Yu carefully placed his clothes on the rock to keep them dry, then began warming up in earnest.
Cold water could easily cause muscle cramps, so properly preparing his body was crucial.
Several minutes later, once his body felt warm and his joints were loose, Yu approached the pool.
Instead of jumping straight in, he sat on the bank and lowered both legs into the water.
Hiss—!
The bone-chilling cold instantly spread upward from his feet, making him suck in a sharp breath.
The pool was far colder than the shallows downstream.
It felt as though the chill of the earth itself was seeping up from below.
Gritting his teeth, Yu slowly lowered himself into the water until it reached his chest, allowing his body to gradually adjust to the cold.
Once he had adapted, Yu drew a deep breath, plunged his head beneath the surface, and opened his eyes.
Visibility underwater was extremely poor.
A faint halo lingered near the surface, but farther down, the murky green rapidly faded into complete darkness.
Yu held his breath and silently counted, testing how long he could remain underwater.
One second, two seconds, three seconds…
thirty seconds…
sixty seconds…
As time passed, Yu was surprised to find that the expected pressure in his lungs never arrived.
The air stored within them seemed unusually efficient.
Ninety seconds…
one hundred twenty…
one hundred fifty…
Only when he approached the three-minute mark did he begin feeling clear pressure in his chest and a powerful craving for oxygen.
‘My breath-holding time is far beyond that of an ordinary person!’
Yu raised his head above the surface and gulped down fresh air.
Excitement shone in his eyes as he immediately opened his personal status panel.
Strength: 0
Dexterity: 0
Constitution: 40
Intelligence: 0
As expected, he had allocated all forty points to Constitution.
Constitution did more than affect HP, stamina recovery, and resistance to negative conditions.
It also greatly increased his physical tolerance and biological limits.
This was undoubtedly an important discovery.
“The underwater advantages provided by Constitution, combined with the Eye of Omniscience’s ability to guide me even beneath the surface…
This might work.”
Yu quickly analyzed the situation.
“But I cannot dive in blindly.
I will explore the shallower area first and familiarize myself with the terrain.
If anything feels wrong, I will surface immediately.”
He took several more deep breaths, fully oxygenating his body.
After inhaling one final lungful of air, Yu leaned forward and dove toward the unknown darkness, moving through the water like an agile fish.
Cold, darkness, and an ever-present sense of pressure.
Those were Yu’s first impressions upon entering the depths of the Shadowy Deep Pool.
Above him, daylight filtering through the entrance formed a wavering patch of brightness across the water.
Below and around him stretched a darkness so thick that it seemed almost solid.
Yu opened his eyes wide, but he could see very little.
Only within the faint pillar of light directly above him could he make out the tiny bubbles created by his movements.
Occasionally, a shadow flashed past the edge of the light.
Its entrance formed the bottleneck, while farther below, unseen underwater caverns spread outward beyond the reach of daylight.
The Eye of Omniscience remained active.
Numerous labels moved through the darkness, presumably belonging to the creatures swimming beyond his sight.
Yu did not dare stray far from the pillar of light.
Losing his sense of direction in a completely unfamiliar underwater environment could prove fatal.
He cautiously descended along its edge while watching the vague shapes moving through the darkness.
Suddenly, a silver-gray shadow crossed the edge of the light and was briefly illuminated from above.
It was a long, slender fish nearly as long as Yu’s forearm, far larger than the palm-sized fish in the river outside.
[Silver-Scaled Dace (LV.1)]
[Description: A relatively large fish commonly found in deep pools.
Its flesh is richer and more flavorful than its shallow-water relatives.]
[Its strength and speed are also superior, and it possesses greater vigilance.]
[HP: 10/10]
[Attack: 3]
[Defense: 3]
Yu’s eyes lit up.
Unlike the Silver-Scaled Fish outside, this creature actually possessed Attack, while its HP and Defense were also considerably higher.
However, catching just one would provide enough food for both him and Marin.
Yu instinctively reached out to grab it.
The moment his arm moved, the Silver-Scaled Dace reacted as though it had eyes on its back.
With a violent flick of its tail, it shot into the darkness and vanished, leaving only a trail of rapidly spreading bubbles.
‘Damn, I missed it.’
Forty points of Constitution allowed Yu to remain underwater for a long time, but both his Strength and Dexterity had been reduced to zero.
Without sufficient Dexterity and striking speed, catching such an agile fish barehanded underwater was nearly impossible.
He could not maintain both Constitution and Dexterity at once.
This was the current limitation of the Cheat Engine.
To catch such fish, he would need to prepare a harpoon, fish trap, or similar tool.
Alternatively, he could sacrifice some of his underwater endurance and temporarily transfer points into Dexterity, but that would carry the risk of drastically shortening his breath-holding time.
‘I need to make a fishing rod or net next time.’
Yu continued descending as his eyes searched the darkness.
Although he could barely see, the Eye of Omniscience occasionally captured labels moving rapidly through the shadows.
[Spotted Loach (LV.1)], [Blackback Goby (LV.2)]…
Their levels and attributes varied, but the Shadowy Deep Pool was clearly a higher-level fishing ground than the river outside.
Yu estimated his diving time and depth.
The pressure gradually increased, but forty points of Constitution resisted it without causing any obvious discomfort.
He still had more than half the air in his lungs.
At that moment, something below caught the corner of his eye—a faint metallic gleam within the deeper darkness.
The light was extremely weak, yet in the absolute darkness, it stood out like a beacon.
Yu immediately adjusted his posture and cautiously swam toward it.
As he approached, a label appeared.
[Silver Treasure Chest]
[Status: Can be opened.]
A Silver Treasure Chest!
It was one tier above Bronze!
A wave of joy surged through Yu.
The Bronze Treasure Chest had yielded a fireplace Blueprint and an area map.
Better equipment, a powerful skill, or perhaps even more valuable resources?
An incredible opportunity was right before him.
Yu hurriedly swam toward it.
While his attention remained fixed on the chest, he noticed another label approaching from the corner of his vision.
Ordinary labels were white.
This one had a dark-red border that radiated danger at a glance.
[Bigmouth Catfish King (Specialized: Gluttony) LV.10]
[HP: 666/666]
[Attack: 66]
[Defense: 99]
[Traits:]
[Abyssal Lurker]: Moves silently through dark waters and gains a major bonus to evasion.
Its first attack is guaranteed to critically strike if launched from the target’s blind spot.
[Steel Bones, Iron Stomach]: Gains additional Defense and possesses strong resistance to piercing damage.
After swallowing a target, it slowly recovers HP.
[Voracious Devour]: Can swallow targets equal to or slightly larger than its own body.
A Level 10 elite monster!
It possessed three hundred HP, thirty-five Attack, and three dangerous passive traits.
Every hair on Yu’s body instantly stood on end.
‘I have to run!’
The Silver Treasure Chest no longer mattered.
A treasure was worthless if he died trying to claim it.
Only by staying alive could he have a future.
The final boss of the Beast Tide arriving in six days, the Earthshaker Bear, was only listed as LV.5.
The creature lurking within this dark pool was twice its level.
Yu did not hesitate.
He frantically kicked his legs and swept his arms through the water, desperately swimming toward the surface.
His movements churned the freezing water, creating tremendous resistance.
Forty Constitution granted him extraordinary stamina and breath-holding ability, but with zero Dexterity, his swimming speed was poor.
His panicked movements also lost some of their form, slowing him even further.
Yet the expected pursuit did not immediately begin.
The Bigmouth Catfish King seemed in no hurry to chase its fleeing prey.
Yu could see its label slowly circling through the pool near the edge of the pillar of light.
It appeared wary of the brightness and refused to enter the illuminated area completely.
Its enormous shadow appeared and disappeared along the boundary between light and darkness, radiating a terrifying pressure.
Yu did not dare look back.
He continued clawing his way toward the surface with all his strength.
A burning sensation spread through his lungs.
He was approaching the limit of his breath.
The surface drew closer, the light grew brighter, and the water pressure gradually weakened.
Just before Yu’s head broke through the surface, he hurriedly glanced downward from the corner of his eye.
The label had stopped within the darkness below.
The creature seemed to hesitate, its enormous body lingering at the boundary between light and shadow.
Eventually, it appeared to give up.
Its massive tail moved gently as it turned around, stirring the water before slowly sinking into the endless darkness at the bottom of the pool.
It encourages me!