Chapter 33: Wavebreak’s Fear and a Sailor’s Secret
Wavebreak was a small, weather-beaten town, its wooden houses huddled against the coast, its docks lined with fishing boats. But the usual bustle of the town was gone— the streets were empty, the shops shuttered, and the few villagers who ventured outside moved quickly, their heads down, their eyes filled with fear.
Lin Yue and his team walked through the town square, their swords hidden beneath their cloaks, their eyes scanning for signs of the missing fishermen. A small boy, no older than ten, stood by a fountain, staring at them. When Lin Yue smiled and waved, the boy flinched, running into a nearby house and slamming the door shut.
“They’re scared,” Ling said, her voice soft. “Whatever’s been taking the fishermen— it’s made them afraid of strangers.”
They found the town’s inn, its sign creaking in the wind: The Salty Mermaid. Inside, the common room was half-empty, the few patrons huddled at tables, whispering to each other. The innkeeper— a broad-shouldered woman with a scar across her cheek— stood behind the bar, polishing a mug, her eyes sharp as she watched them.
“Can I help you?” she asked, her voice cold.
“We’re looking for a sailor,” Lin Yue said, walking up to the bar. “Someone who knows the Sea of Mist. We need to hire a ship.”
The innkeeper’s hand froze. She glanced around the room, then leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper. “You don’t want to go into the Sea of Mist. Not now. The Mist’s Curse has been taking fishermen for weeks— their boats found empty, their nets torn to shreds. Last week, old Man Zhang came back… but he wasn’t right. His eyes were black, his skin cold, and he kept muttering about ‘dark shadows’ and ‘a man with a glowing stone.’ He died the next day, his body dissolving into black mist.”
Lin Yue’s heart skipped a beat. A man with a glowing stone— the prisoner, with the third fragment. “We need to find this man,” he said. “The one with the glowing stone. He’s dangerous. He’s behind the fishermen’s deaths.”
The innkeeper hesitated, then nodded. “There’s only one sailor who still goes into the Sea of Mist— a old man named Hai. He lives on the edge of town, in a small hut by the docks. But he won’t take you. He says the mist is ‘angry,’ and he won’t risk his ship.”
“We have to try,” Lin Yue said.
Hai’s hut was a ramshackle structure, its walls covered in fishing nets, its roof leaking. When Lin Yue knocked on the door, a gruff voice shouted, “Go away! I don’t take passengers!”
“We’re not here for a ride,” Lin Yue said, his voice steady. “We’re here to stop the man who’s been killing the fishermen. The man with the glowing stone.”
The door creaked open. Hai stood in the doorway— a tall, thin man with white hair and a beard, his hands gnarled by years of work at sea. His eyes were sharp, like he could see straight through Lin Yue’s cloak. “You’re cultivators,” he said, his voice flat. “What do you know about the mist?”
“I know it’s not a curse,” Lin Yue said. “It’s dark qi. The man with the glowing stone is using it to control the mist, to capture fishermen. We need to find him. We need your help.”
Hai stepped aside, letting them into the hut. Inside, the walls were lined with maps of the Sea of Mist— marked with red X’s, where ships had gone missing. “I’ve seen him,” Hai said, sitting down on a wooden stool. “Three nights ago. His ship was black, with no sails, and he stood on the deck, holding a stone that glowed dark red. He was heading for the center of the mist— to the Wailing Reef. That’s where the old stories say the Mist Spirit lives… but I think it’s something worse. Something that’s been waiting for the stone.”
Lin Yue’s hand tightened around the jade box. The Wailing Reef. That’s where the prisoner was heading. That’s where the third fragment was. “Will you take us?” he asked.
Hai hesitated, then nodded. “I will. But not for your gold. For the fishermen. For Man Zhang. That man needs to be stopped. But we leave at dawn. The mist is calmer then. And if we’re not back by sunset… we won’t be back at all.”
Lin Yue nodded, relief washing over him. They had a ship. They had a guide. They had a destination.
That night, they stayed in Hai’s hut, preparing for the journey. Lin Yue sat by the window, practicing with the fragments again— his dragon qi wrapping around them, their pulses syncing with his. He could feel it— the third fragment, far away in the Sea of Mist, calling to the others. And he could feel the prisoner’s aura, cold and cruel, tied to it.
Tomorrow, they would sail into the mist. Tomorrow, they would face the prisoner. Tomorrow, they would get the third fragment.
And one step closer to stopping the Dark Dragon’s soul once and for all.
Hai walked over, holding a small, wooden amulet. “For you,” he said, handing it to Lin Yue. “It’s a protection charm— my grandfather made it. It won’t stop dark qi, but it’ll help you stay calm in the mist. The mist plays tricks on your mind. Don’t let it fool you.”
Lin Yue took the amulet, tucking it into his robe beside the jade box. “Thank you.”
Hai nodded, then walked away. Lin Yue looked out the window, at the moon reflecting on the sea. The water was calm now, but he knew— tomorrow, it would be a different story. The Sea of Mist was waiting. The prisoner was waiting. The third fragment was waiting.
But he was ready.
Slow. Steady. Strong.
That’s how he’d won so far. That’s how he’d win tomorrow.