Seeds of Danger

Standing on the side of the "Death Announcer" was a middle-aged man. He was dressed in a well-fitting Loen- style tailcoat, and his hair was neatly combed. Although he was not particularly handsome, his appearance gave people a very friendly feeling.

"Mr. Lester."

Upon seeing this person, Bird Mustang's expression turned slightly cold, but he still greeted him politely.

"Long time no see, Mr. Your Excellency."

The man in the tuxedo chuckled, looking nothing like a pirate, but rather like a gentleman attending a ball who had wandered into the wrong room and accidentally stumbled onto a pirate ship. However, Bird Mustang's expression turned extremely wary upon seeing him.

Because the other party was none other than Lester Sean, the first mate of the "Death Announcer," a bounty of £11,000, known as "The Cruel"!

His title alone reveals his dangerous nature. This seemingly respectable gentleman, with his kind face, has cruelly treated countless innocent people, and his infamy has spread Five Seas. What he likes to do most is to first release the captured passengers in a friendly manner, and then, in the instant they regain hope, drag them back into the Abyss of fear.

"Mr. Lester, please speak with the King of Immortality and ask him to stop this noise."

Bird Mustang said it again.

"Okay, please wait a moment."

Lester spoke in a friendly manner, then turned and walked over to Agalito, whispering something. The eerily pale man finally moved, raising a finger, causing the black single-sided sail to billow, and the terrifying, Curse- like laughter finally ceased.

Everyone on Bird Mustang breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sorry, our Flagship needs to vent. You know it's already been quite restrained; if it were to unleash its full power, all the pirates on the island would have gone mad long ago."

Lester Sean returned to the ship's side, bat wings sprouting from his back. He leaped down and slowly landed on Bird Mustang's ship. He first bowed politely to "The King of Immortality" Agalito in farewell, before turning to Bird Mustang and speaking.

"Horror Viscount" Bird Mustang's lips twitched slightly, but he said nothing.

"Also, our captain thinks Black Lake Island has beautiful scenery and would like to take everyone there for a tour. Is that alright?"

Lester asked with a smile.

"What a joke! The King of Immortality and his Devil minions have a hobby of appreciating the scenery? They're treating me like an idiot..." Bird Mustang thought to himself, but didn't show it on his face. He simply nodded and said, "Of course, please do as you please. However, for everyone's sake, I will send some men to protect you. Please understand."

Lester smiled and did not refuse.

After that, Bird Mustang directed the Sailor to turn the ship around and sail back to shore, and personally guided Lester Sean to the conference area.

"Send me more men to keep a close watch on the Death Announcer. Wherever it goes, you all follow it."

Before leaving with his men, Bird Mustang privately told his crew, "Report anything unusual to me immediately!"

"Yes!"

The Sailor obeyed the order and shouted in unison.

Soon, the pirates gathered on Black Lake Island witnessed this scene: in the waters surrounding the island, the huge black sailing ship "Death Announcer" was sailing slowly ahead, followed closely by three or five ships of the "King of the Five Seas" on its back and sides. The Sailor on those ships were watching the "Death Announcer" warily, afraid that they might miss any details.

Upon seeing this, the pirates on the "Death Announcer" either laughed and cursed or provoked and mocked. But their target was the pirates under the command of the "King of the Five Seas," and these Sailor, who considered themselves to be from the most powerful pirate crew, would not tolerate it and naturally chose to fight back immediately.

Soon, polite greetings in various languages and accents began to echo across the sea. The pirates' already sparse relatives received the warmest care in their friendly greetings to each other.

The bustling activity near the sea naturally attracted the attention of the entire island, and the pirates all witnessed this rare spectacle. When the Pirate Assembly ended and they returned to their respective territories, what they had seen that day would become the talk of the town.

However, while most people on the island were focused on that side, someone was secretly making moves.

Beneath the island, a fleeting figure easily passed through the solid ground, stopped at a predetermined location, and then removed something, fixing it in the soil.

It was a peculiar doll. Its design was simple, with its eyes and mouth sealed shut with stitches, yet it looked like real human skin. A flower was stuck in its chest; the flower was half-dried, but still very red, as if it had drunk its fill of blood from a corpse.

The transparent figure that held the doll had brown skin covered with deep wrinkles, sparse white hair, and an aged appearance.

Shanks, Demigod of the Rose School of Thought!

"Praise the Mother Tree..."

His eyes gleamed with fanaticism. After placing one doll, he didn't stop but continued forward, placing another equally bizarre doll under another plot of land.

The pirates on the island were all focused on the "Death Announcer," and none of them noticed, or could hardly have noticed, the seeds of disaster brewing several meters beneath them.

The Fog Sea, on the sea surface after the war.

"It's a pity that the Archbishop escaped with the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact."

Standing on the wrecked Steam, Luther said with some regret.

The ship was initially protected by Bishop Pierre's abilities and was spared the scorching heat of the Miniature Sun.

However, Pierre was then preoccupied with his own problems, and the ship was also burned, leaving only half of it standing.

The bodies of those sailors and priests had long since turned to ashes; the only thing left was their extraordinary, Destruction Beyonder Characteristic.

The "4 Sun" Pathway's Sequence 6 and lower-level Characteristic from the same Pathway, the "1 Hunter" Pathway's Sequence 5... well, none of them are of much use to me. I'll just keep them. I can also sell them to [Sun], who is currently Sequence 7.

The "Solar High Priest" must definitely need...

As Luther pondered this, he searched the charred and wrecked deck.

"Um?"

He leaned down and picked up a dagger from beside the Sequence 5 Characteristic. The dagger retained its basic shape, but the blade was brittle beyond recognition, as if it had been dried in the Sun for decades.

"Crack..."

It cracked open crisply, and many strange points of light emerged from within, gradually converging together to form a black dagger, hard and heavy, with flames burning on its surface.

"Beyonder Characteristic have been extracted... This is, Hunter Pathway Sequence 4?"

After a brief examination, Luther quickly determined the nature of this thing.