Chapter 544: Aquaman

Chapter 544: King of the Sea

“Queen Meng is truly amazing!”

“Why do I, a straight woman, want to be teased by Meng Caiwei?”

“Ah Wei is dead! That look is lethal!”

“I wish I were that blade of grass in her mouth!”

“Let’s go, let’s go, let’s propose to the Meng family!”

“Think about whether your frail body can withstand Iron God’s bear hug!”

……

“Who is this Ao Bing? Never seen him! Celebrities these days change so fast—if he’s walking with Meng Caiwei, he must be pretty famous!”

“Damn, aren’t you ashamed to use the name ‘Iron God’s Number One Fan’ as a black fan? That’s Iron Sister-in-law, and you don’t even recognize her!”

“It really is Iron Sister-in-law! The one I saw before wasn’t this style—she used to be ethereal, now she’s divine!”

“Iron Sister-in-law’s looks are seriously stunning! She outshines all those little starlets, doesn’t she?”

“Such great temperament! Ethereal, ancient, and cool all at once!”

…..

Wu Tong rarely appeared in public; at most, she’d be in the frame during Meng Fan’s matches. This was her first time appearing as a “celebrity guest” at a formal event. Honestly, it was the result of losing a bet with Meng Caiwei, forcing her to cosplay as Ao Bing. The effect? Pretty impressive—her debut won over countless fans, though popularity meant nothing to her.

After the red carpet came the opening ceremony, broadcast live on multiple websites and satellite TV stations. For the audience, the ceremony offered a fantastic show; for industry insiders and those familiar with the field, it brought a wealth of excellent news.

Following the opening ceremony was the multi-day animation festival, held at the Xizi Animation Park. Every hour of every day featured performances and surprises, with numerous live-streaming windows on major websites—both official and from top streamers. For anime fans, it was an absolute carnival—though getting in person would have been even better.

During this time, major comic studios, companies, and investors engaged in days of negotiations and discussions, reaching numerous collaborations. In terms of funding, it was more than ten times that of last year’s first Shanhai Animation Festival. Many overseas companies also attended, including publishers, distributors, film studios, and more.

With both scale and quality, China’s animation industry advanced at a pace unimaginable to past practitioners—and it did so steadily.

……

Before long, it was April. After the collaborative animated film achieved excellent opening box office, Meng Fan temporarily set aside his comic work. With no matches on the horizon, he took a complete break and went traveling with Wu Tong.

When choosing destinations, Meng Fan didn’t follow most celebrities in opting for overseas trips—after all, even abroad, appearing in public would offer no real context. So he chose domestic spots, made a rough plan, and set off.

First, they visited Meng Fan’s hometown for a while, then took a high-speed train south to Ludao.

The choice of Ludao had a reason: Jay Chou happened to have a concert there around that time. Before his rebirth, Meng Fan had always lamented never seeing Jay’s concert; after rebirth, various reasons kept him from it. This vacation finally made his wish come true.

Meng Fan got his tickets through someone else, originally intending to keep a low profile. But his presence wouldn’t allow it. Not long after the concert began, the camera crew scanning the audience caught him, projected him onto the big screen, and drew screams from the crowd. Jay Chou, somewhat surprised, let out a few “Aiyos” and couldn’t avoid interacting with him—thus inadvertently becoming a “Concert Killer.”

Coincidentally, the achievement task for the title “Concert Killer,” which had been gradually progressing, was now fully completed. For Meng Fan, finishing this task at Jay Chou’s concert felt both… embarrassing and meaningful.

“Ding! Completed achievement task [Concert Killer] Phase Three. Rewards: Points +1000, Presence +1, Camera Sense +1, Singing Skill +1.”

“Ding! Completed achievement task [Concert Killer]. Obtained achievement title [Concert Killer] (Presence +10, Camera Sense +5, Singing Skill +5).”

The title attributes didn’t have much effect on Meng Fan now, unlike before when each achievement title brought substantial improvement. At this point, it was just icing on the cake. Still, one never tires of extra icing.

He had planned to stay two days, mimicking the plot of “Jiang Ai” by listening to the waves, but Ludao’s current seawater and beaches offered little romantic atmosphere. After half a day, they bought tickets and flew to Qiongdao.

This season wasn’t Qiongdao’s peak tourist period nor its off-season—in another month or two, there would be few visitors—a middle ground. The climate was pleasant, with few people and clean, refreshing surroundings everywhere, perfect for strolling, or finding a spot to lie down or sit and daydream. Well, Wu Tong was more industrious than Meng Fan; while he snored away, she occasionally sketched and gathered inspiration.

What Wu Tong loved drawing most was Meng Fan swimming in the sea. She found his strokes particularly beautiful, watching with great delight, and even joked that he could become a swimmer. Hey, the moment those words left her mouth, “fortune” struck. Meng Fan heard a “ding” and triggered a new achievement task: [King of the Sea].

The progression rewards and final title reward all enhanced water affinity. Once completed, combined with Meng Fan’s existing strength, he would undoubtedly become a swimming legend.

Additionally, the task offered purchasable equipment, including high-tech swim trunks, caps, suits, goggles, and diving gear.

Meng Fan had little interest in becoming a professional swimmer, but he was fascinated by diving. With plenty of points, he bought a series of gear, including diving equipment, and began exploring the ocean.

Good thing he was just playing alone; if any expert had been nearby, they’d have been terrified.

Freediving—holding one’s breath through diaphragmatic breathing without an air tank—he could descend over three hundred meters in a single breath, a depth approaching the world record for scuba diving (-332.35 meters) and far exceeding the freediving world record of -170 meters. Of course, this owed much to the high-tech gear, which at least ensured his lungs wouldn’t burst and provided immense psychological safety to push limits.

Meng Fan took the equipment down and shot many photos. Wu Tong was also very interested in diving. After coming up with some excuses and reasons, Meng Fan used the high-tech gear on her, relying only on partial equipment himself, and could take her down over a hundred meters without issue.

One particularly fun thing was encountering marine mammals. Meng Fan could use his animal taming skills to interact with them, truly like a “King of the Sea,” making it especially entertaining.

And it was this sudden [King of the Sea] task that brought them immense joy from diving, disrupting their original plans and making them stay day after day.

(End of chapter)