Put away your magical powers now!.

Chapter 232 [The Fall]

Chapter 226 [The Fall]

Chen Yan returned to the cargo hold and had just finished packing up his sleeping bag and other belongings when two crew members came over and asked him to move out of the room.

The crew, having received instructions from the foreman, treated Chen Yan quite kindly, leading him out of the cargo hold and towards the aft deck of the airship.

Entering the cabin, we were quickly led to a small room. Pushing open the door, we found a tiny cabin of about ten square meters. It wasn't large, but it had a small window and a cabinet frame. Though small, it had everything you needed.

Although it looks cramped, the air is much better than in the cargo hold, and it looks cleaner and tidier.

The crew told Chen Yan that he could stay there from today onwards, and if he felt stuffy in the room, he could go to the deck for fresh air at any time. His movements were no longer restricted, but he should not go to the lower decks—the lower decks contained the valuable cargo being transported, and unauthorized personnel were not allowed to approach.

Having received the benefits, Chen Yan naturally wouldn't refuse such a request. He thanked the crew politely, and they also told him that meals would be delivered to his room every day.

After everyone left, Chen Yan sat on the small bed, turned his head to look at the window frame on the wall. The window had thick glass—glass was not uncommon in this world.

Outside the window, you can see the airship cutting through the clouds. The sky is filled with swirling clouds and mist, and looking down, the landforms are clearly visible.

It does feel a bit like being on an airplane.

He meditated and rested in the house for a while, his mind still replaying the scene where his consciousness had been affected by the Venerable One's Dharma assembly...

That mysterious feeling seemed to be just as the manager had said, as if one had gained some insight. That subtle Daoist charm seemed to indicate that one had truly comprehended something extraordinary within one's heart. However, it was as if there was a veil between them, and the feeling was not quite real. One needed to savor it carefully.

However, it was forcibly interrupted by the consciousness within the ring.

Thinking of this, Chen Yan took out the thumb ring and gently rubbed it in his hand with his thumb.

What kind of message is hidden here?

The spirit of this magical artifact doesn't want me to comprehend the Daoist essence of that Venerable One's Daoist temple?

As he was pondering while holding the ring, he suddenly heard a noise. Chen Yan immediately put away the ring, sat up straight on the bed, and listened carefully to identify the noise.

He then realized that the noise was coming from behind the cabin wall; it was indistinct and vaguely seemed like someone was talking.

Chen Yan frowned and listened intently. The voices behind the cabin wall seemed to be more than one person, but rather more than one voice arguing.

As the debaters grew increasingly agitated, their voices became clearer and reached Chen Yan's ears, causing his expression to suddenly shift!
Then they heard an old-fashioned voice angrily rebuking them.

"I paid to board the ship! Yet you dare to treat me like this! After boarding, you asked me for cabin fees! After paying for the cabin, you asked me for food fees!"

We paid for the meal, and now they're asking for money for the drinks!
Are you trying to take me for a fool and fleece me?!
"The Gu family has such a great reputation, renowned throughout the realm, yet they are so lax in managing their subordinates, with their followers engaging in such despicable acts?!"

Upon hearing this voice, Chen Yan's expression immediately turned strange.

He thought for a moment, then lowered his breathing, held his breath, and made no sound.

He didn't want to get involved in other people's affairs or troubles.

Then I heard a few more arguments from next door, then the noise gradually subsided, followed by the sound of a door slamming loudly, and finally everything returned to calm.

Chen Yan ignored what was happening next door and simply sat in meditation in the cabin, continuing to circulate his vital energy. His cultivation of vital energy was now complete, so he simply poured the excess energy into the ring. The ring remained the same as before, seemingly having an inexhaustible capacity, as if it could never be filled no matter how much vital energy was poured in.

Chen Yan meditated and cultivated in the cabin for a whole day, and only opened his eyes in the evening.

During his cultivation, he released his primordial spirit and sensed that someone had already walked to the door of the cabin.

Bang, bang, bang! The cabin door was knocked on. Chen Yan got up and went to open the door. A crew member was standing outside, holding a three-tiered food box. It was the same guy he knew.

The crew member looked embarrassed as he faced Chen Yan. He chuckled twice before whispering, "Brother... ah, no, fellow Daoist. Um... the steward ordered me to bring you some food."

Chen Yan didn't want to offend such a lowly, despicable person, so he calmly smiled and stepped aside to let him in.

The crew member entered the room and placed the meal on the small table. He looked at Chen Yan and said in a complicated tone, "Fellow Daoist, you have quite the skills to have managed to establish a relationship with our manager. I apologize for offending you a few days ago."

Chen Yan waved his hand: "I don't actually know your manager, and I don't have any relationship with him. But because of some special circumstances, he treated me better."

The crew member sighed, "Um, I..."

"Regarding what happened a few days ago, I will only remember your kindness, brother, and I will absolutely not hold any grudges."

The crew member breathed a sigh of relief, his tone becoming somewhat ingratiating, and proactively opened the food box: "This is the meal prepared on board today. Please enjoy it, brother. If there's anything you need, just let me know, and I'll try my best to find it for you."

Chen Yan looked at the three-tiered food box and found that it contained four dishes and a soup. It looked like a good mix of meat and vegetables, and there was even a small bottle of wine included.

This treatment is much better than before.

The crew member stepped aside, hesitated for a moment, then finally pulled out a string of jade coins, clutching it tightly in his hand as if making a decision: "The money you gave me a few days ago, brother..."

Seeing the man's fingers tightening around the money, Chen Yan knew what he was thinking and smiled faintly, "I said I wouldn't hold a grudge, and naturally I won't. As for this money, you've kept me company for several days, eaten the food you brought, and even told me many strange and wonderful stories about the customs and culture of the Southern Frontier. This money is naturally yours to keep."

The crew member's face lit up with joy. He readily took the money back, gave Chen Yan a thumbs up, and praised, "I knew I had a good eye for people. You really are a man of great character!"

He lowered his voice and said, "Tell me the truth, why did our manager suddenly start treating you differently?"

Chen Yan shook his head: "I don't know the specifics either, so don't ask any more questions."

Chen Yan knew that the steward's preferential treatment of him was simply because he came from Xueya Pass. The preferential treatment was just a step in the game, and he didn't really have much influence over the steward. There was no need for him to act arrogantly.

Gu Jinjia, the eldest son of the Gu family, was spending his time with a group of rogue cultivators at Xueya Pass and even formed some kind of brotherhood... In fact, this kind of thing was somewhat of a waste of time.

Therefore, not many people probably know about this—it's a matter of internal strife within large families. Perhaps the manager, who is well-informed, knows that Gu Jinjia is at Xueya Pass, but others may not. And this low-ranking crew member naturally couldn't possibly know about such high-level matters.

Since Chen Yan didn't say anything, the crew member didn't press further. He politely smiled a couple of times and then took his leave.

However, just as he stepped out of the cabin, Chen Yan saw him to the door, and he just heard the door of the cabin next door open, and a familiar figure quickly walked out.

He was no more than four feet tall, dressed in gorgeous clothes of silk and satin, but his face was still very young, like that of a child.

Sure enough, it was that kid from "Donghai".

As soon as Donghai emerged, he stared intently at the crew member and roared, "Halt! Why haven't you brought me my meal yet? I paid you for thirty days' worth of meals, and the food you sent for the first two days was barely edible, but it's gotten worse every day since!"
It's already dark, and they haven't even delivered anything?!

The crew members were friendly to Chen Yan, but not so polite to the young man—even though the other party had a high level of cultivation, he was a member of the Gu family. Even as the lowest-ranking crew member, he was not afraid of encountering a rogue cultivator with no background or connections.

He immediately retorted firmly, "What's the rush? I was just ordered by the manager to deliver food to our distinguished guest. I'll naturally come back to deliver it to you in a bit!"

As he spoke, he turned and walked away, but deliberately muttered loudly, "Does he really think he's some kind of master? A rogue cultivator with no martial arts skills, doesn't he even know where he is!" He spoke very loudly, as if he wanted Donghai to hear him. Donghai's face turned red, and he stared fiercely at the crew member's back, but finally gritted his teeth and remained motionless.

After the crew left, Donghai turned around and saw Chen Yan standing in the doorway of the next room. He recognized Chen Yan at a glance, and his expression changed in surprise: "You..."

Chen Yan knew that since they lived next door and there were still many days to go, they would inevitably run into each other sooner or later. So he didn't avoid it and generously cupped his hands, saying, "Greetings, fellow Daoist."

Donghai looked surprised and cupped his hands in greeting, saying with a smile, "What a coincidence! Fellow Daoist, I remember your surname is Zhao, right? It's amazing to meet you again on this ship."

We were neighbors in Xitai City, and now we're neighbors again here.

Chen Yan smiled but remained silent.

Donghai's eyes darted around, but he immediately noticed the lunchbox on the table in the room behind Chen Yan, and he smiled and said, "Since it's fate, and there's no other way to pass the time on this ship, why don't we go to your room and sit down to discuss the Dao, drink wine and talk about the Dao?"

Chen Yan smiled slightly: "I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you, fellow Daoist. I'm currently practicing at a crucial point and cannot be interrupted... Well, I'll definitely do it next time."

After saying that, Chen Yan smiled, but closed the door without hesitation.

Donghai stood there, his smile frozen. After a few seconds, he snorted angrily, turned around, walked back to his room, and slammed the door shut.

Chen Yan ate dinner in his room after having dinner with an unpleasant guest next door, but did not go out to the deck to avoid running into this guy named Donghai.

This person's origins are mysterious. He looks exactly like the boy from the East Sea in the Fire Candle, but his cultivation level is much lower. Moreover, after hearing about his past, Chen Yan is certain that he is not the real East Sea.

Chen Yan instinctively felt that this person harbored a secret, and also vaguely sensed that this person was a troublesome individual, so he was unwilling to get close to him.

By evening, the flying boat had already left the area within a thousand miles of the Venerable One's Daoist temple that it had passed earlier that day. Only then did the flying boat regain its altitude and speed up its journey. Chen Yan had previously heard from the crew that when entering the area within a thousand miles of the Venerable One's Daoist temple, all passing cultivators or ships must reduce their altitude and speed as a sign of respect for the Venerable One.

As the flying boat began to ascend again, its speed increasing rapidly, Chen Yan knew that he was already more than a thousand miles away from the Venerable One's Daoist temple. Because of the strange and subtle state of "enlightenment" he had experienced today, he had been feeling a strange, heavy feeling in his heart.

Only then did he feel a little more relaxed. He simply leaned back on the small bed, took out a mobile phone, opened it, found a downloaded novel, and casually flipped through it to pass the time.

As night fell, Chen Yan put his phone away, preparing to take a nap, when suddenly, without warning, his body jolted!

The ship suddenly shuddered and tilted to one side without warning. Chen Yan immediately jumped out of bed, landed on the ground, braced himself against the cabin wall with one hand, and quickly clenched his fist with the other hand, only showing his thumb towards the cabin door!

But then, a loud bang was heard!
The roar was deafening, and the ship shook violently afterward!
Besides the roaring sound, I could also faintly hear a series of cracking sounds coming from beneath the hull!
Chen Yan focused his gaze, leaped forward, kicked open the door, and rushed outside.

Turning my head, I saw that the door to the next room was also open, and Donghai rushed out from inside.

The two exchanged a glance but didn't speak. Instead, they immediately turned around and headed towards the outer deck of the ship!

·
Chen Yan was the first to rush out of the cabin, but as soon as he reached the deck, he suddenly dodged to the side!
At the same time, with a loud bang, a coil of rope carrying fire fell from above and slammed onto the deck!
Chen Yan looked up and saw a golden light flash past him!

A gleaming flying sword flashed past Chen Yan's eyes like lightning, easily piercing through a crew member who was running on the deck!
Then the crew member screamed as he was lifted up by the flying sword and flew backward until his body was pinned to the cabin wall on the deck!
With a loud bang, the flying sword pierced through the wall, tearing the crew member's body and the cabin to pieces. The flying sword shot into the air, streaking across the sky, but then changed direction, its tip pointing downwards again!
As the flying sword struck again, with a deafening boom, a section of the deck shattered and exploded after being cut down by the sword! The sharp light of this sword cleaved through the thick deck and even blasted open the cargo hold on the deck!
After the cargo box inside the cargo hold shattered, countless stored items and equipment piled up inside were slashed by the flying sword, causing the magical artifacts to malfunction and the countless medicinal herbs stored inside to be thrown out.

Countless medicinal herbs rained down from the sky, scattering everywhere!

And then the flying sword rose again! Amidst screams, in the blink of an eye, two or three more crew members on deck were shredded to pieces by the sword's energy!
Just then, a roar came, and the blue-robed manager on the ship jumped out from somewhere. He flicked his sleeve, and several blue lights flew out from his sleeve, which turned out to be five flying swords of different sizes.

The five flying swords soared into the air and immediately surrounded the opponent's golden flying sword.

Chen Yan lay prone behind a piece of debris from a ship's cabin, staring wide-eyed at several flying swords crisscrossing in mid-air, slashing at each other several times with a clanging sound. Suddenly, his heart sank!
Although the manager in blue had five flying swords, they were clearly no match for the golden flying sword.

In just a few exchanges, two flying swords were cut in two!

As the flying sword broke, the manager in green robes, who was standing on the deck, suddenly knelt down on the ground, spitting out blood!

Suddenly, a figure radiating golden light descended from the sky and landed on the bow deck. Standing there, he stretched out his hand, and a beam of golden light shot out from his hand, instantly blasting two more crew members apart.

The steward in blue, kneeling on the ground with his face covered in blood, raised his head and roared, "Who are you? How dare you rob the Gu family's cargo ship and injure the Gu family members! Do you know..."

puff!
Before the steward in blue could finish speaking, the golden flying sword suddenly fell. After its sharp edge swept past, his head flew into the air, tumbled onto the deck, and rolled to the side.

Then the golden flying sword whizzed towards the golden figure, who caught it in his hand, chuckled coldly, and said softly, "The Gu family, ha! I'm not afraid of the Gu family."

Having said that, he took a deep breath, his eyes sweeping across the deck, and shouted, "Come out! You've been hiding for so long, but now that I've found you, I'm not letting you go today!"

Chen Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he lay on the ground, shrinking back... He had seen it clearly.

This golden-figure's cultivation level far surpasses mine!
Let alone taking action, this person only needed to speak, which carried a trace of magic power, to make Chen Yan feel a splitting headache and almost make his vision go black!
Just then, a "glug" sound came from the left. Chen Yan turned his head and saw the boy from the East China Sea. His face was pale and his eyes were full of fear. He had already climbed to the side of the ship and was about to jump off the ship!

Chen Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he instantly guessed what was going on. He took a deep breath, then suddenly roared, "Here!!"

Before he could finish speaking, Chen Yan had already raised his hand and unleashed a "Ten Thousand Swords Technique".

Several sword energies instantly rushed towards Donghai. Donghai roared and rolled to the side.

This move forced Donghai away from the ship's side, and Chen Yan leaped over and grabbed Donghai's ankle.

Donghai struggled to break free, but Chen Yan caught up with him, grabbed his waist, and pressed him to the ground with his knee.

Donghai screamed, "Let go! Let go now!!"

Chen Yan was suddenly struck by a strange feeling!
This East China Sea...

So weak!!
When I first saw him in Xitai City, I could tell from the Qi Observation Technique that he clearly had the cultivation level of the Ascending Stage Realm.

But when I risked grabbing him, I actually caught him in one go, and his struggles were weak, which was not like the physical strength of a cultivator in the Ascending Stage Realm!

Chen Yan grabbed him by the waist and lifted him up!
Donghai cursed loudly, but Chen Yan didn't care about anything else. He suddenly roared and shouted at the golden figure on the bow deck, "The person you want is here!!"

After saying that, Chen Yan forcefully threw Donghai towards the bow of the ship!
Seeing Donghai being thrown out, Chen Yan did not hesitate and jumped over the side of the ship's deck!

After his body passed over the ship's railing, he suddenly plummeted from the sky. Despite the intense feeling of weightlessness, Chen Yan gritted his teeth and endured it, even curling his body into a ball and hugging himself tightly while still in mid-air.

This posture reduced air resistance, causing him to fall faster and faster!

With the wind whistling past his ears, Chen Yan opened his eyes in mid-air and saw that the flying boat was already above him. Flames were shooting into the sky from the flying boat, and a huge hole had been blasted into the hull by some force!

Chen Yan held his breath, letting himself fall rapidly. After waiting a while and getting further away from the airship, he suddenly twisted and turned his body in mid-air.

Driven by his magic, Chen Yan suddenly transformed into a large bird in mid-air. After bobbing a few times in the gale, he finally flapped his wings, steadied himself, and darted off in a certain direction towards the ground...

(End of this chapter)