Chapter 862 The Senna Trench <TOC> Chapter 864 Rhodes
Translator: SumTLMan
The Senna Trench, though merely one among countless sea trenches in the Whale Whisker Sea, is relatively unremarkable. Neither the depth nor the width is anything to write home about. However, its abundance in sea treasures, particularly a unique snail shell that is greatly beneficial to the merfolk, has led to the construction of a mermaid city within its confines.
This was the first Angel had heard of such a piece of information. He had never seen any city markers for this place on either the map of the White Shell Sea City or any other sea map.
When he had departed from the Revelation Continent, he had passed through this route. Little did he expect that there existed a maritime paradise deep within this trench, thousands of meters beneath the surface.
“Prepare to dive. According to the information I’ve received, the Ashen Time Merchant Group should be arriving at Rhodes within these two days,” Blaire, the owl, said, flapping her wings at Angel.
Angel nodded. Not wanting to waste any time, he plunged straight into the sea.
However, after diving for several hundred meters, he realized that Blaire had not followed him. He reluctantly returned to the surface, only to see Blaire looking dejected. “I can’t… I don’t have the ability to swim,” she said.
Angel expanded the range of his purification field to envelop Blaire before diving again.
On the way down, the marvelous underwater scenery had Blaire swiveling her head non-stop, like a curious baby.
However, as they left the surface waters and lost the source of light, Blaire couldn’t see the surroundings clearly. She pitifully requested Angel to cast a light spell.
“I thought owls had excellent night vision, but you…” Angel glanced at Blaire, his disdain evident.
“Even night vision requires a bit of light!” Blaire protested. “And I’m not like other owls. Other owls have poor vision during the day but excellent vision at night. I, on the other hand, have good vision during the day but poor vision at night… I used to have night vision, but you broke my monocle, so I can’t see at night anymore.”
Seeing that Blaire was about to start blaming him again for the monocle, Angel deftly changed the subject.
“Lady Eureka mentioned that you’ve been to Rhodes before, and the people there recognize you, which is why she allowed you to accompany me. However, from what I see, you don’t seem to have been here before,” Angel said calmly.
“I’ve been to Rhodes twice,” Blaire said. “The first time was with my master, and the second time was with the red-haired gentleman. Both of them traveled to Rhodes by opening a passage through a pocket dimension.”
“So, you’re mocking me for not being strong enough to open a pocket dimension?” Angel raised an eyebrow.
“No, not at all!” Blaire quickly denied. “What I meant was, this is the first time I’m seeing the true scenery of the seabed as we dive, and I’m a bit curious… You know, we birds generally can’t swim.”
As soon as Blaire finished speaking, Toby zoomed out of the purification field, swimming a round in the seabed like a sharp arrow, then returned triumphantly. He shook his feathers, splashing water everywhere. Many droplets fell onto Blaire, a clear display of showing off.
Blaire quietly added, “Of course, there are exceptions.”
In the end, Angel fulfilled Blaire’s wish. Diving deep into the ocean was akin to traversing an obsidian abyss; visibility was nearly non-existent and the path was elusive, making a light source a necessity.
However, Angel didn’t resort to a light spell; instead, he instructed Toby to produce a luminescent stone.
Toby, pulling out the luminescent stone lamp, radiated self-satisfaction under Blaire’s envious gaze. He seemed on the verge of parading around once again, had it not been for Angel’s stern intervention.
Soon, they descended to the ocean floor. After traversing tens of miles, a trench loomed before them, a chasm as deep and vast as the abyss itself.
“Is Rhodes in this direction of the trench?” Angel had ventured into the oceanic abysses during his time in the Purification Sea. He knew all too well the intricate labyrinth that trenches could be. Without a specific direction, conducting a carpet search would be extremely time-consuming.
“Just swim towards the widest part. Moreover, many merfolk gather around Rhodes to collect shells. Perhaps, we might spot the merfolk before even reaching the trench’s bottom. We can ask them for directions then,” Blaire responded.
Angel nodded in agreement, deciding to follow Blaire’s advice. After all, she was more familiar with this aquatic environment, providing a rough direction.
The trench was like a gaping maw, an embodiment of the ocean’s endless mysteries. Standing before this colossal “mouth”, Angel felt significantly insignificant. Despite his numerous encounters with such trenches, he was still filled with awe for these natural wonders.
He gradually descended into the darkness, the luminescent stone being the solitary source of light in the otherwise complete darkness.
Blaire, initially enthusiastic about the underwater scenery, was now somewhat timid. This absolute darkness wasn’t just oppressive and stifling; the ominous sounds of colliding ocean currents also played on her nerves. The oppressive force was so overwhelming that Blaire wished she could just close her eyes.
Not long into their descent, a soft melody echoed in the water, causing Blaire to stiffen in fear.
“Is…is that the Song of the Ghosts?” Blaire’s voice quivered in terror.
Feeling a subtle sense of allure in the song, Angel shook his head, “No, it’s the merfolk.”
“It seems your prediction was correct. We haven’t even reached the bottom of the trench, and we’ve already encountered merfolk,” Angel stated, swimming swiftly towards the source of the melody.
While moving, Toby used gravity lines for propulsion. Soon, they located their target.
It was a young merfolk, busy collecting shells on a ledge of the trench wall. The radiance of the luminescent stone had initially mistaken it for some anglerfish, thus it didn’t flee. But upon seeing the human figure behind the source of light, it was taken aback, almost dropping its lantern.
However, upon a closer look, it realized it was a human. Its eyes lit up and it unconsciously licked its lips. It had always heard from its elders about the deliciousness of human flesh. But due to its insufficiently enchanting voice, it had never successfully lured any sailor from the sea. Therefore, seeing a human now, its first thought was: “At last, I can savor the delicacy of human flesh!”
In her undeveloped mental capacity, it never occurred to her that a regular human couldn’t appear in the depths of the ocean.
Before she could initiate her hunting plan, Angel had her caught in the grip of his Magic Hand.
She struggled relentlessly, showing her fierce intentions by baring her sharp teeth at Angel.
“By the look of her, she seems to be preparing to make a meal out of you.” Blaire looked sympathetically at the little mermaid, who was quite beautiful, albeit lacking in judgement.
Eventually, under the shock of tremendous power, the mermaid finally succumbed.
“Take me to Rhodes,” Angel commanded directly.
However, the response he received was a puzzled look from the little mermaid who began to babble in an unfamiliar language.
Angel glanced at Blaire, “I haven’t mastered language interpretation, do you speak mermaid language?”
Blaire promptly shook her head, “I’m a bird, how could I possibly understand the mermaid’s language!”
After a moment of silence, Angel managed to utter, “What use are you then?”
Although Blaire didn’t understand mermaid language either, sometimes when conditions aren’t present, one must create them. Angel didn’t wish to waste time wandering in the gloomy trench searching for Rhodes. He contemplated for a moment, reached out his hand, and a faint nightmare aura entered the mermaid’s brow.
The next second, extreme fear appeared in the mermaid’s eyes, as if she had seen a deadly predator. Although she had stopped struggling before, now she struggled even more fiercely.
Angel released his magical grasp, freeing the little mermaid.
The mermaid turned and ran, screaming in horror all the way. Angel leisurely followed her.
He used a nightmare fear spell, showing the little mermaid the most terrifying scene and blocking some of her judgement. Under such circumstances, the mermaid would subconsciously run to the safest place, and in this dark trench, the safest place should be Rhodes.
The mermaid ran with a face full of terror, but Angel, who was behind her, was leisurely, even finding the time to ask Blaire about the specifics of Rhodes.
However, just as Blaire was about to speak, she suddenly noticed a grey shell falling out of the fleeing mermaid’s bag.
Her eyes lit up, and she encouraged Angel to catch the shell.
Angel casually scooped the shell into his hand, and Blaire immediately said, “This is a common seashell, I’m a bit hungry, why not give it to me?”
Blaire looked at Angel eagerly, but Angel just weighed the shell in his hand, giving her a slight smile under her twinkling gaze.
“An ordinary seashell? Has the renowned Mermaid Shell degraded into just an ordinary seashell?”
Upon hearing Angel name the Mermaid Shell, Blaire’s countenance immediately fell: “So, you knew it was a Mermaid Shell…”
Blaire was well aware of the value of the Mermaid Shell. Hence, it had deduced that it would not be able to acquire it.
However, what it did not anticipate was that after Angel identified the Mermaid Shell, he casually tossed it over to Blaire.
This left Blaire rather taken aback, and it couldn’t help but inquire, “Are you unaware of the effects of the Mermaid Shell?”
“Of course, I am.” Angel looked at Blaire, perplexed. He had already given it away; he didn’t understand why Blaire was putting on such a face.
The Mermaid Shell is a unique ingredient capable of enlightening the mind. During their time on Phantom Island, Gloria once prepared “Mermaid Shell Soup,” which had increased Angel’s mental strength by 0.5 without consuming potential.
Naturally, only Gloria could push the utilization of the Mermaid Shell to such an extreme level, a feat that involved many top-tier ingredients.
However, the Mermaid Shell Soup only had a one-time effect. Even if Gloria were to prepare it again, it would not boost Angel’s mental strength further.
Therefore, Angel did not have any particular need for the Mermaid Shell.
The solitary effect of “enlightening the mind” was not attractive to Angel. Although a single Mermaid Shell could sell for hundreds of magic crystals on the Feran Continent, Angel could easily craft something worth thousands of magic crystals. Naturally, he didn’t value such a trifle.
However, Blaire was oblivious to this. It kept on speculating, “You know its effects and still gave it to me? Why is that?… Ah, I get it! Are you trying to curry favor with me to ingratiate yourself with my master?!”
Blaire seemed to have found a reason to gloat again, adopting an air of superiority, “Let me tell you, although I am the most, most, most beloved magical pet of the master, trying to please me to win the master’s favor is impossible! Unless, you can do the following things…”
Before Blaire could list the “things,” Angel shoved the Mermaid Shell into Blaire’s incessantly chattering mouth, sternly warning, “Shut up! If you utter any more irrelevant words, I’ll kill you!”
Seeing the glint of genuine killing intent in Angel’s eyes, Blaire quickly deflated and obediently shut up.
But it couldn’t help but wonder inwardly: Did Angel genuinely just give it the Mermaid Shell out of the blue?