Gold Rush Starts in the Bering Sea

Chapter 1: The Beginning of the Bering Sea Gold Rush

Parallel World 2005.

Nome is a remote town in Alaska.

It is famous for the gold rush of the late 19th century and is still the finish line for famous dog sled races.

In the town center, in a cozy little bar, Jason sat in a corner of the bar counter, his eyes glazed over.

"Jason, what do you think? This place is pretty good, isn't it?" The burly young man next to Jason patted him on the shoulder.

Jason snapped out of his reverie and replied, "It's really good."

The retro decor and cozy atmosphere create a welcoming space where people sit in small groups chatting. Through the glass, you can see the heavy snow falling outside, and the crackling of wood occasionally comes from the burning fireplace.

This small bar completely overturned Jason's impression of bars.

"Tell me, kid, did you break up with your girlfriend? I'm an expert in this area, I can teach you a lesson."

The burly young man looked like he had a lot of experience.

Jason looked at the burly young man in front of him, smiled and shook his head. "It's nothing, I'm not heartbroken, I'm just thinking about some things."

Jason Wilson, also the name of this body, is 18 years old. The burly young man in front of him, who is trying to comfort the body in its "heartbreak" state, is the body's older brother, Ada Wilson.

"Okay, take your time thinking about it. I'm going to chat with a friend."

Ada looked at Jason and took a sip of her drink.

Jason took a sip of beer, gestured, and then stared blankly at the snowflakes falling slowly outside.

Time travel—it's a plot from a novel, but I never imagined it would actually happen to me now.

The past is unrecoverable. It has been a month since he transmigrated here. Through the fusion of his memories with those of the original owner, he has gradually integrated into the new world.

Besides her older brother Ada, there is also a younger sister Ellie who is in school, and together with their parents, they form a family of five.

However, unlike ordinary people, his parents worked in the gold mining industry.

In Alaska, the topic of gold mining has never ceased, and Jason's parents have followed in their footsteps, making them a small gold mining family.

Every summer, when the Alaskan ice melts, the family would head to the Bering Sea to pan for gold, a practice commonly known as "gold panning at sea."

Currently, her older brother, Ada, also works on a gold-dredging ship, and has been working there for five years.

Although he is only twenty-two years old, that's quite normal in the United States, especially in Alaska.

There are twelve months in a year, but the gold rush season lasts only three months.

However, they reaped a bountiful harvest during these three months, enough for a family of five to live a prosperous life.

The older brother, Ada, was clearly someone who intended to follow in his father's footsteps. He wasn't a bad person, and he didn't have the typical American vibe that one might expect.

For Jason himself, he was just an ordinary person in his previous life. He had a lot of skills that made him a corporate slave, but none of them could actually earn him a lot of money.

Instead of the typical "overpowered protagonist" vibe from novels who immediately defies heaven and earth upon transmigrating, I felt somewhat lost.

These past few days he's also learned a lot about this world, which made him think for a time that he hadn't transmigrated, but had simply been reborn into the body of a foreigner, because the two were exactly the same.

Relying on memories from his previous life, he has many ideas, but none of them are put into practice. The most important thing is that he has no money!

"Um?!"

Jason was startled when he saw the words that suddenly appeared in front of him.

"What's going on?" After blinking a few times, Jason was certain that what he was seeing was not a hallucination.

Detection range: 5 meters (upgradeable: 1 meter for every 100 ounces)

[Detection depth: 1 meter (upgradeable to 100 ounces, upgradeable to 1 meter)]

[Estimated weight: 1 ounce]

Upgradeable gold ounces: None

[Note: Gold does not absorb energy; it is only used for upgrading purposes, and its value remains unaffected.]

[Note: Only gold discovered through exploration using one's own methods is of useful value.]

Looking at the man not far away who was holding a glass bottle and boasting incessantly, Jason knew that his magic touch had arrived.

Jason's first thought was—he's about to strike it rich!

Where am I?

This is Alaska!

Countless stories of overnight riches and gold rushes have unfolded here, not to mention that you yourself have this cheat code-like advantage.

However, Jason frowned slightly when he saw the data showing a detection depth of one meter and a range of five meters.

Given this detection range, in the vast expanse of Alaska, unless you run yourself ragged, finding gold is a complete joke.

Don't assume that the United States, with its vast land and sparse population, has no laws. The legal system here is more comprehensive. You may not see many people on a regular basis, but if you infringe on someone's interests, especially hard currency like gold, the vast land and sparse population are not a good thing!

If you want to mine gold on someone else's land, you not only have to pay the mine owner a certain percentage of the profits, but the initial investment is also a huge expense. My parents' experience of panning for gold at sea is a case in point.

As for gold in the wild, it can be found, but the detection range is not much different from the function of a detector.

Although there are many famous gold mining sites in the world, there are not many places where my current exploration range can be truly utilized.

After thinking it over, Jason downed the beer in his glass in one gulp, then said to Ada, "Ada, I'm going back now."

Don't drink while driving, don't drink and drive.

Although everyone drinks something because of the cold weather in Alaska, Jason still followed this safety rule.

When I got home, I went straight to the backyard.

In the large warehouse in the backyard, various mechanical parts were stored, and the smell of oil wafted out the moment the door was opened.

On one side of the warehouse, a small boat, about seven or eight meters long, sat quietly.

This is none other than the gold rush ship that Jason's father, Albert Wilson, bought after he had a falling out with his family.

Even after reconciling with his family and inheriting old Wilson's large gold-digging ship, Albert insisted on bringing the small boat back, saying it was a symbol of his pursuit of dreams and love.

"The condition is pretty good, it's been well maintained." Jason looked around and was quite satisfied.

Jason's goal was this small gold panning boat. Since I couldn't handle large-scale gold panning, I would stick to the old ways. My natural advantage was right there: go to the Bering Sea to pan for gold!

Once you've secured your initial funding and improved your detection capabilities, the rest will be much easier!

"Jason, what brings you here, you brat?" A middle-aged man with a full beard and disheveled hair put down his gun, a cigar dangling from his mouth, and raised an eyebrow.

"Let me see this ship," Jason said, pointing to the gold-digging ship in front of him.

Albert casually placed the gun on the worktable, his face beaming with pride. "You should call it Lillian. It's a symbol of your old man's pursuit of dreams and love."

"Okay, okay, can I borrow it for a bit?" Jason's face was full of smiles, whatever you say goes.

Albert replied firmly, "Impossible!"

This kid actually dared to set his sights on the Lillian. Albert felt his legs and feet were a little out of control.

"Just lend it to me for a bit. Don't worry, I'll return it to you completely intact," Jason said with a smile.

Albert picked up the cigar from his mouth, flicked it, and gave Jason a knowing look, saying, "You're planning to strike it rich, huh? Got any money on you?"

Jason shrugged: "No money."

He spoke with great conviction, but he almost made Albert choke on his cigar.

"Kid, you're eighteen, an adult. You should be able to make your own decisions, so, do you understand?" Albert pointed at Jason, then at the Lillian, his face serious.

"I don't understand," Jason said, looking completely bewildered.

He couldn't admit to understanding, and he had to pretend. His goal was simple: the ship!

"I... cough cough cough"

Albert took a deep drag of the cigar into his lungs, his cough echoing throughout the warehouse.

After a long while, Albert, his face flushed from choking, pointed at the Lillian and said, slowly and deliberately, "The ship is mine, I won't lend it."

"You can borrow it, don't worry, I'll definitely return it intact," Jason assured him.

"You brat, I said I wouldn't lend it to you!"

Albert kicked Jason in the butt. He didn't believe the brat's explanation at all!

"Hey, one kick is enough. If you kick me again, I'm going to find my mother," Jason quickly stopped Albert, who was about to kick him again.

Albert stopped and looked at Jason with a helpless expression, saying, "Here's the deal: if you're planning to strike it rich, come work on my ship. I'll pay you a wage, but the Lillian can't be moved."

"Why?" Jason asked, puzzled. He had looked at the Lillian earlier and hadn't noticed anything wrong with it.

Taking a puff of his cigar, Albert stroked his stubble-covered chin, and said with a speechless expression, "You're supposed to be from the Wilson family, and you can't even see that the Lillian has absolutely no equipment?"

"Kid, gold mining isn't as easy as you think."

As the smoke from his cigar rose, Albert frowned slightly, looking very serious.

"Gold panning in the Bering Sea is generally divided into two types: dredging vessels and gold-sucking vessels. The Lillian is a small gold-sucking vessel."

"But it's not enough to just have a ship. A complete gold-absorbing ship also needs gold-absorbing pumps, separation equipment, diving equipment, navigation and positioning equipment, safety equipment, and other miscellaneous equipment."

Albert concluded definitively, "I've removed all the equipment from Lillian, so don't even think about messing with it."

"I know, I was playing around when you took it apart. Just put it back together, right?" Jason said with a smile, completely unmoved by Albert's earlier words.

He took a deep drag on his cigar, then lunged forward, grabbed Jay by the back of the collar, and snarled as he pulled him away, "You did this on purpose, didn't you? I told you, the Lillian isn't moving!"

"Let's discuss this, let's discuss this," Jason said as he walked out.

"If I say no, then no."

He shoved Jason out of the warehouse, slammed the door shut, and locked it with a click.