Chapter 186: Inspection

Chimu:... After detouring through the Xisaila Islands, we finally arrived at the destination of this trip—Rierna. It is not quite the same as what was written in those books; perhaps for the nobles, this is a bustling metropolis, but for me, it is simply too chaotic.

The men and women here do not bathe, the roads are extremely filthy, and there is excrement and sludge everywhere. Small children even run around the streets without clothes. The road network here is far inferior to Tana City; there are dead ends everywhere, many routes require detours, and there are many gangs. The Storm Church does not discipline those outsiders who have come from afar; instead, they collude with them and are quite keen on the business of selling slaves.

A large number of slaves are being transported from all directions, and among them are Xiahui People. I tried to communicate, but their language is too obscure and difficult to understand, so I purchased two Xiahui slaves, hoping to bring them back so everyone can learn more about Xiahui.

Compared to Tana City, the people here have grayish skin, and most of their hair is the blue of the deep sea. Because most of the people here have the bloodline of Sier, it is also known as the Sier City.

However, up until now, I have not seen a single Sier. It is said that because this place is truly too prosperous, the Sier have hidden themselves in the deeper sea further away for the sake of safety.

As for prosperity, there are indeed auctions that nobles are keen to participate in, as well as casinos decorated with great magnificence. My friend Sawasi lost everything in the casino; I suggested that he set a flag next time that he will definitely lose everything...

I also took a look at the auction house. There are many products like natural pearls at the low-end auctions here. As for high-end pearls, coral, or even Mystical Items, those are not things I can just walk in and bid on. Even Viscount Philip's fleet is not much different from commoners once they arrive there, at most having much better accommodations.

In short, for me, although it cannot be considered a wasted trip, the harvest is certainly not as great as going to Gannaer.

After all, there is quest plot in Gannaer.

Chimu's post was full of longing for Gannaer, while the players heading to Gannaer were already feeling bored to death.

Xin Zhi Xiang Wang lay on the deck; he no longer counted on this ship being able to dock, as the river channels of Gannaer were simply too congested.

No wonder Ganseer said that even sailing to Gannaer would not be much of a problem, because there were simply too many ships here. There were at least 300 ships on the entire river surface. Besides those large ships, there were many small boats with corpses lying peacefully on them, as well as wreaths laid out.

A large portion of people in Gannaer choose water burial. They believe that drifting by boat, no matter where they drift or whether they are eaten by fish and shrimp, is the path to the Underworld.

The Underworld of the God of Death will be open to them forever.

At the same time, Gannaer is also one of the trade stations for several nearby countries. This river, named the Mother River in Gannaer, leads to four countries. Besides the Federal Tana City, it can also lead to the territory of the Barbarians.

Several other countries can also reach Gannaer from the northern estuary.

So it is also prosperous here, only because of the civil war in recent years, Gannaer has lost its former prosperity.

Otherwise, how could Tana City have become an existence like a trade hub?

Railway transport routes are also receiving more attention because the situation within Gannaer is becoming increasingly turbulent, and even the port of Tana City is gradually disappearing.

"At this speed, we might not be able to dock in three days." Xin Zhi Xiang Wang had an expression of giving up. "We still can't bump into those small boats; once a ship capsizes, there might be even bigger trouble."

"These are not problems to worry about. We just need to ensure that the spirits around this ship don't talk nonsense." Ganseer looked out at the city that looked lifeless.

Because the port is poorly managed, it is difficult for ships here to dock. If one wants to choose a private port to dock, not only will the cost be higher, but there is also a possibility of being ripped off.

However, Ganseer is a man with ways. He had already arranged personnel several years ago when Gannaer first started its internal strife.

It's just that those people haven't contacted the Federal recently, and it's unknown how they are doing.

According to the messages they left behind, there are many suitable private ports here. Although the fees are high, at least they can guarantee a smooth entry into Gannaer.

As for leaving Gannaer, there is no good way for the time being, so he does not want Xin Zhi Xiang Wang and the others to get off the ship.

As long as the ship can dock and he can get off, whether or not they can pick him up later is not important.

Ganseer pushed Xin Zhi Xiang Wang, who was lying on the ground, with his foot. "Don't sleep. If it really doesn't work, we can choose a private port."

"A private port?" Xin Zhi Xiang Wang hurriedly climbed up. "But I'm not familiar with this place."

"It doesn't matter. I have a target location. You get up and steer the ship; I'll tell you when we get there," Ganseer urged.

On the riverbank, a group of slaves were moving goods. Annie hugged her arms and counted the ships queuing behind.

Her eyelids drooped, and she felt drowsy. Under the intense sunlight, she felt as if her whole body was about to break out in a rash.

She had originally thought that after the civil war ended, her work would be easier. But she didn't expect that Gannaer, which had just begun to recuperate, would be dragged into the battle between the Barbarians and the Federal.

Because of the Barbarians' own strength issues, Gannaer had to import a large amount of supplies to ensure the alliance with its allies.

However, Annie did not like this alliance. Cooperating with those Barbarians who only had muscles and no brains—she didn't know what Her Majesty the Queen was thinking.

She felt a bit guilty in her heart; she shouldn't interpret the Queen's intentions like this.

But the Queen couldn't possibly know what a believer like her, who hadn't been Awakened for long, was thinking.

The spirits remaining in Gannaer were as messy as could be. In recent years, the communication between the Awakened and the spirits had become less and less.

But there was no help for it; they were all people of the Necromancy Sect, and they were more interested in corpses than in spirits.

Yawning, she pointed to the sailboat not far away and said, "Whose ship is that? Why don't I remember seeing it?"

"I don't know. Recently, ships from different places have been coming all the time," the maid behind her said while holding documents. "After all, this is a private port; it's not convenient for us to ask too much."

"Heh, what if a spy comes?" Annie turned her head and took a look. "You know I'm not good at Channeling."

"We only need to know if anyone has died on these ships. As long as the number of dead is less than 10, they can pass safely," the maid said, holding the documents. "The ships that spies take won't be filled with an atmosphere of peace and harmony."

"What you say makes a lot of sense. But I heard that there are rumors at sea recently that those mutated marine creatures are becoming more and more numerous," Annie couldn't help but gossip. "That kind of marine creature can slap at least ten people to death at once. Is it too rash to confirm spies in this way?"

"But we do indeed need supplies. Baroness Clara has been saying that her mausoleum needs supplies; she doesn't care whether there are spies among those people," the maid reminded her.

"Sigh, those big shots don't think carefully for us little people at the bottom. If we don't guard against those spies, we'll still be the ones to take the responsibility in the end." After complaining for a bit, Annie finally saw the ship dock.

Nearby Sailors were navigating the anchored ship, and the prepared slaves stood to the side, silently watching the cargo ship.

Annie held the Bone Staff in her hand, stood in the direction of the bow, and then began to chant a spell.

Bursts of smoky wind drifted out from the Bone Staff.

"This is the Necromancy faction. They are checking the spirits on this ship," Ganseer whispered to Xin Zhi Xiang Wang beside him. "She will come up in a moment. I will take your identity. Remember, don't speak; they are very familiar with the Federal Language."

It doesn't matter, we can still communicate in Chinese, Xin Zhi Xiang Wang couldn't help but say in his heart.

Following the NPC's arrangements to walk the plot, it wasn't as if Xin Zhi Xiang Wang hadn't experienced it before. He had previously worked under the Wealth Church and the War Church. If it weren't for the fact that the Sun God Cult didn't pay, he might have gone to the Sun's territory to experience the baptism of the gods.

Soon, Annie brought her men onto the ship.

"Where did your cargo come from?" Annie asked very cautiously.

Because she had not detected any spirits from this ship.

In other words, not even a fish had died on this ship.

Either this was a new ship.

Or this ship had been subjected to the influence of a certain Transcendental Power, so no problems could be detected.

"The goods were imported from Rierna; as for where exactly they were produced, I'm sorry, I'm not too sure myself." Ganseer spoke very fluent Gannaer, a language that is a variant of the Federal Language; it had a heavy accent, but if one listened carefully, it could be understood by players who knew the Federal Language.

Annie then asked, "From Rierna? Then you all had to take a very long detour."

"That is so, but there was no other way. We encountered a storm at sea, and when we reached Kelimu, riots broke out at the port there. We heard that Gannaer also needed a large amount of goods recently, so we had no choice but to head for the inland river channels," Ganseer continued.

"Then why didn't you go to Tana City?" Annie pursed her lips and asked next.

Although, ships traveling from the Mother River to Tana City might be discovered by that towering Arrow Tower.

But there was no reason for these people to give up on Tana City.

The Federal nobles were more extravagant than the Gannaer nobles.

"If we wanted to go to Tana City, we would have chosen to go through Port City from the start; that would have been faster. Who told us to hope for a good price? We took a huge detour; if we had known, we wouldn't have done that," Ganseer said with some distress. "Besides, my grandmother is Gannaer, and I originally intended to come over to visit her."

"Your grandmother?" Annie frowned. "How long has it been since you visited her?"

"Five years. I think for someone who sails the seas, five years isn't too long. If she has already passed away, then I can pay my respects on behalf of my mother." As he spoke, Ganseer made a few gestures to prove he was a descendant of Gannaer.

Although she felt it was strange, Annie did not doubt him much; after all, there were not many people on this ship.

She would just inspect all the cargo when the time came.

"What kind of goods did you import?" Annie prepared to go into the ship's hold to take a look; she still felt that she had to live up to this job.

Although Baroness Clara did not require her to be this cautious, as this was the Baroness's private port, as long as it could make money, that was all that mattered.

This Baroness did not care whether it would affect the Queen's plans; she only needed to ensure her own wealth and status.

Therefore, she was also the first Baroness to defect to the Queen; as a supporter of the Queen, she had quite a lot of privileges.

"There is wine, clothing, porcelain, and so on, as well as some art pieces."

"Art pieces?" Annie turned her head back. "What kind?"

"There are carved toys, bamboo-woven lanterns, interesting kites, and so on. In short, they are all fresh novelties. We also wanted to import some coral and pearls, but the price was too expensive. Of course, we also imported some herbs."

"You..." Now Annie could confirm that this ship had nothing to do with the Federal.

The Federal only knew how to manufacture machinery and build those soulless things.

And these interesting "art pieces" were exactly what the Federal lacked.

"I'll inspect them; if there are no problems, you can unload the cargo. By the way, is your ship newly bought?" Annie said after seeing a portion of the cargo in the hold.

"Yes, my previous ship encountered mutated sea creatures; those guys were truly too terrifying, so in the end, I had to switch to a new ship." Ganseer acted very much like a merchant who frequently traveled the seas. "Storm—oh no, may the Queen bless us—it's fortunate I returned alive. Owning this ship is my hope for a comeback."

"Good luck to you; I hope your goods can sell for a good price in Gannaer." Annie was still somewhat suspicious, but she had basically believed Ganseer's words. "Remember, you must keep at least five people on your ship to keep watch. I don't want any Sea Monster to run out of your ship in the middle of the night. Additionally, if you want to stay, you must rest at the hotel we designate; you are not allowed to wander around elsewhere. If you want to find your grandmother, you can entrust the hotel staff to help."

Sure enough, Gannaer's control was much stricter than Tana City's.

In Tana City, they wouldn't manage where outsiders stayed, and they wouldn't even issue identification documents.

This was also because the Federal's identity system had not yet fully formed. After all, a place like Tana City was not the Royal Capital, so the requirements for identity were not that strict.

One only needed a long-term rental contract to exchange for an identity, but it was a pity that this matter was not pushed by Ganseer.

He did not obtain an identity document, and even if he had one, it would be useless. Annie only allowed him to stay in Baroness Clara's port hotel and refused to let him go out at will.

Of course, that batch of cargo could be transported down by Slaves, and Baroness Clara would also purchase a portion of the goods or assist them in selling a portion of the goods.

(End of this chapter)