Mistakenly Boarding the Wrong Vessel

"Han Xiangxiu, third daughter of the Han Family of Chuan Province. My guide is Senior Kong Yue."

"Zhang Dali, from Zhang Family Village in Feng City, Zhang Province. My guide is Senior Zhao Huo."

The young men and women promptly and obediently gave their names, origins, and the names of their guides. In the blink of an eye, it was Shi Mu's turn.

"Shi Mu, from Feng City. My guide is Senior Ye Hongyao of the Mystic Sound Sect." Shi Mu hesitated for a moment, then finally answered.

"What? The Mystic Sound Sect? Ye Hongyao? You've got some nerve, lying through your teeth to toy with me!" The blue-robed man, who had been writing in a book with his head bowed, looked up in fury and glared at him.

"I wouldn't dare, sir. I have a letter from Senior Ye to Senior Sun of your sect, as well as a Xuan Token." At this point, Shi Mu simply took the jade slip and Xuan Token from his robes and handed them over.

"Senior Sun? Do you mean Uncle-Master Sun Tianlong, the head of the Upper Court, or Elder Sun of the Xuantian Hall in the Inner Sect?" The blue-robed man stared at him in surprise and asked.

"This junior doesn't know," Shi Mu replied frankly.

"So you're not a disciple here to take the entrance test, but a disciple of the Mystic Sound Sect?" The blue-robed man didn't take the jade slip or Xuan Token. Instead, he asked with a strange look.

"This junior did come here hoping to join the Black Tortoise Sect. Senior Ye's letter to Senior Sun should be a letter of recommendation, which is why I said what I did earlier." Shi Mu gave a bitter smile.

At his words, the other young men and women all turned to look at him in surprise.

After hearing him out, the blue-robed man's gaze flickered briefly. Then, after a long pause, he suddenly swept his arm, knocking the Xuan Token and jade slip from Shi Mu's hands. He said viciously,

"Hmph. Since you also want to join our sect, there's no need to say anything more. Whoever wrote you a letter of recommendation, it's nothing but wastepaper to me. Everyone, go down to the lowest deck and stay there. No one is allowed back on deck without my order. If anyone dares disobey, they can find out for themselves how I'll punish them."

Seeing how fierce the man looked, the other young men and women naturally didn't dare disobey. They all nodded.

At that moment, several servants with scarred faces and gray clothes emerged from the cabin and led everyone below deck.

Shi Mu felt a little suspicious, but after picking up the jade slip and Xuan Token from the ground, he said nothing and followed the others into the cabin.

The blue-robed man watched Shi Mu coldly the whole time. Seeing that he showed no hint of arguing or defying him, the man couldn't help looking a little surprised.

"Heh, the kid's pretty clever. Looks like he figured something out."

After everyone had entered the cabin, a curl of black mist suddenly appeared behind the blue-robed man, and a black-robed figure wearing a tiger-face mask materialized out of thin air.

"Bone Tiger, you shouldn't be showing yourself right now. Don't forget what the sect master told us before we set out. I'm in charge of this mission!" The blue-robed man's expression darkened.

"Relax, I won't interfere with your business. I just think we might as well toss that kid overboard. We've already provoked the Black Tortoise Sect. Provoking the Mystic Sound Sect too would hardly be wise," the tiger-masked man said casually.

"Hmph. As if one Ye Hongyao could speak for the entire Mystic Sound Sect. The three sects of Great Qi and the two sects of our Yan Kingdom have never been on good terms. It's not as if we've never fought the Mystic Sound Sect before. Besides, the fact that this kid was sent to an ordinary reception point with nothing but a jade slip shows that he doesn't have much of a relationship with Ye Hongyao. Still, the kid's quick-witted. I'd planned to kill him as a warning to the others the moment he showed the slightest sign of resistance. I'll let him off this time," the blue-robed man said with a cold laugh.

"If you say so, I've nothing more to add. Anyway, once the Black Tortoise Sect's people show up, all I have to do is hold off one of their experts for you," the tiger-masked man said with a shrug.

"We've already wounded the Black Tortoise Sect's guide on this route and driven him off. If they send another Xiantian-level martial artist, it'll take at least a day and a night. By then, with the help of the Tailwind Talisman, we'll have already reached the river mouth at the border between the two kingdoms. What will we have to fear?" the blue-robed man said confidently.

"True enough. I'll cast the spell, then." The tiger-masked man nodded and took a square piece of pale yellow hide from his robes. Faint silver writing and unfamiliar patterns were etched across its surface.

"It's a pity this Tailwind Talisman, made from the hide of a Demon Wind Tiger, has only enough spiritual energy for one last use," the blue-robed man said, looking at the hide with regret.

"The sect was determined to retaliate against the Black Tortoise Sect for what happened last time, so it was willing to send us deep into Great Qi. Of course it had to pay the price," Bone Tiger said blandly. His expression turned solemn, and as he chanted an incantation, he tossed the hide high above the ship.

With a pop,

the hide spun rapidly, spewing out stream after stream of green spiritual markings. They intertwined and wove together, forming a green curtain of light. With another flash, it merged seamlessly with the ship's largest main sail.

The next instant, the ship shuddered violently. A gale sprang up out of nowhere beside the main sail, propelling the enormous vessel forward as if it were flying.

Seeing this, the blue-robed man burst into laughter.

The tiger-masked man gave a low chuckle, then vanished again in a flash.

The lowest deck of the ship was divided into seven or eight compartments, with more than a hundred young men and women aboard.

Shi Mu shared a room with the dozen or so young men and women who had boarded alongside him. After feeling the ship's earlier shudder and sudden burst of speed, the others finally couldn't help starting to talk among themselves.

Some introduced themselves and their family backgrounds, while others discussed matters related to the Black Tortoise Sect. Before long, most of them had struck up a rapport.

Only Shi Mu sat silently in a corner, his head bowed.

"Big brother, I heard you say earlier that you were recommended by a senior from the Mystic Sound Sect. Is that true? If so, why didn't you join the Mystic Sound Sect directly? Why come to the Black Tortoise Sect instead?" The thirteen- or fourteen-year-old girl who had been tossed onto the ship alongside Shi Mu was sitting nearby. After sneaking several glances at him, she suddenly smiled and asked.

Shi Mu looked up at her.

Only then did he notice that although she was still young, she was pretty, with a slender figure. She was already shaping up to be a beauty.

"I would've liked to join the Mystic Sound Sect, but Senior Ye said they only accepted women, not men. So I had no choice but to come here." Shi Mu sighed and answered slowly.