Chapter 151 – Crisis in the River (1/2)

Translated by Jon

Life on the boat was incredibly dull, yet Shao Xuan had to stay vigilant to ward off the creatures that shot out from under the water, and to pay attention to the wind and make sure that they didn’t veer off course and sail in circles.

There were less than 30 “safe days” from the moment the rainy season ended to the day when the two moons would eclipse.

Shao Xuan didn’t know how wide this river was, and could only try to move forwards as fast as possible. If 15 days had passed and there was no land to be seen on the opposite bank, then he would have to go back to where he came from, or else the river level would sharply fall, ultimately catching Shao Xuan and Chacha in a bottomless abyss. At that time, even if they wanted to fly, it would be too late.

Due to a lack of suppression from other creatures, the piranhas were especially active in the river. From time to time, they could be seen vigorously going at each other, sometimes even jumping outside the water. As they got further away from shore, the size of these creatures increased.

Huaa~~!

A four meter long fish suddenly popped out. It leapt across the canoe from one side of the canoe over to the other, while simultaneously opening its mouth.

In the past, when these fish popped out, Shao Xuan would simply dodge them. However, right now, these fish were clearly targeting him.

At this moment, with one hand controlling the sails to avoid the fish, he used the tip of his feet to kick up a wooden stick. Grabbing it in his free hand, he started to attack.

What he used was not a spear, but a blunt piece of wood. Although he used his full strength, he didn’t dare to draw blood. If he had spilt blood all over, the fish from across all four directions would be attracted and swarm over, overwhelming Shao Xuan.

Bang!

A couple of scales separated from it’s body, and the fish landed back into the water amongst its kind. Before long, due to blood seeping out of where it got hit, the fish was swarmed by the others, who at the first scent of blood, flew up into a frenzy.

After deterring the fish, Shao Xuan put away the sail, while at the same time Chacha landed, grabbed a rope, then took off once again. The other end of the rope was tied onto the mast as the canoe was quickly pulled away from the bloody waters.

The wind wasn’t suitable for using the sail right now. Therefore, Shao Xuan had put it away, letting Chacha pull them along. When Chacha grew tired, he would return to rest on the canoe, and Shao Xuan would put the sail back up to borrow the wind to continue to push them forward.

There were also plenty of these type of fish, but as long as they weren’t sieging the ship, then they didn’t really matter. Previously, one of these fish would be curious about the canoe, using it’s head to poke at the hull of the ship. Almost capsizing the ship, Shao Xuan had Chacha hurriedly pull the ship away. Reluctant to part with the ship, it chased after, and in the end, Shao Xuan was forced to stop the boat, and let it poke and prod some more. After a while, it lost interest and swam away.

These various fish also had various habits.

During the day, Shao Xuan and Chacha would travel with haste, and even during the night, they couldn’t sleep calmly. While Chacha was resting inside the canoe, Shao Xuan dozed off every now and then, but he had to wake up to frequently shift the direction the boat was travelling.

Although each day had these difficulties, they were considered to be minor matters, nothing big.

Shao Xuan looked to the skies, roughly calculating the distance he had travelled so far.

It had already been eight days, and just like before, there was no sight of the other bank. Furthermore, Shao Xuan couldn’t even find any traces of birds, or even an island, as what filled his eyes was endless water.

Taking out the dried jerky stashed inside the animal hide, he ate a bit and drank some of the water he brought along for the trip. Before he had finished his own water, Shao Xuan wouldn’t go and drink directly from the river.

As for Chacha, his food was caught by himself. Sometimes, he would swoop down and grab a fish. He would always make sure to stay a distance away from the boat while he caught his prey. That way, even if blood spilt all over, it would not attract any trouble.

While he was eating, Shao Xuan suddenly discovered a small island along the horizon. He hurriedly changed his direction towards it.

However, as he gradually headed closer, Shao Xuan noticed that it wasn’t actually a small island, but rather a huge fish. Only, this fish had already died, and was thus floating on the surface.

Moreover, he had also discovered that this fish had numerous holes in it, as if something had bit through.

To think that this 20 meter long fish had been bitten so much that only the general skeleton was left, along with the ripped outer skin. Shao Xuan could also deduce from the hole that something was inside, still feasting.

Inside were smaller, quite inconspicuous fish, with their slender body acting by itself. And these fish, that were smaller than a palm, had teeth as sharp as blades, and an exterior that was thick, like armor. If it had eaten to the bone, then after a while, even the bones will disappear.

And so, Shao Xuan rapidly changed course and left this place as he continued along the original route, while pointing to Chacha to look at what happened.

“The next time you go to fish, be a bit more careful. If you discover these kinds of fish, then throw it away as quickly as you can” Shao Xuan instructed.

“Jiao~~”

Chacha looked at the remnants of the large fist and shook his wings, not expecting something like that to happen.

He had turned back to look at the fish after the canoe had travelled a bit further, and to his surprise, he had discovered that it was in the process of sinking, the small fishes had already finished eating.

Perhaps these fierce looking giant fish weren’t the biggest threats, but rather the inconspicuous ones that led to greater problems.

Shao Xuan had thought that after resting awhile, Chacha would once again take to the skies, but to his surprise, he had discovered Chacha just standing on the boat. Like a quail, he stayed still, crouching low, pulling back his neck and looking up towards the sky, as if there was something that he was scared of up there.

“What happened?” Shao Xuan asked as he gently tapped Chacha’s head. He hadn’t seen anything out of the ordinary, but he felt that something wasn’t right.