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墨書 Inktalez
Lin San and Lin Liu pressed down on Lin Xiao, who lay on the edge of the boat with a knife wound on his neck, half his body hanging over the side. It was unclear whether he had passed out. Blood dripped from his neck into the sea, and the wind carried a strong scent of blood.
"Lin—Xiao!" Lin Qingmo shouted. Upon seeing Lin Qingmo, Lin San and Lin Liu were momentarily stunned before bursting into laughter. After exchanging glances, Lin Liu stood up with his hands on his hips and said, "It seems fortune favors the bold! We were just thinking of using this kid's blood to lure you out!" Lin Qingmo gritted his teeth, standing up from the back of the turtle, pointing angrily at them. "Have you both lost your minds?"
Suddenly, Lin San stopped laughing, his face contorting into a terrifying grimace. "If we weren't pretending to be mad, do you think we could escape death? Others might believe you're dead, but we brothers know better. With the Dragon King protecting you, how could you possibly die so easily? I suspect the Dragon King has used some trickery to hide you from everyone and brought you to the Dragon Palace to live comfortably."
Xi'er flapped her wings and let out a cold laugh. "You two little brothers are truly clever!" Lin San and Lin Liu turned their attention to Xi'er, finally noticing that Lin Qingmo was standing on the back of a Giant Turtle, which was astonishingly large with watermelon-like proportions and deep black round eyes that appeared dull yet kind. On its back was a bird that resembled neither a phoenix nor a peacock but moved with human-like grace and even spoke human language. Even if Lin San and Lin Liu were inexperienced, they could tell that the turtle and bird were no ordinary creatures. A sense of fear crept in, but they had come prepared. Lin Liu suddenly remembered something; he grabbed Lin Xiao by the collar and pulled him close while Lin San brandished a cold knife against Lin Xiao's abdomen.
Lin Xiao had already passed out, his head drooping to one side like a chicken with its throat cut. Blood continued to flow from his neck, and his life force was slowly fading away. "Stop! What do you want?" Lin Qingmo shouted. Lin San chuckled derisively. "Look at you; you're quite clever for a kid. What do we want? People die for wealth; birds die for food—what do you think we want? I can see you have a good relationship with the Dragon King; surely you can spare us two treasures?"
Lin San and Lin Liu were taking risks; they weren't without fear. The outcome of mortals challenging immortals was obvious, but they had Lin Xiao as leverage. Besides, their demands were modest—just two or three treasures, which would be nothing to the Dragon King.
Lin Qingmo looked around; apart from himself, he had nothing with him. He cursed himself inwardly and pleaded with Lin San and Lin Liu, "I... I have treasures; I just didn't bring them with me. Please stop the bleeding from Lin Xiao first, and I'll go back to get them for you." Lin San and Lin Liu exchanged disdainful smiles but then reconsidered—who goes out carrying treasures? "Fine," said Lin San. "If this kid dies, we won't get any treasures either! So we're not making fatal cuts—just enough to make him bleed out. You'd better hurry back."
At that moment, Xi'er waved her hand dismissively. "No need for such trouble! How about this? Not only am I beautiful, but I can also spit pearls." With that, she leaned forward, opened her sharp beak wide, and forcefully spat out a pearl that flew toward Lin San and Lin Liu.
The pearl rolled twice in Lin San's arms before he managed to catch it by twisting it left and right. He held it up to the sun; its luster was soft. Rubbing it between his fingers revealed it to be cold and smooth like silk. "It's real," he said to Lin Liu. They looked again at Xi'er—her vibrant plumage was unlike any ordinary bird's dull eyes; she had thick long eyelashes resembling human features—a remarkably beautiful and rare bird that could spit pearls. To acquire such an unparalleled living treasure made them ecstatic.
"That bird should fly over first," said Lin San. "Then I'll bring the boat alongside the turtle so you can take Lin Xiao."
"No way!" exclaimed Lin Qingmo anxiously as he glanced at Xi'er again. "Xi'er, you can't go! These two are ruthless! I'll go back to get two items right away—I'll be back soon; don't rush..."
Xi'er winked at Lin Qingmo before turning to the two men. "Alright, I'll come over now; you can tie me up first while bringing the boat closer." She flapped her wings and soared into the air, her feathers spreading out beautifully.
As Xi'er flew into Lin San's arms, Lin Liu shoved the half-conscious Lin Xiao aside and grabbed Xi'er's claws upside down while Lin San found a rope in the boat to bind her claws together. With Xi'er captured helplessly hanging her head down, she spoke with some effort: "You must keep your word now; bring the boat closer!"
Lin Liu then grabbed the nearly lifeless Lin Xiao again while Lin San paddled towards the Giant Turtle. The turtle slowly moved closer to their boat with remarkable awareness. As boat met turtle shell, Lin Liu pushed Lin Xiao into Lin Qingmo's arms. The moment he received him, he felt half ice-cold and half warm—the warmth had drained away with the blood loss.
Lin Qingmo couldn't hold back his tears any longer as he tore off a piece of cloth from his clothes to wrap around Lin Xiao's bleeding throat before unbuttoning his garment completely to hold him tightly in his embrace.
Lin San quickly paddled away from the Giant Turtle; they instinctively feared this rare creature. Suddenly, the turtle shook its heavy head slowly yet powerfully—the boat didn't capsize but spun in place instead. Both men swayed left and right; relying on their storm-borne experience helped them maintain their balance as they clung tightly to the sides of the boat despite feeling dizzy as if everything was spinning.
Lin San's grip on Xi'er's feet tightened painfully enough for her to feel discomfort when suddenly she lifted her head and pecked at his eyes. "Ah—" A piercing scream echoed across the sea far away like a hammer striking hard against Lin Liu's eardrum, leaving him dazed.
Before he could recover from his shock, Xi'er soared again in a diagonal dash toward Lin San's eyes with her tightly bound claws slicing through the wind—another shrill scream followed suit as well.
At that moment, the Giant Turtle shook its head once more—the boat finally capsized! Both men were thrown overboard; moments later they disappeared beneath the surface while their screams were swallowed by the roaring sea.
A patch of blood floated on the surface like red silk as an increasingly strong stench filled the air.
Lin Qingmo watched coldly as all this unfolded; his past kindness had only led to escalating evil—the fate of these two was merely delayed at the cost of half of Lin Xiao's life.
Xi'er flew onto the turtle's back without waiting for Lin Qingmo to speak before saying: "We must hand him over to Turtle Prime Minister; he can save him and hide him too—never let the prince find out."
Lin Qingmo nodded weakly in agreement: "I understand. Let's hurry back now... If we delay..." He glanced down at Lin Xiao in his arms whose lips were turning pale with frost while color drained from his face: "...if we wait any longer he might not survive." As soon as he finished speaking, the giant turtle turned its massive sluggish body around and began swimming back along their original path.
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