Chapter 249: The Function of the Mysterious Jade

249. Chapter 249: The Function of the Mysterious Jade

This meal lasted a long time, and the party did not disperse until the sky began to darken from drinking.

Perhaps the wine on the ship was too delicious, as many people became dead drunk; since the ship had not yet sailed into the distant sea and would not encounter any danger, Long Xuan allowed them this single indulgence.

Long Xuan was currently standing at the bow letting the wind sober him up, when Nie Qingcheng, the First Mate, slowly walked over from behind, stood shoulder-to-shoulder with him, gazed at the seascape in the distance, and suddenly spoke:

"I've noticed you know absolutely nothing about maritime affairs, so I have to ask an intrusive question: did you bring the Endless Jade?"

Hearing this, Long Xuan was unsurprised to be stunned: "Endless Jade? What Endless Jade?"

Nie Qingcheng couldn't help but cover her forehead; her premonition was indeed correct—this novice Captain truly didn't even understand these common-sense issues.

Everyone subconsciously assumed that since Long Xuan dared to go to the Endless Sea Region, he must possess the Endless Jade, and thus they followed him aboard.

Fortunately, she asked that intrusive question; otherwise, this entire shipful of people would be in grave trouble and would inevitably perish in the Endless Sea Region.

She couldn't help but sigh that novices setting out were truly terrifying.

She also felt fortunate to have accompanied them today; otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

She could only explain helplessly: "Why can Sky Island, with its extremely high mortality rate, attract so many Gu Cultivators to rush forward and court death? Isn't it precisely because there is a type of Spirit Medicine on Sky Island that can increase Lifespan!"

"There are even things that can keep one eternally youthful; this is also the reason your ship can carry a crowd of beauties."

"If no restrictions were imposed, one can imagine how many Gu Cultivators would be attracted; I fear that most powers in this world would move at the mere wind of news regarding the items on the island. At that time, the entire Sky Island probably couldn't hold so many people."

"Fortunately, this world has various sea regions that are dangerous to the extreme; these extremely dangerous sea regions are called Forbidden Seas, forbidden zones for humans, which very few humans can tread."

"And the Endless Sea Region belongs to the Forbidden Seas; the vast majority of Gu Cultivators who enter will die, including Gu Kings."

"The Endless Sea Region remains an unsolved mystery to this day; the reason humans named it the Endless Sea Region is that this sea region is endless, infinitely vast."

"Once a ship sails in here, even sailing straight for ten thousand years won't allow you to exit the Endless Sea Region; in the end, you can only be trapped alive inside until you die, yet strangely, the Endless Sea Region doesn't appear that large on maps—it's particularly eerie."

"Therefore, anyone who accidentally enters the Endless Sea Region should not expect to ever get out again; sailing back is useless, and even a Gu King, once lost inside, fundamentally cannot get out."

"Only a rare jade produced within the Endless Sea Region can enable ships to navigate the Endless Sea Region normally and eventually find Sky Island at its center."

"This rare jade is also called the Endless Jade by Gu Cultivators."

"Thus, only ships carrying the Endless Jade can enter the Endless Sea Region; without the Endless Jade, anyone entering the Endless Sea Region will find no end and will ultimately be trapped alive inside until they die."

"It is precisely because the Endless Jade is so rare that it restricts the vast majority of powers in this world from entering the Endless Sea Region to search for Sky Island."

"If you do not have the Endless Jade on your person, I advise you to wander elsewhere instead; the matter of searching for Sky Island is definitely hopeless," Nie Qingcheng said with some disappointment.

Hearing this, Long Xuan was completely stunned; this world actually had an infinitely vast sea region that one couldn't exit even after sailing straight for ten thousand years—was it really so eerie?

He couldn't help but feel a sense of awe toward the nature of this world; if the Endless Sea Region was so dangerous, then how many other even more dangerous sea regions existed in this world, and how mysterious would those sea regions be?

In other words, without the Endless Jade, one could not enter the Endless Sea Region under any circumstances, even if you were a Gu King.

Didn't that mean he had busied himself in vain for so many years? What was the point of building a damn ship? He had actually wasted so much time on futile effort; Long Xuan's expression gradually turned ugly.

Suddenly, he thought of something, and his eyes suddenly lit up; speaking of a jade he couldn't name, there truly was one piece.

He had obtained two items from the people of the Gu Spirit Sect; one was a letter, and the other was a piece of blue jade.

Since the content of the letter concerned the Endless Sea Region, could it be that this piece of blue jade was possibly the Endless Jade?

Long Xuan's eyes lit up, and hope rose anew in his heart; he hastily took that piece of blue jade out from his Storage Ring.

"Take a look and see if this jade is the Endless Jade?"

Long Xuan handed this piece of blue jade to Nie Qingcheng and asked.

Nie Qingcheng hurriedly turned her head, and upon seeing the piece of jade emitting a blue glow in his hand, she was startled in her heart, revealed an expression of disbelief, hastily snatched the jade away, and carefully inspected it.

"It really is the Endless Jade; what kind of luck do you have exactly, that you could accidentally pick up something so rare?"

Nie Qingcheng looked at him with a surprised gaze; this Captain clearly did not know what the Endless Jade was.

In other words, this piece of Endless Jade was not something he had specifically searched for, but rather something he obtained by chance; one had to say his luck was a bit Heaven-defying.

To what degree was the Endless Jade rare? It could be said that even the most powerful forces in this world, even the Imperial Family of a nation, almost never possessed any Endless Jade.

Only those who traded their Lifespan for luck might possibly stumble upon a piece of Endless Jade by chance.

Now that the key to entering the Endless Sea Region was secured, holding this beautiful jade, Nie Qingcheng revealed an expression of ecstatic joy.

But at this moment, Long Xuan's worry did not diminish; he frowned and asked again: "Since Sky Island produces so many items of astonishing value, won't that attract experts above the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining?"

"I've heard that only Gu Cultivators at the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining can enter the Sky Island Ruins; what is the reason for this?"

Nie Qingcheng turned her head to glance at him and explained patiently: "How would I know the reason? Anyway, the Ruins are regulated this way, and furthermore, people who die within the Ruins will vanish into thin air; no one knows why."

"The Barrier of the Sky Island Ruins can isolate seawater and can also isolate all living beings above the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining; the purpose of setting up the Barrier in this manner is also unknown."

"However, in the past, there were Gu Kings carrying the Endless Jade guarding outside, specifically intercepting and killing Gu Cultivators at the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining who emerged from the Sky Island Ruins."

"But now, the major powers have jointly established a Rule: Gu Cultivators above the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining are prohibited from entering the Endless Sea Region; otherwise, they will be jointly exterminated by all parties."

"Therefore, similar situations have basically ceased to exist; you completely need not worry about encountering Gu Cultivators above the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining there."

Seeing what he was worried about, Nie Qingcheng explained patiently.

Hearing this, the look of worry on Long Xuan's face did not diminish.

Why did the Sky Island Ruins only allow Gu Cultivators at the Cultivation Stage: Essence Refining to enter? Why did corpses of those who died inside vanish into thin air? Furthermore, why had the Sky Island Ruins appeared countless times, yet the treasures there seemed inexhaustible?

Since these Rules could exist, there must definitely be a reason for them.

Others might not care about these details, but he still felt it was better to understand them clearly.

Understanding these details could very likely be of great help to him in an unknown Ruin.

If possible, he even wanted to understand the cause of this Ruin's formation.

Unfortunately, Nie Qingcheng clearly did not understand these issues, and she was too lazy to investigate these optional questions, so Long Xuan could only give up asking further.

"I have absolutely no experience with maritime affairs; from now on, I'll leave the matter of controlling the ship's direction to you. Which direction do you think the Divine Dragon Ship should sail next?" Long Xuan said again.

Nie Qingcheng turned her head to look at him and said seriously: "I was just about to find you to discuss this matter."

"If it were a normal ship, one would need to plan many safe routes, requiring the Captain to have rich navigational experience."

"But this is an abnormal ship; it seems capable of handling various maritime dangers and can cross through the vast majority of dangerous sea regions."

"Therefore, my suggestion is that we simply go straight ahead."

"However, although the straight-line distance is the shortest, it will inevitably pass through those extremely dangerous sea regions."

"These sea regions are truly too dangerous; basically, few ships dare to venture there. Ships departing from Star Sea Port bound for Sky Island basically all take a detour."

"For instance, the Death Sea Region directly ahead of us is a sea region dangerous to the extreme. Even Seven-Story Treasure Ships have sunk in that sea region, and the number of Five-Story Treasure Ships that have sunk there is countless."

"In terms of danger level, the Death Sea Region is not inferior to the Endless Sea Region by much."

"The vast majority of ships, when facing the Death Sea Region, will definitely take a detour, requiring an unknown amount of time to be wasted."

"But I feel the Divine Dragon Ship need not take a detour; its performance can absolutely handle all kinds of dangers within the Death Sea Region."

"The key is that the more a sea region is inaccessible to humans, the richer its resources are. The aquatic spirit medicine in the sea is countless, and in the absence of human venture, thousand-year spirit medicine and ten-thousand-year spirit herbs are abundant beyond imagination."

"Moreover, the Death Sea Region contains a large number of sunken ships; these are all infinite wealth."

"Therefore, my suggestion is that since the Divine Dragon Ship's performance is sufficient, let us go straight ahead and not waste its capabilities."

"If we take a detour, we will definitely encounter other ships heading to Sky Island, such as those Five-Story Treasure Ships and Seven-Story Treasure Ships. With our small numbers, taking a detour may not be safer than traversing the Death Sea Region."

Nie Qingcheng's eyes sparkled slightly; clearly, she was very inclined toward entering the Death Sea Region, as if that sea region held endless wealth and treasures lay everywhere.

Upon hearing this, before Long Xuan could say anything, Young Master Mo, who had come out for some fresh air, could not wait and began shouting loudly.

"Go to the Death Sea Region! Go to the Death Sea Region!"

"The Death Sea Region must be extremely interesting; a man should venture into the most dangerous sea regions!"

The twins beside him, one named Mo Zuo and the other Mo You, hurriedly covered his mouth.

At this moment, both twins' faces had turned pale. This Young Master Mo loved adventure, but they certainly did not love adventure.

They suffered from deep-sea phobia and were extremely afraid of dangers originating from the sea. Precisely because of this reason, the Family Head had assigned the two of them to serve as attendants to Young Master Mo, in order to restrain Young Master Mo's adventurous genes.

"We absolutely cannot go to the Death Sea Region! The Death Sea Region is truly too dangerous; among the Five Great Families of Star Sea City, not a single ship dares to traverse the Death Sea Region!"

"Ships that boldly challenge the Death Sea Region have without exception all sunk! That place is the Forbidden Sea, inaccessible to humans!" Mo Zuo hurriedly shouted. (End of Chapter)