Chapter 107: Heavenly Star Island

The sea lapped against the shore, and the sky remained clear, unchanged.

A fleet of ships was making its way across the sea. It had been a month since the teleportation arrays had ceased to function. Time waits for no one, and in order to deliver their goods, this merchant fleet had been forced to traverse the open ocean toward Heavenly Star Island. After a month of travel, they were finally nearing their destination. The sailors were longing for land, as they were now only a day’s journey away.

Suddenly, the sky, which had been clear and vast, took a turn for the worse. Dark clouds gathered as if to crush the world beneath them. Violent gales whipped up the sea, causing the waves to churn relentlessly, while astonishing bolts of lightning struck the surface of the water from the gathering clouds.

The towering waves and fierce winds tossed the dozens of ships about like toys. A white protective barrier rose above the fleet, shielding the vessels and preventing any major damage, though they continued to pitch and roll violently.

Just then, the dark clouds in the sky, which refused to dissipate, thickened and converged, manifesting into a massive bolt of lightning that struck the ocean.

"Manager, what is happening?" a sailor asked, unable to contain his fear.

Seeing where the lightning had struck, the manager finally realized the situation. "Full speed ahead! We have encountered a demonic beast undergoing a heavenly tribulation!"

"Understood, right away!" The sailor followed orders, pushing the ships to their maximum speed until they finally broke through the dangerous waters.

The other ships were not so lucky; only three vessels survived. A merchant fleet of thousands was gone in an instant. Looking at the three battered remains of his ships, the manager felt like crying but could only collapse onto the deck in despair.

At that moment, a sailor suddenly shouted, "Land! We’ve reached land!"

Everyone cheered and jumped for joy, some embracing one another, nearly moved to tears. The manager, having no other choice, gathered the remaining goods to deliver them to the buyer. He walked listlessly through the streets of Heavenly Star Island. When he finally reached the buyer’s residence, he was refused entry.

"Let me in! I am here to deliver the goods!"

The manager was blocked by the buyer’s steward and, losing his temper on the spot, began to shout. Eventually, the buyer himself was drawn out.

"What is all this shouting about?" A burly man walked out from the gate, cursing as he appeared. He then spotted the manager. "Oh, it’s Manager Niu. To what do I owe the pleasure of your early arrival?"

Seeing his buyer, the manager felt as if he had found a glimmer of hope and hurried forward. "Fellow Daoist Zhao, do you still want the goods?"

"Goods? No, I don't need them. They have already been delivered," the cultivator surnamed Zhao replied bluntly. At those words, the manager panicked.

"How can that be? We were the fastest! We even chose a fleet with weaker defenses just to get here as quickly as possible. We barely made it out alive; how could anyone have beaten us?"

The manager was on the verge of a breakdown. He felt that this Fellow Daoist Zhao was spouting nonsense, and a red glint involuntarily appeared in his eyes. He had staked his entire livelihood on this venture, including his entire fleet, only for most of it to be buried in the ocean, leaving him with but one ship.

"Oh, a senior arrived on Azure Wave Island and repaired the teleportation array in just one month," Zhao explained. "The arrays have been back in operation for three days now. If I had needed your goods, they would have arrived two days ago. But, Fellow Daoist Niu, did you really come across the ocean? And in only a month? I never imagined your speed could be so great."

The cultivator surnamed Zhao did not know whether his words were meant as praise or sarcasm. The manager was left devastated. All his wealth was tied up in the storage ring, converted entirely into goods that the buyer no longer needed. He had intended to take advantage of the downtime of the teleportation arrays to make a fortune, only for a senior to repair in a month what would have taken other array masters years. It was truly a matter of fate.

Meanwhile, Lin Yang had already arrived on Heavenly Star Island, accompanied by Shui Miao'er. She had insisted on following him, despite Lin Yang having no such desire.

Heavenly Star City is located on Heavenly Star Island, a massive landmass that serves as the headquarters for the Star Palace of the Chaotic Star Sea. The entire Star Palace is jointly ruled by two cultivators known as the Twin Sages of Heavenly Star. These two supreme cultivators are incredibly mysterious and have rarely appeared at any public events over the past few centuries. People know very little about them.

Lin Yang, however, knew of them; they were a married couple, and their lifespans would reach their limits in just over a hundred years. To preserve their legacy, they would later use the Meta-Magnetic Mountain to forcibly trap Han Li and compel him to marry their daughter.

Heavenly Star City is built upon this giant island. Although the island is vast, as the headquarters of the Star Palace, the city acts as the economic hub of the entire Chaotic Star Sea. All the buildings are exceptionally tall, spiraling upward like a vortex across the island. The city is layered, filled with all manner of structures, leaving almost no space unoccupied except for the necessary roads.

Looking toward the summit of the island, one could see dark clouds obscuring the sky. The peak reached above these clouds, making it impossible to see the palace at the top. It made sense—if there were no obstruction, those below could see the palace easily, destroying its sense of mystery. Moreover, the clouds seemed capable of blocking divine sense; it was truly ingenious.

Lin Yang stood on the shore, watching the various seafaring vessels breaking through the waves. They radiated all sorts of strange auras, with colorful lights flickering from their sterns to increase their speed.

"Fellow Daoist Shui, let me ask you something," Lin Yang said suddenly, catching Shui Miao'er off guard.

"Go ahead," she replied.

"Why has no one thought to use flying ships to transport goods?" Lin Yang recalled how they frequently used such ships on land, as they were fast and safe.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, you may not realize this, but the higher we fly in the sky, the greater the chance of being spotted by demonic beasts in the water," Shui Miao'er explained. "Furthermore, there are demonic beasts that specifically inhabit the skies over the ocean. Traveling by air is simply too dangerous. As for the routes the ships take, they have been chosen by countless seniors through trial and error. The probability of an accident is actually quite low."

Lin Yang finally understood why they didn't use flying ships.

"Very well, let’s go. It’s time to head to the Star Palace and meet the Twin Sages of Heavenly Star."

Shui Miao'er urged Lin Yang, who had been admiring the scenery, to move on. Lin Yang quickened his pace, heading toward the palace at the center of the giant island.