Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Those two women had a serious problem—an extremely serious one.
Zhao Xuan's eyes flickered rapidly.
The reason he was so certain was simple—
When the girl had asked where he planned to sleep that night, Zhao Xuan had originally intended to stay on the ship and protect them, driven by guilt.
However—
Just as he was about to speak, the Observation Haki within his body suddenly trembled violently.
A warning.
Observation Haki was issuing a warning.
And what did that mean?
It meant that if Zhao Xuan stayed on the ship, his life would be in danger.
So he immediately changed his words, saying that he still needed to cultivate for a while that night and didn't want to disturb the two of them, and that he would return to his own small sailboat instead.
The moment he said that, the frantic warning from his Observation Haki instantly subsided.
But—
When he then added that he would stay nearby until the shorter girl's father arrived—
His Observation Haki flared up again.
What did that mean?
It meant—
Those two women, as well as the shorter woman's father, harbored malicious intent toward him.
And not just ordinary hostility.
It was the kind of intent that could easily cost him his life if he was careless.
"Eighth rank…"
Zhao Xuan's eyes flashed wildly.
"Judging from her tone, her father must be an eighth-rank king. The Black Shark Pirates weren't weak—three leaders, all seventh rank. If her father were only seventh rank, how could she have spoken so confidently earlier?"
As he thought about it, another question surfaced in his mind.
"We're all from Jiuzhou. So why would the two of them suddenly want to kill me?"
"Could it be that after calming down, and after piecing together what they overheard from the Black Shark lackeys, they realized that the reason they suffered such inhuman torment… was because of me?"
At that thought, a trace of guilt surfaced in Zhao Xuan's heart.
But in the very next instant—
That guilt vanished completely.
"Hmph. You chose to come to the Endless Sea. You chose to seek opportunities here. Then you should have been prepared to face all kinds of danger."
"There are no free lunches falling from the sky."
"High rewards always come with high risks."
"If you really want to kill me because of this, then you're utterly rotten."
Zhao Xuan's gaze grew colder by the second.
He turned and quickly entered the cabin of his single-mast sailboat.
Opening the entrance to the desert space ruin, he stepped inside.
The moment he entered the ruin, the first thing he saw was the golden rat hugging a pile of cactus flowers and inhaling deeply, utterly intoxicated.
After so many collaborations, the golden rat's trust in Zhao Xuan had grown extremely high.
In the past, Zhao Xuan wouldn't even have had the chance to get close to it.
But now—
Only when Zhao Xuan came within one or two meters did the rat finally snap out of its trance and look at him.
"Chirp? (You need something?)"
"Yes," Zhao Xuan replied.
The instant he nodded—
The golden rat sprang up with a swift flip.
At the same time, it deftly opened a spatial rift and tossed the pile of cactus flowers inside.
After finishing everything neatly, it stared at Zhao Xuan with eager eyes.
"Chirp? (A mission?)"
"Yes."
"Chirp!"
The golden rat immediately became excited.
"This task is very simple," Zhao Xuan said.
"I'll cultivate outside to draw attention. You sneak onto that large ship, hide, and listen to the conversation between those two women. If you hear anything about killing me, come back immediately. No need to listen further. Understood?"
"Chirp! (Understood!)"
"Good."
Zhao Xuan's eyes flashed.
Man and rat exited the desert ruin one after the other.
Zhao Xuan left the cabin and stepped onto the deck, beginning to practice the Six Powers in human form—every punch and kick precise and controlled.
The next moment—
He sensed a gaze watching him.
But when he turned to look at the medium-sized ship dozens of meters away, he saw no one.
The ship was eerily silent.
The two women seemed to have gone to rest.
Although Zhao Xuan couldn't see them—
He did see the golden rat perched atop a mast, secretly waving at him.
Zhao Xuan ignored it and continued practicing.
Inside the cabin of the medium three-mast ship.
Footsteps echoed softly.
"Li-jie, how is it?" the shorter woman whispered.
"That Zhao Xuan is practicing boxing on his own ship," the taller woman replied coldly.
"Hmph. Still training?"
The shorter woman sneered.
"He really has nerve. Because of him, we were ruined by those filthy pirates—and he can still act like nothing happened. He deserves to die!"
As memories resurfaced, the taller woman's face twisted with hatred.
"Don't worry, Li-jie," the shorter woman said viciously.
"Two more hours. Once my father arrives, that bastard is dead."
"No—no—that's not enough," she shook her head violently.
"I won't let him die so easily. I'll torture him slowly. Bit by bit."
"Oh, and doesn't he have a lover?"
"I'll let her experience what it feels like to be pinned down by a crowd of men!"
A frenzied grin spread across her face.
The taller woman was no better.
Her expression was just as twisted.
"Oh!" she suddenly exclaimed.
"After killing Zhao Xuan, we can take his corpse to Tianxing Island for the bounty. That's a full one hundred billion!"
"Yes! Yes!"
Greed instantly replaced hatred in the shorter woman's eyes.
Neither of them noticed—
Above their heads, a golden rat was silently listening.
Back on the small sailboat.
Zhao Xuan continued practicing calmly.
Suddenly—
"Chirp!"
A call came from the cabin behind him.
"Back already."
Zhao Xuan's eyes sharpened.
He immediately entered the cabin.
"How was it?" he asked.
The golden rat chirped rapidly.
Zhao Xuan's gaze turned ice-cold.
"So you want to torture me to death."
"And even drag Di Ruoqing into it."
"Not even planning to spare my corpse—using it to claim a bounty."
A terrifying killing intent erupted from Zhao Xuan.
The temperature within several meters dropped sharply.
"This is on you."
"You brought this upon yourselves."
Any remaining guilt he had toward those two women vanished completely.
"This is your reward," Zhao Xuan said, taking out a cactus flower.
Before he could throw it—
The golden rat waved its paws and shook its head violently.
"…You don't want it?"
"Chirp! (No!)"
"Really not?"
"Chirp! (Really not!)"
Zhao Xuan frowned.
"I'll give you one last chance. You really don't want it?"
"Chirp! (No! Take it away!)"
Zhao Xuan didn't press further.
Right now, he had no patience to waste.
He returned the cactus flower to the ruin and strode out of the cabin.
He didn't notice—
For just an instant, regret flashed across the golden rat's face.
Then it vanished.
The rat looked toward the distant ship, fury burning in its eyes.
Those damn female humans… daring to target my human pet.
If he weren't smart enough to notice, I'd have lost him.
Zhao Xuan landed firmly on the deck of the medium three-mast ship.
The two women rushed out, surprise flashing across their faces.
Even panic flickered in their eyes—
Though they hid it well.
If Zhao Xuan hadn't already seen through their true nature, he might not have noticed.
"Z-Zhao Xuan, what brings you here?" the shorter woman asked with a smile.
The taller woman stared at him intently.
Zhao Xuan sighed, guilt washing over his face.
"I came to apologize."
"Apologize?"
"Apologize?"
"Yes," Zhao Xuan said.
"The reason the Black Shark Pirates appeared in this region was because of me. If not for me, you wouldn't have encountered them… and wouldn't have suffered that kind of torment."
He bowed deeply.
"I'm sorry. Truly. If you want to curse me or hit me, go ahead. I won't complain."
Silence fell over the deck.
For a brief moment, vicious light flashed across their faces.
Then—
It disappeared.
"This isn't your fault," the shorter woman said gently.
"It was just an unfortunate coincidence."
"Yes," the taller woman agreed.
"We were simply too weak."
"So… you forgive me?" Zhao Xuan asked softly.
"Yes," they answered together.
At that instant—
Zhao Xuan's guilt vanished.
Replaced by pure killing intent.
A terrifying aura exploded outward.
"ROAR!"
He transformed into his dragon-man form.
In a flash, he appeared before the shorter woman.
One punch.
Her head exploded.
Blood and gore splattered across the deck.
Silence.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Then—
"AAAAAH!"
The taller woman screamed.
"What are you doing?!"
Zhao Xuan answered with another punch.
Her head burst as well.
Looking at the two headless corpses, Zhao Xuan said coldly:
"Since you forgave me… I have nothing left to feel guilty about."
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