Chapter 479: 479. Ling Tian’s Mission
The fifth floor of the Dragon Boat was quieter than the bustling markets below. The air here was colder, the light dimmer, and every step echoed faintly against the polished blackwood floorboards. Ling Tian walked beside Lily Gomes, who moved gracefully as if she owned the entire deck. Ahead, a floating platform shimmered faintly with pale blue light, ready to carry passengers up or down to the other floors.
Ling Tian glanced sideways at her, curiosity burning in his eyes. "If you don’t mind," he said, breaking the silence, "can you tell me what you were talking about just now— with those men?"
Lily’s lips curved into a faint, knowing smile. "Oh... you’re curious?" she teased lightly. She didn’t look at him right away, keeping her eyes fixed on the platform as they approached. "It’s nothing major. Apparently, our ship has been targeted by the Hunter Pirates. Those two were from the Pirate Hunters Association, so naturally, they offered their assistance."
As they stepped onto the glowing platform, she added with a faint murmur, almost as though speaking to herself, "Hunter Pirates and Pirate Hunters... honestly, who names these groups? So similar it’s almost funny."
Ling Tian chuckled softly at that but quickly asked, "Did you agree to their offer?"
She waved her hand as though brushing away a bothersome insect. "Oh, about that. I told them we’d think about it. Nothing binding yet." Her casual tone made it clear she didn’t want to dwell on the subject, and Ling Tian wisely decided not to press further.
Instead, his thoughts shifted back to his own pressing matter. "What about the mission?" he asked, his voice steady but tinged with eagerness. "What exactly do I need to do to get the potion you promised me?"
Lily glanced at him then, her sharp eyes glinting as though measuring his resolve. "In a few weeks," she began, "you’ll be leaving the Whaling Sea Route."
Ling Tian frowned slightly. "But we’re at least a month from those waters, aren’t we?"
"That’s if you follow the normal Whaling Sea Route," Lily corrected smoothly. Her tone carried both authority and mystery. "That path takes you further north and wastes precious time. But..." she leaned slightly closer, lowering her voice, "I know of a secret sea route. A hidden passage that can get you into the Whaling Waters in just two to three weeks."
Her words carried the weight of danger. Ling Tian caught it in her gaze —the way her eyes held his, sharp and probing, as if warning him not to underestimate what she was offering. A moment later, his communication watch buzzed. A file had been transferred. Coordinates, maps, details of currents and storms— information not easily obtained, and likely not meant for common sailors.
Ling Tian’s brows knitted for a moment before he let out a short laugh. "Very good," he said firmly. "At least this way, I can finish the quest quickly."
Her lips twitched in amusement, but her tone grew more serious as she added, "Don’t be so careless. Those waters are more illusory than real. Illusions, mirages, storms that warp reality— you won’t know what’s sky or sea. And your mission is only one thing."
Her voice hardened. "Find the one they call ManHunter, Isadora Nightkiss. Be wary of her charm techniques, Ling Tian. They’ve brought many high level Immortal Practitioners to their knees."
The platform came to a halt with a soft hum. Before Ling Tian could reply, Lily stepped to the edge. Without hesitation, she leapt lightly down to the third floor, her cloak fluttering behind her like the wings of a raven. She landed gracefully and began striding toward the merchant stalls where arrays and routers were sold.
Ling Tian remained where he was, watching her slender figure vanish into the crowds below. Unconsciously, he lifted his hand and touched his cheek. It was warm —hot even. Only then did he realize how flustered he had become in her presence.
"She’s mysterious... dangerous, but..." he muttered under his breath, "why do I feel drawn to her?"
The thought unsettled him, yet also filled him with a strange sense of determination. Perhaps finishing this mission wouldn’t just bring him the potion he needed— it might also help him earn her trust, or at least deepen whatever strange connection he felt beginning to form. With that thought, his lips curved faintly, and he stepped off the platform to continue his descent.
Unseen by him, Lily paused on the third floor and glanced back, her gaze following his fading silhouette as he disappeared downward. Her expression softened for only a heartbeat before cold calculation returned to her eyes.
"Hmph... I don’t really care if he’s charmed by that woman," she thought to herself, folding her arms. "In fact, if Isadora gets her claws into him, it’ll only make it easier for me to strip the Peng Inheritance away from him."
A dangerous light flickered in her eyes as she turned and resumed walking, her boots clicking softly against the polished wood. "Besides," she mused darkly, "I owe ManHunter a debt of my own. Whether she wins or loses against him doesn’t matter. In the end, both of them are stepping stones."
The murmur of the third floor swallowed her words, but in her mind, the game was already in motion.
"Now where are the Arrays and Routers that can secure NN on the Ship." She thought.
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Meanwhile, on the fourth floor —where alchemy goods and rare ingredients were sold— the atmosphere was unlike anywhere else in the market. The deck was alive with strangeness. Trees with bark as smooth as polished jade grew directly from the wooden floorboards, their roots merging into the planks as though nourished by the ship itself. Vines twisted across railings, producing blossoms that sang in hushed whispers when touched by sunlight. Scattered among them were plants that bore human faces instead of flowers— faces that laughed, cried, and sometimes screamed silently, as though trapped between life and death.
Potions of every color swam like schools of fish inside glass flasks, darting and spinning as though they were living creatures rather than liquid. Shelves were crowded with alchemical recipes written on parchments that glowed faintly, and tools of bizarre design hung from racks: mortars that ground herbs on their own, cauldrons that bubbled without fire, and quills that wrote of their own accord. There are also latest versions of those. For alchemists, this place was paradise. For outsiders, it bordered on nightmare.
The girl with the almost white, clouded eyes reached into a tiny refrigerator that hissed as its seal broke. From within, she pulled out a slender glass test tube. Without hesitation, she tossed it toward Mathilda. Her voice was calm, even indifferent, as she said, "All the spirituality will be gone after a year."
She didn’t seem worried about the tube shattering midair. Even if it broke, the substance inside would not be ruined— only the container would need to be replaced.
Mathilda extended her right hand lazily but caught the tube with perfect precision. Inside, she saw tiny phosphorescent motes drifting like stars. Whenever one of those glowing spots brushed against the glass wall, it warped into something grotesque: a half-formed human face, blurry and indistinct, with lips that parted in silent screams before melting back into shapeless light.
A smile tugged at Mathilda’s lips. "I’m more interested in you than your potions, girl," she said, her tone carrying both curiosity and amusement. "How about it? I’ve got some cute assistants in my lab. You can join me... we could explore the ancient paths of alchemy together."
The white-eyed girl tilted her head, her expression unreadable. "So that’s the kind of woman you are, huh? If you’re after ’medicine girls,’ we have some. They’ve been fed on nothing but select herbs and wild honey since birth. Their very bodies reek of fragrance, and even their... fluids taste of honey. Extremely rare. Pirates and dual cultivators buy them for obvious reasons."
Mathilda’s eyes narrowed slightly, her playful aura fading. "How many do you have?" she asked, her tone sharp and serious.
Inwardly , Mathilda almost drooled thinking how tasty those honey flavoured girls are. She also thinking of inviting her Captain to eat dinner together.
At her side, Mana leaned closer and whispered through a sound transmission only Mathilda could hear: "Well... Still those pitiful girls are still falling as Prey."
Mathilda chuckled softly, but her answer was loud enough for all to hear. "I just want to make those pitiful girls happy."
Nearby, Heidi— the shark girl, heard that. Her heart stirred at Mathilda’s words. So Madam isn’t just powerful and Rich... she also has compassion. She wants to save those poor, trapped girls from their fates.
Heidi clenched her fists and nodded inwardly. It was the right choice to follow her.
’Yeah I just want to make them happy.’ Meanwhile, Mathilda thoughts where on something else.
’If you can make a girl Laugh and giggle. Then you can make her Cheeks Clap and Jiggle.’