Unlike the mountain ranges he had seen in his previous life, Li Fan’s current location was above a vast, boundless sea, with no land in sight!
What’s going on? Why is the exit point different this time? Li Fan was somewhat bewildered.
He unfolded a map he had drawn based on his memories, attempting to locate this sea on it. But after repeated comparisons, he found absolutely nothing.
Forget it. I can only take one step and see what the next brings. Not knowing what had gone wrong, Li Fan put away the map and sighed. Fortunately, I have the Taiyan Boat. Otherwise, I would probably be trapped here and die eventually. I just don’t know if I can find a habitable place before the spirit stones in the Taiyan Boat are all used up.
Not one to wallow in self-pity, Li Fan quickly took action.
Selecting a direction, he piloted the Taiyan Boat forth, searching for traces of a city.
The sea was truly vast and boundless. Li Fan flew for a full seven days and seven nights without seeing any sign of human civilization.
Luckily, he had ample provisions stored within the Taiyan Boat, so there was no need to worry about survival.
Ten more days went by, and the Taiyan Boat kept slowing. Clearly, it was running out of fuel.
As Li Fan began to grow desperate, he finally spotted the faint silhouette of what appeared to be a ship.
Overjoyed, Li Fan immediately lowered the Taiyan Boat’s altitude and slowly approached.
As he drew nearer, however, he was struck speechless.
It was a ship, alright, but one on the verge of sinking.
It seemed to have been through some kind of attack; there was a massive hole in its hull, and two-thirds of it was already submerged underwater.
Several dozen people struggled in the waters around the half-sunken ship, clearly all crew members from the vessel.
Most of them were not skilled swimmers, barely managing to stay afloat by clinging to broken pieces of wood.
Just as Li Fan was hesitating whether to reveal the Taiyan Boat and save these people, he heard one of the surviving men shout with great effort: “Don’t be afraid, everyone! I’ve already sent a signal to the Immortal Master! He will come to save us soon! Just hold on a little longer!”
Hearing this, Li Fan’s mind stirred.
He put away the Taiyan Boat, jumped into the sea, and quietly swam toward the group of people.
Silently blending into the crowd, Li Fan also pretended to struggle for survival.
After a good while, a stream of light flew over from a distance and halted above the group.
“Immortal Master, save me!”
“Immortal Master, help!”
Seeing that hope had arrived, they quickly cried out one after another.
“How noisy!”
The voice sounded male, but his clothing and face were unclear, as though obscured by a layer of gauze.
The man then snorted coldly and cast some unknown arcane art. Li Fan found himself unable to make a sound, and the entire crowd also fell silent.
The Immortal Master then flew to the side of the sinking ship. With one hand, he raised the vessel out of the water.
After that, a beam of light shot out, and the large hole in the ship’s hull was repaired in a matter of moments.
Then, he looked at the group of people floating in the sea. With another cold snort, he made a grasping motion, and lifted his hand.
Li Fan and the others felt themselves grabbed by an invisible force, lifted up, and flung toward the repaired ship.
Thud! Thud! Thud! The rescued mortals were thrown roughly onto the deck like dumplings dumped into a pot.
With the air knocked from their lungs, the group could only emit muffled groans. Yet there was only reverence and joy on their faces. No one dared to utter the slightest complaint.
After everyone had been saved, the Immortal Master flew above the ship and spoke with a sharp tone: “Who sent the signal?”
The man who had spoken earlier to comfort the group quickly knelt on the ground.
The Immortal Master waved his hand, releasing the spell on him.
The man kowtowed repeatedly as he said: “I am Su Changyu...”
The Immortal Master cut him off: “You know the rules, right? Once we reach the destination, I have nothing to do with any of you. I have never seen you, and I don’t know who you are. Understood?”
Su Changyu kowtowed again: “I understand. Before we departed, the elders in my family explained...”
Halfway through his words, his voice vanished again.
It turned out the Immortal Master had nodded in satisfaction and then casually silenced Su Changyu once more.
Ignoring the mortals, the Immortal Master moved to the ship’s prow. He cast some unknown arcane art, and the vessel swiftly began cutting through the waves toward a specific destination.
As the mortals witnessed this, awe was the primary emotion in most of their eyes.
A few, however, still seemed shell-shocked from the recent disaster. They slumped on the deck, trembling and curling into themselves, appearing to weep in silence.
An eerie silence fell over the ship, which continued for the better part of the day. Only after nightfall did a faint, shimmering light finally appear in the distance.
At first glance, it was a prosperous island. The distant murmur of a bustling city carried on the wind, even this far out.
Hundreds of large ships were moored at its docks, making for a truly magnificent sight.
Their ship, however, did not sail toward the main docks. Instead, it circled halfway around the island, heading for a more sparsely populated area on its far side.
Quietly, the ship slipped into a natural waterway leading into a cavern. It navigated the narrow, winding passages of the cave for some time before finally coming to a stop.
Once the ship was secured, several burly figures clad in black came aboard to receive them.
The black-clad men acted as if the Immortal Master were invisible. They simply herded everyone off the ship while brandishing weapons. None uttered a single word throughout the entire process.
After leading the group into a spacious hall, one of the black-clad men finally spoke.
“You will rest here tonight. Provisions are available in the hall; help yourselves. Tomorrow, someone will take you to complete your registration process. Also,” his threatening gaze swept over them, “do not make any unnecessary noise.”
With that, the black-clad man turned and left.
Silence once again filled the hall.
A long time passed before the Immortal Master’s silencing spell finally wore off. Then, people began to talk in small, hushed voices.
“What rotten luck, that sea monster nearly wiped us out. There were almost a hundred of us when we set out, and now barely half are left.”
“Seek the Dao, cultivate immortality? Pfah. I don’t know what my father was thinking, sending me to this major world to become an immortal. If you ask me, it can’t possibly be more enjoyable than listening to a fine opera.”
“Exactly! Back home, I was the son of the Prince of Zhennan. What luxuries did I not have access to? What’s so great about this damned place? That...” His words turned into muffled grunts as a quick-thinking companion clamped a hand over his mouth.
It was then that the man named Su Changyu spoke up. “What’s the point of such talk now? Each of your families paid a steep price to send you here. Rather than complain, focus on cultivating. If you truly become an Immortal Master, you will have a chance at eternal life. You might even be able to return to your homeland and bring your clansmen out with you.”
As Li Fan listened to their conversation in the shadows, he began to understand just who these people were: they were likely exiles, mortals cast out into the Immortal Forsaken Lands, just like him.
Only, it seemed that in their Immortal Forsaken Land, the existence of the cultivation world wasn’t some hidden secret.
On top of that, it seemed some kind of established smuggling route had been developed.
Li Fan stroked his chin, lost in thought.