Chapter 2172: Who Still Has Objections?

The ferryman burst into laughter, "Alright, seeing as you're so cooperative, I'll give you a cut after it's done."

Inside, he was secretly ridiculing the fool, who had revealed his cards right at the start. How much he'd get would depend entirely on the ferryman's mood later.

He figured he'd just give him one or two hundred merit points as a reward for his trouble; a thousand? He must be dreaming. This newbie probably had no idea how precious merit points were in the Underworld.

Azuan smiled faintly, noticing the cunning glint in the other's eyes as he left. Everyone thought they were clever; they would see who had the last laugh.

Not long after, a commotion arose by the Ferry of Oblivion. Many candidates clearly wanted to collect merit points from others, but with only a limited number of ferrymen, a struggle was inevitable.

At that moment, the candidate ranked fourth appeared, claiming he could provide merit points.

When Azuan heard the exorbitant interest rates he was shouting, he thought that even the most black-hearted capitalists from his previous life would be stunned.

However, everyone was focused on securing the top spot, so even though they knew he was asking for an outrageous sum, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and borrow.

At this point, the top three couldn't sit still either. If they let this continue, the others might truly catch up and surpass them in merit points.

So, they also joined the lending frenzy.

As soon as the three of them joined, the interest rates were driven even higher, making the candidate ranked fourth secretly regret not setting his initial rates higher.

At this moment, many candidates in the middle ranks realized that their current merit points wouldn't be enough to catch up with the top three. Since that was the case, why not start lending themselves?

This thought immediately broadened their perspectives, and the scene grew even livelier.

Only the ferrymen Azuan had initially approached wore long faces. After many people started borrowing, the merit points they had acquired at great cost became meaningless. The gap between them and the top three not only failed to shrink but actually widened.

In desperation, they tried to offload their own merit points, but the others weren't foolish. Seemingly aware of their urgency, everyone started to drive down prices. After all, the interest rates had become truly absurd, to the point even the top three couldn't tolerate them anymore.

The few ferrymen were utterly distraught, feeling like crying but having no tears left. "Why is it always us who suffer?" they thought.

"When rates were high, we were collecting merit points, but when we want to sell, the rates drop!?"

"Caught in a double bind!"

Not only did they gain nothing, but they ended up heavily in debt.

All of this, they concluded, was that guy's fault.

Fury value from Ferryman A of Oblivion: 444444444...Fury value from Ferryman B of Oblivion: 444444444...

Seeing these fury values in the backend, Azuan was instantly amused. "These guys don't even deserve names, do they?"

He mused that even the Black and White Guards were just codenames. It seemed that after arriving in the Underworld, people gradually forgot their original names.

What was encouraging, though, was that his keyboard system seemed unaffected by his transformation into a spectral form.

He tried to call out to Mi Li, but there was no response.

He had clearly brought the Tai'a Sword with him. Wait, could she have been erased by the rules of the Underworld?

The thought startled him.

However, he quickly dismissed this idea. Mi Li was already a soul entity, protected by a divine artifact like the Tai'a Sword, and their souls had long been bound together. In a way, they shared life and death. If something had happened to her, he couldn't have felt nothing at all.

Could it be that she was avoiding that mysterious entity?

He quickly composed himself. On the other side, the other Ferrymen of Oblivion were practically tearing each other apart. It was precisely the right time for him to act.

All the Ferrymen of Oblivion were now engrossed in the financial game, figuring out various ways to gain more merit points from their competitors. After all, this method was much faster than transporting deceased souls.

Without anyone to ferry them, the deceased souls gathered increasingly on the bank, growing restless. They instinctively wanted to cross the River of Oblivion, but no one dared to enter the water directly.

They were fuming with frustration but didn't dare to curse the Ferrymen of Oblivion. After all, they would still need these "masters" to ferry them across later. If they offended them, they might not be allowed on the boat, or worse, be thrown overboard in the middle of the river.

But waiting endlessly like this wasn't an option either. Gradually, everyone's emotions reached a breaking point, like a powder keg ready to explode at any moment.

At this moment, Azuan waved to the numerous deceased souls from a distant part of the bank. "Over here, you can cross the river here."

Seeing a Ferryman of Oblivion still faithfully performing his duty, many deceased souls were so excited they almost cried, rushing towards him.

Even though they knew that one small boat couldn't transport so many people at once, it was their only hope, so they still swarmed in that direction.

The souls at the back, seeing those in front rush forward, followed suit, even without knowing why.

On the other side, the other Ferrymen of Oblivion saw this scene and secretly sneered. "That newbie is truly foolish," they thought.

"Even if he rows with all his might, how many souls can he ferry to the other side?"

"A hundred? Two hundred?"

"The interest we collect here easily surpasses that. Forget it, let him have the meager leftovers."

"After all, he came up with such a good idea; we haven't even had a chance to thank him yet."

Seeing more and more deceased souls gathering ahead, Azuan nodded with satisfaction. The idea he had just given to those others—about installment payments and loans—was precisely to prevent them from competing for his "business" and to gather as many souls as possible in one place.

Wary of the River of Oblivion's water, everyone kept several meters away from the bank. The souls at the front anxiously called out, "I have merit coins here, please ferry us across quickly!"

Being at the very front was certainly a relief, but the souls behind kept pushing forward, and they were almost unable to hold their ground. If they were accidentally pushed into the River of Oblivion, their joy would turn to sorrow.

"Stop pushing! Anyone who pushes again, I'll throw them into the River of Oblivion!" Azuan roared, his voice echoing across the wild expanse. The previously noisy crowd of souls immediately fell silent, shaken by his intimidating aura.

One could not possibly amass such terrifying prestige without having killed thousands of people. It turned out this Ferryman of Oblivion had been a ruthless character in his former life.

Even the other Ferrymen of Oblivion in the distance glanced over. "That newbie seems quite strong," they thought. "Perhaps we shouldn't push things too far with him; we won't bother him later."

However, they didn't pay much heed. As Ferrymen of Oblivion, who didn't have a trick or two up their sleeve? Besides, this competition was about ferrying souls, and whoever accumulated the most merit points would win. Personal strength was useless.

With that thought, everyone relaxed and resumed their financial competition.

Seeing that they indeed didn't come to interfere, Azuan's lips curved slightly upward. He then flew into the air, "Everyone, line up in fifty columns! If anyone dares to push out of line, I will throw them into the River of Oblivion right now!"

A commotion immediately broke out among the deceased souls. Some naturally arrogant ones instantly protested, "With so many souls, can you even ferry us all? Why should we listen to you?"

"Exactly! Who do you think you are?"

Several other souls nearby echoed their sentiments. Those who had come here instead of being directly sent to the Hall of Reincarnation by the Hall of King Qin Guang via a "green channel" were clearly not benevolent individuals.

Their patience had been stretched to its limit for too long. Since they were now at the very back of the line anyway, it was unlikely they would get to cross the river soon. They weren't afraid of offending this guy; they could just find another ferryman later.

Azuan's gaze turned cold. With a casual flick of his hand, he remotely grabbed towards them. The few souls instantly lost their balance and were sucked into the air.

They cried out in distress, struggling desperately, but it was useless. They couldn't break free from his control at all.

Without a moment's hesitation, Azuan casually tossed them into the River of Oblivion. The souls, who had moments ago looked defiant, now screamed with ghostly pale faces as they fell in.

They immediately tried to swim back to the bank, but the water ghouls in the River of Oblivion would not give them a chance. Innumerable water ghouls grabbed their feet, clambered onto their bodies, and began tearing and biting at them.

The agonizing, shrill screams of those few souls echoed throughout the wild expanse, and the previously restless lines of souls instantly fell silent.

The other Ferrymen of Oblivion in the distance also looked over, but their expressions remained unchanged.

After so many years in the ferrying business, there were always some disobedient souls; who hadn't thrown a few into the River of Oblivion? So, they quickly returned to their financial battle.

Azuan's expression was icy cold as he swept his gaze around. "Does anyone else have an opinion?"

What a joke. He bore the safety of an entire world on his shoulders and had to win this trial. He had no time or inclination to reason with these scoundrels.

Sensing his murderous aura, the souls all lowered their heads, afraid to meet his gaze. This guy truly dared to act.

The shrill screams were still ringing in their ears. Who would dare to cross him now?