The Despondent Anchor

The three men who had kidnapped Chu Xiaoxiao were notorious desperadoes from Nanwan, known by the nickname Pinming Sanlang!

This time, they had taken a job from a mysterious employer, who had offered a huge sum to kidnap Chu Xiaoxiao, the eldest daughter of the Chu Group. If the three brothers pulled it off, they could immigrate overseas and live comfortably for the rest of their lives.

The eldest of the three was their undisputed core. He was ruthless and cunning. The second was timid and sleazy, but he was skilled with all kinds of vehicles and in the art of thievery. He was also very shrewd. Lao San, meanwhile, was taciturn, but the best fighter among them. He had once been a bare-knuckle fighter and was the person the eldest trusted most.

Lao San had ulterior motives, but he worked quickly. Before long, a simple military tent was up. The eldest herded Chu Xiaoxiao inside, closed the tent, and sat down in front of it, never leaving his post.

"Boss, who do you think that employer is? Why kidnap the Chu Family's young miss?" The second man sat down beside the eldest and pretended to be curious, though his eyes kept darting toward the tent.

"Don't ask questions you shouldn't. The more you know, the more trouble you'll get into. Have you forgotten how your previous brother died?" The eldest shot him a cold look. The second was capable enough, but he had too many thoughts of his own and was hard to control.

The second man gave an awkward laugh. "Right, right! I shouldn't have said anything! Don't be angry, boss! Still, that young lady's pretty unlucky. She should've stayed in the big city, but instead she came to this godforsaken place. Otherwise, how would we ever have gotten the chance to grab her?"

"Yeah, we got lucky this time, too. The Chu Group is one of the biggest conglomerates in Min Province. It hasn't been around long, but neither the mother nor the daughter is easy to deal with. The Chu Group is expanding at an astonishing pace. I hear they're moving into Southeast Asia. It's a rising behemoth!

"I figure the ones behind this kidnapping are one of the old established powers whose interests have been affected." The eldest had clearly done his homework. A shrewd glint shone in his eyes, at odds with his burly appearance.

"Oh, so the Chu Family's young miss must be worth a fortune! Isn't ten million a bit low? Split three ways, that's only a little over three million each. That's less than the price of one luxury car owned by some rich kid!" The second man grumbled.

The eldest narrowed his eyes and glanced at him, a cold glint flashing in them.

"I've told you plenty of times: you can only take as much as you're capable of carrying. If you had their power, you could use the Chu Family's young miss to get more out of this. But we're just a knife in their hands. They make us draw blood when they need us, then toss us into the Huangpu River when they're done!"

The eldest's warning glance made the second man uneasy. His throat went dry. "Don't be mad, boss. I was joking, just joking. Geez, Lao San's taking forever to gather firewood. I'll go give him a hand."

With that, the second man hurried toward the woods in the depths of the island.

"Hmph!" The eldest watched him go, a murderous glint flashing briefly in his eyes.

"You've got it wrong. It's split between two people, so that's five million each. Not bad at all..." A whisper in the darkness was carried away by the howling wind.

On the other side of the beach, Lao San stood in front of the "wrecked shipwreck," flashlight in hand, curiously examining the abandoned fishing boat.

"Why are there so many holes? It doesn't look like it hit a reef. Looks more like it was shelled." Lao San scratched his head, puzzled.

In the darkness.

Nie Yun: "..."

Mechanical Insect: "..."

Maybe we'd gone a little overboard...

"Whatever. I'll take some wood off the boat. It'll be much faster than gathering firewood in the woods. What a great idea! I think I've gotten smarter lately. Sure enough, if I keep learning from the boss, I'll get smarter and smarter!" Lao San looked rather pleased with himself.

He went aboard the "shipwreck," swept the flashlight around, and headed straight for the cabin to look for some old tables and chairs.

As soon as he entered the cabin, the bright beam lit up the interior, and Lao San froze. It was completely different from what he'd imagined. The cabin was spotless and tidy, and he could even see all kinds of household items.

After a brief moment of surprise, alarm bells rang in his head. He tensed up. Someone was here!

But then, a sliding sound came from the darkness at his feet. Something tightened around his ankle. Startled, he shone the flashlight down and saw a silver-white cable wrapped around it. He had no idea when it had gotten there.

"What's this?" The flashlight beam followed the silver-white cable upward until it landed on a crossbeam in the ceiling. Lying across it was an—anchor?!

Lao San was shocked. He immediately reached for his dagger to cut the cable, but at that very moment, the anchor on the crossbeam suddenly jumped down!

That was right—Lao San was absolutely certain there was no one around the anchor. There were no mechanisms, either. It had jumped all by itself, as if it had become despondent, and it had done so without the slightest hesitation!

Had a despondent anchor just jumped off the beam to kill itself?!

That was Lao San's last bizarre thought. Then the cable around his foot tightened. "Ah!" After a short cry, he blacked out. When he came to, he was hanging upside down, headfirst.

Before him, the silver-white anchor that had apparently lost the will to live was hanging from the same crossbeam, swaying back and forth just like him. Lao San's mind was a blur. The bizarre situation sent a chill through him.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!" Footsteps came closer from the cabin entrance, then stopped behind Lao San. He couldn't see whoever was there, but he could feel the undisguised malice coming from them.

"Who's there?!" The hairs on Lao San's body were practically standing on end. Someone was inside this wrecked ship—not someone, maybe a ghost?!

He suddenly remembered the legend of ghost ships. Damn, was he really that unlucky? Had his cleverness backfired?

"Thump!" After a dull blow, Lao San's eyes rolled back and he passed out.

Nie Yun casually tossed aside the frying pan in his hand. It melted into a pool of silver-white liquid and flowed into the Sea Wolf.

He clapped his hands and smiled with satisfaction. "Well, we made a great team for our first time working together. Nice, nice! Let's see what good stuff this guy's carrying!"

In the end, Nie Yun found a satellite phone, a Swiss Army knife, a pistol, two magazines, and a few odds and ends like a compass on Lao San.

He stared blankly at the black pistol in his hand. It was a Rabbit Country Type 54, a 7.62 mm pistol with an effective range of 50 meters. It was the most common pistol in Rabbit Country.

Nie Yun had seen a few small-time gangsters before, but this was his first time coming across a real gun.

"Good grief! If it weren't for my little darlings, I'd have nearly taken a bullet!" Nie Yun shuddered at the thought. Rabbit Country's gun control was famous throughout the world, and he'd never imagined the other side would have a gun!

These kidnappers were no ordinary bunch!

Nie Yun put the items away and tucked the pistol into the back of his waistband. Then he glanced at Lao San, still dangling in midair, and waved a hand. "Don't let him go to waste. He's still got some food on him. Remember to tie him up after you've eaten!"

The anchor then melted into a pool of silver-white fluid. Lao San dropped with a "thump," only to be wrapped in a sheet of silver-white liquid. A moment later, every metal object on him had been swept away—even the metal buckle on his belt hadn't been spared.

Nie Yun looked at Lao San, bound tightly with silver-white cables, and nodded with satisfaction. Then he turned his gaze toward the cabin entrance. In the darkness, the only source of light stood out clearly...