Chapter 4: The Early Bird

Early the next morning, Shuisheng shouldered his fishing gear, picked up his tackle box, and headed to the Wang'ao Village fishing wharf, intending to sail out for some near-shore fishing.

He had spent 5,900 Donghua coins on a book titled "Essentials of Immortal Power" yesterday, and his heart had ached over the extravagant expense all through the night.

He had spent the night testing the cultivation techniques described in the book, and it was undeniably more profound than the common, lackluster "Introduction to Abilities" he had been using. After just two hours of practice, he felt his ability power flowing with a smoothness and comfort that surpassed the progress of the previous twenty days.

As an unloved orphan, he had manifested water-based abilities about a year ago. With no mentor to guide him, he had relied entirely on his own trial and error, making progress agonizingly slow. Even that progress was only achieved because he spent nearly every cent he earned on books and journals about abilities and ability users, devouring them with a desperate, hungry curiosity.

So, despite the lingering ache in his wallet, he felt quite pleased. The money, he reasoned, was well spent.

However, this expenditure meant his plan to repair his dilapidated fishing boat would have to be shelved for a while longer. Hence, he was out at the crack of dawn, hoping to catch the morning tide when the fish were biting, in anticipation of a decent haul.

The early bird catches the worm, after all.

Yet, while holding this adage as a golden rule, one must also be acutely aware of who is the bird and who is the worm. If one is not the bird but the worm, one is merely delivering oneself as breakfast to someone else. Diligence, at times, is not necessarily a good thing.

Just as he prepared to set sail, three men—a middle-aged man and two youths—approached the wharf, which was still shrouded in morning mist. They carried weapons and, judging by their appearance, were ability users. Their clothes were damp from the mist and dew, suggesting they had been loitering at the pier for some time.

Seeing Shuisheng, they brightened. They scrutinized the boy's face carefully, exchanged glances, and nodded.

"Little brother, are you headed to Fengmen Island?" the middle-aged man asked.

It turned out to be another group of people hoping to strike it rich by heading to the rift on Fengmen Island. It was said that items containing immortal power factors brought back from the otherworldly continent of Wangxian through the rift could fetch astronomical prices at auctions on Blue Star.

"No," Shuisheng shook his head and reached for his long pole to push the boat away from the wharf.

"Every fishing boat here can take people to the island. We're paying, it's not like we're shorting you on the fare, so why not?" one of the youths stepped forward and said.

"There's no 'why.' This is a fishing boat, and besides, I have no interest in ferrying people to the island," Shuisheng replied.

He wanted nothing to do with these three, but the middle-aged man immediately grabbed the other end of the pole. With a gentle pull, the boat, which had just begun to drift away, was yanked back, causing its shock-absorbing rubber tires to slam against the pier.

The two youths jumped into the cabin, followed by the middle-aged man. The already cramped boat suddenly felt extremely crowded with the addition of the three men.

Shuisheng glared at them.

The middle-aged man pulled out a stack of cash and tossed it onto the lid of his tackle box. "Start the boat. This is enough to pay for your fishing for half a month. It’s only a thirty-minute voyage; where does all this resentment and stubbornness come from? If the other fishermen weren't still asleep, and I weren't in such a rush to get to the island, this opportunity wouldn't have fallen to you."

Money can indeed dispel much resentment and stubbornness. So, three seconds later, the boy, lacking any backbone, pocketed the money. "I’m setting sail then. You three, find a spot and sit tight."

As the middle-aged man had suggested, thanks to the existence of the Fengmen Island rift, many villagers in Wang'ao were busy ferrying people back and forth, delivering food, water, and supplies, and quite a few had made a tidy profit.

Shuisheng wasn't truly that rigid or inflexible; sacrificing a few principles for profit wasn't a big deal. Besides, his earlier words hadn't been a matter of principle.

The boat had sailed about thirty meters from the dock when two more people—a man and a woman in their twenties, both dressed in black and carrying combat blades—hurried toward the edge of the pier.

"Hey! That boat, wait! We need to head to the island!" the man shouted.

"Don't pay them any mind," the middle-aged man on the boat said.

This time, Shuisheng didn't agree. "Gentlemen, just a moment ago I said I wasn't going, and you forced my hand with money. Now others want to go, and they're willing to pay too. Why shouldn't I take them and earn a little extra?"

He moved to push the boat back with his pole to pick them up. The middle-aged man’s expression turned hostile, and one of his companions rested a hand on his weapon, his eyes flashing with a threat.

Shuisheng caught all of this from the corner of his eye, and his heart skipped a beat.

He had heard that most of the people taking village boats to Fengmen Island were ability users carrying all sorts of weapons and gear. Some had existing grudges, and on the island, a single word of disagreement could lead to blades being drawn. There had already been several bloody incidents recently.

The middle-aged man suddenly noticed the regulation uniforms of the two on the shore. His gaze sharpened, and he couldn't help but blurt out, "The Heavenly Court organization?"

He then gave a subtle, calm shake of his head to his companions, and the one who had been holding his weapon let go.

The "Heavenly Court" was the official ability-user law enforcement organization of the Donghua nation, tasked with maintaining the stability of the domestic ability-user world. Enforcement officers within the organization possessed the legal authority to police ability users and were held in awe by all.

No matter what the middle-aged man and his group were up to, they were deeply wary of encountering subordinates of the Heavenly Court.

"Boatman, why haven't you turned back to pick us up! We'll pay extra!" the young female officer shouted from the shore.

"Bring the boat over! Are you hiding ghosts on that vessel?" the young male officer added, his voice stern. "We are on official business. Obstructing official business is a crime!"

"Boss, what do we do?" the youth who had been reaching for his weapon looked slightly panicked.

"At a distance of thirty meters, they’ve already seen our faces," the middle-aged man said.

Shuisheng saw the two youths exchange a look and nod simultaneously.

"Turn the boat back and pick them up," the middle-aged man told Shuisheng.

With a heavy, uneasy heart, Shuisheng poled the boat back to the wharf. The water was shallow here, so there was no need to use the diesel engine. Once docked, the two officers in black glanced at the group on the boat with a hint of suspicion before stepping aboard.

The boat was small. Shuisheng steered from the stern, needing to keep an eye on the engine in the mid-section. The middle-aged man and his two companions moved to the front, while the two officers stayed at the back. Both sides remained vigilant, maintaining an uneasy, separate peace.

With five people now on the small, dilapidated boat, it sat much lower in the water. Shuisheng labored to pole the boat into deeper water before adjusting his course and finally igniting the diesel engine, heading toward Fengmen Island in the distance.

Because of the strange behavior of the middle-aged man and his companions, Shuisheng remained on high alert, occasionally glancing at them from the corner of his eye.

The boat plowed forward with a roaring sound. After about fifteen minutes, they were halfway there. The vast, empty sea surrounded them, and Fengmen Island was clearly visible ahead.

"Brother, do you have a light? I’m going to go to the sheltered part of the cabin for a smoke," the middle-aged man said, a cigarette dangling from his lips as he walked toward the male officer.

The latter lowered his head to retrieve a windproof lighter from a tactical pouch on his belt.

Suddenly, the middle-aged man lunged, closing the distance in an instant, and thrust a gleaming dagger deep into the officer's abdomen!