187: Not paying for a boat ride is a sign of respect for the ferryman.

Faceless Man.

If this face were in a horror movie, it could easily win an award for best makeup.

But in Lin Yuan's eyes, this was just an NPC whose texture modeling hadn't been finished yet.

"Crossing the river?"

Lin Yuan looked at that mouth split all the way to the ears, and instead of retreating, he stepped onto the side of the boat.

The small boat rocked violently, nearly throwing the Faceless Man into the sea.

"This is clearly the sea, yet you're telling me you're crossing a river?"

Lin Yuan patted the Faceless Man's shoulder with the back of his blade, producing a dull thud.

"Old thing, you're not very skilled at your job. Is this your first day on the job?"

The Faceless Man had clearly never encountered a customer with this kind of attitude.

Its split mouth stiffened for a moment, then emitted an even more eerie laugh.

"The Sea of Bitterness is boundless, repent and you shall reach the shore."

"Once you enter the Return Ruins, you are in the Yellow Springs."

It raised the bamboo pole in its hand and pointed toward the black mist ahead.

"To cross this tribulation, you must pay the toll."

"Toll?"

Lin Yuan chuckled.

In his life, he had only ever been the one collecting money; he had never seen anyone dare to ask him for money.

"How much?"

He reached into his robes, pretending to take out money.

Seeing this, the Faceless Man's slit widened, clearly anticipating something.

"Ten years of Lifespan, or one soul and one spirit."

It stretched out a withered hand, palm facing upward, wreathed in black Qi.

"Pay the money, the boat departs."

"No money, then fill the sea."

"Oh... that's expensive."

Lin Yuan dug around in his robes, his movements slow, while muttering: "Then come closer. My treasure is hidden deep; I'm afraid it will fall into the sea."

Although the Faceless Man had no facial features, the greed almost overflowed from its body. It leaned forward, its withered hand almost touching Lin Yuan's nose.

"Found it."

Lin Yuan suddenly grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

"Here you go!"

Before the words left his mouth, he violently pulled his hand out from his robes.

There was no money in his hand, nor any soul or spirit.

There was only an iron fist, crackling with lightning and charged for a long time.

"Get lost... you bastard!!!"

Boom!!!

This punch landed solidly on the Faceless Man's face.

With a dull "thud," the Faceless Man didn't even have time to scream before it was sent flying by the impact, slamming hard against the reef before bouncing back onto the deck.

Sizzle!

The residual electric current on its face danced wildly, burning its straw raincoat until black smoke rose.

Before it could struggle to get up, a foot had already stomped heavily onto its chest.

"What were you thinking?"

Lin Yuan looked down at the monster under his feet, shaking out his wrist while spitting on the ground.

"Asking me for money? You didn't go ask around, did you? Am I the kind of person who would give money?"

He bent down, grabbed the Faceless Man by its collar, and hoisted it up.

His other hand balled into a fist, and he delivered two more heavy thuds to the face that had just been smashed in.

"Still want it?"

"Still want Lifespan?"

"Still want a soul and spirit?"

Every question was followed by a heavy punch.

The black Qi on the Faceless Man dissipated, and its originally eerie and terrifying aura was shattered to pieces.

"Wuu... wuuu..."

The Faceless Man shook its head desperately. The bamboo pole that symbolized the ferryman's authority had long since flown off somewhere, and its two withered hands flailed in the air as if begging for mercy.

"That's right."

Lin Yuan let go, leaving it to slump on the deck.

He straightened his slightly messy collar and sat at the bow of the boat.

"Since you don't want money anymore, let's talk about service."

Lin Yuan patted the Faceless Man's head with the back of his blade.

"Drive... oh, wait, steer the boat."

"Go to the center of that thunderstorm."

"If you dare to take a detour, I'll dismantle your broken boat for firewood and hang you on the mast like cured meat."

The Faceless Man shook its head desperately, emitting an incoherent hiss.

"Cannot... cannot go..."

"That is... the Forbidden Ground..."

"That is the God's... sleeping palace..."

"God?"

Lin Yuan increased the pressure of his hand, the lightning on his fingertips sizzling against the Faceless Man's neck.

"What a coincidence."

"I happen to specialize in dealing with all sorts of defiant gods."

"Steer the boat immediately, or I'll roast you into takoyaki and feed you to the fish."

Under the suppression of the lightning, the Faceless Man yielded.

It tremblingly condensed a black oar and began to row.

As soon as they entered the black mist, the world went quiet.

All light was swallowed, with only the lightning overhead weaving through the clouds, providing the only source of light.

The seawater here was no longer a normal liquid.

It was a viscous substance with a texture similar to mercury.

As the boat traveled over it, there were no ripples.

"This place..."

Lin Yuan narrowed his eyes and activated [Electromagnetic Induction].

The magnetic field here was a mess.

It was as if hundreds of high-power magnets were repelling and attracting each other.

If it were any ordinary electronic device, it would be destroyed the instant it entered.

But for Lin Yuan, this was simply paradise.

[High-energy environment detected.]

[Primordial Thunder God Body is automatically recharging...]

[Current charging efficiency: 0.5% per second.]

Without needing to Cultivate, just standing here allowed him to replenish his energy.

Lin Yuan felt so comfortable he almost groaned aloud.

"Faster!"

He kicked the Faceless Man who was rowing with all its might.

"Didn't you eat? Why are you rowing so slow!"

The Faceless Man felt bitter inside.

The gravity in this sea area was abnormal, and every stroke was exceptionally heavy.

It was originally a strange creature that existed by feeding on the Life Qi of the living, and now not only had it not eaten, but it also had to work as a laborer for its food.

What kind of world was this?

Just then, the black mist ahead suddenly dispersed a little.

The outline of an island appeared in his field of vision.

It wasn't an ordinary island.

It was a steel graveyard piled up from the wreckage of countless sunken ships.

Ships from all eras, from ancient wooden sailing ships to World War II battleships, and then to modern freighters.

They were stacked together like trash, forming a mountain hundreds of meters high.

And at the very top of that steel mountain of corpses, a broken sword was plunged.

A giant broken sword, over a hundred meters long, covered in rust, yet still radiating pressure.

Lightning constantly struck that broken sword, and then flowed along the blade into the entire mountain of corpses, making this graveyard look as if it were breathing.

"That is..."

Lin Yuan stood up, his eyes narrowing.

He could feel it.

That broken sword was summoning him.

Or rather, it was summoning something within him.

"We've arrived..."

The Faceless Man stopped rowing, its voice filled with fear.

"This is the periphery of the Return Ruins... Sword Tomb."

"Cannot go any further..."

"Any further, and you will be torn apart by the Sword Qi..."

Lin Yuan ignored its nonsense and stared fixedly at the broken sword.

The lightning on it was not ordinary lightning.

That was... Geng Metal Divine Thunder.

The sharpest and most violent type among the Five Elements divine thunders.

"Good stuff."

Lin Yuan licked his lips.

If he could absorb just a mouthful, even just one mouthful, his [Palm Thunder] would definitely evolve into [Palm Cannon].

"Wait here."

Lin Yuan patted the Faceless Man's head.

"If you dare to run, I'll take apart your broken boat for firewood."

After saying that, he leaped.

He jumped directly onto the iron mountain.

As soon as he landed, hum—!

The steel wreckage beneath his feet suddenly vibrated.

Countless iron filings floated up.

They turned into streams of tiny Flying Swords, shooting toward Lin Yuan from all directions.

"The welcome ceremony is quite grand."

Lin Yuan chuckled.

If it were before, facing such dense physical attacks, he might have had to dodge.

But now?

"Lightning Control · Magnetic Force."

He raised his right hand, palm outward.

A magnetic field ripple spread out.

Those Flying Swords that had shot in front of him all stopped in mid-air.

"Spin!"

He flipped his wrist.

Those iron filings changed direction, rotating around him at high speed, forming a steel storm shield.

"This place is simply tailor-made for me."

Lin Yuan pushed against the storm, walking step by step toward the broken sword at the summit.

Every step he took, the lightning on his body grew stronger.

Just as he was about to approach the summit.

An indifferent voice suddenly came from below the broken sword.

"Halt."

"Mortal, you must not peer at a god."

Lin Yuan stopped.

He saw someone sitting cross-legged in the shadow of the broken sword.

A person wearing tattered ancient armor, covered in broken arrows, already withered like a mummy.

As the voice fell, the corpse slowly raised its head.

Two balls of ghostly blue fire ignited in its empty eye sockets.

"Those who cross the line, be slain."