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Waves crashed and swelled as the large ship cut through the ocean, sailing steadily toward the horizon.
The crying and cursing of the thirty-plus people who had been captured gradually subsided, for even if they screamed themselves hoarse, the martial artists from Cloud Mist Island paid them no attention—indeed, they might even get a beating for it.
Those martial artists struck with considerable precision, only beating the captives until they wailed for their parents in agony, without breaking any bones.
Yang Kai sat in a corner of the deck, observing all of this with cold eyes. His own freedom was not restricted; he neither shouted nor caused a commotion, so no one’s attention was drawn to him.
The ship had been sailing for about an hour, putting roughly a hundred li between them and the coastal city.
Yang Kai had been silently observing the movements of the True Yuan Realm expert on the ship, considering the slim chances of survival if he jumped overboard to escape now.
At his current strength in the Qi Movement Realm, he didn’t worry about drowning, and his stamina was sufficient. What Yang Kai feared was that the True Yuan Realm expert might fly from the ship to pursue him.
Just as he wore a worried and hesitant expression, an old fisherman among the captives seized an opportunity and leaped from the ship before Yang Kai could make his move.
A soft splash was heard, and all thirty-plus captives grew excited, rushing toward the ship’s railing, hoping to follow the old fisherman’s lead and escape into the sea.
But the martial artists from Cloud Mist Island didn’t even attempt to stop them, merely watching with cold smiles.
Yang Kai felt something was off. They had gone through great trouble to capture these ordinary people; there was no reason to let them go so easily.
Suddenly, a shrill, blood-curdling scream came from below, making one’s hair stand on end—it was the old fisherman who had just jumped. Hearing this sound, those who had rushed to the railing froze mid-step, their eyes wide as they stared at the ocean surface.
“What’s going on? What happened?”
“There’s a monster down there!”
“There’s a man-eating monster under the ship!”
The ordinary people cried out in terror, rooted to the spot, lacking any courage to jump.
A Cloud Mist Sect martial artist sneered, looking at the crowd: “Curious about what’s down there?”
Without waiting for an answer, he reached out, grabbed a nearby torch, and threw it into the sea.
By the brief light, many witnessed a scene of utter horror: a patch of blood-red on the water’s surface, and the old fisherman was now in several pieces. Beneath the water, some grotesque, terrifying fish-beasts swam and leaped, following the ship and tearing at the fisherman’s remains with large bites.
“That’s what happens when you jump ship!” the Cloud Mist Sect martial artist chuckled coldly.
Several people vomited on the spot; they were all ordinary folks who had never seen such a bloody and disgusting sight.
Yang Kai felt a chill in his heart. He knew he could no longer consider jumping ship to escape. The beasts following the ship were definitely ocean demon beasts, likely raised by Cloud Mist Island themselves.
In the water, these demon beasts were the rulers. As a Qi Movement Realm martial artist, he had no chance of escape before them.
“Listen up, all of you!” the Cloud Mist Sect martial artist shouted, his gaze like lightning sweeping over the crowd. “If you don’t want to die, stay on the ship. In another hour or two, we’ll reach Cloud Mist Island. Don’t think being captured is just a misfortune—this is the opportunity Cloud Mist Sect offers you! Once on the island, you’ll have endless delicious food and silk garments you can’t exhaust. As long as you pass our tests, we’ll accept you as disciples. From then on, you too can become martial artists who can invite the moon and pluck the stars.”
The crowd was silent as cicadas in winter, clearly not believing his words.
The Cloud Mist Sect martial artist didn’t bother elaborating further; after his warning, he fell silent.
However, after what had just happened, these captured ordinary people no longer dared to make a sound, much less entertain thoughts of escape. With man-eating monsters beneath the ship, where would they find the courage?
The ship continued its voyage.
After about another hour, Yang Kai heard someone say, “We’re home.”
“Ugh, I’m exhausted. We have to come out once every month. Why do these people have such short lives?”
“They’re ordinary people. Even with the best care, they can’t last long. Shh, stop talking. If they hear us, they’ll panic again.”
Yang Kai opened his eyes and looked ahead. Not far off, the outline of an island came into view. The island was quite large—he estimated it was four or five times the size of the coastal city. However, it gave him a strange feeling. His eyesight was now extraordinary, and at a glance, the left and right halves of the island seemed different. The right peninsula was shrouded in a hazy mist, obscuring the view, and he couldn’t tell what secrets it held.
The ship’s heading was toward the left peninsula.
After a long while, the ship’s speed gradually decreased until it finally docked.
Disciples of Cloud Mist Island lowered rope ladders from the deck, calling to the trembling ordinary people: “Everyone off the ship!”
Though terrified, the thirty-plus people disembarked in an orderly fashion. The moment they set foot on land, many felt their knees go weak and collapsed to the ground. They were truly terrified of those man-eating monsters beneath the ship.
Many of them were fishermen, but despite years of fishing, they had never encountered such monsters.