BXBX NOVEL Chapter 55 - 55 Casualties and Gains_1
Wang Shouzhe immediately grabbed his strongbow and sword, rushing out.
Reaching the deck.
Wang Dinghai, holding a fishing spear with spikes and a rope, directed the crew to rapidly hit the water surface with long bamboo poles. The two family heads, Wang Zhong and Wang Yong, also drew their strongbows, ready to shoot at any time.
“Shouzhe, your timing is perfect.” While Wang Dinghai’s expression was serious, he couldn’t hide his excitement, “It’s a lone East Sea Spearflag, likely flushed into the freshwater by the tide. It is not too difficult to handle. You need to shoot at its vital points when it surfaces.”
Generally speaking, aquatic beasts are no less difficult to deal with than land beasts. They are often powerful and fierce when in the water, and it is common for them to capsize or smash ships.
Wang Dinghai had been an “old fisherman” for more than a dozen years. He had his methods of dealing with aquatic beasts. The sound of the bamboo poles hitting the water can disturb the judgment of these creatures, making them reluctant to ram the ship. At the same time, it will arouse their anger.
Except for a few fish species, most fish, even the fiercest ones, are generally less intelligent than land beasts.
Just as Wang Dinghai finished speaking, a large splash erupted about forty-five feet from the left side of the ship. A nearly two feet long aquatic monster abruptly leapt out of the water, ferociously charging towards the ship.
With Wang Shouzhe’s dynamic visual acuity, he could barely make out the beast’s long, sword-like stinger and a dorsal fin that resembled a triangular flag. Its appearance was somewhat similar to the swordfish on Earth.
But in terms of size or ferocity, it was far from comparable to a swordfish.
“Zing! Zing! Zing!”
Three arrow vibrations echoed almost simultaneously, with arrows hitting the beast one after another. However, the arrows shot by Wang Zhong and Wang Yong only penetrated a few inches into its body. But Wang Shouzhe’s arrow sunk more than a foot deep.
The difference was not due to the arrows, but because Wang Shouzhe’s Mysterious Energy attached to the arrow was of higher quality.
“Beast, you dare.”
Wang Dinghai, the fiercest of the old fishermen, swelled with energy, his Mysterious Energy exploding to its limit, as he hurled out a fishing spear specially designed for large fish, “pu” – it sank two feet into the beast’s flank. However, at this moment, the beast’s stinger pierced a sailor, his falling body showing no signs of slowing as it plunged into the water. At the same time, with a flick of its tail, two more sailors were swept off the ship.
“Boom!”
With a huge splash, the beast plunged back into the water with the sailor.
But the fishing spear of Wang Dinghai was stuck in its body, with a specially made thick rope tied to the end of the spear.
Before it could swim more than a dozen feet, the rope was stretched to its limit and snapped taut with a fierce jerk, “Ga Ga Ga”. This medium-sized merchant ship was pulled to tilt to one side, with the bow swinging under the great tension.
This was a human technique for dealing with large aquatic beasts on a ship. Clearly, the East Sea Spearflag had made a mistake. This mistake, naturally, would cost it its life.
The constant nagging of the fishing spear and the barb caused unbearable pain, though it struggled desperately to get rid of it, the more it struggled, the more severe its injuries were and the more tangled it got in the specially made rope.
Welcoming it next were the remote attacks from Wang Shouzhe and the others’ strongbows.
Even so, Wang Shouzhe and the others had to empty a quiver of arrows before the East Sea Spearflag finally stopped struggling and turned belly-up. The sailors came together to slowly haul it back in.
By this time, the body of the sailor pierced by the beast’s stinger had long been thrown out, washed away by the tide to who knows where. Of the sailors who fell overboard, only one was rescued. The other one was probably swept away by the underwater current, and couldn’t be found.
Although they had killed a Level Two aquatic beast, they lost two lives in the process, which cast a shadow over Wang Shouzhe’s face.
The morale of the crew was also very low, after all, the ones who died were their comrades.
“Shouzhe, fighting a Level Two aquatic beast, today can be considered a great victory,” Wang Dinghai came over and patted Wang Shouzhe’s shoulder, comforting him before saying, “Even bloodline clansmen and family heads could die in battle, it’s not impossible.”
Wang Shouzhe understood that while Level Two beasts were classified at the same level as the Advanced stage of the Vital Energy Refining Realm, beasts were generally much stronger than humans at the same level.
Moreover, this world was ultimately different from Earth. Humans have always been competing with beasts for survival space. Because humans live on land, the land beasts in human habitats have long been eradicated, making it relatively safe.
However, how many people would die in such eradication and colonization was unpredictable.
But conditions were different underwater.
Humans do not live in water. A large river like Peace River has a wilderness source and multiple tributaries; some of these tributaries lead to unexplored fierce water marshes, the paradise of water-dwelling fierce beasts.
It’s precisely this extensive water system that allows water-dwelling beasts to continuously appear within the realms of human habitation. Otherwise, humans’ annual hunting activities would have long since wiped clean the beasts within their habitats.
This East Sea Spearflag is obviously a sea beast. At a moment of bad luck, it was swept into the freshwater river by the tide. Moreover, it had no experience dealing with humans. The ocean is immeasurably vast, hiding countless terrifying species that humans are still unable to fully comprehend to this day. Because of this, merchant ships are usually constructed not only large but also very sturdy, and are equipped with weaponry such as siege equipment. And the city wall on Golden Sand Island, naturally, is not just set up to guard against human trespassers…
The beasts within the sea also aren’t herbivores.
After slightly collecting his thoughts, Wang Shouzhe said: “Sixth Uncle, it’s time to distribute the condolences and rewards.”
“Of course, it will be according to the traditional high standard, with each deceased worker receiving a condolence amount of 30 Qian Gold. That’s 60 for the two deceased, which I will handle personally.” Wang Dinghai, having experienced such events before, showed little emotional reaction. “The remaining twenty crewmen will each receive two Qian Gold pieces as hush money and a reward, totaling 40 Qian gold. Our total expenditure will be too Qian gold.”
100 Qian gold isn’t a small amount, but the workers’ compensation is also typically high.
However, Wang Shouzhe willingly handed over 100 Qian Gold to Wang Dinghai to take care of it.
Upon hearing each of them would receive two Qian gold, the once-angered workers instantly had their spirits lifted. The overall earnings for the ship workers, who put their lives at risk, weren’t poor, but two Qian gold pieces counted as a significant bonus.
Their feelings were exhilarated and excited, assisting Wang Zhong and Wang Yong in dragging the beast’s carcass onto the ship deck bit by bit.
“We need to depart quickly. Wang Zhong, Wang Yong, get the prey into ship’s hold and start cleaning the deck. We shouldn’t stay here long.” Wang Dinghai immediately issued the next order, and explained to Wang Shouzhe, “This water territory isn’t our families hunting area, but belongs to the Left Family of Donggang. It would be best for us to leave as soon as possible to avoid further complications.”
Without a doubt, Wang Dinghai, a man who has made a living for a long time on the water, made a wise decision.
About a quarter of an hour after the ship set off, they encountered the Left Family’s fishing fleet from a distance. The tide was rising at this time, making it the best fishing opportunity for this water area.
They saw a passing medium-size merchant ship. But being busy with the golden fishing period, they had no intention to approach and inquire. After all, commercial and passenger ships coming and going were not uncommon in Peace River.
Next, they safely passed through the Left Family’s water territory without any mishap.
“Congratulations, Family Head.” Wang Zhong and Wang Yong also took a moment to deal with the East Sea Spearflag and gladly reported, “The Spearflag is estimated to weigh more than a thousand jin. Even after removing the inedible parts, there’s still at least 700 jin. We’ve made a killing.”
The meat of a Level Two Fierce Beast is a few times more expensive than that of a Level One, and has better effects when it comes to replenishing vital energy and blood. Just the fish meat alone is worth several hundred Qian gold.
The skin of the Spearflag also has great value. After special processing, it can be transformed into high-end water-resistant clothing that enhances a Profound Martial practitioner’s Water Escape Technique and their defense.
All edible parts, even the fish intestines and liver, will be consumed.
The non-edible bones and spines, on the other hand, can be dried and ground into Spirit Fish bone powder for use as fertilizer in the Spirit Fields.
Overall, not a single part of such an expensive and rare Spirit Fish will go to waste.
Furthermore, the swim bladder of the Spirit Fish is extremely valuable. After special processing and drying, it becomes the highly coveted Spirit Fish Collagen.
This is the most expensive part of a Spirit Fish. It’s consumed by women after childbirth to prevent postpartum hemorrhaging, and to nourish and restore their energy and blood.
However, only women of Profound Martial noble families can consume such a nutritious delicacy during childbirth. Ordinary families’ women would have no opportunity.
“Remember to note the fish collagen in the clan’s repository ledger when it is processed. It will serve as part of my sister’s dowry when she gets married,” Wang Shouzhe instructed after a thought.
“Of course,” Wang Zhong replied with a grin. “The collagen from the Red-tailed Spirit Bream that the former Family Head hunted is also stored away, it’s definitely meant for Miss Luoyi’s dowry.”
Wang Luoyi, being a legitimate daughter of the Wang Family, will naturally have the finest Spirit Fish Collagen as a part of her dowry.
At the same time, under normal circumstances, Wang Shouzhe wouldn’t need to worry about this for Miss Liu.
As a legitimate daughter of the Liu Family, when she marries Wang Shouzhe, she will naturally bring high-quality Spirit Fish Collagen as part of her dowry. This is a token of love from her parents, with hopes that she recovers healthily post-childbirth.
The customs and traditions of Profound Martial noble families permeate every aspect of life.