Chapter 338: Astonishing Spoils
Transcendence!
Under Zhang Yuan’s gaze, the bald man’s corpse floating in the water a few feet away shriveled and collapsed at a visible speed, disappearing entirely soon after.
[Source Material+1290]
Zhang Yuan was quite satisfied with this outcome.
This Wuqi Tier Four expert was extremely vigorous in Qi Blood and Life Force; earlier, Zhang Yuan used the Taowu Saber to slit his throat, yet he managed to survive for over ten breaths before dying.
Gaining over a thousand points of Source Material through the sacrifice at the Divine Nest was entirely reasonable.
Of course, before transcending him, Zhang Yuan did not forget to cut off his left ear and also seized the Profound Steel Fork.
These were valuable spoils.
Plop! Plop! Plop!
Just as Zhang Yuan was preparing to float back to the surface, a group of barbarian warriors jumped into the water like dumplings.
They weren’t despairing or suicidal; they intended to support their leader!
These brave Wuqi warriors were unaware that their revered and trusted leader had planned to throw them to Zhang Yuan before fleeing himself.
These warriors could have taken the opportunity to escape by ship but chose to continue fighting!
Zhang Yuan couldn’t help but admire their courage.
So he satisfied them with death.
One barbarian warrior had just submerged about ten feet deep when suddenly an undercurrent surged from behind, encircling his neck instantly and then tightening fiercely.
"Ugh!"
The barbarian warrior never expected such a bizarre situation; his throat was tightly strangled by the water, instinctively struggling, his hands clumsily clawing at his neck.
But his struggle was doomed to be futile, and in just a moment, his neck had been forcefully snapped.
Turning into a floating corpse.
And around this barbarian warrior, his companions were also facing the same fate.
The Wuqi tribe, related to the people of the southern wilderness, were most adept in water, with fighting capabilities on and under water far surpassing those on land.
Yet no matter how proficient they were in water, in the face of Zhang Yuan, who mastered Water Control Ability, they were like lambs waiting to be slaughtered, powerless to resist as they were one by one strangled to death.
At this moment, Zhang Yuan was very close to them.
Manipulating water flow at the flick of a finger to eliminate enemies.
After returning from Forest Lake, the Intermediate Water Profound Communication granted by the White Dragon Loach had a fundamental change, not only generating new abilities but also greatly enhancing Zhang Yuan’s Water Control Strength.
Even powerful Tier Four barbarians can be strangled, let alone ordinary Tier Two and Tier Three warriors!
Soon, all the Wuqi warriors who entered the water turned into floating corpses.
Zhang Yuan naturally wouldn’t waste these Source Material items, cutting off their ears and transcending each one.
In fact, he was doing a good deed.
If these corpses were left unattended, very likely they would be parasitized by Deceit Class entities and turn into Water Ghosts or other deceitful forms.
Finally, Zhang Yuan returned to the surface and slaughtered all the barbarians remaining on the two warships.
He was merciless, without a shred of pity.
Because these barbarians were blocking the waterways, attacking passing merchant and fishing boats, equally cruel and cold-blooded.
It’s called the cycle of karma, a fitting retribution!
Soon, only three unmanned warships remained floating on the water.
Zhang Yuan put all the cut ears into a bag, then destroyed two of the ships.
Leaving only the one in the best condition.
The warships used by the Wuqi tribe to harass the Golden Sand Gang were not very large, accommodating at most a dozen people; more accurately, they were war canoes.
But the barbarians’ ships had unique designs and craftsmanship, streamlined hull forms with bows like sharp axes, perfectly suited for breaking water or ramming.
Typically, these warships are rowed by four to six people simultaneously, moving swiftly over the water.
Zhang Yuan, on his own, could also easily navigate them.
He piloted the war canoe, returning to Golden Sand Island.
Docking ashore, Zhang Yuan carried the bag full of barbarian ears straight to the Golden Sand Gang’s fortress city.
The Golden Sand Gang announced their bounty for exploits against the Wuqi tribe yesterday, and today they established a dedicated exchange point in the city, demonstrating initiative and urgency.
Conversely, it also indicates the immense pressure the Wuqi tribe exerted on them!
And inside this exchange point for exploits, stacks of gleaming gold ingots, along with elixirs, secret manuals, weapons, and other valuable items, were on display.
Of course, there’s no shortage of hard currency items like rice and cured meat.
All looked extremely tempting!
Many people were watching, drooling over the exchange goods.
While no one dared snatch, looking wasn’t against the rules.
At this time, Zhang Yuan, carrying a bag to the exchange point, naturally attracted everyone’s attention.
Zhang Yuan ignored the strange glances from those around him, tossing the bag onto the table.
Then he took out his identity token from his chest and placed it alongside: "Exchange exploits."
The person in charge of the exchange point was quite surprised: "Ah?"
This steward of the Golden Sand Gang couldn’t believe someone had brought the ears of Wuqi warriors so quickly.
Zhang Yuan pointed to the bag on the table: "See for yourself."
At this moment, the steward smelled blood and his expression immediately turned serious.
He glanced at Zhang Yuan in astonishment, then cautiously opened the bag, dumping all of its contents out.
The next moment, there was a commotion all around!
Because the bag contained dozens of bloody ears.
Although everyone was aware that exchanging exploits with the Golden Sand Gang required a barbarian’s left ear as proof.
Knowing is one thing, witnessing is quite another!
The sheer number of ears was truly impactful.
The steward couldn’t stay seated; he hurriedly stood and said: "Please wait a moment."
He quickly went to bring over someone responsible for appraisals.
The appraiser was initially somewhat impatient, but upon seeing the pile of ears on the table, he was dumbfounded too.
It took over half an hour to appraise all those barbarian ears.
The structure of the barbarians’ outer ears differs somewhat from ordinary people, and their Cultivation Realm can also be judged through the ear shape, thus the Golden Sand Gang required the left ear for proof of exploits.
It’s said that the left ear features are more distinct than the right.
After finishing the appraisal, the Golden Sand Gang’s appraiser showed a complex expression.
He swallowed his saliva and loudly announced: "Righteous warrior Chen Zian, today’s harvest includes nineteen Tier Two barbarians, twelve Tier Three, and one Tier Four, all converted to points of exploits..."
"Six hundred and ninety-five points!"
His voice was remarkably loud, everyone present heard it clearly.
Each face showed signs of shock.
Almost seven hundred points of exploits!
And harvested by one man?
The looks directed at Zhang Yuan were not only filled with envy, jealousy, and resentment but also genuine admiration and reverence.
This is a true master!