Sea Cultivation: Giant Ships and Heavy Artillery Knock on the Door to All Races

Chapter 285 Biting Island, Courtroom Showdown
The next day,

The Zhentao warship, having refuted key witnesses, departed for Biting Island.
The Zhentao warship was on its way to negotiate the return of its crew and demand compensation, but the other side perceived it as a visit to apologize and pay ransom. The two sides held diametrically opposed positions on this matter.
Therefore, a conflict was bound to erupt between the two sides to some extent. For this reason, Lin Dayan also invited the Island Master of Misty Rain to accompany them as witnesses.

Because the Lord of Misty Rain Island was busy with official duties, he did not have the time or energy to witness such a mess. However, out of a desire to befriend the Lin family and to see the Zhou family make a fool of themselves, he sent another Golden Core cultivator from Misty Rain Island to accompany him.

"Fellow Daoist Wuxia, please forgive my embarrassment!"

Lin Dayan understood that the other party's goal was to have the Lin family and the Zhou family break off their cooperation and then turn to cooperate with Wuyu Island.

Don't be fooled by the fact that two trips a year may seem like a lot; the volume of goods is actually quite large. Monster materials are only part of the White Whale's cargo. Although the volume of this part is limited by the Qi and Blood Limit, the volume of other finished products is not subject to such limits. Two trips a year can bring in the surplus output of several Golden Core forces in the Western Regions for that year.

In addition, the White Whale would inevitably make some purchases every time it returned, so there were actually four deals a year. Moreover, once a deal was struck, it was relatively stable and could generate long-term profits. Misty Rain Island also wanted to try to secure a deal, so it was very accommodating.

The situation in the City of Spring and the City of a Thousand Stars is different. The resources they can obtain from the outer seas are very limited. Although they are both in the ocean world, the resources of monsters are not evenly distributed. Therefore, the profits from the cargo brought by the White Whale are quite considerable.

"What's so funny? The Zhou family has indeed had many internal conflicts in recent years. Similar incidents have occurred before, but they all involved Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment cultivators, so they were not major issues. This is the first time that Golden Core forces have been involved, so there must be something fishy going on."

True Person Wuxia is a rather serious middle-aged female cultivator. They are clearly quite concerned about the development of the situation on Biting Island. The more internal strife the Zhou family experiences, the more profitable it is for them.

This time, she was willing to believe that the Lin family was affected, especially since Lin Dayan looked so confident, which convinced her that there would definitely be a good show to watch on this trip, and that it would be worth going no matter what the outcome was.

Toot~
Outside the largest port on Biting Island, the Zhentao warship requested to dock.

The other side immediately replied, granting permission for the Zhentao warship to enter the port.

This port is significantly larger than the port on Misty Rain Island. Several Tier 3 ships can be seen docked in the port, one of which is the Lin family's White Whale.
Unlike the normal activities of other ships, there was no one on the deck of the White Whale, and there was no reply to messages sent to them, so it was clear that it had been taken over by the Zhou family.

The White Whale's exterior doesn't look as bulky and rounded as the Celestial Wheel; it looks more streamlined because the White Whale didn't completely abandon its offensive capabilities in pursuit of maximum internal space.

However, the Beluga Whale showed no external damage at this time, indicating that there was no fierce conflict between the two sides. The Beluga Whale probably gave up resisting when it saw that things were not going well, and the conflict did not escalate.

"Welcome, Fellow Daoist Lin, to my Biting Island! We apologize for not welcoming you properly and hope you will forgive us!"

The newcomer was a smiling young Golden Core cultivator. Based on publicly available information, it can be confirmed that he was none other than the current Biting True Person of Biting Island, and the nominal head of the Biting Zhou family.
However, his cultivation level is only at the second level of the Golden Core stage. It is easy to doubt his ability if he rashly takes over such a large port power. After all, the level of cultivation is the most important dimension for others to judge you.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, you are too kind. I'm afraid our visit today may cause you some trouble. I hope you won't take offense."

"Isn't it a pleasure to have friends coming from afar? As the host of Biting Island, I'm overjoyed, how could I possibly blame them?"

When Master Bi Ting saw that Master Wu Xia showed no surprise, it was no secret that the Zhen Tao ship had docked at Wu Yu Island first. They had also foreseen today's situation; it was just a matter of how to negotiate.

As for the word "trouble" that Lin Dayan mentioned, he didn't take it seriously. The Lin family was in the wrong, so what trouble could there be?
"Fellow Daoist Lin, Fellow Daoist Wuxia, please follow me!"

Immediately, Master Biting invited everyone on the Zhentao Ship to enter Biting Immortal City. The two did not hesitate. The laws of Chaochun City were very sound, and there was no chance of any accidents happening here. They disembarked immediately.

Just then, the Carp Dragon Demon King, hidden in the sea, intentionally or unintentionally revealed a trace of his aura. His powerful aura at the mid-stage of the third rank was very intimidating, immediately making the two early-stage Golden Core cultivators tremble.

They hadn't found any trace of the Carp Dragon Demon King before!
"So Senior Carp Dragon has also come. Please join us..."

"No need, I can stay and guard the ship!"

Upon hearing this, Master Bi Ting breathed a sigh of relief. The pressure from the Carp Dragon Demon King was immense, as this was the first time he had dealt with a powerhouse of this level. Fortunately, the Zhou family was in the right this time, and no matter who came from the other side, they would have to give the Zhou family a reasonable explanation.

However, since the other side has even sent a mid-stage third-tier expert, we can only try to reason with them today.

Biding Immortal City

The construction style here is quite different from that of the City of a Thousand Stars. As a pivotal immortal city on the defensive line, the City of a Thousand Stars prioritizes defensive capabilities when building all the immortal cities, large and small, within its jurisdiction. Even the Golden Core forces in the four inner sea regions prioritize defense when building their cities in the event of a monster attack, with other factors taking a backseat.

The situation is completely different in the City of Chaochun. Wild demon kings are rarely seen in these places. Even if one or two lucky wild ones occasionally appear, they will soon be recruited or wiped out by powerful Golden Core forces. Therefore, they almost never encounter demon beasts attacking the city.

Even during the storm season, there are still beast tides, but these tides only attack first and second-tier strongholds and dare not offend third-tier immortal cities.
Therefore, the architectural beauty of Biting Immortal City far surpasses that of almost all other immortal cities in the Thousand Star City region, which can be considered one of its local characteristics.

"Truly a land blessed with outstanding natural beauty, where dragons and phoenixes soar!"

Someone in the entourage remarked that springtime in Chaochun City is the most beautiful season, with flowers in full bloom, and the place is indeed very beautiful.

The Zhou family of Biting Immortal City

Led by Master Biting, the group arrived at the Zhou family's reception hall, where a considerable number of people had already gathered. These were all influential figures from various branches of the Zhou family, including those at the Foundation Establishment and Golden Core stages.

The look in these people's eyes was arrogant and amused, clearly showing that they regarded the Lin family as easy prey and had little respect for them.

Because the matter today is very simple; in their eyes, the Lin family is dishonest and colluded with traitors from the Zhou family to steal their inheritance.
If the Lin family were just a small, insignificant power, they would have already extorted a large sum of money from them to compensate them. The reason they went through with this pretense was because they considered the Lin family to be powerful and difficult to bully, and they didn't want to damage their cooperative relationship with the Lin family. However, the expected pomp and circumstance was still maintained.
Not counting the previous Bi Ting Zhenren, who is already in his twilight years, the Zhou family claims to have six Golden Core cultivators and one third-tier demon king. Today's meeting has attracted three Golden Core cultivators, clearly intended to give the Lin family a show of force.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, you've made quite a grand entrance today. Where are the members of the Lin family?"

Seeing that most of the people in the room were looking at him with hostility, Lin Dayan didn't stand on ceremony and pulled over a chair to sit down without showing any stage fright.

“The Lin family’s children are generally well taken care of with good food and drink. There’s only one unruly junior who was a bit arrogant, so I taught him a lesson on behalf of the Lin family elders.”

Just as Master Bi Ting was about to reply, another Golden Core elder woman took over the conversation. This person was none other than the leader of the Zhou family's Ting lineage, who was at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm. This one was only at the early stage of the Golden Core realm.

"Who is this old lady? Who exactly is in charge of your Zhou family? What gives you the right to lecture my Lin family's juniors on my behalf?"

Lin Dayan didn't even glance at her, knowing that she was the culprit who had sown discord, so he couldn't possibly give her a friendly look.

“You…” “Aunt, please be patient! Fellow Daoist Lin, please wait a moment, we will bring all the Lin family disciples up.”

Despite being annoyed by being interrupted, Bi Ting Zhenren showed no impatience in front of so many outsiders.

Soon, dozens of Lin family boatmen working on the White Whale were brought aboard in a line.

The personnel were all present and in good condition, so they should not have been troubled too much. Only the Eighth Elder, Lin Licheng, had empty arms, which meant that his arms had obviously been crippled.

The importance of arms to a person is self-evident, especially for a second-tier shipwright who makes a living through his skills. If he cannot be restored to his original state, the loss to the Lin family will be too great.

"Eighth Elder, you have suffered!"

We share the same bloodline. Although some of us don't interact much in daily life, we are all of the same clan and can empathize with each other's situations.

The Eighth Elder is even more special. He has been a second-tier shipwright in Yanglong Bay for decades. He has many friends and a wide network of relationships. Almost everyone on the Zhentao Ship knows him or has benefited from his kindness.

Lin Dayan suppressed his anger and continued to ask:

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, tell me, what happened?"

Previously, the Zhou family had sent a message to the Zhentao warship saying that the matter was not clear in a short time. Now that the Lin family had come with sincerity, they had to make things clear. Lin Dayan chose to let the other party speak first.

"This matter is not complicated..."

Then, Master Biting recounted the events in detail, which was nothing more than the same story Lin Qianfan had heard from Tingfeng Pavilion:
Zhou Lishu, a traitor to the Zhou family who practiced demonic arts, secretly stole the Zhou family's core inheritance—the jade slip of a third-tier shipwright.

He then went to Liuzhu Market and handed the inheritance over to his contact, Lin Licheng of the Lin family, attempting to use the White Whale to bring the legacy to Thousand Star City, and possibly even to the outer sea.

Fortunately, the Zhou family was alert and quickly discovered the problem. They immediately dispatched a large force to arrest the two individuals, preventing a major incident from occurring.

As for why it wasn't explained in detail in the message, it's not a big deal for one or two people to find a demonic cultivation technique and secretly cultivate it. The higher-ups wouldn't use overwhelming pressure to wipe them all out one by one.
However, it's different if there are organized and disciplined demonic cultivators. Once a large number of demonic cultivators are discovered, they are usually investigated thoroughly to prevent them from moving towards the Demon Corner Domain. Obviously, in the eyes of the Zhou family, the White Whale is likely a "demon's den". This time, the Zhou family was considerate and deliberately gave the Lin family face.

"This is all Fellow Daoist Zhou's side of the story. Is there any detailed evidence to prove it?"

"Of course! Otherwise, given the relationship between our two families, how could we dare to detain the Lin family's White Whale without authorization? Bring up the evidence!"

The Zhou family has three pieces of evidence:

First, there is Zhou Lishu himself, a traitor to the Zhou family.

He has confessed to all his motives and details, pointing out that Lin Licheng instigated him to steal his family's inheritance, and claiming that he could cooperate with the Lin family's Golden Core cultivators to search souls, which is absolutely true.

Secondly, there was the jade slip that was stolen at the time.

Both the seller and the buyer knew the identity of the jade slip and its actual value, but the actual transaction amount was unusually low, which corroborates Zhou Lishu's statement above.

Finally, there's the Liu family's Foundation Building Master from Liuzhu Market.
He was in charge of Liuzhu Market and happened to be free that day. He unexpectedly discovered Zhou Lishu secretly plotting something with an outsider. He then secretly followed the two and witnessed the transaction.
He had long suspected that Zhou Lishu's rapid development in recent years was suspicious, and coupled with the message from his family that their inheritance had been stolen and that they should be wary of any suspicious individuals, he immediately reported to his family.

Upon hearing the news, the Zhou family's law enforcement team immediately mobilized, even attracting the attention of the Golden Core elder from the Tingmai sect, who personally arrived at the scene to arrest Lin Licheng, who was attempting to forcibly leave Liuzhu Market with the jade slip.

Lin Licheng's arms were also crippled at that time because he not only refused to admit his crimes, but also tried to resist, which undoubtedly challenged the dignity of the Golden Core True Person and was crippled on the spot.

The first two pieces of evidence can be presented directly, but the third piece of evidence disappeared the night before last. Everything was fine for the previous twenty-odd days, but the witness disappeared as soon as the Zhentao ship docked at Wuyu Island. Obviously, it is highly likely that the Lin family did it.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, Liu Yu is in your hands, isn't he? He was an auxiliary witness, you didn't kill him to cover it up, did you?"

The old woman with the Golden Core technique probed him, since this person was an outsider. They only knew he was missing, not whether he was alive or dead, and she wanted to confirm it.

"He's here. We didn't kill him, we just interrogated him, but he's dishonest and talking nonsense."

In order to dispel a certain concern in the other party's mind, Lin Dayan released the Liu family member who had reached the Foundation Establishment stage from the spirit beast pouch.

The person was in fairly good condition and kept asking Master Biting for help. Meanwhile, the Golden Core Elder used a secret technique to sense him and confirmed that the restriction on his soul was still in place, which put her at ease.

"After all that talk, isn't it all just your Zhou family's side of the story? This chain of evidence is clearly incomplete and cannot be considered conclusive proof. Li Cheng, tell me what exactly happened!"

Eighth Elder Lin Licheng was pale and unshaven, clearly having suffered a great deal of injustice during this time. Now that someone from the clan had come to support him, he was finally able to stand up straight and speak.

"Every time the Beluga Whale docks at Biting Island for rest and repairs, I take the time to browse the different markets on the island to see if I can find any good deals. This time it just so happens that it's Liuzhu Market's turn, and this is also my first time visiting Liuzhu Market, which you can definitely find out by looking it up."
As for that beast, I don't know him at all. I only bought it because I saw an ancient jade slip at his stall and realized it was valuable and useful to me and my Lin family. I don't know why he would harm me.

As for the price, who would want to spend more money if they could save money? What more could you ask for than a bargain price for something that's on a stall in Liuzhu Market? Aren't these prices negotiated?

As for why I resisted? That's utter nonsense. You immediately labeled me as a thief of the Zhou family's heritage. Why shouldn't I resist? I bought this jade slip from the Zhou family's market. It's only right that I take it with me!

Even if you want to take it back, you should negotiate a new price with me to buy it back from me. Otherwise, what kind of rules does the Zhou family have?

Although the Eighth Elder had suffered, he knew the family would definitely come to his rescue, so when he finally got his chance to speak, his logic was very clear. He was not afraid of the aura of the Zhou family's Golden Core cultivators at all, and even added a point similar to Zhou Lishu's:

"I am willing to undergo a soul search by the Golden Core elders of the Zhou family. If I have uttered a single lie just now, you may execute me on the spot!"

Although Lin Licheng was pale, he was full of vigor, after all, he was a relatively young Foundation Establishment junior.

(End of this chapter)