Chapter 157: Section 158: War Merchant


    Upon hearing that Jia Sha knew the identity of the Island Master, Zhenjin hastily sought his advice.


    For a long time, the mysterious Island Master had been a colossal shadow in the minds of Zhenjin and the others.


    Jia Sha: “If I truly reveal the answer, you all should already know him. He is one of the top ten on the bounty list, the War Merchant.”


    Zhenjin was suddenly shaken to the core.


    Various organizations, countries, and even continents all have countless bounty lists. Over the past several hundred years, the Bounty Guilds of the various continents have cooperated more closely, consolidating and organizing the bounty lists into a single, larger list.


    In this list, the top ten wanted criminals have remained almost unchanged, their positions extremely solid. This is because the various empires, sects, and guilds are usually powerless against these ten criminals.


    ...


    These ten criminals, not only possess formidable strength, but also have their own world-shocking special talents.


    “War Merchant… a goblin race, Legendary Mage, Alchemy Grandmaster, seventh on the bounty list…”


    Information about the War Merchant instantly flooded Zhenjin’s mind.


    Bronze, Black Iron, Silver, Gold, Holy Domain, Legend, Divine… the War Merchant’s cultivation level was already at the peak of this world, second only to the Divine. If one were to truly calculate combat power, a Legendary Mage equipped with a Mage Tower, Forbidden Curses, and Divine Artifact-level gear certainly has the power to slay gods!


    War Merchant was not his real name, which few people in the world knew; War Merchant was just his nickname.


    But just as this nickname implies, he made his fortune from war. The reason why he has been jointly wanted by multiple continents is for secretly instigating wars among the various races and profiteering from arms trading.


    Seeing the subtle change in Zhenjin’s expression, Jia Sha continued, “It seems you’ve remembered. This place must be the War Merchant’s Mysterious Monster Island.”


    “Mysterious Monster Island…” Zhenjin muttered.


    He then thought of the rumors about Mysterious Monster Island, the War Merchant’s stronghold, which was said to be his Half-plane. He never expected that it was actually located within the Main World.


    Zhenjin slightly furrowed his brows, mainly puzzled about two things: “If Mysterious Monster Island isn’t a Half-plane, then why has it remained undiscovered for so many years despite him being wanted?”


    “And another thing, Father. The War Merchant is an Alchemy Grandmaster, and I know he excels in crafting weapons of war. Various alchemy arrows, arrowheads, bullets, and his trademark product, the explosive dumbbell. But I have never heard that he specializes in Life Alchemy.”


    Jia Sha nodded, “Actually, in these recent years, the War Merchant seems to have adjusted the direction of his alchemy development, gradually shifting from Alchemy Items to the field of Life Alchemy. Products in this area have already started to appear on the market under many other names.”


    Zhenjin’s brows lifted, somewhat realizing, “Does that mean, Beastification People have already appeared on the battlefield?”


    Jia Sha smiled slightly, deliberately asking, “How did you deduce that?”


    Zhenjin slightly bowed his head, “Father, you mentioned earlier that you were very interested in the information about Beastification. It was after I recounted this information that you nearly confirmed the identity of the Island Master verbally. Obviously, the Beastification People are already linked to the War Merchant.”


    Jia Sha couldn’t help but look at Zhenjin with appreciation in his eyes, “Child, your mind is very sharp. Indeed that is the case. Many pieces of information are inaccessible to you, which is why you didn’t guess the true identity of the Island Master. In fact, you all have already done well enough, deducing the status of the Island Master from various signs and even having the courage to make one last stand.”


    Following that, Jia Sha voluntarily shared his own experiences, “After the shipwreck, I and six Guardian Knights landed on this island.”


    “The man-made landforms and magical beasts on the island astounded me.”


    “Although low-level magic and fighting energy were prohibited on the island, they couldn’t suppress divine power, leaving my strength entirely intact.”


    “Relying on various divine arts, we explored the island. When we tried to venture into the central area of the island, we encountered involuntary teleportation.”


    “Whenever we approached the volcanic region at the heart of the island, we would be forcefully teleported away.”


    “More than a month ago, the situation changed. The forced teleportations stopped, and instead, we were obstructed by the Demon Beast Army. The deeper we went into the center of the island, the greater the resistance we faced.”


    “As you guessed, I also wondered: could there be a problem with the War Merchant? Perhaps a meditation backlash, or maybe an explosion while developing a new alchemy item. If nothing was wrong with him, why wouldn’t he come to solve our problems? Why allow this island to gradually edge towards the abyss of destruction?”


    “Just yesterday, when I used the divine art Extreme Vision to predict the outcome of the battle, I discovered your arrival.”


    “I originally planned to join forces with you first, but the Demon Beast Army launched their attack ahead of us.”


    “Holy Temple Knight Zhenjin, I know that you’re the sole inheritor of the Hundred Needle Family and wish to compete for the position of the White Sand City Lord. However, what lies before us is an enormous opportunity that is even rarer than the position of City Lord!”


    “Over the past few centuries, there have occasionally been adjustments to the top ten on the bounty list, but the top ten most wanted have almost never changed.”


    “If we could eliminate the seventh-ranked War Merchant for the Empire, do you realize how significant this merit would be? You could be directly promoted to Great Commander of the War Zone, become the master of no less than ten cities, and possibly even be promoted to Earl. If you don’t want a domain on the Wilderness Continent, you could directly apply to the Royal Family of the Holy Bright Empire for a domain exchange, getting land on the Holy Bright Continent and restoring the former glory of the Hundred Needle Family!”


    Zhenjin was silent for a moment.


    Jia Sha smiled again and said, “Of course, we are well aware of the immense risks this entails. But what can we do? We have no other path left but to make this final attempt.”


    Zhenjin asked, “Father, since divine arts are not forbidden here, can’t we rely on prayer to seek assistance from the Holy Bright Empire?”


    Jia Sha’s expression darkened slightly, “My lord did not clearly respond to my prayers. According to my speculation, the War Merchant has a method to shield himself from the divine senses. It is precisely for this reason that Mysterious Monster Island has remained hidden in the Main World, unnoticed by the deities.”


    “Even the divine arts were originally prohibited on this island, but due to some damage, my divine power has some space to operate.”


    “Now, Zhenjin, tell me your decision.”


    Zhenjin gave a bitter smile, spread his hands, and said to Jia Sha, “Do I have any other choice? To speak honestly, this trip here was my last gamble, one without certainty. It’s an honor to fight alongside you, Father.”


    “Very well, Holy Temple Knight Zhenjin,” Jia Sha showed his pleasure, “You have not disappointed me. I’ve noted all of your merits. If our endeavor here fails yet we somehow survive by chance, I will recommend you to become the City Lord of White Sand City!”


    Fate is indeed unpredictable.


    Zhenjin had actually all but given up hope for the position of the White Sand City Lord since he’d been delayed for so long. But to his surprise, he had garnered an excellent opportunity.


    Who would have thought that Jia Sha, the examiner, would end up stranded on this island, too?


    After returning, Zhenjin shared the news with Zi Di, and she was very pleased.


    From their perspective, they were ready for a final push; joining forces with Jia Sha and the others was like gaining strong reinforcements.


    Divine Arts — Water Creation Skill.


    Jia Sha held the Holy Emblem and prayed, and as the Holy Light descended, clear water magically filled the bowls, water bags, and earthenware jars laid out by everyone.


    Divine Arts — Food Technique.


    The Holy Light descended again, and a large amount of dry provisions appeared on the canvas spread out on the ground.


    Divine Arts — Repair Skill.


    The Holy Light swept across everyone’s clothes and equipment, achieving minor repairs in an instant.


    Divine Arts — Elemental Tolerance.


    The Holy Light continuously fell, and as everyone bathed in the Holy Light, they received its blessings. Now, even if they left the shelter, they hardly felt the harsh heat of the outside world. Sёarch* The ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The Divine was omnipotent, and the Divine Arts naturally encompassed a myriad of powers.


    As long as Divine Arts were not prohibited, Jia Sha was an all-rounder and a master of logistics.


    “Don’t eat the Magic Beast meat, and for now, don’t drink the water on this island. Let me provide the food and drink,” Jia Sha smiled.


    Everyone quickly expressed their gratitude.


    Due to their companions Beastification, they all became wary of the Magic Beast meat and the water they had collected. Jia Sha immediately gained recognition and popularity.


    After leaving the shelter, they were soon attacked by the Demon Beast Army.


    According to Jia Sha, the Blue Dog Fox Wolves on this island, as well as the wild beasts and magical beasts, were all gathering or had gathered here. Their purpose was to protect the War Merchant and obstruct all outsiders.


    However, no amount of Magic Beasts blocking the path could stop Jia Sha, Zhenjin, and their group.


    Divine Arts — Blessing Skill.


    Divine Arts — Horror Technique.


    Divine Arts — Calming Spirit.


    Divine Arts — Resilience Technique.


    Divine Arts — Flash Skill.


    Divine Arts — Immobilization Technique.


    Divine Arts — Invisibility Technique.


    Divine Arts — Extreme Vision.


    Blessing Skill significantly increased the attack power of Zhenjin and the rest, Horror Technique threw the Demon Beast Army into panic, Calming Spirit stabilized morale, Resilience Technique was as reliable as iron armor, Flash Skill blinded the Magic Beasts, Immobilization Technique held them in place, watching helplessly as they were easily slaughtered by humans. Invisibility Technique allowed Zhenjin and others to become invisible, which made it even easier to execute decapitation strategies. Extreme Vision allowed them to discern the outcomes of their movements for timely and precise adjustments.


    Jia Sha’s presence changed the entire battle situation!


    At the Silver Level, one is usually a City Lord or the head of a medium to small-sized organization. Sanda, the squad leader of a mercenary group, only had Black Iron Level cultivation.


    After combat, Jia Sha would also cast Healing Divine Technique and Detox Divine Technique.


    The five Guardian Knights were each capable of standing on their own, all having Black Iron Level strength.


    Guardian Knights were different from Holy Temple Knights. Holy Temple Knights were an army solely belonging to the Holy Emperor, only possessed by the emperor. In contrast, Guardian Knights were broadly selected across various sects as a standard configuration.


    The five Guardian Knights had solid martial arts skills and deep combat knowledge. Originally there were six of them, but one was sacrificed upon initially entering the island.


    Jia Sha also took the initiative to lead daily prayers and confessions, and with him around, morale was almost never going to collapse.


    After such a week had passed.


    The group cut through brambles and thorns and finally arrived at the base of the largest volcano.


    Divine Arts — Detect Mechanism.


    Divine Arts — Detect Magic.


    “It really is here!” exclaimed Jia Sha, his face lighting up with joy.


    Divine Arts — Teleportation Gate.


    The group stepped through the Teleportation Gate and went underground.


    They found themselves in a vast square.


    “It seems this is the War Merchant’s underground alchemy factory!” Jia Sha was the last to enter, surveying the surroundings.