Ning Qing opened her eyes and looked into the distance.
Somehow, Chen Shu had produced a long sword of simple, ancient design. Its edge was so sharp it sliced through stone like paper. With the Divine Sword, he had managed to cut the slabs and blocks he wanted from several large reefs. Now he carried a slab toward the earthen houses in one hand while wildly swinging the sword with the other.
Ning Qing said nothing and closed her eyes.
A male sand crab was feeding on the beach. Unlike a female, it had only one feeding claw, which it used to scrape at the sand. After putting the sand in its mouth, it spat out the inedible parts.
Caution and vigilance were the keys to survival for such little creatures. Alertness was carved into its instincts, and it constantly detected the slightest changes in the sand and light.
A human approached. Vibrations traveled through the beach.
In an instant, the sand crab darted into its burrow.
Even after the beach grew still, it waited a long time before coming out to feed again.
Ning Qing opened her eyes.
Not far away, stone slabs and blocks had been assembled into a dining table on the beach, with two stone stools beside it. Chen Shu had deliberately chosen pale gray stone to give the table a vacation feel against the sea view.
Now he was building a pavilion.
If they stayed a few more days, he might make a Swing.
Ning Qing pressed her lips together and closed her eyes again.
A sea fish darted through the shallows. It was one of the ways it evaded predators—effective, but with the drawback of making it easy to run aground.
It was lucky enough to escape that danger.
Fish did not have memories