by <unknown>
"This space zone is not peaceful. While this is close to the Seven Seas Grand Market, the garrison of the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors cannot protect every sailing route. The hunting warships of the four families may appear at any moment. Should we encounter one, such a beautiful flower would be destroyed. What a shame it would be!"
Huo Dongling was almost crying. The other few crew members were also dumbfounded, not even having the courage to breathe aloud. The other passengers were too intimidated by the ferocious-looking mercenaries to stand out too.
"However, don't be scared, the Soul Hunting Gang is here for you!"
The five fingers of the first mercenary slithered on and on and to the internal side of the girl's elbow, drawing circles on the girl's most sensitive skin. "The heroes of the Soul Hunting Gang are all very famous in the area. We have brothers in both the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors and the four families. So, it doesn't matter. Should we encounter a hunting warship, we will certainly protect you.
"Right, your body seems rather weak. Have you suffered any internal injuries because of the consecutive jumps in the past few days? Do you want me to waste some of my precious Cultivation and help you examine your body? There's no need to be courteous. Space jumps are the most unhealthy of all. It will be terrible if such a young person like you have any sequelae. Rest assured. I'm fond of helping those in need at best. It's free of charge…"
Her face pale in fear, Huo Dongling struggled hard, but it was impossible for her to escape from the hands of an Immortal Cultivator.
The first mercenary cackled. The five fingers with which he was holding the girl's elbow shivered, and the girl was immediately paralyzed and almost falling into his arms.
"Wow—"
The first mercenary laughed. "The girls today are truly voluntary!"
He was about to open his arms and embrace Huo Dongling when such an enormous force hit his back so hard that his tailbone was almost broken apart. He was kicked away directly and crashed into a pile of food boxes, with the soup and juice staining all over his body.
He looked back in humiliation, only to discover that a mysterious person, who was wearing a black leather coat, a black cape, and a pair of gigantic dark sunglasses, and who had covered every inch of his skin, had kept Huo Dongling in his back.
"I'm hungry."
The mysterious person in black said coldly, "Why is our food still not delivered?"
He seemed to be asking Huo Dongling who was behind him.
However, invisible killing intent was unleashed from his broad sunglasses, locking onto every person from the so-called "Soul Hunting Gang" before him.
"You—"
The first mercenary burst into fury. Looking at each other, the two low-level Immortal Cultivators roared at the same time and charged at the mysterious man in black, unsheathing their weapons that were the foundation of their success, then—
The man in black sniffed. Then, after two explosions, the weapons of the two mercenaries broke apart from the hilt and fell back into the sheath. What they were holding in their hands were but the two short handles.
"…"
The two mercenaries looked at each other in bewilderment. Dazed at the fracture that was as smooth as a mirror, they immediately felt that their pants were soaked in cold sweat, and their legs were shaking beyond control.
"I'm hungry."
The man in black repeated himself. "Why is our food still not delivered?"
The last word "delivered" knocked the two mercenaries to the ground like a thousand-kilogram hammer. Every bone on their bodies was quivering, and they could not get back to their feet at all.
The few mercenaries who swore to live and die with their brothers a moment ago simply covered their heads and faltered, not daring to say anything.
The man in black did not bother to look at them but simply turned around to his own corner, sitting down next to his companion who was wearing a gray cape.
Huo Dongling's heart was racing. However inert she was, she knew that it was the mysterious person who saved her. Looking around, she discovered that everybody was shuddering in fear, including the ferocious mercenaries a moment ago. She hurried to prepare two food boxes of clean food and sent them to the seemingly unattractive passengers who only got aboard in the last supply port.
"T-Thank you."
While speculating who the mysterious people might be, she exclaimed in shock after accidentally glancing at them. "Ah!"
The mysterious person did not take off his cape or his sunglasses, but simply unzipped the collar and revealed the lower half of his face.
His face was covered in black, short hair, making him look like some sort of fierce and agile catamount, say, a cheetah!
Huo Dongling covered her mouth after only half an exclamation. She thought to herself that she was doomed because she must've insulted the seemingly cruel and bad-tempered Immortal Cultivator, and the guy would certainly burst into fury.
But out of her expectation, the Immortal Cultivator who looked like a cheetah simply sniffed and picked up the food box, "swallowing his fury".
His companion nearby, on the other hand, took off his cape, revealing a common but warm face. He said with a smile, "Hush, don't be scared, little girl. My brother may look hideous, but he is not a bad guy, and he will certainly not hurt you. Come here. Sit next to us so that we can talk!"
He patted the floor next to him, hinting the girl to sit down.
"Huh?"
Huo Dongling was rigidified again. Her face that had just resumed the normal color became pale again. She finally understood what "getting out of a lake of dragons only to run into a cave of tigers" meant!
"I… No, please… I am still little… I can't talk…"
Feeling like crying, Huo Dongling said weakly.
"Huh—"
The plain-looking passenger scratched his hair that was as fluffy as a bird nest and seemed to have realized something. He couldn't help but feel amused and extended four fingers to swear, "Don't misunderstand me. I promise—no, I swear that it will be just a chat without any extra activities."
Chapter 2508: Dilemma of the South Spirit Planet |
Compared to the ferocious-looking mercenaries and the indifferent cheetah nearby, the passenger with a headful of messy hair looked like an ordinary person that could be seen everywhere. His age and his appearance could not be told, and he would immediately be forgotten after he merged into a crowd.
But he had a pair of eyes that were filled with joy, making them as warm and peaceful as the sunlight in a winter. It did not carry any air of evilness but slightly comforted Huo Dongling's heart that was just scared a moment ago.
The girl looked back again, only to discover that the few mercenaries had retreated to the opposite corner of the cabin, burying their heads in their food boxes without any courage to look at them.
When she looked back again, the passenger with pleasant eyes was raising his hands in a hilarious posture before he said with a smile, "It's alright. Just sit down, my surname is Li. You may call me 'Mr. Li'."
"… Mr. Li."
Perhaps it was because the guy's eyes were too gentle and harmless, or perhaps it was because Huo Dongling had nowhere to hide at all in such a narrow cabin should he truly mean any harm, so the girl simply sat down.
Thinking for a moment, she slightly moved toward the cold cheetah. After all, you could never judge someone from how they looked. The bad people these days were always smiling. The cheetah had just saved her anyway!
The cheetah glanced at her and did not talk. Sniffing, he devoted himself to the meal again.
"Your name is Dongling, right? I heard the crew calling you this morning. You are the daughter of the ship's owner."
The messy-haired passenger said with a smile. He then suddenly recalled something and gave her a simple silver bracelet. "Dongling, this is a gift for you. Consider it… the consultation fee!"
"This is—"
Huo Dongling
was even more scared. Her heart in a mess, she began to wonder if the guy was an Immortal Cultivator. She had never seen any Immortal Cultivator that was so kind and generous with ordinary people.
The best Immortal Cultivators she had seen in the past were just cold like the cheetah nearby and ignored all the ordinary people.
Thinking, Huo Dongling was even more uneasy and waved her hands hard, not having the courage to accept the gift.
"Take it. The bracelet is some sort of protection for you."
The messy-haired passenger said, "The hyenas a moment ago were not wrong to say that the world today is too chaotic for a little girl like you to travel. You may encounter all kinds of dangers.
"Do you see the helical rune array on the inside of the bracelet? Here. Sting your right thumb and make sure your fingerprint is soaked in blood. Press your fingerprint at the helical rune array as confirmation, and you will activate the bracelet. In case any bad guy molests you in the future, the bracelet will automatically detect the temperature, heartbeat, and adrenal secretion of the bad guys and unleash powerful electric arcs as well as a unique soul signature when they are out of the alarm range. They can be released ten times in total.
"As long as those bad guys are Immortal Cultivators, they will certainly be able to recognize the Cultivation of the owner of the soul signature.
"Then, you will tell those bad guys that the bracelet is a gift from a good friend of your dad—no, your granddad, for your own safety. You don't need to say anything else. I believe that 99% of the bad guys will back off.
"However, if you are spending time with your lover, do remember to take off the bracelet first, bahahaha. It will be awful if your lover is electrified!"
Huo Dongling lowered her head in embarrassment. She did not have any lover yet. But this Mr. Li did have an interesting way of talking.
"Did you make the food yourself?"
The messy-haired passenger picked up the food box and took a deep breath. He complimented, "It smells delicious. Dongling, you are a great chef!"
Huo Dongling was briefly stunned before she replied awkwardly, "Not exactly, Mr. Li. This is just the most typical self-heating quick food that has been manufactured in bulk. Look, it's printed on the box."
The messy-haired passenger: "… Alright, let's cut to the chase. Where exactly did your ship set off from?"
Huo Dongling admitted frankly, "We're from the South Spirit Planet of the Scarlet Star Space Zone. I doubt Mr. Li has ever heard of it before. It's a minor planet that has been only developed for a hundred years and does not have a stable atmosphere even today. There are only four settlements on the planet, and I was born in one of them."
"I don't know anything about the South Spirit Planet, but I do know the Scarlet Star Space Zone. That is not very close to the Seven Seas Grand Market, our destination. For a civil business ship like yours, it will perhaps take dozens of space jumps and a couple of months before you can arrive, right? Also, the journey is quite dangerous."
The messy-haired passenger said, "It's havoc outside with battles everywhere. I was told that the authorities announced that the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors is a rebellious organization, and the Seven Seas Grand Market is about to be attacked. Why are you doing business there with such great risks? Even if your father prefers money to his life, he doesn't have to bring you with him, does he?"
"We don't have a choice."
Huo Dongling said in devastation, "How can the high and mighty Immortal Cultivators understand the life of the poor folk? The South Spirit Planet has only been developed for a hundred years. We do not have many powerful connections or rare local specialties. Even to this day, we cannot satisfy our own demand on life necessities. We'll be starved without the imported food and die of thirst without the water cleaning cartridges introduced from the outside world!
"Before, the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors had a convenient business network and tremendous free fairs. Business teams stopped by our planet every month regularly, purchasing our minerals and selling us food, water, and air. When the supplies were low, we could also purchase them at the nearest free fair. It only required two short-distance jumps, and the whole journey took one week at most.
"But when the war broke out, we were in trouble. The four families announced that the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors is a rebellious organization. They disrupted the business network and destroyed the free fairs. They had also recruited all kinds of space pirates to attack the enemy, leaving no chance for survival for the poor folks at all.
"It'd been three months since any business team passed the South Spirit Planet. We were running out of food, water, and air, and nobody was here to acquire the raw minerals that had been heaped into hills on the ports. We could only watch the minerals grow more and more worriedly.
"We thought to make deals in the nearest free fair, but it was a mess after we went there. The free fair was surrounded by the fleets of the four families and completely destroyed. Even our tiny business starship was almost knocked down because we were thought to be associated with the rebels.
"Later, we met a few business ships that came to do business from a few neighboring space zones. It was not until then that we learned the four families' fleets had removed all the free fairs in the few Sectors nearby. There were also countless space pirates and mercenaries that had been recruited by the four families. They cruised among the sailing routes like wolves and would not let any business team of the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors pass.
"Even if some of the secret fairs were not destroyed, the prices there were astoundingly high. The common minerals of the South Spirit Planet could not be exchanged with many assets that were necessary for our survival.
"If we wanted to eat, to drink, and to keep the stability of our thin atmosphere, we could only risk going to the Seven Seas Grand Market that the four families hadn't conquered yet to do business. After all, the goods here are mostly complete, and the prices are relatively low. Also, it's slightly safer with the protection of the garrison of the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors.
"We also knew that it was very risky, but there was no telling how long the war would go on. If we did not come out for businesses, we would be stranded on the South Spirit Planet alive! My father was the most experienced captain on the South Spirit Planet. How could he have stayed back when his hometown was in perils?
"As for me, I asked my dad to bring me. After all, if 'Little Bear' could not return with the necessary assets, the South Spirit Planet would not be able to survive a year. My ending wouldn't have been any better!"
Perhaps because of the guy's warm eyes, Huo Dongling let out all the anger in her stomach. Her tears flowed out as she talked. She mumbled, "Why do the Immortal Cultivators have to fight? What are they fighting for? They can fight if they want, but why can't they leave a chance of survival for the small folks? We need to do business, we need to have food, and we want to survive!"
After a brief silence, the messy-haired passenger sighed and said, "Are there similar cases in the peripheral worlds of the Imperium?"
"Of course, there are a lot of them!"
Huo Dongling gritted her teeth and said, "There are almost ten planets that are just like the South Spirit Planet. A hundred years ago, the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors sold the planets to the ordinary people at a low price after preliminary cleaning. A mortgage was optional too. The down payment and the interest rate were almost zero. The properties were almost gifts.
"At that time, many ordinary people did not know it was a trick. They purchased a lot of planets from the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors with all their savings and migrated to those places, enjoying the freedom of being the masters of their own lands.
"Little did they know that it was not simple to develop and inhabit a planet. It was true that the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors pegged the planets at a low price. Considering the cost of the early development, it was a great
bargain. But the subsequent consumables, such as food, water cleaning systems, and atmosphere stabilization units, had to be refilled every month or every quarter.
"Taking advantage of our weakness, the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors raised the consumables many times. Thanks to their large business teams, they had also monopolized our exports and pegged our products at a low price. As a result, all we had been doing in the past hundred years was to work for the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors.
"In such a way, the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors controlled countless resource planets and planets at the edge of the Imperium, dragging us to their boat. But we could still make do however difficult the life was. However, now that the four families declared war on the Business Alliance of Ten Thousand Sectors, our ways of survival have been entirely cut off. Thousands of settlements like the South Spirit Planet are in perils. They will be trapped to death if they do not risk coming out and doing businesses!"
Chapter 2509: The Less of Two Evils! |
"It's true that people suffer all the time!"
The messy-haired passenger sighed. "No wonder so many civil business ships risk doing businesses when space pirates and hostile fleets are on every sailing route. Dongling, you do know a lot of things."
Huo Dongling blushed and said, "I don't know anything. Everything I know was what my dad complained about every day. On our business trip, in every port we passed, the important assets had been bought out, and the unrefined raw minerals were not wanted at all. Half of our food and our fuel have been consumed. There's still no telling the situation in the Seven Seas Grand Market. Dad is so worried that he is almost losing all of his hair. He has been moaning in a corner every day. Even if I don't want to hear him, I have remembered all his complaints!"
"Then…"