The Bone boatman gently moved the oar in his hands. It, too, was made of bone. There were no Dao Patterns on it, and Fang Chen sensed no energy fluctuations from it.
"All we have to do is tell a story?"
Fang Chen and the Myna bird were both astonished. Fang Chen had thought the boatman would demand gold, silver, jewels, or Heaven-and-Earth Essence. He had never expected such a bizarre request.
Fang Chen stared at the Bone boatman. "Will any story do?"
"Yes!"
The Bone boatman nodded slightly.
The Myna bird asked, "Whether it's true or not?"
The Bone boatman turned toward the Myna bird. "Can a story be true or false?"
The Myna bird froze, at a loss for an answer. It asked Fang Chen through their mental link, "Fang Chen, this guy seems too strange. What do we do now?"
Looking at the Bone boatman, Fang Chen replied through their mental link, "Since he wants a story, we'll make one up for him. Let's get aboard first!"
The Myna bird immediately replied, "What if he means to harm us?"
Fang Chen gave a cold laugh to himself. "We'll deal with that if it happens. We've already come this far. Are you afraid of dying now?"
The Myna bird told him, "If you're not afraid, neither am I!"
"There's nothing to fear!" Fang Chen replied through their mental link. "Let's tell the stories first!"
"You go first!" the Myna bird replied.
Fang Chen nodded, then said to the Bone boatman, "I'll go first!"
"Go ahead!"
The Bone boatman nodded to Fang Chen and raised his head to look at him. The Bone boat beneath his feet rocked gently. The azure firelight of the lotus lantern shone over him, making him look rather eerie.
Fang Chen began, "Once upon