TL Note: decided to stick with the new style, reception was mixed but I think most would prefer faster translation over better stylization.
*****
In contrast to the continuous mountain ranges seen in the previous life, Li Fan found himself currently situated over a vast, endless expanse of ocean.
"What's going on? Why is this place different from before?" Li Fan was somewhat stunned.
He took out a map he had drawn based on memory from his pocket and attempted to find the location of the ocean on it.
But after a thorough comparison, he couldn't find it at all.
"Never mind, I'll just take one step at a time." Not knowing where the mistake occurred, Li Fan put away the map and sighed. "Fortunately, I have the Tai Yan Boat for transportation. Otherwise, I might have been stranded here. I just don't know if I can find a place where people reside before the spirit stones in the Tai Yan Boat run out."
He wasn't one to blame himself. Li Fan quickly sprang into action.
Choosing a direction, he piloted the Tai Yan Boat while searching for traces of a city in the surroundings.
The ocean was truly boundless. Li Fan flew for seven days and nights, yet saw no signs of human activity.
Fortunately, the Tai Yan Boat was well-stocked with food, so he didn't have to worry about survival.
After more than ten days passed, the speed of the Tai Yan Boat began to slow down, indicating that its energy was nearly depleted.
At this desperate moment, Li Fan finally spotted a faint silhouette of a ship on the ocean's surface.
Li Fan was overjoyed and slowly lowered the Tai Yan Boat's altitude to approach.
However, as he got closer, he was rendered speechless.
It was indeed a ship, but it was a ship that was on the verge of sinking.
It seemed to have suffered some kind of attack, with a large hole in the hull, and two-thirds of it submerged in water.
Around the ship, dozens of people struggled in the water, who were obviously the ship's crew.
Most of them were not skilled swimmers and were barely clinging to pieces of wreckage, preventing themselves from sinking.
Li Fan was hesitant about releasing the Tai Yan Boat to save them, but then he heard one of the survivors, a man, struggling to shout, "Don't be afraid, I've sent a signal to the Immortal Master! He will come to rescue us soon! Everyone, hold on a little longer!"
Hearing this, Li Fan was moved.
He stored the Tai Yan Boat and jumped into the sea, quietly swimming towards these people.
Silently blending into the crowd, Li Fan pretended to be struggling for survival, gasping for breath and barely keeping himself afloat.
After a while, a streak of light flew over from a distance and stopped above the group.
"Immortal Master, save us!"
"Immortal Master, save us!"
...
The people saw hope and began calling for help.
"Noisy!"
The voice belonged to a man, but his attire and features were obscured as if by a veil, making it hard to discern.
With a disdainful snort, the man seemed to cast some spell, and Li Fan suddenly found himself unable to produce sound.
The crowd fell silent instantly.
The Immortal Master then flew to the side of the sinking ship and effortlessly lifted it from the water, repairing the gaping hole in the hull with a burst of light.
He then looked at the struggling people in the water and snorted, lightly waving his hand forward.
Li Fan and the others felt themselves lifted by an invisible force and flown towards the repaired ship.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
In an instant, the rescued people were thrown onto the ship like dumplings by the Immortal Master's rough handling.
Unable to speak, they could only emit muffled sounds.
But all of them had expressions of awe and joy for being saved, not daring to show the slightest complaint.
Once everyone was rescued, the Immortal Master flew above them. In a stern tone, he said, "Who sent the distress signal?"
The man who had comforted the others earlier immediately knelt down.
The Immortal Master waved his hand, removing the spell from the man.
While kowtowing, the man said, "This humble one is Su Changyu..."
The Immortal Master interrupted him directly, "You know the rules, right? After arriving, everything is unrelated to me. I have never seen you, nor do I know who you are. Understand?"
Su Changyu nodded repeatedly, "This humble one understands. When we came, our family elders had already instructed..."
He stopped speaking halfway, his voice silenced.
It turned out that the Immortal Master was satisfied and had silenced Su Changyu.
The Immortal Master paid no attention to these mortals and flew to the bow of the ship. He cast a spell, and the ship swiftly sailed in a certain direction.
Witnessing this scene, most of the people on board were filled with awe.
Some seemed to have not recovered from the previous disaster, sitting on the deck trembling, curling up as if silently weeping.
The ship fell into an eerie silence.
This lasted for most of the day until it was dark. Finally, in the distance, a faint shimmer of light became visible.
It was an island that appeared quite prosperous. Though it was still some distance away, faint sounds of human activity could be heard.
Docked at the island's pier were hundreds of large ships, a magnificent sight.
However, the ship Li Fan was on did not head towards the main dock but circled around the island, arriving at a less populated area at the back.
Quietly, the ship entered a natural cave.
After maneuvering through the narrow cave for a while, it finally came to a stop.
Once the ship was anchored, several robust men in black attire came up to assist.
However, they seemed to completely ignore the Immortal Master, merely using weapons to drive the people off the ship.
Not a word was spoken.
They escorted the people to a spacious hall. A black-clad man finally spoke.
"You will rest here tonight. Food has already been prepared in the hall, help yourselves. Tomorrow, someone will take you to arrange your identities. Also, no unnecessary noise." He glanced around threateningly before turning and leaving.
The hall fell into silence.
After a long while, the Immortal Master's silencing spell wore off. Subsequently, the people in the hall began to discuss in groups.
"This time, our luck was really bad. We were actually attacked by sea monsters. There were nearly a hundred of us when we set out, but now, less than half remain."
"What's the use of seeking the Dao and cultivating as immortals? Sigh, I don't know what my father was thinking, insisting on sending me to this vast world for cultivation. If you ask me, cultivating immortality isn't as enjoyable as listening to music."
"That's right. Back home, at least I was the son of the Southern King. I could enjoy all kinds of wealth and splendor. What's good about this place..."
He was interrupted halfway, only the sound of sobbing remained, as his quick-witted companion quickly covered his mouth.
At this point, Su Changyu, the man who had spoken earlier, said, "At this juncture, what's the point of saying these things? Didn't every family spend a great price to send you here? Instead of complaining, why not be patient and cultivate from now on? If you can truly become a cultivator, not only is there hope for a long life, but there's also a chance to return to our hometown and bring our family members out."
Hiding in the shadows, Li Fan listened to the people's conversation, and he vaguely understood their identities.
These people were probably like him, ordinary mortals banished to a Land of Immortal Extinction.
However, it seemed that in the places they were in, the existence of the cultivation realm was not a secret.
Moreover, they had even developed a mature "smuggling" route?
Li Fan stroked his chin and fell into thought.