Chapter 1711 - 866: The Perilous Island in the Frozen Sea

It was winter, the further north they went, the colder the weather became.

They traveled for several days, braving the winds and snow, avoiding populated areas, opting for desolate coastlines and frozen tundras.

The wind and snow blurred the boundaries between heaven and earth, looking around, all that was visible were vast snowfields and a lead-gray wrathful sea.

What they saw along the way was all frozen desolation.

The abandoned fishing village’s wooden houses were half-buried by snow, like giant tombs.

Occasionally, they encountered scattered Ainu hunters avoiding the ravages of war, each wrapped in thick animal skins, their eyes wary and fatigued.

They learned from these hunters a piece of news: outside Beilu Road, near the northeast corner of Ezo Land, strange occurrences had been frequent in recent months.

Fishing boats ventured out to sea when the wind and snow abated slightly, seemingly facing favorable sea conditions, only to be suddenly engulfed by eerie fog, never to be heard from again...

Some who were fortunate enough to return reported hearing inhuman screeches within the fog and seeing enormous shadows swimming in it...

Even more bizarre were occasions when the sea would rise without wind, the waves as black as ink, stinking horribly, completely out of place in the icy sea.

"Very sinister, the Sea God is angry..."

An old hunter huddled in a low snow hut, his cloudy eyes filled with fear, the charcoal fire reflecting the ravines on his face, "That fog is frighteningly white, alive as if it were, once you’re caught in it, you can’t get out!"

"It calms a bit during snowstorms, but who dares to gamble? A few days ago, some daring ones were skeptical and went out as the snowstorm abated a little, resulting in...a return with an empty ship, the boards covered with hard frozen claw marks, as if scraped by icy claws!"

Li Yan and the others felt a chill in their hearts.

This was by no means ordinary sea conditions or weather.

Remembering that Japan itself was a land haunted by ghosts and gods, and after the chaos in the Capital City, the Earth Vein’s Resentful Evil leaked out; although the catastrophic Hundred Ghosts Night Parade did not reach this frigid land due to the vast distance, other sinister forces might have been stirred or fled here.

Yet the way north must pass through these waters.

They paused briefly at a smaller, almost forgotten fishing village nearby, exchanging the few remaining Copper Coins and healing salves for some frozen fish and gunpowder.

Sha Lifei carefully loaded his prized firearm, fearing that the low temperature would dampen the gunpowder and cause it to clump. Wu Ba, huffing and puffing, maintained the heavy Tiger-Squat Cannon, its barrel frozen to the touch.

After a few days of stability, the snowstorm seemed to diminish slightly, the sea covered in floating ice, a dead white, as if affirming the old hunter’s words were merely exaggerations.

However, just as they found a rickety old sea boat half-buried in the shoreline ice, breaking open the ice surface, preparing to sail during a brief lull in the wind, a cold aura, like a venomous snake lurking beneath the snowfield, silently locked onto them.

This aura did not originate from the pursuing forces from the direction of the Capital City but seemed to be a local ominous existence alerted by their actions.

"Something’s wrong!" Wang Daoxuan’s face changed abruptly, the pointer on the Turtle Shell Compass shivered violently, pointing not to the inland but to the icy coast, "Evil Qi! Something is approaching from afar!"

Their hearts tightened.

"Get on the ship! Quick!" Li Yan called out softly, leading the way onto the swaying, ice-covered deck.

The others followed closely, Wu Ba roaring as he pushed the heavy Tiger-Squat Cannon onto the stern. Sha Lifei nervously guarded the Fire Rope, while Kong Shangzhao and Lv San strenuously severed the frozen ropes.

The tattered sail unfolded with a rustle in the biting cold wind, the sea ship, like a staggering old man, broke through the floating ice, lurching towards the gray, iceberg-filled sea.

Almost simultaneously, the thick snow on the ice shore they had just left exploded abruptly!

Several dark shadows burst forth from the snow, twisted and grotesque in shape, neither human nor beast, covered in ice-blue scales, growing sharp bone spikes at their joints, their eyes two clusters of ghostly blue flames.

They silently screamed, spewing blinding white cold air from their mouths, using both hands and feet, like Evil Ghosts on the ice field, gliding on the ice with astonishing speed directly towards the departing sea ship!

"It’s the Ice Ghosts cultivated by the pirates!"

Night Crying Man recognized them at a glance, weakly saying, "They captured some merfolk, used Evil Techniques to fuse bloodlines, skilled in underwater pursuit and sabotage."

"Cowards!"

Sha Lifei half-knelt at the stern, braving the biting cold wind, and pulled the trigger.

Bam!

The firearm spat fiery light, scatter shot raining down on the ice, shattering the scales of the two leading Ice Ghosts, blue-black filthy blood splattering on the white snow, freezing instantly.

Wu Ba also roared and lit the Tiger-Squat Cannon’s fuse.

"Boom!" A thunderous explosion, scatter shot accompanied by a piercing shriek crashing into the Ice Ghost group, ice chips and severed limbs flying together.

However, these Ice Ghosts were fearless of death and exceptionally fast. The leading extraordinarily large Ice Ghost suddenly opened its mouth, spewing an intense ice-blue breath like a spear directly at the ship!

The chill hadn’t arrived, and a frost had already formed on the deck.

Kong Shangzhao’s Longsword danced urgently, the sword aura swallowing and spitting, barely deflecting the breath, the icy breath brushing past, leaving half of his body nearly numb.

Thankfully, these Ice Ghosts were under control, unable to enter deep waters.

The sea ship struggled along the floating ice and waves, gradually distancing itself from the icy shore. The Ice Ghosts on the shore were agitatedly darting about, emitting silent roars only at the shoreline.

But the danger was not yet over.

Before long, the seawater beneath the ship suddenly became unusually viscous and cold, as if countless icy hands were dragging the hull.

Even more bizarre, the originally gray sky suddenly began to surge with an impossibly dense white fog at an eye-visible speed!

This fog arrived extremely eerily, silent but rapid, instantaneously swallowing the floating icebergs, the dim sky, and the icy shore they just escaped.