Chapter 340: Ambush
"Blood Saber Butcher, it’s the Blood Saber Butcher!"
"Everyone, run!"
Screams filled with fear quickly rippled across the water surface.
Several small Wuqi warships turned around and fled in haste at maximum speed.
The usually brave and fierce barbarian warriors each displayed a look of panic, completely devoid of their usual arrogance.
Seeing this scene, Zhang Yuan couldn’t help but shake his head.
It wasn’t the first time he encountered such a situation.
He didn’t know which guy gave him the nickname "Blood Saber Butcher," resulting in his recent towering reputation both inside and outside Golden Sand Island, instilling fear in the barbarians, almost enough to stop children from crying at night!
The reason for this lay entirely in the bags of barbarian ears Zhang Yuan brought in for exchange daily.
After his ruthless reputation of killing barbarians spread, there were people who specifically loitered at the contribution exchange point daily, watching the appraiser from the Golden Sand Gang count the ears.
Then they would spread the tale widely in taverns and teahouses!
Because of these "word-of-mouth" stories, Zhang Yuan’s name as the "Blood Saber Butcher" naturally grew louder.
It’s said it even spread to large islands like Great Chen, Nanli, Flying Fish, Long River, and others.
The Wuqi barbarians and river folk also heard about it.
Because Zhang Yuan’s battle achievements were quite glorious, with each attack resulting in total annihilation of the enemy, leaving no survivors.
So now, whenever he was recognized while hunting, the Wuqi Tribe warriors often fled without fighting.
Of course, there were those who were fierce and didn’t believe in evil.
And these guys ended up as increased Source Material numbers on the Divine Nest panel!
Source Material is precious, and there’s no reason to miss it for nothing.
Zhang Yuan paddled, and his warship suddenly accelerated, pursuing the fleeing Wuqi warriors.
But after chasing half a mile along the waterway, he frowned, released the oar, and slowed down.
In front of him was a vast reed swamp.
The verdant reeds reached heights of one to two zhang, densely packed as far as the eye could see, intertwined with winding, hidden waterways, resembling a labyrinth.
Such large areas of reed swamps were common in the Great Dream Marsh, and those unfamiliar with the environment could easily lose their way inside.
Once trapped, it was difficult to escape.
The runaway Wuqi warships had just rushed into this reed swamp and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
But they didn’t know that above their heads, a keen-sighted Red-eyed Crow was circling.
The movements of these warships were not hidden from Zhang Yuan’s surveillance!
The issue was that Zhang Yuan had just discovered through the Red-eyed Crow that in the reed swamp were over a dozen ambushed barbarian warships.
Although these warships were well-camouflaged, from the outside, there was no sign of them at all.
But from above, they were completely exposed!
Zhang Yuan also noticed that if he pursued the earlier warships into the reed swamp,
it would be equivalent to walking into the trap laid by the Wuqi Tribe!
Zhang Yuan immediately realized it.
This was a death trap specifically set by the Wuqi Tribe for him.
"Ha!"
Zhang Yuan let out a cold laugh, choosing to continue forward.
But he didn’t follow the waterway that the Wuqi warships had taken earlier. Instead, he maneuvered his warship into the nearby reeds.
After anchoring, Zhang Yuan stripped off his outer clothing and quietly slipped into the water.
At the moment he entered the water, he suddenly activated the Dragon Carp Armor.
His entire body was instantly covered by black scale armor!
As a Profound Artifact level armor, the Dragon Carp Armor’s defensive ability was just average and not very reliable.
Its purpose was to significantly enhance the underwater movement and combat capabilities of the wearer.
However, Zhang Yuan’s White Dragon Loach extraordinary ability was far superior to the Dragon Carp Armor.
Therefore, this Profound Artifact only served as a supplementary enhancement.
Zhang Yuan rarely used it normally.
But once activated, it meant he was serious.
Since the enemy wanted to play, Zhang Yuan would play big with them!
At this moment in the depths of the reed swamp, a fierce-looking, burly barbarian held a curved saber, standing solemnly on a pitch-black Wuqi warship.
Behind him were two neat rows of twenty fully-armed Wuqi warriors.
Around this warship were twelve identical vessels.
Each warship had a Tier Four expert overseeing it.
As Zhang Yuan had guessed, today’s death trap was set by the Wuqi Tribe specifically for him!
Recently, the Wuqi Tribe encountered great trouble with their raids against the Golden Sand Gang.
Under the heavy rewards offered by the Golden Sand Gang,
A large number of Xia Martial Artists joined the counterattack against the Wuqi Tribe.
The so-called "Xia people" referred to immigrants from the Xia Ruins and their descendants rooted in the Great Dream Marsh.
They formed groups of three to five, organizing squads to engage in a confrontation of hunt and counter-hunt with the Wuqi warriors, with conflict spreading from the waterways around Golden Sand Island to various land islands.
Though the Wuqi Tribe was strong and allied with the river folk of the Great Dream Marsh, they still suffered considerable casualties in the Xia people’s counterattack.
What made the Wuqi Tribe most ashamed and infuriated was precisely the man nicknamed "Blood Saber Butcher," Chen Zian.
A Tier Four Martial Artist, who killed hundreds of Wuqi tribespeople.
Cutting off their ears to exchange for rewards!
It was like slapping the face of the Wuqi Tribe heavily.
The tribe’s high council was thus enraged and ordered his elimination at any cost to erase this disgrace from the Blood Saber Butcher.
Hence, today’s setup!
But, the group of barbarian experts waited and waited, yet Zhang Yuan’s warship never appeared.
Everyone couldn’t help but look at each other in confusion.
Thud!
It was at that moment that one of the warships suddenly shook, with a dull thud resounding from beneath.
As if some massive object had collided with the warship.
The barbarians on board stabilized themselves, each showing a look of surprise and suspicion.
Including the Tier Four Wuqi expert leading them.
Suddenly, he heard a sound that made his heart tremble and immediately shouted, "The enemy is underwater!"
This Wuqi expert was correct; at that moment, Zhang Yuan was right underneath their warship.
Zhang Yuan had just slapped the ship’s bottom, testing its sturdiness.
The shipbuilding skill of the Southern Barbarians was highly advanced, taking into full consideration the possibility of underwater attacks; the wood used for the hull was extremely sturdy and thick.
Even with a powerful swing of a regular blade or axe, it would leave only a shallow mark.
Moreover, it’s hard for a person to exert force underwater, so breaking the hull from underneath wasn’t an easy task.
But this only applied to ordinary people and samurai.
Zhang Yuan was far from ordinary, and the Taowu Saber in his hand was a killing tool among the Profound Soldiers.
The Taowu Saber’s stab into the hull was as effortless as cutting through tofu, with no hindrance or delay.
Zhang Yuan twisted his wrist, dragging the weapon horizontally to cut open the thick planks of the ship.
Creating even greater damage!
In the blink of an eye, the bottom of this Wuqi warship, carrying more than twenty people, had been breached.
A large amount of river water poured into the ship!