Long Beach Sunken Ship

"The Consignee's Ring? You have it?" Sulonna's face was full of surprise as she stared incredulously at Li Shaolin.

"Yes, I got it by accident when I killed Morgan the first time. I never expected that ring to be such an important item, but it's completely useless to me, so I might as well give it to you. You can return it to VanCleef and maybe regain his support." Li Shaolin said calmly. That ring was the key to the Defias Brotherhood's treasure vault in Elwynn Forest, and it was indeed useless to him. Even if he found the vault's location and killed all the guards, all he'd get was some money and jewels. For him, funding issues could be fully covered by the supply from Fargodeep Mine, so there was no need to stir up trouble with the Brotherhood.

With that, without waiting for Sulonna to react, he took out the Consignee's Ring engraved with VanCleef's signature and placed it in her hand.

"This is... truly, thank you so much." Sulonna raised the ring, a mix of emotions flooding through her. Because of this item, she had been hunted by all Defias members in Elwynn Forest and Westfall, unable to sleep peacefully for days, all over a baseless accusation. Of course, now that she had it, no matter what choice she made, wealth and status would follow. If she returned it to VanCleef, with only one of the seven Elwynn Forest squad leaders left, she would surely be heavily relied upon, and her territory might even expand several times over. If she handed the ring to Stormwind's authorities, the entire Elwynn Forest funding chain would likely collapse, earning her a great merit. Perhaps she'd receive official commendation and never have to live in fear again.

"We should get out of here first. This is Benny Blanco's turf, and I'm guessing the other members have heard about this too. Getting back to the Deadmines safely is going to be tough!" Li Shaolin reminded her. With Benny Blanco dealt with, he believed the other squad leaders and chiefs wouldn't let Sulonna off easily. Right now, on this land crawling with Defias members, they needed to find a safe route into the Deadmines. Without seeing VanCleef, everything was just talk.

Looking at the man before her, Sulonna felt a touch of gratitude. Maybe he was making up for that night, or maybe it was guilt over Erland's death, but he kept helping her without being swayed by money or gain. In this world where strength reigned supreme, that was rare. She had no idea that this man carried the memories and soul of another distant world, with a mindset shaped differently from childhood.

The two stepped outside. It seemed most of the nearby Defias members had been killed in the earlier fight, so they drew little attention.

Sulonna put on a red leather mask and handed one to Li Shaolin, telling him to wear it. "This is a standard mask for Defias members in Westfall. Wearing them will save us some trouble."

"This... I've actually become a Defias." Li Shaolin silently mocked himself, but he knew it was a necessary evil, so he put it on.

Spreading out a map, they discussed for a while. If they took the Official Road, the Defias leaders at Morson's Farm and Alexston's Farm would likely block them. They'd only managed to kill Benny Blanco at Fabron's Farm so easily because he had ties to Erland and didn't want to kill them in broad daylight. He'd tried to lure them inside for an ambush, but with insufficient men, he was instead killed. As for the leaders at the other two farms and Moonbrook Town, they wouldn't be so easy to handle.

"How about this: we head west, loop around to Long Beach, pass by the Golden Coast Mine, and reach the Westfall Lighthouse. There's an inland sea passage into the Deadmines there—it might be safer, though it'll take a bit longer." Sulonna pointed at the map as she spoke.

"I'll follow your lead. I'm not familiar with this area." Though Li Shaolin knew the map from his game days, this was the real world, far from comparable.

With the plan set, they set off along the path.

After all the day's commotion, dusk had fallen. Faint sunlight filtered through the birch trees, casting long shadows on the ground. Paired with the wild grass swaying in the wind, it had a certain charm.

But the two had no mood to appreciate it. In just the short hour of travel, they'd killed six Mountain Dogs and three Carrion Birds. Westfall was clearly no peaceful place.

Finally, after reaching a hill and killing four Gnolls, the pale blue sea came into view in the distance.

Where the water met the sky, flocks of white seagulls skimmed across the calm surface, occasionally dipping into the waves and stirring ripples.

The two finally made it to the sandy beach, utterly exhausted, and plopped down on the ground.

In the distance, huge Sand Strider Crabs crawled slowly across the sand, their upright eyes swiveling left and right. When they spotted the two, they showed no alarm, simply continuing to search for food among the stones.

Drinking chilled milk, they suddenly spotted the silhouette of a massive ship on the distant sea. "What's that?" Li Shaolin asked, puzzled.

"That's the ship from Stormwind to Kalimdor Auberdine. It runs three times a day, and this is the last one." Sulonna gazed at the distant ship, a hint of melancholy in her voice, as if it held some story.

"Oh, you must be hungry, right? The meat of these Sand Strider Crabs is pretty good. I'll cook some for you later. I've learned cooking, so I'm half a chef." Sulonna shook off her sadness and smiled at Li Shaolin.

"That'd be great. I've been eating bread for days, and my mouth feels like it's growing feathers." Li Shaolin was happy too—finally, a chance to improve his meals.

Sulonna pulled a short sword from her Storage Space, walked up to a Sand Strider Crab, and stabbed it, pinning it to the ground. The poor creature, suffering this undeserved fate, scrabbled its eight legs frantically in the sand, its two huge pincers opening and closing as it struggled, until it finally went still.

"Oh no, I forgot the flint and tinder!" When they'd gathered some broken ship planks from the beach and were about to start a fire, Sulonna exclaimed in surprise.

"Aren't you a mage? Use magic to light it." Li Shaolin reminded her.

"I'm an ice mage and a shadow warlock—I don't know fire magic. Looks like we're out of luck today." Sulonna said dejectedly.

"Wait, I bought some odds and ends in Goldshire last time. Let me check if I have any." Li Shaolin suddenly remembered he'd bought a bunch of miscellaneous stuff—fishing rods, bandages, and probably flint and tinder too. After a careful search, he found them.

A campfire was lit. Watching the crab meat dripping with butter on the iron sword, its aroma wafting through the air, Li Shaolin finally felt a warmth he hadn't known since arriving in this other world. He wondered if his family far away was doing well. Since his transmigration, he'd spent his days in Elwynn Forest in fear and anxiety, too busy surviving to dwell on homesickness. But now, in Westfall, his skeletons had evolved and upgraded, giving him the ability to protect himself. And in this lawless land, he didn't have to worry about anyone discovering his skeletons. With those worries gone, homesickness crept in. Alone in a foreign land, his parents' clear, simple smiles and his friends' rough, cursing voices all surfaced in his mind.

"Alright, here, eat." Seeing Li Shaolin looking a bit down, Sulonna smiled and handed him the cooked crab meat.

On a massive, unknown glacier, atop a towering castle, a tall man in black armor, gripping a sharp butcher knife (the Obsidian Blade), watched the lightning flashing across the sky. Like him, it was lost in thoughts of a distant place.

Taking the crab meat, he thanked her and took a bite. It was tender and flavorful, smooth without being greasy—truly delicious.

"Mm, not bad. You've got great skill." Influenced by the food, Li Shaolin mumbled.

"Really? Hehe, I'm glad you like it. Along this route, there's no shortage of these Sand Strider Crabs—enough to fill you up." Sulonna also held a piece of crab meat, but she tore it apart slowly and delicately, unlike his wolfish devouring.

"Moo-oo!"

"Damn, Murlocs!" That sound was all too familiar to Li Shaolin. Back at Crystal Lake, those things had chased him all morning.

Turning his head, he saw three Murlocs wielding Wooden Spears charging toward them, clearly drawn by the roasted crab meat.

"Tch, can't even enjoy a proper meal." Li Shaolin stood up, and with a thought, the Book of the Dead appeared in his hand. He flipped open a page, tapped it, and summoned the Bronze Skeleton, Black Skeleton, and Clay Golem.

These lowly Murlocs were no match for the battle-hardened Skeleton Warriors. In just a few exchanges, the three Murlocs were killed.

"Your skeletons are really strange. They feel much stronger than the Scourge Legion's Skeleton Warriors. Those are just corpses reanimated, and any ordinary professional can scatter their bones. But yours seem even tougher than professionals. That bronze one—its bones are so hard that a sword slash barely leaves a mark." Sulonna said curiously.

"They're my companions, not reanimated corpses." Li Shaolin answered vaguely, not wanting to explain further. Such things were best kept to himself.

Having rested enough, they packed up, ate a few more bites, and set off again.

The Bronze Skeleton led the way, with the two following close behind and the Black Skeleton bringing up the rear. The Clay Golem, now on the sandy beach where the earth's blessing was weaker, had become more of a bystander.

As night fell, they continued on. Fortunately, they only encountered scattered groups of Murlocs, which were no match for their powerful combination.

"So, what do we do about tonight?" Sulonna suddenly brought up a serious question, turning to him. On this seaside, even setting up a tent wouldn't withstand the deep-night sea breeze.

"Hmm... Hey, a beached Sunken Ship!" Hearing the question, Li Shaolin was a bit stumped, but then he looked up and spotted a half-sunken cargo ship, about twenty meters long, leaning against a massive reef ahead.

They exchanged glances and felt a surge of joy. The ship looked like it had been abandoned not long ago and should be habitable. Tonight's lodging was sorted.