Chapter 32

Once upon a time, there was a fishing village, and in this village lived an old man who was known as the best fisherman. However, he hadn't caught a big fish for over twenty years. The villagers began to doubt his title as the best fisherman, and he finally couldn't bear their ridicule. Despite his advanced age, he set out to sea alone in his small boat, which might be his last voyage.

On the vast ocean, the old man waited for many days, relying on his knowledge of fish behavior. Finally, a giant tuna took the bait. The fish was almost as big as his boat and had immense strength, capable of breaking free or capsizing his boat at any moment. The old man, with his years of experience, struggled to prevent the tuna from escaping, while the tuna dragged his boat across the sea for several days and nights. It was a battle of strength and will. Eventually, the old man triumphed, exhausting the tuna and tying it to the side of his boat as he returned in triumph. However, during the journey back, the blood of the tuna attracted a large group of sharks. To protect his catch, the exhausted old man raised his harpoon and fought fiercely, but he couldn't stop the sharks. The giant tuna was reduced to a massive skeleton. The old man returned to the village with this skeleton.

The villagers, who had thought the old man had died at sea, were shocked by his return. In the end, the old man successfully defended his title as the best fisherman in his old age!

This is the world-renowned classic, "The Old Man and the Sea" by Hemingway, which even Dafei is familiar with.

Now, facing the swarm of sharks, Dafei recalled the plot that once made his blood boil in his youth. His long-dormant passion surged, and he raised his middle finger, saying, "I'm going to become a classic too! I'll write my autobiography, 'Dafei and the Sea'!"

Yeah, just replace the word 'old man' with 'Dafei' in "The Old Man and the Sea."

Sharks are the top predators of the ocean, and their strength is equivalent to a sixth-level unit on land, not easily defeated. Without hesitation, Dafei took out the War Machine Skill Book, and golden light flashed!

— System Notice: You spent 1 skill point and learned Advanced War Machine Studies!

— System Notice: You spent 1 skill point and learned Expert War Machine Studies!

— System Notice: You spent 1 skill point and learned Master War Machine Studies!

Oh yeah! Graduated!

Now, with Master War Machine Studies, the Ballista's attributes are:

— Attack: 30, Defense: 30, Health: 8/600, Base Damage: 6-7, Attack Speed: 5, Movement Speed: 1, Special Skills: Knockback, Piercing.

The total damage of the ballista = Base Damage × Hero's Strategy Attribute Points. Now Dafei is level 16 with 15 total attribute points, so the ballista's total damage is 90-105!

Holy crap! The attack and defense are the same as an angel's, but the damage is twice as much, and it's a double shot! I'm a boss now! Hahaha!

The sharks quickly approached the tuna in the sea. Dafei, who had been preparing for a long time, aimed at the shark's dorsal fin and fired two shots! "-148!" "-132!" This damage was incomparable to the double-digit damage he had dealt to the tuna earlier. This was the power of upgrading the skill by three levels!

— System Notice: You killed a shark, gained +2550 experience!

— System Notice: You obtained complete information about the shark.

Dafei's eyes widened! This experience was shockingly high, almost as much as a low-level boss!

— Shark: Large creature, Attack: 35, Defense: 18, Damage: 25-55, Health: 280, Attack Speed: 7, Movement Speed: 12, Experience: 2550. Special Skills: Blood Tracking, Blood Frenzy, Crippling Bite, Dazing Strike, Wound Tearing, Marine Creature.

The information about sharks, famous top predators of the ocean, was no secret. The ballista's attack and defense were 12 points higher, increasing the damage by 60%. The final damage of the ballista against the shark was 144-168. As long as the shark's dorsal fin surfaced, it would be instantly killed with a double shot.

From the data, the shark's attack, defense, and damage were between the sixth and seventh-level units of various races, but the experience was abnormally high. Besides its numerous and brutal special skills, the key was that it was a "marine creature."

— Marine Creature: Marine creatures excel in underwater combat and have abundant health.

Ground creatures have reduced stats in water, making it almost impossible for them to defeat sharks. This was also the main reason Dafei couldn't defeat any monsters on the island. Considering this difficulty, the experience for killing sharks was exceptionally high. In other words, leveling up by killing sea monsters was much more efficient than killing land creatures, although more experience doesn't necessarily mean faster leveling.

To Dafei, the sharks were now just experience points! Normally, sharks would swim far away from large ships, making it impossible to kill them. But with the tuna as bait, Dafei didn't even need to aim; he just needed to load the ballista and fire!

— System Notice: You killed a shark, gained +2550 experience!

— System Notice: You killed a shark, gained +2550 experience!

— System Notice: You killed a shark, gained +2550 experience!

...

Dafei laughed excitedly. How much do sharks love tuna? The novel's plot is true! This is what it means to feel good! It must be good! Dafei had been drifting at sea for four or five days without accomplishing anything, and it was only right to make up for the lost experience!

A golden light descended from the sky!

— System Notice: Congratulations! You have reached level 17! You gained 1 free attribute point, 1 skill point, +2 health, +1 leadership.

Hahaha! Leveled up! Must have! Two thousand five hundred per shark, ten sharks for twenty-five thousand, and there are still dozens more. I can level up again! Haha! Hahaha!

After reloading, Dafei excitedly pulled the trigger. Suddenly, a rainbow of light flashed above him, followed by a black light that dispelled the rainbow!

— System Notice: You are in a state of misfortune. Your attack damage will be halved to the minimum!

Dafei's laughter stopped abruptly. Misfortune!?

The arrow flew out—"-72!" "-72!" Damn! Didn't kill it!

Damn, my ship is in a "cursed by misfortune" state, -3 luck, and the ship itself has a +2 luck blessing, so the final luck is -1, meaning a 2% chance of misfortune. I encountered it with a 2% chance, how unlucky can I be?

The shark, which had been fighting over the tuna, now turned towards Dafei's ship, the Soaring, and charged!

Dafei was stunned! No way! It's going to ram the ship! Yeah, I was having too much fun, didn't think about the counterattack. Was it the superiority of being on a high ship, or did the tuna's helplessness make me relax?

There's no choice, it's just a game. In the game, riflemen can shoot down tanks one by one, so it's not strange for a shark to ram a ship. But my ship is already riddled with holes, how can I let it ram? The key is, this isn't a land battle; the area below the ship is a blind spot for the ballista. If it gets close, the consequences will be unimaginable!

Dafei hurriedly reloaded. The shark was approaching at a speed comparable to a human sprinting on land!

— Aim! Dafei quickly adjusted the ballista's direction, his palms sweating. The speed was so fast, and the water made aiming more challenging.

Must hit! Must hit! If I miss, there will be no second chance. I can only watch it destroy the ship! Wait! What if I hit with a misfortune shot again? Misfortunes never come singly, and when luck runs out, anything can happen! I've encountered this too many times!

Without hesitation, Dafei quickly took out the Luck Skill Book and clicked to learn it. Just to correct the -1 misfortune to 0. I don't ask for good luck, just no misfortune, I just want average luck!

— System Notice: You spent 1 skill point and learned Basic Leadership!

— Basic Leadership: Hero's leadership increases by 10%, and the morale of the hero and the hero's troops +1.

— Ah! Dafei spat out a mouthful of blood! Wrong book! Damn! When you're unlucky, misfortunes never come singly. I made such a low-level mistake at the most critical moment! As a pro, my mental state is lacking!

Now, the shark was right in front of the ship, and Dafei could see its blood-red eyes on either side of its head underwater! There was no time for small actions; he had to fire!

So close, no reason to miss! I've been unlucky twice, no reason to be unlucky a third time!

— Bang! Two shots fired! Dafei closed his eyes in tension!

— System Notice: You killed a shark, gained +2550 experience!

Hearing the system notice, Dafei felt like he had heard heavenly music, his body instantly relaxing. His back was drenched in sweat.

I really care about this ship. Next time I log off, I'll definitely buy items from the store! It's just the cost of two fried rice dishes, I won't take risks anymore!

(Various requests for votes)

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