Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei finds a Freylian

At the same time, on a yacht thirty nautical miles from the coastline, Tachibana Masamune put down his satellite phone and headed towards the bathroom deep inside the cabin.

The sound of running water and the creaking of a rubber duck being pressed came from the bathroom. He stood outside the door, and through the frosted glass, he could see a hazy silhouette, slender and graceful, like the moon's reflection in the water.

The little yellow duck floated slowly, and Erii gently poked it into the water, making it float back up.

Erii Uesugi took a bath for an hour, spending most of the time playing house with a rubber duck. If Lu Mingfei were here, he would be amazed at how well-developed the girl was, but it's very abnormal for a girl her age to be playing house with a rubber duck.

Chapter 417 Before Launching (Part 2)

The bubbles shimmered iridescently under the light, and the bathroom was filled with the fragrance of citrus. Erii's long hair floated on the water like seaweed, its dark red color gleaming strangely under the light. Her eyes were clear amber, yet she rarely made eye contact with anyone; her gaze was too pure, too direct, able to see through all pretenses, yet indifferent to everything.

She just stared intently at the little yellow duck, as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.

Tachibana Masamune stood outside the door for a long time before coughing and saying, "Eri, time is running out. Get dressed and get ready to leave."

The sound of water stopped. A few seconds later, there was the sound of fingers scraping against glass, and wet words appeared on the frosted glass door: "I understand, it will be done soon."

The handwriting was transparent and messy, and through it, Tachibana Masamune could vaguely make out the silhouette of an alluring figure. Erii stood up from the water, water droplets sliding down her spine, lingering briefly at her lower back before dripping back into the bathtub. Instead of immediately putting on a towel, she went to the shower to rinse the foam off her hair, her movements slow and focused, as if performing some kind of ritual.

"Put on a bath towel first! What kind of behavior is this?!" Tachibana Masamune felt exhausted; this wasn't the first time something like this had happened.

In the bathroom, Erii took off her headphones and placed them aside. They were given to her by Tachibana Masamune to block out excessive noise from the outside world; her hearing was far more acute than that of ordinary people. She turned on the tap, letting the warm water rinse away the last of the foam from her hair. The water flowed down her fair skin, gathering into small swirls at her feet.

Erii opened the suitcase, revealing a children's suitcase with cartoon patterns, part of the same product line as the little yellow duck. Clothes were neatly folded inside, alongside various toys and game consoles. Erii carefully placed the little yellow duck back into the mesh pocket on the side of the suitcase, then took out a red and white shrine maiden outfit.

Erii dressed slowly but skillfully. She first put on her kimono, then her white robe, and finally tied her crimson hakama. Throughout the process, she kept her head down, intently watching her fingers and the sash, as if it were a task requiring complete concentration.

After putting on her shrine maiden outfit, she put on her headphones again. After thinking for a moment, she took the little yellow duck out of her suitcase, carefully wiped off the water droplets, and then secretly tucked it into her skirt. The skirt was filled with pockets, stuffed with all sorts of little things.

Candy, small toys, game cartridges, a small notebook, and a pen are her main ways of communicating with the outside world.

Because Uesugi Erii cannot speak.

It wasn't that she didn't want to, but that she couldn't. Her voice was a weapon, every word a curse, every utterance potentially leading to destruction. So her family taught her to write, gave her notebooks and pens, and also headphones and a game console, allowing her to live in her own world, maintaining a safe distance from the outside world.

The white yacht bobbed in the rising tide, a silver orange emblem adorning its prow. This yacht, named Tsukuyomi, was one of the properties of the Snake Clan and was being specially requisitioned tonight for a secret mission.

Tachibana Masamune and Fuuma Kotaro sat facing each other in the tea room on the deck, with exquisite tea utensils laid out before them. Fuuma Kotaro, the head of the Fuuma family and the branch of the Snake-Headed Eight Families responsible for intelligence and assassination, was a lean, middle-aged man with sharp, eagle-like eyes. He wore a traditional black kimono, with a short sword, a symbol of his status as the head of the family, tucked into his waistband.

The bodyguards in black were positioned at the bow and stern of the ship, each expressionless, their hands on their sword hilts, vigilantly watching the surrounding sea. These were Tachibana Masamune's trusted confidants, the elite of the executive department. Tonight's mission was classified as top secret, and all participants had undergone rigorous screening.

When Erii Uesugi stepped onto the deck, everyone bowed slightly, showing respect for her position as the head of the family. She exuded a pleasant scent of shampoo, mixed with the fresh aroma unique to young girls. Her bare feet trod lightly on the teak deck, almost inaudibly.

Kotaro Fuma immediately stood up and bowed. Although the other party was a girl, the status of the head of the three major clans was slightly higher than that of the head of the five minor clans. The Uesugi clan held a higher status in the family than the Fuma clan, which was known for training ninjas.

Erii didn't notice his bow, or rather, she did notice but didn't understand what it meant. She simply stood quietly, waiting for Masamune's instructions.

“Come over here,” Tachibana Masamune said gently.

Erii knelt on the cushion in front of Tachibana Masamune, but instead of looking at him, she glanced around like a child forced by their parents to sit and do their homework. Her gaze fell on a plate of wagashi (Japanese sweets) on the tea table. It was a cherry blossom-shaped confectionery, its delicate pink color particularly tempting under the light.

"Want some?" Tachibana Masamune pushed the plate in front of her.

Erii hesitated for a moment, then reached out and picked up a piece, eating it in small bites. She ate elegantly, but quickly, clearly hungry. Tachibana Masamune watched her, his eyes filled with complex emotions—fatherly love, the scrutiny of a patriarch, and something deeper and more difficult to decipher.

"Thank you for your trouble." After she finished eating, Tachibana Masamune gently patted the top of her head. "Tonight, we must sever the path to the underworld."

Erii neither nodded nor wrote anything. She simply extended her finger and drew a circle in Tachibana Masamune's palm. Her finger was long and white, with a slight reddish tinge at the tip, like a meticulously crafted work of art.

Tachibana Masamune sighed, took out a small box from his pocket, opened it, and inside was a string of shimenawa bracelets with white talismans tied to the rope.

"Wearing this will bring you good luck."

Erii obediently extended her hand, allowing Tachibana Masamune to place the bracelet on her left wrist. Then she took off her wooden clogs and placed them aside, hopping onto a small boat beside the yacht in only her white socks. It was a simple speedboat, a stark contrast to the luxurious yacht, devoid of any decorations, containing only the most basic driving equipment and a few seats.

She was alone in the small boat, the mooring rope untied. Tachibana Masamune stood up and reached out to Erii.

Erii lowered her head and ignored him, staring at her fingers.

Masamune Tachibana gripped the mooring rope. The sea breeze grew stronger, causing their clothes to flutter in the wind. Yachts and small boats bobbed on the waves, sometimes approaching, sometimes moving away. Kotaro Fuuma and his bodyguards averted their gaze, granting the heads of the family a final moment of privacy.

After a brief standoff, Erii reluctantly pulled a PSP from her skirt pocket and handed it to Masamune Tachibana. The game console had a pink casing covered in cartoon stickers; it was one of her most cherished possessions.

"This is of great importance, don't take this with you." Tachibana Masamune said helplessly, putting the PSP back in his pocket. "I'll give it back to you when I'm done."

Erii finally looked up at him. At that moment, Tachibana Masamune almost thought she would write something, perhaps a complaint, perhaps a farewell, or perhaps just a simple "oh".

But in the end, she did nothing; she simply lowered her head again, placed her hands on her knees, like a primary school student waiting to depart.

Masamune Tachibana loosened the mooring rope, and the small boat's engine started, emitting a low rumble.

Tachibana Masamune stood at the ship's railing, watching the small boat sail away until it became a tiny white dot and finally merged into the distant sea of ​​light.

Fuma Kotaro walked up behind him and asked in a low voice, "Mr. Masamune, is this really a good idea? To let the head of the Uesugi family go to Sumeru alone?"

“She is Tsukuyomi, Kotaro,” Masamune Tachibana said without turning around, his voice carried away by the wind. “Her fate was sealed from birth. All we can do is ensure that her power is used in the right way.”

"But her health, according to a recent report from the medical department, is declining in the stability of her bloodline. Frequent use of Words of Power may accelerate this."

“I know,” Tachibana Masamune interrupted him, his voice turning icy. “So tonight we must succeed. The remains of the White King, the bones and blood of a god, are the only thing that can stabilize her bloodline.”

Kotaro Fuma fell silent. As the head of the Fuma family, he knew too many secrets and carried too much darkness on his shoulders.

“Contact Chisei,” Tachibana Masamune said, turning back to his cabin, his voice regaining its calm. “Tell him that Tsukuyomi has already departed. Everything is proceeding according to plan.”

"Yes."

On the sea, the small boat cuts through the waves.

Erii sat at the stern of the boat, her hands gripping the edge of the seat tightly. The sea breeze was strong, tousling her long hair and making the sleeves of her shrine maiden robes flutter. She squinted slightly, watching the Sumeru platform draw ever closer.

Chapter 418 begins the descent.

On the sea, the small boat cuts through the waves.

Erii sat at the stern of the boat, her hands gripping the edge of the seat tightly. The sea breeze was strong, tousling her long hair and making the sleeves of her shrine maiden robes flutter. She squinted slightly, watching the Sumeru platform draw ever closer.

It was a massive offshore work platform, composed of four modules, brightly lit as day. Heavy cranes were hoisting equipment, workers in work clothes were busy on the platform, and helicopters were taking off and landing on the helipad. In the center of the platform, there was a circular opening with a diameter of more than twenty meters, which was the launch port for the deep-sea submersible. At that moment, cables and pipes were hanging down into the dark seawater.

Erii knew that beneath the sea, at the bottom of the trench eight thousand meters deep, lay something called the "Burial Place of the Gods." She also knew that her mission tonight was to go there and, with her voice and her power of words, sever the connection—the forbidden path connecting the mortal world with the underworld, connecting humanity with the ancient gods.

She touched the shimenawa bracelet on her wrist, then touched the little yellow duck inside her skirt. Then she took a small notebook and a pen from another pocket, and by the light of the platform, wrote a line in the notebook: "Will my brother be there too?"

After writing it, she stared at the words for a long time, then tore the page out, folded it into a small boat, and gently placed it into the sea. The paper boat bobbed on the waves, quickly being left behind by the small boat and disappearing into the dark sea.

Genjiro was the only person she felt close to in her family. Tachibana Masamune was her guardian, her parent, but Genjiro was the one who would pick up her kimono to shield her from the public eye, the one who would stay by her bedside when she was sick, and the one who would bring her new game cartridges.

The small boat approached the Sumeru pedestal, and a staff member threw down a rope ladder. Erii stood up, put away her notebook and pen, straightened her shrine maiden clothes, and then grabbed the rope ladder and began to climb. Her movements were light and agile, completely unlike a girl lacking athletic ability.

Upon reaching the platform, medical personnel in white coats immediately approached her, intending to examine her. Erii took a step back, watching them warily.

At this moment, a middle-aged man who appeared to be in charge rushed over, bowed, and said, "Master Uesugi, welcome to Sumeru Throne. The submersible has reached the scheduled depth and is expected to arrive at the Shrine of the Gods in 70 minutes. Please go to the lounge to prepare, as we need to connect your life monitoring equipment."

Erii shook her head, took out a notebook from her skirt, and wrote: "No, I'm not going to the lounge. Take me to the control room."

The person in charge hesitated for a moment, but remembering Tachibana Masamune's orders to fulfill all of the Uesugi family head's reasonable requests, he nodded: "Please follow me."

The control room was located in the core area of ​​the platform, where a huge screen displayed various data: depth, water temperature, pressure, the submersible's status, and the vital signs of the three crew members. Erii stood in front of the screen, looking up at the fluctuating numbers and images.

One of the screens displayed a live feed of the submersible's interior: the blond Caesar Gattuso was inspecting the equipment, the dark-haired Chu Zihang was resting with his eyes closed, and a somewhat nervous-looking boy, Lu Mingfei, was eating chocolate. Erii's gaze lingered on the boy for a few seconds before shifting away.

She pulled something else from her pocket: a photograph. The photograph showed the back of a red-haired girl standing under a cherry blossom tree. It was herself, yet not quite. It was her imagined self—a self capable of speaking normally, living a normal life, and smiling normally.

After looking at it for a while, she put the photo back in her pocket. Then she walked to a corner of the control room, sat down in the seat prepared for her by the staff, closed her eyes, and began to wait.

Awaiting her fateful moment.

"Depth 30 meters, system operating normally," Caesar reported to the surface commander, Genjiro, while maneuvering the grandfatherly deep-sea submersible. His voice, clear and steady, carried the composure characteristic of the Gattuso family heir, through the communication channel back to the Sumeru control room.

In the control room, Genji stood before the enormous monitoring screen, watching the green dot representing the deep-sea submersible slowly descend across the 3D nautical chart. Around him, technicians busily recorded various data: temperature, pressure, oxygen levels inside the cabin, and crew vital signs. Everything appeared normal, but Genji's brow furrowed slightly.

It's too normal, which is unsettling.

According to their family's intelligence, the depths of the Japan Trench are far from peaceful. There lies a burial ground for the gods, the remains of the White King, and a secret that the Snake-Headed Eight Families have guarded and feared for millennia. Tonight, they will open Pandora's box and unleash an unknown destiny.

"Maintain the current course and report the depth every minute," Genji said into the microphone. His voice traveled to the surface of the sea at an altitude of eight thousand meters, and then through the communication cable to the Trieste in the deep sea, with a delay of less than one second. During this delay, the submersible sank several meters.

"Received, water level under control," Caesar replied.

Inside the submersible, Lu Mingfei looked up through the observation window at the top. The last light source was in the center of his field of vision, surrounded by dark blue seawater. A sliver of light seemed to be projected from an inverted well in the sky. As the submersible sank into the well and disappeared completely into darkness, Lu Mingfei shivered slightly.

It wasn't the physical cold—the submersible's temperature control system kept the cabin at a comfortable 22 degrees Celsius—but rather the psychological cold. It was like the first time as a child realizing the vastness of the universe, realizing that one was nothing more than a speck of dust floating in boundless darkness. Only then, he was looking up at the starry sky; now he was in the deep sea.

Yuan Zhisheng once said that the Abyss is very special, so special that it is isolated from the world, with a thick layer of seawater eight kilometers above it. The lowest point is less than one kilometer from the mantle, where the temperature is very high, the rocks are liquefied, and there is a constant flow of water. 99.9% of life cannot survive there.

But as the submersible continued to descend, Lu Mingfei felt the lights on the pedestal above growing dimmer, leaving him only with endless darkness. The journey to hell had only taken a few hundred meters, but Lu Mingfei now desperately wanted to turn back. There was nothing here; he felt so lonely.

"Do you think this thing is really safe and reliable?" Lu Mingfei's voice was particularly clear in the cramped cockpit. "I mean, when was the last time it dived? 1960? That's an antique from more than half a century ago."

"To be precise, it was January 23, 1960," Chu Zihang's voice came from behind. "It was piloted by Jacques Picard and U.S. Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh, and it descended to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, at a depth of 10916 meters. After that, the deep-sea submersible was mothballed until the Pompeii family and the Equipment Department 'borrowed' it for modernization."

"'Borrow'?" Lu Mingfei caught the subtlety of the word. "Then, the Pompeii family head's 'friendly gift' is quite suspicious. Besides, the Equipment Department usually doesn't return loans, does it?"

Chapter 419 The Origin of Life

"They supposedly gave the museum a replica, one that looks even better than the original," Caesar interjected. "But the equipment department insists it was an upgrade, not a swap. Anyway, now that this thing is right under our noses, whether it's real or fake doesn't matter anymore."

Lu Mingfei sighed and adjusted his posture. The cockpit was indeed pitifully small; three adult men were crammed inside, back to back, with almost no room to turn around. His knees were practically touching the instrument panel opposite him, and his head was less than ten centimeters from the ceiling. In an emergency, they wouldn't even have room to escape.

However, at a depth of 8,000 meters, escape is a non-issue. If the submersible disintegrates, the instantaneous water pressure would crush their bodies into a pulp, leaving no intact remains.

"Don't think about those things," Caesar read Lu Mingfei's mind. "Although the Trieste is an antique, the equipment department has given it a complete upgrade. A memory metal layer has been added inside the hull, all the pipes and valves have been replaced with the latest materials, and the control system is completely digital. It is now more robust than it was in 1960."

"I hope so. Senior brother, turn on the light, it's so dark in here," Lu Mingfei murmured.

“Okay.” Chu Zihang turned on the external light source, and the surroundings lit up.

After being modified by the equipment department, the Trieste was equipped with high-intensity spotlights. However, in the high-pressure environment of the deep sea, the light intensity would drop sharply within ten meters, allowing only a rough view of what was nearby.

"Wow, there are fish here too!" Lu Mingfei pointed to the small silver fish, whose names he didn't know. They swam slowly in a long line, and the light reflected off them.

“Yes, there is life here,” Chu Zihang said. “Even in such a dark and high-pressure environment, life has still found its own path.”

"According to experts, 99% of life exists in the ocean, while terrestrial life accounts for less than 1%, which is very small," Chu Zihang continued, as if lecturing a student. "The ocean is the origin of all life on Earth. Some biologists believe that in the early days of the Earth, the ocean was rich in nutrients, and countless organic molecules underwent chemical reactions. After countless billions of reactions, the first life on Earth was produced."

Lu Mingfei was captivated by Chu Zihang's description, temporarily forgetting his fear. He looked through the observation window at the small silver fish, which resembled deep-sea lanternfish, with luminous spots on their sides that drew flowing lines of light in the darkness. The submersible's lights startled them, but they weren't afraid. Instead, they curiously swam around the huge metal structure, touching the shell with their bodies and then quickly swimming away, as if playing a game.

"Is the birthplace of dragons also the ocean?" Lu Mingfei asked, immediately realizing he'd asked a stupid question. But Chu Zihang didn't laugh at him.

“It’s quite possible that some members of the Secret Party believe that dragons were originally born in the ocean, but eventually settled on land. Using the ocean as their hatching ground is like returning to their roots,” Chu Zihang replied. “Of course, this is just one perspective. There are dozens of different theories about the origin of dragons in academia, but none of them can be supported by conclusive evidence. After all, dragon civilization disappeared without a trace a very, very long time ago.”

Caesar opened the air valve, releasing the stored compressed air, and the submersible descended into the deeper ocean. Amidst the sounds of machinery and whistling air, Lu Mingfei and the others could clearly hear each other's breathing and heartbeats.