116: Chapter 116 Establishing Authority Through Systems and Recruiting Independent Cultivators

Dawn had just broken on the sea surface outside the Restriction line.

Five fishing boats belonging to Loose Cultivators were lined up in a row. The people on deck lowered two small sampans—the sampans skimmed the water surface, their hulls nearly brushing against the spiritual light on the outer edge of the Restriction.

Two people crouched on each sampan, holding long-poled fishing nets, their eyes fixed on the Silver-Scaled Moon Fish within the cold glow of the Starlight Coral.

They dared not cross the Restriction line—although the island-protecting Restriction of Blue Moon Island was only Tier 2, it was more than enough to deal with Loose Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage.

They were waiting. Either waiting for a gap to appear in the Restriction line, or for the school of fish to swim out of the Restriction's range on their own.

On the Pier, Leng Feng placed his hand on his sword hilt. Lu Changyuan pressed down on his wrist.

"Do not resort to force yet—resorting to force is the least cost-effective method."

"If we don't use force—they will sneak in sooner or later."

"Let them try. They won't be able to sneak in." Lu Changyuan took a sound-transmission talisman from his robes and sent a very brief message toward Qixia Peak.

A moment later, the spiritual light on the outer edge of the Restriction suddenly brightened by a degree. It was not the light of the island-protecting Restriction—it was another, fainter layer of spiritual light, carrying an extremely fine Sword Intent, spreading outward along the water surface from the direction of Qixia Peak.

It spread very slowly, like a layer of extremely thin ice pressing inch by inch across the surface of the water.

The Loose Cultivators on the sampans had not yet reacted. The long-poled fishing nets in their hands had already extended into the outer edge of the Restriction line—the tips of the poles were less than half a zhang away from the nearest Silver-Scaled Moon Fish.

Then, that Sword Intent spiritual light arrived.

When the spiritual light layer passed beneath the sampans, the water surface did not ripple—but the Loose Cultivators on the sampans simultaneously felt as if something was watching them from behind—a chill that swept over them from head to toe, like an unsheathed sword sliding across the skin of their necks.

The fishing poles on the sampans slipped from the Loose Cultivators' hands. The poles fell into the water, the splashing sound carrying far across the sea in the early morning.

One of the Loose Cultivators tried to bend over to retrieve his fishing pole—he pulled his hand back before it had even reached three inches into the water. The water was icy—the kind of ice forced out when Sword Intent travels through water, and touching the surface felt like being pricked by a needle tip.

The Loose Cultivators on the five fishing boats all stood up. Someone stumbled back, their back hitting the mast, causing the ragged sail on the mast to shake for quite a while. Someone placed their hand on their Storage Pouch, but their fingers froze—they dared not move again.

"Golden Core—Golden Core Sword Intent—"

The voice came from the boat, dry and raspy, as if their throat was being throttled by something.

Luo Qingcheng did not appear. She simply stood on the stone platform of Qixia Peak, spreading a wisp of Geng Metal Sword Intent along the ley lines of Qixia Peak to the outer edge of the Restriction line.

The Sword Intent itself did not harm anyone—but in the face of Golden Core-level Sword Intent, the bodies of Loose Cultivators at the Qi Refining stage would instinctively tell their brains: take one more step forward and you will die.

No one on the boats dared to move again. Five fishing boats, over a dozen small sampans, and dozens of Loose Cultivators—all were nailed to the spot, not even daring to touch the rudder.

Lu Changyuan leaped from the Pier onto a light skiff moored at the Outer Port berth. Lu Hu rowed, and the skiff circled half a turn outward along the waterway inside the Restriction line, approaching the stretch of water where the Loose Cultivators' fishing boats were moored from the inside of the Restriction line.

"Everyone—good morning."

His voice was not loud, but the air on the sea was already still. The Loose Cultivators turned their heads to look at him—there was something deeper than fear in their eyes: a numbness, waiting for execution in the certainty that "they were about to be silenced."

Lu Changyuan looked at the expressions on their faces. These Loose Cultivators had been drifting at sea for many years—their boats were old, their sails ragged, their fishing poles homemade, but they had managed to survive in the Outer Sea.

Loose Cultivators who could survive between Foundation Establishment sea monsters and magnetic reefs might not have other skills, but when it came to "judging whether they could survive," they were sharper than anyone.

"I am not driving you away." Lu Changyuan put his hands behind his back, "But you cannot take the Silver-Scaled Moon Fish for free."

The oldest old man among the Loose Cultivators—his hair mostly white, wearing an old Daoist robe washed until it was faded, the collar worn thin enough to reveal loose threads—took half a step forward.

"Lord Lu—we are not here to steal. We saw these fish swimming in circles on the water surface, and we thought—"

"I know you are not here to steal. You are here to look—and after looking, decide whether or not to steal."

The old man opened his mouth, then closed it.

"Starting today, Blue Moon Island—is establishing an Outer Fishing Permit." Lu Changyuan raised his voice a degree so that everyone on the five fishing boats could hear clearly, "There are three rules."

"First, Loose Cultivators holding a permit may legally catch Silver-Scaled Moon Fish on the outer perimeter of the Restriction within thirty li of Blue Moon Island—you may only fish in designated waters using designated tools, and you cannot enter the interior of the Restriction."

"Second, seventy percent of the catch must be sold to the Blue Moon Island public treasury at market price—Blue Moon Island will not suppress the price, settling at the market price of the day in the Outer Sea Loose Cultivator markets. You may keep the remaining thirty percent for yourselves, to eat or to sell as you wish."

"Third, Loose Cultivators holding a permit must also undertake outer perimeter guard duties—sending people in rotation to be on duty at designated observation points every day, and reporting any abnormalities to the Pier at any time."

He paused for a breath.

"Those who sign the contract—from today on, are the officially registered outer fishing team of Blue Moon Island. Those who do not sign—row away now, I will not stop you. But do not appear within thirty li of Blue Moon Island again. If I see you again—it will not just be Sword Intent."

The sea surface was quiet for quite a while. The Loose Cultivators on the five fishing boats exchanged glances—confirming whether others had understood.

The old man spoke first.

"Lord Lu—you mentioned market price. The markets outside buy Silver-Scaled Moon Fish—the market price is twenty-five Spirit Stones each. Blue Moon Island takes seventy percent—are you calculating it at twenty-five Spirit Stones each?"

"It will be calculated based on the listed market price of the day. Settlement every three days—a receiving shed will be set up by the Pier, and upon landing, we will weigh, count, and pay Spirit Stones."

The old man lowered his head, pinching the cuff of his tattered Daoist robe with his calloused fingers. He was doing the math.

One fish is twenty-five Spirit Stones—for every ten caught, seven are given to Blue Moon Island, earning one hundred and seventy-five Spirit Stones; the remaining three are kept for themselves—three fish is seventy-five Spirit Stones. In total, one trip out to sea can earn about two hundred and fifty Spirit Stones.

Previously, when selling fish in the Loose Cultivator markets—there was no fixed buyer, and they could only spread them on the ground waiting for people to pick, and if they were lucky, they could sell one for twenty Spirit Stones; if they were unlucky, no one would want them even for ten Spirit Stones.

The Blue Moon Island Pier was a fixed buyer. Settlement every three days—no credit, no price suppression, no irregular holding of goods.

"Old man—are you signing?" a young Loose Cultivator next to him leaned over and asked in a low voice.

The old man put his hand down and looked at Lu Changyuan.

"I'm signing."

He rolled up the sleeves of his old Daoist robe and followed the skiff rowed by Lu Hu to the Outer Port Pier.

Su Qingli had already set up a small table by the Pier—on the table lay a new registration ledger, the cover inscribed with 'Blue Moon Island Outer Fishing Permit Registration Book', with a stack of blank contracts placed beside it.

The old man signed his name with an old writing brush—his hand was trembling slightly—this brush had not been used to sign contracts for too long. He wrote his name on the paper: 'Old Mai Liu'. The handwriting was crooked, but every stroke was complete and nothing was missing.

The news of the signing spread throughout the Outer Sea Loose Cultivator circle within half a day.

By the evening of that day, a queue had formed by the small table set up by the Pier—the Loose Cultivators from all five fishing boats had signed.

Those who had finished signing the contract did not disperse immediately, but stood on the Pier watching Su Qingli issue them "Outer Fishing Permits"—a wooden plaque the size of a palm, branded with the Blue Moon Island mark and a serial number. On the back of each wooden plaque was written the name of the permit holder and their assigned fishing group.

Lu Changyuan added another rule before the sun set: the Outer Fishing Permits were divided into groups of ten, and the leader of each group was to be elected by the Loose Cultivators themselves—the group leader was responsible for registering the daily catch and scheduling observation point shifts, and the group members' catch and guard duty attendance were to be reported to the Pier collectively by the group leader.

The Loose Cultivators divided themselves into four groups. Ten people in each group—taking turns fishing and taking turns guarding.

Evening. On the sea surface outside the Outer Port Restriction line—the first batch of guard observers of the Blue Moon Island Outer Fishing Team went on duty.

Two Loose Cultivators rowed a sampan, slowly circling outside the Restriction line, with warning talismans issued by Blue Moon Island tied to their waists—if an abnormality was discovered, they would tear the talisman, and the Pier direction would receive it immediately.

The same evening. Lords Mansion dining hall.

Lu Hu had caught three Silver-Scaled Moon Fish from the sea. Chen Mo washed the fish scales with water diluted with purification liquid—the mucus on the silver scales dissolved into milky white foam in the diluted purification liquid.

Su Qingli personally stewed a pot of fish soup—adding ginger slices and dried seaweed, with no other seasonings, controlling the heat so that the soup surface was just bubbling but not boiling over.

The aroma wafting from the fish soup drifted along the stone path to the Pier. The Loose Cultivators who had just finished signing contracts and were still on the Pier receiving their wooden plaques smelled it—the old man, Old Mai Liu, turned his head to look in the direction of the Lords Mansion, his nose twitching.

The person next to him nudged him with their elbow, and both of them smiled—the kind of smile that said, "It's been so long since I've smelled such fresh fish soup."

Lu Changyuan took a sip of the soup. The fish meat was tender, and after entering his mouth, a trace of extremely faint warmth arose on his tongue—a warmth slightly higher than body temperature traveled down his throat, stopping once it reached his stomach.

The "gentle Spiritual Qi" that Elder Tianji spoke of was exactly this kind of sensation.

He put down his bowl and turned to look at Lu Hu, who was sitting next to him.

"Prepare yourself. After this batch of Loose Cultivators is settled—we are going to Broken Star Reef."

Lu Hu spat out the fish bones and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"How many people are we taking?"

"Just you and two old cavalrymen—four people. The outer waterways of Broken Star Reef are too narrow; medium spirit boats cannot enter. Small sampans can enter, but with too many people, the target is too large; that one-eyed old man, Warehouse Chief Cui, has been waiting in the mist for ten years and will see us from far away."

"When are we setting off?"

"We will leave as soon as the first batch of goods for the civilian channel is delivered. Manager Song Yuan of Jubao Pavilion is coming on the first of next month to collect the goods—eighty bottles of purification liquid."

Lu Changyuan put down his bowl, "First, finish making the eightieth bottle, then hand over the island's defense duties to Su Qingli, and then we will leave."

In the night sky outside the dining hall, the cold light of the Starlight Coral shone quietly on the seabed.

On Qixia Peak, the sound of Luo Qingcheng turning pages stopped. The new tea on the stone platform had its leaves changed for a fresh round—the tea fragrance drifted down from the peak, mingling with the scent of fish soup from the port.