Splash...
The sound of water surged from all sides, endlessly echoing.
A lone wooden boat floated on the vast surface of the river, rising and falling with the current, aimlessly drifting without destination.
Within the mist, only the faint flicker of a fisherman's lantern glimmered in and out of sight.
Chen Kuang, who had just been scooped up from the river, spat out two mouthfuls of water. Soaked to the bone, he stared fixedly at the strange fisherman in the straw cape before him.
Only now that he was up close did he realize, the figure merely resembled a human in silhouette.
Beneath the conical hat and straw cape, what writhed beneath was nothing a human body could possess. Six mismatched arms protruded from the torso, and below them thrashed a long, muscular fish tail that slapped wetly against the deck.
But the most horrifying part was what lay under the hat, dozens of pale, lifeless fish-eyes clustered together like egg sacs.
The largest of those eyes slowly turned to lock onto Chen Kuang.
This was Chen Kuang's first time directly confronting a true monster from this world.
His arms broke out in goosebumps, not from cold, but from the instinctual revulsion of seeing something wholly alien.
But... the Blood Premonition within him hadn't sounded. That meant the creature bore him no ill will, for now.
This had to be the Grandmaster-class demon of the Ferry of Death.
Just like the rumors said, so long as you answered its questions, it wouldn't harm you, at least not until you got a question wrong.
Even if you didn't answer at all, it still wouldn't act. You just... wouldn't be allowed to leave. Eventually, any normal person would die of hunger or thirst aboard this drifting boat.
Chen Kuang breathed a little easier.
But just then, he heard the furious voices of Wei Yan and Zhao Lie as they chased him down.
Boom!
A blade sliced through the air like a thunderbolt, Zhao Lie's signature move; Wind-Cleaving Blade.
Chen Kuang had already experienced the terrifying power of this attack, it was both ferocious and swift, impossible to dodge. The moment that blade fell, death was usually certain.
But this time, the strike didn't land on the boat.
Instead, it exploded into the water around them, causing waves to rise up as the little ferry rocked violently, but remained completely unharmed.
Chen Kuang couldn't tell whether Zhao Lie had held back out of anger, or whether the fisherman had deflected the attack.
But logically, it was probably the former.
Though Zhao Lie was hotheaded, he wasn't foolish.
This Ferry of Death demon was a true Grandmaster-class being.
It might not attack unprovoked, but that didn't mean it couldn't retaliate.
"YOU DARE TO FOOL US?!" Zhao Lie roared in fury.
"You spewed so much nonsense to trick us, just to get us to bring you here? Just to board this Ferry of Death?!"
To him, this was an utterly pointless move, leaping from a wolf's den into a tiger's maw.
The Ferry of Death wasn't some scenic boat ride. If you couldn't answer its questions, you'd still end up dead.
Could it be... this guy just didn't want to die at their hands, and preferred to gamble with a demon instead?
Was he some deranged scholar?
Or had the fall of the nation driven him mad?
Zhao Lie thought of how seriously he'd taken this conman's act earlier... and almost wanted to bash his own head against a wall.
Meanwhile, Chen Kuang just shrugged with a grin.
"I don't see where I lied to either of you. My 'senior brother', didn't he just arrive to pick me up? We're sharing the same boat. Isn't that what you'd call brotherhood?"
Zhao Lie's fury flared again, but before he could explode, Wei Yan's expression shifted.
"Wait, something's wrong!"
Glug glug...
The fisherman's slimy, milky-white eyes turned toward the two hovering men.
In that instant, both of them felt their scalps go numb. A terrifying pressure pressed down on them like a mountain, suffocating and cold.
The river fell utterly silent. The boat stilled at its center.
RUMBLE!
From beneath the river's bottomless depths, a surge of water erupted.
A massive fish covered in bony spikes leapt up, its jaws lined with rows of snow-white fangs.
Before anyone could react, it swallowed Zhao Lie whole, and vanished back into the depths, leaving behind only a twisting dark current in the water.
Wei Yan froze, utterly paralyzed.
Chen Kuang's pupils contracted.
He hadn't expected it either.
So the Ferry of Death would take the initiative under certain circumstances...
Was it in a bad mood today?
The fisherman finally spoke.
"Leave."
Wei Yan sucked in a deep breath, gave Chen Kuang one last long look, and turned to go.
Chen Kuang raised an eyebrow. Well, at least his goal had been achieved.
He'd been planning a backup strategy in case they insisted on following him, something like "killing three with two peaches," a classic historical trick to sow discord.
Their opposing personalities would've made it easy to provoke a conflict.
But now, that effort was saved.
The river began to flow again.
The little boat resumed drifting through the mist as the straw-caped fisherman turned back toward Chen Kuang and repeated:
"Three questions. Answer correctly, and you may leave."
Chen Kuang sensed no danger for now, so he didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he pulled the Zither off his back.
Though he was soaked, the ancient instrument remained perfectly dry, clearly it was no ordinary object.
At the sight of the Zither, the fisherman's body visibly shuddered.
The countless eyes under the conical hat shifted restlessly, a trace of unease flickering among all of them.
The tremor was minute, hard to notice amidst the constant writhing so Chen Kuang didn't catch it.
He gently placed the Zither down and cleared his throat.
"Forgive my boldness... but may I ask, how should I address you, Senior?"
Monsters that gained sentience could also walk the path of cultivation.
But most orthodox cultivators were proud and wouldn't call a creature "Senior" unless it had never harmed anyone and had a noble or refined form.
Otherwise... they were just beasts.
Chen Kuang wasn't so picky. He'd say whatever he had to.
The fisherman paused, apparently stunned by his shamelessness.
After a moment, it replied slowly:
"Not 'Senior.'"
Chen Kuang blinked. "Oh? Uh... if 'Senior' doesn't suit, shall I call you something else?"
The fish-eyes rolled toward him. The sticky voice rumbled: "Senior Brother."
Chen Kuang froze.
Wait, what?
Did he just accidentally gain a free Senior Brother?!
He hesitated. "Uh... your name is... Senior Brother?"
The fisherman shook its head.
From one of its deathly pale fish-eyes, a hint of resigned exasperation flickered.
"I am called Wen Si."
Its many eyes rotated again, glancing once more at the ancient Zither on the deck, as if confirming something.
It continued, "You said I am your senior brother."
"...?"
Chen Kuang was full of question marks.
So this thing was like a Chinese weasel, whatever you call it, it just accepts it?
Well, since it was steering the boat, best to play along.
Chen Kuang hesitated, then said obediently,
"Greetings, Senior Brother Wen Si."
The fisherman was finally satisfied.
It nodded.
"Now, the questions. Listen carefully."
Chen Kuang immediately straightened his back and focused.
Whatever this "Senior Brother" business was about, the test came first.