felt a churn in his stomach.

Initially, the complete water horseshoe beast already appeared odd and off-putting, but once the shell was removed, the inside revealed yellow, black, and brown viscous masses resembling dung rather than meat. Were it not for Li Xing’s evident enjoyment, one might think this was a poorly executed prank.

In a blink, the water horseshoe beast, the size of a plate, was devoured by Li Xing, who tossed the empty shell aside and started on another, indulging herself.

Seeing the disdain and horror on her friends’ faces, Li Xing noticed, but before delicious food, she was never one to share.

The explanation was clear: eat if you want, as they were all close. There was no embarrassment in not charging for food anymore, and if they didn’t eat, all leftovers were hers.

In the live stream room.

//Damn! Is this live stream still ongoing? I’ve been back and forth multiple times, always thinking they’d kick the bucket, but they’re still here? If I’d known, I would’ve stayed put, I regret the money I’ve spent...//

//Guys, just entered and I’m not sure what’s happening; when did the competition switch to a food show?//

//What’s that thing in the pot? It looks disgusting!//

//It’s called a water horseshoe beast, a rare low-level water beast. My cousin, who works at the Science Academy, says the water horseshoe beast requires clean water, making its meat incredibly delicious. It’s always topping the buy list of three-star restaurants. The pot they’ve cooked here, if sold to a restaurant, could fetch tens of thousands of star coins.//

//Ahhhh, Li Xing is eating it so deliciously, it makes me want to try it too!//

//Administrator! We vehemently demand to enable taste-sharing functionality!//

Administrator: Get out of here!

Qi Ming mustered up the courage, following Li Xing’s lead, opened up a water horseshoe beast, and stuffed a half spoon of horseshoe meat into his mouth as if ready to face death. The next second, his mouth was filled with the savory freshness.

Ye Qingting and Cui Tianxiao only saw Qi Ming’s blue eyes light up, then skillfully wield his spoon like Li Xing, with both parties quickly polishing off half the water-cooked horseshoe beasts in the cauldron.

"Brother Ye, don’t, don’t watch, close your eyes and eat, it’s delicious!"

Taking advice led to a full stomach, and soon, Ye Qingting joined the gourmets. Watching his companions devour, Cui Tianxiao began to waver.

From past experiences, following Li Xing’s guidance was never wrong, but his obsession with beauty made it difficult to accept such an ugly Star Beast. Before he could make a decision, only one water horseshoe was left in the cauldron.

Seizing it before Li Xing could reach, Ye Qingting snatched the last one. Feeling sorry for the dazed Cui Tianxiao, Ye Qingting decided to let him have the final water horseshoe.

"Ah Xiao, it’s the last one. Take your brother’s advice and try it, or you’ll regret it for life."

Cui Tianxiao stiffened his neck, desperately holding back from saying "no," and took the water horseshoe. Under Li Xing and Qi Ming’s expectant and envious gaze, he tentatively took a bite.

"Holy—crap—!"

Cui Tianxiao’s worldview collapsed; who could have thought such an ugly and disgusting water beast could taste explosively good!

Then, the three witnessed an unforgettable scene, as Young Master Cui devoured the water horseshoe meat ravenously, not only licking the bits of meat off the shell’s inner walls but also pouring some hot water into the shell to rinse it and drink.

Seeing Cui Tianxiao eyeing the pile of eaten horseshoe shells, Ye Qingting quickly tossed them overboard before he could do anything unsightly.

"Li Xing ah—!" Cui Tianxiao, eyes brimming with tears, shamelessly clung to Li Xing’s leg, coquettishly pleading. "I haven’t had enough, catch a few more!"

Li Xing mercilessly pulled back her leg, giving him a huge sidelong glance.

"You think water horseshoe beasts are like koi beasts, plentiful in the river? Water horseshoe beasts have no nests, drifting with the current and only lingering in the best waters, surfacing just once a year for air. We caught a group by sheer luck; whether we’ll catch more in life depends on fate. I told you, you’d regret not eating it for life, didn’t I?"

Cui Tianxiao understood, given the water horseshoe beast’s living habits, he might never get another taste, truly, money can’t buy foresight!

Qi Ming laughed, ready to tease Cui Tianxiao, but suddenly felt a massive shock from the talisman array at the boat’s bottom, and his expression changed drastically, shouting:

"Enemy attack—! Everyone grab the boat!"

Li Xing reacted swiftly, clutching the boat’s edge with one hand and Cui Tianxiao with the other.

Qi Ming’s words had just fallen, and a loud "bang" resounded, as the wooden boat was smashed into the air by a terrifying force, disintegrating into pieces that scattered onto the water.