Above The Sky
Chapter 209 - 209 198 Appraisal Means Mutual Benefit 23

209: Chapter 198 Appraisal Means Mutual Benefit (2/3) 209: Chapter 198 Appraisal Means Mutual Benefit (2/3) The Sea Beasts indeed could not stop the exploration ship.

After Ian shot with the water gun, shocking everyone with the strange power of this inscribed apparatus, they all refused to be outdone and displayed their respective strengths.

The captain took out a harpoon; the steel fork with a rope was thrown by his lean body, carrying an immense force that made a piercing whistle in the air.

When the harpoon hit a Stone Armored Fish, it easily shattered its rocky scales and directly pierced through it.

According to the captain, he was actually quite healthy; his lean figure was solely due to a slight mistake in the Magic Potion formula that transformed his muscles into high-density, powerful muscles without leaving behind the related fat and filler structures.

The Seaborn Swordsman swung his longsword in the air, and layers of water waves turned into semi-transparent patterns, slashing towards the sea—a Plesiosaur-like creature’s neck was severed cleanly in response.

The Water-Splitting Inscription etched on the blade indeed had its effect; the water blade he slashed was as distinct from the sea waves as Ian’s water gun shots, unaffected by the currents and retaining their full power.

Ian took note, resolving to borrow and examine the other’s sword later, as these signature Inscription Art skills from the Whale Song Cliff indeed had their learning value.

As for the two First Power Level guards of Yisen Gard, they simply used longbows to shoot—not killing many Magical Beasts, but they indeed protected Yisen Gard very well.

The other crew members also used the harpoon guns equipped on the ship to shoot, and the Wave Singer sang loudly to accelerate the waves, quickly breaking through the sparse circle of Sea Beasts.

With five Sublimators, counting himself and Yisen Gard, that made seven, plus one Second Energy Level Master Gossay, even if the Natives came out in full force they could not completely block their path, let alone these mere gatekeeping Sea Beasts.

Soon, the exploration ship had left the Noctilucent Marine Area and reached the open sea.

This successful skirmish filled all the crew with confidence, the atmosphere on board grew lively, and even the crew members who were somewhat unfamiliar with one another began chatting and laughing with each other—fighting together was one of the fastest ways to strengthen relationships, even if the difficulty of this battle was not high.

After all, beating up weaker opponents is still a fight.

Ian naturally was not an exception, he took advantage of the situation to borrow and assess the Seaborn Swordsman’s sword while also taking imprints.

The other was keen to establish a good relationship with this young genius who could create his own High-Pressure Water Gun, and therefore did not refuse.

Having noted down the inscribed structure of the Water-Splitting Seaborn Longsword, Ian also discerned that this longsword actually had a second function—there were two sets of Inscriptions, the first was the aforementioned ‘Water-Splitting’, which allowed the bearer’s Sublimation Skills to be unaffected by the water environment, and the second group’s effect was ‘Wave Enhancing’, which could use the momentum of the waves to increase the power of the slashes in the water.

This was indeed a fine weapon at the First Power Level Peak.

At first, the Seaborn Swordsman was a bit skeptical, but after following Ian’s explanation and activating the inscriptions in different sequences, he indeed displayed the power of ‘Wave Enhancing’.

He entered the water and slashed a sword, and a straight line of white waves stretched nearly a hundred meters before gradually coming to a stop, its tremendous power winning everyone’s admiration.

This was, of course, also a result of the stormy environment, but even in normal times, slashing out a sword wave of thirty to forty meters in the sea could greatly expand this Swordsman’s range of attack.

According to the Seaborn Swordsman, this was the treasured sword left by his father, who had participated in the three-sea battle thirty-five years ago, slain over ten Sea Demon Worms, and received official commendation from the Whale Song Cliff—the longsword was the reward.

It was just a pity that his father had died of recurring old injuries while he was still young, so he had never fully understood the true use of this longsword, and even after consulting his father’s comrades, they only knew how to use the first set of Inscriptions.

With this, everyone grew even more impressed with Ian’s ability to discern.

However, just as Ian and everyone else were chatting merrily,

he noticed that Master Gossay, with furrowed brows, was pulling Yisen Gard aside into a cabin, discussing something unknown.

And when Yisen Gard appeared, the young alchemist distributed several doses of “Underwater Breathing Elixir” and “Fish Skin Potion” to everyone present.

“Although everyone is quite proficient in swimming, we will be out in the open sea, and no one can guarantee they won’t get into an accident—so keep these potions close, they can absolutely save a life when necessary.”

Regardless of whether these words were auspicious or not, the potions were tangible.

Compared to other alchemical potions, the Underwater Breathing Elixir was relatively cheap, roughly three Talle per bottle.

While the price was still steep for ordinary people, those who worked at sea usually kept a bottle handy, knowing it could truly save a life in a critical moment.

The Fish Skin Potion might sound unsophisticated, but it was actually very useful—it could reduce the resistance in water, and even lessen the impact of wind and waves.

When used with the Underwater Breathing Elixir, even those not good at swimming could work against the tide and return to shore during a storm.

One bottle cost nine Talle, which is half a year’s salary for a regular sailor.

Upon receiving this potion, everyone became curious… Even if they were being chased by natives, it seemed premature to prepare for a post-defeat escape, didn’t it?

But in the end, it was all an unexpected gain.

To just throw out a few hundred Talle like that, one could only say that the Ellen Family was indeed very wealthy.

Next, Ian was called alone to the captain’s cabin.

“This is the Origin Quality aura captured by the instruments earlier, Ian, have a feel and you decide which direction we should set sail for next.”

Master Gossay looked serious, and Ian began to understand that during the battle, the other side must have caught some kind of clue.

Despite the high regard they had for his appraisal ability, the old saying still goes ‘old but cunning.’ Even if they couldn’t sense keenly because they lacked the corresponding Spirit Energy, they were undoubtedly more attentive to detail compared to him.

Without much talk, the youth stepped forward and took the bottle with the Origin Quality aura extracted by the instrument.

He activated his Spirit Energy, looked at it for a while, noticing there indeed was an aura exceedingly similar to that of Dragon Scale, and said, “Southwest.”

“Eh.”

The old man couldn’t help but show some confusion, even his hunched back straightened up a bit: “Are you sure it’s southwest?

The instruments showed…”

“There is a storm right now, and the tides are high, plus there’s an underwater current wrapping around the near sea of the Southern Sea.”

Ian didn’t stop his Spirit Energy, while observing he explained, “Master, since you haven’t lived in the Southern Sea, you might not know that underwater currents are like highways for marine creatures, moving along them saves a lot of energy.

But also because of this, many aura from other directions gets swept along towards the northwest, making it impossible to track the target.”

Ian traced an inclining line slanting from south to west on the map with his hand.

Yisen Gard, standing by curiously, asked, “Then why not from the south?”

The youth patiently explained, “Because to the south lies Sigh Cliff, which is a gathering spot for the Thunderhunter Jellyfish—the number of jellyfish has been increasing over the years.

Even if the Crystal Dragon were at the First Power Level Peak, let alone the Second Energy Level Peak, it would have to turn back upon encountering the swarm.”

“Oh right, today is also a storm day.

That swarm of jellyfish is extremely active, shocking anything it sees.

Normally they’re quite docile and you can even touch them.”

—Since when are jellyfish docile, isn’t that just because they have no brains?

—And for that matter, touching jellyfish?

Have you actually dared to touch those Thunderhunter Jellyfish before?!

The confused Yisen Gard didn’t speak, while Master Gossay instructed the captain, “Listen to him, and set sail to the southwest.”