Chapter 391 - 290: Explosive Arrow, Sea Crow

Chapter 391: Chapter 290: Explosive Arrow, Sea Crow

"How much farther to the Cape of Heaven?" Wu Liangchen asked after putting away his bow and arrow and taking a couple of sips from the nearby teapot.

"We’re not even halfway there. The rest of the voyage will take at least another month," Annabelle said.

Wu Liangchen frowned slightly. "It’s still that far?"

"Yes. We’re on the first leg of the journey, which is also the easiest part. We’ll encounter almost no danger. But once we pass Black Stone Reef, the truly grueling part of the voyage begins."

At this, Annabelle glanced at the sea, which was thick with the carcasses of crows, and said softly, "The appearance of such a large flock of sea crows proves we’re not far from Black Stone Reef."

Wu Liangchen’s interest was piqued. He immediately asked, "What sort of place is Black Stone Reef?"

"How to put it... It’s a necessary stop on the way to the Cape of Heaven, and it’s also the last place to get supplies. After we pass it, there’s nothing but the open sea. For a solid month, you won’t see even a shadow of land." As she said this, a solemn expression came over her face.

Although the Bell Clan had controlled this shipping route for decades, no one would ever dare claim they had conquered these waters.

In fact, the more a person’s livelihood depends on the sea, the more they revere—and even fear—the ocean.

Annabelle was no exception.

’Luckily, I have him!’

Thinking this, Annabelle glanced at the man standing tall at the ship’s prow, and her heart suddenly began to race.

The words her father had spoken to her still echoed in her ears, but back then, Annabelle had been resistant.

’After all, how could someone as proud and ambitious as her be so easily smitten by a man, let alone submit to one?’

It was only now, after spending some time with him, that Annabelle truly appreciated the man’s power and charm.

Her mouth suddenly felt a little dry. She quickly averted her gaze and said softly, "But the situation on Black Stone Reef is very complicated these days. All sorts of pirates have their hooks in that little town, so we need to be extra careful."

"Understood. I’ll be careful," Wu Liangchen said nonchalantly, his eyes on the sea.

At that moment, the last rays of the setting sun bathed him in light, tracing his silhouette with a golden edge.

Unable to stop herself from looking again, Annabelle found herself captivated....

Just as Annabelle predicted, after only another day of sailing, a massive island faintly appeared on the distant horizon.

The island was a uniform grayish-black, looking like a giant reef from afar, which is how it got its name.

The fleet began to speed up, and the crew members prepared themselves.

After all, Black Stone Reef was no longer the place it had been a decade or so ago, back when the Bell Clan was at its peak.

The power structure there was a tangled mess, so no one dared let their guard down.

At the same time, however, the crew felt a faint stir of excitement. This wasn’t just the normal reaction to seeing land after so long at sea; it was a feeling of profound confidence.

After all, with that man on board, no one could stop the fleet.

It was one of those distances that kills horses.

From first sighting Black Stone Reef to finally drawing near, the better part of a day had passed.

Once they got closer, Wu Liangchen was surprised to discover that the island, which had looked so drab and gray, was actually quite scenic. He could even see a waterfall cascading down a distant mountain peak.

And this was out in the middle of the deep sea!

Docks were built along the island’s edge, and behind them lay a small town.

It was called a town, but in reality, it was just one long street that followed the slope of the land and stretched into the distance.

But though it was small, it had all the essentials; there were even a few taverns.

However, judging by the vicious-looking pedestrians with cold gazes walking the street, it was obvious that the inhabitants of this town were not a friendly bunch.

Annabelle had changed her attire. A common sailor’s tunic hid her stunning figure, but the graceful elegance in her stride still gave her away.

As a result, many men on the street were watching her with greedy eyes.

This made Annabelle very uncomfortable.

Their gazes felt like cold, slithering things, making the hairs on her neck stand up.

As if sensing her distress, Wu Liangchen remained outwardly impassive, but with a slight twitch of his finger, a streak of white light shot out. It blasted a man clean out of a second-story window across the street—a man whose face was flushed with excitement, whose body was trembling, and who appeared to be in the middle of some indecent act.

With a scream, the man—naked from the waist down—flew out from behind the building. When he landed, his arm was twisted at an unnatural angle, the bone clearly shattered.

The shocking move instantly silenced the entire town.

The clarity in many people’s eyes sharpened, and they no longer dared to stare.

But some stared intently at Wu Liangchen.

Wu Liangchen couldn’t have cared less.

He had already gotten a rough measure of the town the moment he set foot on shore.

True, the town was a den of crouching tigers and hidden dragons; he could sense at least several powerful auras on par with a Third Realm Martial Artist.

But to the Wu Liangchen of today, it made no difference whether they were Third Realm or not. The result would be the same.

He didn’t care about that, either.

After Wu Liangchen made his move, Annabelle felt the sticky gazes that had clung to her person vanish completely. She couldn’t help but let out a long sigh of relief before speaking in a low voice.

"The people in this town are a complicated lot. Most of them are wanted criminals from various nations who came here as a last resort."

Wu Liangchen nodded slightly.

’I already figured as much.’

’After all, what kind of good person would come to a shithole like this?’

The crew began to restock on the most crucial supply: fresh water.

Fresh water was abundant on Black Stone Reef, but it wasn’t cheap.

After all, it was the only place to get fresh water for hundreds of miles in any direction.

In addition to that, they needed to stock up on vegetables and other provisions.

The people of this world already knew that if you didn’t get enough fruits and vegetables on a long sea voyage, you would fall ill.

Thus, they had invented salted citrus.

Wu Liangchen had tried it once. The taste was simply beyond description.

So, upon reaching a supply point, the first thing the sailors did was find a place to have a proper meal.

Of course, some weren’t in a hurry to eat. They eagerly ran to the more secluded parts of the long street and began haggling with certain women.

The arrival of their fleet instantly turned the quiet town into a bustling hub of activity.

Over the past few decades, as this shipping route grew more prosperous, this had become a regular occurrence.

Wu Liangchen took a simple stroll and found that, aside from taverns and eateries, the town was mostly filled with streetwalkers plying the flesh trade.

He noticed, however, that wherever these streetwalkers gathered, a few men with cold expressions were always lurking in the corners, coldly watching the passersby.

Annabelle sighed softly, then said in a low voice, "I came here once with my father, more than a decade ago. It wasn’t like this then."

"But now, with our clan’s waning control, it’s been taken over by various pirate factions. It’s become a veritable den of thieves."

Her words were filled with helplessness and resentment.

Wu Liangchen didn’t respond, merely watching the street in the distance with a cold gaze.

Because just then, a group of men armed with firearms was rapidly approaching.

Annabelle saw that something was wrong, and her expression changed.

The pedestrians on the street quickly cleared out, giving Wu Liangchen and Annabelle a wide berth.

The man in the lead stepped forward and said sinisterly, "You injure one of our men the moment you arrive. That’s not very appropriate, is it, Your Excellency?"

"Oh, so the man getting off while looking at the woman was one of yours?" Wu Liangchen said lightly.

The sarcastic retort instantly made the man’s expression turn foul.

"Cut the crap. Pay up, or your fleet isn’t going anywhere."

"Oh? And what’s the compensation?"

"First, ten thousand Folang Coins. Then, hand over that broad behind you for us to play with for a couple of days!" the man sneered.

But that was the last time he would ever laugh.

Because in the next instant, his head exploded, and his lifeless body crumpled to the ground.