Above the mage!

Chapter 364 Catching Trash

Only after actually putting it into practice did Gaode realize how expensive it was to go overseas.

A two-masted sailing ship requires about 20 crew members for a cross-ocean voyage.

The most basic configuration is a captain, a first mate, a second mate, a third mate, about ten sailors including the boatswain, two lookouts, two to three helmsmen, and a cook.

船长的月薪通常在40金雀花币左右，大副是28金雀花币，二副20金雀花币、三副16金雀花币、水手长14金雀花币、舵手10金雀花币、瞭望员18金雀花币、厨师10金雀花币、普通水手8金雀花币。

Adding up all these, a ketch would cost at least 200 Plantagenet coins just for crew salaries during a month's sailing.

This is just the configuration of a two-masted sailing ship.

If it is a large merchant ship, or a fleet, the number of crew members would start from hundreds, and the salary would be several times higher.

In addition to the salary, there are also necessary port docking fees, as well as material consumption including food and fresh water, which costs more than 100 Plantagenet coins a month.

However, if you are accompanied by a wizard apprentice who has mastered the [Water Creation Technique], you only need three of them to save all the expenses on drinking and cooking water.

In fact, for a large fleet that truly engages in transoceanic trade, a wizard who is able to produce fresh water is considered standard equipment.

After all, fresh water is the lifeline for humans.

As the saying goes, "three weeks without food, three days without water."

Equipping the fleet with a wizard who has the ability to create fresh water is equivalent to buying insurance for the fleet.

Fortunately, the wood needed by the North could be purchased at a preferential price from the raw material supplier of the Harland Shipyard, which saved Gode a lot of money.

However, Gaode didn't feel bad about spending the money now.

Because he knew that as long as this ship arrived at the Valar Bay in the north smoothly, it could transport the supplies that Phoenix had prepared in advance back to the Plantagenet Dynasty for resale, and make back all the money with interest in one trip.

Under the moonlight, the calm sea surface glows with a deep and solemn dark green color, which seems to have a kind of cold and mysterious beauty.

But the lingering stench in the air completely destroyed this mood.

This is the Makoko area.

Occasionally, a sea breeze blew by, but it was unable to dispel the disgusting smell. It could only helplessly hit the densely packed sheds here, making a whistling sound.

The shack was built crookedly, and its reflection was dim on the water.

On the sea surface, the waves spread out, and under the reflection of the moonlight, tiny ripples appeared.

In the darkness of the night, a figure floated above the sea at an extremely unscientific speed, quickly passing through the narrow and unplanned waterway.

Wherever it passed, the water waves continued to spread to both sides.

The figure, that is, Gao De, has shining eyes. He sees the surrounding environment clearly through the dark night, and then points out the direction to Tuanzi through the mental link:
He first used the magic trick [Water Manipulation] to freeze a small piece of water, forming an ice surface large enough for him to stand on. He then released the dumpling, let it enter the water, and then pushed the ice forward from behind.

Such a simple operation can achieve an effect similar to floating on water.

"It has been seven days since I cleared out the magic octopus. It is time for those people in the shed to come back." Gao De thought to himself while looking for a path to the shed.

According to Sharma, the seven or eight suspicious residents living in the shack would disappear for a few days and then return every once in a while.

Combined with the speculation about their origins, it is not difficult to draw a conclusion: these people are most likely to temporarily leave the Makoko area to avoid the limelight every time the Sea Sentinel Mage accepts the mission of expelling water beasts and comes to perform the mission.

As for why they knew when the Sea Sentinel Mage would arrive, it was actually not a difficult thing.

After all, these tasks were hung so openly in the hall of the Haiyuan White Tower.

As long as the task disappears from the board in the hall, it means that someone has accepted it, and it will be even easier for the mage who takes the task to arrive in Lagos City.

Gao De came to the Makoko area to clear out the water beasts openly. He did not hide his whereabouts and even wore the uniform of a sea sentinel.

Therefore, as long as you pay a little attention, you should be able to know that he had completed the task of clearing out the water beasts seven days ago.

Even if these people were very cautious and took into account the possibility of his sudden return, seven full days had passed and they should have been relieved and returned to the Makoko area.

next moment.

The ice stopped at Gode's signal.

The shed is just ahead.

Tuanzi is already getting restless.

Gaode suppressed the slightly restless Tuanzi through the mental link, and then quietly jumped onto the platform extending from another shed nearby.

He stared at the shed where the mastermind might be hiding and waited quietly.

Time passed by minute by minute, and the night grew darker.

About half an hour later, the sound of the wooden door opening and closing was heard, which was particularly clear in the silent night.

A figure walked out of the shed, his steps were a little slow, and he seemed sleepy.

He came to the edge of the platform outside the shed and stood still.

The next moment, the sound of water flowing was heard.

And this is the moment Gao De was waiting for.

His eyes instantly became as sharp as an eagle's.

"Do it!"

Tuanzi, who had been waiting in the sea for a long time, received the order and jumped out of the water.

With a splash, Tuanzi's sharp teeth bit the figure's collar tightly, and with the powerful impact force, he pushed the other person into the water.

Everything happened in a flash. The man had no time to react before the dull, dirty and smelly splashes of water covered his face.

He subconsciously tried to struggle, waving his hands out of the water and kicking his feet desperately in the water.

But a net made of water has already bound him like a dead fish.

【Tidal Net+】.

Being in the water, unable to speak at all and with the body tied up, it was really like crying out to heaven and earth for help but no one would get any help.

As time passed, his consciousness and oxygen were lost, and a large number of bubbles gurgled upwards from his mouth and nose. His movements gradually became weak and his eyes began to blur.

Soon, he completely lost consciousness and fainted.

But it was just a fainting, and it would take some time before death.

Gaode didn't want to kill the other party, so after finding that the other party had entered a state of unconsciousness, he released the [Tidal Net], used [Water Manipulation] to condense a piece of ice, and let Tuanzi push it onto the ice surface.

At this time, two figures walked out of the shed, muttering as they walked: "Could this guy have slipped and fallen into the water when draining the water?"

Obviously, they were attracted by the sound of their companion entering the water.

After the two of them went out, they looked left and right and didn't see any companions, so they came to the edge of the wooden platform, trying to find companions who might have fallen into the water, and immediately noticed the figure of their companions lying flat on the ice.

Since the ice surface was not large and it was night, it was completely covered.

"What's going on?" The two were confused when they saw this, and subconsciously shouted to their companions lying on the ice.

puff!

A nimble figure leaped out of the water again.

"What is that?!" The two men exclaimed one after the other, their voices filled with fear and surprise.

This time it was no longer a bite. Tuanzi was like a cannonball, firing two shots at once and knocking both of them into the water.

thump! thump!
Two loud sounds of water entering the water attracted all the remaining people in the shed. "What happened?!"

"Save me." The two people who fell into the water sent a distress signal to their companions who emerged from the shed, but they stopped speaking halfway.

Because they were bound by two tidal nets, their hands and feet could not struggle, and their bodies sank along with them.

The water quickly covered their faces, and the cold, smelly sea water rushed into their mouths and noses, choking them and causing them to cough violently. Naturally, they could no longer call for help.

"Help!" The other people who didn't quite understand the situation reacted subconsciously to rescue their companions who fell into the water. They rushed to the edge of the platform, but before they could reach out their hands, Tuanzi had already taken action again.

It moved as fast as lightning, swooped up, and in no time at all, knocked all the remaining people into the water.

As soon as they fell into the water, they were greeted by a tidal net.

There were splashes on the water surface, but it soon returned to calm.

There were seven people in total, and they all surrendered without a sound.

It went much more smoothly than expected.

I don’t know what level of wizard these people are.

Gao De's eyes swept over these people and he thought secretly in his heart.

Anyway, according to his judgment, those who were sent to this place to do this kind of thing were most likely just mage apprentices, and at most no more than one level.

"Send her ashore."

At Gaode's signal, Tuanzi pushed all seven people onto the wooden platform of the shed.

Afterwards, Gao De walked on the ice and also climbed onto the wooden platform, and dragged the seven unconscious people into the small shed.

The light in the room was dim, with only a kerosene lamp emitting a faint glow.

Although this amount of light was enough for Gaode, who had evolved high dark vision ability through [Adaptation], due to long-term habit, the dim light still made Gaode frown slightly.

He thought about it and snapped his fingers lightly.

Four softly glowing balls of light emerged from his hands, hovering in the air, emitting faint light that illuminated the small shed.

【Dancing Lights】

Then he glanced around the room.

The huge bucket that once caught Gode's attention is still there.

But compared to the last time, this time the bucket was filled with dirty water.

The water was a disgusting dark green color, with some unknown debris floating on the surface.

Groups of strangely shaped, slender, dark green larvae were swimming freely in it, bringing with them a foul smell.

The smell filled the entire room and made people want to vomit.

It is the larvae of the foul-smelling water salamander.

"It is true." Gao De shook his head and kicked the seven unconscious people a few times.

But after a few kicks, none of them woke up.

Gao De thought for a moment and then stepped hard on the chest of one of them.

His eyes were cold and his footsteps were merciless.

The force was so great that one could almost hear the man's ribs breaking from the kick.

But the effect is indeed significant.

The man immediately opened his mouth and spurted out dark green sewage mixed with disgusting debris like a fountain, and he kept retching.

The sewage splashed everywhere, and the air was filled with an even stronger stench.

After spitting out the sewage, he recovered and slowly opened his eyes. Gao De's figure looked exceptionally tall under the light, giving him an indescribable strong sense of oppression.

"Who are you?" the man couldn't help but ask, his voice trembling slightly.

He had clearly never seen Gao De's face, so he had no idea why he attacked him in the middle of the night.

"God, the trainee wizard of the Sea Sentinel, has been ordered to come and expel the water beasts from the Makoko area." God looked at him with narrowed eyes and spoke slowly.

Hearing Gao De's words, the man's pupils shrank suddenly.

There was a hint of fear in his eyes.

He finally understood why he and others were attacked.

"Didn't you drive away the water beast and leave?" His voice was a little dry and his lips trembled slightly.

"If you don't remove the roots, they will grow again in the spring breeze," Gao De squinted his eyes and said softly, "How can I leave like this if I don't find out the masterminds behind all of you?"

"What do you mean?" There was a flash of panic in the man's eyes, but he seemed to want to be stubborn and spoke with forced calmness.

"The evidence is all here. Who asked you to do these things? Are you ready to tell the truth on your own, or do you want me to force you to tell the truth?" Gao De pointed to the wooden barrel in the room and gestured.

The other party took a look at the huge bucket and fell into silence.

Seeing this, Gao De shook his head regretfully.

He did not try to persuade her any further, but raised his hand slightly, palm facing up.

A small green ball appeared in the palm of his hand. The next moment, Gao De shook his wrist and the small ball shot towards the latter's right leg.

[Acid splash]!
The small ball exploded the moment it touched the opponent's right leg, and the thick acid, with strong corrosiveness, spread rapidly.

Zizizi!
The opponent's trouser legs were instantly soaked with acid, and the fabric was quickly corroded into wisps of charred fragments that fluttered down.

Then, the acid began to corrode his flesh, and the originally healthy skin was exposed under the effect of the acid, revealing the bright red flesh underneath.

"Ah——!" A shrill scream rang out.

His body was shaking violently, and his hands were trying desperately to grab something to support his shaking body, but it was all in vain.

Under the continuous erosion of acid, the muscles in his right leg gradually dissolved, revealing the white bones.

The screams gradually became weaker, and the man's body became weaker due to the severe pain and blood loss.

His eyes were filled with fear and despair, tears and sweat mixed together and flowed down his cheeks, and his body was twitching violently.

At this moment, the flesh and blood below the knee of his right leg had disappeared. If he had not been rescued by a high-level wizard or high-level supernatural items, he would have been a cripple for the rest of his life.

Gao De did not say anything, but silently activated the spell model, and another acid ball appeared in the palm of his hand.

"No, no, I'll tell you, I'll tell you everything!" The man looked at the acid ball in Gao De's hand and begged for mercy while trembling all over.

Gao De smiled slightly, not surprised.

Although in the novels, movies and TV dramas that were common in the past, in such situations, these "villains" would generally prefer death to surrender, or even commit suicide by taking poison, but this is somewhat exaggerated through artistic processing.

The reality is that it takes at least two or three generations of effort to cultivate such loyal warriors, through careful training and instilling of loyalty, and providing generous treatment and protection.

Therefore, only a small number of great nobles have such people under their command.

Good steel should be used on the blade.

If there really are such assassins, why would they be sent to do these "odd jobs"?
"Tell the truth, I will ask your other companions later." Gao De pointed at the other six people who were still unconscious and said calmly: "Don't blame me for not reminding you in advance. If your testimony doesn't match, you will lose more than just your calf."

(End of this chapter)