Chapter 1414: Treasure Seizing

"Alright, I understand, Mr. Chen. We will head back now." The boatman nodded, and after Chen Yu and the others disembarked, he steered the boat away.

Yet, what Chen Yu did not know was that a small boat had been tailing them the entire time, and on board was the village chief of the fishing village where they had rented the boat last time.

Besides him, there were several burly men on the boat holding weapons. Once the boat that had delivered Chen Yu departed, they carefully approached the shore.

The few of them were acting furtively; one look was enough to tell they were up to no good.

After their small boat docked, the village chief waved his hand, and the men gathered together.

"Village Chief, this is Devil Island. You said these people came here once before; did the climate of this place change after they arrived?" one burly man asked.

"That's right." The village chief, who was over fifty and already bald, nodded and said, "After they left last time, they came back again this time. I feel there must be something valuable in this place; otherwise, they wouldn't risk coming here again and again."

"I think so too. Looking at them, you can tell they are explorers," a sturdy man said. "So this time, we followed them all the way here to see what exactly they are doing."

"Village Chief, should we follow them now?" a burly man asked.

"Don't follow them. These people are not ordinary. If we follow too closely, they will know immediately." The village chief thought for a moment and said, "Let's find a place to hide first. Leave the exploring to them; we will just wait here for the rabbit."

"When they come back, they will definitely pass through here. At that time, we will go up, seize the treasure, and leave."

"The village chief is as thoughtful as ever." A man laughed sinisterly. "It's settled then. We'll wait here for the rabbit. I'd like to see if they can escape our grasp when the time comes."

"Alright, find a place and hide securely. Sandan, you go keep watch. If you see any movement, report it via the walkie-talkie immediately." The village chief was a fox; he looked at the surrounding environment and said, "That cave entrance will be our camp."

"They might stay for a few days this time. We'll bring enough water and dry rations and wait there."

"Village Chief, what if their treasure isn't valuable?" a simple-minded burly man asked.

"Heh, they rented a boat and threw out hundreds of thousands without blinking. You think it's not valuable?" The village chief sneered. "Clear division of labor, and stay sharp. If we pull this job off, we'll have endless fortune in the future."

"Understood." The men nodded heavily. The one called Sandan picked up a homemade hunting rifle, found a high vantage point, and hid himself.

These fishermen lived by the sea year-round, so their survival experience was extremely rich. That Sandan was even more clever; after he hid in the high ground, one could hardly find any trace of him.

He lay prone in a thicket, not moving an inch, staring in the direction Chen Yu and the others had left.

But what he did not know was that a smear of black had, at some unknown moment, attached itself to his body and was slowly crawling up his leg.

Wherever this black smear reached, his skin turned black. A terrifying aura slowly spread upward along his leg, yet he remained completely unaware.

Suddenly, this black aura surged upward, wrapping around his body like an octopus.

Sandan was startled. He opened his mouth wide to call for help, but several tentacles suddenly surged into his mouth. He fell to the ground with a thud, trembling violently.

More tentacles surged into his eyes and nostrils. In less than a moment, he lay on the ground, motionless.

In the blink of an eye, the sky grew dim. The men with the village chief were already starting a fire to cook.

"Why hasn't there been any news from Sandan? Is everything alright?" the village chief asked.

"Don't worry, Village Chief. Sandan has always been clever; if he isn't speaking, it definitely means nothing is wrong," a burly man said. "Don't you trust his ability?"

The village chief nodded slightly. Indeed, Sandan was quite clever; otherwise, he wouldn't have sent him to keep watch.

However, out of caution, he still felt a trace of an unusual aura spreading in the surroundings.

"Ertie, this island is called Devil Island. Hasn't anyone been here before?" the village chief asked.

"Yes. Before this, no one dared to come to this sea area. This is the place where our Sea God resides," the burly man called Ertie replied. "But now, it seems it's not as dangerous anymore."

"It's still unusual here," the village chief muttered. "After we finish our business, it's better to leave here quickly. I always feel there are some unusual things in this place."

"Haha, don't worry, Village Chief. What unusual things could there be here? We go out to sea; what kind of environment or things haven't we seen?" a burly man said. "Besides, didn't Chen Yu and the others come here? They were able to return safely, so what are we afraid of?"

"That may be so, but it's better to be careful. You go take the walkie-talkie and ask Sandan about the situation," the village chief said. "I always feel it's unusual that he hasn't replied for so long."

"Alright, I'll ask now." Ertie picked up the walkie-talkie: "Sandan, Sandan, is there any situation on your end?"

A burst of static came from the other side of the walkie-talkie, but no one replied. The atmosphere at the scene suddenly became somewhat eerie.

"Sandan, are you there? Reply immediately upon receiving this message." Ertie was somewhat puzzled. Sandan was always clever, and there shouldn't be any fierce beasts on the island, so why wasn't Sandan replying?

"Did something happen?" The village chief's expression changed slightly, and he began to feel uncertain.

"Nothing could have happened. This isn't some deep mountain or old forest, and there are no fierce beasts roaming about. You're overthinking it, Village Chief," someone comforted him.

"Better to find someone to go take a look. Not replying to messages definitely means there's a problem," the village chief said.

"Alright, I'll go take a look." A burly man stood up; he also began to feel uneasy.

He picked up his gun and the walkie-talkie and was about to leave, when at that moment, a figure slowly walked toward them.

"Hey, isn't that Sandan? He's back, no need to go," someone said upon seeing Sandan.

"It's good that he's back." The village chief let out a sigh of relief, and the stone hanging in his heart was finally put down.

Sandan was approaching bit by bit. None of them saw that Sandan's footsteps were staggering, moving forward almost an inch at a time.

Moreover, his eyes were hollow and lifeless; the pupils in his eyes had long since disappeared.

He looked as if he were being controlled by something as he walked forward. At this moment, a burly man noticed something was wrong.