659: chain reaction

“Remember, the initial spread of this truth must also be near Kong Ming Island, discreetly. Duan Kong, that scoundrel, his gains were all ruined by Little Devil Buddha.

He hates Little Devil Buddha to death, yet he wants to use us to cause trouble for Little Devil Buddha. What good things is he thinking of?

The only ones who could know these things are probably me and Duan Kong. Since I'm dead, it's natural that Duan Kong couldn't stand it and decided to scheme against Little Devil Buddha…”

Scarface wrote down Shen Bei's words and finally understood why the Captain had issued a gag order after returning, and had never appeared again after outsiders boarded the Ghost Ship…

Scarface left, and Shen Bei happily sipped his tea. Drinking tea and issuing sky-high bounties to hunt others felt really good.

Most importantly, this bounty didn't actually cost any money.

It was impossible for anyone to capture Little Devil Buddha alive and bring him back for the bounty.

As for someone finding out that the Youling Pirates issued the bounty…

The Captain was killed by Little Devil Buddha. Is there a problem with issuing a bounty for revenge?

It would be a problem if there was no reaction.

Little Devil Buddha, that insidious fellow, dared to scheme against me.

If I say this isn't over, it's absolutely not over.

If I don't scheme back, what about my Face, Shen Bei?

…

“Everyone, we have discussed it. The Captain said many times before that reputation comes first.

Even if the Captain's life or death is uncertain, we cannot damage the Ghost Ship's reputation. We can return now!” Scarface said in a low voice, his head bowed, so no one could see his expression…

His acting was still not good enough; he was afraid of performing poorly…

But to the other fat sheep, they were almost moved to tears.

Look, look, this is the Youling Pirates' reputation, absolutely fair and honest, what they say is what they do.

The Captain is dead, yet they still manage to fulfill their promise. The First Mate's fists are white from clenching, his Face so gloomy it could drip black water, yet he still says this.

Six hundred and six-grade spirit crystals? A thousand six-grade spirit crystals?

Not expensive at all, not expensive at all, it's too worth it.

On the deck, a crew member was red-faced, almost laughing out loud. Wasn't the Captain just holed up in the cabin…

Scarface glared at him, his eyes full of Killing Intent. The crew member shuddered, gritted his teeth, and slapped himself onto the ground, wailing.

“The Captain hasn't returned, I'm not leaving, I'm not leaving…”

After wailing a few times, he found he couldn't cry, so he gritted his teeth again, slapped himself several times, swelling his Face, and continued to wail.

“The Captain's kindness to me is as heavy as a mountain. I haven't repaid him yet. How can I leave? Leaving would be worse than a pig or a dog. I'm not leaving, I'd rather die than leave…”

“Drag him away.” The Killing Intent in Scarface's eyes dissipated, and he roared. Immediately, crew members dragged the scene-stealing crew member away…

“Hoist the sails, full speed ahead!” Scarface roared, then turned and entered the cabin.

On the deck, a group of fat sheep who wouldn't bat an eye at murder and robbery now felt a bit ashamed…

They had heard of the Youling Pirates' notorious reputation before, and also heard that they followed rules. Now they understood; they felt inferior…

In the future, for any matters or business, they would choose the Ghost Ship's pirates.

At least it's quite reliable…

Aside from being extremely greedy for money, there were no other flaws.

The Ghost Ship was extremely fast, returning at full speed. In just one day, it was back in the South Sea.

Upon arriving in the South Sea, upholding the principle of considering their passengers, fearing they might be ambushed as soon as they disembarked, which would damage the Ghost Ship's reputation.

Therefore, the Ghost Ship delivered everyone home, painstakingly taking each person back.

During this process, some crew members also quietly disembarked, and some took the opportunity to disembark, take care of business, and then return…

While the Ghost Ship's reputation greatly soared, pages of bounty gold also spread throughout the South Sea…

Various rumors also spread along with them.

Those who went up the Ascension Tide found the Burial Sea Secret Lord's mausoleum!

The Fu Tu Demon Sect's Burial Sea Secret Canon was lost. No wonder no successor of the Secret Canon had appeared for so many years.

Little Devil Buddha obtained the precious scroll recording the Secret Canon!

And some quick-reacting major powers, upon hearing this rumor, immediately traced it back, quickly reaching Kong Ming Island…

Coupled with a bunch of fat sheep who returned alive and went back to their respective homes, upon hearing this rumor, they immediately began spreading various new rumors…

A story told three times becomes true.

The final result of the spreading was that a group of people emphatically confirmed that it was exactly what Duan Kong himself had said, not a single word different!

Thus, before Little Devil Buddha was even seen, Duan Kong became the target of all criticism.

The major powers of the South Sea all came knocking, indirectly.

After being harassed beyond endurance, Duan Kong directly spoke in front of everyone.

“That's right, that's the Burial Sea Secret Lord's mausoleum. The barrier collapsed, and Little Devil Buddha has a section of a pagoda spire, which belongs to the Burial Sea Secret Lord! My gains were all ruined by him!”

Duan Kong even produced the twisted black chain to corroborate his statement…

However, this statement was spread less than three times before it became Duan Kong personally admitting that Little Devil Buddha possessed the Secret Canon scroll.

Because he resented his gains being ruined by Little Devil Buddha, he deliberately spread this news to scheme Little Devil Buddha's death.

Shen Bei stayed on the Ghost Ship, listening to Scarface recount the collected information, especially when he saw the news purchased from an intelligence dealer…

Shen Bei was stunned as he read it.

After a long while, Shen Bei let out a long breath, still feeling lingering fear. These people were too crazy.

Now, this unconfirmed news, even the major intelligence dealers of the South Sea dared to sell as true news.

Little Devil Buddha's whereabouts were sold at an exorbitant price.

This time, these intelligence dealers were going to make a fortune. According to the newly obtained whereabouts, Little Devil Buddha's trace had already appeared in the South Sea.

And how many people this news was sold to by the intelligence dealers, no one knew…

Shen Bei also didn't expect that just a gentle ripple on the calm water would stir up a colossal wave.

He had greatly underestimated Cultivators' desire for classics…

The satiated man doesn't know the hunger of the starving man.

He originally thought many people would be deterred by the Fu Tu Demon Sect's prestige and wouldn't go too far…

Who would have thought, everyone went crazy.

Intelligence dealers made huge profits, and even those with some clues could sell them for a good price.

Besides the initial gold pages thrown out, who knows how many people later printed bounty gold pages and spread them everywhere.

The ones Shen Bei initially printed didn't even make a splash.

Thus, those involved with the gold pages also made huge profits.

The flow of Cultivators greatly increased, and through mutual exchange, many street vendors also earned a lot…

The chain reaction stirred up a stagnant pool, meaning that Little Devil Buddha alone single-handedly boosted the South Sea's GDP by at least ten percentage points.

It was all because of the precious scroll.

As for Little Devil Buddha, he hadn't been doing well these past few days…

After much hiding and sneaking, he finally returned from the Secret Realm, flowing downstream against the Ascension Tide, facing numerous dangers. Several times, he had to use the pagoda spire as a solitary boat to barely get through.

Recovering the lost Secret Canon for the Sect, such a meritorious deed was enough for him to rest on his laurels. At the very least, the Sect's resources would definitely be generously supplied in the future.

All sorts of benefits would also continuously flow, cultivating him as the next Dao Lord.

Shen Bei, the only one who confirmed that the Burial Sea Secret Canon was inscribed on the wall of the pagoda spire, was killed in the Secret Realm. No one would know that the first volume of the Burial Sea Secret Canon had appeared.

It was simply perfect.

However, after returning to the South Sea, he was ambushed that very day. Fortunately, the opponent's strength was not great, and he was immediately suppressed and killed.

But afterward, he was always inexplicably attacked. The attackers were not his opponents; they were basically just delivering themselves to him.

But after several such instances, Little Devil Buddha realized something was wrong.

At first, he thought it was just ordinary murder and treasure snatching, as it was normal for daring individuals to take risks since he returned from where the Ascension Tide was located.

But now, looking at the several corpses at his feet and a scattered bounty gold page on the ground, Little Devil Buddha's Face was ashen. He knew he was exposed and targeted.

Having grown up in the Fu Tu Demon Sect, he understood all too well the consequences of carrying a precious Secret Canon scroll and being known to be out in the open.

Little Devil Buddha clutched the gold page, his Face livid. It was clearly written on the back of the gold page that the Ghost Ship was among the bounty contributors, to avenge its Captain.

Shen Bei was dead, so who exactly leaked the news?

He couldn't figure it out, but this island he was on could no longer be stayed on, and he couldn't land on it again in the future…