I Can See Health Bars in Real Life-Chapter 446 - 48: A Replica of the Peach Blossom Spring
Where did this island come from... Was there such an island here before?
The captain, slightly balding, reached out to scratch his head, but before his fingers could touch the dangerously receding hairline, he suddenly remembered something and quickly withdrew his hand. At his age, he couldn’t afford to waste such strategic resources so frivolously.
After discerning what the massive silhouette appearing amidst the thick fog was, he first let out a sigh of relief, but then became puzzled, uncertain of himself. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
In recent years, the domestic coastal fishery resources have deteriorated, and the fishing capacity has severely overflowed, forcing a large number of fishermen to fish farther and farther away... This fishing boat was no exception; after all, he didn’t want to leave an industry he had toiled in for most of his life, so he had no choice but to go with the flow.
And because the catch from the last trip wasn’t promising, coupled with a group of "tourists" chartering the boat to go out to sea for fun this time, he deliberately changed routes this time, and it just so happened that this was a relatively unfamiliar sea area for him.
— Have I ever been here?
— Was there such an island?
No matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t figure it out, and he hadn’t heard anyone in town mention it... Yet in his small town, few ventured into more distant waters like him. The younger generation lacked interest in entering this industry, while the remaining elders just lingered along the coast, clinging to the meager catches to get by...
The more he thought about it, the more bewildered he became. But so far, this middle-aged man, weathered by the sea, showing premature signs of aging compared to his peers, didn’t sense any problem.
At most, he just felt a vague unease...
"Hey! Hey! Mr. Yu, can we go and check out that island?"
At this moment, a bespectacled young man eagerly walked into the cockpit, shouting to the captain without any formality, with a hint of familiarity and closeness in his tone.
Behind the spectacled youth, two more people, a man and a woman, followed. They too had glimpsed the island in the vast mist and were instantly intrigued... In fact, Penglai Island was mythically known as a Grotto Heaven Blessed Land, especially shrouded in fog, giving it an unreal, immortal feel.
The peaks were sometimes hidden by clouds and fog, sometimes concealed in the endless mist.
Pinnacles stood tall, valleys were deep and serene.
Just a hazy glimpse of such an ethereal place through the veil of fog made one involuntarily paint a mental picture of an untainted, tranquil escape from the world.
Thus, this group of young explorers was immediately captivated, which was only natural since they had come not to fish, but to explore the sea for fun.
"It’s really beautiful; it just feels like... Oh, I can’t even describe it. I’ve been to Zhangjiajie before, but it didn’t have this feeling. But Mr. Yu, you also teased me before, saying there’s nothing beautiful at sea..."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on a minute—"
Watching the excited and talkative youth before him, the captain pursed his lips.
They were from the same town, related through some distant kin, and it was this boy who suggested to his classmates to charter his boat, so they weren’t unfamiliar... But he’d been honest before, even if they suggested it themselves, he didn’t want to risk being accused of scamming them for money, so he’d been upfront.
Going out to sea can be quite boring. At first, it might be exciting, but soon you realize everything becomes dull.
Life on the boat is rather monotonous, and when there’s no work, the crew mostly just sleeps or looks at their phones...
But he genuinely hadn’t expected such a large island here, looking picturesque and otherworldly, sparking curiosity among these youngsters... He thought seriously for a moment and looked at the island again, seeming a bit hesitant:
"I’m not very familiar with this part of the sea, and I don’t know this island..."
"Oh, come on, if it were truly a dangerous place or restricted area, we wouldn’t even be able to approach. And in this day and age, honestly, how many undiscovered places are left on Earth..." The spectacled youth was very dismissive, but his reasoning wasn’t without merit.
If there were a dangerous restricted area in this sea, the authorities would have surely taken action long ago.
The fact that they could approach here, and Mr. Yu could freely come and go fishing in this area, indicated there was surely no problem... Logically, it made sense, unless this island suddenly appeared with the thick fog, and they were the first in the world to contact it.
Looking at the mischievous boy in front of him and his two hopeful classmates behind, Mr. Yu glanced again towards the direction of the deck.
The laughter had ceased; it seemed the students were waiting for news from this side, clearly all eager to check out that island...
"Captain, we can haul in the nets now! This catch seems really heavy, probably our most bountiful ever, finally hitting the jackpot... There’s so much fish here, for some reason they’ve all gathered around; this might be a blessed spot, we could come back here more often in the future!"
