The morning light of the Boundless Sea Sword Cliff had not yet warmed the docks when the "Nameless Wave-Breaker" slipped out of the harbor, trailing a thick wake of rich vinegar aroma.
Its target was set straight for the southwest—that dangerous region on the Ink Abyss nautical chart shaped like scattered stars and marked as "Thousand-Snail Reef (Angry Shark Gang)."
The boat was very "peaceful":
Shi Lei pulled his bone bamboo hat even lower (concealing his aura), his skeleton resting against the base of the dragon-horn ram at the bow to serve as a "fixed anchor."
Xiaohong paced back and forth excitedly, violet electricity flashing slightly across its four hooves (ready at a moment's notice), the golden seal at the tip of its amethyst dragon horns shimmering with faint light...
The strange, mixed stench of dead dragon, rotting mud, and salty brine grew clearer and clearer: "Hisss-chant! (It's close! It's even more pungent than the Batu Brothers' unwashed feet from seven days ago!)"
The Batu Brothers each clutched a tub of "Xiaofang's Secret Vinegar-Paste Compressed Military Ration Blocks" (with a hardness comparable to Wushan iron, meant for gnawing or smashing people), their single-eyed gazes locked firmly on the ink-dark, turbid seawater.
The "Niu'er Vinegar-Paste Engine" at the stern had been tuned by Old Ma to be a bit too "spirited," puffing out sour mist like a mobile vinegar-smoke grenade.
Chapter 578