Chapter 474: 474. The Little Shark Girl Guide
The little shark-girl’s name was Heidi. She hovered on her battered board with an awkward but cheerful smile, fins twitching nervously. Despite her young appearance and timid mannerisms, she wasn’t just some ordinary child.
She was a mage— barely 5-star Novice level, yes, but still far beyond what mortals in south could touch. The faint shimmer of water aura clung to her body like a protective veil.
As she floated alongside them, she recited her story in short, simple words. Her parents had been wanderers of the sea. One stormy night they were killed in a beast tide. Heidi drifted for days, alone, clinging to a broken spar of wood until a band of adventurers pulled her from the waves. They brought her to the Dragon Boat where she found work as a guide, earning just enough to survive.
Mathilda crouched slightly and pinched Heidi’s cheek. "Aww... sister feels so bad. How about you follow me back? You’d just have to work as a maid on our ship."
Mana’s lips curved into a sly smirk as she whispered from behind, "She’s pre-ordering."
"Groomer," Lily added dryly.
"Predator," Darla chimed in.
Even Su Fei snorted faintly.
Heidi’s face flushed red, her fins stiffening, "Huh... Huh...."
"I can hear you, you know..." Mathilda said and turned towards Heidi and her only grinned wider. "you know I’m serious."
Before Heidi could protest further, their attention was caught by a nearby stall. Two burly merchants were loudly haggling. Instead of exchanging Lydia, they bartered rare fish for pills, talismans, and strange objects.
"Ten Small Reversion Pills for this big one!" shouted a man, waving a thrashing silver-scaled beast.
"Throw in a mental cultivation technique and it’s yours," the buyer countered smoothly.
Lily’s eyes narrowed. "Probably to avoid taxes."
It wasn’t uncommon in the North Seas. The Dragon Boat charged heavy levies on coin-based trade, but bartering slipped through the cracks.
Before she could muse further, a shady-looking man with yellow-tinted glasses swaggered up to them, holding a long, pale fish in both hands.
"Beautiful Immortal ladies, interested in Hard Soft Elongated fish?" he said with a grin that was too wide.
Darla frowned. "Hard Soft... Elongated? Never heard of it." She prided herself on knowing rare species, yet the name was absurd.
The man grinned and lifted the fish proudly. "See, when you hold it like this—" He dangled it limply in his grip. The thing sagged pitifully. "—it’s soft. But when you stroke it..."
He ran his fingers down its side. The fish twitched violently, stiffening into a rigid spear-like shape. "It becomes hard. Very famous with female Immortal Practitioners—"
He looked up just in time to realize the girls had already vanished down the row of stalls.
"Come on, just one for experimentation!" Mathilda’s voice drifted faintly, though she was being dragged by Lily and Mana. Her pout was audible even without seeing her face.
"Enough fooling around," Lily declared firmly. "Let’s go to the upper floors."
---
Heidi’s Guidance
Heidi zoomed ahead on her hoverboard, carefully weaving through the crowd as she explained the layout of the massive vessel.
"The second floor is full of charms, weapons, armor, and wearables. They also rent out meditation rooms. Each floor has denser aura and prana concentration than the one below. You can pay to cultivate in them, but it gets very expensive the higher you go."
She paused, nibbling her lip. "Um... are you sure you want me to come along? Each floor has its own entry fee. I don’t... I don’t usually go above the first floor."
Mathilda immediately waved her hand dismissively. "Don’t worry about that. From now on, you’re my personal maid. I’ll pay your fees, your meals, everything. You can shop too. A girl like you deserves better than scraping by down here."
Heidi’s cheeks flamed scarlet, but there was a spark of longing in her wide eyes.
Darla interrupted before she could respond. "I’ll split off. I want to look for some rare ingredients. I’ll go back and bring Taka with me."
Lily and others nodded as she left and then Heidi continued her briefing, tail flicking as she floated just above them.
"The third floor is for arrays and tech artifacts. The fourth floor is dedicated to alchemy and ingredients—very popular with cultivators. The fifth floor sells information, but only half of it. The other half is sealed off, restricted to employees and their masters."
"Then I’m going to the fifth floor," Lily winked and left "Information comes first."
Mathilda’s eyes practically sparkled at the mention of alchemy. "Alchemy, you say? Then I’m going straight to the fourth floor!" She clasped Heidi’s hand dramatically. "You’re coming with me, my dear maid."
Mana floated silently behind her, arms crossed. "No. You’ll will definitely got eaten if you wander around alone with her. So Mana will follow Heidi and Mathilda."
"Traitor," Mathilda muttered.
Without a word, Su Fei broke away, as she walked toward the stair arrays.
The group splintered naturally, each drawn to what most interested them.
---
The Splitting Paths
As the five women dispersed, Heidi lingered a moment, fidgeting. The Dragon Boat was vast—each floor a sprawling city unto itself. The fact that these strangers had so casually recharged millions of Lydia on their cards already set them apart from most customers. They moved like predators, but not the kind who would harm her. For some reason, she felt safer beside them than she had in years.
Mathilda caught her hesitation and ruffled her hair. "Don’t think too much. Just stick with me and you’ll be fine. I won’t eat you." and muttered in lower voice, "Probably until you grow up."
Heidi gave a tiny nod, suppressing the tremble in her voice. "O-okay..."
Mana hovered closer, glancing at the little girl with a faintly amused smile. "She’s still thinking about running away."
"I’m not!" Heidi blurted, her fins flaring.
"Good," Mana said simply, and with that, they followed the crowd toward the glowing stair array that would lead to the next floor.
Far behind them, the yellow-glasses merchant sighed, tossing the limp fish back into its tank. "No appreciation for art these days..."
He then looked at another customer, "Hey Immortal Handsomes. Do you guys want Soft Big Tongue fish? They love to wrap their tongues on carrot and..."