Clad in loose white robes, his eyes sharp and still like unreleased sword light. Standing on the railing of the Wumu ship, the Lord of the Sword Tower felt the sea wind whipping his robes about him.
“My Lord!” The general scrambled across the sand, shouting hoarsely, “This reckless youth, who knows where he blew in from! This treasure ship, our General’s Mansion soldiers worked hard to salvage it from the sea. But this reckless youth insists the ship is his! He used his superior strength to wrest it from the hands of so many of our brothers, and even shattered my Dantian, crippling my inner strength, My Lord!”
“We implore you, My Lord, to dispense justice for us!” The general’s eyes were bloodshot with fury as he roared.
“My Lord, deliver justice for us all!”
Instantly, hundreds of soldiers shouted in unison, their voices thundering across the surrounding beach. In their gazes towards the Lord of the Sword Tower, there was a thread of reverence and awe! The legendary Lord of the Sword Tower was reputed to be the most powerful and invincible existence on the entire island.
Mingyue Island was only so large, and many had seen the Lord of the Sword Tower.
“Rest assured,” the Lord of the Sword Tower’s voice rang out, cold and clear.
Silence immediately descended.
Standing on the railing of the Wumu ship, the Lord of the Sword Tower looked at the disheveled, bearded reckless youth with a hint of surprise. The combined strength of the hundreds of soldiers from the General’s Mansion was not to be underestimated; for them to be forced to yield and admit defeat, the youth must possess the strength of at least a Xiantian expert!
Moreover—
Few of the soldiers were injured, save for the general whose Dantian had been broken.
“To strike fear into the hearts of so many without inflicting serious injury upon them. This youth’s strength must be formidable,” a flicker of curiosity arose in the Lord of the Sword Tower’s heart. Of course... at this moment, the Lord of the Sword Tower paid no serious heed to Teng Qingshan. As the foremost expert on Mingyue Island, he had been invincible for too long!
“Why did you seize this sea vessel?” the Lord of the Sword Tower asked down from his high vantage point, his tone indifferent.
Before Teng Qingshan could speak, Li Jun beside him interjected with clear displeasure, “You are being entirely unreasonable! You haven't even bothered to ask what happened. This sea vessel belongs to us! It was those General’s Mansion soldiers who coveted our ship and tried to take it by force. Since the property is ours, we naturally had to reclaim it!”
“Yours?” The Lord of the Sword Tower observed the Wumu ship closely.
“Yes, this is our ship,” Teng Qingshan replied with a slight smile. “Our possessions, reclaimed by us—there is nothing wrong with that, is there? Those soldiers attempted to stop us just now, even resorting to violence, and that general repeatedly spoke insolently. I only administered slight punishment; I did not take any lives. Lord of the Sword Tower, therefore... you shouldn't be questioning us. You should question those soldiers properly.”
After carefully examining the Wumu ship, the Lord of the Sword Tower turned to face the hesitant soldiers behind him.
The group of soldiers hesitated, none daring to speak.
“My Lord!” The general cried out, his eyes red, “We have examined this sea vessel thoroughly. The material of this ship is absolutely not found on Mingyue Island! Furthermore... inside the cabin, there are fist-sized green gems. Such gems have never been seen on our Mingyue Island either!”
“Therefore, I am certain!”
The general stared at Teng Qingshan in the distance, “This ship is not from Mingyue Island at all. It is a vessel that drifted in from outside! If this ship truly belongs to these two, then this man and woman are not from Mingyue Island! They are outsiders!”
“Outsiders?”
The Lord of the Sword Tower’s narrow eyes narrowed. He then glanced at the silver inlaid markings along the ship’s rail, the material of the hull itself, and even the canvas beneath the mast. A peculiar smile touched the Lord of the Sword Tower’s lips as he looked at Teng Qingshan and Li Jun, “If this ship is yours, then you must be people who came from the outside?”
Li Jun and Teng Qingshan exchanged a look.
If they claimed to be from Mingyue Island, then this ship could not be theirs. After all, Mingyue Island couldn't manufacture Wumu ships; they didn't even possess the Wumu wood required for construction.
“We are outsiders!” Teng Qingshan nodded.
Teng Qingshan held no fear of a single Mingyue Island.
An island with millions of inhabitants, yet the combined might of its formidable armies barely exceeded one hundred thousand. Having two or three Xiantian Golden Core experts would be considered impressive. Even if they all came, Teng Qingshan wasn't afraid. Furthermore, the Lord of the Sword Tower standing before him was already the acknowledged strongest on the island.
But clearly, judging by his movement techniques and overall aura, the opponent had not reached the Void Realm!
If he hadn't reached the Void Realm, what did Teng Qingshan have to fear?
“They really are outsiders, how interesting.” The Lord of the Sword Tower scrutinized Teng Qingshan intently.
“My Lord!” The general shouted anxiously from the shallows by the beach, “They have admitted they are outsiders, not people of Mingyue Island! Yet they act so arrogantly here on our island, clearly showing contempt for Mingyue Island! Such people must be severely punished!”
Teng Qingshan glanced dismissively at the general screaming in the seawater.
The general was correct... Teng Qingshan truly did not hold Mingyue Island in high regard.
“Silence!” A frigid voice commanded.
The previously frantic general froze as if his throat had been seized. He immediately lowered his head, daring not to utter another sound. He finally remembered the identity of the person before him—the Lord of the Sword Tower! The most powerful figure on all of Mingyue Island. Why would he need a crippled general, whose inner strength was ruined, to shout instructions?
“It has been a very, very long time since outsiders arrived on Mingyue Island; the last arrival was over a hundred years ago,” the Lord of the Sword Tower said, looking at Teng Qingshan. “Which region are you from? Tianfan Island, or Qingmu Island?”
Teng Qingshan and Li Jun were both slightly startled.
Tianfan Island? Qingmu Island?
“Correct.” A sudden realization dawned on Teng Qingshan. “I set out to sea in the seventh month, caught a favorable wind, and drifted north from the Jiuzhou Continent! Following the wind, one can cover eight or nine hundred li in a single day and night, reaching a speed of over a thousand li! In over three months, the speed slowed somewhat, but I must have covered seventy or eighty thousand li.”
“Seventy or eighty thousand li from the northern grasslands! And along the way, there were tsunamis, hurricanes, monstrous beasts, and more. If one hadn't reached the Xiantian realm, survival would have been impossible!”
Teng Qingshan was acutely aware of the dangers of his more than three months at sea.
Perhaps regarding some submerged reefs, the Wumu ship was fine, but for others sailing the seas, their vessels might not be as sturdy as Teng Qingshan’s.
Encountering perilous situations like hurricanes, Teng Qingshan could dive into the sea and grip the iron chains to steady the Wumu ship.
Many dangerous scenarios were insignificant obstacles to Teng Qingshan!
Even the dreaded 'Nine-Bend Ghost Domain,' which caused Mingyue Island immense headaches, was nothing to him. These things didn't count as dangers in his eyes! However, just because Teng Qingshan could survive them didn't mean everyone else could! The Jiuzhou mainland was far, far too distant from Mingyue Island.
Who among those with Xiantian strength would idly drift aimlessly toward the North Sea?
“It seems there must be other islands surrounding Mingyue Island,” Teng Qingshan mused inwardly.
“Lord of the Sword Tower,” Teng Qingshan said, “Now that the matter is clear—this ship is indeed ours. I don't wish to escalate this situation between us! I request that you kindly disembark now; we need to set sail.”
“Arriving at Mingyue Island is acceptable, but leaving... no one who has come here has ever managed to depart!” the Lord of the Sword Tower stated coldly.
Teng Qingshan’s gaze turned icy: “What, have all the outsiders who came here been captured by you?”
“No,” the Lord of the Sword Tower shook his head. “The sea area several hundred li surrounding Mingyue Island is all within the range of the Nine-Bend Ghost Domain. The currents are swift, and the undertows beneath the water are even more violent! Any ship can easily drift in with the currents. But to leave... it is simply impossible to go against the flow!”
“That is not for you to worry about, My Lord,” Teng Qingshan replied calmly. “My Lord, please leave my ship!”
“My Lord!!!” The general whose Dantian was ruined couldn't help but shout again.
Hundreds of soldiers all looked towards the Lord of the Sword Tower, clad in white and seemingly floating on the Wumu ship’s railing.
“Outsider,” the Lord of the Sword Tower’s icy voice rang out, “This is Mingyue Island, governed by my Sword Tower! Even if this sea vessel is yours, an outsider, you cannot harm the people of Mingyue Island. Since you have injured one of my people, Mingyue Island will surely impose severe punishment. Come with me to the Sword Tower!”
“Without hearing the whole story, you intend to arrest someone?” Teng Qingshan smiled faintly, glancing at Xiao Jun. Xiao Jun immediately understood Teng Qingshan’s meaning and looked up towards the Wind-Raging Eagle circling overhead.
“In Mingyue Island, outsiders are not permitted to run rampant!” The Lord of the Sword Tower’s eyes turned cold. “Resist further, and do not blame me for showing no mercy.”
As the saying goes, one should not favor relatives over fairness, yet Teng Qingshan witnessed a clear case of 'favoring relatives over reason' today.
“Yooo~~~” A sharp cry of a bird suddenly pierced the air.
The Wind-Raging Eagle in the sky plummeted from the high altitude. The powerful airflow caused the Lord of the Sword Tower standing on the railing to sway slightly before he regained his footing. The entire Wumu ship trembled, forcing many soldiers to bow their heads and bend over, while some screamed, “It’s a demonic beast!”
“Demonic beast!”
“Everyone, be careful!”
Shouts of terror erupted. In the history of Mingyue Island, they had been attacked by passing demonic beasts more than once, which was why they were so cautious.
“Vile creature, presumptuous!” The Lord of the Sword Tower waved his hand, and a cold, white streak of sword light shot out.
“Swish!”
An earthen-yellow streak of light erupted from Teng Qingshan’s fist. With a “Peng!” his inner martial essence collided with the cold, white sword light mid-air, and chaotic energy dispersed violently in all directions.
“Whoosh!” The Wind-Raging Eagle swiftly descended low, skimming near the Wumu ship. Li Jun then leaped up, landing on the eagle’s back, and immediately the Wind-Raging Eagle soared upward... quickly gaining altitude until it was far above the sea surface.
“Brother Teng, be careful,” Li Jun’s voice drifted down from above.
Li Jun and Teng Qingshan had agreed beforehand: if they encountered danger, the first priority was for Li Jun to mount the Wind-Raging Eagle and escape to a safe distance, leaving Teng Qingshan to fight alone. If the situation became too dangerous, even if Teng Qingshan couldn't handle it, he would also board the Wind-Raging Eagle.
“What? This demonic beast belongs to you?” The Lord of the Sword Tower was greatly astonished! On Mingyue Island, no one had ever controlled a demonic beast, as Mingyue Island had no native demonic beasts.
“That is none of your concern,” Teng Qingshan glanced at him. “My Lord, I urge you to leave my Wumu ship immediately, or I will have no choice but to beat you off it!”