Recent

Time passed quickly as Eshmund went about his daily tasks. Before he knew it, two months had gone by since he joined the sect.

During that time, he never missed a single Formation Master class, immersing himself in the intricate world of formations. However, after discovering that his personal token was somewhat special – allowing him access to any beginner-level class – he took the opportunity to broaden his knowledge. On occasion, he would attend the Alchemist Class, Healer Class, and even the Artifact Crafting Class, absorbing as much information as he could.

In fact, the knowledge he gained in these classes has become less relevant since it can easily be found in books. With the system’s help, he doesn’t even need to read them, it’s already in his brain. What he truly cares about is practical training. He joined these classes to see how those theories are applied physically using appropriate materials. After all, words in books are just shapes, when given meaning, they refer to something, and when put into action, they become reality.

Meanwhile, his underground secret base had undergone significant progress. He had fully furnished the space, installed electric LED lighting made by the Builder Bots, and ensured the entire base functioned as intended.

However, scattered throughout the room were half-finished projects, mechanical parts, and circuitry waiting to be assembled. Many of them had been put on hold due to lack of materials. Sage, his ever-diligent AI companion, had been producing Builder Bots non-stop since acquiring the initial materials from the pawn shop. Their numbers grew exponentially each day, only slowed down by the scarcity of resources.

Once in a while, Sage would request Eshmund to replenish supplies – mainly Boric Ink and Magic Core Dust, along with random rocks from various locations around the sect. He even asked Eshmund to collect dredged waste from multiple places, including the Alchemy Department. Fortunately, with his job at the Herb Garden, acquiring these materials was relatively easy, and he could do so without drawing too much attention.

Eshmund understood what was happening – Sage was meticulously extracting rare materials from these seemingly useless items, re-purposing them into something valuable.

Despite receiving a salary from the Alchemist Hall for maintaining the herb garden, the income was barely enough to support his resource-intensive activities. He needed another way to sustain his projects.

Today, he was in the workshop, working on a scavenger robot – a device that would help him collect and salvage materials more efficiently. The Builder Bots had already assisted him in assembling the intricate EE-Circuits but their numbers were still too small to construct larger-scale machines. As a result, he had to manually craft most of the scavenger’s physical components.

After hours of meticulous work, he finally stepped back, admiring his latest creation.

“Okay, that should do it.”

Before him stood a sleek, crayfish-like robot, modeled after the Gold Thief Crayfish, a species known for its agility and adaptability.

It was designed to operate underwater and it can use its powerful pincers to pick up objects. When in danger, It could jump backward to avoid it, just like its real-life counterpart. The robot crayfish runs entirely on Elemental Energy, utilizing an improved built-in energy-gathering system and equipped with a rechargeable Elemental Energy battery instead of relying on Spirit Stones . The robot could operate for an hour or more, depending on the workload, before needing to recharge.

Satisfied with the design, Eshmund turned to Sage.

“Sage, can you take control of this guy?”

A few seconds later, Sage responded.

“Taking control… Testing movement.”

The robot twitched slightly before scuttling across the floor, its pincers clicking as it grabbed a nearby object.

“Picking up items .. Testing weight limit… Running range simulations…”

Sage ran a few more tests before pausing.

“Hmm this guy is a little slow in its response. It might become even worse underwater.”

Eshmund frowned. “What do you mean?”

“We’re using a hop-to-hop signal transmission system,” Sage explained. “Since we don’t have a satellite, every nanobot relays messages from one to another until the command reaches the destination.”

Eshmund nodded, following along.

“That’s not an issue for nanobots,” Sage continued. “They mostly transmit non-critical information that doesn’t require instant responses. Plus, due to their microscopic size, they’re practically indestructible – even if you smashed them with a hammer, theyd likely remain intact.”

“But this guy,” Sage paused for a moment before concluding, “has a 300-millisecond response delay, depending on your distance from him. If you order him to dodge an attack he hasn’t detected himself, he might not react in time.”

Eshmund pondered for a moment. “Okay, but if we assume there are no immediate dangers, can he still retrieve stuff from the bottom of the lake?”

“Certainly,” Sage confirmed. “This guy is completely non-electrical, and his circuits are shielded from elemental energy surges. He’ll function fine underwater.”

“Good. Then I’ll tie him to a fishing line – just in case he runs out of energy or ran into danger mid-task. That way, I can reel him back up quickly.”

Sage responded with a hint of amusement. “That’s cute. It’s like taking a dog out for a walk.”

Eshmund chuckled, shaking his head. “More like taking a shrimp out for a swim.”

He glanced at the sleek, crayfish-like robot as it twitched its mechanical pinchers, its segmented body shifting slightly as if eager to move. The idea of casually dragging it along a lake-bed on a leash made the whole situation feel almost ridiculous.

Eshmund snorted. “Let’s just make sure it doesn’t become bait for something bigger.”

With that, he grabbed the fishing line and secured it to the scavenger bot, mentally preparing for an unusual day of “fishing.”

Eshmund studied the robot one last time before nodding in approval. “I don’t expect him to carry things home by himself anyway. If someone saw him walking around, they might just ‘kidnap’ him. He looks pretty slick.”

“Agreed,” Sage replied.

“Robots would be considered puppets in this world, right? I’m basically a puppet master now,” Eshmund chuckled, glancing at the crayfish-like scavenger bot.

Sage hummed in agreement. “Technically, yes. Though traditional puppet masters here use spiritual sense threads or formation arrays to control their constructs. You, on the other hand, are using advanced engineering and elemental energy circuits. A rather unorthodox take on puppet mastery.”

Eshmund smirked. “Well, if it works, it works. Maybe I should start calling myself ‘Puppet Master’ . It sounds way cooler than guy who builds robots in his basement or a bat guy in a bat cave”

Sage let out a simulated sigh. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Right now, you’re just a guy taking his mechanical shrimp for a swim.”

Eshmund laughed, “Fair enough. Let’s go see what treasures we can fish out of that lake.”

Eshmund stretched his arms, shaking off the exhaustion from hours of tinkering.

“Let’s archive this scavenger’s design. We’ll keep improving it and maybe mass-produce it later.”

Sage acknowledged the request. “Data stored. We’ll refine the design over time.”

With that, he packed up his things and prepared to head out, ready to hunt for resources and fund his growing ambitions.

---

The Tuangran Lake was bustling with life. Couples leisurely rowed across the serene waters, enjoying romantic dates beneath the bright sky. A large boat carried a group of tourists, their excited chatter mixing with the calls of birds flying overhead. The lake was beautiful – its crystal-clear waters reflected the gentle sunlight, making it the perfect spot for a peaceful day for boating.

Eshmund, however, wasn’t here to sight-see.

He approached the boat vendor and opted for the smallest vessel that could carry two people. This time, he specifically chose one with a roof. If he was going to be out here for hours, he might as well have some shade. The rental cost was 20 contribution points per hour, so he paid 100 points, securing the boat for five hours of scavenging.

As he stepped onto the boat and pushed off from the dock, Sage projected a mini-map before him. Various marked locations pulsed faintly on the water’s surface, each one representing a potential trove of lost valuables.

“These spots are where the lake’s currents naturally deposit debris,” Sage explained.

“Based on flow patterns and sediment accumulation, there’s a high probability that items have collected there over time. Think of them as underwater glory holes for scavenging.” Sage explained

With steady strokes, Eshmund rowed toward the nearest marked location, anticipation bubbling within him.

“Alright, let’s hope we find something valuable,” Eshmund muttered.

Upon arrival, he wasted no time and lowered the scavenger bot into the water. The mechanical crayfish twitched its segmented body before diving beneath the surface, its elemental sensors scanning the lake-bed for anything unusual.

Eshmund leaned back, keeping an eye on the bot’s status display below the virtual map. Within minutes, the screen flashed.

[ALERT: ITEM DETECTED]

“That was fast,” he mused, reeling in the scavenger. As it emerged from the water, he couldn’t help but sigh in disappointment.

The first find? A rotten bento box, completely waterlogged and filled with mud.

Sage chimed in. “Well, it’s not completely useless. The box has some carved copper decorations. We can melt it down.”

“Right, we take everything we can get,” Eshmund said, tossing it into his storage pouch.

He sent the scavenger bot back down, and soon enough, another alert popped up. This time, it dragged up a chunk of scrap metal – probably a piece of a boat that had broken off over time.

“Metal is always useful. Unless it’s completely rusted through, I can probably salvage it at the Weapon Crafting Department,” Eshmund noted, collecting the find.

Then, his luck started to turn.

The next item the scavenger reeled in sparked his interest immediately.

“A broken space pouch?” he murmured, turning the damaged bag over in his hands. Although its storage function was ruined, the material itself contained rare Void Stones, which could be extracted and repurposed.

“Nice find. We can recycle this” Sage confirmed.

Feeling encouraged, Eshmund sent the bot back down. It wasn’t long before he started pulling up a mix of random and valuable items – rusty swords, old spoons, broken trinkets, and even a few spirit ore rocks that Sage identified as containing trace amounts of elemental minerals.

Then, the scavenger struggled to lift something heavier.

Eshmund furrowed his brows and pulled hard on the fishing line. Whatever it had grabbed was lodged in the sediment. After a few forceful tugs, the scavenger finally broke free and surfaced.

A belt – ornate, embedded with multiple gems.

Eshmund’s eyes lit up. The intricate gold embroidery and high-quality gemstones screamed wealth. This was no ordinary belt. It must have belonged to someone incredibly rich.

Sage analyzed it instantly. “Valuable. The gold alone is worth at least 2,000 points. The gemstones might add even more depending on their quality.”

“That’s so weird. How the hell did a belt like this end up here? Did the emperor get busy with someone and lose it?”

A slow grin spread across Eshmund’s face. “Well, thank you for the donation Your Majesty. Now that’s what I call a jackpot.”

He carefully stowed the belt inside his pouch, making a mental note to appraise it properly later.

Feeling lucky, he sent the scavenger bot out again, eager to see what else lay hidden beneath the water.

After a few more finds – some mystic wood fragments that Sage claimed could be used in high-grade artifact crafting – the bot suddenly froze.

Eshmund frowned. “What’s wrong?”

[ALERT: UNUSUAL ITEM DETECTED]

When he reeled it in, his breath hitched.

A human skull.

For a long moment, he simply stared at it. The water-worn bone gleamed under the sunlight, its empty eye sockets seemingly gazing back at him.

Sage remained silent.

Eshmund’s fingers twitched, and without another word, he hurled the skull back into the lake. It splashed into the water and sank, vanishing into the depths.

“Nope. Not dealing with that,” he muttered, shaking off a shiver.

Sage finally spoke. “A logical choice. No need to get involved with possible murder cases.”

Eshmund took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. “Yeah, let’s just move on.”

With a new target in mind, he rowed toward the next marked location, determined to fish out more wealth and avoid anything else too creepy to handle.

The next marked location was one of the deepest points in Tuangran Lake.

Eshmund furrowed his brows as he fed out more and more of the fishing line attached to the scavenger bot. The depth counter on his display kept climbing. 100 meters. 150 meters. 200 meters. Finally, at around 250 meters, the bot reached the bottom.

According to Sage’s scan data, the lake-bed here was covered in smooth pebbles with larger rock formations scattered about. A prime location where sediment had settled over the years, making it an ideal spot for lost treasures.

Just as Eshmund was about to let the bot roam, a notification window flashed on his interface.

[ALERT: ITEM DETECTED]

Eshmund perked up. “What did it find?” he asked, eyes locked on the screen.

Sage pulled up an image feed from the bot’s camera – a strange, dark shell nestled between the rocks.

Eshmund squinted. “Is that a rock?”

“No,” Sage corrected, zooming in and overlaying identification data. “It’s a freshwater oyster, possibly from the spirit mussel family.”

A new status window appeared on Eshmund’s display:

Eshmund’s eyes widened in excitement.

“Wait, wait, wait – did you just say pearl’?” he asked, already gripping the fishing line tighter.

“Correct,” Sage confirmed. “This particular oyster has a decently sized pearl inside. If it’s of high purity, it could fetch even more than the estimated 20,000 points.”

Eshmund grinned like a man who had just struck gold. His eyes practically turned into money symbol as he eagerly began reeling in the scavenger bot. The moment it surfaced, he grabbed the oyster from its claws, his fingers tingling with anticipation.

Using his knife, he carefully pried the shell open.

Inside, nestled within the oyster’s soft flesh, was a perfectly round, iridescent pearl that shimmered in shades of blue, violet, and silver.

The moment it hit the light, Sage’s system automatically assessed its purity and size.

“Confirmed,” Sage announced. “This is a superior-grade spirit pearl. Market value starts at 20,000 points but could go up to 25,000 depending on the buyer.”

Eshmund let out a whistle, turning the pearl over in his palm. It was smooth, cool to the touch, and radiated a faint energy pulse – proof that it contained Elemental Energy

“Jackpot,” he murmured. “Sage, forget everything else, start scanning specifically for these oysters!”

“Acknowledged. Adjusting search parameters.”

From that moment on, their scavenging mission shifted focus.

The scavenger still collected valuable materials, like mystic wood fragments, lost trinkets, and rare minerals, but their primary target was now the elusive pearl oysters.

For the next few hours, Eshmund reeled in dozens of them – most were empty, but every now and then, he struck another high-grade pearl.

By the time his five-hour rental was almost up, he had collected:

– One superior-grade spirit pearls (Estimated value: 20,000 – 25,000 points)
– Three high-grade spirit pearls (Estimated value: 15,000 – 20,000 points)
– One mid-grade pearl (Estimated value: 2,000 points)
– A handful of lower-grade pearls (Could still sell for 500-1,000 points each)

Eshmund sat back, tossing a pearl in his hand with a smirk. “Who knew pearl diving would make me rich?”

“If you want, I can calculate the probability of finding more spots like this,” Sage offered.

Eshmund grinned. “Oh, we’re definitely coming back.”

Eshmund leaned back on the boat, absentmindedly rolling a lustrous spirit pearl between his fingers. His haul had been far more lucrative than he’d expected, but a nagging thought crept into his mind.

“But, If these pearls are so valuable, why aren’t other people diving for them?” He furrowed his brow, glancing at the shimmering lake. “Surely, someone must have thought of this before?”

Sage responded without hesitation. “These oysters aren’t just ordinary creatures. The longer they live, the more their intelligence develops. Given enough time, some even evolve into low-tier demon beasts.”

Eshmund sat up straighter. “Wait – you’re telling me these things can become monsters?”

“Exactly,” Sage confirmed. “They instinctively avoid predators and are highly elusive. Judging by how this one reacted to the scavenger bot, it probably mistook it for an ordinary Gold Thief Crayfish, which is why it let its guard down.”

Eshmund rubbed his chin. “That means we might not be as lucky next time. If they realize the scavenger is a threat, they’ll start avoiding it.”

“Precisely. To keep them from catching on, we can’t overdo this,” Sage warned.

“Correct. Otherwise, they’ll disappear entirely, and this method of treasure hunting will become useless.”

For a moment, Eshmund just stared at the glistening pearls in his hand. The rush of pulling them from the lake had been exhilarating, but even this kind of easy money had limits.

“Yeah, I think we’ve done enough for today,” he finally said, slipping the pearls into his storage pouch. “Even if this lake is full of treasure, it won’t last forever. This was a good haul, but it’s not a long-term solution.”

Sage chimed in. “Agreed. Besides, our research into Kasan Tuber cultivation is progressing. That should be our next priority.”

Eshmund grinned. “Right. If we can mass-produce Kasan Tubers, it’ll be an even bigger goldmine than this lake.”

He secured the scavenger bot, gathered his things, and took one last look at the rippling water. “Alright, let’s head back. If we move fast, we might still have time to sell these pearls at the pawn shop.”

With that, he grabbed the oars and started rowing – back to shore, back to the next phase of his ever-growing plans.