Late at night.
Dempsey sat in his study, quietly waiting for time to pass.
As the supreme ruler of Hard Biscuit Island, he kept a regular schedule like Jabus did. But every ninety-nine days, he would spend one night awake from dusk till dawn, quietly awaiting the summons.
He took a Golden Card from his pocket. Looking at the pattern on it, he could not help swallowing.
This Golden Card came from a mysterious place called the Deep Sea Canteen. It was said to lie in the depths of some sea region, opening once every ninety-nine days. Only those holding a Canteen Card could enter.
The lowest-grade Canteen Card was the Bronze Card, followed by the Silver Card, then the Golden Card.
Each grade represented one's spending power. At present, only he and several other Lords possessed Golden Cards, so in recent years, each opening of the Deep Sea Canteen had become a gathering for the Lords.
At that moment, the Golden Card emitted a faint glow. A door abruptly appeared before Dempsey. He put away the card, rose to his feet, and walked through it.
Beyond the door was a long corridor. Dempsey strode through it with the gait of a dragon and tiger, then arrived at the Deep Sea Canteen's Golden Hall!
It was a sealed room, with an enormous golden table set in the center. He expertly walked to his own seat, pulled out the chair, and sat down naturally.
A moment later, a burly man emerged from the darkness and likewise pulled out a chair to sit.
"Dempsey, how have you been lately?" the man asked, looking at Dempsey.
This man was Mallory, Lord of Blackwood Island. He wore dreadlocks, had slightly dark skin, and radiated a savage air.
In fact, Mallory was indeed savage to the extreme. Once, over some trivial matter, he had gone straight to Hard Biscuit Island and made a huge scene. Dempsey had suffered no small hidden loss at his hands.
"If I could hear news of your death, I think I'd be doing quite well from then on," Dempsey said coldly, too lazy to exchange hollow pleasantries with Mallory.
Mallory shrugged. "Then you definitely won't be doing very well from then on."
At that moment, another man emerged from the darkness. He wore a black iron mask over his face, black feathered clothing, and held a black cane in one hand.
"Aldrich, I'm really curious what sort of unspeakably ugly face you have under that mask. And it's midsummer now—aren't you hot wearing that much?" Mallory asked the newcomer in a roguish tone.
Aldrich, Lord of Yazhong Island, could be called the strongest man in the Seven Seas.
In a one-on-one fight, none of the Seven Seas' Lords could match him. The problem was that the other Lords would not be foolish enough to sit around and wait for him to kill them one by one, then face him alone.
"If you don't want to die, keep your mouth shut," Aldrich said indifferently.
After that, the other Lords arrived one after another.
The Lord of Ironcloth Island was Liam, a somewhat irreverent middle-aged uncle. The Lord of Bottle Island was Conrad, a vampire fond of wearing dark-red cloaks. And there was Vitalia Island...
The canteen fell silent.
About ten minutes later, the surrounding darkness abruptly vanished. The lights brightened, and the entire canteen instantly transformed from dim gloom into dazzling splendor.
"Jabus really didn't come. Looks like... the news is true." Mallory looked at Dempsey with a half-smile, his tone teasing.
Jabus was Dempsey's ally, so among those present, Dempsey was the one who least wanted anything to happen to Jabus.
"Whoever knows what happened to Jabus, I can give up one dish," Dempsey said with a gloomy expression.
"Deal," Conrad said. "Jabus has gone mad. According to intelligence from my informants, his madness is related to the Son of Pirates."
"The Son of Pirates? Never heard of him." Liam curled his lip.
"The Son of Pirates, whose real name is Hawkins, is the son of Huo Blackblade of the Blackblade Pirates. According to intelligence, he has already obtained Cursed Relics, and more than one at that," Aldrich said calmly.
"A pirate possesses more than one Cursed Relic? Why didn't you kill him?" Liam asked in surprise.
Ironcloth Island lay in the upper-left corner of the Seven Seas, the waters where the Blackblade Pirates were least active. Thus, Liam truly did not know the Blackblade Pirates' background.
"First, Jabus had already made a move at the time. Second, the waters he was in were ruled by Jabus and Dempsey. If I rashly interfered, do you think they would join forces to take out my men?" Aldrich countered.
"Jabus suffered a huge loss at the Son of Pirates' hands, and may have even gone mad because of him. A mere pirate? You underestimate him far too much. And since Jabus has gone mad, who should rule Vitalia Island?" Aldrich said, looking directly at Dempsey.
Liam, Conrad, and Mallory exchanged looks. Mallory then coughed and said, "Actually, Blackwood Island, Ironcloth Island, and Vitalia Island form a perfect triangle. We could completely establish a trade caravan..."
"Since the Son of Pirates is so dangerous, shouldn't we first discuss how to kill him before discussing ownership of Vitalia Island? Or perhaps whoever kills the Son of Pirates first gets Vitalia Island?" Dempsey said.
Aldrich rejected the suggestion. "Vitalia Island cannot belong to just one person. I agree with Dempsey's opinion, but whoever kills the Son of Pirates first will take one-third. That is my bottom line."
"Then what about the remaining two-thirds?" Mallory asked.
Aldrich fell silent for a moment before saying, "The remaining four will divide it equally."
"Fine."
Liam and Conrad looked at each other, then agreed.
Whether they could kill the Son of Pirates or not, they would at least gain something. This proposal was undoubtedly well suited to people like them, whose hands could not reach that far.
At that moment, dish after dish began to arrive.
Mallory laughed loudly. "Now that the trifles are settled, we can finally eat."
Three dishes and one soup appeared before him. The appetizer was a lump of dark-red flesh. He cut it open with his knife and swiftly ate it.
A moment later, his whole body trembled, and he seemed to have become four or five years younger at once.
"Such rich vitality. What a marvelous flavor," Conrad sighed, then looked toward the main course.
Aldrich and Dempsey both paused in their movements. A moment later, they continued eating as if nothing had happened.
"He should have survived. After all, that's an ability we all envy. He can learn plenty of intelligence just by dreaming—is there any ability more convenient than that?" Mallory said with an unconcerned smile.
Though the Deep Sea Canteen's food was exceptionally delicious and came with all sorts of beneficial effects, the Lords were clearly eating with their minds elsewhere today.
"Forget it. Some things are better laid out in the open." Conrad suddenly put down his utensils and looked at the others.
Mallory joked frivolously, "You're interested in that girl?"
"No, Hawkins!" Conrad sighed.
Liam hurriedly asked, "What do you know?"
"You should all know that my informants are bats. I hold absolute dominion over bats. Jabus has a subordinate whose ability is to transform into a bat. He... has been captured by Hawkins for some time now," Conrad said slowly.
Aldrich narrowed his eyes at Conrad. "So what do you know?"
"Hawkins has become a Curse Caster, and his Curse Power is dozens of times that of an ordinary Curse Caster—at least dozens of times. And one of his combatants is also a Curse Caster. His strength should be no weaker than mine, yet he is completely no match for Hawkins." Conrad closed his eyes and laid out everything he knew.
The main reason was that he sensed danger. Hawkins clearly had no intention of occupying Vitalia Island or Hard Biscuit Island, which meant Hawkins would certainly continue sailing the Black Knife through the Seven Seas.
Who knew whether Hawkins might suddenly have a whim and appear near Bottle Island?
Pirates were not frightening. But a powerful pirate wandering everywhere—that was frightening.
Conrad had no choice but to admit that he was somewhat afraid of Hawkins. That was why he had made up his mind to share the intelligence he knew.
"Dozens of times the Curse Power?! He truly is a terrifying monster." Mallory sounded surprised, but his eyes were filled with fighting spirit.
Liam pondered, "So in a one-on-one fight, the few of us might not be Hawkins' match? A mere pirate—is he really that strong?"
"Curse Power does not equal combat strength. Besides, you all know Jabus' ability. Who do you think can truly kill Jabus?" Aldrich said calmly.
Dempsey suddenly spoke. "The Dream Realm!"
"Indeed. Only in the Dream Realm could one possibly inflict spiritual damage upon Jabus. It seems Jabus made a terrible move!" Mallory had fought Jabus before. Thinking of Jabus' ability, which was practically a bug, he immediately understood where the problem lay.
Though immense Curse Power brought many benefits, combat was absolutely not merely a contest of Curse Power.
The abilities of Cursed Relics were equally of paramount importance. Sometimes, they were even more important than the amount of Curse Power one possessed.
Aldrich's Curse Power was about the same as everyone else's, yet he was the strongest of all the Lords because his Cursed Relics were simply too terrifying.
"All right, today's gathering ends here. Once you return, you had better be cautious. Think carefully before acting. You must kill the Son of Pirates, who endangers the Seven Seas. I trust none of you want another scourge like the Pirate Queen to appear in the Seven Seas!" Aldrich had finished eating and now rose to summarize.
Dempsey stood as well. "Don't worry. If I'm not certain, I won't act rashly. Besides... we still don't know what Hawkins' Cursed Relics are."
With that said, he turned and left. His back gradually disappeared into the darkness.
Aldrich was the second to leave. Mallory rose and departed right after him, leaving only Conrad and Liam eating in the canteen.
The two spoke in low voices as they ate. In the end, they laughed in unison, then rose and left one after the other.
After everyone had left, the entire canteen suddenly fell into darkness. Then came horrifying chewing sounds, along with the screams of several Lords...