Chapter 10: Xingji Continent (Part 1)

Qi Nanshan shook his head and said, “Be cautious. Don’t think about eating all the time!”
Monier snapped, “What’s wrong with my baby wanting to eat? You eat the most of whatever I cook! Hmph! How dare you say that!” Qi Nanshan was so stunned he couldn’t say a word.
Guo Shier smiled carefree, knowing they were all concerned about him. He said, “I wonder what level of mutated sea beast it is. I think it’s a low-level one.”
Qi Nanshan replied, “Of course it’s a low-level mutated sea beast. If you pay close attention to your soul, you’ll be able to sense it…”
Guo Shier cast a spell and said, “I can detect it… Huh, it’s not just one mutated sea emperor crab—it’s two! One big and one small… Heh, such sneaky creatures. The big one distracts us while the small one tries to attack the bottom of the ship.” As soon as he finished speaking, there was a loud thud, and the entire ship shook.
Xiao Cheng shouted, “Stabilize it! Activate maximum defense!”
Eagle Demon said, “I’ll go!” and leaped into the sea.
Guo Shier cried out, “Uncle Eagle Demon… don’t break it!”
Qi Nanshan swallowed hard and shook his head helplessly. Monier smiled brightly and said, “Don’t worry. Little Eagle is a sage. Such a small sea crab isn’t even his match… Well, let the master’s wife catch the other one.”
A string of purple virtual talismans flew from Monier’s fingertips, plunging into the water like ropes. Instantly, countless ripples spread across the sea surface, which then began to churn.
From the ship, nothing could be seen beneath the surface. It was deep sea, with no light penetrating, so nothing could be seen below—only the violent waves on the calm sea surface, whether caused by Eagle Demon’s battle or Monier’s talismans. All the crew members stared nervously at the sea.
Monier gave a light command, “Lift it!”
A nine-meter-long giant sea emperor crab, entangled in purple virtual talismans, was pulled out of the sea by force.
The sea emperor crab had a distinctive appearance—eight massive leg-like limbs connected to its chest, an extremely fierce face, and two sunken crab eyes glowing golden. As soon as it emerged from the water, it spewed a series of white bubbles from its mouth, shooting toward the people on the ship’s side like a fountain. Guo Shier smiled; this attack was far too weak. He stretched out his hand, and dozens of silver-glowing virtual talismans flew out.

With a series of crackling sounds, the foam exploded like firecrackers. Qi Nanshan stepped forward, reached out with his hand, and somehow managed to pull out the soul of the sea emperor crab. A black flame flashed across his palm, and an egg-sized soul orb appeared. He smiled and said, “Guo Shier, here, you can use this to feed your spirit beast.”

After its soul was taken away, the sea emperor crab, which had been struggling desperately, fell silent and was dead beyond death. This move was truly ruthless and cunning. Fortunately, the crew didn’t understand what was happening, as they were quite far away and unaware of this tactic. If there had been other professionals present, Qi Nanshan wouldn’t have used such a method.

Guo Shier said excitedly, “Pull it onto the deck! Pull it onto the deck! Haha!”

Monier smiled, waved her hand lightly, and with a gentle flick, the nine-meter-long sea emperor crab landed on the deck, causing the entire ship to sink slightly. Without hesitation, Guo Shier swung his hand, and a golden thread shot out from his fingertips—he used his life sword talisman to cut the sea emperor crab. Since the sword talisman had transformed into his life blade, he could control it effortlessly.

Crack! One of its crab legs was severed.

Guo Shier circled the sea emperor crab, cutting off its eight legs and two pincers, then began peeling and tearing apart its flesh, working so hard that he was sweating profusely. Soon, he had torn the huge sea emperor crab to pieces. Smiling, he put everything into his talisman bag. In no time, only some messy debris remained on the deck.

At that moment, Eagle Demon emerged from the water, holding a rope in his hand. After climbing up, he used the rope to drag half of the sea emperor crab onto the deck, saying apologetically, “I accidentally used too much force and split the sea emperor crab in half… So, there’s only half now…”

Guo Shier laughed and said, “Half is still good. This one is a bit smaller… but there’s still plenty of meat, haha.”

The half sea emperor crab was about three meters long, much smaller than the previous one. Guo Shier proceeded to strip its bones and meat just as easily. Soon, another pile of trash appeared—unwanted scraps of flesh and shells. Captain Xiao Cheng ordered seven or eight crew members to clean up the deck.

Guo Shier muttered, “It’s not satisfying enough… too little… Just one type. It would be better if there were more.”

Qi Nanshan scolded him, “How can you expect more mutated sea beasts?”

Guo Shier sighed, “Food is scarce. Who knows if we’ll have another chance in the future. We should collect as much as we can. It’s a shame we don’t have time to go hunting.”

Eagle Demon said, “I think there won’t be another chance. Look…”

Everyone looked up and saw dozens of sea ships around them, with even more sails in the distance. Several patrol air vehicles also crossed the sky, leaving trails of white light behind. Eagle Demon continued, “…With so many sea ships gathered here, it seems we’re approaching the entrance to the secret realm soon.”

Xiao Cheng went over to Guo Shier and said, “This is already a safe area, within the reach of the Hai Men disciples. There’s no danger, so please return to your cabins to rest.”

Guo Shier smiled and said, “I’m not tired. I don’t need to go back.”

Qi Nanshan nodded and said, “I’ll go back. Call me if you need anything.” He turned and left, knowing that at the entrance to the secret realm, he would surely be inspected by the Hai Men disciples. But with the strength of a Great Sage, as long as he didn’t use the skills of the Black Talisman Man, those disciples wouldn’t be able to detect his heritage.

Monier and Eagle Demon didn’t go back either; instead, they watched the sea ships around them with great interest. Guo Shier asked, “Captain Xiao, how much longer until we reach the dock after entering the Core Continent?”

Xiao Cheng smiled and said, “Master Guo, it’s very close. It will take less than half a day… It’s a big city, ranked among the top ten in the Core Continent. Its name is Hai City. Hehe, if possible, I’d welcome you to my home.”

Guo Shier smiled and said, “That sounds great. We’ll have to trouble you then.”

Xiao Cheng was delighted to meet professionals. For them, it could only bring benefits, not drawbacks. He boasted, “My wife is an excellent cook. Although not as skilled as Master Guo, she has some special dishes you’ve surely never tasted before.” Observing Guo Shier’s interest, he used this to attract them.

Sure enough, Guo Shier said with a smile, “That’s great! I’d really like to try the local specialties.”

Xiao Cheng smiled slightly and said, “Then it’s settled.” He excused himself and returned to the command cabin of the sea ship to continue steering it. Here, the captain’s tasks became more demanding—he had to coordinate the crew, maintain the course, and handle various complicated matters, leaving no time for chatting.

Guo Shier said with a smile, “Let’s enjoy the scenery.” He spread out a large animal skin mat and sat cross-legged. Monier sat beside him. Eagle Demon remained standing, vigilant.

The sea ship sailed through the waves. Soon, Guo Shier saw a large light screen in the distance and couldn’t help but exclaim, “What a huge entrance to the secret realm!”

The light screen was several kilometers long and hundreds of meters high, connecting the secret realm to the continent. Most astonishingly, the connection between the secret realm and the continent was the sea, with a slight elevation difference between them—the seawater from the secret realm flowed into the continent. Guo Shier had once heard a sailor say that thousands of years ago, the Xinkji Continent had no ocean. When this secret realm was opened, a large amount of seawater poured in, and it took decades for the Xinkji Continent to develop its own ocean.

There used to be a difference of nearly 100 meters between the two oceans, but now it’s less than 10 meters. Perhaps in another hundred years, the two oceans will be at the same level. This was the ocean brought to the Xinkji Continent by the secret realm, and even if the secret realm disappeared in the future, the ocean on the Xinkji Continent would not vanish.

There were only two routes to enter and exit the Xinkji Continent, both controlled by runes—one upper route and one lower route. All sea ships had to queue up to pass through. If they deviated from the routes, the nearly 10-meter elevation difference could damage the ships.

One after another, the sea ships lined up, waiting to enter the routes.

A patrol air vehicle arrived above the ship where Xiao Cheng was on, and two professionals descended from it.

Guo Shier turned to look. One of them landed at the bow of the ship, while the other landed near the command cabin door. That professional went straight into the command cabin, likely to check some documents for a routine inspection.

The professional who landed at the bow saw Guo Shier smiling and was momentarily stunned before shouting, “Guo Shier!”

Monier was surprised, not expecting Guo Shier to know professionals from the higher-tier continents. However, Yingmo smiled—he also recognized this person. Guo Shier said cheerfully, “Xuan Ai! I didn’t expect to see you on the Xinkji Continent! Hehe, it’s been a while since we last met.”

In the trials of the Bloody Secret Realm, Guo Shier didn’t know many people, but they were all professionals from the higher-tier continents.

The two laughed and hugged each other. Xuan Ai examined Guo Shier carefully before asking after a while, “How did you end up here?”

Guo Shier replied, “I came out for some experience, just wandering around… and ended up in this secret realm. I didn’t expect to meet you. Hehe, are you from Haimen?”

Xuan Ai said proudly, “Of course. I currently reside in Haicheng and conduct patrols every 60 days… It’s extremely easy, haha.” He turned and shouted toward the command cabin, “Lao Pang! Lao Pang… Pang Guang! Come quickly!”

“I’m coming! I’m coming! What’s the rush… Did you find something?”

Pang Guang rushed out in a flash. Seeing Xuan Ai’s joyful expression, he realized he had misunderstood. He went to the bow and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Pang Guang was a thin and petite man, a senior Great Talisman Martial Artist. He wore a light green robe and a belt made of spider silk around his waist, which clearly was a talisman weapon, with a string of finger-sized talisman knives hanging from it. His complexion was dark, his eyes sharp and bright, giving him a diligent appearance.
Xuan Ai smiled and said, “Old Pang, come here. He’s a good friend I met during the trials in the Land of Bloodshed… Guo Shier.”