As the voice from the shore faded, eight figures appeared, all riding horses. The horses were clad in armor resembling fish scales, with solid helmets covering their faces, leaving only their eyes visible, glaring forward. The riders wore green clothes and carried various weapons.
With a tug of the reins, the warhorses—each heavily armored, weighing over a thousand pounds—stepped onto the chains and began advancing toward Lin Ye and his group.
"Such profound spiritual energy." Xia Wei gasped, amazed by their ability to control warhorses and walk them on chains that didn't budge. This was truly remarkable.
"I haven't heard of the Iron Horse Gang. They must be a local bandit group," Xia Wei remarked, analyzing the situation.
The Upper River region wasn't made up solely of top-tier experts, but anyone capable of establishing a sect had immense power. There were local bandit groups, just like any other place. While there were many sects, scattered cultivators were even more common.
Word had spread that the Buried Bone River contained the Bone Saint's relics, and many had come from all over to investigate. The Iron Horse Gang's leader, Tie Feima, had swiftly seized the opportunity, bringing his men to intercept any ship that wasn't from a major sect.
"Sorry, we got here first. If you want to dock, you'll have to pay a fee," Tie Feima said as he rode forward, having already covered hundreds of meters along the chain, standing in front of Lin Ye and the others.
"How much?" Lin Ye asked.
"Haha, you're a straightforward guy. It's 20,000 spiritual crystals per person, and for that little leopard, we'll call it 10,000. A total of 70,000 spiritual crystals. Not too much, right?" Tie Feima laughed heartily, his eyes gleaming with joy. If everyone cooperated like this, the world would be so much more peaceful. Why fight when you can simply trade?
70,000 spiritual crystals wasn't unreasonable, but it seemed like Uwang Leopard was getting an inflated price.
After receiving Lin Ye's approval, Xia Wei threw a pouch of spiritual crystals.
Tie Feima reached out and caught it, feeling the weight. As he opened it, he saw the glittering crystals, and his heart raced with excitement.
The other Iron Horse Gang members also smiled, knowing the young man was cooperative.
"Haha, good! Brothers, remove the chains!" Tie Feima said with a smile. Since the payment was received, there was no reason to make things difficult for them.
"Wait."
Lin Ye suddenly spoke.
The group, preparing to leave, froze and turned their eyes toward Lin Ye, their expressions turning cold. "What now? Are you trying to take it back?" Tie Feima sneered.
"20,000 spiritual crystals per person, and you take us into the Buried Bone River," Lin Ye shook his head, setting the price directly without further discussion.
"If you refuse, you'll give me 20,000, and I'll find someone else," he added, remaining calm.
Tie Feima and his men were stunned. After so many years in business, they had never encountered someone asking to be paid for service upfront. Was this extortion or negotiation? Either way, it seemed like this guy wasn't backing down.
The Iron Horse Gang members exchanged glances, their faces hardening, seemingly waiting for Tie Feima's order to deal with Lin Ye.
Tie Feima sneered. "The Iron Horse Gang has ruled the Buried Bone River for decades. We don't get threatened by people like you!" He paused and added, "But you've come to the right place. No one knows the Buried Bone River better than we do. The crystals are not the issue. It's about making friends!"
At first, Xia Wei thought Tie Feima was speaking with righteous indignation, ready for a fight. But unexpectedly, he ended with a friendly offer.
20,000 spiritual crystals was no small amount, but from the previous Su Yuncang's storage ring, Xia Wei had found over 300,000 spiritual crystals, plus plenty of valuable medicinal pills and other items.
Xia Wei realized that traveling with Lin Ye meant the spiritual crystals in her possession would continue to grow—there was no shortage.
The Iron Horse Gang members seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief. They quickly gathered their spiritual energy and pulled the chains back, dragging the Wavebreaker toward the shore.
They used this tactic to prevent the ship from escaping. Of course, before taking action, they would assess the strength of their targets. If there was too big a power gap, they would back off. In their line of work, minimizing risk was paramount.
In fact, this was the Iron Horse Gang's only job in quite a while. Now they had been tricked by Lin Ye into working for him. If it weren't for the hefty payment, Tie Feima would never have agreed to this.
"Here's 100,000. The other 100,000 after the job's done." Xia Wei threw another pouch of spiritual crystals to Tie Feima. When Tie Feima took the pouch, he could feel its weight. His heart raced with excitement.
It had been days without any income, but now, he was holding a total of 170,000 spiritual crystals.
"Haha, I, Tie Feima, love dealing with straightforward people!"
"But I'll tell you the truth, you're too late. While the relic hasn't been fully explored, the area around it has already been sealed off."
"A few days ago, someone got a treasure from the ruins. They fought their way out, probably barely hanging on to life. In the coming days, the major sects will have sealed all the pathways, and the stuff they obtained might have already been snatched up by them."
After accepting the payment, Tie Feima stopped hiding anything and quickly explained the situation at the Buried Bone River.
"So, people have already entered?" Xia Wei's face fell with frustration. She had worked so hard to decipher the map, and now it seemed like those people had intentionally released the treasure map to make others waste time decoding it.
By the time they figured it out, the treasures had already been taken, and the delay was all part of the plan. This was truly a brilliant, yet malicious, tactic!
"Just take us in," Lin Ye said. Since his Nine Nether Blood Sea had responded, it meant there was something he needed inside. Using the Blood-Slaying Treasures to boost his cultivation was the fastest way to improve, and Lin Ye would spend freely to get them. If he couldn't buy them, he wouldn't hesitate to take them by force.
Seeing Lin Ye's resolve, Tie Feima nodded.
"No problem. But I can only take you to the outskirts of the sealed area. Let me tell you, the three sects that have allied are..."
"Tian Xu Sect."
"Shang Cheng Sword Sect."
"And Qingtian Sword Sect!"
"We'll take you to the outskirts of the sealed area. The rest of the problems along the way will be dealt with by us. But once those three sects show up, we'll turn around and leave immediately."
Tie Feima explained.
"Deal."
Lin Ye had chosen these people because, with the Iron Horse Gang around, there were bound to be other issues. The Buried Bone River was vast, and having locals guide them was much faster than relying on maps.
The Iron Horse Gang's cultivation wasn't weak either. Tie Feima, the leader, was at the Moonwheel Sixth Stage. The other seven were all above the Moonwheel Third Stage.
"Brothers, let's go!"
Leading the way would earn them 200,000 spiritual crystals, and they'd still be able to continue collecting the tolls once they came back. But... Tie Feima couldn't help but wonder: Was Lin Ye really not afraid that they might kill him halfway?