Love letters are not allowed in the exorcism notebook!-Chapter 792 - 39 The Air in Ming Country is So Sweet

It is said that the tides on Earth rise and fall due to the gravitational pull of the moon on the oceans.

In a world without a moon, the sea is eerily silent, like stagnant waters.

No moon, no stars.

No daylight, no night.

Only the mechanical markings prove that the ship is still moving in the correct direction.

"Judging from the hydrological conditions, we are approaching the continental shelf." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Closing the periscope, jotting down the latest observational data in his notebook, Charlie stepped through the cold, shadowed hatch and entered the Captain’s room.

Walking to the control console, he pulled the lever, flipped the circuit switch, and said in a deep voice, "Mogred, awaken the Captain."

"Navigator Charlie Anderson, please repeat your command to confirm. Do you wish to awaken the Captain?"

"Awaken the Captain, I confirm."

The lights overhead flicked on, one by one.

The first to awaken was the ship’s machine soul.

Accompanied by soothing orchestral preludes, the metallic puppet housed within the command tower slowly opened its eyes, lifting its slightly sluggish hands—owing to a shortage of lubricant—and began manipulating the control panel resembling piano keys before it.

Charlie frowned slightly; he disliked this meaningless romantic flair, but he had no choice.

After all, "Mogred," before being excavated and installed aboard the ship, had originally been a music teacher.

The nobles spent lavishly on these high-tech mechanical servants to teach their children music lessons, not because it was necessary, but purely for an ostentatious display of wealth.

The accompanying startup music wasn’t Mogred’s personality—it was the factory default setting.

"Good morning, Captain. I regret to inform you that our tea supplies have been depleted, and fuel is down to 21%. However, the good news is..."

Mogred turned back, looking at Charlie. "What is the good news?"

"The good news is we are close to the continental shelf."

"That certainly is good news."

Charlie instinctively stood upright, directing his gaze towards the slowly rising old figure.

Calling him a "man" wouldn’t be entirely accurate—65% of his flesh had been replaced by cold, mechanical components. Aside from his aged visage, there was little about him that resembled a human.

"Awakening me rashly and wasting energy isn’t a prudent choice. Can you confirm the authenticity of the data, Charlie Cultivator?"

Charlie nodded and said, "Merlin’s notes show the same results. If all goes well, we should see the coastline within 24 hours."

"Merlin... That so-called Merlin, whatever it may actually be. It can’t even perceive Alpha. Use it as a reference, but don’t trust its data lightly."

"You’re right."

Charlie glanced at the notebook in his hands. Across its electronic screen, ellipses silently appeared.

"It’s good enough that we have something to work with. Do we honestly have the luxury to be picky?"

"Mogred, surface."

After a moment of silence, the Captain issued an order to the machine soul.

"Activating suspension engines. Please hold on."

The deck underfoot began to tremble slightly.

Charlie instinctively grabbed onto a nearby handhold, steadying himself amidst the growing vibrations.

"Shit! Mogred, slow down!"

"Having motion is a good sign, Navigator. It means we’ve entered Ming Country’s territorial waters."

Mogred pressed all ten fingers onto the control console, and began reciting Shakespeare aloud.

"No matter how long the night, the day is sure to come—The forward deck is fractured, but it’s not a major issue!"

Accompanied by an unsettling crash, brilliant sunlight pierced through the windows, and the deck below began to undulate gently.

"The Pathfinder has reached the Main Material Plane. Now assessing overall damage to the ship..."

"Forget about that, calculate our position first!"

The Captain barked harshly.

"Unfortunately, it’s daytime. We can’t see stars, nor do we know the exact time... But the good news is, I see seagulls."

Beneath the blue skies and fluffy clouds over the sea, Mogred’s tone lightened noticeably.

"Seagulls?"

Charlie was instantly alert: "Seagulls can’t fly out beyond the continental shelf. Our mapping data must be inaccurate!"

"Don’t panic. Seeing seagulls is good news either way... Maybe it’s good news. That seagull is gone—it flew away too fast to be wild."

Mogred paused briefly and replied softly, "I’m unsure if my memory is precise, but during my time teaching music, I encountered Ming Navy exchange students. I overheard them discussing the feasibility of using birds aboard aerial hot air balloons..."

"That device is called a Cloud Top Sky Lantern. It’s an ancient airborne military vehicle. Seems we’re going in the right direction."

The Captain heaved his weighty frame to stand, turning to Charlie. "Perform a seawater analysis immediately and determine coordinates. Once confirmed, we’ll dive at once."

"Mogred, awaken all crew, check the suspension engine, and prepare for a beachhead landing!"

"A beachhead? Captain, are you sure it’s not an infiltration?"

"I’m sure!"

"Alright, Captain. Checking the suspension engine and initiating beachhead landing preparations."

Charlie approached the deck, tossing down an iron bucket.

The piercing sunlight overhead gave him a disorienting feeling, as if stepping into another life.

Growing up under Lanton’s industrial smog, he had rarely witnessed skies as blue and clouds as white as these.

The Ming Country’s sea breeze carried a distinct sweetness.

No wonder Alpha fled back—it would be foolish not to.

Hauling up a bucket of fresh seawater, he splashed some on his face. The pure, briny aroma lacked any trace of chemical tar. If it weren’t so salty, he’d have been tempted to sip it.

But at that moment, his peripheral vision caught a shadow at the horizon where sea met sky.

His heart sank. Jumping up, he unfurled a telescope and peered toward the sight.

"Hot air balloon? Hot air balloon!"

Opening his notebook again, he saw rows of text swiftly materialize:

"Detected Ming Navy Northern Fleet aerial vehicle: Cloud Top Sky Lantern."

"This seemingly ancient structure is, in fact, a frighteningly powerful war machine. Even following the modernization of Ming Country’s Navy, it has not been retired from combat. Driven by the Yuan-Qi Furnace, it reaches maximum speeds of sixteen knots. Equipped with long-range guided weapon ’Pear Blossom,’ its effective range extends up to three kilometers..."

"Current distance: approximately 3,750."

The number rapidly shrank.

"Mogred—!"

Charlie’s heartbeat nearly stopped as he instinctively roared the machine soul’s name.

But before he could issue a warning, the waters off the port side erupted violently.

Tons of seawater blasted into the sky, dissolving into a downpour that drenched them from above.