Chapter Thirteen: On Qianshan Island, the Second Layer of the Azure Scale Technique!

The captain’s quarters lit up.

“Elder Brother.”

Second Mate Bai Yuanzhou came forward, his eyes falling on Bai Yunxi’s lifeless body. The twisted scar on his face twitched, revealing disdain and contempt.

“That old bastard should have been dealt with long ago! Damn it, how many brothers died for the Taisui? And he still wanted to keep it all for himself?”

His voice dripped with scorn.

“When Grandfather took me out to sea years ago, he wasn’t like this.”

First Mate Bai Xuanji turned, his expression grave.

“Ask that Immortal Master how much Taisui can be extracted for alchemy. If it’s too little, we’ll take it home. If it’s more than thirty percent, we’ll choose him.”

“I’m going to check on Third Brother.”

He made to leave, then paused and turned back.

“Oh, one more thing. The giant whale was struck in the brain by a cold iron harpoon—I heard it was wielded by a new recruit, technically under Third Brother. Keep an eye on him. Too many of our best have died on this voyage; I can’t trust the people from home. If we can foster a few loyal men here, all the better.”

“Yes, Elder Brother.”

Bai Yuanzhou straightened, clasping his hands in salute. He’d never been concerned with the younger crew, but since Bai Xuanji had spoken, he would fulfill his duty.

And so, quietly and without disturbance…

The master of this whaling ship had changed.

——

Captain Bai Yunxi was dead!

When the news broke, few were surprised. Bai Yunxi was elderly and frail, his vitality nothing compared to his youth. In his prime, they said, his strength nearly reached the pinnacle of body refinement—just a step away from becoming a grandmaster.

This very whaling ship was built by his own hand and effort!

But time spares no one. Though Bai Yunxi was still formidable, rumors spread that when he used blood-burning secret arts, it would soon exhaust him. Dying bedridden was only natural.

Moreover, First Mate Bai Xuanji had already assumed command as acting captain. He was known for his generosity; compensation for the dead was now triple what it had been, and every survivor received a reward.

This immediately stabilized morale—the ship’s company, far from unrest, was even somewhat uplifted.

With money in hand, all is well!

Yet, from Bai Xuan’s perspective, Bai Yunxi’s decline in vitality didn’t seem so dire that death was imminent. Rumor had it that the Second Mate ordered some sailors to throw a body overboard, without even a proper sea burial.

“Mysterious, indeed…”

Bai Xuan shook his head.

Still, he had little interest in the ship’s intrigues, as long as they didn’t interfere with his cultivation.

Just then—

“Bai Xuan, Second Mate wants to see you!”

A sailor knocked at the door.

“Second Mate?”

Bai Xuan frowned.

He was familiar with Third Mate Bai Tiannian, whom he had even saved once, but had barely interacted with the Second Mate. Why was he being summoned?

A short while later.

On deck, beside the rail.

“You’re Bai Xuan?”

The scar on Bai Yuanzhou’s face twitched, making him look ferocious, but Bai Xuan’s gaze went to a cold iron harpoon standing nearby, stained with dark blood, radiating a murderous aura.

“So this is where it ended up,” he thought. Ever since he’d hurled it at the giant whale and missed, he hadn’t seen his harpoon.

At last, it was before him again.

“Your harpoon is fine, and so are you. I heard you saved Third Brother’s life.”

Bai Yuanzhou’s stare bore into him.

“Big Brother is in charge now. Merits will be rewarded. Do your job well, and you won’t suffer any loss aboard the Kaiyang.”

He gestured.

Two sailors stepped up and opened a wooden box, revealing a pile of gleaming silver ingots.

A hundred taels of silver!

Bai Xuan’s face brightened appropriately.

This was a veritable fortune—an ordinary sailor couldn’t earn so much in three years, enough to settle down and start a family on Qianshan Island.

Anyone would be tempted by such wealth.

“Take it. If you need anything, come to me.”

Bai Yuanzhou was pleased with Bai Xuan’s reaction, clapped him on the shoulder, and left.

Back in his own cabin, Bai Xuan’s expression calmed once more.

“So, the captain’s death truly was suspicious.”

Otherwise, why would the Second Mate spend so lavishly to win loyalty?

The reward was far too generous.

Still, Bai Xuan accepted it without hesitation.

Only a fool would refuse money.

Besides, it didn’t matter who commanded the ship—as long as his cultivation was undisturbed. If anyone threatened his life, he’d simply slip away.

Soon after, the whaling ship’s crew divided the giant whale, stored the meat, and let the half-picked skeleton sink into the sea.

Then, they set sail for home.

——

“At last, dry land.”

Bai Xuan descended from the whaling ship, stepping onto Qianshan Island.

He hadn’t set foot ashore in so long that he felt a wave of emotion.

“Brother Xuan, I’m heading home, but I’ll still have your medicinal meals delivered on schedule,” said Old Li.

“Big Brother Bai Xuan, I’ll come visit when I’m free,” Bai Xiaozhen said reluctantly. His parents had sent for him—a lavish carriage waited, the driver exuding a deadly aura, clearly a skilled guard. There was no way to linger.

The whaling ship would soon be sent for repairs, and the First Mate would return home for debriefing. They likely wouldn’t set sail again for half a year.

Most sailors had homes to return to. The younger ones were met by family, and half the older men had wives and children—everyone was eager to return.

Bai Xuan, too, had a place on the island, though it had long sat empty—a dilapidated cottage on the outskirts, near the sea.

“A few days of rest.”

He tidied up the cottage, rearranged the garden, and every day fished by the shore with a rod.

“One rod, a tin of earthworms, and a day of fishing… What a life of ease.”

Wearing a bamboo hat, Bai Xuan was in high spirits.

The cottage itself spanned nearly a thousand square meters—something he could never have afforded in his previous life. Now, with a single tap, he had it; no need to work, just fishing, quietly accumulating spiritual insight.

What bliss!

Splash!

A flick of his rod, and a giant clam clamped onto the hook, grinding so hard it sounded like metal on stone.

“What a big clam.”

Gifted with a sea-gazing technique, Bai Xuan was a skilled fisherman. The clam was plump, sure to hold a pearl.

He raised his hand, and a teal energy shimmered across his palm. With a sharp strike, the shell shattered.

“Sure enough, a fine pearl.”

He picked it up—a pearl the size of a goose egg, glowing softly with pure silver light, flawless.

Such pearls were rare luck, not something skill alone could guarantee—a happy windfall.

Half a month slipped by.

Though it was a time of rest, Bai Xuan never neglected his daily practice of Azure Scale Arts.

One day, after finishing his routine, sweat streaming down his body, he felt fully adapted to his recent surge of strength. He glanced at the Longevity Tree’s leaves and assigned two points of insight to the Trawling Net.

Blood and energy surged through him, but soon calmed.

“Add three more!”

Boom!

Trawling Net (Mastery 1%)!

This time, his energy finally broke through—a surge of power coursed through him, blood essence refining until a layer of azure scales formed beneath his skin.

Impervious to blades and spears—he had reached the second layer of Azure Scale Arts!

“My energy has reached the second stage—at last.”

Eyes closed, Bai Xuan savored the sensation.

With this breakthrough, every cell in his body felt ravenous—a sign of explosive growth.

“But, as expected, there’s a diminishing return to these points. It took five just to reach Mastery with the Trawling Net and break through to the second stage.”

He understood well.

His progress with body-hardening arts was breathtaking, crossing another threshold. Now, with Azure Scale Arts, he could shatter stone with one hand, leave marks on iron, and was impervious to weapons.

Yet, the Trawling Net was, after all, an ability from the Fisherman’s Path—good for increasing strength, but diminishing in effect as his cultivation rose, now only marginally helping his main art.

Since leaving the ship to live by fishing, his accumulation on the Fisherman’s Path had slowed greatly. The next breakthrough might take ten consecutive points, or more.

“The power of the Trawling Net does have its limits.”

“It’s time to seek out a second genuine body-hardening art.”

He had already learned that, besides the Bai, Yang, Liu, and Wang clans, there were two martial halls on the island: Overcast Rain and True Sun, both possessing authentic body-tempering teachings.