The Calm Belt

Just as Chen Qiang finished speaking, before they could even start moving, the ship—which had been perfectly still—suddenly began to rock. A huge shadow appeared beneath the surface.

Chen Qiang and the others had barely glimpsed the shadow when the ship was thrust out of the water and sent flying into the air, before they could figure out what was going on.

"Holy crap!"

Only after the ship had completely cleared the water and soared into the air did Chen Qiang and the others see what the shadow beneath the surface really was.

It was a gigantic Sea King, and the shadow they had just seen was its head.

The Sea King was enormous. Their ship was at least a dozen meters long, yet it was still smaller than the creature's eye.

How could Chen Qiang and the others tell? Because they were on the Sea King's nose, and its eye was right beside them. One quick glance was all it took to see the difference.

The Sea King didn't seem to regard them as food, though. It treated them like toys, tossing their ship into the air as soon as it surfaced.

"Lin! Hold on to me!"

As soon as their ship was thrown into the air, Chen Qiang reacted. He grabbed Lin, who was still frozen with indecision, and told her to hold on to him. Then he quickly let go and grabbed the ship's wheel, keeping them from being flung off as the ship spun.

Maybe Chen Qiang was just incredibly unlucky, but after the first Sea King appeared, more and more began surfacing on what had been a calm sea. Each one just watched Chen Qiang and the others flying through the air. Whenever they came down, another Sea King would appear and toss them right back up.

It was as if the Sea Kings had decided they were fun little balls to play with.

"Ahhhh!" "Ahhhh!"

In the once-quiet Calm Belt, Chen Qiang and Lin's screams never stopped. Tumbling through the air like this was far more thrilling than bungee jumping at an amusement park back in his previous life. They flew hundreds of meters up, then dropped before being tossed into the air again. How could the word "thrilling" possibly describe it?

Chen Qiang and Lin had no idea how long they'd been tumbling through the air. Fortunately, their ship was sturdy enough. Plenty of parts had been damaged, but at least it hadn't completely fallen apart.

"Caw!"

While they were still tumbling, a bird's cry rang out overhead. A gigantic eagle appeared, nearly as large as the Sea Kings below.

The moment it appeared, the eagle grabbed Chen Qiang's ship in its talons and flew toward the depths of the Calm Belt.

"Ugh..."

Once the spinning finally stopped, Chen Qiang and Lin collapsed onto the ship's deck.

But as soon as they managed to steady themselves, they could no longer hold it in. Both of them threw up. They had been spinning far too violently.

"Chen Qiang! What do we do? Ugh..."

After she'd recovered a little, Lin asked Chen Qiang. But she'd barely gotten the words out before the nausea hit her again, and she threw up all over the deck.

"Let's wait and see where it's taking us. Ugh..."

Hearing Chen Qiang's reply, Lin didn't even have the strength to answer. She just kept vomiting.

They had no idea how long they'd been sick. Only after their stomachs were completely empty, and they couldn't even bring up bile, did the nausea finally ease a little.

While the two of them recovered, the giant eagle carried them to an island covered in vibrant peach blossoms. Rows of peach trees bloomed in a dazzling array, making it a beautiful island overall. The eagle had probably come here to enjoy the meal it had just caught in this lovely place.

But just as it was about to land, the petals on the island began flying through the air despite the lack of wind. They were like blades, slicing across the eagle's body.

Stung by the pain, it immediately released its grip, and Chen Qiang's ship fell toward the island.

When the eagle realized what was happening and tried to catch them, even more petals soared into the sky. They swallowed the eagle up and swiftly carried it down to the island.

Then the petals formed a huge barrier around the island, enclosing it completely.

The island quickly sank beneath the sea and disappeared from sight.

"Caw!"

Wrapped in a sea of petals, the eagle managed only one anguished cry before falling silent.

The giant eagle had brought them here, and before Chen Qiang and Lin could react, their ship had already crashed onto the island.

The petals that had been scattered across the ground quickly rose into the air, forming a barrier that held back the seawater. Then they descended rapidly into the depths of the sea.

For Chen Qiang and Lin, aboard the ship, it was much simpler. The sky, which had been bright moments earlier, suddenly went dark, until they couldn't see their hands in front of them.

After they landed on the island, the trees all around them, which had seemed like lifeless plants, sprang to life. Vines began wrapping around the ship.

Under the assault of the vines, the once-sturdy ship quickly rotted. It soon gave way, crumbling into splinters beneath their grasp.

Fortunately, Chen Qiang reacted quickly. As soon as he noticed something was wrong, he grabbed Lin's petite body and dodged the vines, landing in the treeless center of the island.

For some reason, once Chen Qiang landed there with Lin in his arms, the vines that had been chasing them slowly withdrew. The trees around them, now bare of petals, returned to their original positions and stopped moving, as if they were ordinary trees with nothing unusual about them.

"Chen Qiang, what do we do now?"

In the darkness, Lin clung tightly to Chen Qiang and looked up at him with big, beautiful eyes, seeming utterly helpless.

"Don't worry, we should be safe for now. Let me rest for a bit, then I'll figure something out."

Chen Qiang smiled and activated his blood-red eyes, looking around. When he saw that none of the trees were moving toward them, he gently set Lin down and patted her head reassuringly.

At Chen Qiang's words, Lin released her hold on him like a well-behaved child and obediently sat down beside him, waiting for his next instructions.

Chen Qiang was truly exhausted. Four or five hours had passed since his battle with Karpofel, and the nonstop fighting had left him mentally drained.

On top of that, after reaching the ship, they'd entered the Calm Belt and been tossed around like toys by various Sea Kings. Then the giant eagle had appeared, giving them a brief chance to relax.

But before they could rest for long, they'd encountered this strange island. The moment the ship landed, the trees had utterly crushed and absorbed it, then attacked them as well.

Fortunately, the clearing where they'd landed seemed to give the trees pause, and they hadn't attacked again. At last, Chen Qiang had a chance to rest.