Underwater

After Li Qi turned around, he felt that something was very strange.

A person of Reason Way and morality... that might actually be true, since what the other party said was reasonable and logical, and even he himself couldn't tell the truth from the falsehood.

We can only try to verify this from multiple sources and see if we can find any flaws.

East Isle is unlikely to be a mirage; its authenticity can be guaranteed. The work of these people of Reason Way on East Isle should also be reliable.

There's just one thing.

Did these people who uphold Reason Way know about this? Or were they simply dragged into it?

Well, there's no point in thinking about these things. What is worthwhile is that the other party's understanding of spiritual and Reason Way is something we can learn from and absorb. That alone makes it worthwhile to befriend them.

Even if it's bait, it's sweet and delicious. He'll eat it first and then worry about it. Li Qi is quite confident in his ability to get rid of the hook.

If all else fails, just run away. You have so many Trump Card up your sleeve; you're more than capable of saving your life.

Well, let's make friends first and see. As for the possible schemes behind it, let's take it one step at a time. We can't throw the baby out with the bathwater and stop doing anything just because someone schemes against us, and instead be on guard like a hedgehog every day.

However, the most basic safety issues still need to be considered.

That's settled then, let's leave it at that for now.

Having made his decision, Li Qi prepared to first look for a ship.

Although we have no connections in East Isle and virtually no intelligence, we should still prepare for the worst.

Let's keep an eye on things here first, then we'll check on Reason Way. If things go well, we'll ask these locals to help us find a treasure ship. That would be a safer approach.

Thinking about all this, Li Qi walked to Old Ma's side and truly entered East Isle.

East Isle has five discs. The hands, shoulders, and head of this giant puppet are all discs, supporting many buildings and forming a city.

He came to the roundabout on the left, and since everyone else was going that way, he just went in. He wasn't sure about the local customs, so he decided to just follow the crowd and observe.

Upon entering the city, Li Qi saw a large market where countless locals were selling various kinds of local specialties to newcomers to East Isle.

This is still the sea, but Great One from the raging East China Sea that Li Qi experienced before.

Near the roundabout on East Isle, the sea is unusually calm. There is a wide and easy-to-cross calm sea with good clean water quality. Around the roundabout, there are many huge strip-shaped reefs made up of dead coral.

Old Ma strolled slowly on the calm sea.

Running too fast could cause you to bump into people. Since it's not far, just walk slowly at this pace.

Near the reefs that Li Qi passed by, there were countless lights coming and going. The sea people there were mostly snails, clams, and mermaids. Their noisy laughter and chatter filled the air. The sounds of selling pearls and brocades and counting money and weighing goods were endless. Around this disc, there were pavilions and towers, thousands of layers high, all like five-colored glass, appearing and disappearing, changing in an instant, as if they were in the clouds and water.

However, although the scene was fantastical and beautiful, no matter how Li Qi looked at it, it seemed to him like the kind of mirage where vendors sell agricultural products from baskets in a rest area under a highway.

They should be essentially the same, right?

As Li Qi was leading his Old Ma across the mirage, a merman swam rapidly towards him and said in fluent Human Race Yayan, "Your Excellency, Your Excellency! Would you like some pearls? They are the finest pearls!"

The mermaid was female, with a beautiful face and her body covered with shimmering blue-purple scales. Her lower body was that of a fish, and she nimbly paddled across the water. Her upper body was completely naked, and she was a sight to behold, revealing the allure of a mermaid.

The mermaid swam to Li Qi's side, picked up a clam shell with both hands, and found it filled with many white pearls.

They are lustrous and dazzling, some as large as four or five inches and others as small as three inches, each one like a light bulb. If taken to Baiyue, each one would be worth a thousand gold pieces.

The other party's claim was not unfounded; it was indeed the finest pearl, clearly already at the ninth rank, but it was already usable as raw material for Law Treasure artifacts.

Pearls of even higher quality are no longer at the level of "bright pearls" and cannot be called "materials for use in Law Treasure." They should be called "natural Law Treasure."

Just like the mirage Mirage Pearl of a clam can create illusions, the oyster pearl of an oyster can start a fire, and the pearl spit out by a hawksbill turtle can repel water, these are all powerful treasures, not raw materials.

There are even other powerful things, such as Dragon Pearl, and even a moon.

A poem says, "The clam holds the bright moon floating on the vast sea, and the pearl turtle in the river also spits out pearls." In this legend, the moon is the pearl that the clam spits out.

Of course, the moon in the world is definitely not the same, but the moon in other worlds may be different. These pearls can indeed hang in the sky as the moon.

Looking at the pearls, Li Qi was secretly tempted. So he dismounted from the Old Ma, stepped onto the water, squatted down, and asked the mermaid floating in the water, "How much are these pearls for?"

"Apart from silver, anything else is acceptable. How will you pay, sir? Whether it's a pure Qi bead, a talisman, Law Treasure, or even a rare item, it's all fine! These are just samples; there are many more to come!" The merman girl introduced to Li Qi with a smile.

Li Qi was curious, so he put his head down in the water and looked into it.

Li Qi submerged his head in the water, his eyes sparkling. He could clearly see many merfolk, snails, clams, and other sea creatures below.

At this moment, Li Qi realized that those reefs were directly growing on East Isle, forming many buildings!

On the body of the giant puppet on East Isle that has sunk to the surface of the sea, there is an underwater city!

The head, hands, and shoulders support the city in the air, while East Isle's body is an underwater city.

Li Qi felt that his understanding was still shallow. He had actually thought that East Isle was the five trays on it, but he never thought that the puppet's body was also inhabited by sea creatures.

The coral is turquoise, with dozens of branches on a single tree, and no leaves between the branches. They grow in clusters in the underwater body of East Isle. Under the protection and cover of the reefs and corals, one can vaguely see many sea people living there, building houses in the water, covering them with seaweed, sleeping in seclusion, with ingenious and beautiful structures.

Beneath these reefs, Li Qi also saw countless blue-white pearl oysters, seemingly from an artificially cultivated oyster farm, as well as some barnacles and even farmed fish. A sea shepherd was driving the fish, but not with violence; instead, he sang softly, and the fish voluntarily gathered around him, lining up to eat the bait.

Li Qi raised his head from the water and said with great interest, "I'll take these pearls. I'll use two Ninth Rank Magic Treasure to buy one hundred of them. Isn't that a fair price?"

Based on the quality of the pearl's internal energy, Li Qi felt that this was a very high price, definitely higher than the market price.

It should be noted that the Law Treasure in his hand was not a standard Law Treasure, but an active Law Treasure made by the Witchcraft Silkworm, which was much more expensive than a standard Law Treasure.

In reality, Law Treasure are not so common outside of Human Path. The production line of Law Treasure is a technology unique to Human Path. Other places are not so luxurious as to use Law Treasure artifacts to lay floor tiles in their homes.

As he said this, Li Qi flipped his hand and took out two Ninth Rank Magic Treasure, a wine cup, and a candle from his Mustard Seed Bag.

Ahem... Don't make fun of me, don't make fun of me. Who said tableware can't be Law Treasure? These two are genuine and have the power of a ninth-grade magic weapon, okay?

With the Witchcraft Silkworm, Li Qi had far too many Law Treasure in his hands. He usually kept the ones that customers returned or wanted to be reforged.

The wine cup can hold a large amount of liquid, with one cup capable of holding a thousand catties of wine. It can also be used to perform illusions, and when combined with wine, it can achieve a hypnotic effect that is both real and illusory. In the Shangyuan Garden of the Tang Kingdom, it can be used to entertain wine lovers, and it is also a Law Treasure that can be used in various places elsewhere.

Candles are used to focus light and can also be burned into flames, thus having the ability to control fire. In the Imperial Garden, they are used for light shows, but as everyone knows... the spotlights in Italian football stadiums also have a great effect on the African battlefield.

For the merman in front of him, this was definitely a big deal.

As expected, the mermaid girl looked delighted, her eyes shining.

It really shines, flashing brightly.

"This...this is too much. A hundred beads, one piece will suffice," the mermaid girl said immediately.

Li Qi nodded.

He overestimated the price based on the price in the Tang Kingdom. In a production area like the East China Sea, the price should be cheaper, but that's precisely why he quoted a high price.

Then Li Qi said, "Consider the extra amount as payment, young lady. I am new to East Isle. Would you please show me around and be my guide, so I can get acquainted with East Isle?"

"This is the reward for guiding the way," Li Qi said, pointing to the lamp.

"Lead the way? That's fine, but how long will it take?" The mermaid girl was initially delighted, but then suddenly realized something and immediately asked again.

"It won't take long, just three days," Li Qi said.

"Three days!?" The mermaid girl exclaimed in surprise.

Li Qi was taken aback. "Is it too long? But if it's any shorter... I'm afraid we won't be able to see everything."

"No... no, three days? That Ninth Rank Magic Treasure is too expensive. How about... seven days?" The mermaid girl considered for a moment, then wagged her tail and said, her eyes becoming even brighter.

Li Qi, however, was taken aback.

The people of Donghai are so simple and honest!

The sellers lowered their prices twice, making it difficult for him to even sell to people he was trying to do favors.

However, seven days is acceptable, within a reasonable range, so Li Qi nodded. "Okay, then seven days it is, these two are yours."

The mermaid girl patted her tail happily, then looked at the clam shell, picked out the extra pieces, and put them away with the ribbon tied around her waist. She then held up the clam shell in front of Li Qi: "Please accept it, sir. As for the tour guide, when would you like to start, sir?"

"How about we start now?" Li Qi said.

Now, the merman girl was in a dilemma. She frowned slightly and said with some difficulty, "But... I still need to go home and report something..."

"It's alright. I haven't decided where to stay yet. I can just come with you. After you've settled things at home, you can show me around as you please. The main thing is to introduce me to East Isle city and how it works. You don't need to worry about accommodations," Li Qi said casually.

Since he had said that, the mermaid girl felt relieved and immediately nodded. "Then it's as you say, sir. But is it really convenient for you, sir? My home is in the water."

"What's wrong with being in the water? Old Ma, let's go." Li Qi said to Old Ma.

The Old Ma snorted and lightly stomped its hoof on the water's surface, plunging directly into the water without choking. Its dragon scales shimmered rapidly, and its bright black eyes blinked as it quickly adapted to the water.

He was Dragon Steed, naturally able to move freely in the water, and in the water, his speed was much faster than Li Qi's.

As Shaman, Li Qi's body is a small world, self-sufficient and he does not need to breathe or rely on the external environment to survive. So although he is not good at swimming and feels restricted when moving in the water, he has no problem surviving in the water.

Seeing Li Qi sink into the water, the mermaid girl also entered the water and led Li Qi towards the bottom.

Li Qi himself is not good at swimming, so if he were to swim by himself, there would probably be two possible outcomes.

Either to accelerate, they force themselves into jet engines, flying with tremendous force and creating a huge commotion, or they force themselves to propel themselves through the water, wasting most of their power on creating a spectacle. Only about 20% of their power can be used for acceleration, with the rest becoming huge splashes of water, which might even create giant waves.

They could swim slowly, which would certainly be faster than mortals, but they would most likely be unable to swim as fast as the mermaids in front of them.

That's why we brought Old Ma along.

Li Qi grabbed the Old Ma's saddle with one hand, and the Old Ma only moved its hooves slightly. The surrounding water flow propelled the two forward, following the mermaid.

The mermaid girl was initially worried that Li Qi wouldn't be able to keep up, but after discovering the Dragon Steed's ability to control water, she stopped worrying and swam straight into the water.

Li Qi and Old Ma followed them downstream.

However, as they swam, the surroundings grew darker and darker, but beautiful stars appeared, and the sky transformed into a deep night sky studded with stars, which changed with the movement of the light.

Li Qi was taken aback and couldn't help but observe the scene around him.

But none of that matters; what's most eye-catching is the full moon overhead.

It is daytime now, so there is no moon.

Moreover, the moon should be a new moon at this time, but... the bright and flawless moon that suddenly appeared was a perfectly round full moon.

However, Li Qi even sensed that the ocean was experiencing tides due to the moon's gravity, but these tides did not cause any impact; the seawater simply rose slowly and then fell.

The sky, suddenly filled with stars and a full moon, surprised Li Qi and Old Ma.

But the surrounding merfolk seemed to have gotten used to it.

Li Qi looked around at the stars and the full moon and immediately realized that they were not the moon or stars.

Those are... pearls.

Countless pearl-like reflections were projected onto the sea surface above, forming a stunningly beautiful canopy.