Read Novel Full Chapter 544 - 543, Encountering a Robbery _1
Chapter 544: Chapter 543, Encountering a Robbery _1
Jiang Chen found a place to sit down and ordered a bowl of noodles.
"Shop assistant, how do I get to Icefield Adventure?"
The shop assistant smiled and said, "If you want to go to Icefield Adventure, sir, you can only take a ship. The ships all belong to the Black Tiger Gang, and you’ll need ten Gold Coins to get there."
"There’s a ship leaving for Icefield Adventure tomorrow morning."
"But you should be careful, sir. The Black Tiger Gang are a bunch of ruffians who won’t even spit out the bones after eating you. Keep to yourself on the ship and don’t provoke them, otherwise they’ll throw you overboard."
Jiang Chen asked, "Apart from the Black Tiger Gang’s ships, aren’t there any others?"
The shop assistant shook his head. "No, there aren’t anymore. There used to be, but they were all eventually taken over by the Black Tiger Gang. It’s all about fighting and killing; either I absorb you, or you absorb me."
Jiang Chen smiled. The Jianghu isn’t about social graces; it’s all just fighting and killing...
"Brother, are you also heading to Icefield Adventure for training?"
At this moment, a man in white, around twenty years old, approached. He was accompanied by a woman who was quite pretty.
Jiang Chen nodded. "Yes."
"My name is Ling Zhi, and this is my partner, Wu Xiaoshuang. May we join you on your journey to Icefield Adventure tomorrow?"
"Sorry, I’m used to being alone."
"You might not be aware, Brother, but the Black Tiger Gang controls the only route, and they might even demand more money mid-journey. We could travel together and part ways once we reach Icefield Adventure."
"I’ve already gathered four experts; we’re all traveling as a group."
A mid-journey robbery? This felt all too familiar.
Jiang Chen nodded. "Alright, let’s go together tomorrow."
Ling Zhi smiled and nodded. "Good. With seven of us, the Black Tiger Gang wouldn’t dare to cause trouble. We’ll be safe once we reach Icefield Adventure."
So, the Jianghu *is* about social connections after all...
「The next morning at dawn.」
Jiang Chen arrived at the port and indeed saw a huge ship. Besides Ling Zhi and his partner, there were four other people: two men and two women. They all seemed to be together, apparently couples, heading to Icefield Adventure to train.
The Energy in Icefield Adventure was three times more abundant than elsewhere. Training there for a month was equivalent to three months of cultivation elsewhere.
After paying their Gold Coins, the group boarded the ship.
People continued to board in succession. Most of them were Third-stage and Fourth-stage Wanderers. Among them was also a Fifth-stage Master, a woman dressed in white...
「An hour later...」
The great ship set sail...
In the captain’s cabin.
"Boss, there are four good-looking girls on board. Plenty for the brothers to enjoy."
"It’ll take ten days and ten nights to reach Icefield Adventure. The loneliness on the ship is hard to bear!"
"Did you guys notice? That young man from earlier seems to be their leader."
"I found out last night. That young fellow is named Ling Zhi. He’s gathered a few people to team up, afraid we’ll rob them."
"Hmph. Once they’re on our ship, *we* call the shots."
The leader, named Du Ningsun, was an Elder of the Black Tiger Gang, a Fifth-stage Expert.
Du Ningsun laughed. "What’s the hurry? Wait until we’ve been sailing for a day, then make your move. Kill anyone who resists and throw them into the sea to feed the fish."
"HAHAHA..."
Inside his cabin.
Jiang Chen opened his eyes. It was indeed a black ship!
Jiang Chen continued to cultivate...
[Ding... Operating 0.0003 True Qi... Hundredfold amplification successful, amplification 0.03]
[Ding... Operating 0.0003 True Qi... Hundredfold amplification successful, amplification 0.03]
[Ding... Operating 0.0003 True Qi... Hundredfold amplification successful, amplification 0.03]
...
Indeed, the Energy level here is three times higher than in ordinary places. Cultivating here will certainly lead to rapid progress. The Abnormal Beasts are also three times stronger, making Realm upgrades even faster.
「One day later...」
Du Ningsun ordered, "Everyone, assemble on deck!" His command echoed across the ship.
Twenty Wanderers gathered on deck.
"What’s going on?"
"No idea!"
"I heard this ship will sail for ten days and ten nights. Is that true?"
"It’s true. But these are Black Tiger Gang people; they’ll probably try to extort more money from us mid-journey, won’t they?"
"Paying extra isn’t a big deal, as long as it’s not too much and we actually get to Icefield Adventure."
"Keep it down, their Ship Boss is a Fifth-stage Expert."
At that moment, Jiang Chen was also among them.
Ling Zhi whispered, "Everyone, be careful later. They might try to charge us extra mid-journey. If we stick together, they won’t dare to act recklessly."
Several people nodded, while Jiang Chen pondered. So they’re making their move now?
THUD, THUD, THUD...
Du Ningsun stood on the cabin’s upper deck, looking down at the twenty-odd Wanderers. "You must all be aware," he began, "that this great ship will sail for ten days and ten nights to reach Icefield Adventure."
"For ten days and nights, we toil away while you sit back and look forward to cultivating at Icefield Adventure."
"It’s a tough job for us to take you all the way to Icefield Adventure. So, everyone should show a little appreciation. Ten Gold Coins per person, as a service fee for my brothers."
Upon hearing Du Ningsun’s words, the sailors all laughed.
To put it nicely, it’s a ’service fee.’ To put it bluntly, this is blatant robbery.
"Wasn’t it agreed that the ship fare is ten Gold Coins per person? Why are you raising the price now?"
"Exactly, we’ve already paid you ten Gold Coins. Why are you hiking the price halfway?"
"You’re robbing us, blatantly robbing us!"
"How can you do this?"
The passengers were furious. They were all customers, and hearing this was upsetting for everyone.
Jiang Chen, however, remained expressionless. Ten Gold Coins, that doesn’t seem so bad. But why do I feel so annoyed about this?
Du Ningsun smirked. "You said it yourselves—that was the ship *fare*. But my brothers also need compensation for their hard work. Otherwise, how could you possibly reach Icefield Adventure?"
"I know you’re angry, but my brothers need to eat! You get to enjoy the benefits while my brothers toil away. Does your conscience allow that?"
"Do you have any idea how much effort my brothers put in, sailing for ten days and nights?"
"Of course, you also have the right to refuse such a proposal."
"Now, I’ll give you two choices. First, hand over the Gold Coins as compensation for my brothers. Second, you’ve already paid your fare, so if you don’t want to pay more Gold Coins, you can work as laborers on this ship."
"Sweeping, cooking, whatever needs doing. It’s all an option."
One of the Wanderers asked, "What if we refuse?"
Du Ningsun burst out laughing, a wild, unrestrained laugh.
The sailors also roared with laughter. Refuse to pay? Are you idiots? Think you can just walk away from this?
Du Ningsun cackled. "Refuse to pay? Well, then I’ll have no choice but to throw you overboard. You can try swimming to Icefield Adventure."
His words made everyone’s face turn pale.
Who knew how many kilometers it was from here to Icefield Adventure? Even a Sixth-stage powerhouse couldn’t possibly swim that distance.
Once in the Water, death was certain. No one could swim that far. Besides, the seawater was frigid. They’d freeze to death in less than an hour.