The sea breeze carried the scent of salt and distant storms as waves slapped lazily against the hull of the large ship. This was the famous Purple Pearl Ship of this region—the private vessel of the Purple Pearl Pirate Group's leader.
On the deck, the crew scurried about with practiced hands, but Ji Xiang stood still, clutching the railing, eyes following the shrinking silhouette of Tang San as he stepped into the small boat bound for Sea God Island.
Beside him stood the ship's captain, the renowned pirate leader Purple Pearl. A woman of commanding presence, she looked to be in her late twenties. Short purple hair framed her well-defined face, and her large violet eyes—usually fierce—now shimmered faintly with restrained emotion.
After all, she had already fallen in love with Tang San. And now, she shouted loudly toward the distant lifeboat:
"Master, one must always honor their bet! I am willing to acknowledge you as my master! You will always be my master! I will be waiting for you at Purple Pearl Island! You all better fucking come back alive!"
So cringe.
But Ji Xiang didn't mind. They were the heartfelt words of a lover, after all...
His eyes were also red. His cheeks were wet. Every observer saw only a loyal disciple, heartbroken to part from his savior, his teacher, his guide.
And, well—he was. Sort of. Maybe.
"Ugh, why do dramatic farewells always involve salty wind in the eyes?" Ji Xiang muttered under his breath, rubbing at his face. "Not crying, just... sea allergies. Obviously."
A week ago, he had woken up in a small hut, wholly confused. A strong breeze, an unfamiliar sky, and oddly attentive pirates had been his welcome party. But none of that held a candle to the moment he looked over and saw him—the infamous blue-haired protagonist, sleeping like a log on a makeshift bed.
Tang San.
Ji Xiang blinked. Rubbed his eyes. Blinked again. Then promptly decided he was either dead, dreaming, or had accidentally downloaded a premium-grade hallucination.
But no. The more minutes passed, the more he realized this wasn't a dream. The faces. The names. The ships. The girl with the fierce attitude. All of it matched.
And most importantly—he remembered.
Not just the anime, which he had watched six times over—not because of the plot or power systems, which he found hilariously broken—but because of the spectacular visual effects. The flashy edits, glowing soul rings, dramatic transitions, and high-energy action scenes? Those were pure eye candy, and he shamelessly loved every second of them.
No. He remembered everything. The entire timeline. The romances. The sacrifices. The ridiculous power jumps. Even the later parts of the novel, where half the characters felt like copies of Tang San in different hairstyles.
And now, for some reason beyond his comprehension, he was in it.
More importantly, he was Ji Xiang.
...Who?
It took some time to recall. Ji Xiang was the side character who showed up for, like, five minutes, got treated nicely by Tang San, learned a few tricks, and then disappeared from relevance. A footnote in a sea of battles.
Except this time, Ji Xiang had a brain full of spoilers.
He had played it safe. No dramatic monologues. No dark chuckling in empty corridors. Just a sincere smile, a polite bow, and a few lines straight from the original dialogue.
When Tang San had asked him to become his disciple, Ji Xiang had teared up on cue.
When Tang San taught him the Mysterious Heaven Technique and helped him become a soul master from his initial zero innate soul power, Ji Xiang had accepted it with the reverence of a monk—and the mental celebration of someone handed a cheat code.
Now, standing on the deck as Tang San left for his Sea God Trials with his companions, Ji Xiang tried his best to keep his thoughts organized.
"Okay, he's off. He'll be gone for four years. In four years, he'll return with level 84 soul power and no memory of this humble, non-threatening side character..."
"Oh, oh, I remember. He doesn't forget me that time. He just didn't come to see me because he was in a hurry to revive his wife and didn't want to take me to the mainland and change my—that is, his disciple's—pure and clean heart... And wished for me to stay far from those intrigues."
Tang San was always the Buddha. That could never be false.
Silently, Ji Xiang recalled the techniques Tang San had taught him in the past few days: the Mysterious Heaven Skill and its key points, the human acupunctural positions, the techniques to control the Tang Sect's Hidden Weapons, as well as Mysterious Jade Hand, Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, Controlling Crane Catching Dragon, and even the Purple Demon Eye skill.
"All of those are the original versions. Not the weird chopped-up versions that get handed down in the sequel novels," he whispered with awe. "Tang San really did give me the full treasure."
"But maybe that's also the price for 'me' not becoming an important character in the canon. Haha."
Anyone with a little self-awareness could guess why Ji Xiang—who was the only other person to learn the genuine Tang Sect techniques—didn't become a god or achieve anything noteworthy.
Everything has a price.
But in any case, to "Ji Xiang", who had been nothing but a mortal with zero innate soul power and no hope of becoming a soul master, Tang San's kindness was something to feel grateful for his entire life.
Without Tang San, would he have ever become a soul master? Ha. He probably would've met a mortal-like demise and ended up buried in some shallow pit.
Thinking of this, Ji Xiang let out a heartfelt sigh.
One of the sailors passed by and gave him a sympathetic look. "Missing your master already, lad?"
Ji Xiang sniffed. "More than you know."
He looked back toward the boat. Tang San's figure was getting smaller with each passing wave. The sun was rising slowly behind him, casting golden rays across the sea.
Ji Xiang placed a hand over his chest, trying to act like he was being solemn.
"Don't worry, teacher. I'll wait for your return. I'll train diligently. I'll also… probably take a nap first. A long nap. Training can wait till tomorrow. Or the day after."
A gust of wind blew his hair into his face.
"Ow! Okay, okay, I'm going! Geez, this world has no chill."
He turned away from the railing and walked below deck, muttering to himself about training schedules, breakfast, and what to do now that he was alone... Wasn't he going to struggle without anyone to support him in this unfamiliar world?
Oh, there was no need to struggle—Tang San had left him under the care of the beautiful pirate, Purple Pearl—Zi Zhenzhu. So he didn't have to worry about hardship.
And most importantly… wasn't she Tang San's servant now? Since he was Tang San's disciple, he could make some demands, right? Hehe.
Putting aside these humorous thoughts, Ji Xiang walked toward his small room on the ship, his eyes turning dreamy...
Somewhere deep inside, the reality of his situation still hadn't fully sunk in.
But Ji Xiang was sure of one thing.
He had already transmigrated.
And there was nothing he could change about that.
He could only live this life...
Just then, a voice asked him from the side—
"Ji Xiang, they will come back alive, won't they?" Purple Pearl turned to face the young man beside her, asking with a heartbroken voice.
Ayyy... These love brains...