Pirate: I Loaded the Game Panel

That wouldn't do.

Adrian remembered one thing very clearly: because he had publicly killed Hog, a pillar of the Second Treasure Navy, his faction relationship with the Flower Country was currently cold.

And aside from the temporarily neutral Happo Navy, his relationship with most of the other navies was hostile. The Second Treasure Navy was an unchangeable mortal enemy!

If the navies found out he was doing business with players in the Flower Country, they would undoubtedly interfere. That would seriously hurt the efficiency of his experience farming...

At that thought, Adrian gave a quiet cough.

As soon as one player finished shopping, he closed his shop panel and addressed the crowd. "Remember what I said earlier? I have something to take care of. I'll meet you shortly on that deserted tidal flat marked on the map."

With that, Adrian entered Ghost form and vanished from the players' sight in a flash.

With their attributes, the players couldn't even see what had happened.

A player who had just arrived stood at the back of the crowd, unable to see what was going on. When everything suddenly went quiet, he called out, "Where's Extremely Deadly? Why'd he leave? I came to learn skills!"

"Extremely Deadly left! He went to... Ahem! I don't know where he went!"

"Yeah, he just vanished in the blink of an eye. Perfectly normal."

"I just remembered I've got a quest I can't finish at the docks. I'll be off..."

"Huh, a classmate of mine is waiting at these coordinates. I'd better get going too..."

The players who knew what was going on exchanged knowing looks and set off, while those who hadn't caught on remained bewildered.

Players' attributes were unimpressive even compared with ordinary locals. Their Charm, in particular, was a mere 1, making it much harder for them to earn an NPC's favor.

And without enough favor, why would an NPC volunteer to teach them skills?

At that moment, players who had learned any skills were few and far between.

Now that they had finally found both a "profession instructor" and a "Mysterious Merchant," they weren't about to let the opportunity slip away.

For Adrian, stepping away for a little while also gave the news time to spread. It would weed out some of the onlookers who had only come for the spectacle and had no intention of buying anything.

After leaving the docks, Adrian found a deserted corner, transformed into a Free Ghost, and flew into the sky. There, he leisurely browsed the West Blue section of the forums.

The public launch was at its peak, and new players from all over the world were eagerly sharing the information they had gathered.

Players in the Flower Country were excitedly spreading word of "Extremely Deadly" across the West Blue board. He was the first high-level figure on any starter island to show players a friendly attitude.

Add his status as both a "Mysterious Merchant" and a "profession instructor," and the excitement was astonishing. Posts about "Extremely Deadly" kept appearing, drawing discussion and getting pinned.

"I knew this man was no ordinary fellow!"

"Quit talking like that! We all know how awesome Extremely Deadly is! What I want to know is why he's only in the West Blue!"

"He sells weapons, and once your favor with him gets high enough, he'll teach you skills. Not fishing, loafing around, or spearfishing, either—actual general-purpose skills!"

"More importantly, he teaches the basics for several professions. Learn them, and you can change professions right away!"

"Damn! I want to go to the West Blue so badly, but I'm in the North Blue. There's no way for me to get there!"

About half an hour later.

A large group of new Flower Country players finally made the long trek to the deserted tidal flat Adrian had mentioned. At last, they saw the "Extremely Deadly" they had been longing to find.

Their pent-up urge to shop immediately burst free.

In no time, dozens of players bought guns and ammunition from Adrian or learned general-purpose skills and professional knowledge. Several hundred thousand experience points landed in his hands with ease.

As time passed, both the experience and the Beli he earned kept climbing.

Business was booming!

"Time for the next step!"

Watching the experience total tick upward on his panel, Adrian's eyes gleamed.

Trading with players was a must. There was no question about that; it was the easiest known way to gain vast amounts of experience.

But that didn't mean Adrian had to trade with every player face-to-face.

When flirting or joking with a pretty young woman, having a mouth of his own and hers to answer was enough.

But doing business—especially with hundreds of players at once—was more than one person could handle.

Clap, clap!

Adrian closed his shop panel and clapped his hands, drawing the attention of the players caught up in their shopping frenzy.

"There are far too many of you... Clear some space for me. I'll bring out a few little helpers."

The players did as he asked, whispering among themselves.

"What's Extremely Deadly talking about?"

"Sounds like he's calling some friends over to help?"

Adrian looked at the space the players had cleared and smiled faintly, ready to show off—

No, this was called displaying his power before the masses!

Mimic Ghost: Imitation Game!

The players' vision blurred. A dozen or so men identical to "Extremely Deadly" appeared out of thin air before them.

The only difference was the faint white glow around the newcomers and their almost illusory forms.

"Holy shit! What kind of ability is that?"

"Isn't this supposed to be a realistic seafaring game? Am I hallucinating?"

"When did you get the idea this game was realistic? Did you miss those musclebound brutes who are five or six meters tall?"

"But this is straight-up supernatural, right? Is it a superpower or magic?"

"How much else has Extremely Deadly been hiding from us?"

"Wonder if players can learn this skill!"

Encouraged by everyone's expectant looks, one player worked up the courage to ask "Extremely Deadly," "Excuse me, what is that ability? Can you teach it to us?"

Adrian glanced at him. "Being bound by the limits of humanity suits you."

The players immediately began whispering again.

"What does Extremely Deadly mean by that? I feel like he might be looking down on me..."

"Have some confidence. Drop the 'might'!"

"Damn it, he got to show off!"

Undercurrents Stir

At maximum level, Ghost Domination gave Adrian tremendous freedom to develop one wild idea after another.

Mimic Ghost was born from one of those ideas.

As its name suggested, it was a ghost that could change its shape at will!

It could even turn invisible!

Adrian had once considered developing a skill called—

Mimic Ghost: Invisible Man.

But that road would take him somewhere everyone else might struggle to follow, so he had shelved the idea.

With a crowd of "Mimic Adrian" ghost assistants helping out, the players spent money much faster. In less than half a day, Adrian made a fortune.

Leaving the Beli aside, he had amassed several million experience points in that short time.

Hundreds of players had bought goods or learned skills from him. The farming efficiency was astonishing.

Best of all, it took almost no effort!

It was certainly much more comfortable than drifting around at sea looking for pirates!

"The game's only been live for a few days, and the players are still complete beginners. Once they grow stronger, there'll be even more experience to earn from them," Adrian thought. "Things are going well, but I still haven't reached everyone I could."

Only about a third of the Flower Country's players had come to shop. Most were still waiting to see what happened, or simply hadn't heard the news.

"How can I draw more players in?"

Just then, he spotted a post on the official forums.

"Extremely Deadly? Deadlier than Extremely Fatal? Anyone brave enough to test just how strong he is?"

The replies ran the gamut.

First reply: "What are you, Aristotle's sister, Jennie Ma Stottle?"

Second reply: A warm greeting involving someone's mother, blocked by the system.

Third reply: "The last person to try that, [Extremely Fatal], has stopped thinking."

"..."

Inspiration struck Adrian. "How did I forget? Players are always interested in how strong high-level characters are!"

Adrian himself had once been an ardent fan of debating who was stronger.

And starting that kind of argument was easy. All it took was one simple bait post.

Akainu is absolutely the World's Strongest. Come argue if you disagree!

Enthusiastic users would flock to fight you in the replies. You wouldn't even have to tag them.

Or how about: The Hollow-Hollow Fruit has enormous untapped potential!

Another crowd would show up uninvited to say things like, "Trash fruit. Stop hyping it," "Why not just eat a Logia?" "Flame-Flame Fruit is number one!" "What potential? The user's a huge weak point!" and "It can only bully small fry who can't use Haki. The Rumble-Rumble Fruit is the strongest!"

Ahem. Back to the point.

No matter the game, the pursuit of overwhelming combat power was written into players' chromosomes.

If Adrian displayed fighting strength worthy of the name "Extremely Deadly" in front of them, wouldn't more players come to spend money?

If he caught the attention of most of the Flower Country's players, wouldn't the experience he could farm multiply?

The publicity on the official forums could also have a lasting ripple effect, helping his future plans to farm experience across the other three seas.

Adrian grew excited. But how could he draw the players' attention?

Two days passed before he knew it.

Throughout his stay in the Flower Country, players kept coming after hearing about him, and new players continued to arrive.

Thanks to recommendations on the forums and the guidance of veteran players, many newcomers to the Flower Country in the West Blue headed straight for the tidal flat as soon as they entered the game. They found Adrian, accepted quests from him, completed them, then spent all the experience and Beli they had earned on weapons and skills.

But so many players gathering on what had once been a deserted tidal flat finally drew the attention of the Flower Country's local powers.

Flower Country, Dog Fang Mountain.

Nine peaks stood in an irregular cluster amid the surrounding mountains, interlocking like a dog's teeth. That was how Dog Fang Mountain had gotten its name.

The Flower Country's ordinary people sometimes secretly called it by another name: Mad Dog Mountain.

The tallest peak stood at the center of Dog Fang Mountain. Its nickname was Dog-Biting Thunder, meaning it was so high it could reach the lightning in the sky.

Deep in the mountains, the members of the Second Treasure Navy had gathered in a great hall with a rugged exterior and an old-fashioned style.

A huge plaque bearing the words "Second Treasure" in black hung on the wall. At the center of the hall, an enormous red armchair stood atop a patterned animal hide.

An ugly woman with a burly, heavily muscled build sat in the chair, wearing a black qipao decorated with sunflowers. She held a barrel of wine in one hand and propped up the left side of her face with the other, her posture supremely arrogant.

She was Holisa, daughter of Hog, the former leader of the Second Treasure Navy.

At the lower right of the red chair, a handsome blond man with a white bandage wrapped around his forehead knelt on one knee. His eyes were tightly shut, and he held flowers in both hands as he recited trite romantic lines. The tears glinting at the corners of his eyes made it clear how little he wanted to be there.

"Holisa! This is the Second Treasure Navy's headquarters, not a place for you to keep your ducks!"

At one side of the hall, a burly man in a dark green cape shot the blond man an indignant look before shouting his rebuke.

Holisa scoffed, baring a mouthful of crooked buckteeth. "When my old man was still alive, he practically turned this place into his private palace. Why can't I? I've only married six husbands!"

The caped man was about to respond, but Holisa cut him off.

"Or do you think you're stronger than me and deserve to lead the Second Treasure Navy?"

As she spoke, coarse black-and-yellow fur sprouted from Holisa's skin. Her ears sharpened into pointed animal ears, and her dull yellow eyes locked onto the caped man. Her fangs jutted past her lips, and foul-smelling saliva dripped from her mouth.

She looked like a jackal crouched on the sofa!