Chapter 22: Feather Fairy

The relief carvings on the two magnificent bronze doors depicted two vastly different artistic styles and atmospheres.

The "Myriad Lights of Homes" scene on the left door depicted an ancient city, seemingly real and bustling with human activity.

After only a brief glance, Li Weiyi felt as if his soul had been drawn into it, walking along a street under the night sky, surrounded by the shouts of vendors and the vibrant energy of a busy marketplace.

The "River of Yellow Springs Stars" on the right door exuded a grand and majestic aura, with countless stars forming a river. It resembled the Milky Way in the night sky, but this river of stars was not silver; instead, it was a dim, yellowish hue.

"Is this where the owner of the bronze warship lived? Has he truly passed away?"

Li Weiyi thought that since the garden emitted a celestial glow and mist, it might contain a spring and mysterious treasures.

Water was extremely scarce on the ship.

The blood of the Golden Crow and the Black Flood Dragon was clearly too dangerous to drink casually; it was not a fundamental solution to their problem.

"Whoosh!"

As he stepped onto the stone stairs, a gust of wind, whose origin was unknown, swept past.

With his extraordinary powers, Li Weiyi was fearless and continued to ascend.

He reached the top of the stairs.

First, he peered through the gap between the two doors.

The gap was about two fingers wide.

Through the gap, he saw a spacious area behind the doors. Below a screen wall constructed from black stones, there was a black and white Tai Chi lake.

In the center of the lake stood a terrifying giant sword, its blade forged from two distinct materials: a somber black and a vivid crimson.

Li Weiyi extended his hands, channeling the hot airflow surging from the sole of his right foot, intending to push the doors open.

"Boom!"

When his hands were still half a foot from the bronze doors, an overwhelming force surged forward, sending him flying backward like a falling leaf, landing lightly on the ground at the bottom of the stone steps.

"New master of the Dao Ancestor's Tai Chi Fish, this door is not for you to enter yet. You are one who bears karma, not its creator. Depart..."

A faint, ethereal voice drifted to him, seeming to resonate directly in Li Weiyi's mind, yet also appearing to emanate from the bronze doors before him.

"Who are you, and what karma are you speaking of?" Li Weiyi asked.

There was no response.

"Whoosh!"

The air vibrated, and a translucent light barrier rose along the garden wall, enveloping the entire garden.

It lingered for a long time before dissipating.

It was a clear dismissal!

Li Weiyi immediately stepped back, gazing at the enormous bronze doors. He couldn't shake the feeling that the voice he had just heard didn't belong to this time and space; it felt more like a conversation between an ancient person from a millennium ago and someone from the present.

It was a very peculiar sensation.

Without a doubt, the bronze warship's voyage, including their current predicament, was inextricably linked to the Dao Ancestor's Tai Chi Fish.

"Master, oh Master, you must know something."

What terrifying karma must one bear to become the Master of the Chan Sect?

"Li Weiyi!"

Cai Yutong's voice came from behind him.

"Senior Sister..."

Li Weiyi let out a long breath, quickly cleared his mind of distractions, and turned around... The smile that had just appeared on his face instantly froze as he stared at Cai Yutong, scrutinizing her from head to toe with disbelief.

Was this Senior Sister Cai?

Cai Yutong was wearing Qi Shanshan's white doctor's coat, which only reached half a foot below her waist, leaving her two extraordinarily long, straight, jade-like legs almost completely exposed.

More importantly.

Her skin was even whiter than the doctor's coat she wore, delicate and lustrous, as if cast from immortal jade, crystal clear and glowing faintly.

Her long, raven hair fell naturally, contrasting sharply with her fair, jade-like skin.

Her eyes, as if cleansed by a divine spring, were far brighter than before, brimming with spirituality.

Her lips, without any lip gloss, were moist and alluringly red, like carved rubies.

Her beauty was already exceptional, but now...

It was no longer just a matter of beauty; she seemed to have become ethereal.

There was not a single blemish on her; she seemed to embody all the beauty in the world. Merely by standing there, her surroundings would transform into a celestial realm, even if outside lay the eerie and terrifying Sea of Souls.

Li Weiyi considered himself highly immune to female beauty, being more focused on martial arts. But at this moment, Cai Yutong brought him immense inner shock.

Was this even Senior Sister Cai anymore?

This was a Feathered Immortal!

If the red dress from the skeletal demon in the tomb's ice coffin were taken off and put on her, wouldn't she be a perfect immortal descending to the mortal world?

"Staring at Yutong like that, you wouldn't happen to know she's not wearing anything underneath, would you?" With Cai Yutong present, Qi Shanshan's fear of Li Weiyi diminished somewhat.

Li Weiyi quickly averted his gaze, secretly practiced the Jade Void Breathing Technique to steady his heartbeat, then took off his outer coat and offered it. "Wear mine for now. Do you... do you need pants?"

Cai Yutong said, "If I go back wearing your clothes and pants, what will the research team think?"

Li Weiyi thought it over and realized she had a point.

So, he looked at Qi Shanshan.

Qi Shanshan said, "I could take off more, but then I'd only have..."

Li Weiyi said, "My point is, Doctor Qi can go back to the cabin at the bow and get some clothes."

"Alright!"

Qi Shanshan dared not complain and walked towards the ship's passageway.

After seeing Cai Yutong shed her mortal shell like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon, gaining an immaculate, ethereal body after drinking the Golden Crow's blood, Qi Shanshan, who had always valued beauty, naturally felt envious.

However, the thought that she could also drink the Golden Crow's blood made her envy dissipate.

As long as Zhao Meng recovered, their future still held promise.

Li Weiyi, don't be so fierce now; who knows who will be on top in the future.

Cai Yutong seemed indifferent about what she was wearing underneath, showing no false modesty or awkwardness. "She just told me everything! She actually... sensed a life-or-death crisis in advance and, feeling insecure, sought a way to survive."

"Are you pleading for her, Senior Sister?"

"She saved me."

Li Weiyi said, "Do you know what happened on the ship, Senior Sister? Hearing an account and witnessing it firsthand might be two completely different experiences. And I don't think you truly understand Doctor Qi!"

"She also saved you," Cai Yutong stated.

A sea breeze blew, lifting large sections of her white doctor's coat.

Li Weiyi quickly looked away and sighed, "Precisely because she saved me, it was harder for me to make a decision just now... Senior Sister, perhaps you should put on my clothes first? I even suggest you wear a hat and a face mask. If you return to the research team like this, I fear unrest will quickly erupt again."

He felt that few people could resist Cai Yutong's current beauty; it was too alluring and could easily drive many to take desperate risks.

A femme fatale, nothing less.

"Alright, everyone should be responsible for their own mistakes. Make your own decision."

Cai Yutong looked up at the sky. "It seems like dawn, and the light is coming from... the direction of the bow."

Calculating the time, it should be dawn.

But it was known that the Sea of Souls had no day or night, only a starry sky.

How could there be light in the sky?

Not only light, but clouds had also appeared.

"It's dawn?"

Li Weiyi found it incredible.

In the direction the bronze warship was heading, light had indeed appeared ahead.

The stars were rapidly thinning and dimming, and darkness was receding.

It was as if morning had arrived.

Looking out at the sea beyond the bulwark, the originally inky black water now showed many ripples of broken gold. There were no more departed souls in the sea, and clouds had actually appeared in the sky.

However, the clouds were immense, low-hanging, and golden.

"Excellent! Those eerie and terrifying hordes of departed souls have finally vanished. I have a feeling there's definitely land in this world." Li Weiyi was in high spirits, his face beaming with a bright smile.

Recently, both the external environment and internal turmoil had been too oppressive.

After waiting for nearly an hour, the darkness and starry sky had completely vanished.

The sea and sky were both bathed in golden light.

The wide-open view was refreshing.

But Qi Shanshan never returned with the clothes.

"Something's wrong; we can't wait any longer."

Cai Yutong tied Li Weiyi's clothes around her waist and headed towards the ship's passageway first.

Li Weiyi agreed with Cai Yutong's assessment; something must have happened to Qi Shanshan, as she wouldn't have been gone for so long otherwise. But what other dangers could there be on the ship?

Li Weiyi and Cai Yutong walked all the way to the bow but did not encounter Qi Shanshan.

Outside the medical tent, they met Qin Ke.

Qin Ke exclaimed joyfully, "Brother Weiyi, where have you been? Everyone's looking for you. Go quickly to the bow beyond the Nether Mist and see; a miracle, a miracle has appeared!"

"Brother Weiyi?"

Cai Yutong looked at Li Weiyi.

She distinctly remembered that Professor Xu's students were all graduate students, several years older than Li Weiyi.

Li Weiyi asked, "Sister Qin, have you seen Doctor Qi?"

Hearing the address "Sister Qin," Qin Ke paused for a moment before replying, "No, everyone thought she was with you last night."

Li Weiyi and Cai Yutong exchanged glances.

Surely Qi Shanshan hadn't fled out of guilt? Where could she possibly go?

Besides, Li Weiyi believed he had made it clear that he wouldn't expose her and would give her a chance to reform.

After Qin Ke's gaze moved from Li Weiyi, it landed on Cai Yutong and remained fixed there.

More importantly, Dr. Cai had Li Weiyi's clothes tied around her waist.

So they had been together last night.

"Dr. Cai... you..."

Qin Ke, herself a woman, was so stunned and mesmerized by Cai Yutong's beauty that she stood agape. She then lowered her head, falling into self-mockery and inferiority, wanting only to escape the spot immediately.

"I'll go look in a mirror and change clothes first."

Cai Yutong felt her beauty might truly be excessive. What good was being beautiful for someone in scientific research? Could it win her a Priestley Medal?

Li Weiyi walked out of the Nether Mist and arrived at the bow.

He finally saw the miracle Qin Ke spoke of, and his scalp instantly tingled, as he gasped in shock.

(I think it would be more interesting if Kong Le became Sky Mother and Blood Fiend instead of Feng Tian.)