Chapter 142: Once You Sign the Contract, You Must Fulfill It

A ship brimming with technological flair sailed into the harbor, and a man and a woman, accompanied by a dog, stepped ashore; behind them, they dragged a string of recently memory-lost pirates.

"Hello, Mr., we are representatives of the Bounty Hunters' Guild stationed at Banmaide Port. Is there any service you require?"

Just like the previous Yanan Island, this port also had a Bounty Hunters' Guild outpost; seeing Feng Xue leading a string of pirates off the ship, they immediately approached.

Feng Xue, now clad in black leather, glanced at the clerks whose skin tone leaned closer to bronze, and without hesitation, tugged on the rope tied to the chain of pirates:

"They're called the Razor Pirates, right? Take the ship behind them too—give me a valuation."

"Understood, we'll verify immediately—please wait!"

The bounty hunter swiftly pressed a terminal on his arm; soon, a team arrived with various devices to conduct inspections.

Though everything seemed fine, this world still harbored plenty of bizarre technologies; it wasn't impossible someone had captured ordinary civilians, altered their appearances, and passed them off as pirates.

Yet these pirates all bore traces of phantom beasts and cybernetics, the ship showed no irregularities, and aside from their collective loss of one day's memories, nothing was amiss.

"Can the Moon Goddess Mau's authority over dreams and illusions erase memories? Theoretically, it shouldn't be impossible—but I've never seen it before…" The guild clerk wondered how much this information might be worth, yet his face already wore a professional smile:

"Hello, Mr., we've confirmed: the total bounty for the entire Razor Pirate crew is four million. Since you captured them all alive, we'll also add the value of their phantom beasts. If you sell the ship along with them, I can authorize a price of ten million. Of course, if sold separately, the ship might fetch a higher price—but that would require time and a suitable buyer…"

"No need. Just settle it outright." Feng Xue waved his hand, his expression clearly saying he had no time to waste. The Bounty Hunters' Guild set up its offices at the docks precisely to make this money; the clerk immediately pulled out equipment:

"Do you have an account with the Goddess of Wealth Bank? If not, we may need time to arrange a standard medium of exchange."

"I do." Feng Xue produced his anonymous card. Though curious why one wouldn't simply open an account if they didn't have one, he refrained from asking, sensing there might be hidden complications.

Yet Xiao Lingdang, as her self-proclaimed cozy little padded jacket, immediately compiled the public local data via the local network and transmitted it to Feng Xue through their contract link—

The reason was simple: though the Goddess of Wealth was a relatively well-known neutral deity, she still had enemies, and this sea region certainly wasn't short of domineering divine factions that despised other deities without cause—especially in the Cradle Archipelago, where faith factions were intricately entangled. Due to religious factors, many simply couldn't open accounts with the Goddess of Wealth Bank.

Feng Xue's group had arrived in a high-tech house-ship, so they were naturally assumed to be seasoned sailors; asking such people to open an account would be plainly impolite.

Though this was merely a minor incident, Feng Xue gleaned the local environment's peculiarities and immediately said:

"Check the behavioral code of Mau's followers. Once found, send it to Feina… no, send it directly to Sara. We're pretending to be followers—if exposed, we'll be worse than heretics: we'll be heretics pretending to be believers! Also, disguise yourself properly—pretend you're just an ordinary AI!"

"Understood! Xiao Lingdang, your navigation assistant, is at your service!"

Xiao Lingdang's previously lively 3D projection instantly turned rigid, resembling a pre-set VTuber skin.

Though outwardly stiff, Xiao Lingdang's functions remained fully intact; leveraging the performance of the pre-civilization terminal, she quickly synthesized a long list of behavioral norms from the local public network.

Fortunately, though Mau's followers weren't few, they were merely indigenous deities across the entire Titan Chain, and compared to those deities who had established dynasties and become state religions, their followers observed few rules. Excluding those applicable only during marriage, funerals, or grand rituals, there were essentially only three—

One: Do not observe the moon at dawn or dusk.

Two: Do not use any healing methods beyond herbs and divine grace.

Three: Do not deliberately kill any life during daylight (accidental harm or indirect deaths via traps are exempt).

Beyond this, the sect even lacked its own dedicated prayer rituals or greetings among followers—remarkably primitive.

"Looks like a wild deity who hasn't even built her own system yet—no wonder she's so terrified of outside influence!"

Feng Xue muttered to himself, confirmed that Sara had begun instructing Feina, then had Xiao Lingdang lock down the Da Yun, and gently stroked the Bai She ring.

Compared to its previous form—a simple coiled snake—this time Li Yunxi's transformed ring was more artistic: the serpent-wound band was inlaid with a crescent-shaped jade, emitting a soft lunar glow.

A wisp of ghostly energy subtly transmitted; the Ghost Clap activated. With Mo Ying as the conduit, their communication became effortless—

"I sense an abundance of energy similar to Moonstone!"

"Not yet. There are likely many followers here selling goods—let's first acquire a set of identities!"

As he spoke, Feng Xue took Feina's arm, like a noble strolling with a pet, exiting the harbor. Had they not been disguised in black skin, they might have looked even more convincing.

But in the Titan Chain, black skin was the local norm; though other skin tones occasionally appeared, they remained rare.

Under Xiao Lingdang's guidance, Feng Xue moved like a veteran who'd visited countless times, arriving at the trading street. Before even reaching their destination, he was already baffled by the bizarre passersby.

Besides various followers, there were also many who followed the Phantom Beast path; though most hadn't fused with their beasts, they still bore obvious animal traits—feathers, scales, tentacles, gills, or even half their faces transformed into monstrous visages—all utterly lacking in aesthetic appeal. Feng Xue, at first glance, thought he'd stumbled into some anti-furry rehabilitation center.

"Such backward technology. No wonder it's the most backward region among the Seven Islands." Sara's voice reached Feng Xue through the nanofilm. Feng Xue merely rolled his eyes, gave no reply, skipped the market entirely, and followed signs directly to the administration office, asking:

"How much does it cost to set up a stall here to buy things?"

The clerk glanced at Feng Xue's attire and replied casually:

"All nearby shops are rented out; the next available one won't be free until next month. For a street stall, the daily management fee is three hundred. But if you cause trouble or engage in combat, you must pay triple the damages. The pricing table is over there—help yourself."

Feng Xue had already inquired with Xiao Lingdang. He raised his hand and transferred the payment into the account, then took an unknown animal hide as proof of payment, found an empty patch on the street, spread out the hide, and laid nothing for sale—instead, he pulled out a wooden board. Guided by Xiao Lingdang, he clumsily wrote the same message in three languages: Common Tongue, Cradle Archipelago Dialect, and Emerald Archipelago Dialect—

"High price for all kinds of ores! Regular metal ores at 10% premium; rare ores negotiable!"

(End of Chapter)