Death… And Me

Chapter 3380: Not Crossing It

During the next three days, Rean and the others went out a few times to buy things. Or, in the case of Rifindio and Zangeshu, they went to the nearby demon beast territories to train. Finally, three days later, Ranfal brought Rean and Kentucky back to the Warm Boat Warehouse.

ʼThere are quite a lot of passengers, donʼt you think?ʼ Kentucky spoke as he saw various groups not only at Klinronʼs warehouse, but also at the other warehouses where there were other Warm Boats.

Rean nodded. ʼI guess the Warm Boats like to leave all at the same time. Perhaps it is safer that way.ʼ

Inside their warehouse...

”Friend Klinron, we are back,” Rean spoke with a smile.

Klinron glanced at him for a moment before returning to his adjustments of the ship. ”Go inside and just find a bedroom for yourself. You two have been added to the shipʼs system, so the room doors should open as long as they are not occupied. If you find any door that isnʼt a bedroom and it doesnʼt open, it means it is out of limits. Your authority level wonʼt get you inside. Anyway, we will be departing in an hour or so.”

Rean and Kentucky nodded before Rean turned back to Ranfal. ”Well, you did a good job in the last three days. Here is a little extra reward for your service.” Then, Rean threw Ranfal a Jade Slip.

Ranfal was taken aback, expecting to receive some Divine Stones instead. He looked at the Jade Slip, which he rarely saw one before since it was the norm to simply send information through the network. He turned back to Rean to ask about it... but the two were already gone. The moment he took his eyes off Rean and Kentucky, those two disappeared. 

Curious, Ranfal made his way out of the warehouse and back to the city while reading the contents of that Jade Slip. At first, he didnʼt expect much. However, as he read the Jade Slip, his expression changed to shock and then to excitement, which only increased the further he read. 

That was a cultivation technique and quite a strong one at that. It wasnʼt anything special in Roanʼs eyes, but to someone like Ranfal, that might as well be called a life-changing moment. There was definitely no one in that city with something as good as what was inside the Jade Slip. 

Well, Ranfal took a few hours to finish reading all the content, and he wanted to go back and thank Rean for that. Too bad that the Warm Boat had already departed by that time. Nonetheless, Ranfal bowed in the direction of the corridor, where all Warm Boats always headed. ʼThank you. I shall never forget this.ʼ

---

In the Warm Boat, Rean finished placing another simple concealing formation. ”Hum... this should be good enough. Letʼs go out on the deck and take a look.”

”Oh!” Kentucky quickly nodded.

Coming outside, the two noticed they werenʼt the only ones there. In fact, there were quite a few cultivators, demon beasts, and spirits around, most of them curious about the corridor as well. Just like Rean, they didnʼt have enough time to wait for the Overflow to end, nor did they have the money or time to go all the way south to go around it.

The two approached the border of the deck, taking a look at the clouds. The ship was just about to enter them as it headed to the corridor.

*Zuuummmm...*

Suddenly, the Warm Boat began to release Divine Energy, and together with that, a protection barrier was raised, creating a cocoon around it as it flew. Only once the barrier was fully operational did the airship plunge into the blue clouds.

*Bzzz, bramm, bang... bang... bang...*

Immediately, the bright blue lights that Rean and Kentucky saw from outside seemed to aim at the airship. They collided against the Warm Boatʼs barrier, creating a shell of frost in the points where they hit before being quickly melted away.

That was the main ability of the Warm Boats. It kept a barrier that counteracts the effects of the Glacial Overflow, and those flashes of blue light were one of such effects.

”Quite a nice protection formation. Different from normal ones, they use the extra energy of those blue lights to increase the heat,” Rean commented with a smile, admiring the spectacle inside the blue clouds.

”This friend here seems to know a little bit about formations, uh?” It was then that someone spoke to Rean and Kentucky on the side. He had blond hair and blue eyes, not to mention a well-developed body, he was quite handsome in the eyes of women. ”First time inside the Corridor?”

Rean nodded. ”That is indeed the case. Hello there. My name is Marvin, and this here is my friend Casper.”

ʼSo you came from Mars now?ʼ Kentucky asked through Divine Sense.

ʼAnd you from the afterlife, hahaha,ʼ Rean confirmed while adding a new piece.

Kentucky found it funny and didnʼt complain. ”Hey there, Casper here... although I might be lacking some transparency...”

”Transparency? What do you mean?” The handsome man asked.

”Itʼs just a joke from our hometown,” Rean added to Kentuckyʼs words.

The man didnʼt understand but didnʼt mind either. ”Right... Iʼm Gram Kernel. Nice to meet you. Still, you are quite bold to take this trip with that cultivation of yours.”

Rean and Kentucky could tell that Gram was in the Late Stage of the Space-Bending Realm. ”Senior Klinron mentioned the same thing, but we are quite confident in our defensive abilities.”

”Thatʼs good,” Gram nodded, ”but that isnʼt the only issue. This barrier you are seeing protecting the Warm Boat wonʼt work this good for long. We are still not inside the corridor per se, you know? Once we truly enter it, the freezing energy will increase hundreds of times, maybe even thousands.”

”The barrier can only prevent so much of that energy from penetrating the insides of the ship, and at that moment, you will have to rely on your cultivation to drive the energy out or keep it at bay. I hope you have very resistant bodies. Even for me, traversing at this time of the phenomenon is quite risky.”

”Thank you for the warning. My friend and I will save our energy reserves for when the moment arrives,” Rean commented. 

”Thatʼs good to hear.” Gram didnʼt look that convinced, though. Itʼs just that he didnʼt speak it out loud.

Rean and Kentucky noticed that but didnʼt mind either. ”So, what are you taking this risk for? Whatever is on the other side must be quite important.”

”Not going to the other side,” Gram shook his head. ”Iʼm disembarking once we reach the center of the Glacial Overflow.”

And as always, any Golden Tickets and Stones are welcome. ;)