The Whale Catchers Speak

"We, the ghosts in your eyes, will not manifest ourselves most of the time unless we help people realize their dreams. We are just observers and travelers, coming silently and leaving quietly."

The Silver-haired Man spoke, clearly having more to say. He continued, "Don't look for the source, don't ask about the motive. These are the two premises we have before discussing the realization of the host's dream."

"These are our principles. Otherwise, those who break them will pay the price and become completely Fallen One, never to return," the purple-haired girl said, her expression finally becoming serious rather than relaxed.

The human in front of them, in terms of individual strength, is not afraid of them at all. They are the rarest kind of host, and they are hard to come by. They are willing to communicate with them in goodwill.

Wang Xuan really wanted to understand them, so he subtly probed their Roots, saying, "Langling, I have seen many kinds. There are red-eyed creatures lurking in secret realms, researchers who live peacefully in the Land of the Dead and conduct experiments, and groups that intermarry with other races, completely integrate into a starry sky, and reproduce new races."

He mentioned the mysterious creatures that were difficult to observe around the Ferryman in the Land of the Dead, Zhang Qifan in a white coat whom he saw in the Time-Space Bar, and the audience in the VIP seats of the ancient spaceship.

The Silver-haired Man spoke up, "The red-eyed creatures you mentioned, those creepy spirits, should be truly terrifying monsters, unlike us. As for the other creepy spirits you mentioned, they should be half -Fallen One, unable to go back, but not completely fallen."

Wang Xuan probed further, saying, "You don't belong to this universe? Even extraordinary beings would have difficulty seeing you without their Spiritual Heavenly Eye. Are you here to observe us, conduct various experiments, or perhaps experience a special kind of life cultivation?"

A black-haired man in Spacesuit spoke up, "You can interpret it however you like, but we can't say it, otherwise we'll be in breach of contract, we can't afford to pay compensation, what we'll lose is our lives, or we might never be able to go back."

"In the past year, I have seen wave after wave of ghosts like you. Some of them keep mythical creatures and roam around like dogs in the dead of night. Others go into bars to experience novelty. Still others roam near the Fire Ember of Supernatural Civilization. Hmm, one wave after another. They should all be your kind. They dress similarly and are all astronauts."

Wang Xuan frankly told everyone that these were all the ghosts he had approached, and he was revealing them now in order to observe their reactions and obtain more information.

To his surprise, upon hearing this, the several ghosts turned pale and looked terrified. Their expressions were genuine; they were clearly deeply uneasy.

A woman with short, shoulder-length hair asked urgently, "You mean, you've seen many ghosts like us, appearing in large numbers, wave after wave?!"

"Is there a problem?" Wang Xuan asked, looking at her.

The Silver-haired Man lost his composure and said quickly, "Of course there's a problem. If people like us, what you call 'spirits,' were to appear on a large scale, it would be a major disaster. It would be an unbearable burden for us, and it would be terrifying for you as well."

Wang Xuan smiled and said, "There aren't that many people, only a few dozen in total, and they're scattered across different star systems."

The purple-haired woman placed her hand on her chest with a solemn expression and said, "Fortunately, as long as tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of creepy spirits don't suddenly appear on a planet, there's no problem. Otherwise, it would be considered a natural disaster, meaning it would be completely out of control."

This question gave Wang Xuan much to think about.

After a brief silence, the Silver-haired Man spoke, "Why not consider your dreams?"

"I've given up. There's no need to say anything more. I won't become your host, and you don't seem to be able to help me anyway." Wang Xuan spoke in a normal tone, without any smile, yet it made the faces of the several ghostly spirits stiffen slightly.

Ultimately, in this era, even the strongest will eventually fade away. But this young man is different; he possesses some peculiar qualities. They are exceptionally sensitive to this aura. Could he be an immature "giant"?

However, that subtle quality was firmly sealed off and did not leak out.

The black-haired man in Spacesuit spoke, "In a sense, we are indeed undergoing an experience and improving ourselves, similar to the training methods of your mythical creatures. However, our greatest strength lies in technology; in fact, mythology is also categorized within the realm of technology. This spaceship may not look large, but it has top-of-the-line features and can capture enormous objects."

"What is this colossal thing?" Wang Xuan asked.

"Giant creatures, generally referring to powerful and rare species, such as Giant Whale in the deep sea of the universe, and top-tier creatures among mythical beings," the Silver-haired Man said.

"So you mean the rare host you mentioned?" Wang Xuan asked.

Then, he looked at the spaceship. Was this a threat? His eyes turned cold. Was he about to turn hostile?

The purple-haired woman smiled and said, "Under normal circumstances, we don't get into conflicts with people. If someone refuses to let us help them realize their dream, we will leave."

Wang Xuan asked, "Weren't the silver bird corpse, the broken greatsword, the Flying Dragon wreckage, and the shattered supernatural Flying Boat outside the spaceship destroyed by you?"

"I want to clarify that they attacked us first, and we were on the defensive. You know our first two principles, but the third principle allows us to fight back and protect ourselves."

"Since that's the case, I refuse. I'll take my leave today." After trying, Wang Xuan knew that the other party wouldn't reveal any more secrets. He had come to pick up someone today, so he didn't plan to have any further conversation.

"Aren't you afraid we'll turn against you?" The Silver-haired Man smiled.

The black-haired man in the Spacesuit said, "Although we have a code of conduct that regulates us and prevents us from acting arbitrarily, you are special. On a spaceship where we can capture giant objects, are you really not worried at all?"

Wang Xuan had never fought a life-or-death battle with a creature like a creepy spirit before. After just a moment's thought, he calmly replied, "You're not threatening me, are you? I hope we can all be safe and sound."

"Danger!" A sudden voice rang out. It was an active metallic wolf head, its eyes shimmering with purple ripples. Upon touching Wang Xuan, it emitted a rapid alarm. "Detection has revealed that this organism is carrying contraband that could destroy the spaceship!"

The several creepy spirits at the scene felt their scalps tingle and almost screamed. In this starry sky, there were only a handful of complete prohibited items. This "giant" that was suspected of growing had such a thing on it? This was too much!

"It seems that the limited impulse in my heart, the thought of taking a chance to break the contract, has been overwhelmed by this warning, and I can only behave myself." The Silver-haired Man spread his hands, looking very regretful.

In fact, Wang Xuan did not understand the warning from the active metallic life form because of the language barrier, but he sensed something through the mental fluctuations of these people.

"What is that dog head warning us about?"

"Wolf, I am the great Wolf God! Please open your eyes and respect my wolfish dignity!" the active metallic life form corrected, this time emitting a mental fluctuation.

Wang Xuan felt that it was just like the mechanical bird, an intelligent butler for the spaceship. There was nothing to communicate with it, so he couldn't be bothered with it. Mainly, he also disliked the mechanical bird because of the negative impression it had left on him.

"Since we have no conflict of interest, let's wish each other well and part ways here." He didn't want to linger any longer.

"Wait a minute, is your target that mythical planet below? Perhaps we have a chance to cooperate," the purple-haired female ghost asked.

"Oh, how do you want to cooperate? What brings you here?" Wang Xuan asked.

The silver-haired youth said, "We came here to hunt whales, and there may be a very rare and extremely Terrifying Contraband Items here."

Wang Xuan's heart skipped a beat. Could the prohibited item he mentioned be a priceless treasure? He had obtained the Nurturing Life Furnace from the secret realm.

Furthermore, what is the situation with the whaling he mentioned? Could there be a super giant hidden on this planet, perhaps that old fox?

Before he could ask any further questions, someone on the other end spoke up, saying, "We can cooperate. Don't you want another contraband item? In fact, even we are incredibly tempted by that kind of thing, even irresistibly so. However, it belongs only to this universe, and we can't control it. If we help you get it, wouldn't that be helping you fulfill your dream?"

Wang Xuan was very straightforward, saying, "I will not be your host. However, if it is an equal and normal cooperation, then I can consider it."

He pondered that the prohibited item was probably the Nurturing Life Furnace.

The several ghosts communicated telepathically, discussing among themselves. It was clear that they were extremely wary of the so-called contraband and wanted him to join them.

"Okay, we'll join forces to hunt whales. When we leave this universe, we'll give you the contraband." This was the result of the discussion among the several ghosts.

Wang Xuan feigned hesitation before finally agreeing reluctantly. In truth, he didn't care who owned the treasure; it was already his. He was only interested in the Giant Whale.

He added, "I want to say that I don't do anything immoral or unethical. What's the background of that Giant Whale? If you arrest it without cause, I probably won't get involved."

The purple-haired woman explained the situation, saying, "That behemoth was once perfect and powerful, but more than two thousand years ago, it was severely injured, almost killed. An elder from the same place as us—the one you call the Ghost Spirit—helped the Giant Whale realize its ideals when its life was about to end, and survived, eventually even escaping the Immortal Realm. Unfortunately, that Ghost Spirit elder was severely injured himself and slowly died later."

"How did he escape?" Wang Xuan asked.

The Silver-haired Man explained, "The fragments of the spirit and the essence of the giant's blood are attached to that supreme forbidden item, which pierced through the curtain and landed on this planet."

He added, "We stumbled upon our fellow countryman's notes on an abandoned ghost ship deep in this universe, and learned that he had made this deal with someone, but he himself died first. We've come to take his place and renew the contract with the dormant Giant Whale, allowing the Giant Whale to continue as the host, because according to the agreement, the time hasn't come yet."

At that moment, Wang Xuan's heart was pounding, but he concealed it well as he thought about many things.

Why would the Nurturing Life Furnace be here, especially that location where it's hidden? It's definitely not something an ordinary person could set up; even Transcendent Immortals could be annihilated there. Now, everything makes sense—it was the work of a Giant Whale that should have been dead.

Furthermore, he quickly connected many things: why did Fang Yuzhu come to the secret place in the first place? This thought shook him to his core.