Grinding EXP From a Demon Hunting Ship

He turned his head, and Mr. Jian seemed to have realized something as well.

The two exchanged a look and nodded.

They followed the decurion toward the small hut.

The other Blazing Flame Guards didn’t stop them.

Soon, Xv Xiuping and Mr. Jian returned.

"Mr. Jian, what’s the word?"

"Mr. Xu, were the negotiations successful?"

A group of people gathered around them nervously.

"Fellow cultivators, time is short, so I’ll get straight to the point... Thanks to Mr. Jian’s reputation, the Blazing Flame Guard officer is willing to be lenient!"

"That’s great!"

Everyone’s expression relaxed.

"However, it’s not free," Xv Xiuping added.

"If you want to avoid District Twelve, you need to pay a sum of Spirit Stones to the Blazing Flame Guard!"

"How many Spirit Stones?"

"Eight thousand!"

"What?!"

"So many! They might as well just rob us!" the cultivators exclaimed in shock.

It was true that a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s net worth could be tens of thousands of Spirit Stones, but assets and cash flow were two completely different things!

These Foundation Establishment cultivators were already considered well-off, but less than half of them could produce eight thousand Spirit Stones at once!

"You two, can you negotiate further?"

"Ask that officer to be a little more lenient."

The cultivators’ faces turned ugly as they pleaded.

"What can I do... This price of eight thousand Spirit Stones is already because of Mr. Jian’s reputation. Otherwise, we wouldn’t even have the chance to bribe him."

Xv Xiuping gave a bitter, helpless smile.

He was telling the truth. The situation on the front lines was indeed grim, and cultivators were needed to fill the ranks.

Besides, the Blazing Flame Guard had quotas to meet... If it weren’t for Mr. Jian, a Fake Core cultivator, the Blazing Flame Guard decurion wouldn’t have been so accommodating.

After a moment of silence, they considered the price. Eight thousand Spirit Stones. This was absolutely extortionate!

’But... if we don’t pay, it’s District Twelve... the front lines...’

The cultivators’ faces turned ashen, their minds in turmoil!

Xv Xiuping broke the silence.

"Fellow cultivators, we don’t have much time."

"Those willing to pay, please deposit your assets into this Storage Ring."

"You can use Magical Artifacts and elixirs to cover the cost, calculated at the Flame Alliance’s market price!"

Xv Xiuping announced, taking out a crimson Storage Ring. It was an empty one provided by the decurion!

He went first, taking out assets worth sixteen thousand Spirit Stones to pay the fee for himself and Xv Yiyi.

"Mr. Xu, I’ll pay!" Seeing this, a cultivator gritted his teeth.

"Where do we go after we pay?" someone asked hesitantly.

"District Four. It’s on the second line of defense, so it’s relatively safe."

Xv Xiuping had been thorough and had already inquired about it.

"Alright..."

"Fine, fine."

"They’re just worldly possessions, after all."

Soon, most of the cultivators had paid the bribe.

Many of them used elixirs, Magical Artifacts, and other items to make up the difference.

Of course, there were still some cultivators who couldn’t scrape together the eight thousand and had to ask for help.

A female cultivator in a long dress, her face pale and her body trembling like a flower in the wind, cried out, "Mr. Jian, Mr. Xu, please help me... I don’t want to go to District Twelve!"

"Fellow cultivators, can you lend me some Spirit Stones?"

The amount she was short wasn’t that large.

Among the dozen or so Foundation Establishment cultivators present, if each chipped in a little, they could easily cover her shortfall.

"Thank you, thank you all!"

The female cultivator was overwhelmed with gratitude and bowed repeatedly.

"As a group, we should help each other, shouldn’t we?"

"Besides, without everyone’s support, these negotiations wouldn’t have gone so smoothly."

Xv Xiuping said with a gentle, refined smile.

Watching this scene, Xv Yiyi, who was standing to the side, felt a greater sense of approval for this small circle.

’But...’ A flicker of worry crossed her eyes.

’Cultivator Su Han...’ Xv Yiyi thought to herself, her expression unchanging as she glanced into the distance at Su Ye, who stood alone, keeping his distance from them.

As if guided by an impulse, Xv Yiyi sent a Divine Sense transmission, briefly explaining the situation.

"Cultivator Su Han..."

"The eight thousand Spirit Stones... if you don’t have enough, I can lend you some?"

Su Ye glanced at her, let out a silent, amused laugh, and shook his head without a word.

Seeing his reaction, Xv Yiyi was taken aback, a hint of annoyance rising in her heart.

She bit her lip.

She turned her head away, deciding not to look at him anymore.

...

*TAP.*

The last grain of sand in the hourglass trickled down.

The decurion took the Storage Ring. A flicker of his Divine Sense, and a look of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

"Not bad, not bad."

"Li... take them to District Four." He pointed to a Blazing Flame Guard and arranged for him to lead the way.

"Thank you, thank you!" The group of cultivators thanked him repeatedly, joy appearing on their faces.

"Wait..." the decurion said suddenly, frowning.

"There are... eighteen of you in total, but this Storage Ring is short by eight thousand Spirit Stones."

"Sir, you’ve misunderstood... That cultivator in the black robe isn’t with us. He didn’t pay any Spirit Stones!"

Hearing this, the sharp-faced young man with the surname Fang was the first to react, pointing it out.

"Oh..."

"That kid is incredibly arrogant. He refuses to pay the Spirit Stones no matter what..." the young man surnamed Fang stirred up trouble.

"Is that so?" The decurion was taken aback.

"It is exactly as he says," Mr. Jian said.

"That guy is unbelievably arrogant. He has no respect for you at all, sir!"

"I can testify to that, too! That’s how it is!"

The Foundation Establishment cultivators all kicked him while he was down.

Those who had been financially strained and had to borrow money to pay the bribe were the most enthusiastic!

’I’ve suffered so much, you have to be even more miserable than me!’

At these words, a cold light flashed in the decurion’s eyes, and a cruel smile curled his lips.

’A troublemaker, huh!’

’I love dealing with troublemakers. Let’s see if I can’t fix you for good!’

The decurion led his troop of armored Blazing Flame Guards and marched quickly toward Su Ye!

"Haha... that kid is finished!"

The young man surnamed Fang couldn’t help but laugh, a look of extreme, malicious glee appearing in his eyes as he stared at Su Ye!

The other cultivators weren’t so blatant, but their expressions also showed the delight of watching a good show.

"You all..." Xv Yiyi felt awful, a tightness in her chest.

"Yiyi." Xv Xiuping placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head at her.

It had already come to this. There was nothing they could do.

They watched as the armored Blazing Flame Guards completely surrounded Su Ye.

"Let’s go."

Xv Xiuping sighed softly.

Xv Yiyi lowered her head, her expression somber, and started to walk away.

But just then, a voice rang out from behind her!

It was the decurion!

His voice was filled with utter horror.

"This humble subordinate..."

"This humble subordinate pays his respects to the Guardian Envoy of the Narrow Sea!"

Xv Yiyi was startled and couldn’t help but turn back to look.

At that one glance, she froze, rooted to the spot!

"What... What’s going on?!"

Mr. Jian was stunned!

Xv Xiuping was also stunned!

The crowd of Foundation Establishment cultivators who had been waiting for a show were all stupefied.

Then they saw it.

On the port, the decurion himself, along with all the armored Blazing Flame Guards, knelt before Su Ye!

"Heh, trying to extort me... you’ve got some nerve, don’t you?" Su Ye’s expression was indifferent as a cluster of flames danced in his hand.

It revealed a miraculous flaming Token, on which were inscribed five large, gilt words: Guardian Envoy of the Narrow Sea!

"This humble subordinate... this humble subordinate..." The decurion prostrated himself on the ground. In just a few moments, his back was completely soaked with cold sweat.

His mind felt like it had rusted over; he couldn’t utter a single word of explanation.

Suddenly, he shuddered and began to kowtow repeatedly.

The port’s floor was reinforced by Arrays; even the physical body of a Foundation Establishment cultivator couldn’t withstand it.

In just a few moments, his forehead was a bloody mess!

At that moment, the commotion spread!

A dozen or so squads of armored soldiers at the port hurried over, fanning out to stand guard around Su Ye.

Then, as if they had rehearsed it countless times, they spoke in unison!

"We pay our respects to the Guardian Envoy of the Narrow Sea!"

*HUMMM.*

A crimson Escape Light flared.

The Crystal Core Master of the port also arrived swiftly.

"This humble subordinate, Wei Yang, pays his respects to the Guardian Envoy of the Narrow Sea!"

"I have failed to welcome you from afar. Please forgive my offense, Mr. Su!"

Wei Yang, the middle-aged-looking Crystal Core Master dressed in a deep red robe and wearing a golden crown, bowed deeply in salute!

"Mr. Su, might this humble subordinate prepare a banquet to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey?"

"Mm."

Su Ye dropped his disguise, his expression indifferent.

Accompanied by Wei Yang, he slowly walked away.

Everywhere he passed, all the armored soldiers knelt on one knee to show their respect!

Meanwhile, the Xv siblings were still standing in the same spot.

They were dumbfounded, their mouths slightly agape, unable to process what had just happened.

"This..."

"Brother... he..."

Xv Yiyi’s mind was spinning, and she was at a loss for words.