Chapter 138: History Repeats Itself
For Ian, only one phrase could describe his mood right now: "Don't be a coward, just fight!"
He knew what he was about to face—the pursuit of a Marine Admiral. But so what? As long as he could make it out to sea, the sky would be the limit, and the ocean vast enough to swim freely. If the Marines were truly powerful enough, how could so many pirates still roam unchecked? And once he crossed the Red Line, the New World awaited, where Marine influence would be even weaker.
It had to be said that Ian's preparations in advance had finally paid off.
The reason he had let the system automatically refresh the card shop and purchase Flying Shadow card fragments was precisely to guard against this situation. He knew that letting the system refresh for him might waste diamonds, far less efficient than doing it himself slowly. But time waited for no one. He urgently needed a powerful card in hand as a trump card to deal with crises.
The Flying Shadow card was undoubtedly the best choice. As long as he could use the Black Dragon Wave, even if he couldn't defeat a Marine Admiral, he could at least protect himself.
At this moment, Ian, like these slaves, had become one of those fleeing Mary Geoise. So it could be said that they were in the same boat and needed to stick together even more.
Under his leadership, the group arrived at another Celestial Dragon's estate.
The night was dark, but black-clad guards were still standing watch at the estate's entrance. Seeing Ian and his group charging at them with hatred-filled eyes, the guards were startled and immediately tried to raise their guns.
However, Ian was faster. With a flash, he vanished from his spot and reappeared behind the black-clad guards. A gleaming blade of light slashed down, and the two guards collapsed to the ground.
"Push open the door! Charge in!" Ian shouted.
"Let me handle it!" The black bear Mink stomped forward heavily, bent his elbow, and slammed it into the Celestial Dragon's ornate gate. With a thunderous crash, the gate shattered into pieces.
As the gate fell, a group of slaves, already burning with rage, stormed into the Celestial Dragon's estate. Facing the guards pouring out from within, those who could fight fought, those who could shoot shot, engaging the guards in battle.
Ian, meanwhile, led a portion of the group straight toward the slave prison.
Celestial Dragon slave prisons all shared one characteristic: they were large but also dilapidated. The Celestial Dragons generally didn't bother making the living quarters for slaves comfortable, so they were easy to identify.
Ian didn't know which Celestial Dragon family this estate belonged to. He led his people straight to the slave prison, charging in. He sent two people to find the keys while he and the others began opening the cages.
When the slaves inside first saw Ian and his group storming in, they were startled. But when they saw Ian kill the guards and start opening their cages, they all realized what was happening. Thunderous cheers erupted, and tears streamed down their faces uncontrollably.
Every slave imprisoned here had heard of the adventurer Fisher Tiger's exploits eleven years ago. They couldn't escape, but that didn't stop them from endlessly fantasizing that someone like Fisher Tiger would appear, repeating history and rescuing them from this hell on earth.
And now, as if the heavens had heard their prayers, that person had truly appeared!
"Thank you! Thank you!" A slave just released from a cage wept as he thanked a long-arm tribe man who had freed him.
"Don't thank me!" The long-arm tribe man smiled, pointing at Ian's back. "Thank our common benefactor in black! He freed us first."
Since Ian was still masked, the slaves didn't know what to call him, so they simply referred to him as the benefactor in black.
Ian didn't mind. He shouted loudly, "Quick, free everyone! Those who can fight, pick up weapons and fight!"
"Woooh!!!"
The newly freed slaves cheered with exhilaration.
Among this batch of slaves were many powerful combat races, and most remarkably, there was even a Giant!
"Hey, big guy!" Ian called out to the Giant. "Is the wound on your leg okay?"
The Giant man had a piercing wound on his leg that looked like it had been there for a while. Hearing Ian's question, he gritted his teeth and stood up, saying, "Benefactor, don't worry. I can hold on! Compared to gaining freedom, this wound is nothing! From now on, wherever you point, I'll charge!"
"Good, let's fight our way out together!"
With Ian's command, the Giant let out a roaring battle cry, charged forward, and smashed a huge hole in the wall with his body. He led the charge out, while the others followed Ian as they rushed out.
The Giant's addition undoubtedly boosted morale. After liberating two estates in a row, the group of slaves following Ian had grown to nearly two hundred. With so many gathered together, the power they unleashed grew even greater.
Just as Ian and his group had fought off the guards here and were preparing to move toward the third estate, Ian's baby Den Den Mushi suddenly rang.
Answering it, Konenai's anxious voice came through: "You... did you release the Celestial Dragons' slaves?"
"What, have they gotten word already?" Ian asked.
"Yes, I've been watching. I just saw Marine soldiers rushing urgently to report to the World Government!" Konenai said.
"Understood. It looks like the Marines will mobilize soon," Ian said. "Stay safe."
"Don't worry, I have a white Den Den Mushi to prevent eavesdropping," Konenai said. "I'll keep you updated on the situation."
After hanging up, Ian calmed his mind. He knew the Marines would soon realize this wasn't just a simple slave revolt. They would dispatch a large force.
So now, he needed to find a way to divert the Marines' attention.
Ian turned his gaze toward the Celestial Dragon's tall residence in the distance within this estate.
"Benefactor, aren't we leaving yet?" The slaves had gathered around Ian. A long-arm tribe man asked him after he hung up.
"Not yet. Give me a few seconds," Ian said.
Then, he sheathed the Enma sword and raised his right hand.
*Puff!* With a soft sound, a blue flame burst to life in Ian's palm.
The flame flickered with an eerie color, making the slaves' hearts tighten. They could feel the scorching heat within the flame and instinctively stepped back.
Ian looked up at the faint moon in the sky and suddenly grinned, saying, "When the moonlit night reminds you of me... Eight Wine Glasses!"
As his words fell, Ian flung his hand toward the ground. A massive ball of purple flame shot across the ground, flying straight toward the Celestial Dragon's residence. Under the slaves' watchful eyes, Ian's Eight Wine Glasses flame slammed into the building's wall.
*Boom!!* The moment it touched the wall, the power of the Eight Wine Glasses flame erupted violently. A colossal pillar of fire shot up into the sky like a geyser, visible from afar even at this distance.
As the flame pillar erupted, the Celestial Dragon's house caught fire. Purple flames engulfed the entire building, burning fiercely.
"H... Heavens!"
The slaves stared in stunned disbelief, terrified by the flame's power. They had only seen Ian fighting with the Enma sword and assumed he was just a swordsman master. They never expected that a casual burst of flame from him could set such a massive building ablaze in an instant!
Was their benefactor truly this powerful!?
Suddenly, the slaves' confidence in escaping soared. Watching the burning building, they felt an inexplicable thrill.
"Burn, burn! I hope those ugly Celestial Dragons burn to death too!"
Ian had expended quite a bit of psychic power using Eight Wine Glasses, but his stamina was still full, and his psychic power recovery was quite fast, so it wasn't a problem. Looking at the burning house, he said to the group, "Let's go! Even if the Marines chase us, they'll have to spare some hands to put out the fire!"
The slaves immediately understood Ian's intention. They howled with excitement and followed Ian as he quickly left.
Because Ian hadn't burned just any ordinary house—he had burned a Celestial Dragon's residence. This meant that if the Marines didn't want the Celestial Dragons to burn to death, they would have to send some personnel to rescue them. That would reduce the number of pursuers coming after Ian and his group.
Taking advantage of the time the Marines needed to mobilize, Ian led the slaves to attack another Celestial Dragon's estate and repeated the tactic, using Eight Wine Glasses to set another fire.
The result of Ian turning into an arsonist was that Mary Geoise caught fire. Although the city's buildings were sparse, there were many tall trees. The purple flames were extremely hot and hard to extinguish. As the flames drifted onto the trees, they quickly ignited them too.
The fire grew fierce, starkly visible in the night sky. Even the World Government headquarters, far away, could see the blaze.
One by one, the national leaders staying in hotels were awakened. Wearing pajamas, they walked to their windows and watched the scene unfolding in Mary Geoise from afar.
Then, they began calling each other one by one.
"Do you know what's happening?"
"No idea!"
"There's trouble..."
"Could it be another slave revolt like before?"
"Heh, good riddance..."
"Burn, burn. I didn't expect to see such an exciting event during this Reverie."
"Tell our people not to get involved in this."
Although they were member nations of the World Government, not every country was on the same page with it. The root of the problem lay with the Celestial Dragons.
Heavenly Tribute was not something every country was willing to pay. In fact, over the many Reveries, countless proposals had been made to abolish the Heavenly Tribute system. However, the World Government had always forcefully suppressed these proposals.
Moreover, the Celestial Dragons were accustomed to throwing their weight around. Even some kings of nations would be condescendingly lectured by them. Over time, many countries harbored resentment toward the Celestial Dragons.
So, aside from a few spineless kings who tried to curry favor with the Celestial Dragons and were worried for them, most other countries simply watched the spectacle coldly.