Scourge Messenger

Chapter 442 Celestial Bird True Man
One very important aspect of the trade between Golden Eagle Island and Liang Kingdom was the buying and selling of people.

Although it sounds harsh, it was actually human trafficking. The Anlan ship traveled along the Huanglong River, passing through three military towns and eighteen counties. Every time it docked, they would pay local officials to gather children of school age, examine the children's physiques with tokens, and then buy the children outright and take them back to Golden Eagle Island.

Liang Kingdom also welcomes this kind of business, because they can take the opportunity to learn about the children's aptitude, and even take the children with good aptitude before Anlan Ship does, so they will definitely not lose out.

Those who ultimately boarded the ship were mostly children from relatively well-off families, because children from truly poor families were usually snatched up by the local powerful clans of the military town. Only parents who couldn't reach the level of a prestigious family, had no connections in the military town, but still longed for their family to produce powerful messengers would send their children aboard the Anlan to Golden Eagle Island to learn martial arts.

Mi Mian, a young girl, came from such a background. Her family were only seventh-rank merchants, not big figures in Jiangnan County, but they were never respectable. When she boarded the ship, she was ridiculed and a conflict arose because of her name and black wristband (a seventh-rank color). When she was being beaten by two or three children, Tiger Vanguard helped her.

"Of the 'Four Heavenly Kings,' it's best not to mess with Rong Hai and Chen Xunxian," Mi Mian cautioned. "It's said that they both have elders on Golden Eagle Island, so their backgrounds are quite impressive. Shen Qiuqiu is just a branch of the Shen family. Apparently, her father died and her mother remarried, and she sold herself to the ship. If you hit her, so be it. You should challenge her tomorrow."

After leaving the mouth of the Huanglong River and officially departing from the Liang Kingdom, the Anlan changed its usual three meals a day to only one meal a day, and only twenty portions. The steward had only one requirement for food distribution: everyone had to line up when getting their meals, and each person could only take one portion.

As for who can line up for meals and how the meals are distributed, he doesn't care about any of that; he leaves it all to the boys to figure out internally.

Actually, things haven't escalated to the point of a full-blown fight yet. Although there are only twenty portions, there are only thirty-three boys in total. With a little reasonable distribution, everyone can get through the rest of the journey peacefully. At the beginning, someone had suggested a similar plan.

But in the end, everyone used their fists to determine who was entitled to eat.

Firstly, some people are unwilling to go hungry; secondly, some precocious children see this as a test, a trial.

Especially after setting sail, the manager distributed three secret manuals to all the children: "Basic Footwork," "Basic Fist and Palm Techniques," and "Basic Leg Techniques." It was clear that they were to learn these skills during the journey and prove their potential through the "meal competition"!

There were four plates of the best and most sumptuous food on the table, so the children decided on the Four Heavenly Kings: 'Giant Bear' Wang Jin, 'Tiger' Chen Xunxian, 'Divine Fist' Rong Hai, and 'Whirlwind Kick' Shen Qiuqiu. They got to eat the best food, while the other children could only try to please them or watch them drool.

“Wang Jin, the leader of the Four Heavenly Kings, was defeated by ‘Crazy Granny’ Bai Zhou. Wang Jin probably won’t dare to challenge Bai Zhou, and will most likely target ‘Tiger’ Chen Xunxian.” Mi Mian said in an old-fashioned tone, “From now on, the martial arts world will be in turmoil.”

Even teenagers have their own world of adventure, Yan Qing thought to himself.

The chubby boy, Wang Jin, had been dragged away for treatment at some point. These details suggest that Golden Eagle Island might indeed be a righteous sect, or at least the leader didn't want anything to happen to the children on the ship. Deliberately inciting the children to fight was probably a teaching method.

Yan Qing had no interest in sending Tiger Vanguard to infiltrate a Foundation Establishment sect, but the East Sea was different from the other three regions. The only way to move around was by boat. No matter how amazing the game's automatic evolution program was, it couldn't be so amazing that it could sail automatically. If he encountered a storm while AFK, when Yan Qing logged back in, even if his alt account hadn't been fed to sharks, it would definitely be soaking in the sea in a daze.

Therefore, traveling by ship belonging to another faction is the only option, and Golden Eagle Island is a good stepping stone. Although the Foundation Establishment level of Golden Eagle Island is unknown, since they have already made a deal with Liang Kingdom, they can't be too strong.

Yan Qing's current resources are more than enough to push Tiger Vanguard to the Foundation Establishment stage in an instant, but an unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivator will inevitably arouse the suspicion of Golden Eagle Island. At that time, it may be impossible to even go to the island, and it will also be difficult to gather intelligence.

He also had a very important goal: to find a suitable secret realm to use the Summoning Stone to thoroughly purify the secret realm and plunder the karma of natural disasters.

Tiger Vanguard is perfectly suited to play dumb to outmaneuver the enemy. If Golden Eagle Island knows what's good for them, they'll be a 'little friend'; if they don't, they'll be 'ants'.

"If I become a Foundation Establishment True Person, will I be able to set up something as fierce as the Mortal Barrier? I want to get one for my family too."

"The ship has slowed down. If it could stay that fast, we might reach Golden Eagle Island today."

"I wonder if there are many golden eagles on Golden Eagle Island. We shouldn't have to do menial tasks there, right? With our talent, we should at least start as outer disciples..." The young girl, Mi Mian, clung to Tiger Vanguard, chattering incessantly. After leaving the mortal barrier, she became noticeably more anxious and uneasy. The other children, after their initial excitement, gradually became dejected, some even burying their heads and sobbing softly. Before the mortal barrier, they still had the possibility of returning home; after passing through it, they all realized they could never go back.

This was not a journey, but a long wandering, until they found a place they could call 'home' again.

"Old Xu, Old Xu!"

One of the guards shouted, "Something seems... off."

A black dot appeared on the horizon, growing larger and clearer until it resembled a gigantic black eagle with a human figure atop it. The steward's expression changed drastically: "Heavenly Bird Immortal!?"

The black eagle landed, its wings whipping up a fierce wind that sent everyone on deck tumbling about.

From a distance, it didn't seem that big, but when the black eagle landed, the children were shocked to find that its wingspan was actually larger than that of the Anlan. Each of its feathers shone with a black steel-like luster. When it floated in the air, it was enough to block out the sun, and the deck became dark, as if night had fallen!

"The Anlan Ship of Golden Eagle Island pays respects to the Celestial Bird Immortal!" The steward and guards immediately knelt down and said in unison.

Mi Mian quickly pressed Hu Xianfeng's head down as well, making him kowtow and kneel together. She lowered her voice and said, "My goodness, this must be a Foundation Establishment cultivator, right? Such fierce fire!"

This is not just a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

The screen clearly showed that the name displayed above the black eagle's head was: "Lv60·Mysterious Yin Black Iron Bird".

A level 60 Demon King!
Apart from a very few Creation Divine Powers that can enslave those of higher levels, the vast majority of Domination Divine Powers can only enslave those of the same level. In other words, this Foundation Establishment cultivator must be at least a Sixth-Rank Golden Immortal!
On the black eagle's head, the sinister middle-aged man named Celestial Bird Master glanced at the Anlan and said coldly, "Golden Eagle Island? I remember you haven't submitted your Bliss Tribute for this year yet."

"Please calm down, Your Excellency. I will certainly remind the island lord when I return to the island," the steward said respectfully.

"Did you recently buy these children from the Central Plains?" Celestial Bird Master stroked his chin, his sharp gaze sweeping over the children, who trembled at his gaze. "It just so happens that there's nothing interesting to see on the Ascension Path lately, so putting them in there will bring some novelty."

The steward trembled: "Master, these are all nominal disciples of Golden Eagle Island..."

"They're just nominal disciples, consider it interest on your Bliss Tribute this year." Celestial Bird True Man frowned: "I'm taking them to pay tribute to the Immortal Lord, shouldn't you... offer them up voluntarily?"

The voice of the Celestial Bird Master grew louder and louder, and the last word was like thunder, causing the steward and guards to bleed from their seven orifices, but the young men and women were unharmed.

Yan Qing looked on with a solemn expression. This was not a supernatural power of a token, but simply the application of the soul. Yan Qing could also do it, but not with such precision... Seeing only a part of the whole picture, even the obscure technique of suppressing the soul was practiced so skillfully. The application of supernatural powers and the combination of tokens by True Person Tianqin must be even more exquisite.

"Please calm down, Your Excellency. I will take them to Paradise Island right away!" the steward said.

"No need for such trouble. I'm on my way back anyway. I'll give you a ride." Celestial Bird Master waved his hand, and the black eagle landed on the Anlan. With a grab of its claws, it forcefully clamped the entire ship up!

The quick-witted children scurried into the cabins, while the less agile ones clung to the railings and masts, screaming. The stewards and guards could only manage to bring some of the children back to the cabins. The crew remained on the swaying ship, watching in terror as they drew ever closer to the sky and ever farther from the sea. Suddenly, a black eagle let out a whoosh and spread its wings, soaring a thousand miles into the distance. The Anlan was buffeted by a fierce wind, its planks creaking and groaning!

No one could have imagined that after experiencing the most thrilling voyage, they would be about to experience the most dangerous flight!
(End of this chapter)