Chapter 580

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

However, what intrigued Ji Chen the most was that submarine from another world.

“The alchemical submarine that can operate underwater?”

“Submarine?”

Thotmudo suddenly paused, his face lit up with delight. “Submarine, a vessel that submerges underwater, what a fantastic name! I was struggling to come up with a name, but this is perfect!”

“I didn’t expect you to be so good at naming things. The alchemical submarine is stored in the shipyard by the harbor, and it’s not small in size.”

Ji Chen smiled, not saying much.

Drawing inspiration from the modern weaponry on Earth, using its original name felt fitting.

The duo, along with the dwarf and elf, rode a converted minecart back to the surface and arrived at the shipyard beside the harbor. There, a roughly train-car-sized alchemical submarine, narrow at the front and wide at the back, was docked in a dry dock.

Compared to the sleek and long submarines Ji Chen was familiar with, this one was much smaller, measuring only around ten meters in length and three to four meters in width. It had numerous exposed gears, pipes, and illuminated devices, giving it a distinct steampunk style.

Seeing his creation, Thotmudo became visibly excited. “I dare say even those gnomes don’t have an alchemical submarine that can operate underwater like this! This is my first masterpiece, and whether it’s in dwarf history or alchemical manufacturing history, the name of Thotmudo the Dwarf will be remembered!”

Ji Chen, somewhat skeptical, asked, “Have you tested it yet?”

Thotmudo coughed lightly in response. “1 was waiting for you to return before trying it out.”

Liar! You’re just afraid it might sink!

Ji Chen shook his head. Regardless, he knew he could handle it.

Ji Chen looked at the alchemical submarine being pulled up from the water by dozens of Naga Guardians, still emitting sparks and black smoke, and couldn’t help but wear a wry expression.

On the relatively small vessel, there were more than ten holes of various sizes due to explosions and leaks, causing seawater to gush out like waterfalls as it was lifted up.

Thotmudo wore a rather embarrassed expression. “Um, this is the First Unit. It’s the first one we’ve ever made, so it’s normal to have a lot of issues.”

Ji Chen’s lips twitched. If it weren’t for the fact that the pilot was a water soldier he had created using magic, immune to pain and injury, a normal pilot would have been blown to bits long ago.

This was truly a death submarine!

“However, we did make progress. This time, it dived to a depth of over thirty meters and operated normally for a full five minutes. That’s a significant improvement,” Thotmudo said earnestly. “Give me a bit more time, and I’ll definitely make the alchemical submarine operate more stably!”

However, Ji Chen understood that alchemy, much like science and technology, often required a long period of research and improvement before mature and stable devices could be deployed. Therefore, he didn’t expect things to be completed so quickly.

At that moment, he didn’t say much. He simply nodded and left, gazing at the damaged submarine, pondering what might have gone wrong with Thotmudo’s creation.

As Ji Chen returned with Elisya, he suddenly felt a powerful energy fluctuation emanating from a jungle. Curious, he walked over.

Seeing Ji Chen approaching, a vigorous figure in the clearing of the forest, who had been swinging punches and kicks, causing trees to snap, stopped and looked at Ji Chen with a beautiful and enchanting woman, Elisya, by his side. She approached with a slightly melancholic tone.

“Oh, isn’t this the busy Lord Ji Chen? How come you have the time to visit me today?

But I guess it’s no surprise, with such a young and beautiful elf accompanying you, why would you think of an old geezer like me?”

This person was Verena, who had been rescued by Ji Chen at the Deceiver’s base in the Maple Principality and had signed a thirty-year loyalty contract to fight alongside him.

Hearing Verena’s somewhat complaining words, Ji Chen felt a bit awkward. It seemed like he had genuinely forgotten about Verena, and he realized that Verena was expressing her frustration about being left aside since he brought her back from the Maple Principality.

However, he couldn’t solely hold himself responsible. Verena, being a legendary figure, had already achieved an impressive level of strength, reaching level fifty, and possessed the most extensive combat experience within the entire realm of the Crown of the Ocean. Her prowess in land-based combat placed her among the top two heroes in this regard.

The problem lay in the fact that Verena was a human. Unlike Ji Chen and the various ocean heroes who had the ability to fight freely in the sea, she couldn’t make much use of her strength in the water.

Most of the time, Ji Chen found himself engaging in battles either on the sea’s surface or underwater. Consequently, he often had no choice but to assign her to the Crown of the Ocean for defense.

However, for Verena herself, it felt like Ji Chen had brought her back from the Maple Principality only to forget about her, leaving her here as if she didn’t matter.

For a warrior who cherished battle like her, being forgotten was even more painful than death itself.

It was a profound humiliation she couldn’t easily bear.

Nevertheless, Ji Chen had already thought of a place where Verena would be needed.

“I came this time to give you a task.”

As soon as she heard that, Verena immediately showed an eager expression. “What task?”

“I have acquired a piece of land in the Lienhardt Grand Duchy with a high degree of autonomy. I plan to establish a defensive army there. 1 intend to appoint you as the martial officer to help me organize and train the troops.” Regarding Fish Tail Island, Ji Chen didn’t plan to deploy the forces of the Crown of the Ocean to garrison it. Instead, he wanted to train a regular army to provide a certain level of defense and deterrence. After all, Fish Tail Island was within the influence of the Lienhardt Grand Duchy, and there was unlikely to be any overly powerful enemies attacking it.

In his plan, Fish Tail Island would become a commercial transit hub for the Crown of the Ocean to export products to Lienhardt and other regions of the two countries, or rather, a duty-free zone. With Verena, a legendary hero, guarding the island, it couldn’t be more suitable.

Hearing that she was being entrusted with such a serious task, Verena’s previous frustration vanished, and she responded enthusiastically.

“You can leave this task to me. I’m not just good at combat; 1 excel at training soldiers too.”

Ji Chen smiled and nodded, “1 look forward to your performance.”

“Oh, by the way, before you depart, please help instruct Elisya in combat techniques.”

With Verena’s current excellent mood, she patted her chest and readily agreed.

“Leave this small matter to me; I promise to train her well.”

After settling Elisya with Verena and taking care of urgent matters, Ji Chen was finally able to enjoy a brief period of leisure.

At the southern edge of the Death Sea.

A fleet of three two-masted merchant ships sailed in a T-formation on the sea surface, heading from east to west. Whether it was the ship’s captain, sailors, or merchants, they all appeared relaxed. They had been shuttling between the Maple Principality and the Western Continent for years, making this journey almost a dozen times or more. Their experience was extremely rich, and as long as there were no unexpected incidents, they would complete this trip smoothly.

As the sailors chatted casually by the ship’s railing during their uneventful moments, they suddenly noticed a black line appearing on the sea surface in the far distance to the right of the ship.

“What’s that?” one sailor questioned with suspicion. He turned around, raised his voice, and called out, “Pete! Take a look at what’s appearing in the north!” On the lookout tower, a man named Pete, the lookout, picked up a spyglass and, when he clearly saw the black line, his pupils contracted to the extreme. Thousands of aquatic troops formed neat formations, surging forth from the direction of the Death Sea. There were various lower-ranking creatures like merfolk, crab soldiers, shrimp footmen, and even higher-tier units such as naga, sea elementals, and water drakes among them.

This was unquestionably a well-trained army.

Behind this army, a water tornado burst forth with tremendous momentum, and within it, there were faintly discernible pairs of eyes fixated on the approaching fleet.

“Soldiers, sink these human wooden boxes! Announce the arrival of your master, Lord of the Waves!

We shall establish a magnificent ocean kingdom in these waters!”