OPTC Chapter 182: News from Water 7
Ye Yan went to sleep. Even night watchmen needed rest, though their bodies often woke them up in the middle of the night for no reason, making daytime naps especially important.
Because of his odd schedule, even though it was just past six in the evening, it was exactly the right time for Ye Yan's "afternoon nap." In a sense, he was living with jet lag.
Still, he accepted the responsibility of taking the night watch later. Zhang Da Ye and the others wouldn't sleep so early anyway; they had evening training to finish. Once Ye Yan woke, he could take over the second half of the night.
The ship wasn't large enough for running, but Zhang Da Ye refused to neglect leg training. He would never allow himself to become the type with a bulky upper body and thin legs.
So, together with Rui Meng Meng, he found the ship's "treasures": two stationary bicycles. In truth, they were pedal-powered generators. Riding them was like cycling, providing both exercise and electricity—perfect for fitness enthusiasts like them.
This was enough to power the ship's lights, fridge, and other small appliances. The water pumps were also pedal-powered, filtering and disinfecting seawater to supply the ship's taps.
They pedaled for nearly two hours. For ordinary people, that would have been torture. But to Zhang Da Ye and Rui Meng Meng, it was just boring—boring enough that they propped books on the handlebars and flipped through pages as they cycled.
Once the generators were charged, Zhang Da Ye used his lottery system and drew… ordinary clothes and furniture from the Ace Censor World.
That world looked like a normal modern society. Even though monsters existed, most disguised themselves as humans and lived ordinary lives. No legendary weapons or divine treasures had ever appeared there.
After finishing his basic fitness regimen, Zhang Da Ye went to the dojo. It was spacious, with open floor in the middle and racks of weapons and protective gear along the sides.
Shark Chili was there, practicing slow, precise punching movements—most likely a form of Fishman Karate training.
Zhang Da Ye had seen it many times, but every time he looked at Shark Chili's stance, he felt the man was better suited to Wing Chun.
He didn't disturb him. Instead, Zhang Da Ye and Rui Meng Meng each picked a sword and began practicing.
Artoria wasn't in the dojo. She was on the lookout tower with Tom, drinking tea while keeping watch.
By around eleven that night, Ye Yan emerged, fully rested. He had ditched his mushroom costume and changed into casual clothes Zhang Da Ye had given him. Without the antics, he actually looked pretty handsome.
"Alright, it's your shift now. Oh, and here, take this." Zhang Da Ye handed him a booklet.
"What's this, some martial arts manual?" Ye Yan asked. On the cover, in bold, neat characters, were the words: "Sunflower Manual."
Ye Yan sucked in a sharp breath and bowed dramatically. "Didn't think Brother Zhang was that kind of ruthless man. Respect! But hey, I like performance art, not self-mutilation."
"What nonsense are you thinking? I just scribbled that name. Inside is basic knowledge about this world. Read it when you have time." The booklet was Shark Chili's idea, meant for newcomers. When it came to naming it, Zhang Da Ye casually wrote "Sunflower Manual."
Skeptical, Ye Yan flipped it open. He didn't see any "To master this skill, first cut yourself" lines. Instead, there was a serious table of contents: geography, biology, culture, and more.
Each section ended with "For details, see xxxx." Those reference books and newspapers were now stored in the ship's small library.
"Pretty thoughtful," Ye Yan muttered, climbing up to the lookout tower with the book in hand.
The night passed peacefully for everyone—except Ye Yan, who had worse luck.
The next morning, when called for breakfast, he shuffled into the cabin wrapped in a blanket, sniffling. "What the hell, why did it suddenly turn to winter overnight? I'm freezing… ah-choo!"
"Meng Meng, make him some ginger soup," Zhang Da Ye said, handing him tissues.
"Alright." Rui Meng Meng went to the kitchen, boiled water, and sliced ginger. Ginger soup was a cheap and effective way to ward off colds, and she knew how to make it.
Some people disliked its taste, so they made ginger-cola instead, which had a similar effect.
Zhang Da Ye asked, "Didn't you read the part about weather in that book?"
Ye Yan groaned. "I only got to the geography part. It said the Grand Line's location is like Earth's equator. Who the hell expects the equator to freeze overnight?"
"Wasn't the weather section right after the introduction?" Shark Chili recalled clearly. "Flip one page and you'd see it."
Zhang Da Ye gave him a strange look. "So you're telling me you only read a single page last night?"
"Heh… yeah…" Ye Yan gave an awkward laugh. Reading was torture to him. For all his brilliance as a watchman, he was hopeless at studying. His effort went entirely into training and performance art.
When it came to learning, he couldn't last five minutes without giving up—unless Xiaoyan stood over him with a sword, forcing him to cram.
As they spoke, a pennant demon burst into the dining room, excited. "Master, I caught a bird to help you replenish your strength! Look, isn't it weird? It's carrying a bunch of newspapers and coins!"
"Pffft!" Zhang Da Ye spat soy milk all over its face. "Let it go! That's a News Bird!"
Being hawk-like with sharp eyes and fast flight, the demon could easily catch a bird. But if you killed a News Bird and got on Morgans' blacklist, you could kiss goodbye to ever receiving a newspaper again. Out at sea, cut off from information, that would be disastrous.
The poor News Coo looked utterly hopeless when Zhang Da Ye rescued it. Strangled for so long, it had thought it was about to die.
"Don't be afraid, it was just a misunderstanding. He didn't know about News Birds—it's his first time seeing one." Zhang Da Ye soothed the bird, then explained to Ye Yan and the others that it was basically a postman. To make up for it, he asked Tom for a pack of dried fish to give as an apology.
The bird was intelligent. Once it took back its bag of newspapers and coin box, it showed no anger. Instead, it pulled out a paper as if to ask if they wanted to buy one.
Zhang Da Ye handed over a 100 Beli coin. "Two copies, please."
"Smart animal. I'd believe you if you told me it was a demon," Ye Yan muttered, watching the News Bird fly away.
"Seriously, read the book properly. This is all written in there." Zhang Da Ye unfolded the paper. The front page headline was about their next destination, Water 7:
"Miracle! The Fourth Sea Train Track Completed and Ready for Service!"
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