After giving a brief introduction of Li Chang'an and his companion to the rest of the crew, Captain Orleans personally gave the two a short tour around the ship.
The Sea God had three decks in total—two above deck and one below. As the paying customers, Li Chang'an and Bibi Dong were naturally accommodated in the most luxurious cabins on the first upper deck, while the crew stayed in the lower quarters.
From the topmost deck, the view was vast and sweeping, carrying a unique charm of its own.
The strong scent of the ocean had hit them the moment they stepped aboard. The sea breeze howled across the deck, carrying a sharp chill typical of late autumn. Thankfully, neither of them were ordinary people—their physical resilience was exceptional—so this bit of cold wind was nothing to them.
"Raise anchor! Set sail!"
Once everyone was aboard, Captain Orleans gave the command, and the Sea God officially departed!
The weather was excellent that day. The sea was calm and the Sea God, being a large and sturdy vessel, easily left the port behind and cruised steadily into the open sea under the skilled hands of the crew.
Once fully out of the harbor and into the deep sea, Orleans gave the order to raise the mainsail, adjusted their heading, and steered the ship toward the location Li Chang'an had claimed was both the safest and the farthest they could sail.
The scenery of the open sea was like nothing else in the world. Unless one had truly stood at the edge of the ocean, they could never understand the grandeur and vastness of it. The endless stretch of water reached all the way to the horizon, where sea met sky. The sun was now slowly rising from the east, casting shimmering waves of golden light across the sea's surface.
From the start, Li Chang'an had pulled Bibi Dong up to the deck to take in the view. The ocean breeze brushed against them—cold, but refreshing. It was as if the salty wind opened up something inside her. Bibi Dong, typically poised and restrained, found herself feeling an unexpected lightness and exhilaration.
Caught up in the moment, Bibi Dong unconsciously leaned her head on Li Chang'an's shoulder, eyes gently closed, silently enjoying the sea breeze tinged with salt.
'Yes,' Li Chang'an thought, 'this is the feeling I've missed.'
His thoughts were surprisingly pure in that moment. It had been so long since he'd experienced such tranquility. Moments like this were rare and to be cherished.
That sense of peace lasted until noon.
Lunch was, unsurprisingly, composed of ocean fare. A few simple sea fish boiled in clean water, paired with some fresh vegetables they had purchased in Vast Sea City. Though nothing fancy, both of them found it quite tasty. Captain Orleans even specially prepared a few large crabs for them—seafood that was rare inland. The fresh, succulent meat made Li Chang'an exclaim in delight.
In the afternoon, the winds picked up, and the Sea God began to sway more noticeably with the rising waves. At first it wasn't a problem, but over time, Li Chang'an began to show signs of mild seasickness.
He'd always been prone to motion sickness in his previous life—especially seasickness. He'd regretted never getting to enjoy any... boat-based sex with his female companions because of it. He thought that with his current enhanced body, it wouldn't be a problem—but apparently, even now, he wasn't completely immune.
Bibi Dong, on the other hand, was perfectly fine. Seeing her oh-so-capable disciple suffer from seasickness made her chuckle. She'd thought he could do anything—who would have guessed he'd get queasy on a boat?
Still, teasing aside, Bibi Dong was the only one he could rely on right now, and she took care of him with gentle attentiveness.
She brought him to her own cabin, let him lie down, and used her sout power to help regulate his body. Right after that, Li Chang'an vomited once—right in front of her—his face turning pale.
With a helpless sigh, Bibi Dong ended up feeding him herself. Vomiting or not, he still had to eat. This time, she fed him the food they had brought from Vast Sea City—less fishy, easier on the stomach.
Thanks to Bibi Dong's care, Li Chang'an finally adjusted to the motion of the ship by the next day. Once he was feeling better, he summoned Captain Orleans to ask about sea spirit beasts.
They had just begun chatting when Orleans cupped his fist respectfully and said, "In another half day's journey, we'll enter a region where sea spirit beasts are quite active. There are even ten-thousand-year spirit beasts in that area. If either of you finds one suitable, we can assist with the hunt."
He knew the two had set out specifically to hunt soul rings. In his view, ten-thousand-year soul beasts were already incredibly dangerous—there was no need to venture any farther.
"Thank you for your concern, Captain Orleans," Bibi Dong replied coldly, her tone sharp and aloof. "But the spirit beast we're looking for isn't in that area. Please continue sailing."
Her voice and presence made Orleans pause in surprise. For some reason, this unbelievably beautiful woman gave him a feeling like she was a sovereign ruler, commanding the world beneath her feet.
Still, since they were the ones paying—and he'd agreed to their terms—he could only nod respectfully and carry on.
Li Chang'an then asked casually, "Captain Orleans, you must sail long distances often. What do you usually do if you encounter a powerful spirit beast at sea?"
Orleans smiled, "Normally, spirit beasts rarely attack ships. Only a few extremely aggressive ones have been known to actively assault vessels. As long as we don't provoke them, we're usually safe."
"If we do happen to run into one of those especially violent and powerful beasts... well, we can only consider ourselves unlucky. No matter how sturdy a ship is, it's no match for some of the monsters in the deep. Every year, plenty of people lose their lives at sea—it's practically an offering to those spirit beasts."
"But rest assured, our ship is treated with special spirit-repellent compounds. Spirit beasts hate the smell, so they generally stay away. Any captain willing to sail the high seas keeps a mental map of the region. With that map, we can usually keep our passengers safe."
"Oh?" Li Chang'an asked, pretending to be curious. "What kind of map?"
"The distribution map of powerful sea spirit beasts," Orleans explained. "Sea spirit beasts, like those on land, are very territorial. In fact, they're even more obsessed with their territory than land-based beasts."
"So as long as we avoid the domains of particularly strong spirit beasts, we won't run into trouble." He couldn't help but look a little proud as he said this.
But Li Chang'an's face at that moment showed an expression of exactly what I wanted to hear.
"I wonder, Captain Orleans," he said calmly, "where is the nearest sea region from here that's home to hundred-thousand-year-class spirit beasts?"
Orleans hadn't caught on just yet, and answered nonchalantly, "The closest one? That would be the Demon Shark Sea. There's a group of demonic sharks there. The leader is said to have surpassed the hundred-thousand-year mark in cultivation. Really terrifying. If we don't—wait..."
As he spoke, Orleans glanced at Li Chang'an and Bibi Dong—then paused.
He saw excitement on Li Chang'an's face.
'Why is he so happy?!'
'Wait... why is he asking about that place in the first place?!'
Orleans suddenly remembered: he'd previously asked Li Chang'an if they wanted help hunting ten-thousand-year beasts, but they'd declined.
And now—he was asking for locations of hundred-thousand-year-class spirit beasts?
Then just what kind of soul ring were these two planning to hunt?!
"Esteemed Spirit Master," Orleans said nervously, cold sweat beginning to bead down his back, "may I ask—what level of soul ring are you here for?"
Li Chang'an gave a leisurely smile and replied,
"Oh, it's nothing too extreme... just a spirit beast of around three hundred thousand years, that's all."
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