The villains are redeemed, and the heroines cry and beg for forgiveness.

boom!

A powerful burst of energy erupted forward.

It was as if a large stone had fallen into a marshmallow, directly blasting away all the white clouds in front of it, and the aftershocks of the surging energy also completely dispersed the remaining white smoke.

After the white smoke dissipated, the ship was revealed, along with its one-eyed captain, who stared in disbelief with his mouth slightly agape, completely unaware that his cigar had fallen from his lips.

The boat was no longer in its original position; it had been moved to the other side.

"How, how is it possible?"

"This is the fucking Qi Condensation of Martial Arts?!"

The one-eyed captain looked at the unremarkable Gu Ran in the air and couldn't believe that such an attack had just been launched by him.

He had fought against martial artists who had reached the Qi Condensation stage before, and there was one such martial artist on their ship, so he had a good idea of ​​their strength.

But Gu Ran was far beyond his comprehension, and a guess suddenly arose in his mind.

"Could this guy be a martial arts grandmaster?"

Only those who have reached the Golden Core stage in martial arts can be called martial arts grandmasters. The thought that Gu Ran might be a Golden Core cultivator filled the one-eyed captain with fear.

But then he immediately dismissed the guess.

If they were martial arts masters, crushing them would be as easy as crushing ants. They could just come at them and show their strength without having to deal with them for so long. Besides, although Gu Ran's attack was indeed very powerful, it still seemed to be quite inferior to that of a martial arts master.

With this thought in mind, the one-eyed captain felt somewhat relieved.

Upon seeing the one-eyed captain appear, Gu Ran immediately rushed towards him.

Gu Ran had no intention of letting these bounty hunters go. He had initially worried that he wouldn't be able to defeat them with his own strength, but after exchanging blows a few times, he discovered that these bounty hunters were much weaker than he had expected.

"This kid is too strong; we can't take him head-on." The one-eyed captain pulled out another cigar and started puffing away.

This time, however, the one-eyed captain did not let the white smoke envelop the ship and spread everywhere, forming a thick fog. Instead, he let the white smoke transform into several humanoid monsters.

The arms of these humanoid monsters transformed into swords, then they smashed the tanks that held the mermaids and held the transformed swords to their necks.

"Kid, you're trying to save them, aren't you?"

"But if you move any further, they'll die because of you."

The one-eyed captain pretended to be relaxed as he spoke, but his eyes were constantly observing Gu Ran's expression and movements.

Faced with the threat from the one-eyed captain, Gu Ran had no choice but to stop, his expression turning slightly grim.

As expected, the situation continued to develop in the worst possible direction.

......

Outside the light screen.

Ariel has confirmed that the person captured on the ship is indeed her mother.

What surprised her was that her mother had experienced something like this before, almost becoming a slave to humans... Was it Gu Ran who saved them in the end?

And that pink mermaid named Eudora...

It seems that she really is his older or younger sister.

But why has her mother never mentioned it, and the same goes for the time Gu Ran saved them?

Perhaps, it wasn't Gu Ran who saved them?

After all, if Gu Ran really saved them, then Gu Ran would have done a favor for the mermaids, and the mermaids should have had a good relationship with him. It shouldn't have developed into such deep hatred.

Could it be that Gu Hou later ruthlessly killed the merfolk, causing them to deeply hate him?

Ariel sensed that there were many hidden secrets she didn't know about.

The others had also heard the little conch's mother's call and learned the little conch's real name.

“This pink mermaid is indeed the sister of the sea queen. They share the same mother, but have different names,” someone whispered. “I never knew that Gu Ran had such a connection with the mermaid race.”

"Yes, could it be that Gu later faced opposition from the merfolk, so his love turned to hatred, and he became enemies with the merfolk?"

"That's quite possible. The Sea Queen knew nothing about this pink mermaid, didn't she? This means that what happened back then was deliberately concealed, even from the Sea Queen."

The powerful figures present whispered among themselves, somewhat gossipy.

If it were just ordinary people's love and hate entanglements, they wouldn't be interested in gossiping about it. But this is the gossip and love history of Gu Ran, the tyrant, the most powerful chief regent in history.

Ariel naturally heard the others' comments. She snorted and the water that had been surrounding her suddenly intensified several times over.

The other powerful figures immediately stopped talking about this topic and began to pretend to discuss other things.

After she could no longer hear the gossip, Ariel continued to stare intently at the screen.

After all, she couldn't really do anything about these powerful people.

......

In the light screen.

When the one-eyed captain saw that Gu Ran had indeed stopped and was no longer going forward, he thought to himself that he had guessed correctly and smiled smugly.

"It seems these mermaids are indeed very important to you. Well then, let me think, would you... cut off your own arm for them?" The one-eyed captain's mind raced, and he said with a smile.

He was still not entirely sure about the role Gu Ran was playing, so he decided to test the waters first.

Gu Ran's eyes turned slightly cold. He knew he absolutely could not follow the other party's pace completely, otherwise the other party would gradually increase the stakes and make increasingly excessive demands.

"They have nothing to do with me. Do you think they can threaten me?" Gu Ran said coldly.

"Oh, really?" Captain One-Eyed smiled slightly. "Since it's unrelated, you probably don't care whether the pink mermaid's mother lives or dies, right?"

The smoky humanoid monster immediately placed the knife it had transformed into against the little conch mother's neck; if it moved even a fraction closer, her neck would be slashed open.

Gu Ran suppressed his emotions, maintaining a cold and indifferent demeanor, and said calmly:

"I will not let you threaten me and cripple my own strength. I am not stupid. If I have no strength, then I am a lamb to be slaughtered by you."

"I do want to save them, but it's not absolutely necessary. If you kill them, then I will make you wish you were dead to avenge them."

"You already know my strength. I have the ability to do this. You can take this as a threat to you."

"So, are you going to bet with me?"

Seeing that Gu Ran remained unmoved, the one-eyed captain knew that he was a person of firm will and couldn't help but ponder for a moment.

Having just witnessed Gu Ran's strength, he clearly knew that although Gu Ran was probably not a martial arts grandmaster yet, his side would hardly be a match for him.

Both sides are now wary of each other and dare not risk a complete breakdown in relations.

Suddenly, the one-eyed captain's eyes flashed; he still wanted to take the gamble.

"Since you want to gamble with me, then I'll gamble with you and see if you really don't care about their lives?"

The smoke-formed blade advanced slightly, and a thin line of blood appeared on the little conch mother's neck.

The little conch mother's eyes were filled with terror and despair. She glanced at Gu Ran, a glimmer of hope flashing in her eyes, but then her gaze dimmed again.

He is also human, and humans cannot be trusted. Although he has a very good relationship with Eudora, we should not place our hopes on humans.

So be it if Eudora dies, as long as she can escape.

The little conch's mother closed her eyes.

Gu Ran looked at the one-eyed captain, noticing his ruthless expression, and began to ponder.

This is a psychological game between him and his opponent, a gamble on who has more leverage.

But would the other party really risk everything to test his bottom line and bet all their chips on the table?

If not... then the other party's next move will likely be to continue to put pressure on him and test his bottom line, but without immediately throwing out all their chips.

Therefore, the best option for the other party is...

"How about this, let's compromise. You bounty hunters capture mermaids for the reward, right? I can buy them. That way, we can both be happy. You don't need to worry about me not being able to buy them. My assets far exceed your imagination. After all, martial artists need more resources than superhumans, as you should know," Gu Ran said calmly.

If the other party really wants to put pressure on him next, then the best way is not to harm the little conch's mother, but to take action against the other mermaids.

If someone were to actually kill one or two mermaids in front of him to threaten him, he would be in a difficult position to some extent.

So he pretended to have substantial assets and pretended to offer the other party the option of a transaction.

In this way, the mermaids would no longer be hostages in the other party's hands, and the other party would remember that these mermaids were their "important assets".

Bounty hunters are those who pursue bounties.

Therefore, the other party should be unwilling to destroy their "important assets".

Upon hearing Gu Ran's words, the one-eyed captain's heart stirred. He had indeed originally intended to kill a mermaid to test Gu Ran's attitude.

However, Gu Ran does seem to have a powerful background. After all, as a martial arts expert with such ridiculously strong strength, he must have accumulated a lot of resources. People from ordinary backgrounds cannot support so many resources.

The thought that Gu Ran might also come from a prominent family made the one-eyed captain feel a sudden sense of apprehension, but at the same time, his heart was also burning with excitement.

If they were to offer the mermaid to one of the top families in New Testament City as before, their Great Shark Squad would still receive a generous reward, but the amount would depend entirely on the generosity of those family scions.

If Gu Ran also has the backing of a powerful family and values ​​these mermaids, and is willing to redeem them, then the Giant Shark Squad's profits could potentially multiply several times over.

"Oh? That's an interesting suggestion. How much are you willing to pay for them?" Captain One-Eyed suppressed his excitement and asked in a nonchalant manner.

Gu Ran chuckled softly and said, "How about five cubic meters of pure star stone?"

"Only five..." The one-eyed captain instinctively wanted to belittle the other party's offer and then raise the price, but suddenly realized what the other party was talking about.