The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 720 Whose secret realm have you occupied as a mirage, a dragon palace?!
"Mr. Shen?"

"Mr. Shen?"

"Mr. Shen, how are you?"

Shouting came from the other end of the phone. Shen Le took a deep breath, then a deep breath, tapped the phone screen, switching the camera from front to back, pointing it towards the area below the ship's hull:

"It's nothing, there's an unexpected guest... talking to me. Do you have any Secret Service members on your ship? Have you dealt with them before?"

The reconnaissance ship was not supposed to be equipped with Special Affairs Bureau personnel, but since it was going to go to sea with Shen Le, it had to be equipped with one even though it wasn't usually.

The relevant personnel rushed over, frantically searching for information while simultaneously feeling utterly overwhelmed.
"No, really! We don't have that many people. We're patrolling the sea all day long. Besides, even if we were out at sea, we wouldn't necessarily be able to find anyone!"

Given the vastness of the ocean and the depths of the seabed, who knows if these fish demons, sea turtle demons, or even other demons, or even real dragons, are even possible—if they don't show themselves, the Special Affairs Bureau has nowhere to look for them!
"Then...should I talk to them first?" Shen Le suggested, somewhat uncertainly.

"If they are willing to communicate with the authorities, then you can follow up and establish contact with them?"

"No problem!" The special affairs officer tried his best to express his gratitude.

"I'll send the relevant information over immediately! Could you please stop for a moment and let us come closer to board?"

Brother Shark has already begun to feast, enjoying the sight of the big fish that has been killed by flying swords, impaled by flying swords, and electrocuted by green lamps, floating belly up to the surface.

While eating, it also picked and chose, using its tail and fins to swat away several small fish, sending them flying directly onto the boat.

"This fish is delicious! These are the best ones! I'll save them for you! I'll eat the rest! These fish are enough for you for a day. Tomorrow, I'll catch you some more delicious fish! Fresh ones!"

Shen Le: "..."

Should I say thank you?
He leaned over the gunwale, directing the little guys to collect the fish, prepare them, and cook them into steamed fish, fish soup, and fish porridge, all while casually chatting with the shark.
"My name is Shen Le. May I ask your honorable name, sir, and where you live?"

“Madam,” Shark corrected first. Shen Le broke out in a cold sweat:
"Sorry, sorry, I didn't recognize you. This lady..."

I really don't recognize her!
A shark head floating on the surface of the water like this, I really can't tell if it's male or female!

Let alone a shark demon, even if a whole shark were placed in front of me, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference without dissecting it...

"It's alright, I'm used to it. Humans are all like that." The shark demon casually flicked its fin, creating a splash of water.
"My name is Xuan Yuan, and I am the king of this area! Starting from that island in front, the surrounding three hundred miles are all my territory!"

"Two hundred miles beyond the edge of my territory lies Mirage. There's a gathering there on the night of the full moon, Mr. Shen. Would you like to come?"

"Say yes! Say yes!" The special agent on the phone urged repeatedly.
"Ask him if he can take us with him!"

"It's best not to." Following the direction of Shen Le's finger, Xuan Yuan leaped high into the air and then crashed down, creating waves several times higher than a whale leaping into the water.

Shen Le squinted and examined it closely. A small part of the waves it created were generated by muscle power, but the vast majority were due to its control over the surrounding water forces.

First came the seawater, then a mixture of waves and spray, followed by a misty fog, forming a bluish-black, miniature waterspout-like structure that lifted it higher and higher, until it was taller than the mast.

It glanced into the distance—Shen Le wasn't sure if it saw clearly—then fell heavily into the sea, jumped up again, and fell down again, repeating this process over and over.

Finally, it seemed satisfied, and with a flick of its huge tail, it slapped up two more small fish:

"People? They don't seem strong—not just anyone can go there! If they're too weak, they'll die!"

"I'm here!" Shen Le shouted to her from the gunwale.
"As long as they stay on my ship and don't disembark, I can guarantee their safety! They represent the will of the nation and deal with all sorts of monsters; they can provide you with many conveniences!"

"Hmm...I see." Xuan Yuan swam around Shen Le's boat twice more. Huge waves crashed against the hull time and time again, seemingly assessing the strength of Yun Kun's defenses.

Finally, it emerged once more, its enormous mouth opening wide, dozens of rows of sharp, white teeth opening and closing continuously:
"Are they...trustworthy? Will they start fighting the moment they meet? Their weapons...are very strong, very strong..."

The shark's tail fin thumped the water nervously, splashing up a spray, and two small fish instantly rolled belly up. Clearly, these sea monsters had witnessed more than one such maritime exercise.
"If we were to get hit even once, we would die..."

“They won’t! I guarantee it!” Shen Le immediately interjected, trying to make his tone as sincere as possible.
"They've dealt with many monsters on land! As long as you abide by the law, and even as long as you maintain goodwill, there's nothing to talk about!"
Look at Yun Kun, look at Qing Deng, Zhen Yue, and Li Xing Tang, we all get along very well! If you don't believe me, I can even call other monsters to testify!

Yes! They're very kind! Unless they're evil monsters that eat people, they won't attack without reason!

They do all the maintenance for me!

Look at my deck! They cleaned it all! Whatever you ask them for, they give it to you!

The little ones chattered excitedly, vouching for Shen Le and explaining for the Special Affairs Bureau. Xuan Yuan remained silent for a moment, then suddenly plunged into the sea and disappeared.

Shen Le was only slightly surprised when she heard a loud shout from the other end of the phone:

"It's coming! It's coming! Mr. Shen, what's it doing here? What should we do?"

“Call her ‘Lady Xuanyuan’.” Shen Le paused for a moment, then stood on tiptoe, watching the enormous shark head emerge beside the reconnaissance ship.
"How do you usually deal with unfamiliar monsters for the first time? You can do it the same way you deal with her now... right?"

"Yes, yes!" The Special Affairs Bureau guy hurriedly packed his things. Cultivation medicines the fish demon might find appealing, food the fish demon might like, and a phone/tablet compatible with the fish demon…

One by one, they were tied up and lowered from the ship's side. Xuan Yuan's massive body slowly circled the reconnaissance ship, fiddled with the contraptions a few times, but didn't take them, before swimming back to Yun Kun's side.
"Alright! For your sake, Mr. Shen... let them come. However, Hai City has its own rules. If they don't understand the rules and cause trouble, I won't be responsible!"

"Thank you so much, Ms. Xuan Yuan!" Shen Le breathed a sigh of relief and quickly expressed her gratitude. On the distant sea, a speedboat cut through the mist, leaving a white wake in its wake, speeding towards them.

"Mr. Shen! Give us some time! We'll be right there! -- Oh! No, no, no, no!"

The speedboat sped up to the side of the cloud-like creature, slowly slowed down, and planned to pull over to the side of the boat and try to get on board using a rope ladder or something else—damn it, does the cloud-like creature even have such a ladder?
It seems not. Usually, Yun Kun only unloads and loads people at the port, always using a gangplank, so there's no need to throw rope ladders from the ship's side...

However, before they could figure it out, they felt a huge wave surge up, lifting the ship rapidly upwards.

Turning my head in horror, I saw that bluish-black shark head—which looked even more terrifying up close—rising alongside them, seemingly within reach...

"Ms. Xuan Yuan, don't scare them." Shen Le smiled and leaned against the ship's side, casually reaching out to take control of the waves driven by Xuan Yuan.

Instantly, the small patch of seawater calmed down, like a tiny swimming pool, clinging to the side of Yun Kun's boat, allowing the speedboat to float smoothly alongside. The special affairs officer who had been in contact with Shen Le glanced nervously at the water level, which was noticeably higher than the surrounding area, then nervously at the side of the boat, before shakily standing up, preparing to take a step:

With a whoosh, a cable as thick as a bowl swung heavily, forming a rope bridge between Yun Kun and the speedboat.

"Ah this..."

"Thank you, Yun Kun." Shen Le raised his hand to stroke the gunwale, smiling as he expressed his gratitude. Immediately afterward, a black tide surged, and countless strands of black hair flew over the gunwale, entangled the boxes on the speedboat, and pulled them back one by one.

"Gently! Gently!" A bespectacled young man in the middle of the speedboat shouted fearfully.
"These are all precision instruments!!!"

Precision instruments, detection equipment, and boxes labeled "friendly gifts" were pulled over one by one and placed on the ship without disturbing a speck of dust.

Following them were the bespectacled young man, two composed middle-aged agents, and finally the young man who contacted Shen Le, all of whom crossed the ship's railing one after another.

Just as the last guy said "All done," there was a loud splash, and a jet of water cascaded down, sending the speedboat crashing back into the sea and propelling it hundreds of meters away.
"We're leaving! Take care of yourselves!!!"

Shen Le waved vigorously to the speedboat driver. Then, turning to look at Xuan Yuan, her smile was radiant:

"Shall we set off? If we're in a hurry, shall we hurry?"

"Need not……"

Xuan Yuan stirred up a wave, slowly and leisurely leading the way:

"Anyway, there are still two days until the full moon. Five hundred li is enough!"

Two days and two nights, five hundred li, for a ship, that's about a speed of 2.8 knots—even without an engine, a regular wooden boat with its sails unfurled could easily achieve that.

Several special affairs bureau personnel were busy, some operating instruments to measure sea conditions, and others measuring the energy intensity and special aura on Xuan Yuan's body.

Another one simply leaned against the ship's railing, chatting incessantly with Xuan Yuan, explaining the situation on shore, the Special Affairs Bureau's policies, and showing her the siren-specific phone and tablet:

"These don't need to be exchanged for anything; they can be given to you as a gift for our first meeting..."

Shen Le simply continued meditating at the bow of the boat, closing his eyes, and using his spiritual power to sense the changes in the surrounding天地元气 (heaven and earth energy).

After a promotion, the range of his spiritual power became wider and wider. Without deliberately concentrating, he could reach the heavens and sense the existence of the barrier between heaven and earth.

Unfortunately, the water below was still too deep, and without his best efforts, he couldn't quite reach the bottom—this place had already left the East China Sea continental shelf and entered the Blackwater Ocean…

Previously, following his instructions and the map on the bronze cauldron, Yun Kun was sailing almost along the boundary of the barrier between heaven and earth, that is, on the eastern side of the Ryukyu Islands.

Shen Le had assumed that Xuan Yuan would lead them to Hai City and they would inevitably deviate from the route, forcing him to retrace his steps later.

Unexpectedly, the path Xuan Yuan led them along was almost identical to the route he originally intended to take. Shen Le asked about it curiously, only to receive a somewhat bewildered and clueless answer:
"This is the most comfortable place... Any further on, the water doesn't taste right, we don't like going there..."

These monsters, though unaware of the existence of the barrier between heaven and earth, possess instincts far more acute than those of humans!

Shen Le sighed as he walked, chatting with Xuan Yuan and inquiring about the surrounding area. A boat and a fish swayed and drifted along, finally arriving at a seemingly ordinary stretch of sea.

Xuan Yuan slowed down, swam two laps in place, and then lay down on the surface of the water to begin his voracious eating:
"This is it! Get ready!"

"We've arrived?" Shen Le stood at the ship's railing, gazing at the deep blue sea below.

When the mental energy was dispersed, the surface and water of the sea were calm, except for the occasional leap of flying fish that made a splashing sound. There was nothing unusual about it.

There aren't even any islands... Within a ten-mile radius, there are no islands, coral reefs, or submerged reefs at all...

"It's not time yet." Xuan Yuan's enormous head emerged from the water, gazing up at the sky.

As the sun sets, the horizon is painted with magnificent orange-red and purple-blue hues, bathing even its azure pupils in a breathtaking glow.
"Wait...wait until the moon is high in the sky...then the gates of the mirage will open..."

Huh?
Isn't the sea market just a place where a few water sprites can get together, find a convenient spot for everyone, and start trading right away?

We have to wait for the gate to open? Could it be that this is a secret realm that opens periodically and has been occupied by these sea monsters for trading purposes?

You can't possibly have taken over the Dragon Palace, can you?!
"You all get ready first." Xuan Yuan looked up at Yun Kun, somewhat dissatisfied.

"The entrance is down below. Your boat is too big to fit. You'll need a smaller one, or... swim down."

"It's alright! I can do it!" Yun Kun replied spiritedly. It shook its body and instantly shrank by half, then shook again and shrank by half again.

In a short while, it had shrunk to the same size as Xuan Yuan:

[Sister Xuanyuan! Is this okay? You swim, I'll follow behind!]

Even the most powerful and experienced water demon was speechless for a moment. It rolled over in the sea and looked up at the sky.

Night fell, and the full moon slowly rose into the sky, its silvery light spilling across the sea. At the height of the moonlight, Xuan Yuan suddenly let out a long, drawn-out roar:

"Now! Follow me!"

Her massive body plunged downwards, instantly disappearing into the water. Yun Kun followed without hesitation. One hundred meters, two hundred meters, three hundred meters…

The water quickly turned dark, with only the eerie cold light from the Xuan Yuan scales and the lamplight from the bow of the Yun Kun ship illuminating their path.

After swimming for an unknown amount of time, a strange and dazzling light suddenly shone in everyone's eyes.

A massive underwater whirlpool appeared before their eyes!

(End of this chapter)