The Petty Man, His Life Spared, Still Covets Wealth

A fourteen or fifteen-year-old cultivator at the Grain Avoidance Realm would be considered a top-tier genius in the Southern Frontier. Even in the Central Continent, they would be extremely rare.

Yi Xuan had considered killing him before, but since the other party was in the pirates' group, it was probably just a matter of being exceptionally talented. Therefore, Yi Xuan acted without any hesitation.

If you're in the Cultivation Realm and you cower before every genius you encounter, you'd better not go out at all. After all, in this world of cultivation, there are plenty of geniuses and those who pretend to be weak while actually being strong.

Yi Xuan's philosophy was quite simple: if he encountered someone with a powerful background whom he knew he couldn't defeat, he would avoid provoking them if possible. But if he encountered someone whose background he didn't know but who was hostile towards him, he would decisively eliminate them if his strength allowed.

But if he encounters those with powerful backgrounds who are already on the opposite side, Yi Xuan's thinking becomes even simpler: fight if he can win, run if he can't.

Anyway, with the support of the Book of Technology, I can find a secluded place to develop for a few years, and when I come back, it's hard to say who will be stronger or weaker.

As Yi Xuan emerged from the Black Tortoise and put all the mechs into his Storage Bag, a ferocious-looking fellow appeared before him.

"Fellow Daoist, thank you for your help. If it weren't for you, we would all be dead today!"

Startled, Yi Xuan only realized what was happening when he heard the voice. This guy wasn't just looking ferocious; he had just been slapped twice by the pirate leader.

Indeed, the person bowing and thanking Yi Xuan at this moment was Liu Yusen, the head of the Great Qian Merchant Association.

Despite being a Golden Core cultivator, he was actually attacked by Nascent Soul, and the injuries on his face would take a long time to heal.

Upon hearing Liu Yusen's thanks, the others on the ark also realized what was happening and quickly bowed to Yi Xuan in acknowledgment.

Of course, many people thanked him, but even more were anxious to retrieve their Storage Bag. Seeing that more than half the people didn't even have time to thank him before rushing to the Sea Clan corpses to search for their Storage Bag, Lü Huang, standing behind Yi Xuan, curled his lip. "What are they? They can't even say thank you? They might as well have died at the hands of the Sea Clan..."

How dare you speak to me like that?

Several merchants who had already found their Storage Bag happened to overhear Lü Huang's words and retorted with indignation, "Who said we didn't thank him? What's wrong with going to retrieve our own Storage Bag first?"

Upon hearing this, not only Lü Huang, but even Liu Yusen looked at the other party with disdain.

However, as the owner of the ark, he couldn't show any displeasure to the passengers. So, he smiled and said to the man, "This fellow Daoist truly saved us. Without them, we might already be beheaded. We should express our gratitude to them!"

"Hehe!"

The man looked at Liu Yusen and sneered, "We should indeed express our gratitude for saving our lives, and I'm not one to be ungrateful. I've even thought of gifts to thank you! But listen to what he's saying! He said we'd be better off dying at the hands of the Sea Clan! Is that even human language?"

"Yes!"

"Even if you saved my life, there's no need to say that, is there?"

After hearing what that person said, quite a few people actually stood behind him to show their support.

Seeing that he wasn't alone and helpless, the man felt more confident and pointed at Lü Huang, saying to Yi Xuan, "I saw he was with you just now, right? You saved my life, so I'm here to express my gratitude! But you should really keep an eye on your dog; it'll cause trouble if it barks! Because of its barking, I'll have to forgo the gift I was planning to give you as a token of my appreciation!"

After saying that, the man turned and left, and his supporters quickly followed him.

However, their hushed discussion still reached the ears of Yi Xuan and the others.

"Tch! What savior? Maybe those Sea Clan came for him; we're the victims!"

"That's right. The Great Qian Merchant Association pays its toll every year. We're already close to North Wave City, how could we possibly run into sea pirates?"

"Maybe that guy is in cahoots with the Great Qian Merchant Caravan, trying to scam us!"

Yi Xuan didn't react much to these words, but Liu Yusen and Lü Huang looked ashen-faced.

Just as Lü Huang was about to unleash a torrent of curses, Yi Xuan stopped him with a look before he could even open his mouth. Looking at Yi Xuan, who was shaking his head, Lü Huang asked in bewilderment, "Why? Aren't you angry?"

"Angry? Of course I'm angry!"

Although Yi Xuan said he was angry, Lü Huang couldn't see any anger on Yi Xuan's face.

Yi Xuan smiled and explained, "I can directly subdue those vicious pirates with my strength. But against people like that, I don't even have the desire to lift a finger!"

Lü Huang nodded upon hearing this, but was still somewhat indignant. "But you did save their lives! How could they..."

Yi Xuan smiled and looked at Lü Huang, asking, "Do you listen to opera?"

Seeing Lü Huang shake his head, he continued, "There's a line in the play: 'A petty person, having gained life, also desires wealth!'"

Lü Huang thought for a moment, then looked at the group of people who had already gone far away, and instantly felt that the description in the play was indeed apt.

Liu Yusen was standing nearby, also overheard the conversation between Lü Huang and Yi Xuan. Although he agreed with Yi Xuan's statement, he was, after all, the owner of the Ark, and no matter how angry he was, he couldn't show it. He could only bow to Yi Xuan again and say, "Please forgive my rudeness."

Seeing Liu Yusen bowing at a ninety-degree angle, Yi Xuan quickly helped him up, indicating that it was nothing to worry about.

Seeing Yi Xuan's generosity, Liu Yusen felt even more guilty. So he said that once they arrived in North Wave City, Yi Xuan would be given the best price on everything the Great Qian Merchant Association needed.

What he didn't know was that just as those people left, several tiny insects, invisible to the naked eye, had quietly crawled onto their bodies and hidden in their hair.

This is a miniature robot that Yi Xuan recently completed. It is so small that even cultivators would have difficulty detecting it with the naked eye. Moreover, because it is so small and made of special materials, it also has a good shielding effect against Divine Sense.

Of course, these tiny robots, which are also able to shield Divine Sense, are relatively simple in function. Apart from having the most basic mobility function, their main functions are positioning and monitoring.

Yi Xuan can use these miniature robots to monitor the location and movements of the host anytime, anywhere.

Despite not making a move, Yi Xuan generously let those people leave.

From that moment on, Yi Xuan had already seized control of their fate.

After those few people expressed their opinions, the attitudes of others greatly broadened Yi Xuan and Lü Huang's horizons. Some stepped forward to express their gratitude and offer gifts, some came empty-handed but sincerely thanked them, and some were perfunctory and showed no gratitude whatsoever.

However, most of them left silently, revealing the true nature of humanity to Yi Xuan at this moment.