Chapter 535 The Brutal Bandits of Southern Brightmoon Island

Chapter 535: The Brutal Bandits of Southern Mingyue Island

"Of course we can take him!" Xiao Yin turned his head to say, then looked back at Little Xi'er.

Ruo Xi Baby continued eating on her own until she was full, then rubbed her little belly and said, "Alright, let’s get ready to cross the border!"

Her straightforward demeanor made Yuan Hui glance sideways. Watching the little one walking ahead to work off her meal, he turned to Xiao Yin and said, "Uncle, this little princess must have been really shaken up!"

"Of course. People change when they’re shaken up. Weren’t you the same?" Xiao Yin looked at Yuan Hui. "Was becoming a mountain bandit your original intention?"

"Yes. Back then, I was utterly devastated—family gone, subordinates gone, stripped of my honors. I thought about ending it all, but I couldn’t accept it. So, I chose to go up the mountain. There, I ate big chunks of meat and drank freely—it was truly carefree!" Yuan Hui nodded.

The two quickened their pace toward the city gate, with Hongmei and Bai Qi following closely behind.

The group left the city for Southern Mingyue Kingdom without any formalities, just let through, which made Xiao Yin frown.

"How is this possible? A country where border crossings require no procedures at all?" Hongmei was also shocked. "So, East Ming Kingdom is already beyond saving—utterly hopeless!"

"Good. If Southern Mingyue fails this time, we’ll take it completely!" Ruo Xi Baby turned her head and announced.

The little one now seemed to have grown up considerably.

Xiao Yin picked up Little Xi'er and said, "My Xier, you can still be as adorable and happy-go-lucky as before. Some things are in the past—let them stay there. We all need to move forward."

"I’m fine, Uncle. It’s just that Little Sweetheart feels a bit upset. It’ll be better in a couple of days when we see Little Heart!" The little one cheered him up in her own way, which greatly reassured Xiao Yin.

The group marched openly toward the central city of Southern Mingyue Kingdom.

Southern Mingyue was not large—originally just a small island far from the mainland.

In the beginning, when the world was still united under a powerful nation, Southern Mingyue became a place of exile.

Exile was always to harsh, desolate lands.

Either to the icy wastelands, where survival was nearly impossible, or to Southern Mingyue—an island where those banished were never allowed to return to shore.

Moreover, those sent here were almost all hardened criminals.

Guards patrolled the shores, and if any prisoner tried to escape, the harpoons on the beach would be their final fate.

On the island, there was barely anything to survive on—only trees on the mountains and a few wild beasts.

The exiled fishermen soon realized that to survive, they had to fish.

So, aside from turning on each other—killing and eating the weak—those who remained eventually teamed up to dive into the waters.

Over time, they had children, and generations passed. Now, Southern Mingyue had a population of hundreds of thousands.

Most of them, due to years of living in seawater, had changed in appearance.

They were tall and lean, with little body fat. Their faces were elongated, with gill-like flaps of skin near their jaws—adaptations to live underwater.

"If Southern Mingyue had lived peacefully, the sea provides plenty. But no—they always invade other nations. Truly, their nature can never be changed!" Yuan Hui remarked.

"Because from the very first generation, those sent here were the most ruthless. Worse than those exiled to the icy wastelands—at least they had a chance to return. But those sent to the island were left to rot," Xiao Yin said.

"They’re all monsters!" Hongmei spat.

"Indeed, our kingdom also banished those vicious criminals there. Back then, when the late emperor was still young, I was about four or five years old!" Yuan Hui said.

He was slightly older than Xiao Yuze, so before Xiao Yuze was born, that old emperor was still a righteous ruler.

"That time, a gang of bandits was captured. I remember it was when my father was the general who caught them," Yuan Hui continued. "That group had trafficked about seven or eight hundred women and children. When they were caught, the children's corpses were heaped mountain-high. It was said they made a business of kidnapping children—whether from wealthy families or poor households, as long as they were three to five years old, they would snatch them away!"

"Hmm, my mother mentioned this to me. She also participated in that operation with the Emperor Emeritus at the time. Back then, the Emperor Emeritus was still a benevolent man," Xiao Yin nodded.

His father, for the first ten years, truly had achievements—the world was peaceful, and the people lived in tranquility.

But later, he became obsessed with cultivating immortality and sank into incompetence.

"That time, the late emperor was furious. Those bandits had families, and their relatives were originally to be executed as well. However, many women pleaded for mercy because they were pregnant with the bandits' children. Those women should have been innocent and could have been rescued. Yet, they begged for the bandits' lives. Enraged, the late emperor executed the bandits and exiled those women, along with the bandits' wives, children, and elders, to the island!" Yuan Hui explained.

"Served them right!" At this point, Hongmei and Xiao Yuze spoke almost simultaneously.

"They were originally victims but ended up having no spine. If such women were allowed to exist, the children they raised would undoubtedly become terrifying," Bai Qi nodded in agreement.

"So, on that island of the Southern Mingyue Kingdom, those who truly live there are still morally bankrupt!" Yuan Hui sighed. "Later, the late emperor also exiled several royal brothers to the border, charging them with securing the island and preventing those criminals from escaping. If any escaped, they would be held accountable. In the end, those men rebelled and established their own country. Because of the pearls of the southern sea, they named it the Southern Mingyue Kingdom!"

"Hmm, General Yuan, you spin quite a tale! So that's how the Southern Mingyue Kingdom came to be!" Xiao Ruilin couldn't help but praise.