Chapter 8: Entering the Ocean

"Hi, buddy, what can I get for you?" Seeing Qin Shiao, the old man asked with a smile

Anderson is the name of the owner of that small inn

The old man with the little braid acted decisively. After making him sit down, he rushed into the kitchen. Qin Shiao stared blankly at his disappearing figure and after a long while, said in silence: "Sir, I haven't even said what I want to eat yet"

I sent it to my old friend for his professional assessment. Auerbach explained, That guy is the art director of the Leith Auction House in Ottawa, and his judgment is beyond reproach

After thanking the Qin Dynasty Ouzhe, he returned to the fishing grounds. With nothing to do in the afternoon and feeling somewhat fatigued, he lay on the bed watching television

This jellyfish measures over 40 centimeters in length and has a diameter of 5 centimeters. Its shape resembles that of a spiral arm, with a well-proportioned overall appearance, though both ends are slightly slender. The body consists of an outer wall and an inner wall, with a hollow center, and it is entirely translucent with a pale white color

It is well known that the marine food pyramid operates on the principle of larger fish eating smaller fish. However, cup sponges can grow to several meters long, even exceeding ten meters. To larger fish, they appear monstrous, making them hesitant to attack.

During lunch, Qin Shiao planned to change his taste. The cod from the Newfoundland region is very famous. He shifted his consciousness to the nearby ocean, preparing to fulfill his earlier wish of cooking a cod to taste.

Auerbach has left, and Qin Shiou, alone in the small building with nothing to do, took up the vacuum cleaner and feather duster, preparing to clean the place

However, what he perceived was disappointing; within a depth of two meters, the seabed was mostly composed of fine, snow-white sand, and occasionally, one could encounter rocks.

In this way, Qin Shiao understood that those grayish-white formations were not living corals, but rather coral reefs composed of the bodies of coral polyps

Old Hickson did not say anything further, standing by the window, biting his pipe and gazing at the azure sky. The smoke swirled around him, perhaps he was reminiscing about the days of his youth

The chubby old man laughed heartily and said, "That's great, child. Your grandfather still owes me over 1,000 yuan for meals, so remember to help him settle that in the future"

He eagerly hopes that the old man can give him a discount like the hotel owner does, and it would be even better if he could treat him to a meal

Upon seeing this sponge cup, Qin Shiao felt somewhat pleased, as this item can attract fish. It is known as the "small fish shelter" and can protect small fish

Unlike the colorful tropical corals of Australia seen on television, the corals in the waters surrounding the fishing grounds are mostly grayish-white and lifeless

At this moment, the cup water mothers had already regained their vigorous vitality, and Qin Shiao could sense the attachment and gratitude these little beings felt towards him

However, when the cup jellyfish approached Qin Shiao's consciousness, its vitality gradually began to recover, while Qin Shiao felt somewhat fatigued. He then suddenly realized that his consciousness could actually heal and even rescue marine life.

Qin Shiyou was momentarily at a loss for words, but soon the old man affectionately patted his shoulder and said, "However, I will treat you to the first meal. I promised Qin that when his descendants take over the fishery, I would invite them to dinner"

As his consciousness began to retract, Qin Shiao saw a transparent jellyfish with long tentacles drifting towards him

Qin Shiyou believed that this was the appearance of cold-water coral, and subsequently, by chance, he also saw a small patch of coral blending pink and light yellow.

Qin Shiyou was puzzled. After a long examination, Old Hikeson softly said: "Young man, when your grandfather first tasted this fried rice, he also used this term, 'a delicacy of the world.' Back then, it was my father who managed this restaurant. In the blink of an eye, many years have passed."

Upon hearing his praise, the old man squinted his eyes in delight. He took out a pipe and placed it in his mouth, exhaling a puff of smoke before saying: "This is my old man Hickson's specialty, spicy stir-fried salmon sauce rice. Your grandfather used to love this dish, so I figured you would enjoy it too"

Qin Shiyou recognized that this is a cup sponge. Although it appears quite large, its structure is actually similar to that of coral, which is composed of countless tiny coral polyps, while this is made up of countless small jellyfish.

The consciousness of Qin Shiyou continued to move in the sea, but could not venture far, with a maximum range of about two nautical miles from the fishing grounds. Thus, the area he traversed in the sea was quite considerable; however, after searching for a long time, he did not see a single fish.

It seems that my grandfather is indeed very popular, Qin Shiao said with a smile: "Yes, I am Xiao Qin, the Qin you mentioned is my grandfather"

As soon as he uttered this word, Old Hixson fell silent, carefully scrutinizing Qin Shiou, his eyes seemingly glistening with moisture.

This restaurant appears somewhat dilapidated from the outside, but it is kept very clean on the inside. An elderly white man with a beard braided into small plaits is busily cleaning. The oak tables are polished to a shine, clearly having aged and developed a patina.

In the evening, Auerbach called to say that an old friend from Leith's auction house had flown to Newfoundland and would go to help him appraise those paintings early tomorrow morning

Auerbach brought a camera and filmed "The Woman with the Tambourine" from different angles. He also selected a painting titled "Morning Breeze in the Woods" by Pina Jean and filmed that as well

Unable to find cod, Qin Shiao was too lazy to cook the carp again, so he simply drove to town and found a restaurant named "Old Man Hickson" to have a ready-made meal

The cup jellyfish is a common organism in the Atlantic Ocean. This cup sponge is composed of square deep cup jellyfish. A small jellyfish measures only about 2 millimeters in length. They are typically gregarious, with thousands of small jellyfish coming together to form such a structure

Qin Shiyou scooped up a spoonful of meat sauce rice and took a bite, the tender meat juice bursting on his taste buds along with the warm rice. He gave a thumbs up to the old man with the little braid and mumbled, "This is amazing, it's the best fried rice I've ever had"

From this piece of coral, Qin Shiao can sense vibrant life, as numerous small coral polyps gather together to form this small coral

Regaining consciousness, Qin Shiao felt a wave of fatigue and an intense hunger

The beautiful scenery of Chenbao Lake provided Qin Shiao with immense inspiration. Originally, he thought that the landscape of a lake would be so splendid and vibrant, and that the vast underwater world should be even more remarkable.

The nearshore waters of the fishing grounds are lifeless, and the seabed environment has been severely damaged, causing the fish to leave this area. Furthermore, the pollution in this sea area is also quite serious, with water quality being extremely poor. Coupled with the relatively low water temperature, this is the reason for the fish's departure

After finishing the meal, Qin Shiao wanted to pay the bill, but Old Heksen insisted on not accepting it, instead apologizing: "I was reminded of some past events just now, and the atmosphere might have been a bit heavy. Please come again tomorrow at noon, and I will prepare another meal for you, alright?"

Qin Shi O: "... ..."

Qin Shiyou carefully stored these paintings. As Auerbach was leaving, he noticed the pickup truck in the yard and nodded, saying: "It is indeed inconvenient to go from the fishing grounds to the town. I overlooked this matter. How about this: you can drive my old Ford, and I will return the pickup to Anderson."

Auerbach said: "I also have a BMW 750, so I will drive the BMW."

His consciousness further descended to a depth of approximately 4 to 5 meters, where coral appeared on the seabed

As Qin Shiyou's consciousness approached the cup sponge, he discovered that the small cup jellyfish that composed it was currently exhibiting a faint life force, with a hole even broken in the side wall.

The blue sky remains, while the old friend has long since vanished

Upon hearing this, Qin Shiao felt somewhat moved and said, "If you give me the Ford, what will you drive?"

Canada and the United States are closely intertwined. As the latter's younger sibling, it can access almost all American television programs. Qin Shiao watched a domestic series that has not been introduced, titled "X Killer"

As Qin Shiyou was about to speak, Lao He scrutinized him for a moment, then suddenly walked over briskly and lightly punched him in the chest: "You are driving old Auerbach's car. I heard that old fellow brought Qin's grandson to town. Is that you?"

The area of the second floor is slightly smaller, approximately 250 to 260 square meters, symmetrically distributed with six bedrooms. Additionally, there is a spacious dressing room of about 20 square meters. The decoration style is minimalist, and the entire small building is adorned with a layer of high-quality red maple flooring on both the floors and walls, which is both moisture-resistant and aesthetically pleasing

In this way, the small fish can hide inside, thereby increasing its chances of survival. The secretions and excretions of the small fish serve as food for these cup jellyfish, and their symbiotic relationship is a remarkable phenomenon of the ocean

In the Qin Dynasty, Ouyang's consciousness gradually retracted, and the sponge cup followed him all the way until it finally came to a stop beside the coral where pink and light yellow intertwined

The small building is divided into two levels. The first level includes two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a large hall, a storage room, and a kitchen, with a total area exceeding 300 square meters. The hall alone covers nearly 100 square meters.

X Killer somewhat imitates X-Men, with the protagonist also being a mutant possessing special abilities. His power allows him to transform into the appearance of a person after coming into contact with that individual's DNA. The plot revolves around his use of superpowers to punish evil and uphold justice.

After four to five minutes, a fragrant fried rice was served. The snow-white rice was topped with even whiter, tender salmon, adorned with specks of golden oil, and accompanied by slices of golden omelet. Additionally, a layer of bright red meat sauce was drizzled around the fried rice, making it incredibly appetizing.

"A delicacy of the human world," praised Qin Shiao.