Heroes' Prison

Chapter 292 - 287: Going Out to Sea

Seeing this line of small characters, Huang Yi felt as though he could sense the inner turmoil that Leviathan experienced back then. Perhaps as he stood on the deck, gazing out at the boundless sea, his heart was filled with an immense struggle. No matter how many times he called out, his beloved girl would never come again. She was imprisoned in the endless depths of the sea, never able to meet him again.

Everyone who lives in this world desires strength for various reasons. The Sand Thief King desired strength to become the Eternal Emperor, while the Tidal Hunter and the Mermaid Sea Monster both longed for strength out of love. It’s a pity that even if they obtained strength, their souls had already fallen, and in the end, they still couldn’t fulfill their original wishes.

Huang Yi noted down these few lines of small characters, then left Heroes’ Prison, shifting his focus back to his incarnation on the sandy beach by the sea.

The distant Mermaid Sea Monster continued to sing, her ethereal and nonexistent voice drifting from the depths of the sea. The Bright Moon, eternally unchanging, shone down on everything below, coldly observing the various stories unfolding in this world.

At that moment, Huang Yi suddenly saw a young boy beside him holding a glass bottle, into which he stuffed a small note, screwed on the cap, and hurled it with all his might into the sea.

"Plop!" The glass bottle fell far into the night’s waves, floating on the sea surface bathed in moonlight, drifting farther and farther with the tide.

"What are you doing?" Huang Yi asked with interest.

The boy gazed longingly in the direction the bottle drifted and said, "That’s my drifting bottle. They say if you make a wish in the song of a Sea Monster, it’s very likely to come true. I hope it can drift in the boundless ocean, float to places I can never reach, to be found by someone I will never see." After speaking, he turned to look at Huang Yi and also took out a small bottle, a small note, and a pen from his pocket, handing them to Huang Yi, "Big brother, why don’t you make a wish too!"

"Alright!" Huang Yi said with a slight smile, taking the paper and pen.

However, when he was about to write, he didn’t know what to write for a moment.

It wasn’t that he lacked wishes, but rather he had too many, far too many and too mixed. Some had even become extravagant hopes. At this moment, he suddenly couldn’t write down a simple wish like the young boy beside him.

Huang Yi couldn’t help but look up at the moonlight in the sky. A flock of seabirds flew by, forming a silhouette against the backdrop of the Bright Moon. Watching the silhouette, it seemed as if he remembered something and quickly scribbled a few lines on the paper, then stuffed it into the bottle, screwed on the cap, and with all his might, he threw it into the distant ocean.

The drifting bottle, with his wish, fell far into the endless sea, and soon its silhouette was no longer visible.

"Wow! Big brother, you’re so strong, you threw it much farther than I did. Your wish will surely come true faster than mine," the boy said, looking expectantly out at the distant sea.

"Let’s hope so! Whether a wish comes true or not isn’t important, what’s important is that it existed, it gives you a kind of hope, and that’s enough," Huang Yi said, then stood with his hands behind his back, staring in the direction of the singing, the sea breeze blowing fierce and free, fluttering his clothes wildly.

After a while, Huang Yi looked down at the boy and asked, "When will you set sail again?"

"The village chief told my grandfather we’ll go to sea tomorrow!" the boy said, his face slightly dimmed, somewhat worried. "I don’t know if we can return safely from this voyage. I hope we don’t encounter that Sea Monster."

"Then take me with you; if we meet the Sea Monster, I’ll talk to her," Huang Yi said with a slight smile.

It was his incarnation, after all, so meeting the Sea Monster was certainly appropriate, even if it got killed, it wouldn’t matter.

...

The next night, Huang Yi stayed over at the village chief Bai Fan’s home and fell asleep comfortably to the continuous sound of the ocean waves outside the window.

Before dawn, he was abruptly awakened by a rustling sound.

Huang Yi opened his bleary eyes and turned to look. At that moment, an oil lamp with a dim yellow light was lit outside the room, and he could faintly see the village chief Bai Fan praying respectfully to a statue, evidently making preparations for the upcoming voyage.

Huang Yi got up, went out, and quietly watched Bai Fan praying devoutly. He did not disturb him.

"Ah! Young man, you’re awake. Sorry for disturbing you," Bai Fan said, finishing his prayers with an apologetic smile toward Huang Yi.

Huang Yi turned his head to look at the statue.

The statue had the head of a dragon and the body of a human, exuding an imposing aura with a crown on its head and a scepter in hand. Its gaze, sharp as lightning, looked off into the distance as if longing for its own kingdom, showing a powerful presence.

"Who is this statue of?" Huang Yi asked with interest.

"This is the Sea Dragon Emperor, Your Grace," Bai Fan said respectfully, his eyes devotedly fixed on the statue. "The Sea Dragon Emperor is the sovereign of these seas, his territory encompassing the entire ocean. He guards every being in the sea, from the mayflies in the shallows to the Giant Beasts of the abyss—all are his subjects."

"The sovereign of the seas?" Huang Yi nodded thoughtfully. The dominion of the sea must be quite vast, certainly not smaller than this continent, indicating that the Sea Dragon Emperor was a supreme being, ruling over this marine realm, likely even more formidable than the Sand Thief King.

"Yes! Every one of us fishermen prays to him before heading out to sea for a safer journey," Bai Fan explained, looking at Huang Yi. "I’m just about finished preparing to set sail. I heard you want to join us. But there will be great danger, and I’m not certain we won’t encounter any Sea Monsters. Once we do, we’re done for."

"Yes, take me with you," Huang Yi nodded.

Bai Fan did not try to dissuade him further, quickly made final preparations, and took Huang Yi out the door with him.

It was about four in the morning at this time, not yet light outside, but several households in the small village had their lights on, and a number of villagers around their fifties were leaving their homes, gathering on the beach.

This was the fishing expedition. Most of the young people had already died, leaving only women, children, and the elderly. The few men now emerging were the village’s main force, risking their lives to fish for the entire fishing village.

Huang Yi joined them aboard a sailboat, adjusted the sails, and set off toward the distant horizon, disappearing into the endless sea.

The day gradually broke, and Huang Yi stood calmly on the deck, gazing into the distance.

From here the shoreline was wholly obscured, and all around was nothing but the boundless sea. It made one feel incredibly insignificant.

Though the fishermen appeared calm on the surface, their hearts were fraught with tension. As the sailboat ventured further and deeper, they knew not when they might encounter the Mermaid Sea Monster. But until they caught some fish, they had to proceed with hearts in their throats.

At last, a sliver of the sun’s outline emerged from the distant horizon, casting the first light of dawn over the ocean, heralding the arrival of a new day.

With this sunrise at sea, the entire ocean turned golden, glimmering in the sun, and the sea breeze brought a touch of warmth, dispelling the chill of the night.

"Oh! My old mates, look at those plump Demon Scale Fish!" Suddenly, one of the sailors cried out excitedly.

Huang Yi turned his head and saw a dark mass in the water ahead, which turned out to be countless palm-sized fish swimming nimbly, looking utterly tempting under the morning sun.

"Quick, cast the net. After we catch this bunch, we’ll head straight back," the village leader Bai Fan hurriedly commanded, grabbing the fishing net and throwing it vigorously onto the sea surface.

But just then, an enchanting song suddenly rose all around them.