Chapter 153
"Northern Kun City has arrived." Lin Chenghai stared ahead and said.
Yu Sui turned back to look at him: "Northern Kun City?"
Wasn't it the Underwater Mechanism City?
Lin Chenghai didn't look at her, still staring ahead, his voice carrying a hint of melancholy: "That's its former name."
Yu Sui looked at him with eyes full of curiosity.
Lin Chenghai caught sight of this from the corner of his eye but made no movement, only asking: "How much do you know about the Underwater Mechanism City?"
Yu Sui looked at the giant whale city drawing closer and shook her head: "I don't know anything about it."
Lin Chenghai: "......"
"You dared to follow along without knowing anything about it?" He was somewhat speechless, yet also somewhat admiring.
Yu Sui asked: "Is it very dangerous?"
Lin Chenghai reconsidered. She was a student of Taiyi Academy and also Saint Chang Gen's disciple, so not feeling it was dangerous was normal.
"It's very dangerous for people who don't understand Mechanism Arts." Lin Chenghai said, "I'll advise you one last time, just hide on the Spirit Bird, don't go out."
Yu Sui immediately refused: "No way."
Lin Chenghai said: "Then we leave now."
"Now?" Yu Sui turned back in surprise, and before she could see clearly, Lin Chenghai raised his hand with a wave, bringing her along as they jumped out from the Spirit Bird.
The Spirit Bird was traveling beneath Northern Kun City. Lin Chenghai had now brought Yu Sui to fall below the Spirit Bird. Because the two were still within the Spirit Bird's barrier, they weren't eroded by the deep sea's cold air.
That massive circular Mechanism Gear on Northern Kun City slowly rotated, like a blazing sun growing in the sea. Its seemingly warm radiance illuminated every part of the ocean floor. Even at the Spirit Bird's bottom, they could see that dazzling golden light.
Yu Sui saw Lin Chenghai reach out and point at her forehead. A white jade bead fell into his palm, and after the Five Elements Energy within the bead dispersed, it became a thin water bubble that enveloped her.
She opened her eyes slightly wider and looked up to see that Lin Chenghai was also wrapped in a thin, transparent water bubble like herself.
Inside the water bubble, she could breathe freely and stay dry, feeling her body was very light with a floating sensation.
Lin Chenghai pointed upward, signaling Yu Sui to look up.
The Spirit Bird continued forward while the two didn't follow it but floated upward instead. The golden light scattered by the Mechanism Gear fell on the water bubbles, dyeing the transparent bubbles with a layer of dazzling gold.
The water bubbles also responded to the golden light's attraction, floating upward.
Yu Sui didn't know whether this was a Buddhist School Nine Schools Art or Mechanism Arts. She glanced at the departing Spirit Bird, wondering in her heart whether the people at the helm and observation deck wouldn't notice the anomaly outside the Spirit Bird?
Or was it that they wouldn't be discovered while in these transparent water bubbles?
As the water bubbles floated up approaching Northern Kun City's edge, Yu Sui became certain they wouldn't be discovered.
Gradually floating up to the edge, Yu Sui once again glimpsed a corner of this massive creature: the tall buildings on the whale's tail were arranged in orderly rows, extending endlessly as far as the eye could see. Blooming flowers and grass were full of spring vitality, interspersed throughout the white walls and red tiles.
At the very edge of the whale's tail was a massive snow-white crystal tree, its branches appearing to be covered with accumulated snow and transparent, sparkling icicles. The condensed frost flowers clustered densely together. It was completely out of place with the spring scenery behind it, yet formed its own world.
The floating water bubbles gradually lost their golden light as they approached the crystal tree's branches. Upon touching the snow-white icicles on the crystal tree's branches, they burst like being punctured, making a slight cracking sound. The light feeling suddenly disappeared, and Yu Sui steadied herself as she landed, looking up at the tall crystal tree before her.
"The water bubbles that brought you up just now are called Floating Light, a type of small Mechanism gadget that works similarly to the Taoist School's Instant Shadow Talismans." After landing, Lin Chenghai stretched his shoulders and neck, slowly explaining to Yu Sui, "When Floating Light is illuminated by Northern Kun City's First Generation Golden Crow, it merges into the light and becomes indistinguishable, while the Floating Light will also move toward the First Generation Golden Crow."
"First Generation Golden Crow?" Yu Sui turned around, "Is that the super-large circular gear I saw? The Mechanism School Golden Crows I've seen outside don't look like that."
Lin Chenghai waved his hand: "That's why it's called first generation, while the ones outside are fourth or fifth generation Mechanism Golden Crows."
"The First Generation Golden Crow's most important function here is illumination." Lin Chenghai glanced at the crystal tree and walked forward, "It was built by the Gongshu family and is something later Mechanism Arts practitioners could never surpass."
Yu Sui followed Lin Chenghai forward, quietly asking: "Senior, have you studied Mechanism Arts?"
"Mechanism Arts are quite different from other Nine Schools Arts. Watching with your eyes more often can teach you something. Low-threshold mechanisms, if someone teaches you, can be accomplished even without Five Elements Energy." Lin Chenghai said, "So in the past, everyone could be a Mechanism Arts practitioner."
Yu Sui asked: "What about now?"
Lin Chenghai snorted coldly: "Now? Kill one, one less remains."
Yu Sui asked again: "Why?"
Lin Chenghai looked back at her: "Didn't Taiyi Academy teach you?"
"The academy doesn't teach Mechanism Arts." Yu Sui replied with an innocent expression, "If it weren't for Senior Brother telling me, I wouldn't have been exposed to Mechanism Arts either."
Lin Chenghai raised an eyebrow: "What did your Senior Brother tell you?"
"Senior Brother told me so many things, but Senior Brother is also very skilled at Mechanism Arts." Yu Sui said proudly, "He can even make Mechanism Scrolls himself and earns money by selling them."
Lin Chenghai's heart jumped: "He's short of money?"
Charging money for sparring was one thing, but having to work as a laborer for the Mechanism School selling Mechanism Scrolls in daily life? How outrageous!
"I didn't know before, but after Senior Brother met me, he's no longer short of money." Yu Sui spread her hands with complete innocence, "I'm very wealthy."
Lin Chenghai forced himself to turn his head away, raising his hand to rub his forehead, his emotions complex.
He stepped on the bluestone path forward, his gaze scanning left and right as he said in a low voice: "Before the Mechanism School was surrounded and attacked, Northern Kun City was transferred to Taiyi by the Gongshu family and sunk underwater, becoming the main Mechanism construction site for Taiyi's current Four Great Mechanism Families, as well as the place that helps Taiyi monitor seawater changes."
Main Mechanism construction site?
Yu Sui also looked around. The surrounding houses were completely quiet with no living people visible. With the First Generation Golden Crow's illumination, even though it was already late night outside, Northern Kun City remained bright, making it impossible to sense the passage of time.
She took time to glance at Lin Chenghai walking ahead and leading the way.
Unlike Yu Sui, who was looking around out of curiosity, Lin Chenghai was being vigilant. At the same time, his steps were familiar with the route, his goal clear as he hurried along.
"The existence of Sea Whirlpools predates Taiyi's founding. They were once considered a threat to Taiyi as well. Once approached, they would be devoured, and there have been cases of islands being devoured by several Sea Whirlpools working together." Lin Chenghai walked while explaining to Yu Sui, "The Saints at Taiyi at that time were also helpless against Sea Whirlpools and could only choose to avoid them. It wasn't until the disaster of islands being devoured by Sea Whirlpools occurred that Taiyi's Saints began cooperating with the Mechanism School."
"The original Sea Whirlpools weren't artificial. They formed coincidentally due to Five Elements Energy gathering with the wind on the sea. Because the sea air gathered with the wind couldn't merge with each other, like masterless energy that no one had tamed, each refusing to yield to the others, they became stronger and stronger through endless fighting, thus birthing Sea Whirlpools that could devour everything."
Yu Sui followed beside Lin Chenghai with the expression of a good child listening attentively to a lecture. Seeing her such focused appearance made Lin Chenghai feel more inclined to share.
"Finding the location of Sea Whirlpools means predicting the flow direction of seawater in advance, as well as the movements of Five Elements Energy in the water." Lin Chenghai pointed downward, "Although Sea Whirlpools form quickly, they extend and gather their center from below upward, so you must explore in the deep sea below to accurately grasp Sea Whirlpool movements."
Although Lin Chenghai was explaining the birth of Sea Whirlpools to Yu Sui, he was also concealing some information, not telling her everything.
After listening, Yu Sui made an expression of sudden understanding: "So the Golden Conches on the Spirit Bird are specifically used to detect the chaotic Five Elements Energy in Sea Whirlpools?"
Lin Chenghai nodded: "You can understand it that way."
Yu Sui lowered her head to think briefly: "Sea Whirlpools are born from masterless energy fighting, so they should require tremendously vast Five Elements Energy, plus a very long time and broad sea areas with continuous sea air to birth one massive Sea Whirlpool.
But now the Sea Whirlpools near Mechanism Island are like they don't cost money, popping out three or five at the blink of an eye, and they can merge with each other to form even larger Sea Whirlpools. What's that about?"
Lin Chenghai asked her: "Do you know about the 'Water Vessel'?"
Yu Sui shook her head: "I heard this name mentioned when eavesdropping on the Saints' conversation above, but I'm not clear what it specifically does."
"It's nothing special, just a place where some Taiyi Saints take the lead, uniting with other Saints from the Six Kingdoms to research how to eliminate Strange Fire." Lin Chenghai snorted lightly, "The Water Vessel Saints believe Sea Whirlpools can devour all things. If they can use Sea Whirlpools to find the legendary 'Return to Ruins' that can devour heaven and earth, they can completely eliminate Strange Fire. Therefore, they began researching Sea Whirlpools and also researching how to create Sea Whirlpools."
Yu Sui stared with wide eyes in surprise: "So the Sea Whirlpools at Mechanism Island were artificially created by the Water Vessel people?"
"Although Sea Whirlpools are natural products of heaven and earth, as long as you create enough conditions, there's a great possibility." Lin Chenghai's outstretched hand pointed upward again, "Taiyi's sea area is large enough, and the Abyss Sea of Mechanism Island has chaotic Five Elements Energy year-round. Creating Sea Whirlpools artificially isn't impossible, as long as you can gather and control enough Five Elements Energy."
This was indeed true.
But Yu Sui still couldn't imagine how vast the Five Elements Energy would need to be gathered and controlled to create the current frequent Sea Whirlpool outbreaks. If this was the Water Vessel's experiment, they probably had been planning for over a hundred years.
Thinking of Wu Huaiwei and Leng Rouyin's conversation, Yu Sui also somewhat doubted whether the current Sea Whirlpools were the Water Vessel's plan, because these Sea Whirlpools posed a real threat to Taiyi. If one wasn't careful, the first to be devoured would be Mechanism Island.
"Senior, what is 'Return to Ruins'?" Yu Sui looked up at Lin Chenghai and asked, "Are the current Sea Whirlpools devouring each other related to finding 'Return to Ruins'?"
Lin Chenghai waved his hand: "For that, you'll have to ask those Water Vessel people, or go back and ask your master."
Yu Sui felt her heart tremble: "My master knows too?"
Mentioning Saint Chang Gen, Lin Chenghai's tone carried some sarcasm: "Your master has lived so long, what doesn't he know?"
Yu Sui asked: "How long has my master lived?"
Lin Chenghai looked at her: "You don't know?"
Yu Sui said innocently: "I don't know."
Lin Chenghai pointed at her: "You as his disciple don't even know, how could I be expected to know?"
The two stared at each other for a moment when suddenly deep bell chimes rang out. These bell chimes struck directly at the heart, seeming to come from very far away yet also very near. The continuous bell chimes startled Yu Sui into looking ahead. Invisible energy waves spread out with the bell chimes, causing the surrounding flowers, grass, and trees to shake and sway.
Lin Chenghai looked into the distance and snorted coldly: "Starting to search for people as soon as they disembark, seems they're anxious."