When Chang Long's group returned to Kirisakura in the early evening, they gathered in a private room at a restaurant for dinner and divided the spoils from the Queen's Cave. Numerous crystal jewelry pieces were piled on the table, making the waiter's eyes widen in amazement. Chang Long also took out the ten Eyes of Ice along with the crystal tray to divide them equally.

"Master Chang, just keep the Eyes of Ice. No one wants them,"

Peach Blossom said with a look of disdain, and everyone nodded in agreement.

"That's right, Chang Long, don't you need them for the Sovereign Sword?"

Oliang asked, recalling seeing Chang Long fuse the Eye of Wind with the Sovereign Sword before.

"These are valuable items. Why does everyone think they're worthless?"

Chang Long asked in confusion. The young waiter, curious to hear more about the eyes' potential, reluctantly went back to his duties, feeling quite disappointed.

"What's so great about them, Chang Long? When you get them, the system only tells you what type of eye it is!"

Wet Trash Can asked, baffled.

"That's right, Chang. I haven't seen any other attributes. Instead of getting money or valuable items for defeating a beast king, we only get an eye from its forehead,"

Valentine explained to her friend.

"Exactly. Chang Long, you think they're useful because you can use them with the Sovereign Sword. But for others without a sword like yours, the eyes are useless!"

Draco tried to help Chang Long understand.

"So, no one knows what the eyes could do?"

Chang Long asked excitedly.

"I can confirm that, as I used to be in the Journalists Association,"

Kimhant nodded in agreement.

"Why? Do you know another way to use the eyes, Chang Long?"

Siegfried asked. He knew Chang Long was observant and often discovered things others overlooked. It was possible she knew how to use the eyes that dropped from beast kings.

"Really?"

Everyone exclaimed in unison, staring at Chang Long for an answer. However, she just smiled without responding.

At that moment, the waiter arrived with their food, temporarily ending the conversation. They packed up the treasures from the Queen's Cave that Kitsune had divided, with everyone agreeing that Chang Long and Siegfried should get more since they defeated the Snow Queen. The Eyes of Ice remained with Chang Long, as no one else wanted them.

The waiter seemed puzzled when Chang Long requested an extra small table with two chairs, though no one was to sit there. Nevertheless, he complied happily after Chang Long paid extra. Once the waiter left without further questions, Chang Long placed the spirit tablets of Hisa-chan and Davy-chan on the table, accompanied by a large meal of their favorite foods. She then lit two incense sticks and placed them in front of each spirit tablet.

Chang Long's friends were accustomed to this ritual of hers, so no one was particularly surprised. When Chang Long rejoined the group, they began eating and discussing their next adventure with great enthusiasm.

After dinner, Chang Long's group went shopping to stock up on potions and crystals for the journey. They were surprised to see the women in town eyeing Wet Trash Can, whispering and squealing excitedly as if they had spotted a celebrity. Unable to contain his curiosity, Draco approached the women to find out what was going on.

"Excuse me, do you have anything to say to my friend?"

Draco asked cautiously.

"Yes, uh... We wanted to ask if he is the person in this picture,"

one of the women replied, handing Draco a copy of the Reaper's Whisperer newspaper.

The picture of Wet Trash Can, swinging the Furious Talon in a fierce attack, took up nearly half a page of the newspaper. The angle and lighting at the moment the shutter clicked made the composition look exceptionally good. The caption read,

"The Man Who Made the Crow Group Tremble."

Draco was left speechless, his mouth agape. The picture of Wet Trash Can indeed looked impressive.

"Why didn't I see this picture when Kimhant pass me the newspaper?

Draco frowned, muttering to himself. Having one's picture published on the newspaper would bring anyone pride, too bad that person was not him

"What did you say? Is he your friend or not?"

the young woman asked urgently, as she had not clearly heard what Draco had said.

"Oh, I think he looks similar. Let me show it to my friends and ask them!"

Draco said, then walked back to his group with the newspaper in hand.

"So, Draco, why are those girls looking at me?"

Wet Trash Can asked, his excitement evident, which slightly annoyed Draco.

"I think you know very well as to why, Can!"

Draco could not help but said sarcastically. He unfolded the newspaper to show everyone the picture of Wet Trash Can.

"Wow! Why is there a picture of Can in the newspaper?"

Valentine exclaimed in astonishment.

"Is this the second edition, Kimhant? How did you get it done so fast?"

Peach Blossom asked Kimhant, who stood beside them, smiling with pride.

"No, it's the old edition,"

Kimhant replied mysteriously.

"Wait a minute, the copy you showed us didn't have this picture!"

Aden said, puzzled. He recalled looking through every page but did not remember seeing this image.

"If you looked at it after Can, you wouldn't have seen this picture!"

Chang Long laughed.

"Why not!"

Draco asked, frowning.

"Because Can tore out the page with his picture, saying he would frame and hang it at the guild!"

Oliang explained, shaking his head, embarrassed for his friend.

"Oh! not showing off at all, huh?"

Peach Blossom teased.

"Hey, it's a once-in-a-lifetime thing, Peach Blossom!"

Wet Trash Can replied, blushing.

"Alright then, should I go back and tell those girls if it's you or not?"

Draco asked, chuckling as he thought what it would look like if Can did what Oliang had said.

"Not yet. I think it's better if they keep wondering. It's less troublesome and feels better being admired from afar with dreamy eyes!"

Wet Trash Can said, though in reality, he did not want his friends to also get mobbed by the girls. His confidence was overwhelming!

"Alright, I'll return the newspaper, then we can finish shopping!"

Draco shrugged, walking back to the group of women to return the newspaper.

The women were disappointed by Draco's response, but some seemed to develop an interest in him. Draco quickly excused himself, though he regretted leaving behind the attention of several pretty girls. He feared that having a girlfriend would restrict his freedom to adventure with his friends.

Early the next morning, Oliang led his group of friends towards Longshan. Since they were traveling on foot, the journey was longer than it would have been by other means. They decided to set off at dawn. Even though getting up earlier than usual left everyone a bit groggy, the fresh air in the game quickly revitalized them.

Chang Long was flanked by two girls, while Kimhant walked with Kitsune, who acted as the rear guard. At the front, the five young men trudged sleepily through the morning mist.

"Look ahead, everyone. There's something there!"

Oliang pointed out the shadow of what looked like an ancient ship in the mist before them.

"A ship!?"

Draco, Wet Trash Can, and Aden exclaimed simultaneously, surprised and wondering if they were mistaken, seeing a ship floating in the mist.

"That ship is one of the mysteries of this game. I never thought I'd see it myself!"

Siegfried remarked, watching as the shadow of the ship slowly approach with great interest.

"One of the game's mysteries?"

Peach Blossom asked, intrigued but also clinging tightly to Chang Long out of fear.

"Is that ship real!"

Chang Long squinted at the dark silhouette of the ship coming towards them. It looked like a pirate ship, did it not?

"I don't know! If you want to find out, we'll have to wait until it gets here,"

Valentine said with a touch of excitement in her voice, while Kimhant ran ahead and started taking pictures with his camera.

"Master, I don't trust that thing!"

Kitsune said, walking over to Chang Long with a serious, worried expression.

"What's wrong, Kitsune? Is there something off about that ship?"

Chang Long asked, growing more serious as Kitsune's tone and demeanor indicated a significant threat.

"That thing... I think it's an illusion, and there's a strong smell of blood coming from it that makes me want to vomit,"

Kitsune's response left everyone stunned and speechless, unsure of how to deal with the approaching ship.

The ship's shadow got closer, and soon everyone could hear the creaking of the wooden hull and the flapping of sails, despite the absence of any wind. The previously pleasant air turned icy cold in an instant. The sky grew overcast, and the fog thickened until visibility was almost zero.

"What's happening?"

Kimhant exclaimed in alarm. It felt as if they were trapped in the fog.

"Look! The ship has stopped and seems to be dropping anchor. Hehe,"

Oliang said with a nervous laugh.

Boommm!

The sound of something big hitting the water was followed by the sound of oars. The noise grew closer until a small boat with a lantern came into view. When the boat stopped in front of them, Chang Long's group huddled together, all their hairs standing on end.

"Good morning..."

said the figure in the boat, smiling widely to reveal white teeth.

"H... hello!"

Chang Long replied, staring unblinkingly at the figure. She realized that the boat was floating in midair amidst the thick fog without nothing supporting it, rocking slightly as if it were in real water.

"10 people?"

the figure asked again.

"Y... yes, there are ten of us!"

Chang Long answered cautiously, noting that the system did not identify the figure as a monster.

"Come aboard! Staying in the water must be freezing,"

the figure said, extending a pale, bony hand.

"We're on solid ground,"

Chang Long retorted, while the others seemed too shocked to speak, especially Wet Trash Can and Kimhant, who were looking away.

"Heh heh heh, look again!"

The figure laughed softly, pointing its bony finger to the ground. As everyone looked down, they saw only icy sea water around them. They shouted in surprise and scrambled to grab the edge of the small boat.

"What the hell is going on? We were heading to Longshan, weren't we?"

Draco shouted angrily, unable to comprehend the sudden appearance of the sea.

"It's not just where we are. Look around!"

Siegfried yelled. Everyone looked around and saw nothing but dark blue sea and an overcast sky.

"Heh heh heh, give me your hand. It's getting light, so you've been pulled into my dimension..."

The figure chuckled at their frightened reactions.

"Your dimension?"

Chang Long asked after everyone was pulled onto the boat.

"My dimension, and the dimension of those like me. Welcome to the land of the dead..."

the figure replied cheerfully, though Chang Long's group looked uneasy at the words.

"We're not dead!"

Chang Long frowned, showing no fear like the others. If a reaper feared ghosts, there would not be any reapers left to collect souls.

"Heh heh heh, sometimes the living wish to enter too. I thought you were here for some kind of quest or searching for the treasure of the dead..."

The figure laughed heartily at Chang Long's words.

"Why is Master Chang talking so casually with that thing, brother!"

Peach Blossom whispered fearfully to her brother.

"It's probably because Chang Long has a similar aura, and she's a spirit holder?"

Siegfried whispered back, patting his sister's back to sooth her. He observed that the atmosphere around Chang Long and the figure was indeed quite similar.

"Alright, I'll take you back to the main ship. Looks like a storm is brewing here. If you stay, the living might actually become the dead, heh heh heh,"

the figure said. Its words made everyone freeze with fear. Dying in this dimension might mean they would not respawn, or worse, they might reborn as something like the figures rowing the boat, heading toward the larger ship anchored nearby.

Once they were aboard the main ship, the captain ordered the anchor to be raised and the sails unfurled catching the wind to quickly leave the area. Chang Long noticed that the captain and crew all had pale, bony features. Their eyes were deep, dark hollows, with no nose or ears, thin lips, and they were dressed in traditional attire from various nationalities, moving about the ship.

"Heh heh heh, follow me. I'll take you to the captain. Oh! And my name is Tom,"

the figure said, leading Chang Long's group towards the captain's quarters at the rear of the ship. Summoning his courage, Kimhant raised his camera. Surprisingly, the crew did not get angry; some even posed for him. However, the young man quickly ran to catch up with his friends, realizing he was being left alone among the dead.

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