Chapter 143: Setting Sail, Terrifying Sea Beast!

When Fang Xu accepted the mission from the Ascendant Immortal Society, he knew this journey would not be peaceful.

The great clans and powers are surely trying every means to eradicate him while he's still weak; the Yanshen Sect also hasn't given up on seizing the chance to capture him.

For this journey, he had originally made some plans.

The Cloud-stepping Steed given by Huang Qingzhou could be said to have reduced his many schemes by nearly ninety percent.

Because from the moment he left the Ascendant Immortal Society, he rode the Cloud-stepping Steed at full speed; for a journey of tens of thousands of li, the steed finished it in only three days.

During those three days, the great clans had not yet reacted, and Fang Xu had already reached Canghai City.

He had left the Cloud-stepping Steed at the Ascendant Immortal Society's outpost in Canghai City; these old horses were bought by him for forty taels of silver.

Fang Xu followed a group of martial artists to the ship's rail, watching the occasional ripples in the deep water ahead, all with solemn expressions.

Fang Xu: "……"

The old man slightly shook his head: "The water ghosts on the treasure ship are too weak; going down would be suicide."

I don't know why I'm so unlucky today to have encountered this.

This money was well spent!

Having said that, he took out a few taels of silver, threw them on the table, and left the tavern.

Going out to sea?

Someone shouted loudly.

Staring at the seawater already filling the cabin, Fang Xu also furrowed his brows, then immediately darted toward the deck.

Hearing his words, the burly martial artist eyed him dubiously, but eventually left the room.

Inside the inn, a group of martial artists wielding blades and spears were violently kicking open doors one by one, holding portraits, searching for something.

At this moment, she was naked from head to toe, her head missing; the headless corpse was casually thrown onto the bed.

After a few people fell silent, a martial artist wearing a headscarf whispered: "I've heard that the folks of Fushan Kingdom have recently been mass‑capturing vicious sea beasts and dumping lots of strange poison into the ocean; surely their mad actions have provoked the deep‑sea sea monsters."

Inside the cabin, many other passengers also came out of their rooms, standing in the cabin and chatting noisily.

Even a Martial Venerable expert cannot exert much strength in sea combat.

Exactly, a few shattered islands might someday be flooded like Feather Mountain Kingdom, and fighting back would be pointless.

The Liang Clan Martial Venerable waved his hand with a solemn expression.

These things were probably done by the Yanshen Sect's followers; after all, Fushan Kingdom, being an island nation in the sea, should well know the consequences of poisoning the waters.

Having entered Canghai City, Fang Xu did not go straight to the East Gate but came to a tavern in the city, preparing to gather information.

However, he did not intend to get involved in this.

Time quickly arrived at the early Xu hour.

The woman's face turned pale with fright; she cautiously stepped back, then hurriedly ran out of the room toward other rooms.

The Liang Clan Martial Venerable frowned, but didn't bother arguing with him, directly shouting: "Lift all the Water God Giant Crossbows!"

Seawater seeped into the cabin, instantly terrifying everyone inside!

From this, one could also infer that, wanting to set sail toward Fushan Kingdom ahead, he would likely find no suitable vessel recently.

Seeing the hull gradually steady and speeding forward, everyone in the cabin breathed a sigh of relief and cheerfully returned to their rooms.

"Using a treasure ship to transport cargo is overkill; inevitably it will also carry some people who want to go to Fushan Kingdom."

Fang Xu sat cross‑legged on the bed, cultivating, when suddenly he heard a noisy commotion from inside the inn.

The martial instructor nodded and hurried downstairs to relay the message.

She was a woman dressed extremely revealingly, of average build, and the cheap rouge and powder on her face could not hide the traces of age.

Beside her, a martial instructor spoke up.

Seeing this, the martial artists among the other passengers in the cabin also forcibly pushed their way over.

He immediately produced a hundred taels of gold and handed it to the middle‑aged man.

"Even ordinary small boats probably dare not stray far from the shore these days, kid; if you're willing to pay a heavy price and take the treasure ship of the Three Great Transport Gangs, you can still be kept safe."

He slowly lifted his spear, Fang Xu gently pushed the window open a crack, glanced at the rooms where several Yanshen Sect disciples stayed, and saw no movement.

A large number of martial artists surged out of the cabin; on the deck, the Liang Clan's warriors instantly drew their weapons, ready for battle.

"So there's no ship setting sail now?"

Fang Xu flipped through for a while, found it a bit boring, so he stuffed the scrolls into his Cosmic Sack and began to cultivate with closed eyes.

"Kid, you're not from Canghai City, are you?"

Fang Xu shook his head, rose and went to the door, about to close it, but saw the woman had already pushed open the doors of several Yanshen Sect disciples' rooms.

"Senior, what should we do now?"

"The treasure ship's cabin has already cracked; if this beast comes again…"

"Kid, don't run around!"

In it he found records concerning Purple Blood Coral.

Entering the cabin, he found his room, and Fang Xu pushed the door and went inside.

The mission scroll clearly stated that for this investigation, if he could ascertain the detailed situation and strength of the Yanshen Sect on Thousand Mountain Island, he would earn eight thousand contribution points.

Seeing Fang Xu so compliant, several people immediately smiled and said: "Kid, if you want to go to sea, you can leave early tomorrow."

"Martial Venerables are strong, but this is the open sea; the sea monsters there are far more terrifying than land beasts, and far more numerous!"

Fang Xu quietly sipped his liquor, beginning to ponder the words of those few martial artists just spoken.

But the two were roughly shoved aside by Fang Xu!

Fang Xu hastily clasped his hands: "I'm a person from Liangzhou, preparing to go to Fushan Kingdom to purchase some Purple Blood Coral."

But then, the ship's swaying became increasingly obvious; below, something seemed to be continually striking the treasure ship.

Among them, the dark‑skinned martial artist lifted the wine jug before him, shook it, and sighed: "Ah, there's not much wine left."

His shout left the martial artists who were violently searching the rooms on both sides stunned.

Although he had never been to the deep sea in his previous life, he also knew that a ship of this type had a deep draft.

At this moment, many commoners were laboriously loading cargo onto the treasure ship.

Each bolt of these giant crossbows was as thick as an infant's arm, and Fang Xu could clearly feel that the black bolts among them were actually first-grade treasures!

No wonder the Martial Lord of the Liang family had never chosen to act before.

"I heard that this matter is related to the State of Fu Shan."

"One big goldfish, a hundred taels of gold!"

A burly martial artist wielding a wolf-tooth club violently shoved open his door, glanced around the room, then compared the picture in his hand with Fang Xu for a moment before suspiciously asking, "Where are you from? What are you planning to do?"

After some thought, he began to devise a plan to go to sea.

In the long line, Fang Xu again saw those few people from the Yanshen Sect.

"But this is at sea, old man..." The Liang family's Martial Lord's face grew solemn.

On the other side, some people were queuing up, walking slowly toward the treasure ship.

"Load!"

"Don't scare people! This is a treasure ship, escorted personally by a Martial Lord-level expert; there shouldn't be any problem, right?"

Seeing this, Fang Xu gave a faint smile.

He set the mission scroll aside, Fang Xu picked up the book Chu Mu had given him, flipped it open and glanced at it.

A moment later—

"I heard that the Liang family previously had a giant cargo ship, second only to the treasure ship, that was attacked by sea beasts in shallow waters, and everyone aboard perished in the sea."

"After boarding, don't wander around the ship unnecessarily, and certainly don't quarrel with other passengers aboard; otherwise, regardless of who is right or wrong, both parties will be thrown overboard to feed the fish!"

After all, the State of Fu Shan is not far from the State of Yu; sea travel should take at most seven or eight days.

There are too many blood-wing tiger sharks ahead; once fired, the bolts cannot be recovered, and at a hundred gold coins each, even for the Liang family it's a painful expense.

An old man with a square face, white-speckled hair, wearing a deep blue silk robe, stood with his hands behind his back at the ship's rail, gazing solemnly at the dark sea.

Right now, escape is definitely impossible; this pack of blood-wing tiger sharks has already set its sights on the treasure ship.

These ruthless dog-things!

These guys really must be tired of living, actually trying to mooch my drink?

He shook his head silently, then immediately shouted, "Waiter, bring a pot of good wine!"

"If on land, encountering a sixth-stage peak ferocious beast, I, old man, would still be able to slay it by any means."

"You say, why doesn't His Majesty today send someone to wipe out that tiny little state?"

Behind him, upon hearing this, the Liang family's martial artists all ran to the second deck of the ship and began hauling out one crossbow bolt after another.

To cause the treasure ship to sway this much, the sea beasts outside must be extremely strong; I don't know whether the Liang family's Martial Lord tasked with guarding the treasure ship can resolve it.

Upon entering the tavern, the shop's young attendant warmly greeted him.

The State of Fu Shan seems to be poisoning the sea waters, massively slaughtering sea beasts…

"Who knows…"

The disciples of the Ascension Society's Hall of Enforcement are probably already waiting for me on Qian Shan Island.

However, he also couldn't be bothered to waste time on those guys; setting out to sea is urgent.

Taking the wooden token from the martial artist's hand, Fang Xu nodded.

"Gentlemen, I happened to overhear you just now saying that the sea beasts in the ocean are causing quite a disturbance."

"Senior, we really ought to do something, right?" a martial artist exclaimed anxiously, blurting out.

"Kid, you're meddling in Tuoba family affairs—do you want to die?!"

Fang Xu glanced around; the tavern's patrons were few, just a scattering of tables.

At first, he thought it was just wind and waves, and didn't take it to heart.

After the martial artists made a fuss, not finding the person they sought, they all left the inn and hurried to the next one.

"Credentials!"

"Someone's been killed!"

"Pfft!"

The treasure ship's speed is a bit faster than he expected; at this rate, reaching the State of Fu Shan will likely take no more than about six days.

At the east gate of Canghai City, Fang Xu exited the gate and headed straight for the seaside dock, where he indeed saw a notice.

The room is tiny, barely enough to lie down in one person, but he didn't mind.

This trip to the State of Fu Shan has two purposes: first, to complete his promotion mission; second, to gather purple blood coral.

"Could it be that we've run into sea beasts?"

"Sure thing!"

"Hold on!"

Saying that, he prepared to go back inside and shut the door.

"Whoosh!"

The spear tip suddenly thrust forward toward the woman's face, and Fang Xu coldly said, "No need, get lost!"

"A few days ago, the Liang family's canal bureau had a batch of goods to ship by sea to the State of Fu Shan, but the ordinary vessels normally used for transport were overturned by sea beasts; Fu Shan is eagerly awaiting them, so the Liang family's canal bureau has decided to dispatch the treasure ship tomorrow to deliver this batch of goods."

Fang Xu faintly felt a sense of unease in his heart.

"Let's have a look first; maybe they're just some clueless sea beasts."

"Hold onto this; it's your boarding credential."

"Blood-wing tiger sharks? Aren't these creatures only active in the deep sea? How did they end up in shallow waters?"

After glancing at the life values next to the six people's names, which were around 70%, Fang Xu estimated that those few wouldn't die in the coming days, so he didn't pay much attention.

Hearing his words, several people exchanged glances but didn't speak.

Accompanied by the sailors' loud cries from the deck above, the large ship shuddered slightly a few times, then began sailing toward the deep sea.

Purple Blood Coral is a supplementary ingredient in refining Blood Qi Pills; it can substitute for the flesh of some high-level ferocious beasts and has better efficacy.

Inside the cabin, Fang Xu sensed all this and his heart also relaxed a little.

Fang Xu was about to turn and leave when the middle-aged man gave him a reminder.

The early sun rose, and the February morning was still somewhat cold.

A hundred-year-old Purple Blood Coral is valuable; such specimens are rarely encountered.

No one dared say that the ship would be destroyed and people would die, but everyone understood his meaning.

On the deck of the treasure ship.

Fang Xu closed the door, but his hand reached for the long spear leaning against the wall.

Sea beasts in the ocean seemed to behave abnormally; some that originally lived in the deep sea have begun appearing in shallow waters.

Fang Xu nodded slightly, then casually found an inn that didn't look like an inn at the dock and stayed there.

Many alchemists like to use Purple Blood Coral when refining Blood Qi Pills; only when they lack Purple Blood Coral do they choose to use ferocious beast flesh to make pills.

After receiving the gold, the man tossed over a dark iron plaque engraved with the two characters 'Liang'.

"Senior, only if we all unite and cooperate now do we have a chance to save the treasure ship and everyone's lives aboard!"

Inside the wooden hut, a middle-aged man with a face like cow dung and a wart at the corner of his mouth glanced at Fang Xu and spoke lazily.

"It really cracked! The seawater!"

The middle-aged man said somewhat impatiently.

On this expedition, the Enforcement Hall's disciples will not intervene at all; his main task is to monitor Fang Xu to ensure he does not rely on any external forces during the mission.

Seeing this, Fang Xu felt a spark of anger rise in his heart.

Seeing the notice, Fang Xu walked slowly into the wooden hut behind the notice for opinions.

Just as Fang Xu got off the bed and prepared to pack up and leave, the inn attendant's exclamation came from outside the door!

"Someone's been killed!"

Therefore, even if Fang Xu fails this mission and dies at the hands of the Divine Extension Sect, he will not lift a hand to help.

"A giant goldfish?"

Fang Xu was dazed again.

The inn attendant responded, quickly fetched a jug of good wine, and brought it to Fang Xu.

Moreover, along the way he encountered no ambush or interception, because the great clans had not yet reacted; once he lingered too long in Canghai City, by the time all the clans and forces gathered in Donghai City, it would be inconvenient for him to leave.

The destruction of the treasure ship is a minor matter, at most losing some money and goods; but if I and these Liang family warriors aboard fall into the sea, we would likely be instantly torn to shreds by the Blood Wing Tiger Sharks below.

"Senior, what kind of sea beast have we encountered?" a warrior asked.

The reason they are still so tense now is that, while those warriors were searching, he inadvertently glanced into the opposite room and saw several warriors hanging strange masks on the wall.

On the stairs leading to the deck, two Liang family warriors were still preparing to block him.

Several warriors glanced at him and replied, "Naturally there are still ships setting out to sea."

To completely conceal his identity, he even changed his weapon.

A first-grade treasure crossbow bolt; one is worth a person's ship ticket.

The boring sea voyage passed three days; the sea surface was calm, and the treasure ship continued steady progress.

With the sound of a blade slicing flesh, the woman's body was abruptly dragged inside; at the same moment, a Divine Extension Sect follower in the room slowly poked his head out, glanced around, then immediately shut the door.

On both sides of the treasure ship, countless huge oars extended and began sliding swiftly, further increasing the ship's speed.

"Sir, do you need service?"

Fang Xu occasionally went outside to move his muscles and bones, but spent the rest of his time cultivating indoors.

After the woman entered, she gave a seductive smile, twisted her waist, and was about to lean toward Fang Xu.

Everyone discussed while waiting for the Liang clan warriors tasked with guarding the treasure ship to handle the matter.

"Did they come looking for me?"

If we could destroy this Divine Extension Sect outpost, the inner gate would give extra rewards based on the level of the Ascension Immortal Society's outpost.

Sixth-level sea beasts normally dwell in the deep-sea seabed and rarely appear here.

Fang Xu silently noted this, then respectfully asked, "Seniors, with your great abilities, do you know if any treasure ships are set to sail recently?"

"Raise the sails, set sail!"

Fang Xu pushed open the door and saw that the occupants of the surrounding rooms were now standing at the door of the rooms previously occupied by those Divine Extension Sect followers, pointing and gossiping.

Late at night, while Fang Xu was meditating with closed eyes, he suddenly felt the ship's hull tremble slightly.

Fang Xu brought the wine jug to the warriors' table and said, "Seniors, please drink."

The speed of the ship's trembling also gradually diminished.

"A pack of Blood Wing Tiger Sharks."

That middle-aged man slowly extended a finger.

"Duck Mountain Kingdom?" another dark-skinned, thin warrior frowned and said, "These sons of bitches sure know how to cause trouble."

"Sir, should we send frogmen and water ghosts down to check?"

"The leader is likely a sixth-level peak Blood Wing Tiger Shark."

Fang Xu walked over slowly.

Seeing Fang Xu silent, the person outside pushed the door open and entered.

These people from the Divine Extension Sect are just lunatics!

He suppressed the anger in his heart and walked slowly away from the inn toward the dock.

"Sir, it's very cheap; two taels of silver will do."

As midnight approached, Fang Xu was cultivating when a soft knock suddenly came from outside the door.

After returning to the room again, Fang Xu swallowed a Blood Qi Pill, intending to thoroughly cultivate his strength to the peak of Warrior Master first level during this time.

"Yes, set sail." Fang Xu replied and asked, "I'm alone; what's the price?"

"The ship's cracked! The treasure ship's cracked!"

Out in the vast sea, if the treasure ship encounters any trouble, he'll also have a headache.

But they hadn't even closed the door when a huge roar suddenly came!

Boom!

After the loud bang, the entire treasure ship suddenly tilted violently; the abrupt mishap left many passengers unsteady, causing them to fall inside the cabin!

Moreover, as some passengers had just steadied their feet, they suddenly noticed a crack appearing in the cabin floor beneath them, with seawater steadily seeping in through the fissure!

"Ship! Ship..."

"Sir, your food and drink." The shop assistant brought over the dishes Fang Xu had ordered.

After closing the door, Fang Xu glanced at the bronze mirror on the desk beside him; seeing that his disguise showed no flaws, he flung the door open and shouted, "It's the middle of the night—are you letting anyone sleep at all?!"

"Tch, what's the point of killing him? It's thankless effort."

……

He returned to the bed again, leaned his long spear against his side, and slowly closed his eyes.

"Remember, after boarding you must obey the ship's rules, cause no trouble, or else you'll be thrown overboard mid‑voyage—don't blame me if I don't warn you."

These several followers of the God-extending Sect happened to be staying at the same inn as me this time; I don't know whether it's a coincidence or they came specifically for me.

Seeing that Fang Xu seemed not to understand, he reluctantly said, "A big goldfish."

Fang Xu was also amused by the situation—one hundred taels of gold is just one hundred taels of gold, plus a big goldfish!

"Who?"

Sensing a faint smell of blood, Fang Xu knew that the woman must have been killed.

Fang Xu opened his eyes, opened the door, and stepped out.

After a hundred years, the purple blood coral will split.

Having just stepped out of the wine shop not far, five names gradually surfaced in the friend list deep within his sea of consciousness.

Sitting cross‑legged in the cabin, Fang Xu took out the scroll of this mission and the book that Chu Mu had given him.

Treasure ship?

At night, a light sea breeze blew in, mixed with a foul, fishy stench.

According to the record in that book, purple blood coral is a miraculous sea‑grown herb; a ten‑year specimen is only three inches long, and each additional inch indicates ten more years of age.

But I can't afford any delay right now—forty contribution points per day, and losing a day means losing a day's worth.

Hearing that, Fang Xu nodded slightly, clasped his hands, and said, "Thanks, brothers; I'll go check it out."

He walked over slowly, and through the crowd Fang Xu saw the woman from last night.

Within his sense of consciousness, Fang Xu discovered that these people's cultivation levels were around Warrior Master fifth level.

Fang Xu frowned and asked.

"Sir, please come inside."

"Sir, two taels of silver, and tonight I'll be yours."

Finding a seat near several martial artists, Fang Xu ordered some food and drink and quietly listened to their conversation.

"All right, all right!"

After all, no matter how strong one is, facing the endless sea and countless sea beasts, there's no way to guarantee one's survival.

Fang Xu blinked in surprise, then a flicker of fear crossed his face as he hastily clasped his hands and said, "Junior has eyes but fails to recognize Mount Tai—sorry, sorry!"

"Big..."

Beside numerous large and small vessels, a mighty treasure ship about a hundred zhang long was moored at the edge of the dock, its tall mast bearing a flag embroidered with the characters "Liang".

"What's wrong with the ship!!"

"Damn it, I don't know what's going on, but lately the shallow seas have been extremely turbulent!"

That's a mask worn only by followers of the God-extending Sect!

Sixth‑level peak!?

Hearing that, everyone was dumbfounded!

"Isn't a sixth‑level peak equivalent to a human Martial Venerable?"

The ship's swaying grew larger and larger.

"Room B‑13."

"They say the Martial Venerable above can settle this!"

"No kidding—I heard that a few unlucky guys from the Liang Transport Guild, before even leaving the shallow seas, had their ship overturned by a fourth‑level blood‑wing tiger shark, with both cargo and crew sinking to the bottom of the sea."

【Liang Transport Guild will have a treasure ship setting out for Fushan Kingdom tomorrow; anyone intending to go to Fushan Kingdom should sign up quickly, as spots are limited.】

At the ship's rail, the Liang family's Martial Venerable glanced at the crowd, waved his hand at the Liang family martial artists who were on high alert, and said, "Let them come over."

"Pass the order down: let all the oarsmen start rowing, speed up, and shake off these guys."

Following the group to the treasure ship's entrance, a Warrior Master third‑level martial artist blocked him and said coldly,

On the dock, countless commoners had already begun preparing fishing nets for going out to sea, moving cargo, bustling with activity.

He immediately rose from the bed, went to the door, and furtively opened a crack to peek outside.

Fang Xu quickly handed that metal plate to the martial artist.

Fang Xu opened his mouth to ask.

Even if the treasure ship's speed is greater, it still can't outrun this herd of beasts; for now, the only option is to kill, to slay as many blood-wing tiger sharks as possible, thereby perhaps intimidating that sixth-stage peak tiger shark, so that they will retreat.

Please vote for recommendation tickets, please vote for monthly tickets! Thanks, big shots!

(End of chapter)