Inside the giant clam, something was glowing—and there were unmistakable signs of life within.Countless possibilities flashed through Yun Luohe’s mind.Could there be a merfolk inside? Or perhaps a dangerous sea creature hiding in its shell?It could also be a starfish or a sea snake that had slipped in through the gap.There was only one way to find out—she had to open the giant clam.But before that, she needed to remove the layer of dead coral that had completely encrusted its shell.Though lifeless, the coral was tightly wrapped around it, forming a solid barrier.It wasn’t dangerous, but clearing it wasn’t easy either—each coral root had to be severed one by one.Yun Luohe took out her double-band speargun, carefully aiming at the coral base and pulling the trigger with precision.After sustained effort, it took twenty minutes for her to finally eliminate all the troublesome coral.Freed from its restraints, the giant clam slowly opened on its own.A beam of light shot outward from inside.Bubbles streamed steadily from the partially opened shell.Then, Yun Luohe heard a voice:[Merfolk Ruins Passage Unlocked][Mission: Explore the Merfolk Ruins. Locate the priest’s journal.]Once the giant clam was fully open, Yun Luohe saw an unusual type of seaweed growing inside, along with a very narrow passageway.The passage could only fit a single person.She swam closer and first harvested a bit of the seaweed.[Coral Polyp Symbiotic Algae: Forms a symbiotic relationship with fish coral polyps. Can be refined into photosynthetic nutrient solution. Increases crop growth rate by 50%.]It seemed this algae had siphoned all the nutrients from the dead coral and survived by hiding inside the giant clam.This was clearly valuable material—Yun Luohe had no intention of leaving it behind. She planned to harvest all of it.But just then, a glowing squid emerged from the algae and squirted ink right at Yun Luohe’s face.Fortunately, she reacted quickly and raised her arm to block it—the ink splattered harmlessly on her forearm.In the next instant, Yun Luohe drove her hunting knife into the squid’s head, dispatching it with ease.There were quite a few of these squid hidden among the algae.She swiftly eliminated several more.To her delight, she discovered that they dropped a valuable material upon death—Luminous Squid Ink Sacs.Yun Luohe remembered that this was one of the required materials for repairing her Damaged Merfolk Luminous Crown.She retrieved it from her backpack:[Damaged Merfolk Luminous Crown][After repair: Increases underwater visibility by 50 meters. Grants night vision.][Repair Materials: Mother-of-Pearl ×20, Obsidian ×10, Luminous Squid Ink Sac ×5]As she thought—her memory had been correct.She packed all the seaweed into her backpack.There had been more than a dozen squid hiding among the algae—only the larger ones yielded ink sacs, but she had enough now.Satisfied, Yun Luohe entered the passageway.It took her over ten minutes of slow, cramped movement before the tunnel finally opened up.What appeared before her was a magnificent palace.Constructed entirely from pearl, shell, and coral—it was breathtakingly beautiful.The palace was overgrown with elegant aquatic plants, with schools of small fish darting between the fronds, playing and weaving in and out.Yun Luohe took a moment to admire the spectacular scene before slowly swimming toward the palace.She could sense that there were no signs of life within.Since it was a merfolk ruin, there shouldn’t be any living merfolk left here.But there were surely still valuable items remaining.If she searched carefully, she might find relics left behind by the merfolk.However, Yun Luohe quickly realized she’d been wrong.The palace was empty—only a hollow shell remained. She swam a full circuit through it, but found nothing of worth.She’d need to search for a hidden chamber or mechanism.The system mission required her to locate the Merfolk Priest’s journal—something like that would typically be well hidden.Checking the time, Yun Luohe saw it was getting very late. She needed to move fast.She activated [Scanning Eye], set to its maximum range, and swept her surroundings meticulously—leaving no suspicious spot unchecked.At last, her diligence paid off.Beneath a floor tile on the palace’s right side, she discovered a hidden mechanism.She swam over immediately and pried the tile up with her hunting knife. Sure enough, the space beneath was hollow.After pressing the trigger, she watched the tile floor slowly part to both sides, revealing a hidden passage.A downward staircase led her into a small secret chamber.Inside stood a massive stone coffin, its surface engraved with intricate symbols and patterns.Yun Luohe swam closer and tried to open it, but the sarcophagus was extremely solid—none of her methods worked.Just as she was about to give up and look elsewhere, she noticed a recess under her foot.Hexagonal—roughly the size of a palm—and oddly familiar.She’d seen something like this before.She grabbed her Golden Crocodile Backpack, dumped everything out, and rummaged through the pile.The contents of that bag formed a literal mountain.She searched for a long time before finally finding a stone disk.[Astral Compass: At night, consumes Obsidian to locate ore veins using stellar positions.]Was it this? The shape matched exactly.She remembered—it was something she’d found inside the gray giant clam.When she inserted the disk into the recess, the lock on the sarcophagus slowly began to open.Yun Luohe felt a surge of excitement and gently pushed open the stone lid.Inside lay a skeleton clad in ancient attire, clutching a glowing crystal orb inscribed with complex runes.These runes seemed to contain energy.She carefully lifted the crystal orb, and the moment her fingers touched it, energy surged through her.Strange images filled her mind—fragments of merfolk memory.She witnessed their origin, their once-glorious civilization, and their final decline.Only through these fragmented memories did she finally understand—She withdrew her hand from the orb.Sure enough, she found a tattered journal nearby.As soon as she picked it up, the mission prompt appeared:[Mission Complete. Rewards: Crystal Stone ×10, Merfolk Tear Brew ×2][Merfolk Tear Brew: Ancient merfolk wine. After drinking, underwater movement speed +25%. May cause intoxication if consumed in excess.]The rewards this time were generous—ten crystal stones at once.Yun Luohe opened the journal.It recorded extensive information about the merfolk.Several entries were immediately useful to her.For example, how to purify a Corrupted Merfolk Pearl, and the full recipe for Merfolk Tear Brew.Also, how to use the Astral Compass to locate ore veins within ruins.Yun Luohe was overjoyed.Aside from the journal and the crystal orb, the sarcophagus held nothing else.She didn’t yet know the orb’s specific function—but it was clearly something valuable.Yun Luohe resealed the sarcophagus and prepared to leave.This dive had exceeded her expectations.It was already late, and her [Night Vision Potion] had worn off. She couldn’t keep exploring in the dark.She’d return first and study the journal thoroughly—next time, she could dive again.—Back at the Reef Base, Yun Luohe saw Roubao and Yúntūn cleaning the room.Roubao lazily tossed trash into the trash can using its tail.Yúntūn bundled up waste with its silk and lobbed it into the can.The cat and the spider worked like an assembly line—one tossed, the other followed—each with steady rhythm, without getting in the other’s way.When they heard Yun Luohe return, they both paused and rushed to greet her.“Meow, you’re finally back.”“Hss hss, Hehe, I missed you so much.”Feeling their enthusiasm, Yun Luohe smiled. “Well, I’m here now. Let me shower and change first.”Yúntūn wanted to follow her into the bathroom, but it hated water—so it stayed at the door.It dangled from the ceiling by a silk thread, swinging like it was on a hammock.Roubao sat at the door as well.When Yun Luohe opened the door and saw them waiting, she froze.Then she chuckled, nudged Roubao aside, and let Yúntūn perch on her shoulder.“Roubao, are you hungry?”“Meow, I’ve been starving!”“And you, Yúntūn?”Yúntūn rubbed against her hair, “I’m not hungry.”“Alright then. I’ll go make something to eat—come help me.”She had brought back plenty of ingredients from the sea—time to update the menu.First, she took everything out and organized it.[Fish ×31, Octopus Meat ×30, Octopus Tentacles ×8, Luminous Sea Snail ×4, Coconut Snail ×1, Sea Chrysanthemum Clams ×2, Lobster ×1, Soft-bodied Squid ×28, Horse Manure Sea Urchins ×15]Yun Luohe first cleaned the octopus tentacles, scoring a few slashes with a sharp knife, then sprinkled spices and salt before grilling over open fire.Soon, the tentacles sizzled and filled the air with savory aroma.Next, she prepared to steam the sea chrysanthemum clams.She placed minced garlic and shredded ginger in the openings, then steamed them.Before long, the shells opened, revealing tender clam meat and rich broth.Finally, she took the horse manure sea urchins and began preparing sea urchin steamed egg.She snipped off the spines with scissors, cracked open the shells, and carefully scooped out the urchin roe, mixing it into beaten egg.Adding salt and warm water, she stirred evenly and placed it into the steamer.Soon, all three dishes were done.The methods were simple, but the results were undeniably delicious.The grilled octopus tentacles were charred on the outside and tender inside, chewy and flavorful.The steamed clams were juicy and tender, the broth fragrant and rich.The sea urchin steamed egg was smooth, creamy, and irresistible.If only there had been a big bowl of white rice, it would’ve been perfect.Yun Luohe had her fill, and Roubao stuffed itself until its belly was round.Next, Yun Luohe resumed sorting the rest of her haul, cracking open shells for draws, and stayed busy until late at night.After lying down, she didn’t sleep right away. Instead, she opened the Merfolk Priest’s Journal.Inside, she found detailed instructions on how to purify a Corrupted Merfolk Pearl.Only a few materials were required:Moon Lotus Dew ×1, Cold Seep Cryolite Powder ×1[Soak the merfolk pearl in Moon Lotus Dew for 3 hours.Once the decayed material is drawn out, coat the pearl in ground cryolite powder and leave it for 12 hours to absorb toxins.]After purification, it would become a Water-Repelling Pearl, allowing underwater breathing—no more need for a [Diving Card].The journal also detailed the full brewing process for Merfolk Tear Brew.Ingredients: Deep-sea Pearl Clam, Wild Sea Grapes, Sea Salt, and Seaweed Fermentation CultureCrush the sea grapes, mix with pearl clam mucus, sea salt, and fermentation culture.Seal in clay jars and bury in sand to ferment using day-night temperature cycles.Stir once daily. After 15 days, filter and bottle.Besides that, the journal also recorded information on Mother-of-Pearl.Turns out, Mother-of-Pearl was considered a sacred relic by the merfolk. It grew parasitically on the inner shell ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ of large giant clams, absorbing moonlight.Smaller ones had only pearlescent shine, while mature ones developed iridescent rainbow hues—these yielded rainbow pearls.To the merfolk, rainbow pearls were symbols of good fortune.Yun Luohe’s eyes lit up.Good fortune!Could that mean it increased her Luck stat?

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