Chapter 43: The Ocean Turns Black
Thunder cracked across the sky, as if some celestial beast stirred behind the clouds. Lin Ho stood atop the cliff at the edge of Qingye Sect, his robes billowing in the rising wind. The jade talisman left behind by the gray-robed stranger felt cold in his palm, despite the warmth of his Chaos Qi.
Below, the eastern ocean seethed with unease.
> "When the ocean turns black…"
The warning repeated in his mind. His instincts—sharpened through battle, honed through cultivation—told him that something was coming. Something ancient. Something buried.
A soft knock echoed from behind. It was Elder Qiu.
> "You've felt it too, haven't you?"
Lin Ho nodded. "Something is moving beneath the waves."
Elder Qiu's expression was unreadable. "The elders held council last night. An old sea trench—sealed for centuries by Qingye's founders—has stirred. Black mist rises. Spirit beasts flee the waters."
> "Do you suspect the Abyssal Clans?"
> "No." Elder Qiu glanced toward the horizon. "This is older. The sea remembers things even the stars have forgotten."
He handed Lin Ho a small scroll, sealed with silver Qi.
> "You've been selected for an expedition team. Six disciples. Three elders. You leave tomorrow. Your task is to investigate the Abyssal Gate and report what lies beneath."
> "And if we find something that can't be reported?"
> "Then survive, and remember."
---
That Night – Lin Ho's Courtyard
The winds grew louder as dusk fell. Lightning flashed across the sky. Lin Ho sat in quiet meditation, refining his Chaos Qi. The jade talisman hovered in front of him, surrounded by a thin layer of swirling golden-black energy.
Suddenly, a vision overtook him.
Dark water. Eyes beneath it. Countless eyes, blinking as if awakening from slumber.
A voice echoed—not from the world, but from within his blood.
> "They remember us. They hate us."
Lin Ho's breath caught.
> "Who are 'they'?"
> "The ones devoured by Chaos… once."
The vision shattered.
He opened his eyes. Sweat lined his brow.
> "So even the ocean has ghosts…"
---
The Next Morning – Departure
Six disciples gathered at the southern docks, where spirit ships were prepared for deep-sea voyages. Among them: Lin Ho, twin-saber Mu Yanyan, stoic Xu Liang, fiery Yan Fei, and two other inner disciples Lin Ho didn't recognize.
Elder Qiu, Elder Mo, and a quiet old woman with blank eyes stood at the helm.
> "We sail into the Abyssal Sea. Do not underestimate it," Elder Mo warned. "Keep your minds sharp and hearts steady."
The ship departed.
As the sect faded from view, the waters grew darker—not in color, but in energy. The spirit compass began to spin. Birds vanished from the skies.
Then they saw it.
A black plume—rising like a mountain from the sea's surface, shadowing the sky.
Lin Ho stepped to the edge of the deck.
> "The ocean has turned black."
---
End of Chapter 43