I became a god by treasure hunting after arriving 500 years early

The Little Mirage Dragon possesses the "Mirage Space" Ability, which allows it to ignore the water pressure of the deep sea, and even take a few people down with it.

And the cool thing about "Mirage Space" compared to "Different Space" is that it can move!

Of course, as a trade-off, "Mirage Space" can't turn invisible and leaves a faint black shadow in the air.

Thus, this newly born little guy is actually quite a brilliant treasure hunter.

Since it's joined Human Civilization, treasure hunting is the greatest value!

No slacking off!

"Awuu awuu awuu!"

It begged pitifully with its big, round eyes – look how tiny and cute I am, it's exhausting to swim in the deep water...

Naturally, its act of cuteness had zero effect on Lu Yuan.

Old Lu sneered and pulled out something shiny from his pocket - gold!

This exquisite Gold Coin reflected a bright shine under the sunlight.

"Ah, I was wondering if I could exchange gold for deep-sea ore, but it seems like you're not keen. Nevermind then, I'll go find the Undying Giant Turtle."

The Little Mirage Dragon's eyes immediately gleamed with gold, nearly pouncing to lick the Gold Coin.

Lu Yuan quickly pulled his fingers back and raised his eyebrows: "We agreed, a hundred pieces of ore for one Gold Coin. And it's got to be ore with idealist material, not the ordinary kind."

The Little Mirage Dragon, fittingly called "Big Golden," just loves sparkly stuff.

The surrounding soldiers were all holding back their laughter, a hundred for one – isn't that taking advantage of a dragon? What use is gold, anyway?

In Green City, gold isn't even considered a common equivalent exchange item; it's only used for certain industrial purposes.

As a young civilization, the populace hadn't developed the concept that gold is valuable; in their minds, it isn't even as useful as steel.

But this little dragon, who can't count, was somewhat tempted.

It wandered around Lu Yuan for a while, its small body wobbling in the air, and ultimately couldn't resist the temptation and went "plop" as it dove into the ocean.

"Commander Lu, aren't you a bit too harsh on it?" Lu Ying couldn't help facepalming, "This isn't exploitation anymore; it's more like... what's the word... scam!"

"Heh, lack of education means getting exploited," Lu Yuan rebuked bluntly, "I asked it to study math yesterday, and you know what? The cheeky thing dared to breathe fire on my face."

"Think it's a mascot? We've got to be strict with it while it's young!"

"Or else, what will it be like when it grows up?"

"Its status is equal to all of us; there's no need for you guys to feel even a bit sorry for it! It has to bring value to have its social significance."

The soldiers laughed again, as most of them here were second or third generation, raised by Lu Yuan in Green Grass Paradise.

The first concept Lu Yuan instilled in them was "equality for all." Though there might be differences in ability among individuals, each person should be treated with equal dignity and everyone should have their own direction and find their social value.

So this dragon... indeed needs strict discipline.

A mascot? That's non-existent.

Even in Green Grass City, there are several more noble than it! Like Mr. Turtle, Mr. Turtle can garden, soothe children, hunt for treasure, and even provide Turtle Shells; isn't he nobler?

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...

Time really flies; in the blink of an eye, it's already the third year since we ventured into the sea.

The whole of Green Grass City is still digesting the legacy of the Source Fire Civilization, with every adult occupied with their own projects and goals; the students, having endured a freezing disaster, are putting in a commendable effort.

It has to be said that disasters truly shape the spirit and will of humans. There's a huge difference between those who have gone through hardships and those pampered from birth.

Even Little Mirage Dragon has been keeping busy, having laboriously collected several hundred ores. After realizing it couldn't count and being swindled every day, it became uncomfortably aware.

It slowly realized the importance of knowledge,

Wandering through the city daily to broaden its horizons, attending classes in Green Grass Paradise, occasionally playing with the children, and then... treasure hunting, exchanging for Gold Coins!

Besides, most people here are genuinely friendly, and it quickly fell in love with the city. (Except for that damned swindler, Commander Lu.)

Little Mirage Dragon even suffered exploitation at the hands of the Rat Artisans; its Freezing and Fire Breathing abilities are highly valued in Forging Science... but it disliked the ratmen artisans for their ugliness, which incited the ratmen to a collective fury, furiously insulting, "You blind thing, we are Craftsman Masters!"

"Aoowu aoowu aoowu aoowu!" Little Mirage Dragon fiercely retorted.

Well, that's another interesting story.

In the calm of everyday life, only the Treasure Hunting Team felt the current existence was somewhat bland and tasteless.

They had too much free time, even turning into a construction crew, with many joining in the expansion of Sky City.

"How can life be so uninteresting!"

"After having enjoyed digging up a thousand Spirit Rhymes in a month, this life of digging up twenty Spirit Rhymes a year is crappy."

Major Lu Ying, standing at the edge of the city, lamented, "To hit the jackpot, one must indeed rely on the remnants of civilization."

He'd recently been promoted, achieving the rank of Major!

That comes with strict requirements; besides outstanding work performance, one must meet the combat standard—only those at Level Four Warrior are eligible for the rank of Major.

And on top of that, he'd recently gotten married... truly, he should make the most of his life's joys.

In fact, few in Green Grass City got married, so having a compatible wife was something to be envied and coveted.

But Major Lu Ying always found life dull, believing his life's purpose was in treasure hunting... if he didn't find a good treasure soon, his wife's social achievements would overtake his, which was absolutely intolerable!

"Please, remnants! Even those from a First-level Civilization will do."

A fellow Major nearby, also bored, said, "Come on, where are all these remnants of civilization supposed to come from? It'd be good enough to come across one every fifty years!"

"Moreover, in the future, there'll be fewer and fewer remnants. Now, many of the Ninth Epoch civilizations have probably left the Safe Zones. Everyone's starting to compete over trash."

Thinking of the treasures of the world being shared by all civilizations, a sense of green envy arose among the members of the Treasure Hunting Team.

The spirit of the Greedy Demon God had affected every soldier.

"Aoowu? Wuwu?" Little Mirage Dragon, without anyone noticing, had floated over from the sky, staring at the people in passionate discussion with bright eyes, and letting out joyful howls.

It had grown quite a bit, in three years reaching the girth of an arm and weighing several pounds.

It had developed a fondness for eating fish, often stopping by for a snack and happily swimming in the sea all day...

However, reports from scientists suggested that it had developed a new Ability, "Flame Control," so its training program needed to change.

It shouldn't eat too many fish; it must, every now and then, consume some Fire Attribute ores and even steam in a fiery environment daily.

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