Chapter 125: Surrender! (Please Vote)

When the Ye Village sea ship was still over two hundred zhang away from the rafts, it slowed its pace and did not approach them.

"City Lord Min, where are you planning to go in the middle of the night? It seems you have suffered a defeat and are trying to slink back to Min Village Spirit Island. How about this? We fire a few cannons to bid you a grand farewell, City Lord Min?" Ye Mo stood at the bow of the ship, smiling mockingly.

On the deck, the cultivators from Ye Village burst into laughter.

"That thief surnamed Ye! He refuses to let the ship come closer—it seems he is afraid we might board and engage them in close-quarters combat," a cultivator on a raft said, disappointed.

"Never mind that. All rafts, charge toward the Ye family ship and seize it!" City Lord Min, his face turning pale with rage at Ye Mo’s mockery, gritted his teeth and shouted.

The ten rafts suddenly turned and began paddling desperately toward the Ye Village ship. Seeing this, Chang Fei immediately ordered the sailors to row backward to maintain distance.

"Haha, it seems City Lord Min still hasn't given up. Then I shall send a shot your way, City Lord Min!" Ye Mo laughed loudly and shouted.

He picked up a torch and ignited the fuse of the bronze cannon on the bow. The gunner had already aimed it at the fastest-approaching raft.

*Hiss...*

*Boom!*

With a thunderous roar, the bronze cannon shuddered violently, and a black iron ball shot out, hurtling toward the raft two hundred zhang away.

"Row faster!"

"No, dive! Jump into the water!"

The Min family cultivators screamed in terror. On the targeted raft, the cultivators dove into the water one after another, swimming away for their lives. Behind them, the occupants of the other rafts began paddling in complete chaos, their efforts uncoordinated. The momentum of the rafts collapsed as they drifted aimlessly, with some spinning in place in their panic.

The black iron ball slammed into the spiritual wood raft, shattering it instantly and sending splinters and spray flying in all directions.

After Ye Mo fired the cannon, he roared, "Volley!"

Gao Jian, standing on the deck, directed the troops. Rows of spiritual wood javelins were unleashed from the ship toward the Min Village cultivators and sailors in the water. Many warriors were struck and began to shriek in agony.

On the pirate ship, the Ye Village cultivators and warriors, armed with spiritual wood shields and javelins, held the high ground and an absolute advantage. With the bronze cannon—a terrifying weapon capable of sinking a raft with a single shot—they were unstoppable. Unless the Min Village forces had two or three times as many men and carried a large supply of long-range javelins, they stood no chance of threatening Ye Mo’s group.

The Min family cultivators and warriors on the rafts could only desperately block the incoming javelins, unable to mount an assault on the ship. One after another, they were knocked into the sea. The unlucky warriors were killed outright by the javelins, and several cultivators were wounded.

Ye Mo, holding his Gold Spirit Sword, stood at the ship’s railing with Gao Jian, Lin Zhi, and the others, watching coldly as the Min Village cultivators splashed about in the seawater. If any cultivator dared to press forward, they would have to get past him first.

"We can't get through! They were prepared with plenty of javelins and shields; there's no way we can board that ship," a cowardly cultivator shouted in terror.

Moments earlier, a dense volley of javelins had whistled past him, piercing a warrior behind him and dragging the corpse into the sea, turning the water blood-red. If they kept fighting, it wouldn't just be a few warriors dying.

"Back to Red Fire Mine Island!"

"We can't win! Flee to the island and take cover!"

The Min Village cultivators fell into total disarray. After Ye Mo and his men launched a second attack, many cultivators and warriors abandoned their rafts, jumped into the sea, and swam desperately back toward Red Fire Mine Island.

"A bunch of useless fools!" City Lord Min’s face turned livid.

If they had shown resolve and charged the ship at any cost, there might have been a sliver of hope to turn the tide. Fleeing back to Red Fire Mine Island meant total failure with no chance of a comeback. City Lord Min felt a surge of hatred, but as his men were routed, he had no choice but to order the retreat back to the island.

The Ye Village ship did not pursue. Ye Mo’s goal was to trap them on the Red Fire Mine Island. As long as they retreated, he ceased his attacks. City Lord Min, unlike his subordinates, did not have to suffer the humiliation of jumping into the water.

"Heh, I thought these guys would fight to the death to board the ship. Turns out they have no backbone; they crumbled after just a few strikes," Gao Jian said with a look of regret, sheathing his black iron spirit sword.

"The Min Village cultivators can only fight when things go their way. They have already lost the battle and their will to fight," Ye Mo nodded calmly.

Behind them, rows of cultivators and warriors stood at the ready. If the Min Village forces had really dared to charge, they would have suffered countless casualties. Against such dense volleys of javelins, even ordinary cultivators would find it hard to survive without sufficient defensive artifacts, let alone the warriors. Furthermore, with Ye Mo, Gao Jian, and over twenty other cultivators, they were not to be trifled with. Even if someone managed to board the ship, they would face a brutal assault from twenty cultivators and would never be able to hold their ground.

"My City Lord says that since we are all members of the Immortal Alliance, he will not push things to the bitter end and will offer you a way out. Surrender now, and everything can be discussed!" Wang Hu shouted toward the fleeing Min Village forces, conveying Ye Mo’s message.

The Min family members, bedraggled and soaking wet, crawled onto the shore in low spirits. Nobody spoke; they all knew the battle was lost, and they were consumed by despair.

"City Lord, we have lost seven warriors and sailors, and over a dozen are injured. They were all struck by javelins and need treatment immediately, or they might not last a day or two," the ship’s captain said to City Lord Min with a pained expression.

"It’s you! Why didn't you defend the ship? Why? If we hadn't lost the ship, would I have been reduced to this state?" City Lord Min sat listlessly on the shore. Seeing the captain, his vacant eyes focused, and he roared in rage.

"City Lord, the Ye Village used spirit eagles to pour oil on our sails. I tried my best to put out the fire, but it was too intense. There was nothing I could do!" the captain cried, falling to his knees in terror.

"City Lord, please rest and gather your strength. I will handle the matters here," an elder said, sighing inwardly.

"Fine, I need to be alone and think about what to do next. Uncle Zhong, I leave this to you. Save whoever you can; they are all my Min family people, do not spare the medicinal pills," City Lord Min said, his rage fading into a weary resignation. Assisted by a cultivator, he went to a makeshift camp on the island to rest.

*I hope the City Lord can pull himself together,* Zhong thought as he watched him leave. *This defeat is likely the greatest blow he has ever faced. But if he can overcome it, it might turn out to be a good thing.*

For several days, the Min family was trapped on Red Fire Mine Island. During this time, they made several attempts to flee under cover of darkness or in small groups, but they could never evade the surveillance of the Ye family ship. One fire crow and three young eagles maintained watch over the island and the surrounding sea for twelve hours a day. The island was over 150 miles from Min Village, a distance too treacherous to traverse through the sea without being attacked by sea beasts. Every move on the island was transparent to Ye Mo, invisible to his Spirit-Piercing Eyes.

At the Min camp, a sense of despair permeated everyone. Aside from a few iron-willed cultivators, the rest had lost all motivation. The ordeal of the past few days had been a heavy blow, both mentally and physically.

"Uncle Zhong, is there any other way?" City Lord Min asked weakly. In just a few days, he had become gaunt, no different from a destitute rogue cultivator.

"Surrender," Uncle Zhong sighed after a moment of hesitation.

"Surrender?" City Lord Min suddenly grew agitated. "How can I surrender? I am the second young master of the Min family, a seventh-ranked core student of the Blazing Immortal Academy! How can I surrender? If this gets back to Blazing Immortal City, what face will I have to return to the Min family?"

"Second Young Master, all our food supplies have been exhausted. We have reached our limit here. Do you want the family to step in and pay a ransom to bring you back?" Uncle Zhong asked.

City Lord Min paused. "No, of course not. We cannot let the family get involved; the consequences would be even worse." He stood up and paced, considering his situation. His position was not as secure as it appeared. As the second son of the Min Immortal Town Lord, he faced immense pressure, especially from his brother. If word of this reached home, the consequences would be unthinkable. In the eyes of his elders, his status would plummet. To have established an immortal village in the Ao Lai Archipelago only to suffer a crushing defeat and have to beg the family for support... it would mean losing their backing to his brother.

"The longer this drags on, the greater the losses. You must make a decision, City Lord, and resolve this quickly. Once you return, you can find a way to make up for this defeat," Uncle Zhong urged.

"Surrender," City Lord Min said suddenly, gritting his teeth. Having made this decision, he felt as if all his energy had been drained, and he slumped back into his tent.

"Yes, I will send someone to negotiate with City Lord Ye and minimize our losses," Uncle Zhong said. He summoned Min Yingtang and gave him instructions. Shortly after, Min Yingtang and two warriors boarded a raft and headed toward the Ye family ship.