Punishment

A faint glimmer of light appeared on the horizon.

On the left side of the makeshift camp, nearly three hundred Slave were gathered together, trembling. Before them stood a group of fierce-looking pirates. A scream came from nearby, and then two burly, tall pirates appeared, each carrying one of the two clearly native Slave. Behind them were four menacing pirate henchmen, each holding a wooden stake, who then erected a crude cross in front of the Slave!

This is what happens to those who run away!

The Half-Elf first mate's face was grim. He had just been preparing to impress Soren, but the very next day, Slave had escaped. This was a blatant slap in the face, telling Soren that he had failed in his duties. Therefore, he felt no goodwill towards the escaped Slave, and even wished he could skin them alive. The Half-Elf first mate coldly stared at the Slave before him, observing their terrified expressions, and said in a deep voice, "All those who dare to escape, this is your fate!"

Clatter

The Half-Elf first mate glanced to the side, and then two burly pirates dragged over two native Slave who had clearly been beaten. Next, a One-Eyed, missing his left eye, stood up with a sneer, holding a hammer and nails. Due to the manufacturing process, the nails of this era weren't the kind we're familiar with, but rather the kind of tapered nails about the thickness of a finger. The One-Eyed winked at the people beside him, and then someone forcibly separated the two Slave' limbs and strapped them to a crude cross.

"No!... No!... Please!..."

The two natives seemed to know their impending Destiny, trembling uncontrollably. One of them appeared to speak a little of the Common, weeping and pleading incessantly, his cries so loud that the Slave below dared not look. But no matter how much he pleaded, it was to no avail. The one-eyed One-Eyed grinned and raised his hammer. Then, he aimed a nail at the native Slave's palm and drove into the wooden stake behind him.

A bloodcurdling scream rang out!

The sound was chilling; streams of blood flowed from the nailed palms, dripping onto the ground along the fingers. The two native Slave being executed trembled violently, their voices distorted as they pleaded, expressing their remorse and ignorance, but ultimately received no mercy. The One-Eyed picked up another nail and hammered their other hand into the stake as well.

But this is just the beginning!

This form of punishment requires nine nails in total. First, the palms are nailed in, then the elbows, then the soles of the feet, and finally the knees.

As for the last nail.

This method is used only at the end of the execution, when the condemned is nearly drained of blood or close to death. The executioner then takes a last, very long and narrow nail and drives it into the prisoner's forehead. Normally, the last nail is not used, as this is a form of execution with a taboo and curse-like nature. Many places believe that if a nail is driven into the forehead and the prisoner is ultimately executed, their soul may be nailed to a cross, and such a person has a chance to become a terrifying Wraith.

The Undead are, after all, supernatural beings!

Even professionals wouldn't dare say they could reliably defeat the Undead, since they can travel between the Spirit Realm and the Material Plane.

Soren watched the entire execution.

He had to strictly stop such escape attempts, otherwise these Slave would become increasingly unmanageable. He was a man who respected rules, and he didn't feel any historical mission to abolish Slave. Even with the technological level of his previous life, Slave wasn't abolished until much later, and the prosperous plantation economy at that time was entirely supported by Slave labor. The complete abolition of Slave in his previous life didn't happen until the 20th century, which shows how astonishing the residual power of this system was.

Its existence is its own justification.

While it may not be a good thing, the current system of Slave is unshakeable because many Deity Church support Slave.

Blood dripped down.

The two native Slave nailed to the stakes were already breathing weakly; their initial piercing screams had become distorted and were now almost hoarse. But the process was not over yet. The blood would gradually congeal, and because the wounds were not fatal, they would need to be exposed to the scorching sun for a while before they died. The torture would not end with their deaths; their bodies would remain nailed to the stakes after they died, and the smell of blood would attract many scavengers, such as Raven.

at last.

The Raven will start pecking at the carcass until only a skeleton remains!

This punishment process may last for a week, depending mainly on how many Raven are attracted and how happy the owner who ordered it is.

Some of the Slave below were almost paralyzed with fear!

Two natives were thus brutally nailed to the cross and then stood upright before them. Next, the pirates began shouting orders to command them to work. Because of the living example before them, the Slave worked with extraordinary diligence. Only when they occasionally stopped to look at their two comrades nailed to the stakes would a trace of sadness appear in their eyes, though some looked on with schadenfreude. After all, half the Slave were natives and half were Continent Native. The natives would want to escape because this was Overseas Islands, their home. But the mainland Slave would never want to escape, because they had no way to survive even if they did.

If it weren't for the scarcity of Slave on the mainland, and their relatively docile nature and high price, Soren genuinely intended to buy more.

"Elder brother?"

Vivian appeared not far away. The little girl, dressed in a black princess dress, raised her small hand to rub the corner of her eye and then said, "What just happened? I think I heard someone scream!"

The little girl slept for a long time yesterday.

She's been very sleepy lately, but the reason is currently unknown, even Soren isn't quite sure.

However, Vivian's condition is normal, and her physical condition seems to be very good. Another noticeable thing is that she is much stronger than before, and now she has the strength of a twelve or thirteen-year-old child.

Perhaps the girl is still developing.

Soren felt that she had grown about one or two centimeters taller than before, and was now probably a little taller than Aladdin.

But speaking of which Aladdin really is short!

Vivian seemed to have just woken up, rubbing her eyes groggily before blinking her big, bright eyes and looking around. When she heard her subordinate explain what had just happened, she pouted and nodded earnestly, saying, "That's exactly right! These lowly Slave! How dare they run away from my brother's private property! They should be nailed to this spot!"

"Let's see if they dare to run away again!"

Soren was initially worried that the kind-hearted girl would be resistant to this form of punishment, but the words spoken by the little girl brought a smile to Soren's lips.

This is his Vivian!

That little girl who said, "If you go and kill someone, I'll help you set fires."

Kindness cannot solve problems.

Most of the time, kindness doesn't solve problems; it only makes them worse.

It is not yet time for Soren to demonstrate his mercy!

The Overseas Islands are now fraught with danger, with all sorts of perilous situations, hidden dangers, and countless troubles. He absolutely will not allow his Slave to cause him any more trouble.

Vivian seems unusually bold today!

She straightened her beautiful black princess dress and tied her hair into pigtails with a ribbon. The little girl alternated between a single pigtail and pigtails, seemingly having a great time. She tilted her head and looked at the two bloodied native Slave nailed to the stake. Then she turned to look at the other busy Slave. Two of Slave immediately knelt down upon seeing her and kowtowed with excited expressions, as if she had used Spell to heal them.

The little girl nodded rather reservedly, looking down at them like a noble princess, and said, "Work hard!"

"I remember my brother saying that if you work hard, some of you will be granted your freedom. My brother always keeps his word, and I believe you will be free soon!..."

...(To be continued~^~)