Chapter 12: Demon Sea
The sea voyage was somewhat dull, but Su Xiao was accustomed to this feeling. He had experienced worlds with oceans before—the Pirate World, the Sea of Thieves—all requiring long periods of crossing the sea.
Since boarding the ship, Amu had been sitting upright on the deck, on high alert. Only he knew how formidable an enemy the sea truly was.
After six hours of sailing, the sky darkened overhead. This wasn’t a change in weather; the sea region itself was like this. In these waters, any danger could arise at any moment.
“From now on, don’t say a single word, and don’t make any sound.”
Captain Gap-Tooth sat under the mainmast, tapping his long-stemmed pipe to knock out the black ash inside. This old man had sailed back and forth across the Demon Sea seventeen times. He had long since grown indifferent to life and death. Until he died, he would continue doing this—he wasn’t sailing by choice.
As the waves washed over the hull, the wooden planks of the ship rubbed against each other, creaking and groaning like the final death throes before falling apart.
A dark shadow passed beneath the sea. Captain Gap-Tooth’s hand, holding the long-stemmed pipe, paused. He bared his teeth in a grin.
“Old friend, have you come to take my life?”
“Shh, shh!”
The sailor beside him was so terrified his legs went weak. He knew what lurked beneath the sea. He had even witnessed it with his own eyes—that thing had coiled around a five-masted giant ship, snapping it in two, sending the massive vessel sinking beneath the waves.
“You’re afraid.”
Captain Gap-Tooth’s smile grew eerie.
“Shh!!”
The sailor’s hand was already on his cutlass. He swore that if this dead old man dared utter another sound, he would slit his throat.
“They can sense your fear. They’re a bunch of timid creatures. Only when they feel fear do they attack this ship.”
The moment Captain Gap-Tooth finished speaking, the entire ship began to sway left and right. Something seemed to be happening beneath the sea. It took several minutes before things calmed down.
A wet hand reached out from over the ship’s railing, gripping the side. It was Qifu. He was carrying the Dragonheart Axe on his back, dripping seawater as he climbed aboard.
Qifu adhered to the principle: if you can act, don’t waste words. Sensing movement beneath the sea, he had jumped in with his Dragonheart Axe and killed six colossal giant octopuses.
The sea surface calmed. Captain Gap-Tooth stared at the Dragonheart Axe on Qifu’s back, laughing so hard his shoulders shook.
Was this a mysterious old man who knew secrets? No, he had simply sailed the Demon Sea for too long and gone a bit mad. This was exactly why Su Xiao had chosen this ship. The more afraid of death you were, the faster you died. He had found a captain who feared nothing, steering the ship to the opposite shore.
“Not good. Carrying monsters across the sea... very not good.”
Captain Gap-Tooth glanced at Su Xiao, who was sitting on the ship’s railing, and continued his mad laughter.
Whether due to the dark sky or some other reason, the sky soon turned completely black. The sea was pitch black.
Splash～
The ship suddenly tilted. A colossal creature surfaced from the nearby sea. The waves it kicked up as it rose nearly capsized the three-masted vessel.
Liu looked up, staring at the behemoth a dozen meters away. Her wide eyes showed she was stunned by the sight before her.
A whale of indeterminate size had half its body above the surface. Its massive eye, over ten meters in diameter, was watching the tiny thing floating beside it.
“Moo～”
A long, ear-splitting whale song echoed, accompanied by layers of air pressure.
Su Xiao placed one hand on the hilt of his blade. The whale not far away was no easy opponent—its size was too immense.
“Woof.”
Bubu Wang barked, drawing the attention of the super-giant whale.
“Moo～”
Another whale song. A few seconds later, Bubu Wang shook its dizzy head, charged forward a few steps, and leaped into the sea.
A stunning scene unfolded. The super-giant whale opened its massive mouth, and seawater surged into it. After a moment, the whale closed its mouth.
With a crack, the three-masted ship collided with the whale’s head. Splinters of wood flew everywhere. The sailors on board wore expressions of despair.
“Another old friend has arrived.”
Captain Gap-Tooth laughed madly, still leaning against the mainmast.
“Lady Liu, my home is in the royal capital. My mother, wife, and children are still there. My son is ten years old. Please take care of them.”
With those words, Qifu was about to leap into the sea.
“Use your brain. If this whale wanted to swallow the ship, you’d already be in its stomach. It’s asking for help.”
Baha’s words made Qifu pause mid-stride.
“Prepare to change ships. Bubu’s new friend can get us to Talin much faster.”
Baha grabbed Liu and Qifu, flying toward the super-giant whale’s back. Under the stunned gazes of the sailors, Amu froze a path across the sea, following Su Xiao as he walked toward the giant whale.
“Moo～”
The giant whale tilted its head slightly, as if in pain. After a moment, its body relaxed. When its enormous eyes looked at Su Xiao again, they showed goodwill.
Su Xiao leaped onto the whale’s back. The giant whale began to swim forward, dozens of times faster than the ship. As for Bubu Wang, it was in the first-class cabin—that is, the whale’s stomach. The giant whale had a diseased area in its belly. Bubu Wang, wearing full protective gear, along with Amu who had just arrived, was using Su Xiao’s alchemical potions to treat the whale.
Who would have thought that the sea monster that had accidentally destroyed hundreds of ships was only asking for help? It was just one of many dangers in these waters. This sea had things far more dangerous than it.
In less than an hour, Bubu Wang and Amu had treated the diseased tissue in the whale’s stomach. If Su Xiao hadn’t been on its back, it would have performed a spinning leap out of the sea to show its gratitude.
Before dawn broke, land appeared ahead. The giant whale stopped a hundred meters from the shore. The water was too shallow for it to swim further.
Crack, crack, crack...
An icy path froze across the sea. Su Xiao, with Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha, walked toward the shore.
“Moo～”
The giant whale let out a long cry, bidding farewell to Bubu Wang. Its enormous eyes showed reluctance. Finally, its massive body leaped from the sea, crashing down onto the surface with a thunderous boom, sending a towering spray of water into the air.
Liu stood on the icy path, watching the rising spray. Her heart surged with emotion. Such an adventure was a first in her life.
“How are you all not amazed?”
Liu looked at Su Xiao, who was still walking ahead, unable to resist asking.
Su Xiao showed a hint of confusion, glanced at Liu, and continued forward. A splash from a giant creature was nothing remarkable, nor was it a spectacle. He had once seen a world shatter into dust before his eyes—that was a true wonder.
Reaching the sandy shore, Su Xiao took out a metal tube and pulled it open. Mechanical bees flew out, scattering in all directions. Baha shot straight into the sky, and Bubu Wang disappeared into the bushes by the shore.
Half an hour later, Baha found a fishing village. As long as there was a populated area, getting the location of Talin’s royal capital was simple.
Su Xiao looked at the long blade “Windfall” in his hand, thought for a moment, and wrapped it in cloth strips. His goal in going to Talin’s royal capital was only one: to find the Source Water. As for scheming with Talin’s rulers? There was no need for that.
Obtaining the [Primordial Mask] had made certain things much more convenient for Su Xiao. For example, when needed, he could disguise himself as the king of Talin.