Killing Dao Fruit
Chapter 201 - 198 Setting Sail for Treasure, Accidental Boarding

Chapter 201: Chapter 198 Setting Sail for Treasure, Accidental Boarding

The next day, as the dawn broke.

A Great Yan Treasure Ship, laden with porcelain, silk, tea... and various other goods, set sail from Red-Tail Island, heading toward the vast sea alone.

The people on board were none other than King Jing, Zhou Jinghuan, a few trusted Daoist Soldiers from the Long Water Camp, a large group of robust shipworkers, and the most crucial figure—Sea Merchant Zheng Bangjie.

It should be noted that Zheng Bangjie was no obscure figure.

As a Great Sea Merchant, even among those serving under King Jing’s command in the Long Water Camp, there were not a few who had witnessed him with their own eyes.

Zhou Jinghuan used some other methods, and without much effort, he confirmed his identity; it was indeed Zheng Bangjie himself without a doubt.

He was then moved by the "secret" Zheng had reported and, against the advice of his subordinates, he donned the White Dragon Fish Clothing and set out to sea alone.

At this moment, in between their busy tasks, the people on the ship would occasionally cast glances toward the Great Sea Merchant.

Weird Archives: [Jianming Fourteenth Year·Great Yan Treasure Ship].

This had just happened last year in Yunhe County, and nearly every man who made a living by the sea knew the story well.

[In Yunhe County of Dengzhou Prefecture, Sea Merchant Zheng Bangjie led a team to sea and happened to encounter a homeward-bound Great Yan Treasure Ship. He was invited on board the Treasure Ship to admire the exotic treasures brought back from overseas.

The accompanying merchants were dazzled and vied to make purchases. A fortnight later, they returned home with treasures, creating a sensation in the State Mansion with precious stones, beautiful jade, coral trees, and exquisite clocks...

However, merely two months later, they aged and died one by one at home.

Upon investigation: The treasures sold by the Sea Merchant, were paid for not only with gold and silver but also the remainder of their lifespans!]

This time, after being rescued, Zheng Bangjie’s secret that he offered to Zhou Jingyao was a kind of "forbidden knowledge"!

It was about how to take away the exotic treasures from the ship without having to pay with one’s life.

According to him, when he realized he had encountered the Weird, he did not sit idly by waiting for death but immediately set sail again.

After a brush with death, he not only successfully solved the problem on his own but also slowly grasped the "taboo" of the Great Yan Treasure Ship and successfully "fleeced" the Weird!

The Great Yan Treasure Ship that was earlier rescued from pirates by the Long Water Camp was one of Zheng Bangjie’s experimental outcomes.

Now that the conditions were ripe, he wanted to offer his technology as a stake and do a significant deal with His Highness King Jing!

To prove that his words were true, he also presented a list of treasures that he had slowly compiled after venturing onto the Weird·Great Yan Treasure Ship numerous times.

When Zhou Jinghuan saw one item on the list, he thought to himself "Heaven helps me," and without hesitation, he made a decision and acted immediately.

"Tang He, keep a close watch on him for me! If there’s any unusual movement, execute him without further discussion!"

Zhou Jinghuan, standing atop the lofty ship tower, solemnly instructed the strapping loyal Deputy General at his side.

"Yes, my Prince!"

This Tang He was as an attendant who had grown up with Zhou Jinghuan before his royal fiefdom, with the cultivation of a third-realm Dao General.

His nature and abilities were both excellent choices.

Although he didn’t know why his Prince was so eager to actively search for the Great Yan Treasure Ship, once Zhou Jinghuan ordered, he could only comply.

Of course.

As a Prince who was neither favored nor secretly working against his own Emperor Father.

Zhou Jinghuan was naturally not lacking in caution or carelessness to easily trust a merchant’s word.

The reason for making this somewhat risky decision was the Deceit Object "Trial Stone" he carried in his sleeve!

This "Trial Stone" tested not gold but "true heart" and "true ability."

Ability one: discern loyalty and treachery, no one could lie in his presence. Ability two: recognize the talented, the true metal is not afraid of being tested by fire, one trial is all it takes to differentiate the mediocre from the wise.

Even his closest subordinates had no idea about the Deceit Object given to him by his foster mother Qingyan.

Who was loyal, who was treacherous, who was slippery; who was talented, who was incompetent, they were all clear as day before Zhou Jinghuan.

It was with the help of this treasure that he was able to slowly build his own team amidst the encirclement of wolves in the Long Water Camp and accomplish the things he wanted to do.

"Keep circling, do not stop without my command!"

Under the direction of Zheng Bangjie, the treasure ship began to circle incessantly in an area roughly twenty miles in radius off the navigational route, seemingly lost at sea.

Forbidden Taboo One, "Weird·Great Yan Treasure Ship" is not a mere entity but stems from the concept of "Sea Transport Trade," which may appear simultaneously in multiple locations.

It typically proactively approaches those ships that are off course and lost at sea, and only appears when it perceives no threat to itself (when it has a superior position in terms of combat strength).

If among the fleet there is a Great Yan Treasure Ship or a "Luck Ship" with a similar hull design, it can greatly increase the likelihood of the other party’s appearance.

Once the Treasure Ship appears, it will "invite" everyone within a twenty-mile radius onboard. ]

Circle after circle, pretending to be a lost merchant ship, they didn’t know how many times they had circled this sea area.

Suddenly, someone exclaimed in a low voice:

"Look, there’s movement on the sea!"

Suddenly, everyone found themselves surrounded by a dense fog, and deep within the mist, an immense treasure ship of five thousand "liao" slowly emerged.

....

"What is that thing in the fog?"

Wang Yuan discarded the sea ship and switched back to his own smaller inland riverboat. While sailing and stoking the wind, he was involuntarily engulfed by the dense fog that had risen abruptly.

Meanwhile.

Not far behind Wang Yuan.

"Cough cough... What ’Venerable God Shan Jun’? Complete nonsense, I have absolutely no interest! Don’t ever mention it again."

A middle-aged man dressed in hemp, with a scruffy beard like a beggar, flicked the fresh blood off his waist knife and sheathed it.

His body seemed to be unwell, as he couldn’t help but cough several times.

At his feet lay a boat full of corpses.

These were not only the other group of ship captains and sailors who were promoting ’Venerable God Shan Jun’ to him, but also all the passengers on board.

"Tsk tsk, life is but a frantic scramble, all for a few pieces of broken silver. Yet, those few pieces of broken silver can alleviate the world’s many anxieties."

While talking to himself, he took every single coin off the corpses, not leaving a single one behind.

Then, he opened his mouth and astonishingly stuffed all the blood-stained gold, silver, and copper coins into his mouth.

His teeth were sharper than a chopper, grinding them before he swallowed them down forcibly.

Suddenly, a corpse lying beneath him, its face covered in fresh blood and eyes unshut in death, twisted its neck and taunted him:

"Junior Brother Shen, as a despicable beggar extorting money, you’re bound to kill for wealth anyway, why bother finding a reason every time?

After all, there’s no difference in the outcome; these ’Great Saints’ are all destined to die."

As this corpse spoke, all the corpses strewn across the deck also began to contort their bodies and rise from the ground.

At first, they moved stiffly like puppets, but they soon regained their normal motions.

If one overlooked the fatal wounds caked in blood on their bodies, they appeared as if they had never died at all.

Shortly after, an old man and a young man carrying a box emerged from the cabin of the ship.

If Wang Yuan were here, he would recognize that these three were none other than the "Sword Hero" Shen Jiantong and the Zhong family father and son from the list of evil entities in the "No-Life Dao".

"Cough cough, Senior Brother Zhong, my lineage is from the ’gentle beggars’, wherever I go, I cannot break the precepts.

If he hadn’t promoted that darn ’Venerable God Shan Jun’ to me, disturbing my peace, perhaps these people wouldn’t have had to die, right?"

Beggars come in two types: those who sing auspicious songs and speak lucky words, known as ’gentle beggars’, and the aggressive ones who threaten and demand, known as ’martial beggars’.

Hearing the unscrupulous beggar’s self-justifying argument.

Even the Zhong family, who also came from the "Red Dust Qi paths" of the Lower Nine Streams, couldn’t help but reassess their understanding of what he called ’gentle begging’.

The "Red Dust Qi paths" have many branches with countless disciples.

Besides the "Incense Wealth Qi Tower", which is one of their fronts, there are also ’Six Desires Retreat’, ’Worry-Free Cave’, ’Joyful Temple’, and several other large and small branches (Chapter 121).

Because disciples from every branch often train in the "Incense Wealth Qi Tower", using Yang Energy, Emotional Evils, Chaotic Desires, Wealth Qi, and other Red Dust Qi for their practice, this tower has become the main façade.

The beggar dressed as a ’Sword Hero’, with a sabre at his waist, was a descendant of the "Worry-Free Cave".

"Worry-Free Cave", also known as "Ghost Fan Tower", is mainly composed of a group of fortune-stealing, thieving blaggards, extortionists... commiting all sorts of evil without any restraint.

It is said that when the granary is full, one knows what manners are, and when there is sufficient food and clothing, one understands honor and disgrace.

Just think about it, how could a group of beggars who can’t even manage food and clothing like in the stories have all that concern for their country and their people, and possess such noble spirits?

They are the lower of the Lower Nine Streams, with no place even in the "Incense Wealth Qi Tower", feared to tarnish its reputation with their filth.

However, this sect operates unseen and leaves no trace, with numerous disciples scattered throughout cities forming an immensely powerful network.

As for the Zhong family pair, known as ’circus performers’ from the Lower Nine Streams, they originated from "Colorful Play Tower".

The two factions, for various reasons, had left their former paths and joined the banner of "No-Life Dao".

Bound together by a certain affinity within the "Red Dust Qi paths", they naturally acted in unison.

Commissioned by Young Master Xue to investigate Qingfei’s whereabouts, they also followed Zhou Jinghuan to the sea just like Wang Yuan.

Although they boarded the same "Black Ship" that supplies the "Weird Immortal" as Wang Yuan, their methods were even darker than the ship’s, so they didn’t run into any trouble.

"Speaking of which, haven’t we gone off course? Why can’t we see any ships at all on the sea?"

Just as Xiao Zhong, the "Yan Master" who had a conflict with Wang Yuan and Xu Zhenzhi previously, finished speaking.

Whoosh—!

A dense white fog suddenly rose from the sea, and in the blink of an eye, it swallowed them as well.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.