Chapter 116

“It’s not as good as you think—this is our first trade, so the merfolk came quickly!”

“They just said that from now on, they’ll only trade every half a month to a month, since they need to hunt in other seas.”

“Half a month to a month? That’s too bad!” The excitement of Mi Gen and the others immediately faded.

“You’re complaining now? This trade is like picking up free gold, and it’s only just begun!”

Gervas smiled.

His subordinates were even more eager than he was.

In the short term, the volume of trade with the merfolk might indeed be small.

But over time, Gervas was certain the trade volume would grow significantly.

Either the Buwa tribe would grow stronger, conquer other tribes, and catch more fish and shellfish.

Or other tribes would learn of their trade in beer with humans, become envious, and join in.

Which one it would be, only time would tell.

The only certainty was that expansion of trade was inevitable.

Because that’s human nature… no, it’s beast nature, rather…

…

With the catch secured, the next step was turning it into profit.

On this point, Gervas had already planned ahead.

Especially since this morning he’d discovered a natural ice cave, which directly paved the way for seafood.

First, keep a small portion of hardy shellfish, giant lobsters, clams, and fish alive in pens along the shore.

For the fragile ones, preserve them with ice in underground cellars.

Then, send men to nearby noble lands to find customers.

These minor nobles have surely never tasted seafood—they’ll buy a good batch.

In addition, someone must take the seafood to Iron Wolf City.

Though the distance is great, it’s absolutely necessary.

Because Iron Wolf City is the only city within two hundred li with over a hundred thousand residents, home to countless nobles and frontier merchants.

Thus, it will become the most stable sales channel for fish going forward.

The minor lords along the border are too scattered—it’s too troublesome to sell to them individually.

If we can crack the market in Iron Wolf City, we’ll save immense manpower and resources.

With a decision made, Gervas immediately entrusted the fish business to Thomas.

He would arrange men to set up drift nets among the coastal rocks to temporarily hold the catch.

Soon, Old John would bring ice to freeze the less hardy fish and take them back.

…

“Let’s go!”

After arranging the seafood matters, Gervas led his men aboard the ship.

This time, a hundred soldiers boarded.

In addition, eleven Magic Swift Hawks flew overhead.

With nearly full troop strength and an aerial squad, it was all prepared for pirates!

But pirate attacks happen at dusk—right now, Gervas still needed to reach Huoshandao.

Upon arriving at Huoshandao, after finishing his cultivation during the Elemental Tide, Gervas took a group of soldiers and knights aboard the Storm.

“Old Jack, head east!!”

The sea beast, the system said, was a hundred meters long—Gervas decided to retrieve it first.

Otherwise, if delayed, who knew if some other sea beast or monster might devour it?

“Yes, my lord! Heading due east—sailing!”

The sails unfurled, and the Storm surged straight into the deeper ocean.

More than twenty minutes later, reefs of all sizes, some visible, some hidden, began to appear—signaling they had reached their destination.

Gervas ordered Old Jack to navigate carefully along the reef perimeter. Soon, the lookout on the mast shouted.

“My lord! Northeast—there’s an island! It’s blue!”

“Blue island? Buni, are you sure you’re not drunk? We’ve seen white islands, but a blue one? Does this world have seabirds that shit blue droppings?” Mi Gen and the others exploded in disbelief.

They simply couldn’t imagine what kind of island could be blue.

Whether this world had seabirds that defecated blue waste, Buni didn’t know.

But he was certain he’d seen a blue island: “Sir Knight Mi Gen, it’s truly blue—but the island is tiny, barely larger than a submerged reef.”

“My lord, do blue islands even exist in this world?” Now Mi Gen and the others were uncertain.

Gervas smiled. “Whether they exist or not, we’ll know once we get closer. Old Jack, head northeast!”

“Yes, my lord!”

The Storm immediately steered northeast.

About seven or eight minutes later, a small blue island appeared in view.

“Good heavens, a blue island really exists! How is this possible?”

“Yeah, do seabirds really shit blue? And the island is so tiny!”

Upon seeing the blue island with their own eyes, Mi Gen and the others gasped in astonishment.

The ship kept moving; the island drew nearer.

Then, because reefs blocked the way, the Storm altered course slightly.

The next moment, the other side of the “island” came into view.

From this new angle, Mi Gen and the others—who had been excitedly speculating about treasures on the island—froze in shock.

Their faces turned pale, sweat pouring down.

“Sea… sea beast! Good heavens, my lord, that’s not an island—it’s a sea beast! Look at its eyes, its fangs!!”

“Damn it, Old Jack, stop the ship! That’s a sea beast! For heaven’s sake, don’t get closer! A sea beast this big—probably one bite and we’re dead!”

Panic erupted across the ship; many soldiers and knightly retainers went weak in the knees.

“Don’t panic—it’s already dead!”

Finally, Gervas spoke.

“D… dead?”

Hearing Gervas’s words, the crew finally fell silent.

Mi Gen and the others rubbed their eyes, studying the beast closely—and realized it truly lay motionless on the water, its body covered in countless wounds.

“Good heavens, scared the life out of me—thank God it’s dead! But this sea beast is enormous—at least a hundred meters long?”

“Yeah, it’s as big as four or five of those sperm… whatever whales we saw before?”

“Sperm whale, my lord said one could feed a whole village for half a month!”

“Right, the sperm whale! If one can feed a village for half a month, how long could this beast feed us?”

Gervas didn’t know exactly how long—but as the Storm drew within twenty meters of the beast, the sheer oppressive scale of the creature was overwhelming.

Five rafts were lowered; Gervas and the knights and soldiers moved closer to the sea beast.

Such a colossal creature could only be towed back to the Storm Domain’s shore!

“My lord, look at those claw marks—what kind of giant beast could inflict such damage?”

Now, up close, the beast’s details were clearer.

Especially the terrifying claw gouges—each over two meters deep, taller than a standing man.

It was clear: only another, even more terrifying colossal sea beast could have caused such wounds.