Ascending, Do Not Disturb

Chapter 148: Dragon Energy
Humans were minuscule in front of the enormous sea monsters.

Even Huan Zhong, who could scare children in the evil cultivator world to stop crying at night, had to be extremely careful among the three sea monsters to avoid being wounded. Hearing Kong Hou call him back, he cut the enormous tentacle heading towards him and jumped back onto Lin Hu’s flying sword.

“The sea monsters have a strange spirit energy field. While they cannot take human form, they are already intelligent.” He was very clean all over. It was hard to imagine he had just had a hard battle with enormous monsters.

“These sea monsters are so big. Transcendent, you are very powerful and at ease among them. Why do you not kill them? Uncle Salted Fish pulled his tattered robe tight around him, his face pale like he had received a great fright.

“They are born in the sea and grew up in the sea. They never went ashore to harm humans. It is rare that they are able to become intelligent. If we kill them just because we are passing by, how unfair would it be to them?” Huan Zhong put away the Dragon Roar Sword. Seeing the two-headed monster about to scream again, he hurriedly formed a boundary to block the powerful sound attack.

Hearing his words, the person most surprised was not Uncle Salted Fish, but Lin Hu. In the past, Master would not care about this or say such words. When the sea monsters attacked him, he might have ruthlessly cut with his sword.

“Transcendent is not one who doesn’t eat animals. Killing one animal is not any different from killing ten.” Uncle Salted Fish wiped the sea water from his face and muttered softly, “This just sounds better.”

“When we humans make choices, we will first think of human interests. Eating other animals is our instinct. Trying to not kill other beings who are intelligent and have not committed evil is benevolence that only humans have.” Kong Hou smiled. “All the beings in the world rely on the world and fight for the things of the world. Survival is an instinct. When beasts eat humans, they never care if this person is good or bad, old or young. They will always follow their inner desire for food.
“We humans are different.” Kong Hou touched her face. “While it might be shameless to say, I still think that we humans are special.”

Uncle Salted Fish looked deeply at her. “You are different from the last time we met.”

“Of course.” Kong Hou nodded and then giggled. “I levelled up. “She looked down at the sea monster outside the boundary that was attempting to attack them. “Elder Lin, let’s go!”

Like a gust of wind and a bolt of lightning, when Kong Hou turned back to look, the sea monsters were far behind. Another look, and there were no sea monsters on the sea.

Thin mist formed on the sea as the day grew late. The winds howled and the seawater was as black as ink, an enormous beast that could open its mouth and consume them at any moment.

“Elder Lin, this place isn’t right.” Kong Hou frowned. The spirit energy here was chaotic, and there seemed to be a strange force deep in the sea that wanted to suck them in. She looked up at the sky. At some unknown time, thick mists had obscured the sky and the sun, so she could not determine their location from the stars.

“There are many strange legends on the sea. It is said when travellers are lost at sea and surrounded by thick mist, misfortune will descend.” Uncle Salted Fish looked at Kong Hou. “Even the strongest cultivator cannot avoid the curse of the sea.”

The mood became strangely quiet. The uncle felt he had an interest in telling legends in this quiet atmosphere. He sighed and said, “It is said…”

“Is this useful?” Kong Hou took out something from her storage ring that caused Uncle Salted Fish to close his mouth. Kong Hou held a compass in her hand, one made personally by one of the three great forgers of the cultivation world, Elder Qiu Shuang.

Elder Qiu Shuang had paid a great price for a flying sword messenger to send this urgent package to Kong Hou after learning that Kong Hou and Huan Zhong were going out to sea.

By the time the compass reached Kong Hou, she and Huan Zhong were almost at the sea.

Uncle Salted Fish lost his interest in telling stories. He looked around at the thick mist. “The compass can pinpoint directions on sea, but the sea has many unexplainable things. Sometimes, even the compass cannot be used.”

When he finished speaking, the magnetic spoon on the compass spun furiously and uncontrollably.

Kong Hou: “…”

“Uncle, were you able to catch so many fish from the sea because of your mouth? Whatever you say becomes true…” Kong Hou could only put away the compass seeing it was useless. She turned to ask Huan Zhong. “Huan Zhong, how about I direct the flying sword for a while?”

Uncle Salted Fish: “… ”

Young people were really useful. She dared to suggest trying in such an odd and dangerous situation?

“All right,” Huan Zhong said to Lin Hu. “Lin Hu, let Kong Hou try.”

Uncle Salted Fish finally understood men were useless when they were enchanted with beauty.

On the black sea, the thick mist was as thick as cloth. Kong Hou attempted to fly higher to avoid the thick mist. But when she reached a certain height, the strange power under the sea would press on the flying sword so she had to move around at her original altitude.

The day grew darker. Seeing that they would not be able to fly out soon, Kong Hou had the flying sword grow bigger so they could sit and eat dinner.

In life, she would not be betrayed only by good food, beautiful clothing, and that beauty of hers.

“I suddenly thought of something.” Kong Hou took a few sips of spirit fluid after eating her dried meat. “Do you think that Nomad Cultivator Kui Ying who suddenly disappeared came to the sea to relax because he was in a bad mood and accidentally got lost on the sea?”

Cultivators always thought they could win against the world after great accomplishments in their cultivation, and called themselves able to move mountains and change seas. But when they came to the sea, they learned the sea in “move mountains and change seas” might be a pond called the sea. A true sea was something all cultivators in the world would revere.

“Nomad Kui Ying was the strongest cultivator in Lingyou World. If he got lost on the sea, then we might roam around the sea for a century.” Lin Hu removed an image of cultivators panicked moving around the sea. “Maybe Spirit Master Kui Ying has passed away a long time ago after not appearing for so long.”

Kong Hou clapped her hands, stood and said, “Elder Lin, do not be afraid. I will definitely bring you out.”

Lin Hu said expressionlessly. “Thank you, Miss Kong Hou. I am not afraid—take your time.”

Kong Hou searched for a long time over the sea. Huan Zhong and Lin Hu’s expression grew more serious. After such a long time, the sky should have lightened but the surroundings were still pitch black. They most likely were not lost, but stuck in a certain environment.

“Look below.” Kong Hou pointed at the fish with white bellies appearing on the sea surface. “Are the fish dead?”

She searched in her storage ring and threw down some pieces of salted fish. The fish with their white bellies exposed suddenly cried out, swallowing the dried fish and then flicked their tails into the air as they spun.

“This are… lazy fish?” Lin Hu thought the fish looked as though they were smiling in the air. His frown relaxed slightly.

The strange atmosphere dissipated as they finally found something else alive on the water.

“Let’s follow it. Maybe we will be lucky and escape this place.” Kong Hou cheerfully followed the lazy fish. This lazy fish did not swim quickly and occasionally threw up blood to attract Kong Hou’s attention. To encourage the lazy fish to continue, Kong Hou threw other delicious foods down.

“Miss, this is a fish, not a land dog. Do you want it to lead, or are you teasing a fish out of boredom? Just a lazy fish—how can it lead…”

Uncle Salted Fish suddenly paused as he looked at the island outside the mists. This island was very small, so small that one would need less than half an hour to walk across it. He looked at the unpopulated island and the mist behind him. He was unable to speak for a time.

The lazy fish that had been begging for food this entire way had disappeared. Uncle Salted Fish silently jumped onto the island and watched as Kong Hou found a cave.

“The island has such a large cave, and no seawater is inside.” Kong Hou threw a talisman in to look. When the talisman came back out, it wasn’t wet. “Based on the rules of a story, there might be the remains of a powerful person here, talismans, or cultivation methods.”

Lin Hu’s lips moved sightly. Under Kong Hou’s eager gaze and Master’s cold gaze, he chose not to speak.

“Let’s go in,” Huan Zhong said seriously. “Maybe we might find something interesting.

Lin Hu: “…”

A man was able to do anything to make their beloved happy. This was terrifying.

The quartet entered the cave. The cave did not have any inlaid precious stones, traps or formations, just some incomplete fish skeletons. There wasn’t even an insect. The cave slanted downwards. After walking for about two hours, Kong Hou suddenly saw light above her head.

She looked up and saw blue seawater with beautiful fish swimming around above the cave. Some special formation made it so no seawater could pour into this cave.

They had reached the bottom. There were no treasure hoards, no secret manuals, no remains—just a broken stone boat and a dusty stone table with nothing on it.

“It appears that we cannot completely trust in stories.” Kong Hou looked upwards where sunlight came in through the water. Using this weak light, she finally found the most valuable things in this cave, a pile of shells.

“This Hidden Mist Shell?” Lin Hu was disbelieving. His voice rose. “The valuable Hidden Mist Shell?!”

The Hidden Mist Shell was rare. It would shine beautifully under sunlight. People that wore this item could drive away mist, and some boundaries and formations were ineffective against the wearer.

This item was magical but hard to find. It existed only in the legends.

Now, these wondrous items were piled up in the corner like trash. Lin Hu immediately felt that these magical items were not magical any longer.

“So rare?” Kong Hou looked at the stone bed that wasn’t very dusty. “This isn’t the cave residence of a sea monster or a fish spirit?”

“It smells heavily of the sea here, and no other yao.” Lin Hu looked around. “There isn’t even a boundary at the entrance. Maybe there is no owner?”

“Never mind, let’s go. The boundary above still exists. This means the owner’s soul has not disappeared.” Kong Hou thought about a fish spirit coming back to find the presence of humans in the cave residence and its beautiful shells gone. It would definitely collapse on the ground and cry endlessly.

The hidden mist shells were precious and beautiful, but Kong Hou’s conscience would not let her take them.

“Let’s go.” Huan Zhong saw Kong Hou walk out and grabbed her hand.

“Yes.” Kong Hou nodded with a smile. “Our treasure hunt has ended. Thank you, Elder Lin, and Uncle Salted Fish for your help.”

“Ah!” Uncle Salted Fish seemed to trip from behind them, and hit the stone table. A jade bottle the size of an infant’s arm rolled out.

“Dragon energy.” Kong Hou stopped walking. She looked at Uncle Salted Fish laid out on the ground, and bent to pick the jade bottle that had rolled to her feet.

Translator Ramblings: Huh … who knew?