Chapter Seven: Bold Action, Slay Them All!

"Your terms are a bit too harsh," Bai Xuan spoke up.

"Harsh?" Zhou Yuan laughed.

"Out at sea, you have no say. This isn't your moment to speak; you have no right to negotiate with me," Zhou Yuan replied.

On a nearby boat, the sailor surnamed Wang stepped forward, his voice stern. "When newcomers join the crew, it's common for the old hands to string them up and strip them, hanging them from the mast until they're half dead. What gives you the right to speak to Brother Zhou like that?"

Bai Xuan's brows furrowed as he asked in a low voice, "Aren’t you afraid I'll tell Third Officer when I return?"

"Out at sea, you handle your own problems. When have you ever seen the third mate interfere in crew disputes?" Zhou Yuan shook his head. "Even if I beat you to death, so long as I'm not caught in the act, what could the third mate do to us?"

"Out at sea, life and death are decided by fate, wealth by the heavens... Haven't you heard that saying?" He had no intention of actually killing Bai Xuan; if it were discovered, he would likely be executed on the spot. But intimidation was his aim.

In truth, he was a gambler by nature. Though he won more than lost aboard ship, he lost more than he won on the island. Were it not so, he wouldn’t have resorted to extortion, threatening Bai Xuan for money.

The sailors mocked him, but Bai Xuan’s expression relaxed. He said, "I understand. I'll go get the white-scaled fish."

He slipped into the cabin. Zhou Yuan frowned and signaled to the other boats, meaning they should draw closer to prevent Bai Xuan from escaping.

As the two swallow boats approached, Bai Xuan suddenly rowed his boat with both oars, breaking away rapidly, the water churning wildly—a panic-driven escape.

"He's trying to run! Catch him!" Zhou Yuan, his suspicions gone, growled and leapt forward.

He hadn’t trained in the Azure Scale Technique, but possessed other hardening skills. Though his vitality had waned at forty, he still had the foundation from his first breakthrough, far stronger than ordinary men. How else would he command respect in this small circle?

He jumped over seven or eight meters, about to land on Bai Xuan’s boat.

At that moment, a flash of white burst from Bai Xuan’s cabin—a figure shot forth, dazzling Zhou Yuan with white radiance.

"You thought I hadn't foreseen this?" Zhou Yuan sneered inwardly, his long blade already descending. He had ambushed many before and anticipated resistance. This slash drew on his waning vitality, force surging, blade whistling through the air.

But as the blade met the white glare, confusion filled his mind.

"How can there be... such immense power?"

A clang rang out—the fish spear knocked his blade aside. The white flash swept past with a tearing sound, slicing through Zhou Yuan's jaw, skin and flesh parting, blood spraying.

"Damn!" Zhou Yuan was terrified.

From the first exchange, he knew the other's strength was terrifying, far beyond his own—close to a second breakthrough in vitality!

"Impossible! Bai Xuan is so young, and after just a month of Azure Scale training, he has such power?"

"Escape! I must escape!"

Zhou Yuan retreated without hesitation. But Bai Xuan, having struck once, was resolved to kill. Missing with the spear, he abandoned it for his fists, lunging at Zhou Yuan.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Zhou Yuan raised his arms to block, but Bai Xuan’s strength utterly crushed him. Within moments, Zhou Yuan’s arms went numb and fell away; darkness closed in as a faintly blue-tinged fist crashed down.

Crack!

Bai Xuan unleashed seven or eight blows in succession, his blood boiling uncontrollably. Zhou Yuan’s face caved in, red and white spraying forth.

In a single exchange—

Zhou Yuan died on the spot.

Exhaling, Bai Xuan withdrew his fist and let Zhou Yuan’s corpse slide aside. Fearing Zhou Yuan might not be fully dead, Bai Xuan unleashed another burst of vitality, stomping down—crack!—and caving in Zhou Yuan’s chest before turning to the other two boats.

"Not good! Brother Zhou is dead!"

"How can this be? Brother Zhou broke through his vitality once!"

The fight had been too swift for the sailors to react. Horrified, they turned to flee, but Bai Xuan leapt faster than Zhou Yuan had. With a hiss, he seized the fish spear and pierced one sailor’s chest from behind, blood flooding the boat.

The other tried to escape, only to see Bai Xuan grab the steel knife and fish spear, hurling them without aim. The sailor dodged the first two knives but failed to avoid the final spear, which whistled through the air, nailing his thigh.

"My leg!"

He shrieked in agony. Another fish spear flew, blood spraying, pinning him to the boat.

Bai Xuan drew back, exhaling deeply, his expression complex as his boiling vitality subsided.

He had just killed in a frenzy—slaughtered without hesitation. Now his heart thundered, his vitality difficult to restrain.

"I never wanted to kill you... Why did you force me?"

He had genuinely intended to flee; if the three hadn't pursued him, he would have reconsidered his next move.

But alas...

"Too much! You pushed me too far!" Bai Xuan gazed at the corpses nearby.

The opponents had unleashed their own vitality, frightening him into an all-out burst that ended in their deaths.

The steel knife had flown out, twisted and nearly broken.

No wonder.

After breaking through in the Azure Scale Technique, Bai Xuan’s strength surged—over a hundred pounds easily. Adding the net-dragging force, his arms had a thousand pounds of power. With his vitality unleashed, wielding the fish spear, the impact was immense. Zhou Yuan’s single-handed defense was utterly insufficient.

Bai Xuan calmed himself, his face cold, and picked up the twisted fish spear, piercing the heads of the fallen sailors and crushing their chests to ensure none feigned death.

Though he had just killed three men with his own hands, he remained steady.

"These men deserved death. Who knows how many they threatened before—this time, I have simply delivered justice and wiped them out."

"This reminds me..."

"Since coming to this world, I have focused on improving my survival skills, and it has proven correct. This world is like this—if your strength falters, you could easily be the one with your skull pierced."

"Only by killing!"

"Only by mastering the power of life and death can I protect myself. The Tree of Longevity... When I return, I must further hone my combat skills."

Bai Xuan was calm.

After finishing off his enemies, he began searching their bodies.

"This fellow carried quite a bit of money." From Zhou Yuan, Bai Xuan found fifteen taels of silver, a string of cash, over three hundred copper coins, and a short knife set with emerald.

"Looks like loot from a previous robbery." In addition, Bai Xuan found a small porcelain bottle and an old yellowed piece of paper.

"So, this is a secret formula for attracting sharks." Bai Xuan read the paper, pleased.

"With this, next time I dispose of bodies, I won't worry about discovery... Wait, why am I thinking about disposing bodies?"

He shook his head.

"What’s this?" Bai Xuan pulled from Zhou Yuan’s body a close-fitting leather garment, densely covered with black, shield-like soft scales, tough and resilient. He tugged hard, only stretching it slightly, never tearing.

Swish!

He slashed it with his knife, producing only a shallow white mark that vanished instantly—completely unharmed.

"This looks like a sharkskin coat, but much tougher. If struck by blades or swords, it would be hard to wound him."

"Too bad my spear was deflected by his blade, piercing straight through his skull. Even with armor, it was useless."

Bai Xuan treasured the sharkskin coat, stowing it away.

It hadn't helped Zhou Yuan, but it might serve him—at least protecting his body from blades. Or, if sold, it would fetch a high price—ordinary dozens of taels of silver wouldn’t buy it.

He searched the other two corpses, finding only five hundred more copper coins, then dragged all three bodies out to dispose of them.

With his ability to gaze across the sea, he could judge where sharks were most likely to appear. He threw the bodies into such waters, along with the secret formula, then turned the boat around.

After sailing several miles, he saw the water surface boiling, blood spreading wide.

"This is the best outcome," Bai Xuan thought, his mind settling. He returned to his boat and practiced the nineteen postures of the Azure Scale Technique, calming down.

"The human heart is unpredictable... My current strength feels like just the first step into martial arts, relying on brute force for killing."

"If Zhou Yuan hadn't fallen for the trap, how could I have killed all three?"

He replayed the events, pondering.

"Perhaps, it is time to develop my 'Shark-Fighting' skills."