Merfolk

At dawn, a thin mist hangs over the East China Sea, and the vibrant colors of the sunrise separate the sky from the sea.

A few stars dotted the azure sky as a few seabirds glide leisurely by, skimming the blue-purple surface of the sea.

Xu Qi'an stood at the bow of the ship, facing the sea breeze, and sailed forward as if cutting through the waves.

A few feet behind, a nine-tailed fox with a fur coat tied around her slender waist, serving as a skirt, sat leaning against the ship's railing, her foxy eyes narrowed as she gazed at the distant sea.

In the sea breeze, her eyelashes trembled slightly; her profile was exquisitely beautiful, a stunning beauty of unparalleled grace.

The ship beneath their feet was Law Artifact of the Bureau of Astronomy, capable of traveling a thousand miles a day. Its power came from water and wind arrays carved into the lower deck by Sun Xuanji. Given the materials used in its construction, its lifespan was estimated to be about two months.

If it gets any longer, it will require the Warlock to maintain it, replace the array, and replace the materials that support the array.

"Is it novel?"

The nine-tailed fox's smile was like that of an experienced female warrior teasing a younger brother who hadn't yet graduated, "The Netherworld Silkworm isn't far from the Southern Frontier. This is your first real voyage overseas. Aren't you longing for the world beyond?"

He had been standing at the bow of the ship for several hours.

Xu Qi'an ignored him, standing still and gazing into the distance. After a long while, he pointed to the horizon and said in a low voice:

Do you know what's on the other side of the sea?

The nine-tailed fox was taken aback, and instinctively replied:

"Descendants of Gods and Devils."

"No!"

Xu Qi'an shook his head, turned around, his eyes burning:

"I thought freedom lay on the other side of the sea, then I discovered it was an enemy, and later I learned it was a virus!"

Seeing the vixen's blank and bewildered expression, Xu Qi'an felt utterly bored.

That's boring, you don't understand my jokes!

At this moment, the nine-tailed fox realized what was happening and scolded:

"You're talking nonsense again."

Xu Qi'an countered:

What does "again" mean?

It's like we're pretty close.

The nine-tailed celestial fox was clearly not the obedient woman who answered every question. She blinked and said slyly:

"You guess!"

Besides Fuxiang, who else? Xu Qi'an ignored her, too lazy to answer, and continued gazing at the sea, saying:

Tell me about your experiences abroad.

The silver-haired enchantress suppressed her seductive charms, looked southwest, and said:

"Sail another 500 li to the southwest, there is an island full of caves. Merfolk live on the island. The Merfolk Queen is a Transcendent Realm expert, probably at the early stage of the third rank. That is our first coordinate after setting sail."

"Once we reach Mermaid Island, we'll head south."

Mermaids are not quite at the level of extraordinary beings. Even if I were to drain their Essence Blood, it would be of no benefit to me. Xu Qi'an's heart stirred:

"Do they sing? Do they use their songs to lure fishermen out to sea and then eat them?"

The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox shook its head:

"They want to eat people, do they need to lure them with songs? Just stir up a storm and capsize their boats."

"This isn't the merman I imagined!" Xu Qi'an asked unwillingly.

What do they look like?

Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox's Casual Science Explanation:

"Human body with a fish tail, the tail is covered with blue or black hard scales. Mermaids are beautiful, and both men and women have extremely outstanding appearances. Well, it is said that they are extremely loyal to their mates, and once a mate relationship is established, they will only be in heat with that person."

"Once a mate dies, a merman will not seek a new love, and may even live a solitary life. When a merman reaches three hundred years of age, a pearl will form in his body. When he holds the pearl and sees his beloved, the pearl will glow."

This reminds me of a problem that plagues many young people: choosing the head or the tail. Xu Qi'an thought to himself as he commented:

"A very interesting ethnic group."

The only downside is its human torso and fish tail; it's highly ornamental but not very practical.

"Besides the familiar 'route,' have you tried to broaden the shipping lanes?" Xu Qi'an said, "You haven't found your kind, which is very likely not on the route you're familiar with."

"That's why you've never been to sea and have limited experience."

The silver-haired enchantress smiled, a smile that carried a certain sense of superiority, like an eagle soaring in the sky looking down at a frog at the bottom of a well.

"The overseas world is not as simple as you think. Although you can now travel to the Western Regions in the morning and Jingshan in the evening, Kyushu is only a part of this world, not the whole. You have no idea how vast the world beyond Kyushu is."

"You wouldn't know how vast and boundless the ocean is. If you take the wrong route, you could easily get lost in the vast sea. Even if you are a first-class martial artist who can fly on the wind, you will still get lost."

"I'll tell you some secrets that ordinary extraordinary experts wouldn't know. Once upon a time, a descendant of Gods and Devils and demons went on an adventure at sea, but got lost in the boundless ocean. It wasn't until more than ten years later that it returned to Kyushu."

"Do you know how it was found? It involves a secret of this world."

After speaking, the silver-haired enchantress stared intently at Xu Qi'an, trying to see surprise and curiosity in his eyes.

"What secret!"

Xu Qi'an asked casually.

"It's nothing more than going around the world and then discovering that the world is round," he thought to himself.

The nine-tailed celestial fox was dissatisfied with his attitude. She gave a huff and changed her mind, deciding not to tell him what the real world was like.

For example, beyond Kyushu, on the vast ocean, there are not only islands, but also boundless and expansive lands.

For example, after wandering for several years, that descendant of Gods and Devils flew in one direction and ended up returning to Kyushu, only to discover that the world was round.

These secrets, though seemingly insignificant, are related to the very essence of heaven and earth.

Xu Ningyan's attitude has become so arrogant since he was promoted to the first rank, and she was not happy to tell him this.

Let him be an ignorant native of Kyushu.

"Are there any descendants of Gods and Devils at the second rank in the routes you know of?" Xu Qi'an asked.

The silver-haired enchantress shook her head:

"Our lord alone can sweep through all the settlements of the descendants of Gods and Devils along the way."

This is a bit frustrating; all that's left are 'misfits,' utterly useless."Xu Qi'an frowned deeply.

It would be almost impossible to advance to the half-step Martial God realm by relying on the Essence Blood of the third-grade realm. Although quantitative change can lead to qualitative change, Xu Qi'an himself did not know where the limit of this quantity was.

Even if he were to slaughter all the third-rank beings in the Nine Provinces, including the descendants of Gods and Devils, it might not be enough to support his advancement to a half-step Martial God.

"It's just a gamble at sea, so don't have too high expectations. However, if you go 800 miles south past Mermaid Island, you might find something interesting. It's a very interesting place."

The Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox didn't rule out the possibility of a definitive answer.

"Where?" Xu Qi'an asked casually.

But the silver-haired enchantress kept him in suspense and didn't tell him.

The two drifted in the sea for three days. On the fourth day, Xu Qi'an's consciousness immersed itself in the fragments of the Earth Book and discovered that the light clusters corresponding to the eight fragments in the chaotic space had become extremely dim.

This means that the connection between the fragment in his hand and the other eight fragments is extremely weak; in layman's terms, there's no signal.

I feel like in a few more days, I'll drift away and lose contact. Lost in the Book of Earth, his ears twitched, and he heard the silver-haired enchantress's soft, melodious voice:

"That's Mermaid Island."

Xu Qi'an quickly opened his eyes and saw the nine-tailed fox standing tall at the bow of the ship, pointing to the horizon.

The outline of another island can be vaguely seen there.

Due to the distance and angle, only a corner of the island can be seen, making it impossible to determine its exact size.

The silver-haired enchantress smiled and said:

"Mermaids are relatively gentle in nature. We can visit them and find out if there are any settlements of Gods and Devils and demons in the ocean. As you know, water-attribute Gods and Devils and demons like to live in the sea."

"The ocean floor is not a familiar territory for us, but merfolk can live on both land and sea."

Although she went to sea several times, she never explored the seabed.

Fox spirits are not good at water combat. If they are unlucky enough to encounter a water-type transcendent being of the same level, they are very likely to be defeated.

Of course, a crude martial artist doesn't have this concern. Even if attacked by a water-type extraordinary being of the same realm, the martial artist can rely on his crudeness to survive the worst beating and return to the sea unharmed.

"Hmm, if I remember correctly, the Mermaid Queen is still unmarried. Xu Yinluo can tame her and keep her by his side, to enjoy her company when he's lonely," the fox spirit said with a seductive smile.

"Does teasing me make you happy?" Xu Qi'an glanced at her, then changed the subject:

"Yes, there's no time to lose, let's hurry to Mermaid Island to gather information."

As they were talking, the surging blue waves brought a floating corpse. The body of the corpse had been soaked until it turned white. The upper body was not much different from that of a human woman. The hair was dark green and there was a row of small dorsal fins on its back.

The lower half should be a fish tail. The reason I say "should" is because the tail is broken off at waist level, with the cut being a bloody mess, as if it had been bitten off by some kind of monster.

The merman was wearing a light armor woven from vines, the inside of which was a bloody mess, indicating that he had been dead for some time.

"Huh!"

The nine-tailed celestial fox examined the corpse for a moment and said:

"This is the Mermaid Queen's personal guard. Hmm, it seems the merfolk are in trouble."

P. S.: I'll correct the typos tomorrow; there aren't any for today.