Little Black blinked.
“Are you sure?”
“I'm not sure, but it's better than having no direction at all.”
Jiang Lin rummaged through his spatial ring again and finally found a few wooden boards.
He had collected them back at the Rust Mine, originally planning to use them for a temporary table.
He then pulled out several ropes and some miscellaneous spare parts.
These were just random items he had tossed into his spatial ring while on Planet Teluofuto.
“What are you doing?”
Little Black watched Jiang Lin clinking and clanking in the water, looking thoroughly confused.
“Building a boat.”
Jiang Lin didn't even look up. His hands were busy wrapping and knotting ropes around the edges of the boards, fixing a waterproof cloth to the four corners to create a simple sail.
Little Black tilted its head and watched for a long while before finally offering an evaluation:
“Ugly.”
“As long as it floats.”
Jiang Lin straightened the makeshift raft, climbed on, and then reached out to move Little Black over from the lifebuoy.
“The demon territory is on the east side of the continent, so we need to paddle west.”
“Are you sure we're currently east of the continent?”
“I'm not sure, but it's better than going in the opposite direction.”
Little Black opened its mouth to say something, but ultimately just sighed.
Jiang Lin dipped the wooden 'oar' into the water and began to paddle.
One stroke, two strokes, three strokes...
The lifebuoy raft moved slowly, heading westward.
The speed was agonizingly slow—slower than walking.
“At this rate, how long will it take us to get back? Years?”
Little Black complained.
“Don't worry, I have a plan.”
Jiang Lin set down the wooden board and raised his right hand, palm facing downward.
A blood-red rift appeared out of thin air, and a 3rd-rank peak Crimson Claw-wing was plucked from the crack.
“Go. Push the boat.”
The Crimson Claw-wing had no right to refuse. It could only silently drop from the air into the water, swim behind the small raft, press its head against the lifebuoy, and begin to push.
The speed instantly increased more than tenfold.
“Aren't you afraid of attracting some sea monsters?”
Little Black watched the demon splashing around in the water.
“It's better than drifting until next year.”
Jiang Lin summoned several more Crimson Claw-wings from the rift, letting them take turns pushing the boat.
The raft's speed transformed from a slow drift into a steady advance.
Jiang Lin sat cross-legged and began to circulate his breathing technique.
Inside his body, the Demon Lord Status and the Apostle Mark coexisted peacefully, not interfering with one another.
The dark red crystal at his heart floated quietly, its surface runes flowing with stable energy fluctuations.
“System,” he murmured in his mind.
The system panel expanded before his eyes:
【Name】: Jiang Lin
【Class】: Paladin
【Level】: 40
【Stamina】: 900,000
【Spirit】: 900,000
......
【Random Skill Upgrade * 18】
【Designated Skill Upgrade * 3】
【Phase Quest: Abyss of Slaughter (Not Started)】
【System Upgrading...】
【Upgrade Complete】
【New Feature: Random Skill Upgrade points can be converted into attribute points (1,000 Stamina or 1,000 Spirit per 1 Random Skill Upgrade point spent)】
Jiang Lin's eyes lit up.
This meant he now had a way to rapidly increase his attributes.
“But these points... aren't enough yet.”
Converting all eighteen Random Skill Upgrade points would only grant 18,000 attribute points.
Compared to his current base of 900,000, it was a drop in the bucket.
Furthermore, he had already reached the limit of the 3rd-rank, so he couldn't continue to level up anyway.
“I'll save them up slowly.”
Jiang Lin withdrew his consciousness and turned his attention to the newly appeared quest.
【Phase Quest: Abyss of Slaughter】
【Requirement: Find the entrance to the Abyss of Slaughter and enter】
【Reward: ???】
【Tip: This quest is extremely difficult. Please proceed with caution.】
“Abyss of Slaughter...”
Jiang Lin frowned and looked at Little Black, who was still diligently licking its fur.
“Little Black, do you know about the Abyss of Slaughter?”
Little Black asked back:
“Why are you asking about that again?”
“I learned about it during the Demon Lord Trial.”
“The Abyss of Slaughter...”
Little Black thought for a moment.
“I only remember hearing the name somewhere... but I can't recall clearly.
“Anyway, it's not a good place.
“The entrance is in the void, not on the surface of any planet.
“Don't even think about it for now. Wait until you can physically traverse the void.”
“Physically traverse the void?”
“That requires at least the 9th-rank.”
Little Black yawned.
“You're only at the peak of the 3rd-rank. You have a long way to go.”
Jiang Lin fell silent.
9th-rank...
At his current speed, it would take roughly...
Forget it, he wouldn't think about it.
He closed his eyes again and continued his breathing technique.
The raft moved slowly across the sea. The ocean breeze blew past, carrying a salty, damp scent.
Time passed slowly during their drift.
On the first day, Jiang Lin could still roughly judge their direction using the sun and stars.
On the second day, it was overcast. There was no sun and no stars.
“Which way are we going now?” Little Black asked.
“I don't know.”
Jiang Lin looked at the gray sky, his expression blank.
“So you don't know again?”
“I don't know.”
Little Black sighed and curled back into the corner to continue sleeping.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Demon territory, Forgotten Swamp.
Loren stood before the rune array. His ice-blue robe fluttered in the wind, and his hair fell like a waterfall. His beautiful, androgynous face looked like a statue carved from ice and snow under the dark red sky.
His purple eyes calmly surveyed the empty teleportation point before him.
No one was there.
His disciple was gone.
Loren was silent for a moment, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
“He runs quite fast...”
He whispered to himself, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness and a touch of relief.
“At least he knew to run. He's not too stupid.”
He turned and looked toward the direction where the four Demon Lords had disappeared.
“However, scaring my disciple like that... someone has to give me an explanation.”
He raised his right hand, pressed his index and middle fingers together, and lightly tapped forward.
A wisp of ice-blue sword intent shot out from his fingertip, silently vanishing into the void.
In the distance, the four Demon Lords, who were in the middle of withdrawing, stopped simultaneously.
“He's catching up?!”
The Molten Demon Lord's face changed. Hot flames spewed from the gaps in his dark red scales.
“Run!”
The Blood Pupil Demon Lord was the first to turn, his body transforming into a streak of blood-light as he sped further away.
The other three Demon Lords were not slow either. Almost simultaneously, they erupted with their full power, and the four figures vanished into the dark red sky.
But Loren was faster.
His figure was like a teleportation, trailing an ice-blue streak through the void. In the blink of an eye, he caught up with the Molten Demon Lord, who was trailing at the back.
“Why are you running?”
Loren's voice was as calm as ever, but it made the Molten Demon Lord's entire body stiffen.
“I... I'm not running!”
The Molten Demon Lord steeled himself and stopped, turning to face Loren.
His red-gold eyes were full of wariness, and dark red flames burned fiercely around him, scorching and distorting the surrounding air.
“Why are you chasing me? I didn't provoke you!”
“You scared my disciple.”
“When did I ever scare your disciple?!”
“When you locked onto him.”
The Molten Demon Lord opened his mouth to say something but ultimately just blurted out:
“I just wanted to see who killed my person! I didn't even plan to lay a hand on him!”
“Are you sure?”
“I'm sure!”
Loren stared at him for a moment and nodded slightly.
“Very well. You may go.”
The Molten Demon Lord felt as if he had been granted a grand amnesty and turned to run.
But he hadn't run very far before an ice-blue sword light chased him from behind, accurately striking him in the back.
“Pfft!”
The Molten Demon Lord spat out a mouthful of blood, his figure staggering as he nearly fell from the sky.
“You... you're not a man of your word!”
He turned back, glaring at Loren in fury.
“I didn't say I wouldn't hit you,” Loren said indifferently. “I only said you could go.”
The Molten Demon Lord trembled with rage, but in the end, he gritted his teeth and endured it, continuing to flee.
Loren did not give chase. He simply stood in place, his purple eyes looking toward the directions the other three Demon Lords had fled.
“Three directions...” He frowned slightly. “Forget it, chasing one is enough.”
He turned and headed in the direction the Frostbone Demon Lord had fled.
...
Meanwhile, on the Endless Sea.
Jiang Lin sat cross-legged on the raft, his breathing technique circulating and his body full of magic power.
He had no idea that his master had already chased and struck down the Demon Lords for his sake.
Jiang Lin pulled a simple compass from his spatial ring.
He had bought this in Clearwater City. It was made with magic crystals and magnets and should theoretically point north.
But now, the needle was spinning wildly, unable to stop.
“The magnetic field is distorted.”
Jiang Lin put away the compass.
“There might be some kind of interference in this sea area.”
“So you can't determine the exact direction again?”
“Yeah.”
Little Black rolled its eyes and curled back into the corner to sleep.
Jiang Lin didn't sleep. He simply continued his breathing technique.
The raft moved slowly across the sea, with several Crimson Claw-wings pushing it through the water, their dark red eyes glinting in the gray light.
The third day.
The weather was clear, with no clouds for ten thousand miles.
Little Black lay at the edge of the raft, looking at the sea with boredom.
“Do you think there are any fish in this sea?” it asked.
“Of course there are.”
Jiang Lin didn't even look up.
“How big?”
“I don't know, but the books say the Endless Sea has behemoths over a hundred meters long.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a violent tremor came from beneath the raft.
BOOM!!!
The sea surface exploded, and a massive dark shadow burst from the water, sending spray everywhere!
It was a fish.
A giant fish over twenty meters long.
It was covered in deep blue scales, with a thick bone spike on its head that shimmered with a faint blue light at the tip.
It opened its massive mouth, revealing rows of teeth as sharp as daggers, and lunged straight for the raft!
“Meow!!!”
Little Black's fur bristled, its four claws digging desperately into the edge of the raft.
Jiang Lin stood up, his golden eyes calmly watching the approaching maw.
He raised his right hand, pressing his index and middle fingers together.
Sword Intent Condensation.
A deep blue sword light shot from his fingertip, entering the giant fish's mouth.
The fish's body stiffened instantly and then began to twitch violently.
Its massive frame thrashed on the sea surface, kicking up huge waves, while the Crimson Claw-wings scattered to avoid it.
The struggle lasted only a few seconds.
Then, it stopped moving.
The giant fish's body began to disintegrate from the inside out. Scales peeled off one by one, revealing the gray-white, lifeless flesh beneath.
Frost spread from the wound, covering its entire body.
In just a few breaths, the twenty-meter-long giant fish was transformed into a massive ice sculpture floating on the sea.
Jiang Lin withdrew his hand and looked at Little Black.
“Lunch is served.”
Little Black's eyes widened as it stared at the massive ice sculpture.
“You... you're going to eat this?”
“Why not? Dry rations will run out eventually.”
Jiang Lin jumped off the raft, walking across the ice to the giant fish's head.
He raised his hand and sliced off the bone spike with a single sword strike.
The bone spike felt warm to the touch and emitted faint magic power fluctuations.
“This can be used to make weapons or magic tools. It'll fetch a good price back home.”
He stored the bone spike in his spatial ring and then cut off several chunks of fish meat.
The meat was snow-white with clear textures, giving off a faint scent of the sea.
Jiang Lin placed the fish meat on the raft and then pulled out pots, pans, and seasonings from his spatial ring.
“You even brought these?!”
Little Black looked at the cookware in disbelief.
“Of course. One has to eat when traveling.”
Jiang Lin set up a pot in the center of the raft and took a magic crystal from his spatial ring, placing it under the pot.
The magic crystal emitted steady heat, bringing the seawater in the pot to a boil.
He sliced the fish meat into thin pieces, added them to the pot, and then tossed in some ginger and scallions.
A moment later, a rich, fresh aroma wafted from the pot.
Little Black swallowed hard.
“It smells so good...”
“Don't be impatient. It's not ready yet.”
Jiang Lin then took out salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and other seasonings, adding them one by one.
Finally, he sprinkled a handful of chopped scallions and covered the pot.
“One more minute.”
Little Black crouched by the pot, its eyes fixed on the lid, drool nearly dripping onto the raft.
A minute later, Jiang Lin lifted the lid.
White steam rose, and a rich, fresh fragrance hit them.
The fish was cooked, the snow-white slices tumbling in the broth. Paired with the vibrant green of the scallions, it looked exceptionally tempting.
Jiang Lin served a bowl and handed it to Little Black.
“Careful, it's hot.”
Little Black took the bowl and lowered its head to take a sip of the broth.
“Delicious!”
Its eyes lit up, and it began to eat voraciously.
Jiang Lin also served himself a bowl, sitting at the edge of the raft, eating while watching the sea.
The fish meat was tender and melted in his mouth, carrying a subtle seafood sweetness.
The broth was rich and perfectly seasoned, making him feel warm all over as he drank it.
“Not bad,” Jiang Lin nodded.
“I have to say, this fish tastes better than the ones in the restaurants in Clearwater City.”
Little Black had already finished its bowl and nudged closer for a second.
“Another bowl!”
“Serve yourself.”
Little Black glared at him but went to serve itself anyway.
One man and one cat sat on the raft, eating fish meat and drinking soup while looking out over the endless ocean.
Sunlight sparkled on the water, and seabirds circled overhead.
“Actually, this is quite comfortable,” Little Black suddenly said.
“What?”
“No fighting and killing, no worrying about getting stronger. Just drifting like this, watching the sea, and eating fish.”
Jiang Lin looked at Little Black with disdain.
“Little Black, you've grown lazy.
“Besides, when have you ever done the fighting and killing? Haven't I been the one doing all that?
“And don't you just eat and sleep every day anyway?”
“Mind your own business.”
......
Rate on N.U.
