Volume One: The Infernal Lord World Chapter 46: Battle Upon the Sacred River

Leaving the Sacred Lake behind, Chen Gu remained aboard the Fire Raven and returned to the Sacred River. This time, however, he was not traveling for the sake of the journey, but rather to search for sunken ships in the river that could be of use to him.

Upon entering the Sacred River, he instructed the Fire Raven to slow its pace, while he began to inspect the vessels wedged against the rocky reefs. The ships Chen Gu selected were all relatively small and appeared, at least on the surface, to be well preserved. The reason for choosing smaller ships was straightforward—without a crew to operate them, he would have to tow the ship back with cables himself. As for the appearance of good condition, that was to ensure the vessel would still be serviceable.

After all, in Chen Gu’s mind, any ship that could withstand the repeated assaults of the Holy City’s defensive weapons and remain more or less intact must be of considerable quality. With some repairs, it should serve his purposes well.

With these thoughts, Chen Gu quickly found his target: a violet-colored single-masted sailboat. Its mast was clearly broken, and the sails had long been washed away by the river’s currents. Yet, the deck gleamed as if new, and the hull was unscathed, a clear sign that some magical protection lingered upon the ship.

“Corpse-Eating Vine, latch onto that ship,” Chen Gu commanded.

At his order, a Corpse-Eating Vine unfurled all its tendrils, curling around the chosen vessel. But in the next instant, several ghostly figures appeared on the ship. They were dressed as elves, and after their sudden manifestation, they wandered restlessly across the deck, unable or unwilling to approach the water’s edge.

Chen Gu understood that this was because the Sacred River’s water carried traces of holy power. The undead would not survive contact with it. The fact that these spirits remained was remarkable enough. Forcing them into the water would be tantamount to suicide.

Such enemies no longer warranted Chen Gu’s serious attention. He prepared to summon Holy Light Magma onto the deck, but at the last moment, he abandoned this idea.

“Bloodshadow Wolves, attack.”

Bloodshadow Wolves appeared, treading along the Corpse-Eating Vine’s tendrils onto the deck, pouncing upon the ghosts. The spell to summon Holy Light Magma was withdrawn; Chen Gu knew that while Holy Light Magma was the most effective weapon against the undead, he also needed the ship intact. If he unleashed that power, the vessel would be reduced to ashes in moments.

That would make this entire endeavor futile. It was better to send in the Bloodshadow Wolves—after all, they were also effective against ghosts.

Surveying the situation on deck, Chen Gu summoned another pack of Bloodshadow Wolves to hasten the cleanup. Meanwhile, the Corpse-Eating Vine began to exert its strength, preparing to pull the ship free from the rocks.

Just as the vine tightened its grip, Chen Gu felt a tremor beneath the hull.

“Corpse-Eating Vine.”

At his command, another vine plunged into the water. Before long, they hauled up several large, white fish. These creatures were sizable, with a strange appearance—they resembled carp, yet each was over two meters long, and their mouths bristled with sharp teeth. Most perplexing of all, their bodies radiated a faint, holy energy.

Clearly, they had ingested too much holy water, and their growth was fueled by devouring flesh. What puzzled Chen Gu was their sudden aggression toward the Fire Raven. He recalled that, on his previous journey, he had not been attacked, leading him to believe the river was devoid of fish. Evidently, that was not the case.

While he pondered this, a wail rose from the Bloodshadow Wolves battling on the enemy deck. Chen Gu glanced over and saw an elven specter had already slain two wolves, while another ghost nearby was making intricate gestures.

Chen Gu immediately realized they were summoning and controlling creatures. So, these white fish had been called forth by the spirits.

He had no intention of parleying with these ghosts. With the Black Fortress in existence, all undead in this world belonged to it. Chen Gu could neither summon nor command the undead, making conversation pointless.

He was merely struck by his luck—choosing a random ship and encountering such formidable undead.

“Another pack of Bloodshadow Wolves.”

With another summoning, fresh wolves appeared on the enemy’s deck, attacking the ghosts from behind and striking with precision at their vital points.

The elven specter who had slain two wolves was now overwhelmed. Bloodshadow Wolves latched onto all his limbs, while others flashed past, each bite tearing away a part of his form. In seven or eight strikes, only his head remained. The last Bloodshadow Wolf seized the ghost’s head and vanished into thin air.

With their protector gone, the spirit controlling the fish to attack the Fire Raven fell into disarray. The wolves made short work of him. Upon his death, a bone-white whistle was left behind on the deck.

With all the ghosts dispatched, Chen Gu did not immediately have the Corpse-Eating Vine tow the ship away. Instead, he climbed across the vine to the other vessel to inspect the battlefield.

[You have collected 771 gold coins]
[You have collected Fish Whistle (green) *1]
[You have collected Ghost Fragment (white) *3]
[You have seized Fishbone Puzzle (white) *3]
[…]

[Fish Whistle (green): A whistle that can be used underwater. When blown, it summons a school of fish to serve you for fifteen minutes (the type of fish depends on what’s nearby).]
[Fishbone Puzzle (white): A puzzle reassembled from leftover fish bones, with no particular significance.]

What Chen Gu prized most was the Fish Whistle. Now he understood why those white fish had rammed his ship—it was the whistle’s doing.

He pocketed the whistle. Those white fish would make excellent materials. If Allen failed to find any items pertaining to water elements or water magic, they would have to rely on these fish to venture underwater.

After safely stowing the whistle, Chen Gu entered the ship’s cabin. Though the exterior appeared well preserved, the interior was a mess, ravaged by repeated floods. The floor was strewn with debris.

Yet Chen Gu was not discouraged. He began to sift through the refuse with patient care.