The group remained in Vast Sea City for several days. Sword and Bone needed time to slowly recover from the backlash of using their Martial Soul Avatars.
On the third day, seeing that the two had recovered fairly well, Ning Bei had Da Ming set off first to search for a sea region whose glow was brighter than elsewhere.
As for himself, he wandered around Vast Sea City. After all, he had never used a Martial Soul Avatar.
Vast Sea City lived off the sea in every sense. Nearly everything people ate, wore, and used was connected to the ocean.
There were houses made from the shells of massive Sea Soul Beasts, clothes inlaid with seashells, and food that was mostly seafood. Even the Soul Battle Arena was a vast expanse of enclosed seawater.
Before he knew it, Ning Bei arrived at a village by the sea. He slowly walked in to find the villagers gathered in small groups, processing the catch they had brought back from sea. The fishy stench in the air made him frown.
Suddenly, a group of young children in the distance caught his attention.
Most of the children were eight or nine years old. They were gathered around another child, occasionally throwing stones at her while chanting insults.
Only when Ning Bei drew closer did he hear what they were yelling.
"Beat this monster to death! She's the reason my father was bitten by a shark when he went out to sea!"
"That's right, beat this jinx to death!"
"That's right! If you don't want to die, get out of the village!"
Listening to the harsh abuse, Ning Bei looked toward the center of the crowd, wanting to see what sort of person the children called a monster.
One look gave him quite a fright.