You're Courting Death

Xu Hong can be spared, but Zhao Zhixiong's teammates Tai Shuisheng and Bai Xiaowen must be killed.

Tai Shuisheng was merely an Elite Tier MT Awakener, and Bai Xiaowen could kill him without much effort. A group of summoned creatures approached step by step, forcing Tai Shuisheng out of the main battlefield, and then allowing Zhang Ting and the others to temporarily retreat.

Seeing Bai Xiaowen's ill intentions, Tai Shuisheng felt a little scared and took a step back, saying, "Could you please let me go?"

He glanced around to make sure there were no native inhabitants of the Spirit Realm, then quickly said, "I'm willing to comply with the Defeated Party Clause and pay 5,000 Psionic Points to spare me this once... Also, if you allow me to remain in the Jiajing Plane World, I can double that to 10,000 Psionic Points!"

"I didn't realize you were so wealthy," Bai Xiaowen, somewhat surprised, but still firmly shook her head. "However, I won't let you get away with this."

"Is it because Zhao Zhixiong is dead that you're worried about silencing him? Don't do that! I can guarantee I won't tell anyone the cause of Zhao Zhixiong's death! No one will come after you!" Tai Shuisheng retreated again and again, then gritted his teeth, and a talisman appeared in his hand. "I have a return item; you... you can't kill me."

Tai Shuisheng voluntarily set the talisman in his hand to display mode and showed it to Bai Xiaowen.

[Burrowing Talisman: After use, it teleports the user out of the Spirit Realm, ignoring main quest requirements. It can be used in combat. If the main quest is not completed when used, all gains in this Spirit Realm Plane, including but not limited to Psionic Points, equipment, and items, will be lost.]

The return item was very precious, Tai Shuisheng was reluctant to use it, so he tried to bargain with Bai Xiaowen, hoping to get his life back through the Defeated Party Clause.

Bai Xiaowen narrowed her eyes, quickly weighing the pros and cons.

He desperately wanted to kill Tai Shuisheng to prevent future troubles, but after seeing the Burrowing Talisman) in Tai Shuisheng's hand, he realized that this was impossible, at least in the Jiajing Plane World, where silencing him was out of the question.

Previously, when killing Zhao Zhixiong, Bai Xiaowen first lured Zhao Zhixiong with huge profits, so that he wouldn't run away immediately. Then, Bai Xiaowen, together with the Shadow Assassin, killed him unexpectedly.

Tai Shuisheng is now like a frightened bird; if Bai Xiaowen makes any further attack, he will immediately use Burrowing Talisman to escape.

After Tai Shuisheng escapes, in order to take revenge on Bai Xiaowen, he will inevitably reveal the news of Zhao Zhixiong's death to his guild, and embellish it with exaggerated details.

Bai Xiaowen spoke calmly, raising her hand and saying, "You and Zhao Zhixiong have a good relationship, right? You actually got a life-saving return item. He's been so generous to you, don't you want to avenge him?"

Tai Shuisheng looked indignant and said, "You think he's good to me? He just treats me like a follower. Every time I charge ahead, bleeding and sweating, he comfortably shoots arrows from behind and takes the vast majority of the Kill Contribution! He picks all the loot, leaving me only scraps. This return item talisman is something I secretly saved up; Zhao Zhixiong has no idea!"

Bai Xiaowen pondered for a moment and said, "Okay, I can accept your proposal and activate the Defeated Party Clause."

Tai Shuisheng was overjoyed. For awakened individuals who frequently roam the Spirit Realm, the difference between having a return item—a life-saving item—is significant. For example, this time, if Tai Shuisheng hadn't had a return item, he would most likely have been killed by Bai Xiaowen to silence him. But with a return item, he could use it as a basis to negotiate with Bai Xiaowen.

The next time Tai Shuisheng is hunted by awakened beings, he can do the same: pay a portion of his Psionic Points to redeem his life.

However, before Tai Shuisheng be happy for long, Bai Xiaowen quickly added, "A return item must be quite valuable."

Tai Shuisheng understood the implication in Bai Xiaowen's words, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "It's... probably worth ten or twenty thousand Psionic Points."

Bai Xiaowen scoffed, "I'll offer you 20,000 Psionic Points for this Burrowing Talisman. Are you willing? Do you think I don't know the market price?"

As she spoke, Bai Xiaowen showed the [Return Scroll] to Tai Shuisheng. Li Shuyi, who was standing to the side, also showed the Return Scroll.

Tai Shuisheng's eyes widened, a flash of Greed crossing his face, but he suppressed it.

In fact, Bai Xiaowen really didn't know the market price of return items. He just guessed that it couldn't be that low and was just trying to trick Tai Shuisheng. Tai Shuisheng himself had no experience in buying return items. He obtained this Burrowing Talisman from the Spirit Realm with merit points, not from a place like an Earth Spirit Energy Auction.

"The current situation is that if I don't agree to the Defeated Party Clause, you will be forced to use the Burrowing Talisman. If I agree, you can save it," Bai Xiaowen said.

Tai Shuisheng wasn't stupid either, and tried to seize the initiative. "But if you agree to the Defeated Party Clause, I will guarantee that the secret of Zhao Zhixiong's death at your hands will not be known, and there will be no subsequent retaliation, which is in your favor."

"Revenge? Do you think I care?" Bai Xiaowen laughed. "He's just a newcomer from a A-rank Guild. Am I any worse than him? To be fair, Zhao Zhixiong ambushed and tried to Killing Shot me first. There's a notification from the Spirit Realm Rules to prove it. Even if we take it to the authorities, I'm in the right."

Tai Shuisheng said in a low voice, "What exactly do you want? Name your price."

Bai Xiaowen nodded and said, "First, you'll have to pay 10,000 Psionic Points to buy your life. Don't worry about it; compared to the return item, 10,000 Psionic Points is a very low price."

Tai Shuisheng instinctively wanted to refuse, but seeing the Rageclaw sharpening, the Fatty's small eyes gleaming with ferocity, and the terrifying number of summoned creatures... he still gave in. Ten thousand Psionic Points was a considerable sum for him, but it wasn't something he couldn't afford.

"Secondly, you must guarantee that you will not disclose anything that happened in the Jiajing Plane World, and you will not disclose any information about Zhao Zhixiong's cause of death! This must be notarized according to the Spirit Realm Rules, and you will pay the notarization fee," Bai Xiaowen added.

The notary fee wasn't much, only a few Psionic Points. Tai Shuisheng silently accepted this condition, his lips twitching as he asked, "Anything else?"

"That's all. Agree to these, and you can keep your return item and leave the Jiajing Plane World," Bai Xiaowen said.

Tai Shuisheng hesitated for a moment, but then agreed.

The two quickly signed a notarized agreement. Subsequently, Tai Shuisheng traded 10,000 Psionic Points to Bai Xiaowen in accordance with the agreement, and Bai Xiaowen also lifted the summoned creatures from surrounding Tai Shuisheng as agreed. Tai Shuisheng took two quick steps, turned back once more, and then quickly slipped to a short distance away. After waiting for ten seconds, he left the Jiajing Plane World.

"There are still some hidden dangers. Tai Shuisheng may not be able to keep the secret," Bai Xiaowen said.

Li Shuyi asked doubtfully, "If the agreement is violated, one will be unable to enter the Spirit Realm for the rest of their life. Is Tai Shuisheng really willing to bear this price?"

"Tai Shuisheng certainly doesn't want to bear this price, so he will definitely keep it a secret for us and fabricate a story about Zhao Zhixiong's accidental death. However, whether this story will satisfy the big shots behind Zhao Zhixiong is unknown. If the flaws are discovered, the people behind Zhao Zhixiong will definitely investigate, and Tai Shuisheng will become the breakthrough point. Perhaps at that time, he will be unable to control his own destiny."

Bai Xiaowen paused for a moment. Despite these concerns, the options left for Bai Xiaowen were very limited. Extracting 10,000 Psionic Points from Tai Shuisheng was already the optimal choice.

This is better than risking a direct confrontation, allowing Tai Shuisheng to escape the Jiajing Plane World, and then having to proactively report everything to the powerful figure behind Zhao Zhixiong.

Li Shuyi understood Bai Xiaowen's reasoning and laughed, "Alright! Even if they find out, it's not a big deal. We're not to be trifled with."

Bai Xiaowen let out a soft sigh, casting aside his unnecessary worries, and said with a smile, "That's right, there's no point in overthinking. Let's go, don't keep Chen Dong and Ye Mazi, those two Wokou Pirates Boss Tier, waiting."

Kinmen Island is not large, only 150 square kilometers. Bai Xiaowen, Li Shuyi, and Zhang Ting, three Elite Tier captains, began their pursuit.

With the Rageclaw around, finding the whereabouts of the fleeing Chen Dong and Ye Ma shouldn't be difficult.

Having tracked it to the vicinity of a cliff, Rageclaw emitted a low growl.

"What's wrong?" Li Shuyi asked through the Team Channel.

"We're almost there," Bai Xiaowen said. He had Mind Link with Rageclaw Rageclaw and could communicate with it without any problems, practically at the eighth level of beast language. "However, Rageclaw has discovered a new situation: the two scents it was tracking have merged at this location."

Li Shuyi: "So, Chen Dong and Ye Ma met up at one place when they escaped?"

"That's right." Bai Xiaowen nodded.

"Two Boss Tier, though both injured, they're not easy to deal with. They probably still have some pirates under their command," Li Shuyi said with some worry, glancing at the three Elite Tier captains beside her.

"The mission itself is C-Tier in difficulty. If we play it safe and just keep watch until the government troops have quelled the three pirate groups led by Xu Hai, then send out elite troops to surround and kill the two pirate leaders, that would be the easiest option, but the reward would also be the lowest," Bai Xiaowen said. "However, if we personally kill Chen Dong and Ye Ma, the difficulty of the mission will increase dramatically, but of course the evaluation and reward will also be higher."

"So, your decision is..." Li Shuyi glanced at Bai Xiaowen with a half-smile.

Bai Xiaowen cracked his knuckles. "Let's go. It's just a C-Tier Hero Quest. Even if the difficulty increases, how much more? If we can't complete it, then no one in the two-person team of Intermediate Awakened can."

On a low, gently sloping mountain ridge, two notorious Wokou Pirates, Ye Ma and Chen Dong, looked at each other and sighed. Beside them followed several Elite Tier Wokou Pirates, all of whom looked terrified.

"I never imagined that Monk Xu would be so vicious, wanting to wipe out both our families in one fell swoop. His appetite is far too big!" Chen Dong said indignantly.

"Brother Chen, I told you long ago that Monk Xu was no good, do you believe me now? Once we escape this calamity and reorganize our fleet, we will definitely wipe Monk Xu out!" A fierce glint appeared in Ye Mazi's eyes.

Chen Dong said, "Xu Heshang isn't doing well either. He was stabbed in the back by his own cousin and is currently in internal strife, which is why I was able to escape... Unlike you, I don't have any secret techniques to forcibly escape from the battlefield."

Ye Mazi's slightly overweight face was pale as he shook his head and said with a bitter smile, "The price was too high."

Suddenly, Chen Dong narrowed his eyes, shading his eyes with his hand as he looked out at the distant sea. "Something's not right, why are there so many ships?"

Ye Mazi looked in the direction of the sound and was shocked when he saw the flags on the approaching ship, "These, these are all imperial warships! Monk Xu is indeed colluding with the imperial court, and this time he's going to sell us to them!"

"Brother Ye, don't worry about that now. Let's change our appearance and sneak back to Kinmen Harbor to check the situation... If things are still salvageable, we'll lead our men to fight our way out! If it's hopeless, we'll slip away quietly in the chaos. As long as we're alive, we can always rebuild. In a few years, we can still raise a whole new army!"

Chen Dong still harbored a sliver of hope because he had witnessed Xu Hai being stabbed in the back by Xu Hong, and felt that the alliance between Xu Hai and the Ming Army might not be as close as it seemed.

However, the moment Chen Dong stood up, a sense of crisis surged into his heart. His danger perception, honed over a decade of life-and-death experiences at sea, made him almost instinctively sidestep, only to feel a sharp pain in his side as a short sword pierced his ribs.

Chen Dong grunted and slapped out with his backhand. The force of the blow was so great that it sent the attacker flying several meters away.

Ye Ma cursed, "You sneaky little bastard, die!" He swung his broadsword and Power Slash.

However, before Ye Mazi's knife could hit its mark, a bolt of lightning struck down precisely from the sky, interrupting his movement!

The attacker missed his attack and quickly retreated, revealing himself to be a woman shrouded in black mist— Bai Xiaowen's Shadow Assassin.

"You two have made me search so hard!"

A voice came, and Chen Dong, Ye Mazi and several other Wokou Pirates looked over and saw Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi appear at the corner of the mountain valley with a group of summoned creatures.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" Chen Dong asked coldly. He had been stabbed by the Shadow Assassin. Although it hadn't hit a vital spot, it was still extremely painful. Normally, this Wokou Pirates leader would have ordered his men to rush over and tear the attacker to pieces.

But now, Chen Dong Donghu is in dire straits and doesn't dare to be so aggressive. He can only swallow his anger and find out what's going on.

"I am a disciple of the Daoist Gate, so I'd say I'm half a member of the imperial court," Bai Xiaowen said slowly. "I've come here to either kill you two or be killed by you two."

Li Shuyi almost burst out laughing.

Chen Dong was furious. Bai Xiaowen's identity as a member of the imperial court made him even more wary. He secretly issued an order with his fingers behind his back. Several Elite Tier Wokou Pirates understood and quietly dispersed to look around.

A moment later, several Elite Tier Wokou Pirates returned a gesture to Chen Dong.

"Is it just you few?" Chen Dong's courage swelled. He had thought the main force of the government troops was lying in ambush nearby, but it turned out there wasn't.

Chen Dong gave a sinister sneer, "You're courting death!"