Martial Arts: Starting with Upgrading the Dilapidated Temple

Chen Yuanzhi slumped down under the mast in the middle of the ship, panting heavily, his face covered in a mixture of blood and sweat.

Xu Hao walked over and tossed him a slightly cleaner piece of rag.

"Damn, anyone who didn't know better would think you'd been hacked to pieces."

Chen Yuanzhi hastily wiped his face, looked at Xu Hao who was covered in blood in front of him, and swallowed hard: "Brother Xu... what happened to us..."

"We finally have a foothold in the world."

"This ship..."

"Let's change the name to 'Zhenyuan'," Xu Hao grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. "For good luck."

Chen Yuanzhi was taken aback: "Zhenyuan? We..."

"We can't use our real names when we're roaming the martial world." Xu Hao patted the side of the boat. "From today onwards, you'll be called Zhenhai, and I'll be called Zhenshan. We'll use these two names to stir up trouble in Shengzhou."

Chen Yuanzhi was taken aback for a moment, then gave a wry smile and cupped his hands in the manner of a martial arts master: "Zhenhai... greets the chief."

Xu Hao patted the sturdy gunwale, feeling the feedback from the blessed land, and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.

"The mountains and seas trembled; this is a good omen."

"Set sail! Full sails! Destination: Shengzhou!"

With Xu Hao's command, the black sails billowed in the gale, and the "Zhenyuan" broke through the giant waves, like a black dagger piercing into the unknown depths of the sea.

After midday, the wind on deck was strong, making the mooring ropes whistle.

Once the effects of the drug wore off, Xu Hao ordered his men to bring the hostage from the hold to the deck.

"Get all of you up here!" A pirate shouted, brandishing a knife as he herded people from the bottom of the hold.

The sunlight mixed with the sea breeze poured down, making the sour smell inside even stronger.

After the bloodbath in the lower deck, the surviving hostages squinted and trembled as they climbed upwards.

They watched as the person who had been lying beside them and talking just yesterday became a corpse in the blink of an eye, and a chorus of wails erupted.

"Shut up."

Xu Hao's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling aura as if he had just killed someone.

The crying stopped abruptly.

He toyed with a ghost-head knife stained with dark red blood in his hand, his gaze sweeping over the group of ragged people.

"This ship used to be called Black Shark, but it's been renamed Zhenyuan." Xu Hao pointed to the deck beneath his feet. "The Zhenyuan doesn't keep idle people, nor does it transport the dead. If you want to survive, you have to prove you're useful."

He brandished the tip of the knife in front of everyone.

"Those who know how to swim, have martial arts skills, and have blood on their hands, stand on the left."

Those who can do carpentry, have medical knowledge, and can cook, stand on the right.

"Don't even think about getting away with it. Anyone who tries to fool us will be thrown into the sea."

The crowd stirred for a moment, then surged forward wildly.

The will to survive unleashed astonishing strength in these people.

A skinny, monkey-like man, trying to grab a spot on the left, elbowed a fat man in the ribs, sending him tumbling. Several fishermen who usually seemed honest were now red-eyed and pushing away those blocking their way.

Xu Hao watched the farce unfold with indifference, without intervening.

Soon, the middle of the deck was cleared out.

What remained were a bunch of old, weak, sick, and disabled people, as well as a few "fat sheep" with delicate skin and the looks of rich young masters.

They had neither fighting skills nor any other craftsmanship; they were kneeling on the ground, banging their heads against the ground repeatedly, blood from their foreheads obscuring their vision.

"Boss...please...I have money, my family will pay the ransom..."

"I can write! I can do math!"

Xu Hao chuckled.

"Settle accounts? My knife can settle accounts too. One slice and it's in two, clear as day."

He ignored the wails and threw the ghost-head knife at Chen Yuanzhi's feet.

Clang.

Chen Yuanzhi froze.

"Second-in-command," Xu Hao emphasized, "our fresh water and dry rations are only enough to feed the workers. As for these dozen or so mouths, whether to keep them or kill them, you give me an answer."

All eyes were on Chen Yuanzhi.

The surrounding pirates looked on with amusement, waiting to see the fair-skinned young master wet his pants.

Chen Yuanzhi bent down and picked up the knife.

The hilt was cold, and some dead man's hair was still wrapped around it.

He looked at the old man kneeling at the front, his hair white, looking just like the old horse who had died protecting him.

My hands started to shake.

Kill? I can't bring myself to do it.

Keep them? Xu Hao's words were clear: if these people were kept, there wouldn't be enough supplies on the ship, and they might all die at sea.

The principle of "compassion cannot govern an army, righteousness cannot govern a treasury" has been written in books, but books have not taught how to stab an innocent person in the chest.

"What's wrong, Second Boss? You've softened your heart?" Xu Hao swallowed the jerky, his tone flat. "Being soft-hearted is a good thing, but on this high seas, being soft-hearted means risking your life."

Chen Yuanzhi abruptly closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the salty, fishy sea breeze.

When he opened his eyes again, most of his scholarly air had dissipated, and his eyes were bloodshot.

He didn't brandish his knife, but turned and pointed to the right side of the ship's side. Two miles away, there was a bare black reef protruding from the sea, with only a few seabirds around it.

"Move the boat closer."

Chen Yuanzhi's voice was a little hoarse, but not weak. "Leave them a bucket of water and a bag of dry rations, and put them on the island."

The surrounding pirates were taken aback.

This reef is surrounded by the sea on all sides. At high tide, it can submerge half of the rocks. With no shelter or protection, what's the difference between throwing someone onto it and killing them outright? It just means they'll suffer for a couple more days.

"Can't understand human language?" Xu Hao raised an eyebrow.

The pirates shuddered and hurriedly tried to adjust the sails and rudder.

Cries and screams erupted again as a dozen or so people being dragged clung desperately to the gaps in the deck, their fingernails flipped up, before they were finally ruthlessly thrown onto the small boat.

Chen Yuanzhi turned his back and didn't look.

But the knuckles of his fingers holding the knife were white, his nails were deeply embedded in his flesh, and blood was dripping down between his fingers.

This is called "releasing animals" or "slow killing".

He satisfied his poor conscience without breaking the rules on the ship.

Xu Hao watched Chen Yuanzhi's retreating figure, and the corner of his mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

This young master has now joined the group.

In Xu Hao's mind, the ancient scroll trembled slightly.

[Order established on the Zhenyuan (LV1) warship.]

[Gained Trait: Ironblood. Crew loyalty fluctuations are reduced, and the chance of defection is greatly decreased.]

An invisible wave emanated from Xu Hao.

On the deck, the pirates, who had been secretly plotting how to seize the ship or escape, suddenly felt a chill down their spines and looked at Xu Hao with more fear and obedience.

"Hurry up!" Xu Hao stood up and kicked the cable post next to him. "Tear this tattered flag down for me!"

A black sail, which had been prepared beforehand, was raised.

The character "震" (zhen, meaning shock) was written crookedly on top, mixed with soot from the bottom of a pot and some unknown red pigment. The writing was extremely ugly, exuding a fierce and uncultured vibe.

"From this day forward, let bygones be bygones." Xu Hao stood under the flag, his gaze sweeping over the sailors and prisoners on deck. "My name is Zhenshan, and his name is Zhenhai. On this ship, we brothers are in charge!"

"The First Boss is awesome! The Second Boss is awesome!"

The scattered shouts gradually gathered and eventually turned into a unified roar that drowned out the sound of the waves.

"Set sail! To Shengzhou!"

With its black sails billowing in the wind, the ship jolted violently, breaking through the waves and leaving the wailing Black Reef far behind.

Chen Yuanzhi stood at the stern of the boat, clutching the hard bread that Xu Hao had given him.

He watched the black dot shrink and then took a big bite.

My gums bled from being pressed against the hard bread.

He didn't spit it out; he swallowed it down, the metallic taste in his mouth mixed with the stale flavor.