Perhaps that phantom was also a powerful sea beast.

To be able to fight the Great Black Heaven Dragon and force it to use Holy Hall Skills, it was highly likely also a Holy Hall-level beast. Shi Ming silently committed the phantom’s silhouette and fighting style to memory. Perhaps he would have the chance to see it again in the future.

He rubbed his head.

’Analyzing this Memory Drop really used up a lot of my Spiritual Power.’

’No wonder even a sea beast like the Nameless Cocoon is unwilling to dig into those deeper memories.’

He drank a cup of tea to clear his mind.

He had gotten the intel; his purpose in visiting Ah Jian was achieved. Next, he needed to make his way to the Yinping Sea Region.

The intelligence from the secretary-general of the Twelve Stars stated that Lighthouse was already prepared. They had stockpiled a large amount of Pure Dome Crystal and would launch a King-level expedition within a week. This meant he needed to infiltrate Fujing Mountain within that week, fleece the Great Black Heaven Dragon, and retreat before Lighthouse arrived.

A King-level Wandering Ship had a profound foundation.

Guerrilla tactics were fine, but a direct confrontation would be foolish.

’But if I can’t afford to provoke a King-level Wandering Ship, can’t I still mess with the Admiral-class Ship stationed there?’

The Black Society...

’Once the commission is complete, if your "daddy" hasn’t arrived by then, you’ll all get a taste of what it’s like to run into some *real* good fortune.’

The Memory Drop finished being analyzed and began to dissipate.

"Ah Jian, I’m leaving."

Shi Ming sent the message with his Spiritual Power into the deep sea, saying farewell to the Nameless Cocoon suppressed beneath the black gold. He didn’t know if the Nameless Cocoon could hear him, but as a polite ’investee’, a departure notice was essential.

[I hope that next time, you will be, stronger.]

’I hope that next time, you can give me a better investment.’

Of course, Shi Ming only thought this to himself and didn’t transmit it with his Spiritual Power. As strong as the Nameless Cocoon’s Spiritual Power was, it didn’t have a Mind Reading Technique. It naturally couldn’t hear words that weren’t expressed.

The *Good Fortune* didn’t linger near the black gold for long. It merely took on some supplies before departing swiftly. As it left, it even made a special detour, sailing past the *Pharaoh*, which was anchored nearby undergoing repairs.

No one recognized them.

The disguised *Good Fortune* and Shi Ming were unrecognizable, even if Chunyi came back to life.

...

「Onboard the *Pharaoh*.」

The young woman, Nia, had completed the handover ceremony for the [Obelisk]. She inherited the captain’s authority for the Wandering Ship from her father, Ah Bu, and was about to set sail on it, leaving the Pharaoh to venture into the Sea of Silence.

"Nia, whenever you miss me, or if you get tired of wandering, you can always come back."

"Don’t worry, Father. I’m a B-rank Awakened."

A ship that stays in the harbor will never face a storm, but it also will never grow stronger.

Ever since Nia saw that beam of saving light in the Sea of Yellow Sand, she had developed a stronger conviction to protect others. The dazzling new sun suspended above the corpse of the A-rank sea beast, a figure like that of a Sun God, was seared into her mind.

It was a young girl’s admiration,

and even more so, a direction and a guiding star.

Her eyes shimmered with a faint light, filled with the hope that one day she too could become a powerful Awakened, saving other suffering humans from danger.

Regardless of country, regardless of race.

The new captain piloted the [Obelisk], sailing west of the black gold. Meanwhile, Shi Ming rode the *Good Fortune* eastward, slowly accelerating until he soon vanished from sight of the black gold.

...

His destination was the Yinping Sea Region, the largest sea region in the Endless Ocean. Although the total number of ships there was relatively high, the density was even lower than in the European Sea Region. It was common for a Wandering Ship to sail for over a month without seeing a single other vessel.

This was even more true near the Great Maelstrom of Peacock Country.

Of course, the density of ships near the sea region guarded by Da Yu was still higher than in other areas.

To travel to the Yinping Sea Region, one naturally had to first understand its maritime powers.

The top-tier power, of course, was [Da Yu], which guarded the northwestern part of the Yinping Sea Region.

As one of the King-level Wandering Ships, it was currently anchored about one hundred and thirty nautical miles southeast of Mount Everest, responsible for the vast sea region of Dragon Country’s former territory. It moved occasionally but rarely went on expeditions.

Under its command were three highly mobile Admiral-class Wandering Ships that could transform into "Sword-Holding Ships" to eliminate threats to ordinary Wandering Ships in this region, guarding the "Sea of Soaring Dragons."

The three Admiral-class Wandering Ships were:

[Kunwu];

Hailed as Da Yu’s sharpest sword.

Its most famous achievement was thirteen years ago, when it beheaded the S-rank sea beast "Wangba Dabo" without deploying any S-rank Awakened. Kunwu’s strength had certainly improved even further since then.

[Jiuding];

The ship of discovery.

Its unique construction allowed it to delve into all kinds of dangerous environments, easily withstanding extreme temperatures from -40 to 200 degrees Celsius, and it could even traverse the seabed as if it were flat ground. It was said that with the help of the Xirang Research Institute, it was still being continuously improved with plans to explore the Great Maelstrom.

[Beidou Star];

An Admiral-class Ship with extremely strong support capabilities.

It was known as the frigate of the seas, the morning star of dawn, but unfortunately, the power of a single ship was quite meager in the current Endless Ocean. Even the capable could hardly save the world.

In addition to these, there were seven Golden Ships, and an even greater number of Silver and Bronze ships. Many maritime intelligence reports mentioned that Da Yu used to have eight Golden Ships long ago. As for the whereabouts of the lost one, only Shi Ming now knew the truth.

Compared to the orderly domain of Da Yu, the other second and third-rate independent factions in the Yinping Sea Region were chaotic and disorganized. They were unable to form a significant power, fought amongst themselves, and occasionally crushed one another.

Due to the "Endless Ocean Convention," Da Yu could not, and did not want to, interfere with these independent factions.

Among the more famous ones were the Admiral-class Wandering Ship [Daemin] from Korea, the Admiral-class Wandering Ship [Renhuang] from Vortex Country...

the Golden-class Wandering Ships [Siam], [Sea Mountain], [Equatorial Jade]...

...and the [Delta], which sank three years ago.

...the [Dawn], which was swallowed whole by the S-rank sea beast, the "Moonlight Ripple Beast"...

It was the largest sea region.

It was the sea region with the most severe polarization.

But in the Endless Ocean, it was already the best of the sea regions.

...

During the voyage, Shi Ming didn’t remain idle. As always, he was meticulously making plans.

’The Black Society and Renhuang are loners. They have no allies in the Yinping Sea Region, but plenty of enemies. Now, with the gradual release of the "Overview of Endless Sea Region’s Curiosities" and the extremely localized nature of the Sea-Rising Cherry Root, Fujing Mountain has attracted many factions, large and small, to secretly hunt for treasure.’

’Therefore, Renhuang has increased its security and recalled the Black Society.’

’Ordinary patrol ships of all sizes can now be seen everywhere in the Fujing Mountain Sea Region.’

’The underwater surveillance will also be tighter.’

For this trip, the mission was the top priority.

Until the mission was complete, Shi Ming would remain extremely restrained.

All past and present grievances with the Black Society could be temporarily set aside. ’A wise man conceals his best tools and waits for the right time to act.’ He would strive to obtain a small amount of the Great Black Heaven Dragon’s flesh and blood without alerting any person or faction.

This would not be difficult.

Because, as far as Shi Ming knew, when the Black Society had been stationed here before, they had dispatched Awakened to collect some of the sea beast’s tissue for research. They had even come to the absurd conclusion that only S-rank Awakened could absorb its blood.

Even Demon Sword’s Famous Blade Xianyue had once been stained with the faint aura of the Great Black Heaven Dragon.

All he needed to consider was how to act as an "infiltrator" and evade the patrols of Renhuang, the Black Society, and the vanguards sent by Lighthouse.

Luckily, he had the *Sun-Piercer*.

This Admiral-class Wandering Ship, equipped with both a submersible mode and a stealth mode, was the key to carrying out this kind of mission. Moreover, by using the "Sailing Heart" obtained from Prince Atte, he could upgrade it by another one or two levels, further increasing the margin for error.

As long as there were no surprises, the mission was a sure thing.

As for whether the Great Black Heaven Dragon would wake up?

Shi Ming thought not.

A dragon that had been dormant for over nine thousand years and hadn’t woken up throughout that long passage of time had a probability of awakening in the short period to come that was approximately zero.

If he was careful enough, he might even have the spare capacity to search for clues about the "Sea-Rising Cherry Root."

With his plotting complete, Shi Ming had a rough plan.

He closed the notebook and map in his hands, pressed his temples, and gazed out the window into the distance.

"Captain, our current position is approaching the Great Maelstrom. The *Good Fortune* will continue eastward to avoid the maelstrom’s area."

"Oh?"

Shi Ming had always been curious about the Great Maelstrom.

The inexplicably formed Great Maelstrom had displaced ships like Shiva. Was its formation, like that of the Sea of Boiling, due to a super-powerful sea beast lurking within, or was there some other secret?

There were many secrets in the Endless Ocean, and the Great Maelstrom was the most inscrutable of them all.

Shi Ming took out the Map of the Endless Sea.

He infused his S-rank Awakened power into it and observed the map’s changes.

The ancient sea chart instantly turned azure blue. The area of the Great Maelstrom, including its center, showed no abnormalities. However, nineteen hundred nautical miles to the south, there was a faint black dot. That place was once a vacation paradise in the old world: the Maldives.

The azure blue faded.

He then took out the diluted blood he had obtained from a bit of the Abyss Lord’s power and dripped it onto the map again.

There were no abnormalities this time either.

"Strange."

’In a place like this, having no abnormalities is the biggest abnormality of all.’

He put away the map, walked out of the captain’s quarters, and went onto the deck.

The southern ocean didn’t look particularly special, but undercurrents were already starting to surge in its depths. If they turned south and sailed into the heart of the Great Maelstrom, even a Golden-class Wandering Ship would face certain danger.

"Eye of the World, acquire intelligence."

Today, he would see for himself,

just what secrets the Great Maelstrom truly held.