Chapter 957: Water and Land Reconnaissance

**Chapter 947: Water and Land Reconnaissance**

"Oh, is it because I don't want to see more people die?"

"Again?" The leader, seated at the bow, raised an eyebrow upon hearing the voice from behind.

This stretch of water was indeed prone to incidents, making it an ideal habitat for spider demons.

There were no more boats ahead. Even the wind grew heavy, and the water surface was empty, save for the occasional bird.

The leader had a premonition and suddenly tightened his grip on his knife. "Something's coming!"

Two breaths later, the boat jolted violently, as if it had struck an underwater reef.

A subordinate extended an oar to probe, but instead of hitting a reef, a tremendous force suddenly pulled at the oar, threatening to drag him into the sea!

Seeing him lunge forward involuntarily, on the verge of falling overboard, the leader reacted swiftly, grabbing his shoulder with an outstretched hand and pulling him back.

The small boat lurched violently.

"Let go!" They had no leverage while seated in the boat, and the underwater creature's strength was too immense. If they continued to resist, the boat would capsize.

The moment the subordinate released his grip, the oar was wrenched from his hand.

Fortunately, there were two spare oars on board.

As the boat's swaying subsided, two dark, shadowy forms surfaced about three zhang (approximately nine meters) away.

They resembled snakes, with bodies as thick as buckets, yet incongruously, they possessed four arms.

They appeared simultaneously on both sides of the small boat, their dead, staring eyes sending shivers down one's spine. One of the Yin Hui still clutched the oar it had just seized.

"So these are the Yin Hui?" Their appearance matched the boatman's description, but they were visually more imposing. "They also seem to be pack-dwelling monsters."

The two Yin Hui did not advance to attack; they simply stared at the three individuals in the boat.

"This is a warning," the leader murmured, stroking his chin. "If we go any further, they won't be so polite. These creatures are surprisingly well-behaved."

A subordinate sought guidance: "Lord Yu, shall we proceed or turn back?"

This was merely their first reconnaissance mission; there was no need to engage these creatures in a direct confrontation out in the open sea.

"Turn back," Lord Yu instructed. He gestured towards the Yin Hui holding the oar. "Give me back the oar, and we will leave immediately."

He repeated himself several times, but the Yin Hui merely tilted its head, watching him, completely unresponsive.

"Limited intelligence," Lord Yu murmured.

The subordinate picked up a wooden oar and began to paddle cautiously. Since he was moving in the opposite direction, the Yin Hui did not attack, though they continued to watch intently.

Lord Yu handed the compass to the white bird perched on his shoulder. "Go on," he instructed. "We'll meet at Blade's Edge Port."

The white bird flapped its wings, soared high, circled twice, and then headed towards the southern island.

The Yin Hui only looked up at the bird once, flicked their tongues, and then ignored it.

They were concerned only with creatures in the water; the sky was not their domain.

Lord Yu, without looking back, led his two subordinates along the original route. The two Yin Hui followed behind.

It wasn't until they left the waters of Dragon's Back Island and returned to the main shipping lane that the Yin Hui suddenly dived underwater and vanished.

Good riddance.

Lord Yu pondered, "The boatman just mentioned that only authorized personnel are allowed on Dragon's Back Island?"

"That's correct."

"But if these creatures have limited intelligence, how does he control them?"

"Pack-dwelling monsters usually have a more powerful leader."

Lord Yu hummed in acknowledgment and had the boat change course, attempting to approach Dragon's Back Island from another direction.

However, they were intercepted by another two Yin Hui.

These two were larger and appeared more aggressive, frequently flicking their tongues to show their ill intent.

The attempt failed, and the boat returned to Blade's Edge Port.

Lord Yu's white bird, clutching the Bee-Seeking Compass, would stop on a tree every so often to check the direction of its needle.

It flew past Dragon's Back Island, past Clover Island, and finally circled over Spiderweb Island twice, maintaining its position before landing on a treetop near the island reef.

Birds were always present at sea. Gulls, egrets, and wild cranes also roamed the shore of Spiderweb Island, so a white bird flying there was not conspicuous.

The compass could simultaneously display the target's direction and distance.

The current direction was due north, less than twelve zhang (approximately thirty-six meters) away!

The white bird looked down to see vast stretches of great ravines.

From above, the rock walls were stark, riddled with countless crevices and holes. The sea breeze whistled through the openings in the stone walls.

Aside from that, the mountain forest was silent; it didn't spot a single living creature.

The white bird was in no hurry. After a while, it would move to another branch to continue its surveillance, in order to avoid detection.

It had been tracking the Subterranean Spider Queen with Lord Yu for a long time and knew that subterranean spiders typically preferred to hide in caves and didn't necessarily move around in groups.

Half an hour later, everything in the ravine remained unchanged, but there was movement outside:

Two spiders crawled back into the valley, each carrying a wriggling white cocoon on its back.

Most spiders lack the dragging ability of ants, but subterranean spiders possess it and prefer to carry captured prey on their uneven backs.

Judging by the shape and size of the cocoons, one prey might have been a guinea pig, the other perhaps a bird.

As long as it was a living creature, subterranean spiders could basically eat it; they were not picky.

Just then, the white bird sensed danger and suddenly took flight.

Two silent strands of spider silk shot from behind, almost grazing its tail feathers.

Had it not dodged in time, the white bird would have nearly become the third captured prey!

It flapped its wings and looked back, only then realizing that a subterranean spider, as large as a coconut, had appeared unnoticed on the branch where it had been resting.

This type of spider could change color, blending seamlessly with its surroundings.

Seeing its prey escape, the subterranean spider reluctantly raised its chelicerae.

The white bird dared not fly low again, having spotted the faint outlines of spiders on surrounding trees. Clearly, after several months of skirmishes, Madam Zhu had significantly increased the security around her lair.

However, the white bird had already gathered sufficient information. After circling twice in the sky, it flew towards Blade's Edge Port.

This island was the subterranean spiders' new nest! This was the most crucial piece of intelligence.

In the evening, Lord Yu met with his subordinates at the Yellow Croaker Tavern on Blade's Edge Port's dock.

The team sent to gather information had also returned, bringing back preliminary intelligence:

Not long ago, the Yangshan Archipelago had been sold by Bailie to the foreign Island Master He;

Island Master He had subsequently subdued both pirates and Yin Hui;

Some pirates boasted about Island Master He's abilities, claiming they personally witnessed Yin Hui treating him with utmost respect, and also saw a powerful demon beside him catching Yin Hui as easily and skillfully as one would catch fish;

The Beijia people were very interested in the appearance of this "great monster that catches Yin Hui like fish," but those who had imbibed too much liquor couldn't describe it clearly.

It was evident they hadn't truly "personally witnessed" it.

Additionally, the Yangshan Archipelago was actively recruiting a large workforce to manage the current palm oil harvest season.

During the discussion, the white bird flew in through the window and landed back on Lord Yu's shoulder:

"Found it, found it! It's on an island south of Dragon's Back Island. The island covers several hundred qing (hectares), but there's no flat ground; it's all limestone caves and cliffs. No one lives there, and there are no roads. The subterranean spider colony is nestled within the great ravine at the island's southeastern corner."

"I was discovered in less than three 'ke' (approximately forty-five minutes) of reconnaissance. The spider colony is quite alert."

Lord Yu asked, "Did you see the Spider Queen?"

"No, I didn't."

"That stretch of water is blockaded by Yin Hui, so we can't reach the island by water," Lord Yu mused. "How did the subterranean spider colony get there? Did they receive permission from the owner of the Yangshan Archipelago?"

However, after inquiring around Blade's Edge Port, they found that no one had heard of any monsters living on the island, other than the Yin Hui.

This meant that Madam Zhu's presence was quite secretive.

Perhaps only "Island Master He" knew the reason.

"What's the background of this Island Master?"

"We only know he arrived by boat from the west, initially with few followers, and then established himself here."

"The Subterranean Spider Queen truly knows how to pick a location; this island is easy to defend and difficult to assault." Situated in the middle of the ocean, it was incredibly inconvenient for their group to conduct either reconnaissance or raids. Moreover, Yin Hui blockaded the sea routes, preventing outsiders from approaching south of Dragon's Back Island.

This was indeed a formidable location.

"The two of you continue to investigate Island Master He's background." Since Blade's Edge Port and the Yangshan Archipelago were separated by a strait, the information reaching them was secondhand. Lord Yu pointed to two of his subordinates. "Aren't the archipelagos recruiting? Go get yourselves jobs there."

"Understood."

By infiltrating the workforce, they could learn the archipelago's boat schedules and perhaps discover a way to reach Dragon's Back Island or the southern islands.

Lord Yu pondered for a moment. "It will be difficult to use force this time. The key probably lies with Island Master He."

If the Subterranean Spider Queen moved to the island with permission, why would Island Master He allow it?

"Came by boat from the west?" he murmured to himself. "No one knows his background? What about the Bailie Lu family who sold him the island? Do they not know either?"

Each autumn rain brought a new chill.

After three or four rains over three days, the islanders had all put on extra layers.

Walking on Centipede Island, He Lingchuan also felt a pang of sentiment. While Blackwater City could see heavy snow in October and the Kite Kingdom's capital was cold enough to make people stamp their feet, this region was just shedding its summer heat, welcoming the coolest season of the year.

He Lingchuan immersed himself in the intense construction work, inspecting one or two islands daily to monitor the processes and progress.

Business was like this: the efficiency was vastly different when the boss was overseeing compared to when no boss was present.

The other islands could only be inspected by Rongshan disciples.

Whenever this happened, He Lingchuan felt he had too few trusted subordinates, making it difficult to manage affairs effectively.

After all, he was no longer fighting alone as he once did.

He walked along the newly opened forest path. Just past a few rows of neat bamboo houses, he saw several large workshops. The Yangshan Archipelago heavily recruited people to work on the islands, and naturally, provided food and accommodation. In the initial phase, simply preparing housing, workshops, furniture, and various daily necessities kept all the artisans and pirates immensely busy.

After more than a month of effort, the entire system had been successfully launched and was operating increasingly smoothly.

Now the place was bustling with people. After a brief period of adjustment, there was clear division of labor and cooperation in felling, transporting, washing, steaming, fruit pressing, filtering, and bottling.

Centipede Island had four such living and workshop areas, and the fourteen Yangshan Islands had a total of eighty-six. While the number of workers varied, the daily output of palm oil was substantial. Dedicated personnel were also responsible for quality control, conducting irregular sample tests.

New laborers and artisans joined the Yangshan Archipelago daily, ranging from forty or fifty to over two hundred, in a continuous stream.

He Lingchuan was very glad that he had brought Ding Zuodong with him across the sea; otherwise, he wouldn't know to whom to entrust this endless stream of troubles.