Dark clouds churned beneath the sky, blocking the original moonlight. The sea surface under the night looked like viscous black jade.
A faint, flickering wisp of conscious light and shadow trembled slightly in this darkness filled only with the surging tides. Within that consciousness, emotions of unwillingness, anger, and hatred intertwined.
"Noah... Damn it... Noah!"
The low and blurred whispers grew gradually clearer, carrying an aura of extreme madness. It uttered pious murmurs:
"O great existence that rules over despair and the end... I, Leviathan... call upon your descent with the power of secrets... to bring doomsday upon Solaris..."
It called out upon the waves. Every syllable seemed to carry heavy shackles, bearing Leviathan's evil hopes.
Yet this murmur fell into the abyss like a stone sinking into the sea, failing to stir even the slightest ripple before completely vanishing.
Leviathan did not lose heart and began repeating the murmur once more.
Ten times, fifty times, eighty times... Finally, Leviathan sensed a horrifying, suffocating aura awakening. It trembled uncontrollably, its reverence mixed with a trace of sickly joy.
Leviathan knew that its prayer had received a response from that indescribable existence—
"Get lost!"
With a cold snort, that terrifying aura sank into silence once again.
...
Thud!
On a large ship in another stretch of ocean, Noah abruptly sat up from the bed. His head slammed heavily into the low cabin ceiling, producing a crisp, resounding sound.
His chest heaved violently as he gasped for air. His hands unconsciously trembled as they supported him on the bed. His rapid heartbeat was especially clear in the quiet night.
A knock came from outside the door. It was a crew member offering greetings:
"Mr. Noah, we heard a loud impact. Are you alright? Do you need help?"
"I'm fine."
Noah wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. The clammy chill spread from his palm to his arm. He shook his head and shouted toward the door:
"I just had a nightmare. No need to worry."
"Understood."
The crew member outside responded. Not long after, another slightly muffled voice sounded. It was the captain of this ship:
"Mr. Noah, we have arrived at the location you mentioned. There's a bit of an unexpected situation. Would you like to come out and take a look?"
Arrived? So fast? But what did the unexpected situation refer to?
Noah felt somewhat puzzled, but he no longer had any mood to continue sleeping. He simply wiped his face, got up, and walked out of the room.
Stepping onto the outer deck, he saw several heavy ocean warships encircling a small black stone island not far away. The flags on the warships bore Huanglong's dragon emblem.
Several drones flew above the fleet, projecting bright text in mid-air: Huanglong Military Restricted Area. Unauthorized Personnel, Please Detour.
"Mr. Noah, you can see it too." The captain stood beside Noah and smiled bitterly:
"Although the destination you requested is here, this is also a Huanglong military restricted area. It's really difficult for us to proceed."
"It's fine."
Noah had a vague guess. He immediately settled the remaining payment for chartering the ship with the captain:
"Thank you for the escort. You may return now."
Hearing this, the captain couldn't help but look stunned. He glanced around at the vast sea, only to see Noah leap high into the air, deploy his gliding wings in mid-air, and fly toward the fleet not far away.
"Huh?"
The captain rubbed his eyes, confirming he had not seen wrong. His face immediately showed an expression as if he had seen a ghost.
How strange. How could someone who left Rinascita still use the gliding ability granted by the Sentinel?
On the other side.
Inside the fleet's cabin, a sonorous and powerful report sounded from the intercom:
"Officer Jianxin, we have detected a human figure rapidly approaching our side. Requesting permission to open fire."
As the voice fell, the delicate and charming woman looked up. Her gaze passed through the glass and saw the figure gliding toward them from afar. Her eyes suddenly widened slightly.
"Slow down. Do not open fire."
Jianxin smiled faintly, her mood seeming exceptionally good:
"The person coming is someone you all know. It's Noah."
The last three words landed like a thunderbolt dropped into the military communication channel, instantly energizing the originally somewhat drowsy soldiers.
"Noah? The hero of Jinzhou!"
"I see him too. It really is him."
"The hero has returned!"
"All departments, attention. Everyone, form up and welcome him."
In mid-air, halfway through his flight, Noah saw all the cannons and guns extended by the fleet being retracted. In their place, several fireworks bloomed in the sky.
Figures in standard uniforms quickly emerged from the cabins, waving their hands vigorously toward him in the air. Many of them were so excited that their faces turned red.
This scene inexplicably made a tune play in Noah's mind.
If you come in the three winters, I'll exchange it for a city of snow white...
Finally, he landed on the deck of the nearest warship. A light figure leaped over the heads of the soldiers. Jianxin stood steadily in front of Noah, cupped her fists, and smiled:
"Young Hero Noah, long time no see."
"Little Daoist Jianxin, long time no see."
Noah returned the cupped-fist gesture and smiled at Jianxin.
He hadn't expected that the first familiar person he would meet upon returning from Rinascita would be Jianxin.
"Make way, make way!" An ecstatic voice rang out from behind the soldiers. Aalto burst out from the crowd with shining eyes, spread his arms, and hugged Noah tightly.
"Wonderful, wonderful! Bro, you're finally back. I've been waiting for you so long that the flowers are about to wither."
"How was it? Did you borrow Imperator's power?"
"I heard you were doing incredibly well over there and even plucked the laurel at the Carnevale. You definitely heard the Sentinel's heavenly voice, right?"
A string of questions poured out like firecrackers from the excited Aalto. Noah tried to break free from his embrace but found that Aalto was hugging him quite forcefully.
"You're asking so many questions at once that I don't even know where to start."
"Ah, right, right. My questions." Aalto quickly let go and ran behind Noah to earnestly massage his shoulders:
"You must be tired after sitting on the ship for so long. How about I take you to rest first?"
"No need."
Noah smiled:
"I borrowed the powers of Separation and Space. Let's go. No delays. I'm entering Black Shores right now."
Hearing this, Aalto was overjoyed. Excited words spilled out uncontrollably:
"You really borrowed the power of Separation! Bro, you're truly my real brother. Your face is just too big. I don't admire anyone but you. If I were a girl, I'd want to marry you."
As soon as the words fell, Jianxin couldn't help but glance over in surprise. The soldiers on the deck let out teasing whistles.
Aalto remained completely unaware that there was any issue. To him, as long as Noah could truly save Black Shores, he would do whatever Noah asked.
"Alright, alright. Let's talk while we walk."
The three of them chatted as they walked. The soldiers they passed automatically made way, only casting enthusiastic gazes without doing anything that exceeded their duties.
Soon, Noah learned the full situation of this small black stone island.
From twenty days ago, when Aalto was released from prison, thanks to the letter Noah had written to Jinhsi, Aalto finally gained a bit of Jinhsi's trust.
After meeting the Magistrate, Aalto revealed a little about Black Shores' situation to Jinhsi and attempted to request some military assistance from her to guard the black stone island.
He had thought this impolite request would be rejected, but it was unexpectedly generously approved by Jinhsi.
"Anything related to Noah, no matter how small, is a big matter."
With such a statement, Jinhsi also dispatched Jianxin, whose combat strength could rival General Jiyan, to accompany the troops in guarding the small island.
"During this period, the sealing power on that entrance has been continuously weakening. I've been on edge every day, looking forward to the stars and the moon while waiting for you."
Listening to Aalto's bitter words, Noah twitched the corner of his mouth:
"I know — you send at least three letters every day. The content is so long-winded that I can't be bothered to read it."
"Ah! So that's why you didn't reply?"
"Cough, cough. Don't mind these details."
Realizing he had slipped up, Noah immediately changed the subject. He punched open the black stone with his backhand, fully revealing the entrance to Black Shores:
"I'm going into Black Shores. Wait for my good news."
Hearing this, Aalto nodded frantically like pounding garlic:
"Got it, bro! You must succeed!"
Switching his character to Rover, Noah took a step forward. After nearly a month, he once again entered the Sonoro Sphere space leading to Black Shores.
The Remnant left behind by the Shorekeeper, along with a faint and gentle female voice, sounded softly beside his ear:
"Wel...come...back...home..."
"Sorry, you've got the wrong person. Moreover—"
The corners of Noah's mouth curved up:
"I'm here to take you home!"
...