Chapter 854: Sea of Death

854. Sea of Death

The ship docked near the island, and Von didn't try to persuade Lin Ye further. Instead, he followed the other passengers off the ship.

The ship would only remain here for half an hour. If they couldn't make it back in time, they'd have to swim after the ship.

Lin Ye rested his feet on the railing, eyes closed, gently swaying the Dragon Fishing Rod. The surrounding spiritual energy merged into his body, strengthening his physical structure.

The sunlight over the sea was still relatively gentle, and a cool sea breeze blew past, carrying a damp, comfortable sensation.

"The new Parasitism Network has been deployed and is currently undergoing functionality testing. All nearby ships have been incorporated within the network's coverage, but every captain's cabin on these vessels has a layer of mental barrier. If we try to invade those cabins, we might be detected."

Little Guardian appeared beside Lin Ye's lounge chair. The situation in the surrounding area was fully within her control.

"Then leave the captain's cabins alone for now. Is there anything noteworthy about this sea area?"

Lin Ye had been continuously absorbing spiritual energy to strengthen his body and hadn't paid much attention to the Parasitism Network's operations.

"The outer islands nearby have nothing of concern. Going deeper might run into some trouble. This sea area is vast, and the Parasitism Network needs time to expand."

Little Guardian leaned against the railing. Some parasitic nodes that had extended deeper into the sea had vanished, and the Parasitism Network hadn't received any information from those nodes.

"I'll leave that to you. If you encounter any trouble, you can set it aside for now. I'll deal with it after I finish advancing."

Lin Ye wasn't particularly interested in this place anyway. He only wanted to complete his advancement as quickly as possible, then return to the Shelter to research the Deep Well Substance.

"Okay."

With that, Little Guardian vanished.

Half an hour later, the ship departed from the outer islands, and most of the passengers had returned aboard.

"Sigh, I didn't grab anything at all. If I'd known, I would've walked at the very front."

Von sat down beside Lin Ye and let out a sigh.

"There wasn't anything good on the island anyway. What was there to grab?"

Those islands had already been swept clean by the Parasitism Network, and all the useful items had been transported into Lin Ye's spatial item.

Of course, Lin Ye wouldn't leave these passengers completely empty-handed. When the parasitic organisms took the supplies, they'd leave behind some spiritual energy items of decent quality, little trinkets he'd casually made in his spare time.

"That's still more reliable than fishing here."

Von also took out a fishing rod and cast a line into the sea.

"Is that so?"

Lin Ye lifted the Dragon Fishing Rod, and a long string of treasure chests made of various materials hung beneath it.

"Not gonna lie, those chests of yours actually look legit. They really resemble the ones on the islands."

Von stared at the treasure chests with a slightly puzzled expression.

Just like the chests on the islands, his mental energy couldn't penetrate the shells of these chests.

"These chests are protection fees handed over by the sea creatures below. They're way better than those second-hand chests on the islands."

Lin Ye stowed away the chests. He wasn't lying to Von. The chests on the islands were indeed second-hand goods, deliberately placed there by someone.

Fortunately, some chests were buried deep on the seabed. Otherwise, this event would've been way too boring.

"...Really?"

Von could sense that Lin Ye was only a sixth-tier spiritual energy user, so he'd always assumed Lin Ye was just a young man here to see the world. But those chests that kept appearing out of nowhere made him less certain.

"Seeing as I'm a fishing master, and as a senior in the industry, I can give a novice fishing enthusiast like you one chance. Next time the ship stops, if you can catch anything at all, I'll let you pick one chest from my collection to take with you."

Lin Ye cast out the Dragon Fishing Rod. The sea surface was calm, yet not a single living creature could be seen.

"But I need to get off the ship to look for something valuable. The next stop is my last chance to disembark. My strength is average, so I can't get off at more distant sea areas."

Von had wanted to flat-out refuse Lin Ye, but the words that came out turned into a tactful decline.

"Suit yourself. I was just giving you an opportunity. Whether you accept it or not is your business."

Lin Ye didn't care about Von's thoughts.

Von didn't respond. He leaned back in his chair, staring blankly at the calm, dark expanse of sea before him.

"Sir, could I trouble you for a moment?"

A young man wrapped in an oversized trench coat approached. His voice was very soft, as if afraid of disturbing Lin Ye.

"You're an ordinary person? There shouldn't be any ordinary people here. Did you sneak aboard somehow?"

Von looked at the young man with pity in his eyes.

"No, a friend of mine is a spiritual energy user. He brought me aboard."

The young man quickly explained.

"Young man, do you know why the crew members haven't bothered with you? Because the place we're heading to is called the Sea of Death. Just a little further in, even staying inside the cabin, an ordinary person won't last long. You'll be torn apart by the raging spiritual energy, or alienated into a disgusting mutant. That's why no one's bothered with you.

Of course, if that friend you mentioned happens to be a Controller, then forget everything I just said."

Von didn't believe this young man in the worn-out trench coat could have such a friend.

"...I... I... how much longer do I have to live?"

The young man turned to look at the nearby passengers. He'd spoken with some of them earlier, and they'd all been staring at him with strange expressions, like they were watching some comedic show.

"About half an hour. After the second stop, we'll enter the Sea of Death."

Von knew the route and schedule of this journey very well.

"Thank you for the warning... Is there any chance I can survive?"

The young man hadn't given up. He couldn't die here.

"Unless a Controller is willing to take you under their protection. But there are only a few Controllers on this ship, and you don't even have the qualifications to meet them."

Von didn't think the young man had any way out.

"Don't listen to his nonsense. He's just an apprentice fishing enthusiast with no real knowledge.

You have plenty of ways to survive. For example, jump into the sea right now and swim back from here.

Or simply become a spiritual energy user. If you can advance to a third-tier spiritual energy user within half an hour, you might barely survive in the cabin.

If you can't do any of that, you can also ask for my help. As long as you can pay a sufficient price, I can guarantee your life."

Lin Ye swung the Dragon Fishing Rod and pulled up another long string of treasure chests made of various materials.

"You're a Controller, sir?!"

Rex instinctively stepped back and bowed in salute.

"No, I'm just a sixth-tier spiritual energy user."

Lin Ye still needed some time to advance.

"Kid, don't listen to his bullshit. You're dead meat."

A passenger nearby jeered with a laugh.

"May I ask what price I would need to pay to survive?"

Rex ignored that passenger. He didn't know if Lin Ye could really help him, but he had no other choice left.