Volume 10 The Call from the Sea Route Chapter 9 Black Dragon Island

You understand nothing about the ocean, nor do you know the rules of navigation. You set sail purely on a whim, and the sea is most likely to bring you utter destruction. Shimizutuki Renge looked calmly at Li Bin, speaking in the manner of a teacher lecturing a student.

Li Bin detested such expressions the most. Without a word, he stood up and strode outside. Shortly after, his floating island and troops vanished swiftly from Shimizutuki Renge's sight.

Shimizutuki Renge still had no idea how he had offended this person. Under the circumstances, he had no choice but to send troops to follow Li Bin's forces, hoping to lend a hand at the critical moment and perhaps make Li Bin heed a few words of advice.

After leaving Shimizutuki Renge's Crystal Palace, Li Bin's mood remained unsettled. He understood that Shimizutuki Renge was right, yet for some reason, he simply disliked being lectured by him.

Having no clue what the navigation rules mentioned by Shimizutuki Renge actually were, Li Bin shook his head and decided not to dwell on it. Setting his course according to the navigational chart found on Xuan Yu's volcanic island, he left all operational matters to the floating island itself while he began researching the coordination of his new troop types.

Just as Li Bin's research reached a crucial juncture, a water ghost slave from the floating island approached him. "Master, a large amount of floating debris has been spotted ahead. Shall we salvage it?"

Checking the time and realizing this was only the third day at sea, Li Bin said excitedly, "Let's go take a look. Have them prepare for salvage."

Walking to the outer edge of the floating island, Li Bin saw a wreckage field directly ahead. Numerous planks and several chests bobbed up and down on the ocean surface, and human figures seemed to be faintly discernible amidst the timber.

After watching for a moment and seeing no danger, Li Bin ordered his skeletal pirate captain to lead a vessel and salvage these items. The haul startled Li Bin immensely. From this tiny patch of flotsam came 33 units of wood, 500 gold, a tier-7 treasure known as the Crystal Cloak, and, to top it all off, a survivor rescued by the skeletal pirates.

Upon seeing Li Bin, the rescued man immediately said, "Many thanks to this gentleman for saving me, but I must ask you for a favor."

Before Li Bin could speak, the skeletal pirate captain who had come to report the news whispered, "The technique was extremely sloppy, not the work of a professional. If it wasn't a battle between factions, it must have been a system spawn."

Li Bin nodded repeatedly upon hearing this. In his mind, he swiftly reclassified the identity of the person he had just rescued from a mere item dispenser into a quest-triggering NPC.

"Speak. Where did you come from, and how did you end up in the sea?" Despite the quiet excitement in his heart, Li Bin maintained a stern expression.

However, Li Bin's metallic face and bandaged appearance could only inspire fear. After hesitating for a long time, the man finally said, "I am a merchant from a nearby continent. I was ambushed by pirates. Please take me back to my continent, and I will grant you a generous reward."

Had Li Bin not heeded the skeletal pirate captain's words just moments ago, he might have believed everything this man claimed. But now, as Li Bin looked him up and down, it took him a long time before he spoke. "Sometimes I truly don't understand. Since when does a merchant keep a battle standard hidden in his pocket? Don't tell me this is your bodyguard unit's standard and you only packed it away to commemorate your men."

Startled, the man let out a helpless, bitter laugh. "It seems you've seen right through it. I won't hide anything anymore. I am a hero, or what you call an NPC. I currently have a quest on hand. Will you take it or not?"

"I need to know the details and the rewards of the quest." Li Bin wore an expression that clearly said, *You should have just said so earlier.*

"Very well. Two quests are available for your choice. First, escort me back to my home continent, which is about a seven-day journey from here. Because I am being hunted, the danger level will be higher. Once I am delivered safely, without another word, I will give you ten thousand gold coins and a tier-5 treasure. Alternatively, you can choose to help me exact my revenge before escorting me back, in which case I will split the spoils obtained along the way with you equally."

"Help you exact your revenge?" Li Bin frowned. "Who are your enemies? How did you provoke them?"

"It's a nearby island called Black Dragon Island. I came here to tame dragons, but I brought far too many goods this time, which caught the eye of the black dragons. That is how I ended up in this state."

"Tame dragons?" Li Bin pondered and grasped the man's meaning. "Then do you know how many dragons are on Black Dragon Island?"

"That Black Dragon Island is merely a wild lair, not a gathering place for the dragon clan, so there are only three adult black dragons."

"Fine, we accept this quest, but I want half of the spoils, and Black Dragon Island belongs to me." Li Bin made an exorbitant demand and claimed ownership of Black Dragon Island.

"No, that Black Dragon Island was discovered by my nation long ago. I cannot simply hand it over to you."

"Then I must have at least ten black dragons." Li Bin lowered his demands somewhat.

"Six. That represents two months' worth of troops. Take it or leave it." The man proved to be a master negotiator.

"Very well, settled." Realizing he couldn't squeeze any more out of him, Li Bin agreed outright. "My name is Li Bin. From now on, you may stay on my floating island."

"My name is Soul of Darkness, a Dark Swordsman. Thank you for taking me in," Soul of Darkness said slowly.

Guided by the direction pointed out by Soul of Darkness, Li Bin's floating island altered its course swiftly, drifting deeper into the ocean. Soon, the floating island passed through several clusters of reefs and the wild lairs of various sea monsters.

Every time this happened, Li Bin would slaughter the forces in the wild lairs, taking both the corpses and all the resident troops back to the floating island to advance his research on undead marine soldiers.

Before long, the floating island reached the waters around Black Dragon Island described by Soul of Darkness. Gazing at the darkened seawater, the wreckage of sunken warships, and the rotting skeletal remains floating within, a faint sense of unease welled up in Li Bin's heart.

Moments later, a dragon's roar echoing from the sky startled everyone on the floating island. Taking a glance upward, Li Bin cursed furiously, "Soul of Darkness, are these what you call black dragons?"

"Indeed," Soul of Darkness said with a bitter smile. "These are indeed black dragons, only they have advanced a few tiers."

By this time, the three black dragons in the sky had spotted Li Bin's floating island. With a single flap of their wings, they plunged downward. In the blink of an eye, giant dragons three times the size of ordinary black dragons, clad from head to toe in heavy black armor, appeared right before Li Bin.

Instantly, system prompts revealed the names of the three arrivals: Heavy-Armored Black Dragons, Tier-17 Dark-attribute troops, wild units, guardians of Black Dragon Island...