We agreed to set sail, so you'd become the ruler of the deep sea?

Chapter 159 The Mystery of Spontaneous Combustion on Ice Island, The Emerald Ancient City

"……Um?"

Xia En raised an eyebrow, a look of surprise in his eyes.

Why is the [Proof of the Lord of Cinder], which has been dormant for so long, stirring up again in this place?
Could it be that a treasure trove of embers is hidden on this "Ice Island"?
However, upon closer inspection of the state of the [Proof of the Lord of Cinder] on the back of his hand, Shane felt that something was amiss.

While the [Proof of the Lord of Cinder] was releasing a faint heat, it did not provide direction as it had on the island of giants.

Moreover, this heat was intermittent and far less intense than before.

just like……

He's awake, but not fully awake?

"How is this going?"

Xia En had some doubts in his heart, and at the same time, a guess popped into his head.

"Could it be... that what caused the [Proof of the Lord of Cinder] to react was not the [Ember Treasure], but some other entity related to the Lord of Cinder?"

Just as he was pondering this to himself.

Yan Yan, who was standing to the side, said, "Captain Xia En, the village on [Ice Island] is just ahead."

“I don’t get along well with the villagers, so I won’t go in with you.”

"Another point……"

Yan Yan glanced at Fei Ya and Qiao Yi not far away and reminded them, "You'd better not let them come into the village with you, otherwise, something bad might happen."

The subtext of his words was actually quite obvious.

Young and beautiful girls like Joey naturally attract malicious prying eyes.

Especially in villages that are isolated year-round and have very little communication with the outside world, their xenophobia is actually quite high.

Their attitude towards outsiders may not be very friendly.

Beauty itself is innocent, but if one does not possess the strength to match it, calamity will come unexpectedly.

Although Xia En was confident in his abilities, he did not want to cause any unnecessary trouble.

With that in mind, he decided to take only An into the village.

However, plans cannot keep up with changes.

suddenly.

A rude shout came from the ice field not far away.

"Yan Yan! How dare you come to the village? Get the hell away from me!"

Several men dressed in thick fur coats were walking from another direction on the ice field.

Clearly, Yan Yan's presence was so strong, like a torch that it was impossible to ignore, that they recognized him at a glance.

However, the group soon noticed Xia En and his unfamiliar faces.

They quickly became alert, picked up their weapons, and stared warily at Shane and the others.

"Who are you?"

"Why are they near our village, and why are they staying with this monster?"

monster?

Hearing this title, coupled with the villagers' hostile attitude towards Yan Yan, Xia En couldn't help but feel a little confused.

Although Yan Yan's appearance, with his body engulfed in flames, is somewhat frightening.

But anyone who has had even a little contact with him should understand that he is essentially just a simple-minded and warm-hearted young man.

Therefore, the villagers' attitude is undoubtedly somewhat strange.

Yan Yan seemed to be used to this kind of thing, and quickly said, "Brother Gray, they are a captain and crew from the sea, and they want to ask about the location of our [Ice Island]."

"Get lost, who's your older brother?"

The brown-haired man at the head glared at Yan Yan with annoyance, then looked at Xia En and the others with suspicion.

【Ice Island】is located in a remote area and has no valuable minerals or resources, so no foreign ships have visited it for decades.

"Please wait a moment, I'll go ask the village chief."

After leaving those words, Gray strode into the village, leaving several villagers and Shane and the others in a standoff.

Taking advantage of this moment, Yan Yan whispered to Xia En.

"Captain Shane, once we enter the village, you'd better follow Brother Gray."

"He may look a bit fierce, but he's actually a good person!"

Xia En raised an eyebrow in surprise: "But his attitude towards you..."

Yan Yan's head drooped slightly, and the flames on his body dimmed a little, resembling a large dog that had been soaked by water.

"Brother Gray did this to protect me."

Xia En was somewhat confused, but seeing that Yan Yan seemed unwilling to elaborate, he didn't pursue the matter further.

……

……

Not long after.

Gray returned to Shane and the others and began to speak.

"The village chief said that you can enter the village, but you have to see him first."

Xia En nodded in agreement, "Of course."

He turned his head, intending to say a few more words to Yan Yan, but saw that the blazing fireman was already walking further and further away on the ice field.

The villagers watched Yan Yan leave, their eyes seemingly filled with apprehension and disgust.

Xia En saw all of this.

This also made him even more curious about the connection between Yan Yan and the people in this village.

Soon, Shane, accompanied by three crew members, followed Gray and the other villagers into the unique village.

The village sits atop a layer of dark gray rock.

The house appears to be made of ice and snow, but its main materials are actually stones and a special type of moss-based turf.

The outermost layer of ice and snow is merely a remnant of the blizzard that just occurred.

The entire village looks primitive and tranquil, like a paradise on earth.

Surprisingly, once inside the village, the temperature noticeably warmed up.

As a result, the snow on the surface of the houses has begun to melt.

Xia En looked at the ground beneath his feet and pondered, "The heat source seems to be coming from underground?"

Not long after the group entered the village, villagers began to emerge from the surrounding houses, secretly observing Xia En and his companions with various expressions.

These eyes mostly held curiosity, but also wariness and caution.

After seeing the extremely handsome appearances of Xia En, Fei Ya, and Qiao Yi, some villagers' eyes underwent a subtle change.

During this process, Shane was also quietly observing these villagers.

The villagers include both the elderly and the young, men and women, but it is clear that there are fewer elderly people and women.

Their skin was generally reddish, and their clothes were mostly made of animal fur, giving them a fierce and savage air.

Xia En could not sense the presence of the Mystic from the villagers, but he could also detect another peculiar power within them.

Some of them even made Xia En feel a certain threat from their auras.

It is obvious that humans who can survive in this icy and snowy world must possess their own unique extraordinary powers.

However, at this moment.

A male villager on the road not far away suddenly let out a painful cry.

"It's so hot...so hot..."

The man's skin turned increasingly reddish, his body temperature rose higher and higher, and sweat continued to seep out.

He desperately tore off his clothes in an attempt to lower his body temperature.

"No! Don't..."

The woman next to the man, who appeared to be his wife, seemed to realize something, her expression suddenly changed, and she quickly ran towards him.

Gray strode forward and stopped the woman before she could touch the man.

"Let me go! Let me through!"

The woman pounded on Gray's body, her eyes gradually reddening, like a crazed female beast.

But Gray's body remained as immovable as a mountain, only a hint of pity and sympathy flashed in his eyes.

"……This is?"

As an outsider, Xia En saw this scene but didn't know what had happened, so he didn't act rashly.

next moment!
Suddenly, a raging fire erupted from the shirtless man's body!
The flames flowed instantly like burning grease, igniting his skin, flesh, and even bones.

The flames came so quickly and so fiercely.

In just a few breaths, it spread throughout the man's entire body.

"Why me?"

"No...I don't want to die..."

The crackling sound of burning mingled with the piercing screams, and the pungent, unsettling smell of burning flesh spread out.

The sight turned Joey and Faye pale. Shaun's emotions also became unsettled.

But at the same time, he noticed sadness, fear, and resentment in the eyes of the nearby villagers...

There was no surprise at all!

"This bizarre phenomenon of spontaneous human combustion seems to have occurred more than once on this island?"

Just as Shane had guessed.

After the man was burned to a pile of black ashes, the villagers silently and skillfully cleaned up his remains, sweeping away the traces left by the flames.

Even the woman who had been acting crazy earlier calmed down and followed the crowd away with a blank look in her eyes.

……

……

Despite this unusual incident, Gray's expression remained unchanged, and he showed no intention of explaining anything to Shane and the others. He simply continued leading them toward the center of the village.

"We've arrived, please come in."

A few minutes later, the group arrived at the largest house in the village.

However, after entering the hall, Xia En did not see the village chief.

Gray explained, "The village chief is currently holding a fire-worshiping ceremony and is unavailable at the moment. Please wait a moment."

"Fire-worshiping ceremony?"

Xia En's heart stirred slightly.

This ceremony sounds like some kind of religious activity?

In such primitive and isolated villages, it is perfectly normal for niche beliefs to emerge.

The question is, does this religion have a special connection with Lord Cinder?

And then there's that bizarre spontaneous combustion...

Because of Yan Yan's evaluation, Xia En trusted Gray more than he trusted the other villagers, so he stopped the man who was about to leave and asked.

"Mr. Gray, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you privately, is that alright?"

Gray glanced at Shane in surprise, hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.

"Okay, come with me."

Pushing open the stone door, Gray and Shane entered a private room next to the hall.

Judging from his actions, Gray seemed to have a very good understanding of the interior layout of the house.

Immediately afterwards, Gray took out a tobacco-like substance from his pocket, snapped his fingers to light it, and then put it in his mouth, saying with a somewhat melancholy expression.

"Tell me, what do you want to ask?"

"Since Yan Yan considers you a friend, I will try my best to answer your questions."

Seeing how straightforward he was, Xia En asked directly.

"Why is your attitude towards Yan Yan so strange?"

Gray was not surprised by the question and said, "Because in the village, Yan Yan has always been regarded as the source of an ominous curse."

“The villagers are afraid of him and terrified of him, which is why they refuse to let him set foot in the village.”

"curse?"

Upon hearing this, Xia En immediately thought of the man who had suddenly burst into flames earlier: "That flame... is it a curse?"

"Yes."

Gray nodded: "Although there is no basis or proof."

"But anyone who sees that kind of flame that ignites a human body will probably associate it with Yan Yan."

“Such spontaneous combustion incidents occur almost every few months. No one knows when it will happen, nor does anyone know who it will target.”

At this point, Gray gave a bitter smile: "Moreover, we've tried everything, but we can't stop the flames from burning."

"If anyone else comes into contact with the spontaneously combusting victims, they will also be burned to ashes."

His words revealed a deep sense of despair and helplessness.

After hearing this, Xia En quickly understood the origin of the villagers' hatred towards Yan Yan, and thought to himself.

"Perhaps the villagers also know that this has nothing to do with Yan Yan."

"They probably just can't accept... why Yan Yan doesn't die even when burned in flames, while they are doomed once they are targeted by the flame curse."

"Or perhaps, they simply need a target to vent their hatred?"

But is this really fair to Yan Yan?

At this point, Gray continued, "To be honest, I've also suspected that this spontaneous combustion curse is related to the Flame, and... I still believe it now!"

Xia En frowned: "...What do you mean?"

“You’ve only just arrived on this island, so you might think Yan Yan is as young as he looks.”

"But in reality, his age is far beyond what you imagine."

"To put it simply, Yan Yan already looked like this when my great-grandfather was still a child!"

"He has lived on this island for at least several hundred years!"

What Gray said next made Shane feel a little horrified.

"Decades ago, in an attempt to break this curse, we tried to kill Yan Yan."

"But it's impossible! It's really impossible!"

"Even if Yan Yan stands still and lets us attack, even if we sever his head and pierce his heart, he will not truly die, but will only be reborn in the raging flames!"

A hint of fear flickered across Gray's face, as if he were recalling some horrific scene. He stammered, "That guy... he's truly immortal!"

"Immortality... an immortal body..."

Xia En silently pondered these past secrets in his heart, his thoughts swirling.

He had previously guessed that Yan Yan's abilities were extraordinary, but this particular characteristic still exceeded his expectations.

But what surprised Xia En even more was—

Throughout such a long life of burning, regeneration, hatred, and resentment, Yan Yan was still able to maintain such an optimistic and sunny personality.

Xia En had previously regarded him as a simple-minded young man.

In retrospect, it seems that we underestimated him.

Shane still had some questions he wanted to ask Gray, but just then, footsteps sounded outside the door.

Gray composed himself and said, "The village chief is here, let's go out."

Xia En had no choice but to give up for the time being.

……

……

Upon entering the hall, Xia En met the village chief of this nameless village.

This was a thin old man with a head of pale, short, shaved hair.

His back was hunched, but he possessed a powerful aura unlike that of ordinary villagers, even surpassing that of Xia En.

Those reddish-brown, sharp eyes, like those of a hawk, seemed to carry an aggressive hostility, making one instinctively feel uneasy.

After a brief and polite self-introduction.

"It's a question from the village chief, Ruhr," he asked.

"So, you want our village's nautical charts to confirm your next shipping route?"

Xia En nodded and said, "That's right."

"As payment, I am willing to offer thirty kilograms of seal meat and fat."

This price is quite low.

But nautical charts are valuable in some ways and worthless in others; it all depends on who uses them.

For the residents of [Ice Island], they would never sail too far out to sea anyway, so the sea charts are not of much value.

However, for Xia En, this confirms his goals for the next period of time, which is quite useful.

Furthermore, Xia En didn't take the nautical chart with him; he merely made a copy.

This price is certainly reasonable.

Besides, you can still bargain if you can't reach an agreement!

It's impossible for Xia En to reveal his bottom line price right away.

However, to Xia En's surprise, Ruhr immediately agreed, "No problem, deal!"

"Ok?"

Xia En was slightly surprised.

He had initially thought the village chief was difficult to talk to, but now it seemed he might have misjudged him.

Ruhr continued, "Speaking of which, Captain Shane, have you ever heard of... the Emerald City?"

"【Emerald Ancient City】?"

Xia En looked puzzled; he really had no recollection of this.

Joey, standing nearby, exclaimed in surprise, "Is it that legendary city that was buried by volcanic ash?"

(End of this chapter)