Robbery (2)

"Oh, what about these two?" Fanxin Xin pointed to the old man's two disciples. If the old man was no longer going, then these two disciples would inevitably have to leave as well.

The two young men stopped and stared intently at the old man. The one who was keeping the account book felt a lump in his throat and asked, "Master, you... you don't want us anymore?"

The other young man sweeping the floor didn't say anything, but his eyes were also red; he must have been very reluctant to leave as well.

Upon hearing this, the white-haired old man stroked his frosty beard, sighed heavily, and said, "Child, money is a powerful motivator. We've made a fortune this time, but I'm afraid no one will let us live comfortably here anymore. So, I have no choice but to close this shop."

"Then what do we do?" the young man holding the ledger pressed, his eyes fixed on the old man with anticipation.

The old man pondered for a long time, tears welling up in his dry eyes, but he held them back. Clearly, he was also reluctant to part with the two children. However, fledglings must eventually grow up, and eagles must eventually soar in the blue sky; he couldn't keep them tied to his side forever.

He said in a deep voice, "Children, I'm getting old and won't be able to take care of you anymore. I'll give you a large sum of money, and then you can decide what to do with it yourselves! Whether you travel the world or become officials, the future depends on you. I've taught you everything I can, understand?"

The two children finally burst into tears. They knew that their master was preparing to let them leave. Although they understood that they would eventually have to part with their master, they were still very reluctant to leave.

The old man turned his head away, not looking. He was afraid that he would also burst into tears. Of course, he was even more afraid that he would soften his heart and keep the two apprentices, which would be tantamount to delaying their future.

Fanxin looked at the two young people crying their eyes out, but showed no mockery. She turned her head away as well. This was only natural, the simplest of things, yet also the most touching.

He couldn't help them; after all, it was their life, and he was just a pirate, on a different path from them.

After crying for a while, the two young people gradually emerged from their grief and continued working, though their eyes were still red, clearly indicating that they hadn't gotten over this hurdle in their hearts.

Working until nightfall, they finally tallied the amount of gold. The old man took out the ledger, clearly writing down everything about the trees, fees, and so on, and placed it in Fanxin's hands.

Fanxin didn't go to check, believing that these people wouldn't deceive him. He felt that people who could show genuine feelings wouldn't stoop to tampering with things.

And indeed, that was the case. The old man took what belonged to him, but he didn't take a single penny of what belonged to Fanxin; he was perfectly fair.

After the handover was completed, Fanxin left the money exchange.

However, he didn't leave the island but wandered around. First, he wanted to buy food and seasonings, and second, he was worried that someone might harm the old man and the two children. He planned to secretly protect them.

Just as Fanxin had guessed, the group returned shortly after he left, ready to rob him. They dared not target Fanxin, but showed no fear in dealing with an old man and two children.

Just then, the Little Black Cat stepped in and gave them a good beating, leaving them bruised and battered, utterly defeated.

When the old man saw the group of thugs reappear, he knew this was not a place to stay for long. So he immediately made preparations, moved the things he needed, and left the island with his two apprentices.

When the local thugs returned, they found the money exchange empty and had no choice but to give up.

Seeing that the old man had left, Fanxin didn't linger any longer. After buying food and seasonings, he quickly boarded the boat with Bingfeng and the Little Black Cat.

"Alright, let's go!" Fanxin pulled up the anchor, threw it on the deck, and gave the order to the Little Black Cat.

"Alright." The Little Black Cat chuckled, its paws moving like cotton balls as it quickly pressed several buttons, starting the boat and changing course in one smooth motion.

Soon, the ship set sail, heading towards the Beast Kingdom.

"Wang Yan, why do you look so pale? Did something happen?" Fanxin noticed Wang Yan's sullen expression as he read the newspaper and was immediately taken aback. She wondered if someone had offended this feisty girl again.

Wang Yan sighed helplessly, folded the newspaper, and tossed it to Fanxin, saying, "See? We've been framed again."

Fanxin Xin frowned, opened the newspaper, and suddenly discovered a report about the Fanxin Pirates.

The text states that several members of the Fanxin Pirates have been stealing and acquiring a considerable amount of valuables. Furthermore, it seems these valuables originated from other pirate crews, meaning they have been falsely accused of theft.

Some of those pirate crews have been famous for many years, while others are not very well-known and have only recently started out.

However, the sheer number stunned Fanxin —hundreds of pirate crews! Even if he wanted to steal them, it would be impossible for him to travel back and forth between these places in just a few days.

"Damn it, it seems the mastermind behind this won't rest until they've got me killed." Fanxin threw down the newspaper, sat down, and looked extremely cold.

The Little Black Cat leaped into the air, grabbed the newspaper, and then gracefully turned and returned to the control panel.

It glanced at the newspaper, its whiskers trembling with rage, and its pair of black, gem-like eyes were filled with blue flames, causing the temperature in the control room to rise sharply.

Fanxin Xin's expression changed, and he shouted, "Little Black, don't use that kind of flame, or this ship will be finished!"

The Little Black Cat's blue flames can incinerate everything; this ship can't withstand that. Once it's ignited, it'll probably burn a huge hole in it.

The Little Black Cat was instantly startled awake, and the blue flames in its eyes quickly subsided, but its little face remained icy cold.

"Don't be angry, we'll find that bastard eventually," Fanxin comforted him.

"Hmm, but how are we going to find it?" The Little Black Cat was a little worried. That guy was like a ghost in the darkness. He could see them, but they couldn't find a trace of him.

In this situation, it will likely be very difficult for them to resolve the conflict.

"I don't know who's targeting us yet, but once I find out, I'll make sure they get away with it." Fanxin snorted coldly, and with a slight exertion of force, the wine glass shattered into countless fragments, but it didn't cause him any harm. His body was like diamond; simple knife cuts and stick strikes couldn't affect him at all.

"Hmm." The Little Black Cat nodded with a cold expression.

Wang Yan took a sip of red wine and said, "That person must be following us in secret. Once we find him, we can uncover the power behind him."

Fanxin looked at Wang Yan with some surprise and asked, "Did you see something?"

Wang Yan nodded and said, "The other side knows our whereabouts perfectly. If they weren't secretly following us, how could they be so sure? We just caused trouble at the Marine Base, and soon after, they started moving again. I think we've been under someone's surveillance the whole time. We just haven't investigated it carefully enough."

Fanxin pondered for a moment, then silently nodded. That statement was accurate. If the other party wasn't following them, how could they have such precise knowledge of their movements?

"Now that we know this clue, things will be much easier." Fanxin Xin chuckled, a strange laugh that made one feel uneasy, as if being watched by a demon.

"You have a plan?" Bingfeng looked at Fanxin curiously and asked.

Fanxin nodded slightly, his eyes narrowing into slits as a plan slowly took shape in his mind. He then looked at everyone and said, "I'll leave this to you. I'll go find out who's been secretly following us and then find out who's behind him."

"Hmm, but if you go out like this, you might get discovered," Bingfeng said with some concern.

Those guys will definitely be on guard. Once Fanxin gets close to them, they'll probably flee for their lives.

"I am a member of the Soul Clan, have you forgotten?" Fanxin Xin chuckled, a smug look on his face. Members of the Soul Clan can leave their bodies and wander around outside, and apart from other members of the Soul Clan, there are probably very few who can detect their soul bodies.

As he approached those bastards, they were probably still oblivious, thinking they were hiding perfectly well, unaware that danger was already upon them.

Bingfeng nodded in Satori and said with a smile, "Then there are no problems at all. I wish you every success. As for this place, leave it to us. We guarantee there won't be any issues."

"Alright." Fanxin Xin chuckled, his body slowly fading until he became a shadow, perfectly blending into the void. He didn't disappear; it's just that his soul form isn't visible to the naked eye, so when he walks outside in his soul form, others can't see him.

Without hesitation, Fanxin immediately left the control room and went outside.

Once on the deck, he immediately unleashed his Haki, enveloping an area of several miles in radius, and everything within that range was clearly presented in his mind.

He searched meticulously, leaving no inch unchecked. He rarely did this before, because he felt no one could get so close and hurt him.

However, he now realizes that the other party can harm him even without getting close. Therefore, he has decided to completely eliminate this scourge lurking around him.

"Hmm." A few minutes later, Fanxin suddenly opened his eyes and looked at a stretch of sea ten miles ahead. There was not a single ship or person in sight, making it easy to overlook.

However, because Fanxin was very meticulous, he searched that area thoroughly as well. He discovered something unusual there.

There was a hollow stick protruding from the seabed, seemingly containing a Surveillance Den Den Mushi). And the Den Den Mushi's two eyes were pointed directly at their ship. This was definitely not a coincidence.

"Heh heh, you've hidden yourself quite well. But did you think I wouldn't be able to find you just because you're hiding inside a submarine?" Fanxin chuckled coldly, quietly disembarked, and then sank into the sea.

Once in the sea, he withdrew his soul and revealed his true form.

He locked onto that area, exerted all his strength, and sped off at top speed.

It moves at an astonishing speed; you can only vaguely see a blurry shadow flash by, without knowing what it is.

To prevent those guys from escaping, he deliberately went hundreds of meters underwater, hiding himself in the darkness.

With darkness as cover, things become much easier.

Ten miles from the Fanxin's ship, a submarine was quietly anchored. They left only a Surveillance Den Den Mushi outside to observe everything. Then, based on the information relayed back by the Surveillance Den Den Mushi, they adjusted their course.

There were more than a dozen people on the submarine, working together with different tasks. Some watched the monitors, some cooked, some operated the submarine, and some sent telegrams and made phone calls. No one slacked off.

At this moment, they were busy relaying the information detected by the Surveillance Den Den Mushi).

In front of the screen, a tall man in a black jacket lazily slumped into the sofa, his eyes fixed on the screen, his face contorted with a gloating smile.

Beside him was a man in a black suit, who was reporting the situation to the man in the jacket.

"Boss, that's the news from the last few days. They've already taken action, using the name of the Fanxin Pirates to carry out thefts. Hehe, they've angered quite a few pirate crews. According to our information, they'll probably unite soon to attack Fanxin." The man in the suit spoke animatedly, gesturing wildly as if he were about to take action.

"Very good, we'll torment that kid to death." The man in the jacket chuckled, sat up straight, and said, "However, I heard that kid is pretty tough. Whether so many of us can take him down is still a bit of a problem."

The man in the suit said incredulously, "Even if he's incredibly powerful, he couldn't possibly defeat a combined force of dozens of pirate crews!"

"Heh heh, don't forget, he almost wiped out the entire Riot Sea. Don't you know how strong the Riot Sea are?" Jack lit a cigarette, took a few puffs, and his smile faded.

There's no doubt that Fanxin are powerful. Although they made thorough preparations, they weren't able to completely eliminate Fanxin.

The man in the suit's expression hardened. He swallowed hard and asked, "Then what do we do? If we can't kill him, and he manages to poison us, then we..."

They've plotted against Fanxin several times, which must have angered Fanxin. At that point, Fanxin probably won't let them off easily.

The man in the black jacket glanced at him and said, "Heh heh, we have no other choice. If the young master wants revenge, what can we do to resist? Stop overthinking and get down to business."