Chapter 337: Again With This Matter

The underwater current swept away Ying Feng and all the Yakshas, causing the latter half of the Water Mansion's palace to sway precariously.

Fortunately, the old dragon had some control this time and didn't collapse the palace, but it still terrified the aquatic creatures within the mansion. Especially the aura of a true dragon made countless river creatures tremble with fear.

Ying Feng was swept directly out of the Water Mansion by the current, accompanied by several other Yakshas and aquatic creatures who were equally disoriented.

The dragon prince shook his head, looking with lingering fear towards the Dragon Pool behind the Water Mansion. He couldn't believe he had dared to use such a provocative tactic on his father just moments ago.

The underwater current quickly subsided. A Yaksha cautiously spoke to Ying Feng.

"Your Highness, about the Dragon Lord..."

"Just pretend you heard nothing just now, and don't spread it around, or my father might just eat you all!"

Ying Feng composed himself and replied.

"Yes, yes, yes!" "Your subordinate heard nothing!"

After recovering from the current, Ying Feng swam back towards the Water Mansion. Before he reached the Dragon Pool, he saw his father emerge, his face still etched with anger.

Ying Feng quickly approached with hurried steps, bowing respectfully as if he had forgotten his previous words.

"Father!"

The old dragon squinted at him, grunted, and then walked towards the main hall. Ying Feng, of course, quickly followed him.

Upon reaching the main hall, the mermaids were busily tidying up items that had been knocked to the floor, righting overturned chairs and tables.

The old dragon paid them no mind and settled onto his majestic couch.

"What was it you just said? I was dozing and didn't quite catch it. Could you repeat it for your father?"

Ying Feng's heart pounded. He had been carried away by emotion just now, but he certainly wouldn't dare repeat it now.

"I just wanted to know where Ruoli and Uncle Ji went. I was wondering if you could tell me their location, Father. Since it's inconvenient for you to go, I could follow them and see."

As he spoke, Ying Feng took a cup and teapot from a nearby mermaid's tray and poured a cup of hot tea for his father.

The old dragon grunted, took the teacup, and looked at the air bubble on it that kept the water out. He neither drank nor spoke, remaining deep in thought for a long time.

"Your sister's cultivation is higher than yours, and she's accompanied by Ji Yuan. There should be no problem. Even if you tried to follow them now, you might not find where they are."

"But, this..."

Ying Feng paced a few steps back and forth.

"Father, aren't you worried at all? I don't believe you have no backup plan. If you know their location or something, please just give me a direction!"

The old dragon raised the teacup and took a small sip.

"Honestly, no. Just wait for news. If one Ji Yuan isn't enough, what good would a hundred of you do?"

Although the old dragon said this, his Mirage Transformation Art was tailing the giant whale from a distant point, like a shadow. In clear weather, he remained in the water, but when winds picked up and clouds gathered, he transformed into mist.

Of course, due to the old dragon's wariness of Ji Yuan's keen perception, the distance between them was considerable, just enough to barely avoid losing track.

Although compasses and similar instruments had long existed, ships venturing far into the ocean were still rare. Apart from encountering the Nine Peaks Mountain realm's flying boat a few days prior, Ji Yuan and the dragon girl didn't come across any "man-made traces" for nearly a month afterward.

General Giant Whale's speed was remarkably swift. Despite his massive body, his aquatic evasion technique was unique. He could smoothly pass through strange currents in certain waters, and the bewildering mists in some areas did not affect his sense of direction in the slightest.

In the vast ocean, aquatic monsters naturally existed. However, due to the immense size of the sea, even a large number of monsters appeared extremely sparse when spread out.

However, along the path General Giant Whale took, carrying Ji Yuan and Ying Ruoli, they occasionally passed through territories of various aquatic spirits. Some spirits would emerge to observe, while others ignored them, but there were generally no conflicts, not even verbal exchanges.

In Ji Yuan's view, many of the sea monsters seemed more 'Zen-like' than their land counterparts, perhaps due to fewer opportunities to interact with humans.

One morning, a thick fog descended upon the sea. This posed no problem for General Giant Whale, whose direction remained steadfast.

The dragon girl sat cross-legged on a futon on the whale's back, cultivating with closed eyes. Ji Yuan held a book in one hand and a brush in the other, no longer writing at a table but sitting cross-legged, using his knees as a pillow for the book, deducing his various profound methods.

The thick fog had similarly little effect on Ji Yuan. He couldn't see very clearly normally anyway, and in the fog, his vision might even surpass that of ordinary people by a considerable margin.

Surrounded only by the sounds of the waves, Ji Yuan was immersed in his deductions of the Way of Transformation, when suddenly...

"Boom... boom... boom... boom..."

A series of drumbeats echoed from afar.

Ji Yuan had been sensitive to drum sounds recently, and upon hearing them, he stood up almost immediately.

"Uncle Ji, what's wrong?"

Ying Ruoli also opened her eyes, stood up, and asked Ji Yuan.

"There are drums!"

"Drums? Is it that kind again?"

Ji Yuan frowned and listened carefully for a moment, then said with some uncertainty.

"It's more than one drum... General Giant Whale, head in this direction."

As he spoke, Ji Yuan pointed in the direction of the sound. The giant whale below him acknowledged and changed course, swimming towards it.

Not long after, the drumbeats grew clearer, and even Ying Ruoli could hear them now.

"There really are drums!"

Ying Ruoli's confirmation, surprisingly, made Ji Yuan realize that these drumbeats were not the same as those he had heard on the first day of the Lunar New Year. It seemed he had been overly cautious.

A large fleet of ships was sailing several miles away from Ji Yuan and his companions.

Some of the large ships were over a hundred feet long, and there were no fewer than a hundred vessels of various sizes around them. The drumbeats emanated from these ships.

On the largest ship at the center, two large drums were being vigorously beaten by drummers.

"Boom... boom... boom... boom..."

"The drums must not stop! The drums must not stop! The fleet uses drumbeats to maintain formation in the fog! Drummers, switch out every five hundred beats! The drums must not stop!"

A man draped in a large cloak periodically shouted commands from a high position at the stern of the ship.

It appeared drummers were beating drums on all surrounding ships, guiding the entire fleet, preventing any vessel from getting lost, and using the varying intensity of the drumbeats to maintain a subtle sense of distance, preventing collisions.

From General Giant Whale's current position, the drumbeats were quite loud for the three of them. Despite the thick fog, it had little impact on Ji Yuan and his companions.

"What a huge fleet!"

Ying Ruoli couldn't help but exclaim, seeing so many ships sailing together for the first time since they had set out to sea.

"Indeed, it's a massive fleet of mortals, sailing deep into the East Sea. Where could they be headed?"

"Mr. Ji, should I get a little closer so we can see?"

Seeing that both the dragon girl and Ji Yuan were interested, and feeling a bit curious himself, General Giant Whale suggested this. When no one objected, he quickly swam closer to the fleet.

The large fleet was clearly moving slowly at this time, with most of the ships' sails furled.

For these ordinary people, the fog's effect was still significant. Even with many skilled martial artists among them, their vision was severely limited. The giant whale had already approached several medium-sized ships at the edge of the fleet, yet no one had noticed it.

On the nearest ship, besides the continuous drumming, someone was loudly reminding the crew.

"The Grand Overseer said that the stranger the weather, the more cautious we must be of monsters appearing in the sea. Last month, three ships were lured away by monsters and later destroyed with all hands lost. Everyone, be vigilant!"

The shouts from the ship naturally reached Ji Yuan and his companions.

From the current situation, unless they were powerful monsters, they wouldn't dare provoke such a massive fleet. If what the men on the ship were shouting was true, then they must have encountered monsters with considerable cultivation.

General Giant Whale did not merely stay on the outskirts. Instead, carrying Ji Yuan and Ying Ruoli, he roamed around the entire fleet, pausing by both the outer medium and small vessels and some of the larger ships, allowing Ji Yuan to overhear many conversations among the crew.

Among these conversations, there was longing for home, uncertainty about the future, and short tempers, but hardly any unwavering conviction.

This was an ocean-going fleet from an empire called "Da Xiu." It was unclear if it was an empire from the Eastern Continent of Yunzhou, but Ji Yuan felt it was likely from another continent.

This fleet had passed through several countries and visited many island nations at sea. They had been sailing for eight full years, traversed many dangerous waters, and encountered countless challenging situations. The fleet's size had also dwindled from over two hundred vessels to fewer than one hundred.

Such a voyage was truly one of overcoming thorns and braving hardships, yet the fleet's mission remained unfulfilled.

At this very moment, the Grand Overseer of the fleet stood at the bow of the central treasure ship, hands clasped behind his back, gazing forward, his eyes filled with confusion. He muttered to himself.

"Where exactly is the Immortal Mist Island that the Imperial Advisor spoke of? Can there truly be an elixir of immortality there? It's been eight years. Even if we find it, how long will it take to return? Is His Majesty still alive? Can we even go back...?"

What the Grand Overseer didn't know was that directly beneath the bow of his treasure ship, a giant whale, nearly half the ship's size, was carrying two individuals and following closely.

Ji Yuan sighed and shook his head.

"It's this kind of situation again."