Chapter 5: Blood Ship
The island ahead was gradually approaching. Su Xiao sat on the small boat, weighing a money pouch in his hand. Inside were 16 gold coins, coins that had been certified by the Void Tree.
Su Xiao had seen many currencies, but this was his first time seeing coins certified by the Void Tree.
[Sea Demon Gold Coin (Hard currency of this world, contains the power of the Sea Demon Realm. Cannot be taken out of this world. Can be used to purchase high-value items. After purchase, the high-value item purchased will be certified and can be taken out of this world).]
Su Xiao toyed with the gold coin in his hand. The coin was a dark gold color, with a skull on the front and a ship on the back. For some reason, Su Xiao felt this ship looked very similar to the Doom Number, but there were some differences, many details were different.
Sea Demon Gold Coins were good things. After using them to buy items from a powerful person, the purchased item would be certified and could be brought back to Reincarnation Paradise.
Su Xiao didn't know the purchasing power of 16 gold coins. Bubu Wang had searched the slave ship thoroughly and only found this many.
Rowing a small boat to the 'Wandering Soul Sea Region' was too slow. So, upon seeing the island ahead, Su Xiao decided to land and hire a group of pirates to sail with. He could only faintly sense the Doom Number, and didn't know how far away that ship was.
A fast three-masted ship couldn't be sailed by just a few people; it required the coordinated effort of at least twenty people to set sail.
With a *plop*, the Ouroboros Stone Ring detached from Baha's leg, fell onto the boat, and reverted into a stone slab. A line of text appeared on the slab.
'Do not land.'
As soon as these words appeared on the Ouroboros Stone Slab, Su Xiao received a prompt from Reincarnation Paradise.
[Prompt: Ouroboros Stone Slab · Greed's Recovery Value +60%.]
[Current Recovery Value: 68%.]
Seeing this prompt, Su Xiao realized the severity of the situation. The Ouroboros Stone Slab would occasionally give warnings, but the recovery value increased too much this time, a full 60%. At most, after two warnings, the Ouroboros Stone Slab would recover.
Looking at the distant island, Su Xiao hesitated in his heart.
"Bubu, Baha, change course. Go around this island."
"Got it."
Baha never questioned Su Xiao's orders. The small boat changed direction and began to move away from the distant island.
On the dock of the Sunken Ship Island, a man clad in full-body armor raised his head, a hint of confusion in his crimson eyes.
"Sensed... danger?"
*Clang.*
A small foot kicked the armored man's leg.
"Give me back my Soul Coins! 3000 Soul Coins!"
A little girl, no, a little boy, stood beside the armored man, gnashing his teeth in anger.
"I told you Guangmu couldn't be trusted. Were you bewitched by her tits? Tell me! 3000 Soul Coins! Gone! All gone! I even put on women's clothes to trick those miners out and kill them, and the 3000 Soul Coins I got... all gone."
"..."
The armored man lowered his head, silent.
*Clang.*
The little boy punched the armored man on the head, his small face scrunching up in pain. The damage reflection ability was truly powerful.
"He ran away! Chase him!"
"No. My speed in the water... is very slow. The four-masted ship sent by the Duke hasn't arrived yet. Other ships are not trustworthy. Pursuing now is not stable enough."
The armored man stood motionless, pondering his next move.
"Then I'll go myself."
The little boy took a few steps forward, leaped into the water. After a few seconds, he climbed back onto the dock from the water.
"Damn it, you made me forget that my combat power is garbage. If this mission fails, go meet Mage Sage Seraphilia yourself. That's a Black Maple Tree branch, 3100 grams! A full 3100 grams!"
The little boy was shaking with anger, but the armored man showed no reaction. He still had a trump card. Counting this time, he had already come to the Sea Demon Realm three times.
"I have an idea. How could I forget you're the Duke's trusted aide?"
The little boy's eyes grew brighter and brighter. He turned and disappeared among the busy laborers.
A few minutes later, a two-masted sailboat set sail. The little boy watched the departing sailboat, feeling no guilt for deceiving the four contractors from Apocalypse Paradise.
"Even if I can't kill you, you won't be able to develop for a short time."
Leaving these words, the little boy's body turned into bubbles, drifting towards a certain place on Sunken Ship Island.
...
At sea, Su Xiao sat at the stern of the small boat, hesitating whether to dismiss the summoning of the Ouroboros Stone Slab. This slab could predict danger, but it itself was also a kind of danger.
Once the Ouroboros Stone Slab's recovery value reached 100%, it would lead to a crisis. Just now, Su Xiao hadn't injected any mana into it, yet the Ouroboros Stone Slab had predicted danger on its own.
This meant one thing: if danger was encountered next time, and the Ouroboros Stone Slab predicted it again on its own, causing the recovery value to reach 100%, then the Ouroboros Stone Slab itself would become a danger, plus the impending danger from the future, a 'double gift package'. The result was predictable.
Soon, Su Xiao thought of a method. What if he couldn't receive the predictions from the Ouroboros Stone Slab?
From previous observations, the Ouroboros Stone Slab followed the principle of equivalent exchange. Only after providing valuable information would it increase the recovery value. If 'nonsense' appeared on it, the recovery value wouldn't increase.
As an equivalent exchange, if Su Xiao couldn't receive the predictions from the Ouroboros Stone Slab, the transaction wouldn't be established.
Thinking of this, Su Xiao picked up the Ouroboros Stone Slab, preparing to put it into the team storage space. He didn't believe the Ouroboros Stone Slab could cause trouble in the team storage space; this involved the function of Reincarnation Paradise's imprint.
'Despicable human.'
Before Su Xiao could put the Ouroboros Stone Slab into the team storage space, this line of text appeared on the slab. Clearly, the slab had predicted something again.
"What is the origin of Reincarnation Paradise?"
'...'
"How high is the highest authority of Reincarnation Paradise?"
'...'
"What kind of existence is Reincarnation Paradise?"
As soon as Su Xiao finished speaking, *crack*, a fissure split open on the Ouroboros Stone Slab. After a moment, the fissure slowly healed.
Seeing this, a smile appeared on Su Xiao's face. If a plot character from a Primordial World obtained this slab, they would be devoured by it within half a month.
Su Xiao was a Hunter. He had many questions that the Ouroboros Stone Slab couldn't predict, or even dared not attempt to predict.
"What is the specific structure of my imprint? How is it composed?"
*Crack~*
Another fissure appeared on the Ouroboros Stone Slab. Seeing this, Su Xiao confirmed that the relationship between him and the Ouroboros Stone Slab was one of equivalent exchange. This slab was extremely dangerous and had a significant origin, but it had to abide by this principle, which was certified by Reincarnation Paradise.
'Despicable human!!!'
Ignoring the text on the Ouroboros Stone Slab, Su Xiao put it into the team storage space.
He had roughly figured out two functions of the Ouroboros Stone Slab: 1. Sensing nearby high-value items. 2. Predicting danger, but the recovery value of the Ouroboros Stone Slab would skyrocket.
As for whether the Ouroboros Stone Slab had other functions, it was unknown for now.
Every time he summoned this thing, he could use its danger-predicting ability to avoid one danger, but at most once. If he tried to predict danger a second time, the recovery value of the Ouroboros Stone Slab would likely reach 100%.
What would happen then, Su Xiao didn't know. He had a vague feeling that, with his current strength, once the Ouroboros Stone Slab's recovery value reached 100%, he would die.
"Boss, a ship is approaching!"
*Boom!*
A shockwave came from behind Su Xiao. He was pushed forward by the impact, and black-red flames surged from behind him.
As Su Xiao flew past Bubu Wang, he grabbed Bubu Wang's ear with one hand. Bubu Wang's eyes welled up with tears from the pain.
*Crackle, crackle, crackle~*
A crystal layer from the Proud Song ability enveloped Bubu Wang. The black-red flames eroded in, and Bubu Wang, holding one ear up, was engulfed by the flames.
The small wooden boat shattered. Su Xiao, Bubu Wang, and Baha fell into the sea. The black-red flames burned on the water surface, hissing and emitting a foul stench.
The attack just now was extremely fast. It exploded as soon as it entered Su Xiao's perception range. The form of the attack looked very much like a cannon blast.
Half a kilometer away, a two-masted sailboat was speeding across the sea. The mainsail was full of wind, and the sharp bow cut through the seawater.
"Didn't kill him. Let's wait for them to board the ship."
A bare-chested man crouched on the ship's rail at the bow, looking at the burning blood flames in the distance.
"Don't bother. That guy has a sword at his waist; he's probably a Technique Type. Technique Types have sharp senses; he won't come near our ship."
A female contractor leaning against the mast spoke. Her clothing was revealing, her leather skirt so short it invited wild thoughts.
"The ships in the Sea Demon Realm are really messed up. They can even absorb life force."
A total of four contractors were scattered across the deck. Nearby were busy crew members, their faces pale, their eyes filled with despair.
"Make the ship go faster, or it will eat you."
"Yes... yes, sir."
The crew members responded timidly, sailing this ill-omened ship forward.
Inside the seawater, Su Xiao pressed the miniature oxygen tank in his hand and took a deep breath. A faint suction force came from above, as if his life force was about to be drawn away.
*Zheng.*
A blade aura cut through the seawater, leaving a slash mark on the ship's bottom above. As soon as this slash appeared, densely packed black leeches surged out. Conservatively estimated, there were tens of thousands, heading straight for Su Xiao. Who knew how these leeches could move freely in seawater?
Su Xiao grabbed Bubu Wang beside him, tilted his body in the water, stomped on the seawater, and disappeared from the spot, breaking through the water flow.
*Swoosh~*
The leech tide swept past. Regardless of whether these things were powerful, fighting them might incur some debuffs.
Su Xiao moved rapidly through the water. The two-masted ship above kept tracking him. This made Su Xiao a bit puzzled. If the danger predicted by the Ouroboros Stone Slab was only this much, he wasn't unable to handle it; it was just a matter of whether he was willing to pay the price.
On the blood ship above, the Apocalypse Paradise contractor named Jinke crouched on the rail, smiling down at the seawater below.
"Really good at running. I don't believe he can stay hidden in the sea forever."
The blood ship continued sailing. After a full two hours of pursuit, Jinke began to get impatient.
"How about we go down?"
"Are you brain-dead? Go fight a Technique Type?"
"Uh~, right."
Jinke snorted lightly. They had a ship now, which was their biggest advantage. In the Sea Demon Realm, having a ship and not having a ship were two different things.
Unbeknownst to them, the sky had become overcast. The sea surface was faintly black, and thin fog drifted around them.
"Captain... Captain, we..."
A pale-faced old pirate spoke, hemming and hawing without getting to the point.
"Spit it out."
"Captain, it seems we've entered the 'Wandering Soul Sea Region'."
"And then?"
"The Wandering Soul Sea Region is very dangerous. It's said many ships have sunk here. But your blood ship... probably won't sink."
"Then keep sailing."
Jinke had been on alert, but hearing the old pirate's words, he breathed a sigh of relief. He wouldn't ignore potential dangers.
"That guy below has stopped. He's directly underneath."
The female contractor in the leather skirt spoke. Hearing this, Jinke's gaze sharpened.
"Fire the blood flame cannon underwater. Release all the parasitic leeches."
As soon as Jinke finished speaking, he felt the ship beneath his feet shake. He looked down at the seawater, which was churning.
Seeing this, the other three contractors also rushed to the bow, looking down at the churning seawater.
Everything around them changed. The sea breeze seemed to turn into wails. Whispers appeared in the air, and faintly, one could hear miserable screams and arrogant laughter.
A muffled thunderclap sounded in the sky. The clouds above formed a vortex, with lightning flickering within.
The entire sea surface trembled, making a *dada* sound. Water droplets were shaken up from the surface, and seawater gushed upwards.
*Boom.*
A massive object burst out from the water. It was a ship, its hull black, its mainsail dark red. The white skull pattern on it was grinning menacingly. The Doom Number had broken through the sea.
*Creak~*
Wooden planks rubbed against each other. The side planks of the Doom Number spread open like ribs, revealing the keel inside. It was like a sea monster that had broken free, enjoying its hard-won freedom.
"Run... quickly."
A figure covered in barnacles and seaweed was hanging on the ship's planks. This was a contractor, long since devoured by the Doom Number.
The Scapegoat's body gradually shattered, turning into a substance like seabed mud, falling into the water. He was completely dead, failing to enslave the Doom Number.
Jinke and the other three looked up at the behemoth before them. Compared to that ship, their blood ship was like a toy.
One by one, leeches crawled out of the blood ship, fleeing in panic through the seawater. The blood ship visibly decayed.
On the blood ship, Jinke swallowed his saliva. He felt that the ship before them was something the four of them couldn't fight. That thing was different from the blood ship; that ship seemed to be alive.
"Keep chasing! Why the hell did you stop? Weren't you having fun chasing us just now?"
Baha landed on the unfolded planks of the Doom Number, looking down at the four contractors below.
The Doom Number pressed down. It practically rode on top of the blood ship. Its rib-like planks closed in. It was eating the blood ship.
Jinke and the other three all leaped into the sea. The four of them, in the water, stared dumbfounded as the Doom Number devoured the blood ship.