Xu Qing currently sat atop a big headless turtle that had a fist-sized barnacle on its tail. He made quite a strange sight, so it was no wonder the Smokewights noticed him. That said, there were all sorts of strange and unusual species on the wharf, so Xu Qing didn’t stick out very much. There were other cultivators who had mounts, including some who were riding skeletal creatures.

Humans weren’t as common nowadays in Sea-Sealing County. The various Swordsage Courts had issued the call to war, so most human cultivators were on the northern and western fronts defending the county. It wasn’t just the Spirit Trove and Void Returning cultivators who had been mobilized. Though they had left some forces behind, especially those who were supposed to be the future of their sect, the majority of their forces had been mobilized.

As Xu Qing studied the Daybreak Prefecture harbor, he saw mostly nonhumans. These people all lived in Sea-Sealing County, and had benefited for countless years from the protection of humankind.

Though that protection wasn’t necessarily critical to survival, such species hadn’t been expelled. As a result, this was their home.

When Xu Qing thought about how many of them had refused to join the war effort, he shook his head. In some ways he could understand that decision. They believed that the war wasn’t their fight, and that it didn’t matter to them who was in charge of Sea-Sealing County. Given that, why should they fight? From their viewpoint, it made sense. But Xu Qing was not some sort of saint that loved all species unconditionally. Given his perspective on the matter, he didn’t have much love for these nonhumans.

What was especially noteworthy was that Xu Qing had already spotted some Smokewights among the nonhumans. Smokewights didn’t just live in the desert. It was common for mist and fog to crop up in Daybreak Prefecture, and such things made the conditions perfect for Smokewights.

Their bodies were made from smoke, so unless you were extremely familiar with them, it wasn’t possible to tell which were male and which were female. In fact, you couldn’t even make out their facial features clearly. They looked like shadowy wisps of smoke that moved through the crowds on the wharf. They seemed to be searching for something. Also in their group was a type of special pitch-black puppet, with numerous cracks and crevices where the Smokewights could live symbiotically.

Xu Qing didn’t like Smokewights. They had treated him maliciously on his trip through the desert, which was what led to his big fight with Chu Tianqun in their major world fragment. 1

After that incident, Xu Qing had done some calculations and come to the conclusion that he ran into Chu Tianqun only two hours from the county capital border. And two hours… was how long the Smokewights had made him wait.

Of course, he was on a secret mission right now, so he suppressed his killing intent and paid no attention to the Smokewights. He went down to the dock and sat atop the headless turtle waiting for this ship to show up.

The Smokewights looked him up and down, but didn’t find anything suspicious, and continued on their way down the wharf.

Xu Qing had no idea what they were looking for. However, after they had moved along, the surrounding nonhumans cultivators started talking.

“The Smokewights have been searching for days now, although I’m not sure for what. I heard they’re not just searching here. They’re even out on the open water.”

“I heard someone say that they’re looking for the remains of the sun that perished here in Daybreak Prefecture. Except that happened years and years ago. Humans and other species have long since searched high and low. It’s been thousands of years since any new bits of flesh have been discovered.”

“They’re probably not really looking for the sun’s remains. I get the feeling they’re trying to prevent someone from getting into Daybreak Prefecture.”

Xu Qing looked thoughtfully at the distant Smokewights.

Two hours passed, and more nonhumans gathered on the wharf. That was when something like a whimpering sound echoed out from the distant fog. Everyone on the wharf looked in that direction. Along with the sound came a cold, sinister wind. As it swept across the wharf, a handful of strange-looking ships floated out of the fog. There were two types of ships.

One type resembled a swallow. Each was about three thousand meters long, their decks covered with numerous beautiful buildings. There were handmaidens on the decks of the ships, all of them extremely lithe and beautiful, with rabbit ears growing out of their heads. Xu Qing recognized them. They were members of the Spirit Rabbit species. They had no ancestral land, and instead could be found in prefectures far and near. They usually adhered to whatever powerful experts would accept their service.

The other ships hardly even looked like ships. They seemed more like giant leaves, with four legs stretching down beneath them like tree trunks. The leaves were about three hundred meters, and were much more simple and crude than the swallow ships. There were a lot more of them. Of the group, about ten percent were swallow ships, with about ninety percent being leaf ships.

As they neared, the cultivators on the wharf stirred into action, and began heading toward whatever ship would take them to their desired destination.

Xu Qing noticed that there were some Nascent Soul cultivators present. They all went to the swallow ships. The rest of the cultivators chose the leaf ships. That made it clear to Xu Qing that the ships were designed for different cultivation bases.

After studying the options, he boarded one of the leaf ships that was going to Mount Greenmist, which was near the middle of Daybreak Prefecture, not very far from Mount Daybreak.

It didn’t seem smart to Xu Qing to simply go straight to Mount Daybreak. It was a secret mission, after all. His plan was to go to Mount Greenmist, where he would rely on the power of his cultivation base to make the journey to Mount Daybreak. Journeying across the water on his own wasn’t something he could do for long periods of time, but he could manage a short journey.

After boarding the leaf ship, he looked around. It was a very simple vessel. There was no cabin and no handmaidens. Instead, there were three cultivators at the front of the ship, wearing green robes and ghost masks. They were in charge of the ship. In terms of passengers, there were over thirty. There was a group of eight that were obviously traveling as a group, but the others were individuals. Everyone spread out and took a spot. Given the three-hundred-meter length of the ship, there was plenty of room for everyone.

After finding a corner to sit down, Xu Qing looked at the three cultivators in green robes.

Most of what Xu Qing knew about Daybreak Prefecture came from the swordsage files he’d read. For example, he knew that ferries like this were controlled by a group called the Dawnluster Consortium. It was a business alliance formed from many organizations. Even the Swordsage Court had a share in the business. After all, Daybreak Prefecture was a very unique place, and there was a lot of profit to be had in maritime ventures. Official members of the Dawnluster Consortium wore green robes.

After studying them briefly, Xu Qing took a look at the other cultivators on board the leaf ship, then closed his eyes to meditate.

Enough time passed for an incense stick to burn, after which the ships started leaving the wharf.

That included the ship Xu Qing was on. Sometime after he paid the fare, the leaf vibrated. Then the four legs started moving the ship forward. The wind blew, and there was nothing blocking it, so it swept across the passengers.

Eventually, the leaf ship left the harbor behind. When the wind picked up, a shimmering shield finally spread out to block it. However, the wobbling sense of movement remained. 𝓲𝓪𝙙.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Xu Qing didn’t pay attention to any of that. He focused on meditating. Three days passed.

During that time he occasionally opened his eyes and looked around. He would gaze at the depths of the Abyssal Sea, and could sense its cold, damp aura. Occasionally, strange entities would appear.

For instance, there were winged whales, flocks of flying red lanterns, and huge two-headed bats. That said, the Dawnluster Consortium had brokered deals with all such mutant beasts, so they didn’t cause any problems for the leaf ship.

At one point, Xu Qing noticed a huge flower blooming shortly beneath the surface of the water. It was roughly 3,000 meters across, and was bright red, making it very conspicuous. As Xu Qing watched, a host of stamens rose up above the water, swaying back and forth.

When the nonhuman cultivators aboard the leaf ship saw the stamens, they looked over curiously. The reason was that at the end of each swaying stamen grew a woman. All sorts of species were represented. Xu Qing even saw a human female. They were lithe and beautiful, and none wore clothing. Stroking their hair coquettishly, they beckoned at the cultivators.

“We’re really lucky, exalted one,” a voice said. It came from the barnacle attached to the turtle’s tail. That barnacle was really the head from D-132. Eyes were visible on the barnacle as it stared out at the flower. “It’s a euphoria iris! Back in the day, that was my favorite type of flower.”

Xu Qing frowned. He had never heard of euphoria irises before.

Eyes gleaming with reminiscence, the head continued, “Euphoria irises are a special type of gruish plant native to Daybreak Prefecture. The stamens transform into women of varying species that entice passersby.

“If they succeed in getting someone to approach, they grab them and drag them down to the sea floor where they suck them dry, leaving behind nothing but a desiccated corpse. An ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator would only last for four or five breaths of time. A Gold Core expert might last for a bit longer, but not that much. Only individuals like me with unique innate abilities can turn things around and experience the true bliss of a euphoria iris. Now, before you make some joke about that being reason I don’t have a body, let me clarify that—”

“Quiet,” Xu Qing said. The turtle and the barnacle said nothing further.

As Xu Qing remained in place cross-legged, he cast out his senses in the direction of the group of eight nonhumans. It seemed they were discussing the Swordsage Court.

By focusing properly, Xu Qing could hear their conversation.

“The whole world is falling apart! I heard that it’s only when the population drops in Daybreak Prefecture that these vile euphoria irises start blooming….”

“Things don’t look good for the humans. The Swordsage Palace is heading into a huge crisis. From what I heard, a lot of nonhumans and rogue cultivators are eyeing the Swordsage Court on Mount Daybreak.”

“I heard that rumor too. There’s somebody recruiting rogue cultivators, bandits, and criminals from all species. They’re preparing to strike at Mount Daybreak and loot the Swordsage Court there.”

“Things are really unstable. I’ve definitely seen a lot of strangers around lately. I think most are cultivators from outside Daybreak Prefecture.”

“It doesn’t have anything to do with us. Let’s just get home. Who cares if the humans survive or not? But if they fall… then we should make sure to get a piece of the pie.”

“True. I heard the Swordsage Court has some serious treasure stockpiled….”

Xu Qing frowned, and his gaze turned cold. However, that was when he suddenly noticed something in the fog. He saw eight 30-meter-tall puppets, pitch black in color, emerging from the fog. Their eyes glowed red with malice as they looked at the leaf ship. It was a party of Smokewights.

Xu Qing’s eyes turned icier. As the Smokewight puppets approached, he assessed their cultivation bases and battle prowess.

Smoke emerged from the cracks and crevices in the puppets, which turned into Smokewights. They fanned out to surround the leaf ship. As for the puppets, they arrayed themselves in front of the ship so it couldn’t move forward.

The leaf ship’s four legs shivered but didn’t move. Meanwhile, the cultivators on board looked at the Smokewights with vigilance.

The three cultivators in green robes and ghost masks quickly got to their feet. The one in the middle stepped forward, looked at the Smokewights, and said, “How can I help you, Fellow Daoists from the Smokewights?”

1. Xu Qing’s distaste for the Smokewights began in chapter 459. ?

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