pjbooks Chapter 14: Hyenas on the Bering Sea
Chapter 14: Hyenas on the Bering Sea
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Jason got out of bed.
After a quick wash, I heated up some food in the microwave without waking my mother, Lillian, and my sister, Ellie, who were still resting, and quietly left the house.
"Good morning, Jason."
Good morning, Brent.
Good morning, Andy.
"Jason, see? There are still some people waiting for you before they set off," Andy flicked his cigar, seemingly unconcerned about the stares around him.
"Let's go, don't worry about them," Jason said to the two while eating his sandwich.
Brent is at the helm, Jason is choosing the coordinates, and Andy is adapting.
After Jason set sail, the ships that hadn't yet departed from the dock also set sail, following closely behind the Lillian.
Jason didn't care, but Brent did, and he turned the engine up to maximum, trying to shake off the gold diggers following behind.
His share depends on Jason's earnings; only by getting rid of these hyenas can his income be guaranteed.
Andy, with a cigar in his mouth, chuckled a few times.
That's how it is in the Bering Sea: whoever finds gold first gets it, and they don't care what methods they use.
It may be shameful, but there's really no other way.
After sailing to their destination, Jason had already donned his diving gear and plunged into the water as soon as the boat came to a stop.
"Hey kid, money pump! You didn't bring your money pump!" Andy couldn't help but jump up and down as he watched Jason fall into the water empty-handed.
Brent laughed and reassured him, "Andy, don't worry, this is just part of our gold rush."
"Is this how you pan for gold?!" Andy was speechless.
"Don't worry, there won't be any problems," Brent said confidently.
The gold prospectors who had been following Jason saw him stop and immediately began panning for gold, but many of them were still puzzled.
"Let's go into the sea first, see what the seabed is like, and then we'll decide."
"Yes, Jason and his crew definitely found the gold, otherwise that drunkard Andy wouldn't have gotten on their ship."
"Speed up, we need to start panning for gold!"
……
On the surrounding gold-dredging boats, gold prospectors also began their work.
Once they were running at full speed, Jason, who had already explored the seabed, returned to the ship.
"Yes, Jason." Without Jason having to ask, Brent handed over the pen and notebook.
"Thanks," Jason said, taking the notebook and making notes.
After recording the data in his notebook, Jason said to Brent, "Let's go, Brent, to the next place."
"No, just like that?!" Andy quickly stopped him.
He didn't understand, he really didn't understand. They just went down there for less than half an hour, didn't even make any money, and then they just left like that?!
"Aren't you going to test its gold content?" Andy asked in surprise.
"Andy, you need to learn to trust Jason." After saying that, Brendy started the boat and headed towards the next location.
Andy retorted angrily, "No way, you guys could at least do a test!"
Are you kidding me? I've been panning for gold in the Bering Sea for over a decade, and I've never seen anything this outrageous.
"Jason, are you sure you can find gold like this?" Andy questioned his own instincts for the first time.
Jason and his group's actions were observed by the gold prospectors behind them. Some immediately packed up their equipment and followed, while others stopped in place, intending to test it out first.
Once again, keep up!
Twice, then again!
After three or four times, the other prospectors thought Jason was crazy!
"No, they're diving in the Bering Sea!" A captain of a gold-digging boat who had been following them couldn't help but curse as he watched the situation unfold.
One of the crew members advised, "Captain, we can't go any further. Let's find a place to pan for gold first."
"I'm not following you anymore, you'd be a fool to keep coming with me!" the captain said angrily.
On the Lillian, Andy had given up, and he now had serious doubts about his decision.
While Jason was exploring the ocean depths, Brent grinned at the dejected Andy and said, "Don't worry, this is Jason's own method."
According to Jason, he based his analysis on ocean currents and the condition of seafloor ridges.
"And," Brent paused, then added proudly, "we've gone out to sea twice to pan for gold, and now we have over 700 ounces in total."
Brent encouraged Andy with facts, even though he didn't quite believe Jason's explanation, but as long as they could find the gold, who cared?
"Are you sure it's over 700 ounces?!" Andy picked at his ear to confirm.
Brende nodded to confirm, "You heard me right, it's over 700 ounces."
Andy had a headache. He really didn't know what to say about Jason's situation and could only think that it was just a lucky break.
As for Brendi's explanation, he had been in the Bering Sea for so many years and had never heard of this method of gold panning.
"Brent, reply received, reply received," the voice on the walkie-talkie interrupted their conversation.
"Roger that, Jason."
"Northeast direction, slow down."
"Received, set sail now."
Watching Jason and Brent work together seamlessly, Andy was certain that this was definitely not the first time they had done this.
After stopping the ship again as Jason requested, Jason began exploring the seabed.
Detection range: 12 meters (upgradeable: 100 ounces can upgrade by 1 meter)
[Detection depth: 1 meter (upgradeable to 100 ounces, upgradeable to 1 meter)]
[Estimated weight: 62.7 ounces]
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.]
Half an hour later, when the detection results appeared before him, Jason began to ascend.
Andy looked at Jason, who had taken off his diving gear, and shook his head helplessly: "Kid, now I finally know why you guys are called street urchins. You really do just wander around aimlessly."
"Don't worry, you won't regret it," Jason assured with a smile.
He took the notebook from Brent and started drawing with a pen in his hand.
Jason didn't say anything about changing seats, and Brent on the side had already silently put on his diving gear, leaving Andy, who was sitting on the deck, completely baffled.
"Andy, don't be confused, we've found gold!" Brent grinned.
He handed the notebook to Brent, explained the situation below, and Brent gestured before taking the gold-absorbing pump and sinking into the sea.
"Andy, this is the terrain map below. Based on my guess, there's a high probability of finding gold here, here, and here. Take a look first, I'm going to rest for a bit."
"No, wait a minute. What do you mean by 'found gold'? What do you mean by 'most likely to find gold'? Explain yourself!"
Andy pulled Jason along, asking questions incessantly. He felt that the kid had absolutely no skills and relied entirely on mysticism!
He recognized each character individually, but when they were put together, even this veteran was completely baffled.
"Andy, trust me. If you can't figure it out, you can take a look at the gold trough. I'm sure it will explain it to you." Jason patted Andy's arm and turned to walk into the cabin.
On the deck, Andy would glance at the equipment every now and then, keeping a close eye on the gold trough.
He made up his mind that if he really couldn't find the gold this time, he would definitely get off the ship. He didn't have time to let Jason play diving games.
"Shit, what's going on?!"
When the gold trough was filled with countless pieces of gold, Andy cursed.
He hoped to find gold and make more money, but not in this way.
"Andy, reply received! Reply received!"
"This is Andy, got it. Brent, what's up?" Seeing that all the equipment was working properly, Andy was relieved and asked with a puzzled look.
Brent, who was busy making money underwater, laughed and said, "Andy, it's nothing, I just wanted to chat."
"Damn it, serious gold panning!"
Sitting next to the equipment, Andy glanced at the so-called topographic map drawn on his laptop from time to time, looking somewhat bewildered.
"Am I really that bad at the gold rush?" Andy muttered to himself, doubting himself.
Jason made himself a cup of coffee and heated up a sandwich in the cabin. Sitting on the sofa, he instantly felt comfortable and said, "This is the way to pan for gold!"
After reviewing his detection capabilities, Jason decided to shift his upgrade focus to depth.
He used all of his gold mining profits from the first two attempts to upgrade his equipment, increasing the detection range from five meters to twelve meters, but he hasn't upgraded the depth yet.
And he also needs to keep some as a precaution.
While gold panning in the Bering Sea has yielded considerable profits, it also presents significant limitations. Future land-based gold panning will require a significant upgrade in detection capabilities.