By the East Sea

There's really not much to say about the distance from the Li River to the East China Sea.

The boatmen and the rescued captain treated Li Qi with utmost respect, but this respect also implied a desire to keep their distance.

Except in necessary circumstances, they would never approach within three zhang of Li Qi's body, and would never have any interaction with Li Qi. They simply placed Li Qi on a pedestal.

But that doesn't matter. Li Qi doesn't necessarily have to get along with everyone. Since they are respectful, Li Qi will simply leave them alone.

Throughout the journey, Li Qi remained silent and did nothing but cultivate quietly, either in the cabin or at the bow of the ship, pondering those profound and mysterious questions about the Dao Path cultivation.

As a result, the entire journey was accelerated, and because of the treasure ship, no one dared to approach them, so the journey was smooth.

However, some unexpected things happened on the way.

Some mountain spirits and water monsters have begun to appear frequently near the water.

That's normal. Without the suppression of the Mountain and Orthodox God, the mountain spirits and monsters will inevitably run rampant for a while, but this power vacuum will soon be filled.

Li Qi also spent some time performing a ritual to accelerate the awakening of the spirit of the Li River, so that it could become the Orthodox God of the Li River as soon as possible.

Of course, that's not necessarily true.

Awakening Innate Spirits is extremely difficult. Although the Spirit of the Lishui River himself also had the intention to awaken, the success rate of such an event was still extremely low.

It's highly unlikely; Li Qi was just giving it a try.

But it doesn't matter. The divine position won't remain vacant for too long. Someone will eventually take it. If it's not the spirit of the Li River, it will be someone else. I just hope that person hasn't been too deeply influenced by the Baiyue.

To be honest, Li Qi couldn't care less about all that. He couldn't control the impact of his every move, so he could only wait and see.

But in Li Qi's view, killing the Spirit of the Lishui River was not a bad thing.

Hopefully, this can slightly change the 'world' in the Li River basin. Although we don't know if the change will be good or bad, if it doesn't change, it will definitely be bad.

A month passed quickly, and the inland river phase was over.

The current became noticeably faster, and the water became clearer. The Human Race along the way gradually decreased, and they began to be replaced by Demon Race.

The South China Sea is, after all, the territory of the Demon Race.

"Sir... we've arrived at the South China Sea." The captain mustered his courage and stepped forward to say to Li Qi at the bow.

Li Qi opened his eyes. "Hmm, so what? Aren't we going to the port?"

"Um... Master, last time you fought with the God of the Li River, you opened a crack in the treasure ship. This ship can still sail inland, but I'm afraid it can't sail in the deep ocean. I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to find another ship." The captain said with his head down and his voice trembling.

Li Qi glanced at the treasure ship beneath his feet.

True Knowledge Dao Charm could indeed see cracks in her vision, but they were newly chiseled by them.

I had no trouble fighting the God of the Li River, so how could there be any aftershocks that could damage the ship?

But judging from their expressions, they'd be terrified to death if they went out to sea with me.

Well, there's no need to force them or make them do things against their will.

Let's just pretend we were fooled.

So Li Qi nodded and said, "Alright, you can go back on your own. I'll find another boat myself."

"I'm so sorry, sir... if there's another chance next time—" The boat captain breathed a sigh of relief and was about to say something polite, but Li Qi had already mounted his Old Ma. The Dragon Steed took off into the air with a thunderous roar and flew towards the estuary.

There's no need for pleasantries, let's hurry to the East China Sea.

The distance from the South China Sea to the East China Sea is not far, and it is possible to travel there without crossing the open ocean. Therefore, Li Qi decided that for this stretch of coastline, he would not take a boat but simply ride his Old Ma to fly there.

Along the coastline, Li Qi and Old Ma traversed forests, coastlines, and numerous strange architectural complexes.

That seemed to be the territory of the Demon Race, but Li Qi had no intention of provoking them, so he simply passed by quietly.

Moreover, no one would bother to stop Li Qi for no reason. After all, a seventh-rank is already quite strong. Even in the world, a seventh-rank is a rank that allows one to roam freely without worrying about being intercepted halfway.

As long as Li Qi doesn't openly display hostility, and is just passing by, no one will bother him.

Leaving the Baiyue region, we entered the South China Sea.

Seven more days passed, and more than forty days had passed since Li Qi left Chang'an.

He finally arrived at the coast of the East China Sea.

A salty sea breeze blew in, hovering in mid-air, as Li Qi gazed at the East China Sea.

On the horizon, the tides constantly lap against the shore, seagulls fly and boats dart about, and one can see hundreds of rivers flowing into the sea. Many rivers meander across the land before surging into the sea, yet they do not create the slightest ripple.

The vast ocean stretched to the horizon. Even with Li Qi's eyesight, and considering that the Upper Heaven was a flat continent with no horizon, he still could not see the ocean's depths.

As far as the eye can see, there is nothing but water; the azure seawater rolls and surges, engulfing the riverbank, its waves churning and eroding day and night.

This caused the entire ocean to rumble.

However, if you look closely, you can see some small black dots in the water; those are islands and reefs.

Looking into the distance, there are wisps of mist, like dark ink or white fog, billowing and swirling, changing in an instant. They take the forms of city walls, towers, pagodas, temples, figures, and carriages, all interspersed among the layered peaks, creating a truly magnificent sight.

That's not real; it's formed from clouds deep in the ocean, and it's also part of the ocean's scenery.

The Old Ma galloped across the sky, leaving a trail of blue lightning, but amidst the rumble of the waves, it remained remarkably quiet.

Li Qi was intently searching for an island.

Its name is East Isle, a place that must be reached before going out to sea. Only there can you find ships capable of sailing the deep ocean. Old Ma can't make it in the deep ocean on his own.

However, at that moment, Li Qi suddenly noticed that below Old Ma... there seemed to be a continent moving.

Then, just as he lowered his gaze, he saw a huge, indescribable strange fish slap the surface of the sea, sending up waves that rushed into the sky and even splashed up to Li Qi, who was thousands of meters in the air!

Li Qi quickly moved aside, only then noticing the entire body of the strange fish.

Its body, stretching for tens of miles, resembles a small island!

Li Qi immediately recalled the books he had read and indeed found the record.

This is Sea Loach!

The book records that when the Sea Loach appears, it can stretch for hundreds of miles, with oysters and clams piling up on its back, and blood gushing out like mountains. Boatmen mistake it for an island and often capsize when they approach it.

Its habits include spouting water during the day to create tides and ebbs, and spouting fire at night, turning the sea surface red, appearing as if fire is raining down from the sky. I wrote a poem, "Its momentum seems to swallow boats, but its light comes first by spouting fire." I also wrote, "The Sea Loach spits out Yin Fire, turning a thousand miles of waves red."

The magnificent fish did not linger; it simply swam slowly, constantly swallowing and spitting out the tides, creating wave after wave of spray.

Li Qi and Old Ma exchanged a glance, and Li Qi let out a long sigh, "We're still on the shore, and we've already seen such a scene. The East China Sea... must be so magnificent."

Old Ma nodded repeatedly, making a sound, "Luffy luffy luffy..."

Upon hearing this, Li Qi laughed and said, "I understand what you mean. Let's go down first and stop flying. Let's find some locals first."

Upon hearing this, Old Ma immediately flew down.

As Dragon Steed, he has the ability to walk on water and doesn't need to worry about sinking.

The suggestion he just gave Li Qi was that since Li Qi didn't know the way, he should go down to the water and ask other passersby for directions to find out where East Isle was.

Li Qi knew of the existence of East Isle. These floating cities were jointly built by Reason Way and Donghai, and there were more than 6,000 of them, each with a number, distributed along the coast of Donghai.

Its purpose was to serve as a foothold, port, and supply point for outsiders, since not all outsiders could survive in the East China Sea.

Even Li Qi would probably find it difficult to survive alone in the East China Sea.

Unlike other places, the sea here naturally possesses a certain domineering presence, as if it were part of a unified whole...

Li Qi knew the reason.

There was a legendary powerful being, the East Sea Dragon Lord, who once refined the entire ocean of the world and used it as his own Dao Field.

Of course, this dragon king is already dead.

In the past, this Dragon Lord repeatedly swung between the divine and Human Path, accepting investiture from the Spirit Way Heavenly Court to become the 'Sea God' and from the imperial court of the Human Path to become the 'Dragon King'.

He himself was a high-ranking member of the True Dragon Clan. Although he was not as powerful as the Azure Dragon or the Yinglong, he was said to have reached the edge of the second rank.

But with such chaotic actions from all three parties, they still dare to occupy and refine the East Sea, hoping to use it as a foundation for advancement...

The end result was that he was skinned alive and his tendons were pulled out; he's now completely dead. This was all done by the very emperor who was in power back then.

The story of the Human Emperor setting sail and personally shooting down the Sea God has now become a historical anecdote.

However, although the Dragon King is dead, the fact that this sea has been forged into one entity is already a fact. For some reason, no one forcibly broke this whole entity apart, and in short, it has been passed down in this way.

Therefore, the East Sea today is actually a Dao Field for beings close to the second rank. There are countless dangers and fortuitous opportunity within it. It is said that when the Dragon King was shot and killed by the Human Emperor, his flying flesh, scales, and even the remnants of his inner world fell into the East Sea, forming treasure lands and grotto-heavens, adding a lot of vitality to the East Sea.

Of course, this also created a unique layout here.

For example, the Demon Dragon.

At the same time, Li Qi had also investigated the social situation here beforehand.

Reading is a good habit that you should cultivate. Doing more research before traveling can save you a lot of trouble.

After reading the book, Li Qi realized that the East Sea was different from other Dao Lineage because... there were very few true dragons.

As a race that is born at the ninth rank, can lie down and sleep until adulthood, and can achieve the seventh rank of immortality, and with a little cultivation, the sixth rank is guaranteed, the number of true dragons is pitifully small.

Therefore, it would be difficult for a true dragon to maintain such a vast territory, so the ecology of the East Sea is maintained by a large number of 'Demon Dragon'.

Those demons who acknowledge the Way of Evolution cultivated by the true dragons will leave the demonic path and join the East Sea.

The Demon Dragon are the largest race in the East Sea.

All sorts of demons Form Transformation dragons, a phenomenon known as the "dragon transformation." Various spirit snakes, divine turtles, giant fish, and seahorses all strived to Dragon Transformation.

To this end, the true dragons even built the 'Dragon Gate,' a strange structure, to help these demons Dragon Transformation.

As the saying goes, "Dragons appear at the Dragon Gate, and thousands witness them."

As long as you go to Longmen, no matter when, you can see demons trying to Dragon Transformation, with thousands succeeding every day.

As for the failures?

That's impossible to know.

These Demon Dragon each loved to use the remains of the former 'Dragon Lord' to form their own territories, each occupying a precious piece of land.

The remains of the Dragon King were the most fiercely contested item among the Demon Dragon of the East Sea, but the true dragons paid no heed to them and cared nothing for them.

In other words, the real local tyrants in the East China Sea are the Demon Dragon.

True dragons only appear under very rare circumstances, and Li Qi was prepared not to see a single one this time. The saying "Divine Dragon appears only briefly, never to be seen again" is quite apt.

Besides the Demon Dragon, there is another group that needs to be watched out for.

Those are treasure hunters.

The remains of the Dragon Lord are the only known, publicly disclosed, and unattended corpse of a powerful being in the world, and everyone knows its location: anywhere in the East Sea.

If you have the ability and skill, then you can come to the East China Sea and rummage around to see if you can find it.

Therefore, treasure hunters from all over the world come here, desperately searching for treasure in the East China Sea, trying to earn a wealthy future for themselves.

Treasure hunting is a dangerous job. Not only do you have to compete with all kinds of Demon Dragon, but you also have to fight among yourself every day. Not to mention, the remains of the Dragon King are not something to be trifled with. If you're not careful, you might be killed by the 'treasure' you find.

For example, the blood of the Dragon King, once activated, is a seventh-grade substance; a single drop of its blood can kill many people.

Therefore, the inaction of the true dragons, the entrenched presence of the Demon Dragon, the remains of the Dragon King, and the gathering of treasure hunters have made the East Sea region quite turbulent.

However, Li Qi is already capable of protecting himself, so there's no need to worry too much.

As Li Qi was thinking this, he suddenly saw a... floating island in front of him.

"Found someone to ask for directions. Come on, Old Ma, let's go over there." Li Qi finished thinking and said to Old Ma.

The Old Ma raised its head and neighed, quickening its pace and galloping across the water toward the artificial floating island.

These floating islands are the habitat of the Human Race.

The East Sea is also Human Race, but it is a watery country with occasional islands, which have long been occupied. Moreover, the area is limited, making it easy to deplete resources. Therefore, the East Sea Human Race mostly rely on boats for food.

They used their unique methods to weave boats, forming artificial islands that floated on the sea, traveling by fish and making their boats their homes.

Now that we've found inhabited areas, things will be much easier.

Li Qi rode his Old Ma toward that direction.

But the boat on the floating island immediately became alert. An old man was walking on water, stepping on a large fish, and heading towards Li Qi.

The old man had bloodshot eyes and a dark face. He was dressed in a green cloth and stood on the back of a large fish. He called out to Li Qi, "Where do you come from, guest?"

They were speaking the language of the East Sea, but fortunately, Li Qi had already learned it before he came.

So Li Qi replied, "Old man, I come from the west and would like to ask for directions!"

I'm going to the hospital for a check-up tomorrow, so I might have to stop updating, but I'll try my best to keep going.