The Cruelty of the World

"..."

Hearing Jin An's question, Huo Shaoshan's entire body instantly stiffened.

As if he had recalled something painful, he tore off the hat on his head and clenched it tightly in his hand.

After seeing the numb expressions on those people's faces, the shame on his face turned into raging fury.

"You're just a passerby. Don't get involved in this."

His voice was hoarse. He did not want anyone else dragged into this mess.

Jin An pointed east. "I'm guessing all the answers are over there."

He had been observing the expressions of the people around them and noticed that many of their eyes were subtly glancing east.

"How did you know..."

Realizing he had misspoken, Huo Shaoshan hurriedly stopped himself.

However, those words also proved that Jin An's guess had been correct.

"Are you willing to tell me what happened on this island now?" Jin An asked.

A trace of hesitation flashed through Huo Shaoshan's eyes. Too many people on this island were involved. Even if this man got involved, he would not be able to change anything. Instead, he would only bring danger upon this kindhearted man.

"Are you even a fucking man? Why are you hemming and hawing? I'm not afraid, so what the hell are you imagining over there?"

Jin An sighed. He felt that the younger Huo Shaoshan was overly fussy, but he also thought the kid had a kind heart.

Huo Shaoshan truly considered him a merchant and was afraid he would provoke someone he could not afford to offend.

The problem was, he was not merely a merchant. If he had not needed to investigate in secret and gather evidence, he would have already charged east with a blade in hand.

"Fine! Then I'll tell you everything I know!"

Since the person involved had said so much, if he continued hesitating, it would only make him look afraid.

He put his hat back on and used it to hide his face. "Follow me. It's in this area."

The problem here was actually very simple: collusion between officials and merchants, as well as collusion between officials—the Marines—and criminals—the pirates.

This island had been completely corrupted by powerful forces. Ordinary people could only resign themselves to fate and had no chance to resist at all.

Different factions made different demands of ordinary people. Some wanted power and political achievements, some wanted money, and others wanted everything.

The Marines raided, murdered, and plundered the surrounding areas under the pirates' banner, gaining wealth.

Then they sent out a squad of Marines under the banner of exterminating pirates, slaughtered innocents to claim credit, and traded that credit for promotion.

Under the Marines' protection, the pirates abducted children and sold them for high prices, making money.

Merchants forcibly seized homes, traded weapons, and raised prices outrageously, making enormous fortunes.

And to the east was the pirates' nest.

"Help!!"

A young girl's heart-wrenching cries came from the distance.

The eyes of the surrounding people flickered. Then, as though they had remembered something, everyone covered their ears in hatred, unwilling to hear those cries any longer.

Even though Huo Shaoshan had seen this scene many times, his heart still ached terribly. He could not blame those who pretended to be deaf.

Because they had all experienced this before. Their family members had all been taken away.

"You stay here. I'll be right back!"

Huo Shaoshan drew his sword, spoke to Jin An beside him, and then took off running.

The direction he ran was the same direction from which the girl had cried for help.

Of course, Jin An did not listen to Huo Shaoshan's arrangement. With a leap, he vanished from where he stood.

The wooden door of the house where the girl was had been thrown wide open.

A group of pirates surrounded the low house, disgusting lewd laughter coming from their mouths.

"Boss, hurry up and finish. Your brothers want a taste too, hehehe..."

"Yeah, Boss. This chick we found is pretty damn fine. I can barely hold myself back."

The leader laughed and cursed, "What the fuck are you rushing me for? All you do is rush me every day. Why doesn't anyone rush to do the serious work?"

"You all get out first. Once I'm done, you can come in."

As he spoke, he drove the group outside. After shutting the door, he ignored the girl's cries and slapped her across the face.

The girl was knocked onto the bed by the slap. She was completely dazed, lying there blankly. She had even forgotten to cry, and tears only continued flowing from the corners of her eyes.

"Don't know what's good for you!"

The man spat, ignored the girl's reaction, and prepared to take off his clothes.

Knock, knock, knock!

Steady knocking sounded at the door.

"Knock my ass! I haven't even taken off my pants yet!"

The man cursed under his breath, assuming his underlings were already trying to rush in. He ignored them and continued with his business.

Knock, knock, knock!

"Water meter inspection!"

A strange voice reached the man's ears.

"If you don't open the door, I'll let myself in."

Jin An pushed open the tightly shut wooden door. The first thing that entered his sight was a nauseating red.

There was no lamp in the room. The sun had yet to set, but the interior was dim. A young girl lay on the bed, while a bare-chested man stared at the doorway in astonishment.

A bleeding man lay beside the bed, his body still twitching constantly. If he was not saved soon, he would die.

"You hurt someone?"

The elegant smile on his face instantly turned bone-chillingly cold.

He had rushed here as fast as he could, yet he had still been too late.

"Huh? Why are these pirates lying on the ground?"

Huo Shaoshan finally arrived outside the house as well. He first saw the pirates lying outside, and just as he was wondering what had happened, Jin An's voice came from inside.

"Find a doctor as fast as you can. Remember, hurry!"

Jin An left the pirate leader standing there and went to stop the girl's father's bleeding first.

The wound was not deep, and he had not lost too much blood. He could be saved.

Huo Shaoshan ran into the house, saw the mess all over the floor, and understood why Jin An had told him to get a doctor.

"Understood. I'll go right away!"

He saw the shadow of his superior in Jin An. No, this presence was many times stronger than his superior's, making him choose to obey the order.

After finishing the emergency treatment, Jin An removed his coat and covered the girl with it. He helped straighten her disheveled hair. "Don't be afraid. I'm here."

"Sir, I don't know what I did wrong to make you want to kill me. I'll change, I swear."

The pirate leader prostrated himself on the ground, his body trembling uncontrollably.

The brothers outside had died without even making a sound, leaving him drenched in cold sweat. He thought he had unknowingly offended the man before him somehow.

"You don't need to apologize to me. (Die.)" Jin An cast him a disgusted glance.

The pirate leader looked at Jin An in confusion, not knowing what he meant.

Jin An took out a Den Den Mushi and asked, "Did you come from the east?"

The man nodded. "Yes. We're all Lord Belial's subordinates, responsible for coming here to 'collect' some supplies."

"..."

Ah, crows are black everywhere.

Pirates produced nothing and indulged in pleasure. Their mouths were full of freedom and brotherhood. They held banquets when they were happy and held banquets when they were sad.

Most people only saw pirates' enjoyment, pirates' freedom, drifting across the sea and living lives of extravagance.

Yet they did not know how many people had been robbed by them, how many families had been destroyed because of them.

This was the sorrow of an era, and also the sorrow of the people living in this world.

After recording everything with the Den Den Mushi as evidence, Jin An kicked the man's head apart.