NOVEL NEXT chapter 95
After discovering that fire could disperse the mist, the price of wood skyrocketed again — up to 20 conch coins per unit — and was still rising.
After all, the usual sources of wood were gone. There were only chunks of floating ice at sea, and fishing was almost always a bust.
As for islands — no one had mentioned seeing any.
It seemed that in these frozen seas, islands were extremely rare... or perhaps didn’t exist at all.
One day later.
The Nyxstar moved silently through the thick fog at a speed of fifteen knots.
The sea was calm, the wind barely a whisper. Not even the sound of waves could be heard.
[Silent Voyage: Your sanity -3]
Yang Yi frowned.
As Suna had said, traveling too long in the fog would slowly eat away at your sanity.
Other players had noticed this too — and they’d found a coping method: sticking together for warmth.
Some formed duos, some went in groups of three or five, others joined larger fleets.
Whether those companions could truly be trusted... that was something each person had to judge for themselves.
“Exiles Fleet recruiting! If you’re short on wood or food, come join us! We offer shelter and 24-hour hot water. PM me if you want to join our big family!”
“That sounds too good to be true.”
“I don’t buy it. Free things are always the most expensive.”
“Count me in, boss!”
“…”
Yang Yi scrolled through the chat channel for a long while. Nothing major seemed to be happening — aside from the occasional iceberg collision.
After another two hours of sailing, he rammed apart a small iceberg — but got nothing for it. It really was just an iceberg...
After that, Suna took over steering.
They had agreed beforehand: six hours each at the helm, then switch.
With twenty-four hours in a day, that left each of them twelve hours /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ off-duty — free time to rest or do something else.
After handing over, Yang Yi went to the ship’s mid-deck and began fishing.
Fishing in the white mist turned out to be extremely difficult.
Judging from the chat channel, hardly anyone had caught anything.
After five hours, the only thing Yang Yi had managed to hook was a seal.
He released it immediately to avoid damaging the ship — seals were too dangerous. One wrong move, and it could blow up right in his face.
Glancing at the time, he figured his shift was about up.
It contained intel about the white fog — and something called “living icebergs.”
As a VIP subscriber, Yang Yi already knew roughly what the new issue would cover and when it would drop.
But he still needed to see the full details for himself.
He walked up to the capsule machine and picked up two copies.
“Suna, want to read the Maritime Weekly?” he asked.
Sailing through this deathly silent sea was mind-numbing — a little reading was good for mental health.
And Suna wasn’t easily frightened by eldritch horrors; her sanity drain was minimal.
Suna looked a little surprised but took the paper from him.
“How about… you unlock my trade permissions too?” she said.
Apparently, she’d realized her trade access had been revoked.
She must have tried buying something earlier and failed.
“What do you want to buy?” Yang Yi asked.
“Something good!”
Her voice grew excited as she sent him an item description:
[Name: Collector’s Token]
[Type: Consumable]
[Quality: Rare]
Description: At night, throw this item into the sea to summon the Collector for a trade. (The Collector will appear on any night within one week — do not keep him waiting.)
Note 1: The Collector only accepts trades by barter.
Note 2: The Collector dislikes having trades refused.
After completing a trade, the Collector will leave behind a new token for future transactions.
“The Collector…”
Yang Yi muttered. Instinctively, he felt that this so-called merchant was anything but normal.
Then he saw the item’s picture — a withered human head, smiling in eerie bliss. Its neck bones had been polished smooth into a perfect handle.
[Disturbing Visage: Your sanity -3]
Yang Yi’s vision darkened for a moment — then he immediately refused.
“Forget I asked. Goodbye!”
He strode back to his quarters, firmly deciding never to give this woman trade rights again.
She’d probably buy every cursed item she saw — and try each one out herself.
Too dangerous. That would get them both killed in no time.
Meanwhile, Suna hadn’t given up. She quickly sent another private message.
“It’s cheap! It used to cost 10,000 conch coins — I bargained it down to 5,000!”
Yang Yi’s stomach tightened.
A rare item for 5,000?
Who would believe that?
Even a one-time consumable wouldn’t go for less than 20,000!
The cheaper the item, the more cursed it probably was.
The seller probably knew it was dangerous — that’s why they were eager to get rid of it.
For all he knew, that head could’ve belonged to the seller’s old friend.
“Don’t even think about it,” Yang Yi replied. “That thing’s obviously cursed. And another thing — don’t tell anyone else about the magic potions. It’s not safe.”
After sending the message, Yang Yi ignored Suna and turned his attention back to the newspaper.
This issue seemed to have been rushed out after the mist appeared. There was no trade section — only “Maritime News” and updated monster reports.
Two headlines stood out:
“On the Unknown Sounds Within the White Fog”
and
“Beware the Living Icebergs.”
The living iceberg story was about the Pale Worms, and the credited source was “One-Eye.”
The piece described the creature in detail, warning players of its extreme danger — information that matched what Yang Yi had already provided. He skimmed it and moved on.
The monster report page had a sticker on it, marked:
⚠ Before viewing, ensure your sanity is stable!
Underneath was a close-up image of the Pale Worm.
Yang Yi peeled the sticker off — and saw the same photo he’d taken himself, though the creature’s mouthparts had been pixelated.
Then he turned to the other article — the one about the unknown sounds in the white fog.
The source: Stormwind Brigade.
They’d encountered danger — a strange noise, like the crackle of electricity.
At the same time, the temperature around them had plummeted — dropping below -40°C — and the sea froze solid!
They didn’t know what was inside the fog, but they’d escaped thanks to their speed.
Yang Yi figured the reporter must have been Captain Xu Da of the Gale.
As for how they escaped from a frozen sea… perhaps the Gale could fly.
After reading through the intel, Yang Yi warned Suna to stay alert for such sounds — there was definitely a creature in the mist.
If she ever heard it while steering, she was to wake him immediately.
By the time he finished the paper, it was nearly time for his next shift.
He returned to the helm and took over from Suna, who handed over the wheel with a reluctant look — clearly still thinking about that “Collector’s Token.”
Fortunately, she didn’t have the permissions.
Otherwise, they’d both be doomed before dawn.