The Dark Realm
The dark waterline became increasingly clear as the ship continued to move forward. Initially, it was just a stripe slightly darker than the surrounding seawater, like a thin veil stained with ink spread across the surface. As the ship drew closer, the edges of the stripe began to reveal more specific structural features. Near the hull, it began to separate from the surrounding seawater, like two liquids of different densities existing side by side in the same container. At the boundary, a slowly undulating dividing line formed, neither completely merging nor completely separating under the continuous current, like a boundary that maintains its position in the continuity of the fluid.
Long Tian crouched at the bow, dipping his hand into the seawater at the edge of the colored band. When his fingertips touched the water, he felt the temperature and density were slightly higher than in the surrounding waters. He withdrew his hand, water dripping through his fingers and leaving fine, dark spots on the deck. The person at the stern gripped the rudder, slowly moving the bow forward along the edge of the colored band for a short distance, then turning the bow at a relatively calmer point, causing the hull to cut into the band.
The process of the ship passing through the boundary of the colored bands lasted for several breaths. During this time, the color of the seawater around the ship changed from deep blue to a darker shade, as if it had sailed from the surface of the evening into the waters of a later time, and the surrounding light also dimmed. After entering this area of water, the sails maintained their original wind direction without any obvious deflection.
The man at the stern loosened the rudder after the bow had fully entered the inky waters, allowing the boat to move forward a short distance on its own, before gripping it again to maintain direction. His voice was lower than usual as he spoke, "The current in this area is different from the outer areas. It flows along a larger arc, and although the speed hasn't changed significantly, the boat is indeed turning southeast along a fixed arc."
Long Tian stood up at the bow of the boat, glanced at the water ahead, then squatted down and dipped his fingers into the water to feel the direction of the current. He then stood up and walked back to the cabin, took out the tide record from his leather pouch, and flipped through it. He found a page with several shallow arcs drawn in pencil in the corner. The direction of the arcs was the same as the direction of the water flow felt by the boat, like a channel formed by multiple arcs connected together. Each arc curved in the same direction, gradually guiding the ship through this area of water towards the southeast.
He carefully put away the tide record, walked back to the bow, and squatted down again. Yu Jin, squatting by the gunwale, reached out to feel the water temperature and current speed before speaking, his tone calm. "This channel is maintained by the current, not by artificial markings. As long as the boat follows the current, it can reach the target area before high tide. If it takes the wrong current branch during the Moon Tide window, it may deviate from its course and need to recalibrate to return to the correct channel. But the direction we're heading now matches the current speed range on the record, and the direction is also correct."
The ship continued its journey through the inky black waters for most of the afternoon. As darkness fell, the contrast between the inky black waters and the surrounding sea became even more pronounced in the diminishing light, like a continuously spreading dark surface maintaining its sharp edges against a light-colored background. The light layer above the bow of the Dragon Shadow subtly adjusted its color upon entering this area, becoming slightly brighter than before, as if automatically increasing its brightness to compensate for the reduced ambient light. The vertical line on its forehead continued to shine, forming a narrow path of light in front of the bow, illuminating the water surface several meters ahead of the ship.
As night fell, the person at the stern took an old lantern from the cabin, lit it, and hung it on a pole at the stern. The light could only illuminate a small area near the stern in the inky water, forming a shimmering halo reflected on the surface. Long Tian did not light a lantern at the bow, relying on the light from Dragon Shadow to maintain illumination in front of the boat. The two men, one in front and one behind, each guarded a section of the light, illuminating their own area.
As night deepened, the ship's speed decreased slightly, as if entering a calmer current zone. Long Tian remained seated at the bow, not asleep. The Origin Return Pearl within his chest circulated slowly, its pulsation maintaining a constant correspondence with the ship's swaying in the water. Yu Jin sat at the hatchway, the light from the dark gray bead shining steadily in the shadows, like a dimly lit but persistent nightlight. The stern lantern continued to burn, unextinguished by the sea breeze, its flame maintaining a stable height within its glass enclosure, like an outline that persisted in the darkness.
After sitting at the bow for a while, Long Tian stood up and squatted back down by the gunwale, dipping his hand into the water. The water temperature didn't change significantly in this area, but he sensed a very subtle shift in the direction of the current—as if the boat had passed the end of those arcs and was approaching the entrance to the next current. He withdrew his hand, dried the water droplets on his trousers, sat back down at the bow, closed his eyes for a moment, and in the darkness, felt the boat continuing to move forward along that continuous arc of the current. The direction the bow was pointing matched the angle reading on the tide gauge, with the deviation within an acceptable range.
Yu Jin stood up at the hatch and walked to the stern to check the old man's lantern, confirming that the wick still had enough to burn for a while. Then he walked back to the bow and sat down next to Long Tian. The two sat side by side on the edge of the bow plank, each facing the inky black sea ahead. The ship continued to move forward, and a steady sound emanated from the point where the hull touched the water, like a continuous confirmation signal between the ship and the sea, maintaining a stable pitch and duration as they passed through this inky expanse of water.