Chapter Thirty-Eight: Scar Brother Pays a Visit

Golden Sands Beach.

“The net’s broken! The net’s ripped!” Fishhead’s alarmed shout jolted Scarface from his leisurely watermelon feast.

He looked up to see a gaping hole torn in the fishing net, and the hard-won catch slipping away before his eyes. In a fit of rage, he hurled the watermelon to the ground, cursing furiously.

“Scarface, I don’t know what’s going on lately—fewer and fewer fishermen are coming here. We can’t find anyone willing to go out to sea and fish for us anymore!” Fishhead’s face was clouded with worry. “If this keeps up, we’ll have nothing left to sell. The folks in the mountains won’t be pleased!”

“Just yesterday, someone from the mountains came asking why our tributes have dwindled so much. The second boss suspects we’re skimming silver off the top and trying to fool him...”

“I want to sell fish too!” Scarface snapped, his face dark. “But if we can’t catch enough, what am I supposed to do? Go out and fish with those lowlifes myself?”

Scarface would never stoop to such foolishness.

And now, with the net in tatters, catching fish would be even harder.

The thought of facing the second boss’s wrath filled Scarface with both anger and dread.

“How long has it been since Qin Zhen from the small fishing village came by?” Scarface asked in a low voice.

“Over a month, maybe?” Fishhead replied uncertainly.

“He really stopped coming?” Scarface had thought Qin Zhen would only hold out a few days before crawling back, desperate to fish at his place—never had he imagined Qin Zhen would have the nerve to simply stop coming at all.

“It’s not just him. Plenty of fishermen have stopped coming.” Fishhead’s voice was hushed.

Clearly, Scarface’s last incident—snatching a fisherman’s net by force—had been too much. The surrounding villagers wanted nothing to do with him or his beach.

“What a joke. If they don’t fish, what are they going to eat?” Scarface sneered.

At that moment, a lackey came running up in a panic.

“Boss, I’ve got news—Qin Zhen, that kid, somehow found another beachhead. All the villagers around here are going to his place to fish!” the lackey announced, breathless. “And I heard he’s made a new kind of fishing net—even sturdier than ours. With one sweep, it catches everything. Just a few days ago, he supposedly hauled in a sea dragon with it!”

“Is that so?” Scarface’s interest was piqued. Qin Zhen had nets, and he had fish—just what Scarface needed to solve his urgent problems.

“No wonder Qin Zhen stopped coming here. He’s got his own spot now! Let’s go take a look!”

Scarface rallied dozens of his men, and in a black mass, they marched toward Deepwater Bay.

When they arrived, they saw a bustling, newly built dock, lively with activity. Scarface couldn’t help but smirk.

“This place is pretty decent—much better than Golden Sands Beach.”

A fishing net had just been hauled ashore, brimming with fish. The fishermen involved were overjoyed.

“Don’t just stand there, you know the drill—count the catch first, then you all can pick what you want!”

Shanhai was shouting out orders when a villager ran up, breathless and anxious.

“Scarface is here!”

At the mention of Scarface, Shanhai’s brow furrowed. Turning, he saw Scarface barging onto the dock, flanked by seventy or eighty men.

A few fishermen from the small village tried to block the way, but were knocked to the ground, pinned down, unable to move.

Seeing this, Shanhai’s blood boiled.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

“Who gave you permission to fish here?” Scarface strode forward, full of swagger. “This is my turf—no one’s taking a single fish from these waters!” His gaze landed on the brand-new fishing net, his eyes burning with greed. “That net—hand it over. It’s ours now.”

“In your dreams!” Shanhai gritted his teeth.

He hadn’t expected Scarface to be so shameless, openly here to rob them.

With Liu Quan and many others away transporting fish back to the village, only seven or eight people from the small fishing village remained at the dock. The rest were villagers from other towns, just earning a living. Faced with Scarface’s overwhelming force, they shrank back, too afraid to speak.

“You think you few can stop me?” Scarface scoffed. “Get lost! Bring Qin Zhen here! Tell him if he doesn’t hand over the fishing net technique, I’ll tear the small fishing village apart!”

Had Liu Quan been there, he might have stalled for time and run back to rally reinforcements.

But that thought never crossed Shanhai’s mind.

He only knew this place was built with the villagers’ sweat and blood. If anyone came to take it by force, he’d fight them to the end.

“To hell with you!” Shanhai cursed, charging straight at Scarface and landing a punch square on his face.

He was so quick that Scarface couldn’t dodge and went down hard.

Seeing this, the other villagers grabbed sticks and joined the fray.

Scarface, clutching his bleeding face, staggered back, swearing.

“This is mutiny! All of you—get them! Smash them good!”

The villagers from other towns scattered, terrified of being caught in the chaos. A few quick-witted ones ran back toward the small fishing village for help.

In the small fishing village, Qin Zhen was complaining to Miaoyun.

“Mister Miaoyun, this won’t do! You take good fish and in just a few days they’re belly-up. Dead fish don’t fetch the same price as live ones!”

He was wrapped in bandages, and his complaints were almost comical.

“I think it’s the fish’s problem. They’re already half-dead by the time your fishing net hauls them up—of course they die on me!” Miaoyun replied earnestly.

“So now it’s my fault, is it?” Qin Zhen pouted.

Just then, someone came running back with urgent news.

“Bad news! Scarface brought dozens of men to Deepwater Harbor and started a fight with your people!”

Liu Quan, in the middle of draining fish, slapped his forehead. “This is bad! Shanhai’s got hardly anyone with him—they’re in trouble for sure!”

Qin Zhen sprang to his feet, unable to sit still a moment longer.

“To arms, everyone!”

He ran toward the village gate, shouting as he went.

“Fishing team, assemble! The dock’s under attack—grab your tools and follow me! Hanzi, go inform Chen Shu—have him bring the village guard, fast!”

The moment word spread that someone was making trouble at the dock, the village erupted in a clamor.

To the small fishing village, the dock was their pride and livelihood. If anyone tried to trample what they had built, they would fight back no matter what.

Not just the fishing team—many villagers grabbed sticks and joined the throng.

Qin Zhen stopped Miaoyun, who was running alongside him.

“You’d better stay here.”

They were headed for a brawl, and Miaoyun, as a young woman, wouldn’t be safe.

“My junior is over there—how could I not go?” Miaoyun insisted, determined.

Qin Zhen could only sigh and quickly loaded his crossbow. “Fine, but stay by my side and don’t wander off.”

Looking at the hundred-odd villagers swiftly assembled before him, Qin Zhen’s spirits soared.

“Let’s go—time to save our people!”