Boom, rumbling!
The towering waves surging upwards roared like ten thousand horses galloping.
The splashing seawater, at ten thousand meters high, transformed into a misty sea of fog, like a sheer veil.
Amidst the swirling mist, it felt like being in a dream, making everything seen appear hazy and illusory.
"Clouds! White clouds like cotton candy! Brother Rorschach, those are white clouds up there, are we going to rush into the clouds?"
Hibari's hands gripped the ship's helm tightly, her voice barely audible amidst the howling strong winds.
"Yes! This is the Sea of Clouds, the ocean in the sky. The people of Sky Island call it the White Sea!"
Rorschach's voice, however, clearly reached everyone's ears, as if the howling winds naturally parted to make way for his words, which was quite magical.
"White Sea? What a fitting name. But how does Brother Rorschach know so much? Have you been here before?" Hibari was very surprised.
"I read it in a manga," Rorschach's lips curled slightly upwards.
As the fierce updraft became more turbulent, the Qilin finally broke free from the Knock Up Stream. Like an arrow shot from a bowstring, it plunged headfirst into the thick White Sea above, amidst everyone's exclamations.
The next instant.
The entire ship was like it had burrowed into a thick duvet of unknown depth.
Around them were highly humid clouds, like compressed air.
The White Sea wasn't a sea, but a massive accumulation of Cumulus Clouds.
These so-called Cumulus Clouds were thick layers of clouds formed by extreme weather above the Paradise sea area.
These clouds wouldn't generate air currents or rain; they would only continuously accumulate, blocking the sunlight.
Therefore, the chaotic sea area where Mock Town is located, and the Florian Triangle, were perpetually shrouded in dimness with little sunlight.
The damp cloud vapor clung to their bodies and immediately turned into water vapor due to their body heat, giving them a clammy sensation.
Whoosh!
Accompanied by large masses of clouds and mist churning and spreading out.
The gigantic Qilin warship finally broke through the thick White Sea cloud layer.
Like a large fish leaping out of the sea, it glided across an boundless white ocean.
Looking at the magnificent sight before them, everyone on the Qilin, including the usually aloof Law, fell into a brief moment of distraction.
"It's so beautiful, this place, it's simply a heavenly kingdom from a dream."
Hibari murmured softly.
Rorschach was equally stunned by the magnificent sight before him.
Below the Qilin was an endless expanse of white cloud sea, and above was an incredibly vast and empty sky.
With the Cumulus Clouds no longer blocking the way, bright and brilliant sunlight shone down from the sky, illuminating the churning cloud sea with a golden glow.
At the distant horizon, floating in the vast sky, were islands made of white clouds.
The islands had white cloud layers beneath them, green vegetation on top, and buildings with styles distinct from Paradise, nestled among the lush greenery.
White clouds, green plants, and houses complemented each other, creating a pleasing visual.
Moreover, there were tracks made of white clouds, like giant white pythons, weaving through the various white cloud islands, connecting them.
A massive rainbow hung diagonally above the numerous cloud islands, looking like a child's watercolor painting, appearing so unreal.
On the largest cloud island ahead, there were five or six colossal green vines, piercing diagonally into the deeper, higher cloud sea.
Clouds, like ribbons, entwined around the vines, making them appear and disappear, like green chains connecting heaven and earth, giving an unparalleled visual impact.
The scenery before them truly was, as Hibari said, like a beautiful heavenly fairyland.
Just then, the hundred-meter-long Qilin finally finished its long glide and descended towards the white ocean below.
Hibari let out a gasp, "Brother Rorschach! Our ship isn't going to smash through the cloud sea and fall down, is it?"
Soon, the Qilin hit the cloud sea below, immediately stirring up large white waves.
The ship swayed a few times, then steadily floated on the White Sea.
What Hibari and the others worried about didn't happen.
"It's truly incredible, we're actually sailing on clouds."
Mont Blanc Cricket exclaimed repeatedly, looking at the magnificent surrounding scenery.
Seeing the cloud islands floating in the sky in the distance, Cricket finally believed that perhaps Jaya Island, like these islands before them, was being held up by clouds, suspended somewhere in the clouds.
Suddenly, a muffled gasp was heard on the deck.
The crew members all opened their mouths wide, gasping for air, their eyes somewhat blurry.
Bepo lay on the deck, tongue lolling out, his furry bear head drooping, breathing shallowly, looking dispirited.
"What's wrong with them?" Hibari was a little puzzled.
"Oxygen is thin at high altitudes, which makes it hard to breathe. It's nothing, with their physiques, they'll adapt after a few breaths," Law explained.
"How come Uncle Cricket is completely fine? His physical condition doesn't seem very strong?" Hibari asked curiously, looking at Cricket, who wasn't out of breath.
Cricket laughed, patting his chest, "Haha, this is all from years of diving and practicing breathing techniques. Hundreds of meters deep in the ocean, there's no air at all, so you have to precisely control every bit of oxygen consumption to be able to move around underwater for a long time."
"That's amazing," Hibari praised.
"Should I retract the side wings now, Rear Admiral Rorschach? I'll put them away to avoid any accidental damage," Parmel said gruffly, pointing to the extended side wings.
"Yes, put them away, we don't need them anymore," Rorschach nodded.
Parmel pressed the switch button on the inside of the ship's rail.
Soon, the sound of machinery turning, "clack-clack-clack," emanated, and then the side wings, spread like pterodactyl wings, began to slowly retract.
Just then, Rorschach's expression shifted slightly, his gaze falling on the cloud sea not far ahead.
"Careful! Something's coming!" Law shouted a warning, while spreading his five fingers, air currents swirling between them.
Below, the cloud sea for hundreds of meters in all directions churned incessantly, as if boiling.
The next second, large swathes of white clouds shattered, scattering and drifting away, and the surface of the cloud sea was broken open by a great force.
A huge, reddish mass burst out of the clouds, leaping high from the cloud sea and lunging towards the Qilin.
"What is that?! A Sea King?" Bepo's face turned pale with fear.
"Are there Sea Kings in the cloud sea too? With such a large body, won't it fall down? The cloud sea doesn't have a seabed," Hibari's face was full of surprise.
"What a giant crab, I wonder how much tender crab meat there will be inside those claws?"
Rorschach's throat gulped, his eyes suddenly sparkling.
The huge mass that lunged into the sky above the Qilin was a reddish-green giant crab, even larger than the Qilin itself.
At this moment, this mountain-sized crab was opening its two giant claws, dozens of meters long, to pinch the slowly retracting side wings, one from the left and one from the right.
It seemed that the noise of the side wings closing had attracted it.
"Is this the time to be talking about that?! Let's escape! We're going to be eaten by the giant crab!" Bepo screamed, covering his bear head.
"We've got our first grand adventure meal on Sky Island. Everyone, let's eat this giant crab later."
Rorschach grinned, extended his index finger, silver lightning flickering at its tip, aimed it at the sun-blocking giant crab, and pointed.
"Ten million volts, barbecue feast."
Fizzzz!
A dazzling current shot straight out, easily piercing the brain of this crab with its hard shell.
Then, streaks of dazzling lightning burst out from within the giant crab, bathing this crab, several times larger than the Qilin, completely in shining electrical light.
The noise of the lightning reverberated far across the boundless White Sea.
About ten seconds later, this fierce and monstrous giant crab crashed heavily onto the cloud sea beside the Qilin.
A rich meaty aroma, completely different from Sea King meat, wafted out from its smoking shell, entering the nostrils of everyone on the ship, making their mouths water.
"So fragrant! Parmel, pull the food up, let's eat something, then go see those beautiful Sky Islands."
Rorschach said with a smile.
"Yes, sir!" Parmel excitedly grabbed the huge ship anchor and swung it out.
The ship was abuzz with activity, and smiles appeared on everyone's faces.
No one noticed that several thousand meters away in the cloud sea, a wooden motorboat was silently drifting.
The motorboat, perhaps it should be called a Wavers.
This was a unique product of Sky Island.
It used Sky Island's specialty, a type of Wind Dial that could store wind and emit it, embedded in the stern to generate propulsion.
At this moment, on this Wavers, a man with white wings on his back held his breath and slowly lowered the binoculars in his hand, his brows furrowed.
"When did that Enel guy get involved with people from the Blue Sea? Does he have some other scheme going on? No! I must inform the Chief and Wiper immediately."
(End of Chapter)
────────────────────────────────────
"If you're interested, please support me in my other novel [Naruto: Starting with Tsunade-san]."
"If you're interested, please support me in my other novel [Battle Through the Heavens: Heavenly comprehension]."
"If you're interested, please support me in my other novel [Soul Land 2: Golden Dragon King]."
"If you want early access to nearly 35+ chapters, join my patreon:- patreon.com/BaDwYGaMeR"