“President Chance,” Aaron explained, “there was a storm brewing at sea just now. It seemed quite dangerous, which is why we didn’t allow you on the deck.”
“But we’ve already left the stormy seas, there’s no danger now. Why won’t they let us go up?” questioned Wyatt.
Aaron hastily concocted an excuse, “T-this is the demon beast we just fished out, and it’s currently being butchered on the deck. The smell of blood is quite strong; I’m afraid it might bother you all.”
“Even though we’re alchemists, we’re not pushovers. How could we possibly be afraid of slaying demon beasts? We just want to go up for some fresh air right now. So, are you going to let us or not?”
Wyatt wore a grim expression, his tone icy as he spoke.
“Of course, of course How could I possibly restrict your freedom? Feel free to go ahead!”
Aaron managed to muster a thin smile, urging the two cultivators to step aside.
Jared and his companions ascended to the deck, noticing the spirit ship making swift progress. The stormy sea region had already been left far behind them.
Several demon beast carcasses were laid out on the deck. A few cultivators were busy chopping them into pieces with their spiritual blades.
However, these cultivators seemed to be going about their work carelessly, their blades slashing around haphazardly.
They were so uninterested that they didn’t even bother to retrieve the beast cores from the demon beasts.
Upon witnessing this scene, Jared became even more certain. The real targets of these cultivators were definitely not the demon beast carcasses but Jared and his group.
Wyatt and Hartwin could see it too. The cultivators seemed indifferent to the demon beast carcasses.
They were probably just doing it for show.
Wyatt turned to Aaron and asked, “Mr. Lund, why have you only salvaged a few demon beast bodies? You should know there are hundreds, if not thousands, of them in the stormy sea region!”
“Oh, I just happened to bump into you all, so I simply captured a few demon beasts. I was in a hurry to get you to the island. This storm will take a while to stop. It won’t make a difference if we wait a bit before gathering more,” Aaron hurriedly explained.
Jared merely replied, “That’s true. You can indeed retrieve the body of the demon beast later, but shouldn’t the beast core be removed as soon as it’s brought up? The beast core is the most valuable part of the creature. If it’s not removed in time from the carcass, however, it can become contaminated and lose its worth. But why haven’t the beast cores of these demon beasts been extracted yet? Could it be that you guys only hunt these creatures for their pelts and meat?”
Aaron paused, taken aback. Although he saw a few cultivators wielding spiritual blades to dissect the demon beast’s corpses, the beast core surprisingly had not been extracted yet.
“What are you all doing? Don’t you know to extract the beast core first? You bunch of good- for-nothings!”
Aaron was cursing loudly, which finally prompted the cultivators to hurriedly retrieve the beast cores.
“President Chance, Mr. Bellamy, I think we can take a stroll around now. With the spiritual ship at our disposal, we can finally relax and appreciate the vast ocean. Who knows, we might even encounter demon beasts and stumble upon some unexpected treasures!” Jared said to Wyatt and Hartwin.
He simply wanted to take the two of them away from the spirit ship for a while.
Jared was certain that there was definitely something off about these people. However, he couldn’t just confront them directly, not least because their identities were still unknown.
All those alchemists were in the cabin. If any of these people were array masters, they could have easily set up an arcane array, trapping everyone inside and making escape impossible.
At that time, all Jared and his group could do was pretend to be clueless, then depart from the spirit ship to discuss their strategy!
Wyatt and Hartwin both understood what Jared meant. So, they nodded and said, “Sure, let’s try our luck.”
“Everyone, the vast ocean is home to many ferocious demon beasts, truly terrifying creatures. I strongly advise you all to stay aboard the spirit ship for your safety. Once you’ve reached the small island, if you’re keen on capturing demon beasts, feel free to explore around!”
Alas, Aaron stood in the way of Jared and his group, not allowing them to leave the spirit ship.
