Cultivating immortality in the seas, I created an immortal island of eternal life.

After a quick wash, Gao Yao steered his boat toward the fishpond dock.

More and more fishing boats are appearing on the sea, all heading out early to collect the nets cast the night before.

Someone waved to him from afar. He recognized it as Old Lin from the western reef island and waved back, a shy smile appearing on his face.

I've gotten so used to pretending that I can hardly tell what's real and what's acting anymore.

When we arrived at the fish market, the sun had just climbed onto the eaves.

It was mid-month, and there weren't many people in the hall, but the air was still filled with the smell of fish and damp wood.

Manager Chen was already there, standing with his hands behind his back in front of the huge nautical chart in the center of the hall, looking at something.

"Manager Chen."

Gao Yao stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Manager Chen turned around and looked him up and down: "You've broken through? You're quite diligent."

Gao Yao just smiled shyly: "Thanks to Miss Wang."

Manager Chen waved his hand and said without beating around the bush, "There just happens to be a job that Miss Wang assigned to you, specifically asking you to take on it."

Gao Yao nodded, pretending to listen attentively, but his heart was pounding. Did Wang Yao have some new plans?

"Leather processing," Manager Chen said succinctly. "The location is at the Leather Factory Temple in the west. Materials will be delivered there regularly. You just need to process them according to the requirements. There is a daily quota, and you can leave once you've finished."

Leather processing?

Sea monsters are treasures from head to toe. For example, the Snow Silver Shuttle and Golden Thread Carp that Gao Yao once sold were excellent materials for talismans.

However, these are not directly usable, which led to the creation of a business that produces substrates.

In the past, this kind of work was usually given to skilled fishermen or even to the disciples of the sect who specialized in this kind of skill.

How could it be his turn, a newcomer who spends most of his time on the abacus?

Gao Yao looked troubled: "I'm not knowledgeable about these crafts..."

"It's not difficult, just a bit of work," Steward Chen interrupted him. "Recently, the sect has been experiencing high consumption, and we're short of materials for talismans, leather armor, and even the backing for some magical artifacts. Prices outside have risen sharply, so it's better to do it ourselves. Miss Wang thinks you're meticulous, so this job is perfect for you."

Manager Chen paused for a moment, then casually added, "Things haven't been peaceful lately, you've all heard, right? There's been a lot of trouble outside, and even some of the sect's disciples who were on external missions have been lost. Those two old hands from Pichang Temple went out on a purchasing ship seven days ago and haven't come back."

"Yes, I will do my best," Gao Yao replied, but his mind was racing.

With only a month and a half left before the autumn exams, time is of the essence.

Was Wang Yao's move to make the best use of resources, or was there another purpose behind it?

Could the disciples' frequent disappearances be related to the evil creature that came to the island?

Could Old Man Ma be taking advantage of the situation?

Gao forced these thoughts down.

Regardless of what Old Man Ma was planning, or where those missing disciples had gone, none of that mattered to him at the moment.

He was merely a pawn who had luckily broken through to the fourth level of Qi Refining, and was casually manipulated by Wang Yao.

A chess piece that overthinks is likely to die young.

The autumn examination is like a sword hanging over his head. His most important task at the moment is to first accumulate enough cultivation to cross the threshold.

"Be careful with your work," Manager Chen suddenly reminded Gao Yao as he turned around, "and also..."

"That place has a lot of yin energy, so leave as soon as you finish your work and don't linger there."

Gao Yao assumed it was just a rule and nodded without asking any further questions.

Pichang Temple.

It was a solitary stone house on the west side of the dock. The walls were a dark gray from years of dampness, and the roof was covered with seaweed that had turned blackish-brown, which looked a bit eerie.

Although it's called a temple, there's nothing enshrined inside.

Gao Yao pushed open the door.

A strong, fishy stench, mixed with the smell of disinfectant from a past life, hit me.

The stone house had no windows, relying solely on the dim light from the uneven, leaky roof, which cast a bleak, pale blue-white hue.

In the center was a huge stone platform, its surface repeatedly washed and polished, yet still stained with an indelible dark red. Right in the middle was a roll of parchment.

There were several fish in a bamboo basket by the table: three dead spirit fish and some semi-spirit fish that were clearly used for practice.

The wooden bucket next to it was half full of water, with some pungent-smelling herbal leaves soaking in it; that's where the disinfectant smell came from.

Several open ceramic jars were placed on a shelf by the wall, containing powders and pastes of different colors.

Gao Yao walked to the stone platform, unfolded the scroll of paper, and glanced through it in the dim light. It contained the procedures for skinning the spirit fish.

The process is not complicated; it involves scaling, gutting, deboning, separating the skin and flesh, soaking the fish skin in a special solution, and finally stretching it on a flat surface to air dry.

However, every step requires careful attention: the depth of the incision, the soaking time in the medicine, and the force applied with the scraper. Even a slight mistake could ruin the entire skin.

He picked up the thin knife.

The knife was specially made, with a slender blade made of an unknown material. The blade was almost transparent, and the handle was wrapped with a thin, non-slip hemp rope.

The hilt of the knife was cold to the touch.

He picked up a half-spirit fish and began practicing.

As instructed, the blade gently cuts into the center of the fish's belly, avoiding the internal organs, and slowly advances along the spine.

The first few cuts were a bit clumsy, and the fish skin made a teeth-grinding tearing sound under the blade.

However, Gao Yao had the foundation of the fourth level of Qi Refining, and his control over his strength far surpassed that of ordinary people. With his calm mind and the assistance of his divine sense, he had dealt with the practice half-spirit fish in less than a quarter of an hour.

The first processing involves peeling off the fish skin completely, laying it on a flat surface. It is as thin as a cicada's wing, and the texture is clearly visible when viewed against the light.

To be on the safe side, he finished processing all the half-spirit fish in the bamboo basket before turning to the three spirit fish.

The vitality of the spirit fish seems to be stronger than that of ordinary fish species. Even after it has been dead for a long time, its skin remains tough and its scales are firmly attached.

Gao Yao had to channel a wisp of spiritual energy into his wrist and fingertips before the blade could pass smoothly.

Peeling is a tedious task that requires extreme concentration.

The room was so quiet that the only sounds were the sizzling of the knife cutting through the fish and my own breathing.

In the dim light, the sense of time becomes blurred.

Gao Yao was completely focused on the knife and leather in his hand. Sweat gradually seeped from his forehead and slid down his cheeks, but he didn't bother to wipe it away.

After an unknown amount of time, the last piece of spirit fish skin was finally processed and stretched flat on the wooden board.

Gao Yao straightened up, let out a long sigh of relief, and felt that his back was damp with sweat.

He turned to look at the water clock in the corner of the room. Four hours later, the quota was finally completed.

He tidied up his knives, moved the processed fish skin to the drying rack by the wall, and then quickly rinsed the stone platform and the ground.

After doing all this, he remembered the second half of Steward Chen's instruction.

Don't linger inside.

Gao Yao looked around the stone house, which was filled with a complex smell.

Perhaps it was just his imagination, but he always felt that something was hiding in the shadows of the clutter piled up in the corner, silently watching him.

Gao Yao shook his head, dismissing the pointless daydreams, and prepared to leave.

His hand had just touched the door panel when he stopped moving.

In his mind, the interface of the Mountain and Sea Token silently appeared.

The temple facilities have been set up, including a fishpond, chicken coop, and cave dwellings...

At that moment, as he looked at the tool bag at his waist and then at the fish skin on the shelf, an idea popped into his head without warning.

What if we could build a workshop on Turtle Reef Island specifically for processing spiritual materials?

With the help of the Mountain and Sea Token, fishponds can accelerate the growth of spirit fish, chicken coops can stably produce spirit eggs, and cave dwellings can gather spiritual energy to aid cultivation...

If a leather workshop were built, would it improve the efficiency of processing spiritual materials and even the quality of the finished products?

It doesn't necessarily have to be a gloomy stone house like the Pichang Temple.

Even if it's just carving out a corner in the shack, setting up a tool table, and placing a few handy knives...

If that were truly the case, Gao Xiang envisioned even more useful buildings.

This idea is like a seed; once it falls into the soil, it takes root on its own.

He stood in the dimly lit stone house, motionless for a long time.

The sounds of bustling people from the fish market's front hall could be faintly heard from outside the door, but it was as if they were being heard through a thick layer of frosted glass.

In the end, Gao Yao did nothing but gently push open the door and walk out.

The afternoon sun was a bit too bright.

He squinted, adjusted his eyes for a moment, and then walked towards his small sampan on the dock.

On the shelf, the edges of the newly made spirit fish skins trembled slightly in the breeze stirred up by the closing of the door.

......