Sail Shadows in the Sea of ​​Fog

Chapter 112 Ancient Ruins
On the Sea of ​​Despair, the Thorn sailboat, under the command of Yunlan and driven by the orc father Gerta, cuts back and forth in the sea breeze, drawing a beautiful zigzag track and moving overtime towards the destination indicated by the treasure map.

On the open deck, oak barrels filled with mermaid eggs were placed in two rows along the sides of the ship. While they were being incubated in the sun, the Tinisha Band was conducting "prenatal education" through music and singing on the second-floor open deck at the bow.

"Hey Hey hey?"

In the lower cabin of the Thorn, Yafuso sat on an oak barrel used to grow mushrooms. She covered her mouth with one hand and whispered to the magic mirror fixed to the main mast next to her, "Can you hear me?"

Less than 10 nautical miles away, in the Valkyrie's conference room hidden beneath the sea, Cheng Lang and Yun Ji, as well as Shen Ba and the Magic Mirror, and even the Silver Queen and the little Wuying all made the OK sign in unison - they all learned it from the captain.

"cough cough"

In the lower cabin of the Thorn, Yafuso cleared her throat and reported, "Everything is fine on the Thorn. The captain is a little squeamish, but there are no other problems. He hasn't said anything bad about anyone. That's all."
And more! She seems to be missing her parents. Last night I noticed her hiding in the forecastle and crying secretly! "

In the Valkyrie's conference room, Cheng Lang rubbed his temples helplessly. He didn't come here to listen to what this little spy had to say.

"Yafuso, how is she getting along with everyone?" Yun Ji quickly wrote a string of words on a piece of paper and held it up to ask.

“All very good”

Yafuso quickly replied in a low voice, "She respects Grandpa very much and gets along very well with me, Tinisha, and the other mixed-blood sailors."

"Is there any contradiction?" Yun Ji held up the white paper with the second question written on it.

"She expected courtesy from the sailors"

Yafuso said with a bitter face, "Except for sailors on duty and in combat situations, the rest of the time when they meet each other, men have to take off their hats and women have to lift their skirts. Moreover, she also requires the mixed-race sailors to set aside a fixed time every day to learn to write. This is probably the biggest contradiction."

"Anything else?" Yun Ji asked, holding up the third piece of paper.

"She's mysophobic!"

Yafuso felt increasingly aggrieved. "There are no gorillas to help on the Thorn, but she has to change her clothes and bedsheets every day, and she also requires us to do the same. But I don't have that much time or fresh water to wash clothes and bedsheets."

"Any more?"

Yun Ji covered her forehead and raised the third piece of paper again.

"Oh oh oh! There's something important I forgot to mention!"

Yafuso said as if she had just remembered, "From those hundreds of barrels of mermaid eggs that Yunlan seized, all the mermaids were female."

"Is this true?" Cheng Lang couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

"I don't know either," Yun Ji replied in a low voice, "It was Yun Lan who was responsible for capturing those pirate ships."

“I just found out this morning.”

Yafuso explained in a low voice, "It was Tinisha who told me that. She thought it was arranged by you, Captain."

"She's a princess, so that makes sense," Yun Ji whispered. "And her identification and interpretation of the sea charts are correct. Our general direction is correct."

"Hang up now."

Cheng Lang waved his hand, and the Magic Mirror immediately cut off the "video call" between the two ships. This was a "new function" that appeared after the Magic Mirror replaced its "hardware".

Originally, Cheng Lang could have asked the magic mirror to go over and take a look, but considering that the other party was at least a girl even if not a princess, he arranged for Yafuso, a little spy who seemed not very smart.

"Dear Captain, do you need me to go over and take a look in person?" the magic mirror asked respectfully.

"never mind"

Cheng Lang waved his hand and said, "Just keep an eye on their ship and make sure it's not in danger."

After saying that, Cheng Lang signaled the Silver Queen to let the Valkyrie surface. At the same time, he summoned the giant jellyfish, concealing the outline of the ship, and then accelerated to catch up with the Thorn, which had just overtaken them and was rushing towards its destination.

After passing the ship by ten nautical miles, the Valkyrie dived down again and hid beneath the sea. Relying on the power of the magic mirror, it peeked at the little princess who was trying hard to be a qualified captain without any morals or even with a bad taste - including when she was secretly crying.

“Isn’t it unethical for us to do this?”

Yun Ji asked lazily, holding a glass of fruit wine and putting her long legs on the conference table.

"It's only natural to inspect new partners."

Cheng Lang, who was also holding a glass of fruit wine and had his legs on the long table, said, "Let's see how she commands and responds, and also see how she gets along with the sailors. I don't mind having a partner who's a princess, but I can't accept a partner who's all princess-like."

Before he finished speaking, the situation on the Thorn was displayed on the wall. At this time, Yun Lan was holding a tray and distributing cups of fruit wine to every sailor on the ship.

"It looks good so far," said Yun Ji.

"It's really not bad," Cheng Lang nodded with satisfaction, "Let's continue to see how she performs."

"Our cook has gone to the Thorn," Yun Ji asked, "so what are we having for dinner?"

"That's right, Captain."

When it comes to food, Shenba immediately becomes interested. "How about making tofu and fish stew for us tonight?"

"How can a captain be a cook?"

Cheng Lang sighed helplessly. This was a problem he realized belatedly after he agreed to let Yafuso and Gerta go to the Thorn to "farm".

"Let me do it."

Yun Ji also shook her head helplessly, drank the fruit wine in the glass, stood up and was about to walk out.

"Forget it, I'll go later."

Cheng Lang finally accepted the job as a chef, but he had no intention of leaving in a hurry. "Also, write a letter to inform the pirate brothers and ask them to take some time every day to teach the sailors to read. This is very important."

"I'll notify them later." Yun Ji accepted the task.

"I think we need a good chef." Shenba lay on the table, yawned and changed the subject.

"Ladies and gentlemen, how about trying my cooking skills?" the magic mirror suggested.

"you?"

"Of course, if you are willing to take the risk and give it a try..."

The magic mirror explained respectfully, "I originally only recorded various recipes from various countries in the Star Sea. However, I have only lived in the mirror world before, so I have never cooked personally. However, if you are willing to do me the honor of visiting, I would be happy to go to the kitchen and give it a try."

"Leave it to you," Cheng Lang said immediately.

"Please wait a moment," the magic mirror said, and the person walked into the wall and disappeared.

"I'll go to the kitchen and help out," said the Silver Queen, before she passed through the wall and disappeared without a trace.

"In a sense, there are only four of us on this boat." Cheng Lang said with a smile.

“It is true”

Yun Ji lifted Wu Ying, who was holding a pacifier in her mouth, and sat her on her lap. "Captain, Shen Ba, do you think we can really go to the Elven Principality and gain the approval of the Verdant Sacred Tree?"

"What do you want to say?" Cheng Lang asked.

"I'm worried that the Green Sacred Tree won't recognize us," Yun Ji sighed when she said this. No matter how strong her fighting ability was, she was only a 19-year-old girl after all.

"If you don't agree, we'll cut down a branch from the sacred tree and bring it back."

Cheng Lang said nonchalantly, "I saw an elf girl in the island library who was researching how to propagate the sacred tree by cuttings. We can try to plant one ourselves when the time comes."

“If only it were that easy”

Yun Ji and Shen Ba, brother and sister, sighed in unison, obviously having no hope for this.

That evening, when the Valkyrie surfaced again, the Magic Mirror consulted the recipe in his memory and, with the help of the Silver Queen, cooked a sumptuous dinner for the captain and his three companions - his cooking skills were unexpectedly good.

Also that evening, the Thorn, less than 10 nautical miles away, also stopped, and the mermaid eggs finally began to hatch.

This process was bound to affect the appetite too much, so it was not broadcast live in the conference room. However, on the Thorn, with the help of Yafuso, Yunlan had already prepared enough meals for these mixed-race female sailors in advance to celebrate the new life.

The next morning, the Thorn set sail towards the rising sun. Soon after, the Valkyrie, hiding in a fog far away, caught up.

For nearly a week thereafter, all the work on the Thorn was gradually handed over to the sexy and enchanting mixed-race female sailors, and the new captain, Yun Lan, finally built his own team of sailors.

Amid the busy and intense work of these new sailors, time came to the ninth day, and the Thorn finally saw a small island that was not very big.

After circling the island, Yun Lan cheered happily, "We succeeded! We caught up with the Valkyrie."

Before she finished cheering, a ship gradually emerged from the sea not far away - the Valkyrie.

"Alas," Yun Lan weakly put down his waving arms.

“Do Not Lose Heart”

Yafuso said as a matter of course, "The Valkyrie has been transplanted with nine pairs of dragonfly fins. If we can really get rid of her and get here first, then we might as well do it alone."

"makes sense"

Yun Lan immediately adjusted her mindset, then suddenly thought of something, "So the Valkyrie has been secretly protecting us this entire time?"

"I don't know," clever Yafuso replied immediately.

After hearing this, Yunlan did not ask any more questions, but just blew a whistle and called on her new sailors to line up in an orderly manner.

Soon, the Valkyrie came closer under the control of the Silver Queen, and Cheng Lang controlled the Sea-Watching Vines to firmly tie the approaching ship together.

As they got closer, Cheng Lang noticed the mixed-race female sailors standing in a small square on the Thorn, as well as the mixed-race male sailors who were seconded from the Honest Man.

Needless to say, the male sailors, but the female sailors are generally petite and slender. At first glance, they don't even have any other siren characteristics except for the gill holes on both sides of their necks.

But soon, everyone who came aboard noticed the unique feature of these mixed-race female sailors - a tail with a poisonous stinger.

"Captain, have you been protecting us secretly?" asked Yunlan as she lifted her skirt and saluted.

"We'll also conduct a secret investigation at the same time," Cheng Lang said bluntly.

"What are the results of the investigation?" Yun Lan asked in the same straightforward manner.

"Temporarily qualified," Cheng Lang said, changing the subject. "What's going on with these sailors?"

"They all have mixed bloodlines from the siren tribe."

Yunlan said, "They may even have the same father and the same mother."

"Did you leave it here on purpose?" Cheng Lang asked.

"It's better than letting them become consumables for pleasure," replied Yun Lan.

"The venom of the mixed Yao Siren's tail is not very toxic."

Yun Ji had long anticipated that her captain wouldn't understand these things, so she took the initiative to explain without waiting for him to ask, "The toxin in their tail stingers is called the Kiss of Pleasure, and the name itself tells you what it's used for.

They are also the most popular and cheapest entertainment on many expedition ships entering the Sea of ​​Despair. Captain, do you want to try it?"

"Try it for nothing"

Cheng Lang didn't even stop. "Silver Queen, Magic Mirror, Mist Shadow, you guys will guard the boat. Yun Ji, Shen Ba, you two will come with me to the island."

"I also need to go"

Before anyone Cheng Lang had just called could respond, Yafusuo and Yunlan took the initiative to volunteer in unison.

“You guys go do it.”

"The survival rate of plants grown on the Thorn is very high"

Yafuso said, "I'm going to go to the island to see if there are any edible plants that can be transplanted to the ship."

"What about you?" Cheng Lang asked Yun Lan.

"Don't treat me like a princess"

As Yun Lan spoke, a sharp spike had already grown out of her hand. "This kind of adventurous life of searching for treasure is exactly what I long for. I won't stay on the ship."

"Then let's go together"

Cheng Lang said casually, but at the same time, he also gave Yun Ji a subtle wink. The latter nodded imperceptibly and then said, "Shenba, you go ahead."

"give it to me!"

Before Shenba finished speaking, he had already pulled out the sickle attached to his waist, grabbed a vine and swung towards the coast.

Yun Ji held the red glass feather on the necklace in her mouth, summoned the wings of the Night Raven Messenger, picked up Yafuso horizontally in a princess hug, and glided from the bow of the ship to the coastline.

“This is my first treasure hunting expedition.”

As Yun Lan spoke, she had already grown a thorny trestle between the bow of the ship and the beach, and then she walked over with her skirt lifted.

Looking at Cheng Lang again, he just lazily walked behind Yun Lan and followed her to the beach of the island.

"The treasure map shows that there is an abandoned castle on this island, and the treasure is in the basement of this castle." said Yun Ji, who had folded her wings.

"But why is there a castle here?" Yafuso asked the question Cheng Lang wanted to ask.

"Rumor has it that there once was a continent within the Sea of ​​Despair, a continent no smaller than the Star Sea Continent."

It was Yun Lan who answered this question, "In ancient times, the battle between the two land gods shattered the continents in the Sea of ​​Despair into small islands, leaving only despair in this sea."

"So, on some small islands in the Sea of ​​Despair, you can occasionally find some relics from that continent."

Yun Ji continued, "There are even many bards who suspect that the humans of the Xinghai Continent all escaped from the Sea of ​​Despair."

"You can often find good things in these ancient ruins," Yun Lan continued, her tone full of anticipation.

"I hope so." Cheng Lang said to himself, and at the same time he couldn't help but quicken his pace.

(End of this chapter)