txolops Chapter 018 General Iron Anchor
Chapter 018 General Iron Anchor
Goods worth a hundred coins here can be worth ten thousand coins there; goods worth a hundred coins there can also be worth ten thousand coins here. The profit is high and the cost low, so people disregard their own safety to go. Year-round, families would travel in boats of five or seven people, or a dozen or so, crossing the ocean…
The path stretches for eight hundred miles, and few have traversed it throughout history.
It is true that the Tongtian River is 800 li wide, but it is not that few people have ever crossed it.
In this world, fame and fortune are the most important things, which is why people often risk their lives for them.
As the weather warms and the waves on the river gradually subside, boats of all sizes, fully loaded with goods, begin to sail from the east bank to the west bank. Once ashore, they sell the goods at a hundredfold profit, then purchase local specialties on the west bank and transport them back to the east bank, again making a hundredfold profit.
"What's going on!"
About a hundred miles from the east coast, a single-masted sailboat about ten meters long came to a sudden stop after a violent rocking motion, and a young man with a sallow complexion emerged from the cabin.
"It's not even dark yet, why has the boat stopped?"
"You bastard, we've run aground!"
The dark-skinned captain stood at the bow, staring at the dark shadows of the reefs beneath the water, and cursed angrily.
It's all the young employer's fault for rushing him; otherwise, how could he have misjudged the course and ended up on this reef?
"Run aground?"
The young man was stunned for a moment, then came to his senses and stamped his feet in a panic.
"How could the boat have run aground for no reason! You've been a boatman for years, I've paid you so much money, how could you have rowed the boat onto the rocks!"
"You can't blame me for this. We've had no problems navigating this waterway in previous years, but this time we just ran aground. It's all because you loaded too much cargo, causing the ship to draft too deep and run aground on the reef."
After the boat captain finished speaking, he let out another heavy snort and looked at the young man with a resentful expression.
The young man opened his mouth, but couldn't speak for a moment, and was sweating profusely with anxiety.
After his parents passed away, he was bullied and robbed of his family property by his uncles and aunts. He sold his only remaining house and a few acres of land to raise the money for this shipment. He originally intended to transport the goods to the Western Liang Women's Kingdom on the other side of the river and turn his life around, but unexpectedly, after only two or three days, he ran aground here.
"No way!"
The young man wiped the sweat from his brow and quickly asked the boat captain for more information.
"Is there any way to get the ship out?"
"There is a solution, but I'm afraid you won't be willing to accept it."
"As long as there's a way, I'll do it! I'd even be willing to go into the water and push it myself!"
"That would require oxen or horses; how could a scholar like you possibly move it?"
The boat captain gave a light snort and said directly.
"Just throw the cargo overboard, and the ship will be able to come out when the draft is low."
"Losing the goods? How can this be allowed! Absolutely not!"
The young man's eyes widened instantly, and he shook his head frantically.
He had staked everything on this cargo; throwing it into the water would be worse than losing his life!
"Think about it yourself, there's no other way."
The boat captain said a few words and went straight into the cabin to rest.
Only the young man remained, standing dejectedly at the bow of the ship. After a long while, he came to his senses, leaned on the deck, and gazed at the water, tears streaming down his face.
Everyone says that there's always a way out, so why force him to his death?
Whoosh!
Just as the young man was weeping bitterly, a sound of water suddenly came from the side.
The young man was startled and quickly stood up, taking several steps back. He had heard that man-eating demons and monsters lurked in the Tongtian River. Had he encountered one?
He picked up the oar beside him and watched the water warily.
Whoosh!
The sound of water rose again, followed by the boat beginning to rock slightly.
The young man struggled to steady himself, growing increasingly frightened.
"What is that?!"
He tilted his body slightly and suddenly noticed what looked like a figure at the bow of the ship.
The young man blinked, mustered his courage, and walked to the bow of the ship again. He peeked out slightly and stared wide-eyed, his face turning deathly pale with fright.
A monster with a human body and a fish head was seen at the bow of the ship!
"Strange……"
The young man wanted to shout, but fearing he would startle the monster, he quickly covered his mouth.
But this attempt to cover his hand had a fatal effect; the oar fell from his hand and slammed onto the deck with a particularly jarring sound.
The young man's heart leaped into his throat. This would surely alert the monster, and what if it jumped up and killed him?
"what?"
Frozen in terror, they watched for a moment, but the monster did not jump up. The ship continued to rock, swaying rhythmically from side to side.
The young man regained his composure and mustered his courage to peek over the other side again.
The monster was in the water, its feet bracing against the rocks, while its hands were forcefully pushing and rocking the boat.
"Could it be?!"
Judging from his expression, he clearly wanted to get the boat out of the reef.
"What's going on!"
The boat rocked more and more violently, and with a shout, the captain crawled out of the cabin.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, waves surged up at the bow of the boat, accompanied by a violent rocking motion.
The boat captain was taken aback, quickly walked to the bow of the boat, and couldn't help but show surprise.
"How did this ship come out by itself!"
"It's that monster..."
"The boat is out!" The young man's face lit up with joy, but before he could open his mouth to explain, there was no one left underwater.
"That's really strange."
The boat captain frowned, but since the boat was already out there, he stopped thinking about it, picked up a long pole to brace against the reef, and left the area.
A moment later, it returned to the channel and continued sailing westward.
The young man was standing on the boat when he suddenly remembered something. He quickly walked to the stern, knelt down with a thud, and kowtowed repeatedly towards the spot where the boat had been stranded.
He silently vowed that when he became successful, he would definitely come to pay his respects and repay his great kindness.
[Perform the divine duty of the Iron Anchor General once!]
[Acquire the divine title of Iron Anchor General!]
[Unlock the Iron Anchor General's magical artifact, the Wave-Stopping Mooring Ship!]
Beneath the surface, Li Yue, now in human form, held onto a reef with one hand, while notification sounds rang in his ears one after another.
Splash!
Deep within his consciousness, the talisman of lustful worship surfaced, moving on its own without wind. Turning to the third page, the image of a burly man holding a massive iron anchor appeared.
[Iron Anchor General]
Rank: Fifth Rank (True God)
Level: lv1 (0/5000)
Supernatural powers: None available
Ritual implement: Wave-stopping anchor
Rule: Human affairs are unpredictable; nine out of ten people will respond to your call.
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"Got it!"
Looking at the information that appeared on the third page of the Yin Si Lu, Li Yue was filled with excitement.
I finally obtained my first official divine office.
Unlike other gods, once the prerequisites are met, you only need to perform a divine duty once, similar to an activation action, to obtain the corresponding divine duty.
The Iron Anchor General's duty is to protect ships on the water. There are already few ships traveling on the Tongtian River, and even fewer that encounter danger. Therefore, after breaking through the Transformation Stage, he has only now had the opportunity to complete this task.
"Zhilangding."
Looking at the information, Li Yue's mind stirred, and with a whoosh, a heavy iron anchor appeared in his hand.
The anchor rod was about two feet long, with two anchor claws, one on the left and one on the right, each nearly a foot long. Holding it in one's hand, it resembled a halberd. In addition, there was a long chain about the thickness of a chicken egg attached to it.
Li Yue hesitated for a moment, then suddenly swung the anchor and smashed it against the nearby reef.
Boom!
With a loud bang, a large number of bubbles accompanied by mud and sand broke the reef, which was several meters in diameter.
"That's amazing!"
Li Yue stared wide-eyed as he watched the rock slowly sink to the riverbed, creating a large crater.
【The Wave-Stopping Anchor: Forged from deep-sea iron, crafted by master craftsmen using the power of Yin Fire for forty-nine days, weighing three thousand catties, it possesses the ability to stop winds and calm waves!】
"My darling!"
Weighing three thousand catties? Li Yue was excited again. As expected of a fifth-grade magic weapon.