Hello, is this a letter addressed to Demon Fortress?

Lin Gui stared intently, his heart suddenly tightening.

That's not because the seawater turned red.

Instead, countless scarlet, hair-like fine threads were surging wildly from the deepest part of the bottomless abyss.

Like living tentacles, they spread upwards and outwards, filling every inch of seawater within sight in the blink of an eye.

The Eye of the Netherworld allows him to see the true nature of the soul.

The souls of ordinary beings are a soft blue halo.

The soul of a demon is presented as a dangerous red.

The stronger the demon, the more intense and vast its soul aura.

At this moment, the soul threads could stain the entire silent abyss red...

The source of this power has already surpassed Lin Gui's imagination.

His face turned deathly pale instantly, and cold sweat soaked his back.

He asked the screaming mermaid spirit still in his mind:

"What's below...?"

The mermaid's soul's fear almost broke free from the bead's restraints:

"Zathos... the silent demon god... a demigod, Zathos!"

Upon hearing the words "demigod," the fear on Lin Gui's face strangely faded somewhat.

He lowered his head and remained silent for a moment, his eyes flashing intensely.

Ultimately, a cold calm replaced the panic.

He silently closed the still-shaking car window, then slowly sat back down at the bottom of the carriage.

"You...how could you..." The mermaid's soul was extremely surprised by his reaction.

"Did you hear me? Demigod! Zathos!"

"Any sea it passes through, whether islands or continents... will sink! Sink!!"

"Including our mermaid royal court—Atlana!"

Lin Gui raised his eyes, his gray pupils calm and still.

They are now above Thathos, and no matter how hard they struggle, it is futile in the face of the demigod's power.

Of course, things might not be as serious as the mermaid's spirit thought.

Although demigods and demons are terrifying, they rarely appear except during the Black Tide period.

The North Wind Caravan has safely traversed this underwater route on numerous occasions.

Lin Gui believed he shouldn't be so unlucky as to happen to be there when something bad happened.

Most importantly, he is already here.

All we can do is pray that the demon boss below doesn't turn around.

"You remember now?"

The mermaid's soul suddenly stopped.

From extreme fear to a sense of bewilderment, and then to the sudden resurgence of a forgotten sense of urgency.

"Yes! Yes!! That's right!!"

"I remember now! I am the commander of Atlana's royal guard!"

"I traversed vast oceans, crossed silent seabeds... I abandoned my physical body, escaping the shackles of the laws of Thathos's sinking as a soul..."

"It's all about getting out! We need to ask the City-State Alliance for help!"

Its voice trembled with excitement, yet it was incredibly clear.

"Atlana is sinking! It's sinking at an uncontrollable speed!"

"It won't be long before the entire underwater city-state is completely destroyed!"

"For the lives of my millions of sea people!"

The mermaid's voice carried an undeniable resolve.

"I must send the message for help to the City-State Alliance as soon as possible!"

Lin Gui simply replied indifferently:

"Even if you send the message to the City-State Alliance... they won't send anyone to rescue you."

"Why?!" the mermaid's soul almost roared, filled with disbelief.

Lin Gui let out a short, cold laugh.

That laughter was devoid of warmth, containing only a cynical cynicism born of a world-weary perspective.

"You're too naive."

His voice was eerily calm.

"The city-state alliance? It's nothing more than a bunch of self-serving forces bickering at the negotiating table."

"Their greatest strengths lie in procrastination, shirking responsibility, and inconsistency."

"For the sake of profit, an alliance signed today can be null and void tomorrow."

His grey eyes gazed at the mermaid's soul with a hint of cruel pity.

"As for those races on the verge of extinction due to the Black Tide or other reasons... do you think the Alliance will lend a hand?"

"Their more common practice is to take advantage of the other party's weakness, seize their inheritance, and divide their land."

"Or, simply pretend you didn't see it and let it fend for itself."

"No! Impossible!" the mermaid's soul vehemently protested, her belief almost collapsing.

"Our merfolk race joined the alliance when the city-state era began!"

"We paid a heavy price to have our race's name enshrined in that Mutual Aid Pact!"

"If the alliance breaks the contract and abandons its alliance... what will other races think? The alliance's credibility will be completely destroyed!"

Lin Gui looked at him, his eyes still cold.

"Reputation? In the face of survival, how many gold coins is reputation worth?"

"Besides, who can prove that you were attacked?"

"Who can prove that the demigod Zatherus caused the sinking?"

"Even if it's proven, would the Alliance risk provoking a demigod for the sake of the merfolk, who live far away in the deep sea and whose interests are unrelated to theirs?"

His words were like a cold dagger, piercing the mermaid's last hope.

"Of course, this is just my personal opinion."

Lin Gui's tone softened slightly, as if casting a glimmer of light into the cold, deep sea.

"Perhaps due to public pressure, the league will eventually send reinforcements."

"For example... a symbolic 'hero' squad."

He then changed the subject, seemingly casually offering a suggestion:

"After all, you have a fellow countryman in the league."

"A merman who is quite prestigious in the current city-state alliance."

Upon hearing this, the mermaid's soul, whose light had been scattered by fear, suddenly coalesced.

"Anya! You mean Anya from 'The Voice of the Sea'!"

Its voice rekindled hope.

"Yes, I can go find her! The singer whose songs have soothed countless souls!"

"With her influence among the various races, she will surely be able to persuade the alliance!"

It urged urgently, its very soul's aura trembling slightly: "Take me to her! Now!"

Lin Gui remained calm and said:

"Don't worry, I will entrust the North Wind Caravan to take you to Dawn City."

His gaze drifted almost imperceptibly to the figure outside the window who was maintaining the bubbles.

"Speaking of which, there is a legendary mermaid mage outside."

"Master Poser holds a revered position at Twin Reefs; perhaps he can..."

"No!"

The mermaid's soul interrupted him, its voice suddenly becoming shrill.

After a brief silence, it lowered its voice, each word seemingly squeezed out from between its teeth:

"Just hand me over to this caravan."

Lin Gui nodded slightly and did not ask any further questions.

That moment of silence said it all.

Why not ask for help from your own people?

Why would you rather trust a caravan of strangers?

Politics in the deep sea is never simpler than that on land.

Factional infighting, power struggles, and even... blood feuds.

After repeated reassurances, the mermaid's soul finally retreated into the depths of the bead, filled with unease.

The ominous red light gradually faded, and the bead returned to its original grayish appearance.

Lin Gui stuffed it back into his pocket and sighed deeply.

There are some truths about the Kuroshio that he cannot tell the mermaids.

The source of each Black Tide is shrouded in mystery.

But its ultimate fate is often guided by a demigod demon.

A demigod-level being's power is almost equivalent to the rules themselves.

They can overturn mountains and change the course of the sea in the blink of an eye.

It is a terrifying existence that can truly crush legends and regard countless living beings as ants.

And that "Silent Demon" named Zathos was such a demigod.

Because of it, on the western side of the Akara continent, patches of coastal land have sunk into the sea.

The forbidden area, known as the Silent Sea, stretches across the entire western side.

This completely cut off the possibility of crossing the ocean from the west to reach the other side of the continent.

However, Lin Gui did not expect that Zathos would eventually fall asleep in this small Blackwater Bay.

According to information released by the City of a Thousand Towers, the black tide eventually subsided into the western part of the Atlanta Ocean.

What Lin Gui didn't tell the mermaid's soul was...

The "Tide of Silence" led by Zathos had already receded eight years ago.

Meanwhile, the mermaid royal court of Atlanna has been out of contact for eight years.

In other words, the mermaid's soul slept for a full eight years during this period.

Eight years...

That magnificent underwater city-state has probably already been completely destroyed by an irresistible force.

It sank to the bottom of that abyss where even light cannot reach, turning into a forgotten ruin.

He did not voice this cruel conjecture.

He needs this wisp of mermaid soul to carry hope to Dawn City.

Go and complete the quest issued by the system that rewards [Mermaid Gills].

A magic spell that would allow him to breathe freely underwater...

Lin Gui had read countless ancient books, but he had never heard of any kind of magic that could endow land creatures with such an almost instinctive ability.

The magic bestowed upon him by the system may be far more valuable than he initially imagined.

For this reward, he must keep this persistent soul "alive".

Even if the hope it pursued may have been completely extinguished eight years ago.