The triggering of the system mission didn't make Lin Gui relax one bit.
He continued to stare intently at the hideous and warped merman's soul before him.
At the slightest movement, he would immediately activate Shroud of the Gloomy Night and flee.
There was no choice.
Lin Gui had been in this world for so many years, and almost all his skill points had been poured into escape and concealment.
His only offensive spells, 【Shadow Pierce】 and 【Wind Blade】, were truly limited in power.
In a direct confrontation, he could hardly defeat any opponent of the same rank.
Fortunately, the merman soul's violent agitation lasted only a moment before gradually subsiding.
Its form returned to normal, and its eyes became blank once more.
"I... what happened to me?"
Lin Gui didn't lower his guard, asking in a heavy voice, "You don't remember what just happened?"
"What what?" The merman's soul looked completely confused.
"Sigh..." Lin Gui let out a sigh and finally lowered his staff.
"Forget it. You said earlier you wanted to deliver a message to the Alliance Council?"
The merman's soul nodded hurriedly.
"I'll take you there once I'm done with the matters at hand."
The merman's soul was first delighted, but then he looked at Lin Gui suspiciously. "Why would you help me? Human, do you have some ulterior motive?"
Lin Gui gave him a dead-eyed stare.
"Or I could just throw you into the toilet right now?"
"Don't, don't, don't! Big Brother, I was wrong!" the merman yielded instantly.
After a few more words, Lin Gui deactivated Eyes of the Netherworld.
The merman's soul vanished from his sight.
He hadn't truly disappeared; it was just that without the special visual enhancement, Lin Gui couldn't perceive him.
He carefully put the glass bead into his pocket.
The system's voice rang in his mind:
【Do you wish to confirm the start of the Extra Commission?】
Lin Gui replied irritably, "I'll talk about that when I return to the City of a Thousand Towers."
The City-State Alliance Council was located in Dawn City, the largest human city.
It was in the absolute heart of the Central City-States, tens of thousands of kilometers from here...
Traveling there would likely take a year or more.
He had to first complete the long-term commission of escorting Theia to Avalon.
Then he had to deliver the replies he collected along the way back to Caran and New Covenant City.
Only after all that could he consider this cross-continental task.
"Or..." Lin Gui suddenly thought of an idea.
"Entrust someone to send it over?"
His gaze drifted unconsciously toward the window in the direction of the North Wind caravan's encampment.
For example... having the North Wind caravan carry it along the way?
He remembered the scholar saying their transport route required a layover in Dawn City.
Although he was strapped for cash, Lin Gui still had that Barrier Stone he got from the rebels.
He believed that with it as compensation, Freya would be willing to help him carry this glass bead and deliver it to the City-State Alliance Council.
But that would have to wait until they arrived at Shield City.
He looked out the window at the pitch-black Silent Sea, his brow furrowed.
Are they really going to cross it using that method?
Lin Gui couldn't be blamed for feeling resistant.
The method the North Wind caravan planned to use to cross this forbidden zone was truly inconceivable.
It wasn't by flying through the air, nor by sailing on the sea.
Instead... it was by trekking on foot across the seabed.
...
The next morning.
"What?! We're going to walk across the seabed?!"
Theia's scream echoed through the camp.
Her face turned pale, and she waved her hands frantically, "But, but I can't swim!"
Betty hurriedly reassured her, "Don't worry, Theia. You don't need to know how to swim."
"With the magic of Lady Freya and Master Percel, the seawater won't even touch us."
"We'll be walking on the seafloor; there's no need to swim."
It was exactly as Betty said.
The North Wind caravan's plan involved Freya and Percel, the strongest sea folk mage on Twin Reefs, working together.
They would cast a massive isolation barrier and an underwater breathing array.
This would allow the entire team to cross by trekking along the seabed.
For a region to be designated as a forbidden zone by the Alliance exploration team, it usually possessed one of three characteristics.
First, an extremely large number of demons, with at least ten Epic Rank and a hundred Legendary Rank demons active.
Second, the existence of unknown laws.
Third, it is impassable even for Title Rank experts.
The reason the Silent Sea was listed as a forbidden zone was precisely due to the second point.
This sea area possessed a bizarre law—here, the concept of buoyancy vanished completely.
Whether it flew in the sky, drifted on the surface, or swam in the water, everything would eventually sink to the seabed.
This was why the North Wind caravan had no choice but to trek along the seafloor.
In this sea area, any method of travel that relied on buoyancy was futile.
If the issues of oxygen and seawater pressure could be solved, traveling along the seabed was indeed a viable way.
According to the scholar, Eli, the North Wind caravan had used this method to successfully cross no fewer than seven times.
The procedure was quite mature.
In terms of danger, it was arguably less risky than crossing the forest outside Twilight Fortress.
"It's just a bit scary," the scholar concluded at the end.
Lin Gui thought to himself: it's more than "a bit" scary.
If even a single thing went wrong in the middle, everyone would end up buried at the bottom of the sea.
For this crossing, Lin Gui would be responsible for driving the train due to his precise control.
Joining this operation, besides the Legendary sea folk mage Percel, was the goblin chief of Twin Reefs, a Goblin Hero named "Stonefang."
He brought several of his offspring as well.
The reason they came along was simple: to serve as hostages.
The North Wind caravan's discovery of this absurd method of crossing dated back six years.
At that time, Freya, who had just stepped into the Legendary Rank, founded the North Wind caravan.
To build the transport team's reputation, she took on a commission issued by the City-State Alliance to explore the Silent Sea.
She arrived at Twin Reefs by chance.
Back then, the goblin chief was leading his clan through a difficult beginning.
As a race that had always lived on land, trying to survive on a sea island was extremely hard, even for a race as easy to support as goblins.
At that time, Stonefang proactively introduced Freya to the sea folk Legendary, Percel.
They then found a path to Shield City at the bottom of the Silent Sea.
However, setting out from the seabed was ultimately too shocking.
Stonefang eventually staked his own life in Freya's hands to earn her trust.
He led the North Wind caravan out from the seabed and successfully crossed the Silent Sea.
Freya also used this to establish the North Wind caravan's reputation in the transport industry.
As a reward, every year afterward when the North Wind caravan delivered supplies here, they would bring the materials needed by the goblins and the sea folk who had gradually moved onto the island.
And this delivery had continued for six years.
Stonefang personally accompanying them as a hostage had also become a regular practice.
If anything went wrong, he would die along with the North Wind caravan.
This included his offspring.
Stonefang used the most straightforward way to show everyone that this path across the seabed of the Silent Sea was safe.
Lin Gui looked at that green-skinned, exceptionally tall Goblin Hero.
He was silently letting his offspring climb onto the train.
His rough, large hands pressed down on the head of each little goblin in turn.
The movements were clumsy, yet they carried an unquestionable resolve.
For the survival of their tribe, these goblins... had learned to use the most cruel method to express their greatest sincerity.
Rate on N.U.
