novelraw Chapter 203: The Flower Witch’s Search for Someone
Chapter 203: The Flower Witch’s Search for Someone
"Waku waku!"
The Deepsea Water Spirit spoke urgently.
Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two... The Flower Witch put on her cloak and slowly turned her head.
Spiritual energy detection!
Through a tiny crack in the wall, she vaguely saw some figures covered entirely in pitch black, with smooth, dark skin.
The pitch-black spiritual energy spread like creeping shadows on the wall, forming one hidden eye after another.
Shadows of crime, cheap reconnaissance units trained by the Black Glove... The little happy yellow flower that had just appeared on the Flower Witch’s head with great difficulty immediately withered away.
These shadowy figures were the Black Glove’s specialized henchmen for handling dirty work.
She was currently in the outer area of Blackore City, very close to the city’s docks, and this area was one of the few under the navy’s full control.
Underestimating them, insufficient spiritual energy, and physical weakness caused her not to detect them immediately.There were eleven in total... The Flower Witch pretended to squat down and gently patted Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two.
At this moment, fighting was not a clear option; she needed to conserve her strength.
Moreover, the Black Glove had up to a hundred shadowy minions, far beyond her current ability to handle.
"Let’s go!"
The Flower Witch stood up, holding Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two in her arms, then quickly headed toward the street.
However, these guys still approached her like shadows, constantly closing in while maintaining a safe distance.
Troublesome fellows; they wouldn’t attack but also wouldn’t leave easily... The Flower Witch prepared to head toward the navy’s base.
Although there was a risk of being spotted by the navy, she could use this opportunity to force these twisted monsters to retreat.
"Waku waku!!"
Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two flapped in Fen’s arms.
"Not heading this way???"
Fen showed a puzzled look. She roughly understood what Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two meant.
It seemed eager to move toward the harbor?
Could it be that it wanted to drink seawater?
Fen vaguely recalled that Chen Qi had instructed her that deepsea water spirits needed to regularly consume seawater.
Or...
Suddenly, a bold idea popped into the Flower Witch’s mind!
According to the information she had just obtained, the Black Hunter had appeared in nearby waters and had been seen for various reasons, even defeating the Black Pig Shark?
Could it be that Chen Qi’s small houseboat was at the harbor?
And the goal of Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two was the harbor itself!
She wondered how Chen Qi was doing now. He had just faced the Black Pig Shark; things probably weren’t looking good.
Could it be...
A little hopeful yellow flower sprouted on Fen’s head. She activated her concealment technique and briskly walked toward Blackore City’s harbor.
As she stepped out from the filthy street, the afterglow of the setting sun shone on her face.
The sunset’s golden light spread across the sea, mingling with the pitch-black Blackore City in a striking contrast.
"I should have lost those shadowy figures by now. Time to find someone."
Fen stood by the harbor, her gaze sweeping over the busy and vibrant scene, a mysterious excitement swelling in her heart.
She pulled down her hood and quickened her pace, sneaking glances at the small fishing boats.
"This one’s not it, nor is this one—"
Fen hurried on, carefully revealing her colorful eyes beneath the cloak, desperately scanning every small boat on the dock and every stall in the harbor.
However, her excitement soon sank along with the setting sun.
The lighthouse’s light came on, and the night-duty navy returned to their posts.
No sign at all! Absolutely no sign of Chen Qi’s small houseboat!
Nor any delicious street food stalls!
Her excited mood instantly wilted.
Well, based on the information, Chen Qi had encountered the Black Pig Shark in the morning; he was probably at some small clinic now, not at the harbor... Fen walked while crossing her arms and sighed deeply.
Even for Chen Qi, facing the Black Pig Shark, it was unlikely he escaped unharmed!
Not here... The Flower Witch felt a pang in her heart, just as she was about to turn back, Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two suddenly raised its head in her arms.
"???"
Fen curiously looked back.
Amid several warships, a medium-sized vessel quietly floated on the water.
On that ship, a flag flew high!
The pattern was unmistakable—a water spirit wearing a chef’s hat!
A water spirits’ dining ship, such a distinct vessel was rare in the Witch Sea.
But this ship was huge!
The Flower Witch vaguely remembered that when she had parted ways with Chen Qi, his boat was still a tiny little houseboat.
Could it be that Chen Qi had enlarged his ship for business?
"No way..."
Fen tiptoed, curiosity driving her to quietly approach the distant water spirits’ dining ship.
...
Night fell, everything quiet, only a few fishing fires and stars gleamed in the distance.
The sea breeze this season was a bit chilly—
Chen Qi lay on the boat, eyes closed, quietly enjoying this rare peaceful moment.
Unlike in the game, meditation practice was much more complicated than he had imagined.
As a skill to enhance spiritual strength and the Spiritual Core, meditation required huge mental consumption.
A high-level meditation technique, even with skill cards, required at least over a month of practice.
Fortunately, Chen Qi’s high spiritual inspiration, a special phonograph used for meditation, and a previous basic meditation technique greatly reduced the training time to within two weeks.
[You have mastered the advanced meditation technique Candleflame. Your Spiritual Core is enhanced, your inspiration +5, and your spellcasting speed increased by 10%.]
Chen Qi felt a huge relief; he had finally mastered the advanced meditation technique.
The mental consumption was still terrifying. At third tier, meditation techniques that took over a year to master, unless related to the Rift, were impossible to learn quickly...
Also, with the poor digestion of the second-rank profession card, he needed to do some assassination missions. He should get a hunter’s license to expand the range of tasks.
Chen Qi lay on the pillow of Deepsea Water Spirit Number Three, thinking about his next steps.
The second phase of the Dimensional Tide, the Smiling Moon phase, was about to arrive, and he had to prepare well before then.
The tremendous mental pressure made him lie on the deck, basking in the sunset’s rays.
However, rest always passed quickly; before he knew it, daylight had faded, and starlight shone on his face.
Almost time to get up and continue practicing. He wished he could sleep a little longer... Chen Qi thought but adjusted his breathing, getting his body warmed up again.
Suddenly, at the moment he adjusted his breath, he felt something strange.
A single hair gently fell on his face.
It tickled—
Chen Qi froze instantly.
The Black Whale Pirates had successfully tracked his ship?
He kept adjusting his breath.
During the fight with the Black Pig Shark, his boat had been rammed fiercely by the shark due to lacking defensive systems, leaving considerable damage on the boat’s surface.
Although some simple repairs had been made, the scars remained.
No, the opponent was strong and good at hiding spiritual energy. If it were the Blackfin Crew, they should have acted long ago...
And Water Spirit Number One should be on guard? Could it be that Number One had met with an accident?
Who exactly was it?
Chen Qi suddenly opened his eyes wide.
But the next moment, he froze.
Right before his eyes were Fen’s emerald green hair strands and a pair of colorful eyes.
Along with a faint, familiar fragrance and a gentle smile...
The other party seemed to have been there for quite some time.
Fen, why are you here... Chen Qi’s mind was in chaos for a moment.
Fen was half-squatting on the deck, head lowered, quietly watching Chen Qi sleeping on the deck, the little yellow flower on her head fluttering.
A surprise!
Seeing Chen Qi wake up, Fen smiled happily and said first:
"Miss me?"
"???"
Chen Qi was momentarily dumbfounded and blinked.
Fen was so close that when he sat up slightly, their noses nearly touched.
Also, why did Fen have so many wounds on her face?
Chen Qi thought for a moment and replied:
"Not bad."
Because of the Blood Blade Pirates’ commission, Chen Qi had wanted to find the Flower Witch for a while.
He never expected her to appear on his boat.
It was mostly because of the flag on his boat and the Black Hunter’s report.
To be honest, he kind of missed the Flower Witch.
"Oh..."
The flower on the Flower Witch’s head swayed in the wind as she softly said:
"I missed you a lot."
Huh? Miss me a lot... Chen Qi’s face slightly flushed, then he smiled.
He never expected the always tough Flower Witch to answer like that.
Chen Qi felt a warmth in his heart. In this world where he had almost no one to rely on, being missed by someone was a happiness.
Honestly, the Flower Witch, like him, was also a lonely person struggling alone in a foreign land, with no one to depend on.
If it weren’t for the Dimensional Tide, perhaps they both could live peaceful and happy lives... Chen Qi thought.
But in this tide, neither he nor the Flower Witch could stop; they had to keep moving forward, endlessly climbing until reaching the peak of the tide.
The Flower Witch raised her head and took out a roadside chrysanthemum:
"Qi, long time no see. Looks like your dining ship business is going well. No, you definitely, definitely are not a proper chef!!"
The Flower Witch’s mouth curled slightly, as if she had seen through Chen Qi; she no longer believed he was a proper chef.
"About right..."
Chen Qi took the chrysanthemum and stuck it on the head of the sleeping Deepsea Water Spirit Number One.
He turned and looked at the Flower Witch again.
A rare sight...
Usually, the Flower Witch’s face was covered with many flowers, forming a special floral mask.
But now, there were no flowers on her face, only many scars.
The flowers on her head were the joyful little yellow flower!
And the withered fearful little black flower!
The Flower Witch’s condition didn’t seem good... Chen Qi asked:
"Long time no see! Fen, how’s your trial?"
The Flower Witch had parted with Chen Qi because of the Ice Witch’s trial, embarking alone on the adventure.
He didn’t know if Fen had successfully completed the trial.
"How was the trial..." Fen covered her face, making sure Chen Qi wouldn’t dislike her because of her wounds, then proudly raised her head.
She looked around and quietly took out a tarot-style card from her backpack card.
On the back of the card was the legendary endpoint of the floral aspect, the Earth Mother’s abode, the Sea of Red Spider Lilies!
On the front was a girl in a garden, holding pruning scissors, eyes closed, quietly tending a flower cluster.
Just a glance, Chen Qi seemed drawn into the card, his face slightly flushed.
That card contained an incomprehensibly powerful floral aspect spiritual energy, making people feel joy and nature!
The legendary fourth-tier profession card—the Flower Witch!
Got it, worthy of being the protagonist of the Witch Sea—Chen Qi sincerely smiled:
"As expected of you, Fen!"
"Hehe! I’ve done even more than that."
Then Fen proudly took out Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two from behind her.
Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two was now dressed in splendid clothes, its entire body turned a glossy green and had grown considerably.
Most importantly! Chen Qi felt the floral aspect aura coming from Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two!
Fen slightly raised her head, showing a proud little expression as if praising herself.
How much did this cost... Chen Qi exclaimed:
"This is a potion strengthening Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two? It seems much stronger."
Hearing the praise, the Flower Witch Fen happily said:
"I’m the Beast Taming Expert of the Goldenfinch Kingdom! Our family’s potions can even give a green caterpillar the strength to battle a giant dragon!"
Chen Qi patted Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two’s head:
"Number Two, long time no see! You’ve become well-behaved!"
Then the Flower Witch continued:
"Also, Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two is now even closer to me!"
Closer to you... Chen Qi noticed Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two looked at him with a disdainful expression.
"Waku waku (Master! Abandoning me comes with a price!)"
Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two’s little expression said so.
However, that disdain only lasted a moment.
With Chen Qi’s gentle right-hand caress, Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two could no longer control its emotions:
"Waku waku (Master! I want to come back!!)"
Its eyes were teary. Although the Flower Witch treated it well, it still preferred its master!
The master was so much better looking than the Flower Witch! So much more fragrant!
"???"
"Waku waku (Master! I was wrong! I was wrong!)"
Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two had watery eyes.
"..."
Chen Qi was silent for a moment.
"I did take good care of it! Gave it delicious food every day, and highly nutritious potions!"
Looking at the teary Number Two, the Flower Witch happily asked:
"Is Number Two trying to say thank you for Miss Witch’s thoughtful care? That it doesn’t need you anymore?"
No, from its perspective, all of this was the master’s responsibility... Chen Qi tried hard to maintain his expression.
He had already sent Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two out; there was no way to take it back.
Moreover, the Flower Witch had spent a great deal of time and money raising Number Two.
The Flower Witch had even become thinner.
This kind of thing should better not be told to the Flower Witch... Chen Qi cleared his throat twice and said:
"Yes."
Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two, from now on you are the Flower Witch’s pet, don’t think about coming back!
"Hehe!"
Fen smiled proudly, then scanned every inch of Chen Qi’s body and asked with concern:
"Qi, how about you? I heard your disguise defeated the Black Pig Shark of Blackore City?"
Fen noticed many scars on Chen Qi’s body.
Chen Qi replied:
"My strength has improved a bit recently. Although I’m still just a second-tier Transcendent, I can now challenge three ordinary second-tier Transcendents alone.
As for the Black Pig Shark, it was defeated by me together with the Blood Blade Pirates. Of course, some small tactics were used."
"Really defeated it? Not a rumor?"
The Flower Witch was surprised.
She had personally seen the Black Pig Shark and knew how terrifying it was.
That monster, raised with Black Whale Blood, was a killing machine without reason.
If it weren’t for Deepsea Water Spirit Number Two’s swim ring and the tools she had obtained in the Trial Grounds, she might have been forced to use her release technique ‘Blooming Bloodflower’! Blood staining the sea!
And Chen Qi had actually defeated it!
Although it was a joint effort with the Blood Blade Pirates, it was still an admirable feat!
However, brilliant achievements often came at a painful cost.
"Are you really okay? Mentally and physically, no injuries?"
The Flower Witch asked curiously.
If there was no bodily self-healing, the injuries might be severe... Chen Qi said softly:
"I’m fine."
The Flower Witch suspected Chen Qi was putting on a brave front.
"Really?"
Do I look that fragile? That helpless... Chen Qi countered:
"I’m fine. But you, Fen, you seem to have encountered quite a bit of trouble?"
No, she couldn’t give Chen Qi more trouble now... The Flower Witch saw how exhausted Chen Qi was and thought he should rest well now:
"No trouble."
"No, you don’t look well."
"No..."
"No!"
Chen Qi interrupted her firmly, not giving the Flower Witch a chance to argue.
"Fen, what exactly happened?"
The Flower Witch looked at Chen Qi puzzled, murmuring softly:
"Is it that obvious??"
She had already disguised her injuries and always wore a smile.
Of course, because the flowers on your head have already given you away... Chen Qi silently grumbled in his heart.