Lan Hao Tian wasn't particularly surprised by the toll collector's sudden change in attitude—he had already expected it.
"We're going ashore now. If you want the boat, just take it," he said casually.
The toll collector's expression changed once again upon hearing that. Voluntarily giving up a boat could, in a sense, be considered a form of payment—and this boat was worth far more than a hundred credits.
"Good, good, good! Please, everyone, head on up to the island. I'll immediately send someone to take the boat away."
Lan Hao Tian gave a nod, and the three of them walked up onto the island together.
"Hey, where should we go first? How about heading straight to the naval headquarters on this island and smashing the place up?" Shui Xing Ling suggested boldly.
Wu Xian, intrigued by the potential chaos, quickly chimed in with enthusiasm.
"Let's go flip the navy base upside down!"
The corner of Lan Hao Tian's mouth twitched at their reckless conversation. With a sigh, he said,
"Can you two slow down a little? We don't even know the situation on this island yet, and you're already talking about picking a fight."
But of course, the other two weren't the type to listen. Shui Xing Ling shrugged.
"I'm not scared. I'm strong."
"Same here. I'm strong too," Wu Xian added proudly.
Lan Hao Tian had a decent idea of Shui Xing Ling's power, but when it came to Wu Xian, he remained highly skeptical.
Even though Wu Xian's origins were clearly mysterious and his background seemed far from ordinary, nothing about him screamed "powerful."
"You two, hold up a bit. Let's scout the island first and see what factions are around. Maybe we'll find a group that's worth teaming up with. If we want to face future enemies, we'll need serious backing."
"Alright!" they both agreed in unison.
And so, the three of them headed straight for the island's center.
Looking at the bustling atmosphere, Lan Hao Tian was reminded of the crowded cities from his past life—something he hadn't seen in a very long time.
"The population here must be at least several tens of thousands, at the very least," he observed aloud.
"So what if there are more? It's not like we're planning to fight them all anyway," Shui Xing Ling said offhandedly.
Hearing that, Lan Hao Tian's expression darkened.
"Can you think like a normal person for once? In the future, when we start a revolution, we'll need the support of the people. Without them, things will only get harder," he said seriously.
He thought his words might finally make someone come to their senses—but Wu Xian only laughed and replied:
"Ha ha! I like hard mode. Crank up the difficulty all the way for me!"
"Goddamn it!" Lan Hao Tian cursed under his breath. He couldn't tell if he was lucky or just plain cursed. Sure, he had run into powerful allies right after setting sail, but none of them had a functioning brain.
Of course, he also considered the possibility that these two were just pretending to be dumb—but he wasn't entirely confident in that idea either.
As they walked, Lan Hao Tian passed by a bounty board. He stopped and leaned in to take a closer look, hoping to find someone worth noticing.
He had no interest in the weak, low-level pirates. His eyes were drawn only to the two posters with the highest bounties:
[Zhang Ba Hai—Captain of the Mace Pirate Crew
Bounty: 1,000,000 credits
Dead or Alive]
[Hu Yan—First Mate of the Mace Pirate Crew
Bounty: 600,000 credits
Dead or Alive]
"Both of them are huge, huh? One wields a spiked mace, the other dual axes. It looks like the Mace Pirate Crew is the strongest in this area. If we ever run into them by chance, it wouldn't be a bad idea to fight them—just to see where we currently stand," Lan Hao Tian thought to himself.
Suddenly, a loud voice broke his train of thought.
"Wow, those posters look awesome! I want one with my face on it too. I want my face to be everywhere!"
The speaker, of course, was none other than Wu Xian, clearly impressed by the bold poses of Zhang Ba Hai and Hu Yan.
The corner of Lan Hao Tian's mouth twitched again. He put a hand to his forehead and muttered,
"Do you even realize what you're saying? Normal people don't want to be hunted down."
"But I'm not a normal person," Wu Xian replied bluntly.
Hearing that, Lan Hao Tian was at a loss for words. He sighed and said,
"You… just consider yourself to have understood your own nature."
Shui Xin Ling, while usually not very serious, had been focused on studying the information about pirates in the area. She thought to herself:
"1,000,000 credits? If the bounty is correct, this person would be much weaker than Lan Hao Tian. But if he's someone who just set sail recently, then he might not necessarily be weak. If we're lucky enough to encounter him, it could be a good opportunity for training. But that's something for later; first, let's deal with the navy."
"Hey, I think the navy around here is pretty average. I'm not sure exactly how many people they have, but I'd guess under 1,000. Want to attack them?" she asked.
Before Lan Hao Tian could respond, Wu Xian butted in.
"1,000 people? If I beat them, will my face end up on posters everywhere like this?"
At that, Lan Hao Tian couldn't hold back anymore. He swung a fist toward Wu Xian's head, and a large bump quickly appeared on his skull.
"Do you know what you're talking about? Normal people don't want to be hunted down," Lan Hao Tian said, frustrated.
Shui Xin Ling, while not particularly serious, had been contemplating the naval forces in the area. She muttered, "Let me think... According to my guess, the highest rank at this kind of base would be a lieutenant colonel."
Lan Hao Tian thought for a moment, then pulled out Zhang Ba Hai's bounty poster and asked,
"So how does a lieutenant colonel compare to this guy?"
But instead of a reply, a lump appeared on Lan Hao Tian's head. The culprit was none other than Shui Xin Ling herself.
"Hmph, are you an idiot? A lieutenant colonel is a rank, not a measure of strength," she said with a snort.
"Sorry..." Lan Hao Tian began to apologize, but before he could finish, Shui Xin Ling interrupted.
"But if we consider the minimum standard for combat effectiveness, the lieutenant colonel would likely be a bit stronger than someone with a 1,000,000-credit bounty."
Lan Hao Tian's face turned red. He gritted his teeth and muttered under his breath,
"You... you... damn it! You're clearly just looking for an excuse to hit me."
"Ha ha, caught me!" Shui Xin Ling giggled, but there was no sign of remorse in her demeanor.
"Hmph, no more nonsense. Let's get moving. With our strength, we're good to go. But how should we approach this? Should we infiltrate or declare direct war?" Lan Hao Tian asked.