The bearded mercenary holding a barrel of wine threw it into the sea, drew his steel fork from his waist, and shouted, "Business is here, brothers, there are Shahua Fishmen nearby, grab your weapons and kill these fools."
"Woohoo, let me see where those cute Fishman heads are,"
"Everyone move aside, let me through, I used to be a fisherman, these Shahua Fishmen are just fish to me, my fish spear can’t wait any longer."
The previously bored mercenaries suddenly became energized, each grabbing their weapons and crowding to the edge of the deck, eyes gleaming as they looked at the distant monstrous heads emerging on the sea’s surface.
The village chief, Faen, and the little girl, Nora, were squeezed to the back, surrounded by those pirates who didn’t manage to push to the front.
Faen grabbed a pirate, curiously asking, "Your fleets that often sail the seas should have good relationships with those sea monster tribes. Why do you all want to hunt these Shahua Fishmen instead? Aren’t you afraid they’ll cause trouble for your fleets?"
In fact, what Faen said aligns with the methods of most seafaring fleets. The Sea is the main turf of these monsters, and although individually the Shahua Fishmen aren’t very strong in this world, elite human soldiers can handle several at once.
But there are countless Shahua Fishmen living in the vast and boundless Sea, which is far more expansive than the land, too many to even count. Plus, these monsters often dwell in groups, and although their tribes may have conflicts, they always unite against enemies.
Similar to Metal Dragons, if you defeat a younger one, an older one shows up, and if you manage to defeat the older ones, possibly two Ancient Dragons might come after you. If these two Ancient Dragons have connections and lots of gold coins, well, congratulations, you might be lucky enough to meet the legendary Ancient Golden Dragon Council and the Silver Dragon Holy Knight Order.
As for the Shahua Fishmen, if you defeat one group, another will take over their territory and likely remain hostile towards you. As long as you don’t eradicate the Shahua Fishmen from the Sea, they will always be your enemies and opponents, as relentless and troublesome as ever.
Unless you can intimidate these sea demons with absolute power and fearsome means, they will at least show superficial submission to you and not oppose you openly.
"Hehe," the tattoo-covered mercenary chuckled, nonchalantly saying, "These foolish and ignorant Fishmen previously offended the Lord of the Land of Golden, who leads the Dragon Group,"
"The Dragon Group has issued a tribal extermination order against the Shahua Fishmen; each Fishman head can be exchanged for twenty coppers at Golden Harbor Town’s security office, and each live Shahua Fishman can fetch fifty coppers. Although the individual price isn’t high, these foolish creatures are countless in the sea,"
The mercenary proudly patted his chest, then said, "Every fleet now sees these Shahua Fishmen as shiny gold coins; they are the only fun and activity we have at sea. Thanks to these Fishmen, I’ve saved a sum of money, enough to keep those women with their legs wide open for a full month!"
"Damn it, you confiscated my weapons. Can you give them back to me?" Faen’s Adam’s apple moved involuntarily, thinking he might save up some funds for himself before reaching the Giant Dragon Territory.
"Hmph, didn’t you see I couldn’t even squeeze past," the tattoo-covered mercenary rolled his eyes, snorted, and showcased his bulging muscles.
...
Red Copper Dragon Alfred and Bronze Dragon Alina followed the direction once pointed out by Karon, flying north along the coast from Alfred’s territory.
They soared over mountains and noticed dangerous beasts in the Endless Mountain Range eyeing them, like the Thorn-tailed Mountain Cat, which hunts Dragons. These legendary creatures remain elusive when they don’t wish to be spotted by Dragons, but this particular Thorn-tailed Mountain Cat seemed unfazed by the two young Giant Dragons, blatantly trailing behind them the entire way.
The two young Giant Dragons dared not provoke such a peculiar legendary creature, which is known to harbor grudges. Although a Dragon that’s airborne is safe from even the mightiest Thorn-tailed Mountain Cat, no Dragon wants to be targeted by such an extraordinary predator.
After shaking off the Thorn-tailed Mountain Cat, the two Bronze Giant Dragons became more cautious, frequently following the ocean routes of passing fleets. However, during one rest stop, the two young Giant Dragons encountered a group of Storm Giants.
Fortunately, while Storm Giants, like other Giants, are descendants and creations of Titans, they don’t share the same blood feuds and hostilities with Dragons. Titans follow their own, and Giants follow theirs.
Moreover, both young Giant Dragons belong to the Metal Dragon Species, causing these Storm Giants to heed the traditions of the Metal Dragons. So, even when Red Copper Dragon Alfred and Bronze Dragon Alina requested to rest overnight in the Storm Giants’ territory, the Storm Giants agreed.
Furthermore, the Storm Giants warmly invited the two young Giant Dragons to share dinner, an invitation the young Giant Dragons readily accepted, driven by the curiosity of the Bronze Dragon, who is naturally inclined to learn about other intelligent beings. Even Red Copper Dragon Alfred, a chatterbox, enjoys conversations.