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When Ning Tianchen and his group arrived, several sailors had already died.
Seeing the scattered gold and silver treasures on the ground, Ning Tianchen immediately understood the cause.
A powerful surge of soul energy radiated from his body, quickly spreading outward. The sailors still fighting were all knocked to the ground.
The overwhelming soul power pinned them down, leaving them unable to move.
Ning Tianchen said gravely, "Xiaotian, you and the others return to the ship and relieve Captain Chen in guarding the Manta Ray. Let Captain Chen handle this matter."
Out at sea, it was essentially a lawless land.
Comparing this place to the Slaughter City wouldn't be an exaggeration.
The difference was that sailors went to sea to earn money, rallying around their captain and following orders, which barely maintained some semblance of order.
But once wealth distribution became uneven, the sailors would revolt, and at that point, even the captain would struggle to maintain control.
Ning Tianchen had no experience handling such incidents, so he could only restrain the sailors first and wait for Chen Haobai to deal with the situation.
After Feng Xiaotian and the others left, about half an hour later, Chen Haobai arrived.
Seeing the five sailors and the first mate lying in pools of blood, his expression darkened to its limit.
For a captain at sea, they desired finding treasure more than anyone, yet feared finding it just as much.
Wealth moved people's hearts. Once the crew's unity faltered, the ship's doom wasn't far behind.
"Who discovered the treasure first?"
A sailor pointed to two corpses on the ground and said, "The three of us."
Chen Haobai instructed, "Go, retrieve all the treasure. It will be evenly distributed among everyone on the ship."
The sailor felt resentful.
They had found the treasure—why should they share it with everyone?
Chen Haobai didn't get angry but instead chuckled. "Can you take all the treasure back by yourself? Even if it were all yours, how would you spend it here on this island?"
The sailor fell silent.
Gold and silver only became wealth in the human world, where money could buy services and enjoyment.
The essence of gold and silver was as currency for transactions in the human world. But out here on the vast ocean, with no one around, who could they trade with?
Chen Haobai continued, "Distribute this treasure evenly among everyone. I can guarantee that when we return to port, each of you will be able to take your share and spend it."
The sailor's face flushed red as he argued, "This journey is already a one-way trip!"
Chen Haobai countered, "How much are these treasures worth in gold soul coins? Our esteemed guests have already handed over real money to your families."
"Joining the Manta Ray on this voyage was your choice. Even if you die at sea, that money will allow your families to live comfortably for the rest of their lives. Who knows? Your children might even rise to the ranks of nobility because of it."
"All of this was given to you by our esteemed guests, and all you need to give is your cheap life."
Though harsh, his words held truth.
On the continent, many wealthy landowners who committed murder could settle disputes at the local government office for just a few gold soul coins.
More often than not, cases weren't even filed, and compensation wasn't mentioned. Human life was sometimes considered less valuable than a plow ox.
In Chen Haobai's eyes, this was Ning Tianchen's act of charity!
Whether alive or dead, they had to see this journey through.
Seeing the sailor lower his head, Chen Haobai pressed on, "Everyone on this voyage wants to return."
"Our esteemed guests possess considerable wealth and naturally won't take reckless risks. As for me—I have two children at home. As a father, I want nothing more than to watch them grow up!"
"If we distribute the treasure evenly and unite as one, why wouldn't we be able to conquer this sea?"
The two surviving sailors brought by the first mate immediately voiced their agreement with Chen Haobai's proposal.
Even though distributing the treasure evenly meant each person received a smaller share, it ensured no unrest aboard the ship.
If everyone worked together, returning to Hanhai City shouldn't be a problem.
Ultimately, the sailor relented and led Chen Haobai down into the underwater cave.
The treasure in the cave was worth about ten thousand gold soul coins.
Though there were plenty of gold and silver items, long-term storage in a damp environment had left them covered in rust, significantly reducing their value.
Ning Tianchen and his group originally didn't want to participate in the treasure distribution. However, under Chen Haobai's insistence, Ning Tianchen compromised, reducing their eight shares to the equivalent of one sailor's share.
Resolving the treasure's ownership peacefully eliminated a potential threat to the Manta Ray.
This would avoid many troubles during the upcoming voyage.
On the other hand, another ship at sea—the Sea Devil—wasn't so fortunate.
---
The Sea Devil was originally a pirate ship, and its captain, Haider, had targeted the Shrek Five Monsters' lives from the start.
As the ship ventured deeper into the ocean, Haider could no longer conceal his greed and poisoned the Shrek Five Monsters' food.
What he didn't know was that Tang San was a master of poisons.
Playing with poison in front of such a master was like showing off a technique in front of its creator.
Tang San eventually uncovered his scheme, and a fierce conflict erupted between the two sides.
Tang San had set sail much later than planned, and the situation at sea had changed significantly.
The commotion of the battle attracted sea soul beasts, which attacked them.
In the end, the Sea Devil broke apart, and the Shrek Five Monsters drifted on a lifeboat in the vast ocean.
Before setting out, the Shrek Five Monsters had prepared a large supply of fresh water.
Even adrift at sea, they wouldn't dehydrate quickly.
As for food…
With the dried meat in their soul-guiding tools consumed, the Shrek Five Monsters followed their plan to catch fish to sustain themselves.
However, they hadn't considered that without oil or seasoning, simply roasting the fish would make it nearly inedible.
At first, holding their noses, they managed to force down some bites.
But fish meat didn't satisfy hunger, and it also depleted what little tolerance was left in their stomachs.
The more they ate, the hungrier they became.
Excess consumption of fish caused frequent vomiting for them. Within days, the Shrek Five Monsters had visibly lost weight.
Moreover, their mental state began to deteriorate.
"At this rate, we'll starve to death at sea. Xiao San, think of something!" Dai Mubai urged anxiously.
Tang San looked at him with a bitter smile.
What could he do? Unless they caught a fatty fish, they could replenish their oil reserves with its fat.
But the reality was that such fish didn't exist in the sea.
Whales did have abundant fat, but the fat and meat weren't connected. Eating pure fat was even harder to swallow than fish meat.
Most importantly, adrift at sea with no land nearby, whales sank to the depths soon after death, leaving no time to harvest the meat.
Tai Long lay on the boat's deck, praying to heaven: "Send us a small island—one with soul beasts, please."
Soul beasts on land had tender, fatty meat.
At this moment, finding a vibrant island was their only hope to change their situation.
Tang San gazed up at the sky, his heart filled with bitterness. "To lose my life before defeating Ning Tianchen… Heaven, if this is how you treat me, why did you bring me to this world?"
"Was I destined to be trampled underfoot from birth?"
Heaven gave no reply; only the sound of the sea breeze and Tai Long's snores answered him.
Tang San suddenly lost strength, his eyelids drooped, and he fell into a deep sleep.
---
When he woke up, it was already noon the next day.
After drinking some water, Tang San resumed lying motionless. Only by doing so could he slow the depletion of the little oil left in his body.
Tai Long drowsily opened his eyes and jumped into the sea to relieve himself.
When he looked up, a large ship was sailing in the distance.
"Is this some kind of illusion?"
Tai Long rubbed his eyes, and when he opened them again, the large ship was still visible in the distance.
He quickly climbed onto the lifeboat and loudly alerted the others.
Tang San opened his eyes, his pupils turning purple—his Purple Extreme Demon Eyes activating.
From afar, he could clearly see that there was indeed a large ship—it wasn't a mirage.
"Xiao San, let's hurry and ask for help!" Dai Mubai said excitedly.
There must be supplies on that ship. With oil and other essentials, they could survive "this ordeal"!
Tang San frowned and said gravely, "Before Haider died, he mentioned that this area belongs to the Purple Pearl Pirate Group. That ship is likely one of their cargo ships transporting supplies."
Yu Tianxin cursed, "Damn it! If it weren't for that bastard Haider tricking us, we wouldn't be in this mess!"
Yu Tianheng declared, "Let's raid it! The Purple Pearl Pirate Group has done countless evil deeds. The supplies on that ship are probably stolen from other ships."
"That bastard Haider caused us so much trouble. The supplies on this ship can be considered interest we're collecting from the Purple Pearl Pirate Group!"
Tai Long, still possessing a shred of conscience, questioned, "If we go and raid that ship, how are we any different from pirates?"
Tang San sneered, "The difference is that our purpose is to strike against pirates and weaken their arrogance, so our actions are just. Pirates, on the other hand, attack every ship they see without principle!"
"Remember, we have principles. As for pirates, they've already sealed their own fate—not a single one should be spared."
With that, Yu Tianheng and the others quickly chimed in with agreement.
Tai Long was left speechless, instinctively choosing to believe Tang San.
However, the ship wasn't heading toward them and would soon disappear from their line of sight.
Tang San quickly instructed, "Everyone, use your soul power to speed up the lifeboat. Take turns to make sure we catch up to that ship before nightfall."
"After dark, we'll act immediately—kill all the pirates and take the supplies we need!"
---
The lifeboat was such a small target on the sea that the crew of the ship hadn't noticed their presence.
The large ship sailed slowly, and by the afternoon, the Shrek Five Monsters' lifeboat had reached within five nautical miles of the ship's stern and began tailing it.
As dusk fell, Tang San steered the lifeboat closer to the ship.
The deck of the large ship was illuminated by firelight, and the flag on the mast was faintly visible.
Yu Tianheng remarked in surprise, "Tang San, that flag doesn't look like it belongs to the Purple Pearl Pirate Group."
Tang San had already concluded that this was a pirate ship and had countless explanations ready. "Tianheng, let me ask you this: if pirates hoisted a pirate flag, would nearby ships willingly approach them?"
Yu Tianheng shook his head, understanding Tang San's meaning.
Tang San sneered, "Just like Haider. Before entering the territory of the Purple Pearl Pirate Group, he showed no signs of being a pirate."
"But when the time was right, he revealed his true fangs."
"The same applies here. Pirates who want to plunder ships won't reveal their true identities until after they've boarded the ship."
"This ship is likely a cargo vessel of the Purple Pearl Pirate Group. They're flying another flag to avoid drawing attention from hostile forces. If the supplies on this ship reach their base, who knows how much stronger they'll become!"
With that, Tang San activated the Blue Silver Emperor Soul Bone Skill, propelling himself into the air to scout the ship's personnel deployment.
During nighttime navigation, the crew was already exhausted, and with the pitch-black sea, most of the sailors had returned to their cabins to rest. Only a few remained on duty on the deck.
By midnight, Tang San had thoroughly assessed the situation.
Returning to the lifeboat, he released his Blue Silver Grass, hooking the other end onto the railing of the ship's stern.
"Board the ship."
At his command, Dai Mubai and the others quickly climbed aboard the stern using the Blue Silver Grass.
Tang San knew the patrol intervals of the crew but wasn't clear about the situation inside the cabins. To avoid being surrounded, he decided to first eliminate everyone on the deck.
"Tianheng, Tianxin, guard the passage connecting the cabins to the deck. If anyone comes out, deal with them immediately."
"Everyone else, follow me to take care of the pirates on the deck!"
There were only six people on the deck. Tang San immediately headed to the bridge, activating his Killing God Domain in a small radius. The navigator and first mate on the bridge didn't have time to react before he decapitated them.
Under his command, Dai Mubai and Tai Long swiftly eliminated the remaining pirates on the deck.
---
Before entering the cabins, Tang San gave everyone a brief overview of the situation.
"There are at least fifty pirates on this ship. Once we infiltrate, we must move quickly, accurately, and ruthlessly to kill them without making too much noise."
"We don't know if there are any powerful individuals on board, but if we're surrounded, our situation will become dangerous."
The passageways inside the cabins were narrow. If they were trapped inside, escape would be nearly impossible.
To avoid the worst-case scenario, they couldn't leave any survivors behind.
Upon entering the cabins, rows of rooms came into view—this was where the crew lived.
The level below might be the cargo hold or possibly more living quarters.
To avoid alerting the pirates, Tang San used his Blue Silver Grass to slip under the doors and open them from the inside without making much noise.
The moment the doors opened, Dai Mubai and the others rushed in, eliminating the sleeping crew members.
The massacre continued until dawn. All sixty-plus crew members on the ship were killed without exception.
The Shrek Five Monsters stood on the deck, basking in the light of the rising sun, smiles spreading across their faces.
"Sixty-plus pirates—the Purple Pearl Pirate Group really is massive," Dai Mubai remarked with interest.
Tang San chuckled. "Losing sixty core members will undoubtedly deal a significant blow to the Purple Pearl Pirate Group. Who knows? Without the supplies on this ship, their group might collapse from within."
With that, he called out to everyone, "Come on, let's check out the cargo hold below."
"With so many pirates guarding these supplies, there must be plenty of treasures. If we can bring some back, the Tang Sect's future funding will be secured."
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