"What?"


    Wilbur was astonished when he heard the old man''s words. He said, "Sir, are you asking me to go down to Lake Gelsa and snatch Jenny back from the hands of the merfolk?"


    "Exactly, that''s what I mean."


    Upon hearing this, Wilbur said with a hint of frustration, "But this matter has nothing to do with the eighth dragon cauldron. Aren''t you making things difficult for me intentionally?"


    The old man did not answer directly. Instead, after a moment of silence, he turned to look at the swirling snow outside and said, "If you feel troubled, you can leave. I won''t stop you. Remember, no matter when you decide to leave, I won''t stop you. Because I''m not begging you."


    "Okay."


    Wilbur did not argue back and just agreed to the old man''s request. After all, after more than a month of contact, Wilbur had already understood the old man''s character. The old man never went back on any decision he made and also proved that everything went just as he said it would.


    "However, I have a question. Over this past month, you had me chop wood, grab fish, and strengthen my muscles. Is this all for this?"


    "Yes. Otherwise, why would youe to Gelsa?"


    "But over this past month, I apanied you fishing every day, but I have never seen any of the merfolk. Do the merfolk even exist?"


    The old man took a deep breath, looked into the distance, and with a slight curve at the corner of his mouth, he said, "Don''t forget, the merfolk has never been truly reported by humans before. They understand humans even better than humans themselves. Fighting against them is like fighting against an invisible person. Whether you can defeat them or not depends on your abilities."


    As he spoke, the old man looked at Wilbur before he continued, "However, since you could get here, you must have solved some very tricky problems. After all, anyone who can find six of the Dragon Cauldrons is certainly not a fool. You have good fundamentals. Of course, you can also choose to give up."


    "I won''t give up. Just tell me when I should go down to theke, and what do I need to prepare in advance?"


    "Are you really sure? You may not be able to return if you go down."


    "Yes, I''ve decided."


    "Alright then, prepare yourself. You''ll dive down into theke tonight."


    The old man took out a two-meter-long harpoon from the wooden house and said, "This is a harpoon of the merfolk. They are extremely cunning, preferring to attack from a distance with harpoons. And the merfolk''s vision far exceeds that of humans. They can see very subtle things. Therefore, going down to theke at night will be more advantageous for you."


    The merfolk were extremely ferocious, so the old man instructed Wilbur that if he encountered any merfolk in Lake Gelsa, he must not hesitate and must kill them. Otherwise, they would surely hide and look for opportunities to ambush him.