Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 190

Han Li instructed Gu Hun to guard the door while he sat on a chair in the living space. Wang Zhangqing stood respectfully beside him, not daring to sit. Noticing his discomfort, Han Li smiled gently and said,

“Mr. Wang, there’s no need to be so formal. Please, sit down. Or should I ask for your teachings and pay my respects?”

Wang Zhangqing shook his head, flustered by Han Li’s words.

“That would be impossible.”

“I’m new here and don’t know much about this place. Please tell me about the local geography, customs, and, if possible, the cultivators. If you explain well, I will be sure to express my gratitude.”

Wang Zhangqing paused to gather his thoughts before speaking.

“Since you’ve come from afar, you must know that this is the Chaotic Star Sea. This area is in the southwest of the Chaotic Star Sea, with three large islands nearby—Weixing Island, Kuixing Island, and Sangxing Island—and dozens of small and medium-sized islands where cultivators and mortals live together.

Like other places, each island is governed by the most powerful cultivator, who becomes the island lord and is responsible for protecting the island. Other cultivators stay on the island, performing certain duties and receiving spirit stones [currency used by cultivators] from the island lord.

If one doesn’t want to perform any duties on the island, they can instead pay spirit stones to the island lord every year.”

As he finished speaking, a look of envy appeared on Wang Zhangqing’s face.

Wang Zhangqing continued,

“Mortals like this old man who live on each island must either do labor or pay spirit stones. This is because these islands are protected by the cultivators’ magic, so there’s no need to fear attacks from demon beasts or the Heavenly Winds.

Therefore, when mortals sail far, they usually invite one or two cultivators to accompany them. This increases their chances of survival when facing demon beasts at sea. Of course, the cultivators who can be invited are those with relatively free status.”

“Heavenly Winds?”

He knew about demon beasts, but Heavenly Winds was a new term.

“Didn’t you experience Heavenly Wind attacks where you were before, Senior?”

“I’ve never heard of Heavenly Winds in the region where I cultivated. What are they that they are compared to demon beasts?”

Wang Zhangqing couldn’t hide his doubt at Han Li’s words, but he still explained diligently.

“Heavenly Winds, demon beasts, and ghost mists are called the three great disasters of the Chaotic Star Sea. You, Senior, are more familiar with demon beasts. Most of the demon beasts in the sea are enormous and use water-based magic, which mortals cannot handle. Only cultivators can kill them.

The Heavenly Winds are sweeping winds that blow from one end of the Chaotic Star Sea to the other twice a year.

The waves where the Heavenly Winds pass are like they are covering the sky, houses collapse, and people die.

Without the protection of cultivators’ magic, the islanders would have a hard time avoiding great disasters. It is said that even cultivators can lose their lives if they are caught in the Heavenly Winds.”

Fear flickered across Wang Zhangqing’s face, but Han Li’s expression remained unchanged.

“Then what is this ghost mist disaster?”

At Han Li’s question, the old man was certain that the other party knew nothing about the sea. He didn’t even know about the most mysterious of the three great disasters, the ghost mist. Where did this cultivator come from?

Could he be from the mainland? But there was only the sea around the Chaotic Star Sea, where could there be a continent?

Strange as it was, he couldn’t ignore Han Li’s question, so the old man explained.

“Ghost mist is the most bizarre and terrifying disaster among the three great disasters of the Chaotic Star Sea. It is said to be a black fog floating on the sea surface. It is said that neither mortals nor cultivators can survive if they encounter it. If the black fog covers a living being, it will never let them live.

However, it only appears in one place and does not appear near large islands, so it causes the fewest casualties among the three great disasters.”

Han Li pondered over Wang’s words.

What kind of strange place is this? According to the old man, one cannot cultivate alone on a small island. If one were to encounter Heavenly Winds or ghost mists, they would be dead.

The old man was restless at Han Li’s displeased expression. He was worried that he had made some mistake. As Wang’s heart pounded, Han Li spoke again.

“Why did Mr. Gu want to take me to Kuixing Island? And where is this ship going?”

His face was unreadable. The old man’s heart sank at Han Li’s expressionless face, and he hesitated slightly.

Seeing this, Han Li spoke gently again.

“Don’t worry, just tell me. I can’t accept Mr. Gu’s request without knowing the situation, can I? In fact, I might be able to help if you need it.”

Wang Zhangqing had no choice but to speak honestly after Han Li said this. He cleared his throat and said in a slightly trembling voice,

“Senior, please don’t blame this old man. I wasn’t trying to deceive you, but I just didn’t mention it because you didn’t ask.”

At that, Han Li sighed inwardly, and the old man, sensing his mood, immediately explained what was going on.

It turned out that this ship was returning to Kuixing Island after transporting goods and completing a trade.

The ship’s owner, Mr. Gu, was not a native of Kuixing Island. He was born on a nearby island and built his family’s wealth through business before moving his base to Kuixing Island.

The most profitable business was the trade between Kuixing Island, a major island, and other large islands, but only the people of the main island could participate in such trade.

The mortals of a main island like Kuixing Island had a different status from those of the smaller islands attached to it.

Mr. Gu, who used to do small business around the surrounding islands, wanted to expand his business after moving his base to Kuixing Island.

However, after moving his family and establishing a base, he realized that not just anyone could participate in long-distance trade between major islands. The cultivators on the island took a share, and only ten families monopolized the trade.

These ten families were not fixed but were selected through a magic competition held every three years.

A mortal who wanted to participate in the trade had to invite a cultivator to challenge a cultivator from a family that already had trading rights. Only by winning could they join the ten families.

Mr. Gu was dumbfounded by this news.

He had rarely encountered demon beasts because he only did short-distance trade, so he had almost no cultivators he knew.

So, Mr. Gu tried to find a cultivator by spending a lot of money. However, by the time he heard the news, the once-every-three-years competition was just around the corner.

Even though there were many cultivators on Kuixing Island, they were arrogant and would not easily respond to a mortal’s invitation. Most of them only helped those who were related to them or had some connection.

Moreover, those who did respond to mortals’ requests were reluctant to participate in such competitions, considering their relationships with the other ten cultivators, making it even more difficult to find a suitable cultivator.

Having no other choice, he stopped by the island where he was born to do some trading and tried to ask a distant relative who was a cultivator for help, but he had already left on a long journey.

Mr. Gu was truly in despair.

Then Han Li fell in front of him. How could Mr. Gu, who had been searching for a cultivator everywhere, not be overjoyed!

Although he didn’t know how high Han Li’s cultivation was, it was much better than missing this opportunity and waiting another three years.

Mr. Gu clearly wanted to borrow Han Li’s strength to participate in this competition. After hearing all the circumstances, Han Li was silent for a moment.

At first, he couldn’t understand why cultivators would accompany mortals on long voyages at their request, but it was even stranger that they would fight for mortals’ trading rights.

The cultivators here seemed to have a higher status than mortals, but they were not as untouchable as in the Tiannan region. Rather, they lived together with mortals and formed an inseparable relationship.

Han Li had no intention of fighting other cultivators for Mr. Gu’s business. He still had unanswered questions, so he smiled and asked,

“Mr. Wang, let me ask you one more thing.”

“This old man will do his best to answer any question.”

“Why do ordinary people do the transportation between islands? If cultivators used their magical artifacts to carry goods and fly, it would be much faster and safer, wouldn’t it?”

Wang Zhangqing smiled wryly.

“You’re joking too much. Although some cultivators have magical artifacts, how could they allow mortals’ goods to be stored in such treasures?

Moreover, there is an enormous amount of goods being traded, so no matter how great the magical artifacts are, they cannot hold that much. Also, how could high-ranking people like cultivators do such work as transportation?”

Han Li simply nodded at Wang’s careful explanation. Han Li paused to gather his thoughts and then said,

“I cannot accept Mr. Gu’s request to participate in the competition. My cultivation is too low, and if I participate in the competition, I will disgrace not only myself but also Mr. Gu. So, please tell him that. Also, tell him that I will pay for the cost of staying on the ship and being taken to Kuixing Island with spirit stones.”

His voice was very slow, clear, and firm. At Han Li’s words, the color drained from the old man’s face. He began to plead earnestly with Han Li.

“Senior, please help our master. He has already spent a lot of money to secure this trade, and he has paid a huge amount of spirit stones to obtain the right to participate in the competition. If he fails to secure the trade rights with the big islands, he might go bankrupt. If that happens, we workers will also lose our jobs and have no way to survive.”

“Enough. My cultivation is low, so there is no chance of winning, and I don’t want to cause trouble right after arriving at Kuixing Island.”

The old man pleaded with him at length, but Han Li firmly refused.

Seeing that Han Li had already made up his mind, the old man could no longer persuade him and instead told him about the local customs, as Han Li had requested.

After a while, when the old man looked tired, Han Li sent him back first and decided to learn more tomorrow. The old man, who had been tired since earlier, did not refuse Han Li’s thoughtful consideration and left.

Han Li watched the old man bow respectfully and leave the room, secretly sighing. He had plenty of elixirs that could replenish the other party’s energy, but he couldn’t give them out.

In this unfamiliar place, if he revealed everything he had, he could get caught up in troublesome situations, or even bring disaster upon himself.

After calming his mind, Han Li sat cross-legged on the bed and took a Yellow Dragon Pill. Thus, his cultivation began again.

He had to regain his original cultivation as soon as possible. In any cultivation world, everything was determined by strength.

He had not been sitting for long when he heard footsteps outside. Han Li could tell from afar that Wang was bringing Mr. Gu back again. It was clear that Mr. Gu was not giving up and was going to bother him.

If this were the Tiannan region, he wouldn’t even have allowed them into the room. However, this was an unfamiliar place, and he was not in a position to be too harsh. Before the two could knock on the door, he sent a calm voice transmission.

“It’s open, come in.”

Mr. Gu and Wang Zhangqing were startled by the voice in their ears. They straightened their clothes and opened the door. Han Li was already standing with his hands behind his back, having risen from the bed.

“Senior, Mr. Gu wants to talk to you directly. Would you please give him one more chance?”

Wang Zhangqing, knowing that Han Li was not someone to be trifled with, immediately got to the point.

“Of course, it’s possible. But don’t have high expectations.”

The old man looked a little embarrassed but translated it to the middle-aged man as it was.