Following his memory, Chen Qi walked down the muddy cobblestone road and arrived at his house in Damarro Town.

Well, calling it a house was generous. Structurally speaking, it was more like a giant, broken wooden barrel—the kind with the lid blown off in a storm.

Creak!

Chen Qi shoved the wooden door open roughly with his hand.

Inside the room, apart from a plank bed, an oil lamp with no oil, a well-worn copy of Guide to World Strange Diseases, and a few articles of clothing—there was nothing else.

“Pretty rough conditions, but at least there’s a bed.”

Chen Qi consoled himself as he stripped off his clothes, revealing his back.

The tattoo on his back resembled deep-blue tentacles, which converged to form a terrifying ghostly visage.

This ghostly mark was not something ordinary people could look at directly!

In this world, there was no such thing as compassion for the diseased—especially for strange afflictions like this. If exposed, it would only invoke fear in others.

Bottom line, no sane person would be fond of his back...

Well, except maybe Deep Sea cultists—they’d probably love it. To them, someone parasitized by a sea beast and still alive was the perfect sacrificial offering to fulfill their twisted desires.

Oh... and maybe Little Crow with her weird tastes.

Next, Chen Qi picked up the dusty clothes on the ground, gave them a shake, and put them on, then randomly found some tattered clothes to use as a blanket.

Right now, he was still in the early game phase—just had to make do.

As the effect of the Yellow Needle wore off, he started to feel the soreness in his muscles.

It was that completely drained, hollowed-out exhaustion.

“Time to sleep!”

Chen Qi collapsed onto the bed.

Creak!

The impact of his fall instantly broke the already dying bed.

The bed’s shoddy quality had surpassed even his worst expectations.

Chen Qi felt the cold seeping into his back as he slowly closed his eyes.

Once I make my first payout from the Crack, I need to get myself a real bed—one I can actually toss and turn on...

...

...

At night, a storm once again swept through this little island town.

When Chen Qi woke up, he could hear the neighboring fisherman's wife cursing again. She swore she’d had enough of this cr*phole and was planning to sell the house. She was dead set on moving to a big city.

The fisherman prophesied that with the storms getting worse, Damarro Town was becoming unlivable. Now was the perfect time to sell.

“What timing to enter the game...”

The Age of Sail was about to begin, and Damarro Town would be a solid starting point.

As he pondered this, Chen Qi made his way to the town's herb shop.

He traded some painkillers from his backpack for money.

The painkillers from the Black Whale Gang were rare and potent, made with special ingredients.

A single canister sold for a thousand Bei coins.

In Damarro Town, a regular fisherman’s monthly income was around four thousand Bei.

One thousand Bei was enough to cover his living expenses for a few days.

But for someone about to walk the Transcendent path, that amount barely made a ripple.

Clutching the crumpled bills in his hand, Chen Qi headed straight for the docks.

Just like on Earth, in this world, you needed money to do anything.

And now he had a very annoying problem—he didn’t have a boat.

The little boat he’d snagged from the Black Whale Gang had been wrecked in the storm.

After all, it was just an emergency lifeboat.

If he took someone else’s boat, it would waste a lot of time.

What he needed was a new one. The best option? Renting. But that would definitely cost a fair bit.

Hopefully, there’d be a decent boat in Damarro Town.

The docks were crowded—fishermen, fish vendors, shipwrights—even the Mayor of Damarro was there.

Suddenly, he heard sighs and complaints from nearby.

“This weather’s completely unpredictable. How are we supposed to head out to sea?”

“Forget the weather—I heard someone spotted the Black Whale Gang’s Saw Shark ship near the coast. How are we supposed to sail out now?”

“Pirates? The deep-sea beasts are way scarier. I heard a big fishing ship spotted the coastal overlord nearby!

Luckily, it didn’t seem hungry. Otherwise, the dozen crew members would’ve been toast.”

“Coastal overlord? I heard someone on a Goldenfinch Kingdom passenger ship saw a witch—and some indescribable creature.”

“...”

Chen Qi perked up his ears. These folks actually had quite a bit of intel.

Coastal overlord, Black Whale Gang, witches...

The first two he already knew about.

As for the witches...

Witches were major figures in the Witch Sea main storyline—extremely mysterious beings. According to player speculation, the Flower Witch had probably just arrived at the Witch Sea around this time, and the Blade Witch had also been born.

But right now, it was still early in the game. No one would touch the witch plotlines this soon.

With current strength, getting involved was suicide.

Before he knew it, he’d reached the docking area.

Chen Qi looked up. The sea breeze under the sunlight was as pleasant as ever.

Last night’s storm had caused a lot of accidents at sea, and people were still in a gloomy mood.

Even so, for the sake of survival, fishing had to go on, and life had to continue.

Many were prepping to sail out.

Chen Qi scanned the ships before him.

Top priority—find a boat suitable for reaching the Crack.

“Too bulky... that one’s already broken... that one just looks expensive…”

Chen Qi muttered to himself.

“Wait a sec!”

At that moment, a small steel travel boat caught his eye.

It was a small power boat made of steel, composed of a boat house and hull.

Sleek curves, reinforced steel frame—

Chen Qi walked toward it with interest.

Beside the boat, a sign read “Boat for Sale.”

And it listed a few of the boat’s highlights.

It was a modified boat, rebuilt from a scrapped vessel, with only one focus: speed!

It was fitted with a power engine from a Crack, giving it double the speed of a standard cargo ship under normal conditions.

It also had an overdrive mode that could instantly triple its speed.

Perfect for racing—or piracy!

Chen Qi was tempted.

Anyone who’d done a bit of murder knew—killing was easy, disposing of bodies was hard.

But on the ocean, all you had to do was shout “Praise the Sea God!” and toss the corpse overboard.

So yeah, the Witch Sea had a sky-high crime rate.

The sea was a grand stage—got issues? Bring ‘em here.

Two ships cross paths, one wrong look, and a fight breaks out. Totally normal.

Even the authorities often fought amongst themselves.

He wasn’t afraid of sea beasts, but conflict with other humans was inevitable.

As a poor and helpless sea rookie, to avoid getting dragged into that brutal mess—and to stir up trouble efficiently—

He really needed a fast boat.

Chen Qi looked around excitedly and estimated the boat’s worth—probably around 100,000 Bei coins.

Small, fast, a bit worn, but otherwise his dream ride.

Only downside: it wasn’t his.

Sitting near the dock was an old man—the owner of the boat:

Old Bailey the Salvager.

A single, unkempt old salvage man who spent his time collecting junk from the sea and turning it into weird contraptions.

He’d been traumatized by a trip where he glimpsed a black boat with lights and a skeleton with tentacles.

That experience, plus his age, led him to stop sailing altogether. He planned to move to Moonstone City and was looking to sell the boat.

Last night’s storm only made him more eager to sell.

No one wanted to sail anymore. If he didn’t sell now, he might never find a buyer!

But the boat had steep maintenance costs, so he hadn’t found anyone suitable yet.

He sat alone at the dock, letting the lonely sea breeze blow over him.

Chen Qi walked over, crouched down, and said,

“Old Bailey, how about 200 coins to rent it for a day?”

“Two hundred!?”

Old Bailey’s eyes lit up—he hadn’t made a dime in ages. He lifted his bald head and looked at Chen Qi.

Wasn’t this the kid who got sick from a sea beast? How’d he end up back here?

His mood instantly flipped. He scowled and said,

“No way! This boat is my companion, my beloved wife. Would you lend your companion to someone for a day?”

“...”

Chen Qi was caught off guard.

Do people in the Witch Sea all talk like this?

That rejection was so over-the-top, he had no idea how to even respond without sounding like a total pervert.

Old Bailey continued,

“Young man, don’t do anything stupid. Keep that money for yourself and buy something tasty.”

“Huh?”

Chen Qi was dumbfounded. He paused to think.

There was a tradition at sea—burial at sea. The dead would be placed on a small boat, covered in flowers, and sent off to receive the Sea Goddess’s blessing.

Did the guy think I wanted to sail off to die?

Left with no choice, Chen Qi calmly replied,

“Four hundred.”

“Four hundred!”

Double the price!? Old Bailey swallowed hard. That wasn’t a small offer.

But after a moment’s hesitation, he still said,

“No.”

Even if the kid wasn’t trying to die at sea, handing the boat to a broke young man was out of the question.

If something happened, he might not even be able to find the body.

Would raising the offer help...? Chen Qi frowned.

He had to admit, starting out with nothing really made it hard to convince anyone to rent him a boat.

Then a deep, commanding voice spoke—it was the highest-ranking man in Damarro: Mayor Damarro.

“Old Bailey, rent it to him. He’s a Spiritually Awakened now—he needs money.

And he’s got decent talent. Maybe one day he’ll even be able to afford your sketchy old junk boat.”

The pot-bellied mayor squatted by the dock, smoking a hand-rolled cigarette as he looked out to sea.

He had to admit, based on how Instructor An treated him, Chen Qi was clearly more talented than his own useless son.

If Damarro Town could gain another competent Transcendent, it’d be something to brag about.

Maybe his son would even have someone to tag along with.

Maybe the Goldenfinch government would give the town more resources. Though, that was pure fantasy.

Unless a Tier 3 Transcendent showed up, there was no way the government would care about this tiny, broken town.

“Afford it? Spiritually Awakened?”

Old Bailey scratched his head and looked suspiciously at Chen Qi’s ragged clothes.

Buy some decent clothes first… he grumbled internally.

But the Mayor was the highest-ranking person in town, and Bailey owed him a ton of money.

He had no right to refuse.

Old Bailey turned to Chen Qi with a smile,

“Psst—still four hundred okay?”

“I’ll think about it…”

Chen Qi leapt onto the boat, opened the deck hatch, and checked the power engine inside.

The power engine was the heart of a boat.

On the dusty engine casing, he saw a faint image—a steam-emitting iron hand gripping a steel hammer.

That was…

“The emblem of the Steam Hand!”

Chen Qi was shocked.

Steam Hand was a well-known heavy industrial company in the Goldenfinch Kingdom.

They used dangerous constructs from Cracks to build powerful mechanical armor.

Many top players who piloted mechas had dealt with them.

But since their clientele was mostly big corps and the government, they weren’t known in rural areas.

In this world, brand mattered. If this was a Steam Hand modded boat, it could easily be worth 300,000 coins.

If the power core was still functional, 500,000—maybe even a million...

Military-grade?! This mod job was insane...

Chen Qi stood up and looked back at Old Bailey on the dock.

Old Bailey grinned proudly and said,

“Well? I made that out of sea trash I picked up.

Pretty decent mod job, huh? Bit busted, but totally worth it.”

You’re calling a Steam Hand product trash?

If this boat could be repaired, it would last him a long time.

Just the Steam Hand logo alone meant buying it was a win!

Chen Qi swallowed and asked,

“How much is it?”

Old Bailey looked Chen Qi over and chuckled,

“Four-month payment plan—forty thousand a month. Full price: 130,000.”

With the stormy weather lately and people wary of modded boats, Old Bailey had set a low price.

Installments?

Chen Qi hadn’t expected a junkman to say that word.

The guy had business sense.

Old Bailey was smug. He’d learned the installment trick from a shady merchant.

He didn’t expect Chen Qi to pay on time. Miss a month, and he’d repossess the boat.

He’d keep the boat and pocket the money.

Of course, unless the kid died.

Given how rough the seas had been lately, he could end up feeding the sharks.

In the next moment, Chen Qi didn’t hesitate:

“I’ll take it. Here’s 400 for the deposit!”

Chen Qi handed over two 200-coin bills, tossed his backpack onto the boat, and went straight to the helm to start the engine.

Deposit? Old Bailey was stunned. Before he could say a word, the steam engine rumbled to life.

The propeller sliced through the water, leaving ripples in its wake.

Chen Qi gripped the steering wheel and set sail.

His Transcendent rank was crucial—he didn’t have time to chat.

Full speed ahead!

Watching him sail off, Old Bailey turned to the Mayor and grumbled,

“Mayor Damarro, you really think that brat can buy my boat?

Even if he sold his body to that big-spending auntie from the Black Whale Gang, endured everything—there’s no way he could make 130,000 in a week!

Unless he makes money in a Crack—that’s the only shot.”

Cracks could kill you—or make you rich overnight.

To a Crack...

To a Crack!

Old Bailey broke into a cold sweat:

“Mayor Damarro, if he dies on the way to the Crack, then my boat’s gone too. That’s my carefully modded boat!”

“No, it won’t be the Crack. He’s not the reckless type. No one would go alone into a Crack—that’s suicide.

Don’t be fooled by how he looks. He’s probably working on a task from Instructor An.

If he completes enough of them, he’ll get a priceless, unobtainable Apprentice profession card.”

Mayor Damarro exhaled a long stream of smoke, watching the little boat disappear over the horizon.

“He should be fine... right?”