Samsara Paradise: Dream Weaver of Connections.

The next morning, sunlight streamed through the villa's windows, casting dappled patterns of light on the sea.

Lin Yi had just sat up in bed and was about to go to the bathroom to wash up when a clear explosion suddenly rang in his ears.

The sound came from a great distance, yet it pierced through the noise of the waves, as clear as if it were right next to you.

Lin Yi instantly jumped out of bed, rushed to the window, and looked in the direction from which the sound came.

In the distance, a blood-red light was slowly rising into the sky.

The light exploded in mid-air, forming an extremely eye-catching symbol—Φ.

The bright red Φ stood out starkly against the azure sky, clearly visible even from several nautical miles away.

If Su Xiao were the only one to advance in this round of the Samsara Paradise, given his personality, he would never have revealed his position so openly.

But with Lin Yi present this time, Su Xiao naturally wanted to find him and meet up with him first.

It can be said that Su Xiao launched a signal flare immediately after landing.

However, due to the distance, Lin Yi only saw Su Xiao's signal flare during this launch.

Without hesitation, Lin Yi turned around, took out a signal gun from his backpack, opened the window, and pointed the gun upwards.

boom!
Another signal flare was launched.

The bright red Φ exploded in mid-air, echoing the distant beam.

The two markers complement each other, like a pair of blood-red eyes overlooking this vast sea.

The Viking Sea, a sea of ​​sunken ships.

On a wrecked pirate ship, several soaking wet combatants were lying on the ship's side, staring intently at the two red markers in the distant sky.

"That's... the symbol of the Paradise of Reincarnation?"

Someone swallowed hard, their voice trembling.

"Two...two people from the Paradise of Reincarnation. And someone who can so openly summon their companions with a signal flare is definitely not an ordinary person."

"Damn it, get away. This area is no longer safe."

Without further ado, the wrecked pirate ship immediately changed direction and sped away into the distance.

In another part of the sea, next to a floating, broken plank, a contestant from a small tribe was panting as he clung to the plank.

He looked up at the two bright red Φs in the sky, and his expression froze instantly.

"The Paradise of Reincarnation...two of them?"

He paused for a second, then without saying a word, released the plank, plunged into the sea, and swam in the opposite direction with all his might.

If you can't beat them, can't you at least avoid them?
Similar scenes are playing out in various parts of this sea area.

Those who saw the marker, whether from the Paradise faction or the Void faction, all reacted by retreating.

A person's shadow, the bark of a tree.

The reputation of the Paradise of Reincarnation in the void is not something that can be built on mere boasting.

Which of the participants who survived the first two rounds hadn't witnessed the methods of the Contractors of the Paradise of Reincarnation firsthand?

Seeing two bright red markers appear in the same sea area at the same time, they only regretted that they hadn't run faster.

For every person who flees, there is someone who comes to meet them.

About three nautical miles from Lin Yi, a small, jet-black sailboat was cutting through the waves.

A young woman in a dark purple robe stood at the bow of the ship. She looked up at the bright red Φ in the distance.

In the world of witches, Night Witch - Night Whisper.

"I've found you," she said softly, as she steered the sailboat a little faster.

In another part of the sea, a white man with a buzz cut emerged from beneath the surface.

Mond wiped the seawater off his face, looked up at the sky, and grinned.

"found it."

He took a deep breath and darted forward like a fish, faster than any ship.

Inside the villa, Lin Yi put away the signal gun, turned around, and walked out of the bedroom.

Shangyue was already standing by the living room window; it seemed she had also been awakened by the signal flare.

She turned her head to look at Lin Yi: "Bai Ye?"

Lin Yi nodded: "He should be in the nearby waters."

Just then, a violent commotion came from below.

Mordrak suddenly let out a terrified cry, a sound filled with undisguised fear.

Its massive body trembled violently, its swimming speed suddenly slowed down, and it even began to retreat.

Lin Yi felt his footing become unsteady and his brows furrowed slightly.

He walked to the window and followed Mordrac's gaze.

On the distant sea, a jet-black ship is cutting through the waves.

The boat was not large, about twenty meters long, painted entirely black, with smooth lines and no superfluous decorations.

Black sails hung from three masts, fluttering in the sea breeze.

A black figure stood at the bow of the ship.

Su Xiao.

But Mordrac's reaction was too abnormal.

This colossal beast, hundreds of meters long and a top predator capable of swallowing even a pirate ship whole, was now trembling.

Its eyes were filled with terror, a low growl escaped its throat, and its massive body shrank back, trying to escape the unremarkable black ship.

Shangyue noticed Mordrak's unusual behavior and immediately communicated with it in the sea language.

Upon hearing her voice, Mordrak emitted a series of rapid cries filled with terror and resistance.

After listening for a while, Shang Yue's expression became subtle.

She turned to Lin Yi, her tone slightly strange: "It said that ship is very eerie. Although it doesn't seem particularly powerful, it really doesn't want to get close. It's like... like a big rat encountering a newborn kitten."

Lin Yi's gaze fell on the black ship that was getting closer and closer.

Su Xiao's ship is indeed extraordinary.

Mordrak's fear did not stem from a difference in strength, but from a kind of suppressive force within his bloodline.

The Doom was born to be the nemesis of these marine creatures.

Shangyue continued to communicate with Mordrak, her tone becoming gentle, as if she were soothing a frightened beast.

As Mordrac listened to her words, his trembling gradually subsided, but the fear in his eyes had not completely disappeared.

It hesitated, its massive body pacing back and forth, wanting to escape but not daring to disobey the wishes of the two people carrying it.

After a long period of soothing from Shangyue, Mordrac reluctantly began to swim forward.

It swam slowly, taking each step cautiously, its huge eyes fixed on the black ship, ready to escape at any moment.

The distance between the two sides gradually shortened.

When the two boats were about fifty meters apart, Su Xiao leaped from the bow and landed steadily on Moldlach's back.

He stood on the flat open ground, his gaze sweeping over the surroundings before finally settling on Lin Yi.

"Not bad?" Su Xiao asked.

"It's alright." Lin Yi nodded. "Where did you get this boat?"

"I got it after the second round of the game."

Just then, a white shadow leaped up from Su Xiao's boat.

Benny traced a graceful arc in mid-air and landed steadily on Mordrac's back.

The moment she landed, her four legs visibly buckled, and the cat collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

Lin Yi's eyes twitched slightly as he looked at her disheveled appearance.

Miss Benny hates the ocean.

If she had a choice, she definitely wouldn't take a boat.

Spending more than ten hours on Su Xiao's ship was a nightmare for her.

She finally stepped onto "land"—although this land was the back of a giant beast—but her mental state had visibly recovered.

Benny lay on the ground for a few seconds to recover, then stood up, shook her fur, and walked gracefully to Lin Yi's side, nuzzling his leg with her head.

His posture was just like someone who had just crawled back from hell.

Lin Yi reached out and rubbed her head. Benny purred contentedly and squinted her eyes.

Baha also flew over from the ship and landed on Su Xiao's shoulder, his black bean-like eyes scanning the surroundings.

"This place is nice. Much more comfortable than on the ship."

Su Xiao ignored Baha's nonsense. His gaze fell on the villa behind him, and then he looked at the flat open space at his feet.

"We're quite well prepared," he said.

Lin Yi smiled and said, "We can't spend more than ten days at sea without being able to eat and sleep outdoors."

The two entered the villa and sat down in the living room. Shangyue did not follow them in; she stayed outside to continue calming Mordrac.

The giant beast still harbors a deep fear of Su Xiao's ship and needs to be watched over.

Baha landed on the back of the sofa, Bubuwang lay at Lin Yi's feet, and Benny curled up on a soft cushion in the corner, dozing with her eyes half-closed.

Su Xiao took out a piece of paper from her pocket and spread it out on the coffee table.

Lin Yi looked down and his gaze froze for a second.

It was a map—if it could even be called a map.

The paper itself is like a rag picked up from some damp corner, with severely torn edges, covered with stains and water stains, and even mold spots in some places.

The content on the map is even more touching.

A few crooked lines represent the coastline, a few circles represent islands, arrows represent the direction of ocean currents, and some oddly shaped symbols are marked in various positions.

The level of drawing those symbols was no different from the doodles Lin Yi had seen in kindergarten when he was a child.

Lin Yi raised his head and looked at Su Xiao, his eyes clearly conveying the message: Can this thing be used as a map?

Su Xiao coughed lightly, a rare hint of embarrassment appearing on her face.

“It was found on the captain of a pirate ship,” he said, with a hint of helplessness in his voice. “Don’t expect too much from these pirates’ education level. Being able to draw this level of diagrams is already considered ‘educated’ among them.”

Lin Yi remained silent for a second.

Su Xiao makes a good point.

Based on his prior knowledge of the Viking Sea, most pirates came from humble backgrounds, and many couldn't even write their own names.

It's unrealistic to expect them to be able to draw accurate nautical charts.

Su Xiao continued, "According to the intelligence provided by that captain, the pirate crews on the Viking Sea vary greatly in strength. They can be roughly divided into three tiers."

"A second-rate pirate crew, with between one hundred and three hundred members, including a small number of members with extraordinary abilities. Most of the captains are at the early stage of the sixth rank, and their overall combat strength is already considered a mid-level force at sea."

"A top-tier pirate crew has over a thousand members, many of whom possess extraordinary abilities. The captain has mid-level sixth-tier strength, and the core members are all sixth-tier boss-level. Such pirate crews can practically roam the seas with impunity, and ordinary merchant ships would give them a wide berth."

"There are also three legendary pirate crews, each with more than five thousand members. The captains are top-tier sixth-order pirates with wide-area buffs. Their confidants are also sixth-order boss-level pirates. Pirate crews of this caliber can already contend head-on with some small kingdoms."

He didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.

A legendary pirate crew; it's best to avoid them for now.

Lin Yi nodded.

So what are you planning to do next?

Su Xiao pointed to a location on the map marked with an island symbol.

"Let's go to a nearby island to resupply first. While we're at it, let's gather intelligence on extraordinary marine life."

He paused, then continued, "The Doom needs to devour extraordinary marine life to complete its evolution. This ship was only recently unsealed, and many of its abilities are not yet unlocked."

Lin Yi understood.

The reason Mordrac was so afraid of the Doom was because the ship's unlock condition was to hunt marine life.

Although it is not fully unlocked yet, the suppressive force in its bloodline has already instilled fear in Mordrak.

If the Doom could be fully unlocked, it would provide far more help than any other ship on this vast ocean.

"What do you need?" Lin Yi asked.

"The distribution and activity patterns of extraordinary marine life, as well as the intelligence held by those pirate groups," Su Xiao said. "Those pirates have been active at sea for many years and their understanding of this area far surpasses that of outsiders. If we can capture a few core members, we should be able to extract a lot of information from them."

Lin Yi nodded.

This line of thinking is very clear.

First gather intelligence, then lock onto the target, and finally take action.

"Where are we going?" Shangyue asked the most crucial question after hearing their discussion.

Benny pointed to a circle on the nautical chart with her paw, meaning: 'Based on my experience with matching games, this is the Barren Island.'

"Wang."

Bubuwang objected, feeling that the large X was the real ring of barren islands.

"This thing is probably an heirloom diaper."

Bach started spouting nonsense again.

"Judging from the direction, it seems to be here."

Su Xiao pointed to the upper part of the nautical chart. Both Lin Yi and Su Xiao had gained the language ability of this world, but unfortunately, there was not a single word on the nautical chart, only labels.

With no other option, they could only guess and try to figure out where would be a better place to go.

Shangyue glanced at the map, remained silent for a second, and made no comment.

After all, in the aesthetics of the Feathered Clan, a map of this quality was indeed hard to look at, but she knew very well that now was not the time to be particular about that.

Shangyue turned to Mordrak and communicated with it in the sea language.

After hearing her words, the giant beast let out a low growl, turned around, and swam toward the island marked on the map.

Their speed was much slower than before, clearly indicating that they were still wary of Su Xiao's ship.

Lin Yi noticed this problem and looked at Su Xiao: "Could you keep your boat a little further away from us?"

Su Xiao nodded and waved to the black ship on the sea.

As if it understood his command, the Doom automatically changed direction and followed Moldlach at a distance of about one nautical mile.

Mordrac sensed that the ship that terrified him was moving away, and his trembling body gradually calmed down, and his swimming speed returned to normal.

Lin Yi and the others returned to the villa.

Baha landed by the window, his black bean-like eyes fixed on the distant sea.

Bubuwang lay on the doorway, ears perked up, alert to any sounds around him.

Benny curled up on the cushion in the corner, finally recovering from the shadow of seasickness, and dozed off with her eyes half-closed.

Lin Yi sat down on the sofa and picked up the nautical chart to study it.

Although the drawing quality was appalling, combined with the information Su Xiao extracted from the pirates, it was still possible to roughly determine the distribution range of the islands.

After confirming the course, Mordrac continued swimming forward, its massive body cutting through the waves in the sea.

Time passed by, second by second.

At 9 p.m. that night, Benny, who was enjoying the breeze on the roof of the villa, discovered the situation: the distorted circle on the nautical chart was indeed Huanji Island.

On the dark sea, a light appeared in the distance, like a lighthouse.

Seeing the firelight, Su Xiao realized that Huanji Island was not the territory of any kingdom. It was already 9 p.m., and normal ships would have returned to port long ago, so there was no need for such a navigational lighthouse.

Only pirate ships dare to sail at night; they dare to hunt even large sea monsters, so sailing at night is naturally no problem for them.

Upon arriving at the shallow sea area, Su Xiao saw a row of large ships, all with black sails illuminated by the firelight of the navigation torch tower—pirate ships.

The island is small, about a few square kilometers, and is irregularly oval in shape.

The island is covered with lush vegetation, appearing verdant from a distance.

In the center of the island is a not-too-high mountain peak, and the outline of buildings can be vaguely seen from its summit.

This is a pirate island. Most of the area is in a primitive state, covered with vegetation. At the front of the island, there are stone or wooden houses, about the size of a village. It is abnormally developed, at least by this world standards.

More than 70% of these buildings were combinations of taverns, hotels, restaurants, and brothels, while the remaining houses either sold cold weapons and firearms or goods related to ships.

Though small, it has all the essential parts. As a pirate island, Huanji Island presents a chaotic yet free scene.

Mordrak stopped about two nautical miles from the island; as a supernatural being, its arrival would cause unnecessary trouble.

Lin Yi and the others jumped off its back, boarded the Doom, and sailed towards the island.

Mordrak let out a low growl, and its massive body slowly sank into the sea, leaving only a small patch of open space on its back exposed.

It will wait in the nearby waters, ready to provide assistance at any time.

Lin Yi and his group landed on the island's beach.

The beach was clean, and the fine white sand shimmered softly in the sunlight.

Several coconut trees grow along the edge of the beach, their coconuts ripe and hanging there, golden yellow.

Baha flew into the air and kept watch from a high altitude.

Bubuwang sniffed the sand and then shook its head, indicating that there was no danger.

Lin Yi and his group walked inland along the beach.

After passing through a coconut grove, a dirt road appeared ahead.

The dirt road was wide enough for two horse-drawn carriages to walk side by side, and the surface was compacted by foot traffic, indicating that people often walked on it.

After walking along the dirt road for about ten minutes, a small town appeared ahead.

The town is small, with about a few hundred households. Most of the houses are wooden structures with thatched or wooden roofs.

The streets were lined with all sorts of shops, including blacksmith shops, taverns, general stores, and even a stock exchange that looked quite large.

Because it had just rained, the roads between the houses were full of mud, and faint snoring could be heard coming from within the mud. These were pirates who had been thrown out of the tavern after getting drunk and having no money.

A small number of pirates were indeed glamorous, possessing extraordinary abilities. However, over 90% of pirates lived a precarious existence, barely surviving. Even after a bloody battle with other pirates, losing an arm or leg, they would hastily bandage their wounds and, with just a bottle of rum, burst into laughter. (End of Chapter)