Inside this sea dwelling, aside from the residential houses, there were many decorative scenes.
There was a waterfall shooting up into the sky, misting through the air like falling flower petals.
There were also swords made of seawater spinning midair. Upon entering Blue Water Fort, the surroundings were filled with countless blooming flowers of various colors.
These flowers bloomed in reverse, most of them water-attributed.
Among them were narcissus, green peonies, murong, and other flowers capable of growing in the deep sea.
Especially in this cold season, their presence added a layer of quiet chill.
Xu Zimo stepped into Blue Water Fort. At night, the sea village floated peacefully on the ocean.
Calm and elegant, gently swaying with the waves.
“If you haven’t eaten yet, I’ll have some food prepared. Let’s drink and feast,” Daoist Blue Smoke said with a smile.
He brought them to a side hall, where long tables had already been arranged on both sides.
The people of Blue Water Fort moved quickly and had already begun setting out wine, meat, and other dishes.
“Could you tell me about the Eastern Continent?” Daoist Blue Smoke sat at the head of the table, raising his cup and smiling at everyone.
“Where are you from, senior?” Ye Feiyang asked with a smile.
“We started from the Western Continent, passed through the Southern Continent, and just arrived at this Endless Sky Sea. We don’t know much about the Eastern Continent,” Daoist Blue Smoke replied.
Xu Zimo was slightly surprised. If they came all this way without using any teleportation arrays, that meant they had sailed the full circle of the Endless Sky Sea surrounding the Southern Continent, an unimaginably long journey.
Xu Zimo sometimes admired those who had the spirit to explore and spend their entire lives in pursuit of something.
While Ye Feiyang chatted with them, Xu Zimo and the God Emperor spoke very little.
Eventually, the meal ended. Everyone was satisfied and in good spirits.
Daoist Blue Smoke arranged separate rooms for Xu Zimo and the others. Xu Zimo had originally planned to ask about the Nether Blood Sea, but after thinking it over, he decided to ask in the morning before they left.
Night fell over the floating village, and around midnight, a sudden scream pierced the air.
In the stillness of night, the scream sounded especially sharp and sudden.
“What happened?” Everyone in Blue Water Fort was awakened. Xu Zimo also came out of his room.
The people of the fort responded quickly, surrounding the area where the scream came from. Xu Zimo could only watch from a distance.
“Zheng Yang is dead.”
“How did he just die like that?”
“It looks like all his blood was drained, he died horribly.”
“He hasn’t been dead long. Could the killer still be on board?”
……
Hearing the crowd talk, Xu Zimo, though he hadn’t seen the body, already had a guess.
“Blood Race,” he said, glancing at Ye Feiyang.
Ye Feiyang quickly shook his head and explained, “It wasn’t me. I’m different from the others. I can survive without feeding on blood.”
Xu Zimo knew that ordinary Blood Race members had to drink blood regularly to stay alive.
It wasn’t just a matter of survival, it was also how they cultivated.
The stronger the blood they drank, the faster they could cultivate.
But someone like Ye Feiyang, with impure blood, was different from the others.
“So you think someone from the Blood Race is hiding in this sea fort?” Xu Zimo asked.
“This place is close to the Nether Blood Sea. I don’t know the exact location, but I’d guess the Blood Race is active in this area,” Ye Feiyang replied.
“Do you have a way to identify them?” Xu Zimo asked.
“Unless they show their true form, it’s impossible to tell them apart from regular people,” Ye Feiyang shook his head.
“That’s a problem. Looks like tonight will be full of fear and chaos,” Xu Zimo said with a sigh.
Just then, Daoist Blue Smoke approached with a group of people.
“Senior,” Ye Feiyang greeted him.
Daoist Blue Smoke stared at Xu Zimo for a while before speaking solemnly, “You’d best be careful. This part of the sea is dangerous.”
“Do you know of the Nether Blood Sea?” Xu Zimo asked.
Hearing that, Daoist Blue Smoke’s expression changed immediately. “Are you part of the Blood Race?”
“Don’t misunderstand, senior. We’re human. We’re only looking for the Nether Blood Sea because of some matters,” Ye Feiyang quickly explained.
“There’s someone from the Blood Race on this ship. If you find him, you might get the location of the Nether Blood Sea,” Daoist Blue Smoke said.
As he walked away, Xu Zimo fell into quiet thought.
……
“What now?” Ye Feiyang asked.
“Sleep,” Xu Zimo replied.
“You’re not going to investigate the Blood Race?” Ye Feiyang blinked, confused.
“No one we know died. Others will be more desperate to find out,” Xu Zimo said, shaking his head.
He was sure Daoist Blue Smoke knew something about the Nether Blood Sea.
But the reason he hadn’t told Xu Zimo was likely because he wanted to use him to track down the Blood Race.
“You two rest. I’ll go check things out,” Ye Feiyang said, worried.
Xu Zimo didn’t stop him. After greeting the God Emperor, he went back to his room to sleep.
Outside, things were chaotic. Because of the murder, no one in the fort could sleep.
And since the fort wasn’t very big, the whole place became active.
People were checking everyone’s identity whenever they saw an unfamiliar face.
In the middle of the night, with lights blazing outside, the door to Xu Zimo’s room slowly opened.
Lying in bed, Xu Zimo turned over and looked toward the door.
In the moonlight, he saw a figure standing there.
Or rather, something resembling a person. Its face was covered in blood, its body dripping wet, as if it had just climbed out of the sea.
The most terrifying part was its teeth, all of them were dozens of centimeters long.
They stuck out of its mouth, tearing through both sides of its lips, dripping with blood.
It looked terrifying.
“Is this what they mean by ‘search high and low only to find it right here’?” Xu Zimo murmured, a bit surprised.
But then he thought it made sense.
With the whole fort in chaos, his room was the only quiet place, naturally, it was the best hiding spot.
The Blood Race member stood at the door and slowly shut it.
In the quiet, tense room, Xu Zimo could feel the pressure coming off him.
It was so heavy it could paralyze an ordinary person, making it hard to even speak.
“Can you take me to the Nether Blood Sea?” Xu Zimo asked with a smile.