When Li Wenjin woke up again, he immediately realized that he was no longer in the flower-filled valley. Instead, he was lying on a bed.
This made Li Wenjin quite excited. Although the bed didn't seem to be his, the fact that there was a room and a bed meant there were people here—and where there were people, there was a chance he could return home.
As for his stomach, which was still rumbling from hunger, he didn't bother with it anymore. He jumped up and headed straight for the room's door.
After taking just two steps, he felt the ground swaying slightly, similar to how it felt when he used to be on a boat. But Li Wenjin didn't pay it much attention; he just wanted to find someone to talk to.
Stepping out of the room, Li Wenjin discovered that he really was on a ship. The moment he came outside, he saw the vast ocean and the vessel he was on. At that moment, he assumed someone had found him while passing by the island and rescued him—or perhaps the person who had stranded him had returned to take him back to the real world.
Regardless of the situation, Li Wenjin wanted to talk to someone and figure out what was going on. So, he walked toward the direction of the loudest voices.
After walking about five meters, he noticed a giant seagull emblem painted on the sail of the ship. As a die-hard One Piece fan, Li Wenjin recognized it instantly—it was the symbol of the Navy from the One Piece anime. There was no way he could be wrong.
A sudden gust of strong wind and crashing waves hit the ship, causing it to sway violently and snapping Li Wenjin out of his daze.
Now fully awake, Li Wenjin didn't know what to do. He had read many stories about transmigration in novels, but when it actually happened to him, he felt a chill all over.
The world of One Piece was no place for an ordinary person to survive. In this world, strength was everything. As a regular civilian, his role in the anime wouldn't last more than two episodes.
While he was lost in these chaotic thoughts, a Navy sailor spotted him standing there in a daze and shouted, "Hey kid, the waves are rough right now—better head back to your room!"
Li Wenjin snapped out of it and turned toward the sailor, but before he could see who had called out to him, another large wave crashed into the ship. The ship tilted sharply, and Li Wenjin hurriedly dropped to the ground to avoid being swept overboard.
He was on the port side of the ship, which was now tilting toward the sea. If he didn't hold on tightly, he would likely be swept away by the water washing over the deck.
Seeing how dangerous it was outside, he wanted to return to the room immediately. But the seawater had already flooded the deck, making it slick and slippery. He didn't dare to take a single step back.
Now, all Li Wenjin could do was cling tightly to the ship's railing to avoid being washed away.
The fierce waves came and went quickly, but to Li Wenjin, just surviving through them had drained every ounce of his strength.
After the storm calmed, Li Wenjin lay on the deck gasping for air. A Navy sailor walked up to him and looked down with disdain, saying, "You're pathetic. Just a bit of rough sea and you're already this worn out? How did you even end up on that deserted island?"
Half-dead from exhaustion, Li Wenjin still sat up immediately when he saw the sailor and asked, "What time is it now? Where are we? Where are we headed?"
The sailor, clearly annoyed, snapped back, "Shouldn't you be thanking us for saving your life first?"
Realizing he was being too hasty, Li Wenjin quickly corrected himself, "Thank you, big brother sailor, for saving me."
Satisfied, the sailor said, "Our commanding officer, Major Tashigi, wants to see you. Come with me."
As he stood up, Li Wenjin grabbed the sailor's sleeve and asked, "Can you at least answer the questions I just asked first?"
The sailor was in a good mood and casually replied, "It's the year 1516 of the Sea Circle Calendar. We're in the South Blue, and we're heading to Navy Headquarters."
Li Wenjin had still been holding out hope that this might just be the extravagant cosplay ship of some wealthy One Piece fan. But hearing the sailor's offhand response, he knew—it was real. He had truly transmigrated into the world of One Piece.
As a professional who knew how to read people, Li Wenjin could tell the sailor wasn't lying. Besides, they were heading straight for Navy Headquarters. Any lies would be exposed soon enough, so there was no reason for the man to fake it.
Following the sailor in a daze, Li Wenjin was quickly brought to the bow of the ship, where Major Tashigi was directing other sailors to clean up the seawater from the deck.
The sailor saluted and said, "Major Tashigi, the boy you requested is here."
Tashigi looked at Li Wenjin, who was staring blankly at her, and her mood instantly soured. She thought they had rescued someone who was mentally challenged.
"Is this kid mentally slow?" she asked the sailor directly.
The sailor was confused. He had just spoken with Li Wenjin and hadn't noticed anything odd. He was about to defend him when he glanced behind and saw Li Wenjin still dazed. He immediately understood what the Major meant.
Irritated, the sailor turned and smacked Li Wenjin lightly on the head. "What's wrong with you? Hurry up and thank Major Tashigi for saving your life!"
Li Wenjin really had been in a daze—after all, he was now seeing a real-life version of a One Piece character, and a beautiful one at that. Although Tashigi didn't appear much in the anime, as a veteran fan, Li Wenjin recognized her instantly.
He was now completely certain he had transmigrated into the One Piece world. This realization left him both excited and terrified.
The excitement came from the fact that he could now roam the world he loved.
The fear came from knowing that, as an ordinary human, he had no way to survive in a world like One Piece.
Other transmigrators usually had some kind of cheat ability, but he had nothing. This made Li Wenjin feel seriously cheated.
As he was lost in thought, he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his head and heard the sailor angrily yelling at him.
Snapping back to reality, Li Wenjin quickly turned to Tashigi and said, "Thank you, beautiful sister, for saving my life!"
Right now, the only person who could possibly help him survive in the One Piece world was Tashigi. He had no choice but to try and curry favor with her. If she got annoyed and decided to dump him on some godforsaken island, he might really die.
Hearing Li Wenjin call her "beautiful sister" did please Tashigi a bit. But as a Navy Major, she still had to maintain her composure. Still, her tone noticeably softened when she spoke.
"Where are you from, and how did you end up on that deserted island?" she asked.
Her question made Li Wenjin's thoughts race. He knew that if he answered poorly, she might abandon him after all.
Drawing on his four years of corporate experience reading people's expressions, Li Wenjin quickly answered, "I was out working when I accidentally fell into the sea and ended up drifting to that deserted island."
His answer was nothing special, but believable. In the One Piece world, people falling into the sea and d
ying happened all the time. He was actually lucky to have made it to an island alive.