The sun at sea was as scorching as a branding iron.
The "Black Dragon" plunged into the deep water with the wind and waves for three whole days. There was no land in sight, not even a wisp of smoke. All around was the endless Mo Lan water.
In the dark corner of the hold, the bearded deputy leader hunched over, huddled behind a pile of rancid sacks with several old pirates.
"Second-in-command, shall we make a move?"
A weasel-faced sailor gritted his teeth, clutching a rusty, broken chisel in his hand, and growled in a low, menacing voice, "These little bastards are probably fast asleep in the hold! In the middle of the night, I'll sneak into the hold, chisel three big holes in the keel Oak, jump overboard, and swim away, sinking them all into this deep trench to feed the giant turtles!"
The bearded man raised his hand and slapped the pointy-nosed sailor hard across the cheek, making the boy see stars and bleed from the corner of his mouth.
"Gouge your mother's legs!"
The bearded man shivered, touching the still-scabbed cut on his neck, and cursed, "Are you blind? Didn't you see what was going on up there yesterday? That big guy was using ice shards to freeze meat! That fat guy was using real fire to roast giant squid on the stern of the ship! I've lived at sea for over forty years, and I've never seen such bastards use that kind of deadly killing intent as an icebox!"
The bearded man spat out a mouthful of thick, fishy-smelling phlegm, his eyes filled with despair. "Still dare to stab the boat? That little devil in charge just laid down a hard rule for me—if the boat dares to rock even a little, messing up that little wench's abacus beads, I'll be tied to the stern and used as a paddle! All of you, put in your best effort and keep the helm steady! Anyone who dares to Slack Off, I'll chop them up and throw them into the sea!"
The old pirates shrank back upon hearing this and quickly and obediently went back to pull the tow rope.
At midday, the sea was calm on the Pinsir.
Ling Yun set up a tattered rattan chair at the bow of the boat, covered his head with a piece of tattered burlap for shade, and let his two feet dangle over the iron dragon head at the bow, suspending in the cool seawater, Yawn contentedly.
Xiao Wu was holding a white porcelain bowl and using a small bamboo skewer to pick out pieces of deep-sea shrimp that Ma Hongjun had just grilled, feeding them one by one to Ling Yun's mouth.
Ning Rongrong sat under the large parasol, slamming the thick leather ledger down her throat with a loud thud. While chewing on dried scallops, she muttered, "Brother Yun, I've figured out the bottom line for this ship. Two thousand catties of dried sea fish, eighty shi of wheat, forty jars of cheap liquor, and half a piece of Mother Lode of Red Copper mixed into the scrap iron in the hold. All in all, we've already made eight hundred taels of silver on this voyage before even leaving the open sea!"
"Such petty thinking." Ling Yun chewed on the fragrant shrimp, his lips moving slightly. "There are more living people than dead people floating at sea, how can we just stare at the rotten iron under the ship?"
The words had barely left his mouth.
From the lookout box atop the high mast, Ma Hongjun suddenly let out a loud, hoarse howl:
"Brother Yun! Look to the northwest! There are wild dogs riding the waves towards us!!"
Everyone looked out at the sea as the finger pointed.
On the deep blue horizon to the northwest, six large fast ships flying gray skull and crossbones flags came rushing in!
Those fast boats were all sharp-nosed oar boats made of deep-sea driftwood, with more than twenty long wooden oars extending from both sides. Like water centipedes, they paddled swiftly through the waves, parting the seawater into pale white Delia, forming crescent shapes as they rushed towards the "Black Dragon" to surround it!
The sharp, piercing sound of the bull horn tore through the sea breeze.
"It's the Sea Devil Pirate Group!"
The bearded man at the helm scrambled onto the deck, but the sight of the gray skull and crossbones flag sent shivers down his spine, and he collapsed to his knees. "Master! That's the infamous mad dog gang that leaves no survivors out there! Their leader is a level 58 Sea Soul King, commanding over 300 desperados who specialize in double-crossing in deep water! Our ship is too heavy; we can't outrun them!"
The pirate speedboat closed in within a hundred feet in the blink of an eye.
On the bow of the leading, pointed ship stood a one-eyed giant wearing a purple-black fish-skin vest, holding a heavy three-pronged sky-supporting fork in his hand, with five Soul Rings— two yellow, two purple, and one black—sparkling brightly in the waves.
"Scum on the Black Dragon! Stop the ship right now!!"
The one-eyed giant slammed his steel fork down on the deck, letting out a raucous, guttural laugh that shook the heavens.
"The Sea Wolf Gang's days are numbered! Those who know what's good for them should leave all the cargo and gold notes on the deck, the men should strip naked and jump into the sea to feed the sharks, and the women..."
His single eye swept across Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu at the bow of the boat through the sea breeze, and a wicked green glint appeared in its eye. "Those two pretty little vixens in the back, stay behind and be my seventh wife. I'll give you a good beating!"
More than two hundred pirates on six fast ships brandished water-splitting daggers and short knives, accompanied by howls and foul language carried on the sea breeze.
If an ordinary merchant ship encountered such a scene, the entire crew would have been terrified and knelt on the ground, begging for mercy.
But on the deck of the Black Dragon.
Dai Mubai leaned against the mainmast with his arms crossed, a mocking smile playing on his lips; Tai Long, shirtless, was sharpening a large cleaver with a whetstone; Ning Rongrong, even more excited, pulled a large abacus from her waist, flicked the beads with her fingers, and her big eyes gleamed.
"Brother Yun! Big deal! Six good ships! The iron crossbows and leather on board are worth at least 15,000 gold coins! Shall we grab them?!"
Ling Yun sat up from the rattan chair.
He slowly pulled his feet out of the icy seawater, put his hands in his shorts pockets, and strolled leisurely to the cast iron dragon head at the bow of the ship.
"When fighting on land, I have to hold back a third of my strength."
Facing the raging, salty sea wind, Ling Yun's deep blue eyes slowly welled up with a fierce light that had been suppressed for a long time.
"You've come to this deep ocean... and you want to challenge me to Water Sport?"
A chilling, pale smile spread across the boy's lips.
He didn't even emit the light of his Martial Soul Possession, nor did the Soul Rings under his feet light up.
He simply pulled his hands out of his pockets, flipped his fingers downwards, and pressed them onto the empty sea surface!
He unleashed his spiritual power from within the skull, instantly capturing all the moisture within a ten-mile radius in his palm!
"Waterfall, rise!"
Rumble--!
Without warning, the entire calm sea surface collapsed, revealing a bottomless sea eye! Immediately afterward, four raging sea tornadoes, each as thick as a house, with the crushing force to tear apart pig iron, forcefully dragged tens of thousands of tons of black water from the deep sea into the sky!
The two Sea Demon Pirates speedboats leading the charge didn't even have a chance to turn around before being swept into the towering giant Sea Dragon tornado!
Click! Click! Click!
The massive steel keel, squeezed by the stagnant Water Flow, became as brittle as a few dry sticks of firewood, and was instantly twisted into countless flying wood chips in mid-air! Dozens of pirates didn't even have time to Growl before the floodwaters silenced them!
The remaining four speedboats were immediately overturned twice by the raging waves, landing upside down on the sea. More than two hundred pirates fell into the sea like dumplings being dropped into a pot, desperately paddling and howling in agony!
"This... this is a deity descending to earth?!"
The one-eyed giant was thrown off the deck by a huge wave, crashing onto rotten driftwood and choking on three mouthfuls of salty, bitter seawater. The Five Rings Sea Soul King's courage was shattered in that instant, his eyes bulging out of their sockets!
Before he could even react...
Boom!
Ling Yun stood on the black iron dragon head and stomped his right foot heavily on the deck.
The massive and heavy Black Dragon was lifted three zhang high by the Water Flow below, like a giant leaping out of the deep sea. It crashed with a bang next to the overturned pirate ship, splashing up white waves that nearly choked the one-eyed giant to death!
"Boss Dai, Tai Long, Fatty."
Ling Yun put his hands back in his pockets, his eyelids drooping as he looked down at the group of drenched chickens splashing in the water, his tone as indifferent as if he were buying vegetables at a morning market:
"Go into the water and retrieve the goods. Take all the valuable ironware, Agarwood, and the gold and silver pouches on their waists."
"If you miss a single copper coin, you'll have to pay the difference in your own rations."
Alright!!
Dai Mubai and Tai Long let out a strange cry, swung their arms, and jumped into the water with thick hemp ropes and cast iron hooks.
Ma Hongjun hovered in the air on fiery wings, scalding anyone who dared to resist with a breath of fire.
It all happened in the time it takes to drink a bowl of tea.
Ning Rongrong and the old pirates thoroughly searched the four overturned pirate ships, leaving them spotless. Dozens of large crates filled with deep-sea Pearls, blood coral, gold coins, and silver notes were all carried onto the deck of the Black Dragon, piled up like small hills.
The one-eyed giant and the remaining dozens of old pirates, shirtless, knelt neatly on the deck with their hands behind their heads, their bodies blue with cold, their teeth chattering.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, spare my life!!"
The one-eyed giant knelt before Ling Yun, tears and snot mingling with seawater streaming down his face, his forehead banging against the deck with loud thuds.
"We've been robbing in the open sea for over a decade... and this is the first time we've encountered such unreasonable, lawless bandits! Who's the real pirate here?! You even pulled out my breastplate and those rotten gold teeth!!"
Ning Rongrong, gleefully fiddling with her abacus, scoffed without looking up, "What are you yelling about! According to the market price in Vast Sea City, your few dilapidated boats and your rotten bones are barely enough to cover the compensation for your cursing! Kneel down obediently!"
The bearded deputy leader shrank back, watching the overseas overlord who had been thoroughly subdued. At that moment, any thoughts he had about turning against the gang completely vanished.
We can't afford to mess with them.
These young devils dressed in coarse cloth and shorts are not here to play house at sea at all. They clearly treat the entire ocean as their own backyard vegetable garden, and are living devils who come along to collect tolls!
Ling Yun walked to the bow of the boat, took out a freshly cut, chilled melon from his pocket, and popped it into his mouth.
He gazed at the dark, turbulent sea ahead, a hint of amusement flashing in his deep blue eyes:
"Give me the sails all the way up."
Ling Yun pointed to the dark, stormy crest of the deepest part of the ocean, his long sleeves fluttering in the gale:
"Clear the way! To Sea God Island!"