Under Percel's guidance, Lin Gui steered the train along the boundary of the Silent Sea.
Eventually, several mermaids appeared on the surface ahead.
They emerged from the water and waved toward the train.
Percel signaled for Lin Gui to enter from that position.
Lin Gui raised an eyebrow and didn't hesitate.
He drove the train straight toward the circle of mermaids gathering on the sea's surface.
Just moments before touching the water.
Percel began chanting a long, complex incantation in an Ancient Sea Folk language.
A massive, transparent bubble generated instantly.
It completely enveloped the entire train.
Wrapped in the bubble, the train dove headlong into the sea.
There was almost no resistance upon entry.
Only a ring of ripples remained on the surface, which quickly settled.
Several mermaids swished their tails gracefully, accompanying the train on both sides of the bubble.
Their silvery-blue scales shimmered in the sunlight filtering down underwater.
Like an escort guard, they led the train into the depths.
Lin Gui steered the train steadily, following the mermaids leading the way ahead.
They continued to descend.
The surrounding scenery changed as the depth increased.
Initially, hazy pillars of light formed by sunlight penetrating the surface were still visible.
The shallow waters were colorful, with schools of fish darting through.
Occasionally, fish with demonic traits could be seen.
For example, strange fish with bony spikes, or sea crabs with shells glowing with an ominous red light.
The deeper they went, the darker the light became.
Colors were gradually replaced by deep blue.
Coral and strange jellyfish emitting faint glows began to appear in the surroundings.
Their light swayed in the dim seabed like ghost fires.
Some massive dark shadows cruised in the distance.
Their full forms couldn't be seen clearly, leaving only unsettling outlines.
The temperature dropped significantly.
In the profound darkness, the only light came from the faint glow emitted by the train and the accompanying mermaids.
It illuminated a small area ahead.
The depths of the ocean felt like a silent, massive tomb.
It was slowly swallowing them whole.
Lin Gui didn't know exactly how deep they had descended.
He only saw that the last light from the surface had long since disappeared.
The surroundings had fallen into pure darkness.
Only the tiny, flickering fluorescent spots on the mermaids' tail fins ahead guided the way.
Descending further.
A sense of oppression flooded in from all directions.
It felt as if the weight of the entire ocean were pressing down on his chest.
Absolute silence devoured all sound.
Even the hum of the train's operation was absorbed by the heavy seawater.
Only the sound of his own heartbeat thrummed in his ears.
Finally, the fluorescent lights ahead came to a halt.
Wrapped in the bubble, the train hovered above the seabed.
By the faint light emitted by the fluorescence.
The scene on the seafloor could be vaguely seen.
Beneath them was a thick layer of silt that had deposited for who knows how many years.
Occasionally, pale, twisted coral skeletons stuck out.
They looked like a forest of withered trees on the seabed.
Further away, there were some massive, indescribable shadow outlines.
They looked like the wreckage of sunken ships, or perhaps the skeletons of some gargantuan beasts.
They lay silently in the eternal darkness.
The fluorescent lights began to swim around in different directions.
It seemed they were searching for something.
Beside him, Eli the scholar explained in a low voice:
“They are looking for the marker.”
“The marker for entering the territory of the Silent Sea.”
Theia had hugged Lin Gui's arm from behind at some point.
Her voice trembled slightly:
“We... haven't entered the Silent Sea yet?”
This ranger, who hadn't even flinched in the face of a demon riot.
Now seemed exceptionally fragile.
Her fear stemmed from a deep sense of powerlessness.
The lives of everyone were tied to this seemingly fragile bubble.
Once the bubble burst.
She didn't know how she would survive at a depth of thousands of meters in the deep sea.
The scholar gave a bitter smile.
He pointed toward several strange-looking deep-sea demons swimming in the distance.
“There are no demons in the Silent Sea itself.”
“Why?” Theia was confused. “Don't Forbidden Zones always have demons entrenched in them?”
The scholar thought for a moment before explaining:
“Because aquatic demons cannot survive in the Silent Sea.”
“The moment they step into that sea area.”
“They will continuously sink toward the seabed and can never float up again.”
“Ultimately, they all die once their food is exhausted.”
“Whether they are Low Rank demons or Legendary ones, it's all the same.”
Theia became even more puzzled:
“Then after we enter, won't we also be unable to return to the surface?”
The scholar smiled:
“We are different from aquatic demons; we have arms and legs.”
“When the time comes, we can ‘walk’ up along the sea floor.”
“Besides, Stonefang, the goblin chief, will be at the front helping us clear any potential threats.”
Lin Gui was somewhat curious:
“Didn't they scout the route in advance?”
Eli the scholar looked embarrassed:
“Mainly because we arrived two whole weeks earlier than the time we agreed upon with them.”
“So...”
Lin Gui was speechless:
“In the end, it's because of me.”
The scholar just smiled and didn't deny it.
During their conversation, the mermaids who had scattered to search sent out a signal.
They had found the most suitable entrance.
Lin Gui urged the train forward, drifting slowly toward that side.
They finally stopped before a strange boundary.
On one side was the slightly murky water of the Black Reef Sea.
On the other side was the thick, ink-like darkness of the Silent Sea that seemed to absorb all light.
The two were distinctly separate, like two different worlds.
Lin Gui steered the train, carefully crossing that marker.
As soon as the front of the train crossed the line—
Thud!
With a dull sound, the front of the train plummeted downward, sinking into the sea mud.
Lin Gui discovered to his astonishment that no matter how he urged the Levitation spell.
There was a more dominant force.
Pressing the front of the train firmly against the seabed!
Percel's voice drifted over:
“Alright, we have entered the seabed of the Silent Sea.”
“Everyone come down now; we'll push the train and walk.”
The beastkin brothers Grom and Magrom were the first to jump off the train.
Barton, the barbarian warrior, let out a low growl, his muscles bulging.
Vice Leader Aubrey also rolled up his sleeves.
Lin Gui was somewhat surprised; he had always thought the Vice Leader was a mage.
He hadn't expected the other party to be a shield warrior.
When he exerted his strength, the sturdy muscles bulging under his pale beard.
Truly gave Lin Gui a shock.
The steel train, weighing several hundred tons.
Under the coordinated effort of several Transcendent warriors, was slowly pushed forward.
Their feet both sank deep into the silt of the sea floor.
Every step left a heavy footprint.
Thus, pushing the train, they formally stepped into the territory of the Silent Sea.
Freya instructed everyone to turn on their magic lamps.
In an instant, the originally pitch-black deep sea floor.
Was illuminated by a moving pillar of light.
If this were the Black Reef Sea, such a light would surely attract countless deep-sea demons.
But here, just as the scholar said.
Not a single demon could be seen; even ordinary aquatic life was extinct.
There was only a deathly silence.
The sea floor was covered in a thick layer of pale silt.
Occasionally, twisted coral fossils were exposed, looking like gruesome skeletons.
Further away, the outlines of sunken ships were vaguely visible.
As well as the skeletons of creatures so massive they were hard to imagine.
They were half-buried in the mud and sand, speaking of the terrors of the past.
The North Wind caravan pushed the train, making their way with difficulty across the rugged sea floor.
In front of the train, at the edge of the bubble.
Alvin the scout, Laisa the ranger, and Dulu the assassin.
Were constantly tapping the ground ahead with their weapons.
Confirming if it was firm and whether there were hidden caves or fissures.
Crimson light shimmered in the eyes of Stonefang, the goblin chief.
As a cave-dwelling race, night vision was practically their natural talent.
He stared intently at the invisible darkness in the distance, constantly guiding the direction for the team.
Leading the train around one bottomless sea trench after another.
The team advanced steadily on the uneven sea floor.
Feeling that there seemed to be no great threat.
Theia finally let go of Lin Gui's hand, which she had been gripping tightly.
“It... doesn't seem like much.”
“Isn't crossing a Forbidden Zone a bit too easy?”
Lin Gui shook his head and countered:
“That's because the North Wind caravan has developed this route to maturity.”
“Many undercurrents, traps, and fragile areas have already been scouted by them.”
“Furthermore, if it weren't for the Sea Folk's exquisite water-repelling and walking magic.”
“The deep-sea water pressure and lack of oxygen alone would be fatal.”
“Not to mention this ghost of a place doesn't even have buoyancy.”
“Once you slip and fall into a sea trench, it's a point of no return.”
Beside them, Freya also added a sentence indifferently:
“Six years ago, before my first time coming here.”
“All the transport teams that attempted to cross the Silent Sea and establish a Golden Route...”
“Not a single one was able to come out.”
Her voice was exceptionally clear in the silent deep.
“Among them were several famous, large-scale caravans.”
“There was even a team led by a High-tier Legendary Archmage.”
“They carried the top-tier alchemical ships and protection formations of that time; they even had several levitation stones embedded in the ship's hull.”
“But in the end... they too were eternally silenced on this seabed.”
“Not even a corpse remained.”
Rate on N.U.
