Chapitre 360: Cornered

Golden Crocodile and others adopt a terrible expression with only three surviving crewmates still kneeling next to their broken ship. Most of the parts of the ship are cut cleanly as if a hot knife has passed through a block of butter and the rest of the crewmates lying in their own pool of blood with organs spilling out show the same clue at a glance.

But no matter what their sharp minds observe at the moment from the wreckage, one thing is clear— They have already failed terribly. With so many Spirit Sages dead and many Spirit and Titled Douluos still eyeing the corpses of the dead Spirit Sages be it for their storage rings or Spirit Bones had left a daunting rift in the mutual trust formed on the foundation that Qian Xunji's divine might is.

At this point, Golden Crocodile cannot claim he can keep everyone in check. The former Elders from the Elders Hall he could but only 4, including Golden Crocodile, joined the group. Even with their strengths, trying to control the remaining 11 Titled Douluos should they wish to tear face away and make do with the treasures would be a nightmare for this small group, and not being in a position of power did not settle well with these four elders who have had the illusion of control from behind the scenes through Elder's Hall.

'The enemy is not only hidden but has left a source of conflict within our group. The easiest way to bring the situation under control is by making an example and sticking together with the other three elders. Unlike the rest, we four can cooperate well enough. Not only that, aside from the four elders, there are also two more elders from the former Spirit Hall.

The rest cannot cooperate due to their different origins so in reality we still hold the upper hand. But the moment other Titled Douluo realize that they need to band together to deal with us, it will become a major conflict of interest. This situation, however, may be hard to come by because all Titled Douluos are naturally arrogant...'

Golden Crocodile thinks about the situation in an instant, 'And I am just a step away from reaching rank 99. The herbs given by Bibi Dong were useful but... a good spirit bone should help me reach the next step. I have my left arm, right leg, and left leg equipped with spirit bones. I need to control the spirit bones first before anything else.'

Making a decision mentally, Golden Crocodile compresses his voice and communicates with the other five members originating from the same faction, "The six of us need to band together to keep the situation in control. Once we control the spirit bones, we control the flow of the group. But because all the ten corpses are in different regions, others will split. We stay together and present a united force. We will hunt down and account for every spirit bone before distributing it accordingly."

The eyes of the other Titled Douluos glimmer. The meaning behind Golden Crocodile's words is clear— We bully others using greater strength and number and share the Spirit Bones within the circle.

So what others don't like it?

Even if someone else gets a Spirit Bone first, they cannot absorb and integrate with it quickly enough. This gives Golden Crocodile's group an even greater advantage to pressure others.

*Shhh*

Before any moves are made, however, the tides around the ocean begin to rise at a pace visible to the naked eye.

---

"Why the hell did I send the full force of the five aquatic beasts?" Bibi Dong looks at Zi Ji with a smile. Aside from the said five beasts, everyone is present in the captain's cabin of the ship making it feel a little congested.

"First problem in the previous plan. You overestimate Qian Xunji. While an admirable notion that will surely save lives, overestimating an enemy comes at the cost of willingly suppressing one's own range of actions. Qian Xunji will not make a move unless Ja Sun does, plain and simple."

"That's not what I asked," Zi Ji scoffs.

"And yet here I am, graciously educating you from the very base. This WILL benefit you more than the act of just answering your question," Bibi Dong smiles gently and the urge of punching someone's face has never been greater in Zi Ji's life than... well, aside from teasing from Ja Sun.

"The stronger we get, the more we realize the importance of individuals at the lower station for the sake of convenience and stability. While I am certain Qian Xunji has changed after his ascension and his core values have changed, many rational things haven't. I am 90% certain that until Ja Sun makes a move, Qian Xunji will stay still, too. Well, to be precise, he will not make any direct moves."

"But... your master cannot sense Master because of the array," Violet blinks. This causes Bibi Dong to look at the lamia with her lower body coiled. Bibi Dong's gaze briefly settles on her humungous breasts and then releases an exhausted sigh.

"We make use of that. Instead of thinking Qian Xunji is well aware of our actions and making moves in constant fear, we use this chance to deliver a powerful blow to the Spirit Empire," taking a moment to consider her words, Bibi Dong continues.

"Eventually, you guys will be the ones to face the Spirit Masters under Qian Xunji. The conflict is meant to be this way. If Qian Xunji makes a move and harms any of you, what's stopping Sun from eradicating the continent while avoiding Qian Xunji? The two will target each other but leave the foundations away for good because they aren't crazy..."

Her gaze then falls on Zi Ji and Liu Erlong who are standing next to each other.

"What?" Both questions at once.

"Nothing," Bibi Dong rolls her eyes, "As for why I sent most of the aquatic beasts under the five aquatic beasts to face the enemy is simple."

"First, I am not Ja Sun in the sense that I still don't own too great of a strength to handle all five of them together. This means I need to weaken them. I can't weaken them physically, it would be stupid. So, I weaken their forces."

"But why?" Bi Ji finally speaks up, "They are not a threat..."

"In our world, true strength surpasses mental schemes. For one reason or another, they are not our true allies. We are just in the same boat because those beasts think they needed to assist us. And the second reason why I wanted to use a large force at once is to drive those Spirit Masters on the island to a corner."

"Again, why?" Zi Ji almost groans.

"That's my business."

"What— then why did you go on and on until now if you aren't going to tell us why?" Zi Ji snaps.

"To... educate you? I remember stating this reason at the very beginning," Bibi Dong tilts her head sideways.

A vein most definitely pops over Zi Ji's forehead.

"You should know that the five 100,000-year-old beasts are truly dissatisfied this time," Yuehua sighs.

But Bibi Dong smiles, "And?"

"And?" Yuehua reiterates.

"Exactly. And? Those five beasts and their forces are 'resources.' Resources are meant to be utilized."

"So that's what we all are, too, right?" Ja Yin snickers, "Resources."

Snow, Bing Bing, and others frown for a moment but Ah Yin, Xie Xan, Oscar, and the other members of the team don't have that much of a reaction.

"Truth be told, you guys are only familiar with Ja Sun and Little Yin. They are simple despite their mysteries. After all, a complicated background never translates to a truly convoluted man or a woman."

"Is that supposed to assure us?" Snow raises her snow-white brow.

"It is supposed to make you understand that once you all are truly familiar with me, you will know better than to ask questions like these. Now, I am counting on the two of you to time your act right," Bibi Dong looks at Violet and Ja Yin.

"Huh, Zi Ji was right... this does not answer my question..." Ja Yin purses her lips.

Bibi Dong merely smiles at that.

---

"Set barriers, quick!" Golden Crocodile roars, "How didn't our scouts—"

And then the realization struck.

The best of their scouts are dead.

Their crew is dead.

And their ship is destroyed.

They are surrounded by thousands of beasts with multiple beasts above the age of 50000 years and now... even the safety of the Titled Douluos cannot be assured.

"Dugu Bo, poison the sea!" Golden Crocodile looks at the green-haired man in viridian armor while adding, "Xiaogang, go can collect the corpses. We will divide their legacy—"

Before Golden Crocodile could complete, a few Spirit Douluos leave the crowd and rush towards the location of the corpses. This has a domino effect as many others who could not hold their greed decide to break away from the formation, too, including many Titled Douluos.

"What?" Golden Crocodile grits his teeth and looks at the vast army of aquatic beasts who are partially revealed before commanding, "Retreat. We have an advantage on the ground. Stop those fools from causing any more internal conflicts. Members that came from the Spirit Hall, hear my order! Anyone who does not submit to orderly behavior shall be eradicated. Do not be lenient!"

Meanwhile, unknowingly, a barrel constructed out of wood hit the wreckage of the ship as even the surviving crew did not stay on the beach after being scared shitless by the silent army surrounding the island.

---

'That's one too many surprises in a single expedition. Forget about trying to locate the Dark Devilgod Tiger that somehow managed to escape from my senses entirely, the scheme that surrounds my group... is certainly strange.'

Qian Xunji quietly observes things unfold, 'From the strange black tree appearing and disappearing to killing others with spirit bones. Why did the enemy leave the spirit bones? With such an army, creating internal conflict has no meaning. Are they retarded? I should not discount that possibility. A few good ideas are not an umbrella wide enough to cover stupidity.'

But a greatly disturbing thought brews in Qian Xunji's mind.

'Is it Ja Sun? I have not sensed him leave the King's Lair at all. And the last attack that demolished the crew... seemed to surpass the usual strength of a 100,000-year-old beast but I still do not sense a million-year-old beast. According to father, the ocean around us should have a million-year-old beast but only his tribe remains. Did that beast... die? And if so, how?'

While thinking of many possibilities, Qian Xunji still lets things play out. There is a good reason for that.

'Those that do survive this will devour the fortune of those that die. The spirit bones left behind are a surprising bonus. And only when most of the fortunate but useless Spirit Masters die can the talented ones in the continent have a breather to grow.'

Xunji's thoughts, at the very foundation, were simple.

He has raised many groups to scour the continent and bring back talented youths to have them trained. But this process, due to the act of delegation, gets corrupted the further one goes down a level. As noted before, Qian Xunji's divine intent is not omniscient and he is not eternal. As a stronger 'mortal', he chooses to accept the flaws of the current system and starts one step at a time.

The first act, naturally, is to weed out such corruptive elements. Now not all Spirit Masters in the expedition are corrupt but he still needs to send Spirit Masters to two other places of interest. Those that survive, even when corrupt, will have their value proven.

Those that don't, even if innocent, will have their fortunes consumed.

***

Alternate Title: Bibi the Educator; Stick Around to Find Out, Resource; The Floating Barrel; Xunji's Evaluation— Retarded