Chapter 55: Come Fight
Inside the reception hall, a group of pirates didn't even dare to breathe loudly.
"You're the great pirate of this era? Not bad at all."
Winnie examined the Duke, seeming quite satisfied. In reality, she was ecstatic inside. Although the Duke didn't fear her, only felt wary, the other pirates didn't dare to meet her gaze. This feeling of being above everything else made Winnie's whole body tingle with numbness.
"You, I..."
The Duke was momentarily at a loss for words. The witch before him was praising him, which made him feel extremely awkward inside, but he couldn't afford to fall out with her—the cost was too great.
"Go do something for me."
"What is it?"
"Bring me the Primordial Water. After it's done, we'll split the Primordial Water half and half."
Hearing Winnie's words, the Duke's gaze sharpened.
"Lady, that's impossible. I don't know where the Primordial Water is..."
"Go to the Eternal Life Island."
"You..."
The Duke's eyes grew even brighter. He now looked like a werewolf dressed in formal attire.
"Eternal Life Island has reappeared. Take the Soul Arrow, dip it in seawater, and it will guide you."
"Oh?" The Duke's expression changed, and a smile gradually spread across his face. He continued, "Did the captain of the Doom Number send you? If I'm not mistaken, he's already obtained three Soul Arrows."
The Duke raised his hand, and the surrounding pirates' gazes gradually turned fierce.
"Your statement is neither right nor wrong. The captain of this generation's Doom Number helped me break free from my restraints. Fortunately, he brought the Soul Arrows. Unfortunately, they escaped to Eternal Life Island. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come to you."
Winnie began to panic inwardly, but she quickly steadied herself. She could sense that the Duke was testing her.
"Someone as powerful as you needs a pirate like me to fetch the Primordial Water?"
As a great pirate, the Duke wouldn't be intimidated by appearances. He kept probing, but he didn't know that Winnie was cheating. In the captain's cabin of the Doom Number, many people were telling Winnie how to respond. Winnie had become a tool.
"Do you think... I've been trapped somewhere all this time? Would you willingly return to a cage, even if it held something you desired?"
"I understand."
The Duke signaled all the pirates to withdraw. He couldn't probe any further—provoking this existence might bring unknown risks.
"I'll take the Soul Arrow to Eternal Life Island and retrieve the Primordial Water for you. But what do I get in return?"
"Isn't half of the Primordial Water you obtain enough reward?"
"That was originally mine to get."
"Do you really... know how to use the Primordial Water?"
"Deal."
The Duke didn't fully trust the witch before him, but he felt this was an opportunity.
"The contract... is established. I'll take half of your soul."
Winnie's pupils turned crimson, and it seemed as if the wails of vengeful spirits spread around her.
The Duke shot up from his seat, retreating three steps. The chair behind him flew out, shattering against the wall. He had actually suspected that there was no such thing as a free lunch. Cooperating with these sinister entities came at a price.
"Can't we use a substitute?"
"Pirate... are you questioning an ancient contract?"
Winnie's whole body creaked and cracked, looking terrifying. In reality, she was wailing inside. Playing this tough guy hurt so much; her bones felt like they were falling apart. She wanted to cry out loud, but she had to hold it in.
"Forget it. You still need to go to Eternal Life Island and fight that thing. Go fetch Soul Stones—enough Soul Stones to offset half your soul."
As she spoke, Winnie released the Soul Arrow in her hand. A ghostly head wrapped around the Soul Arrow and flew toward the Duke.
The Duke breathed a sigh of relief. He pondered for a moment, then ordered his subordinates to go to the treasury and bring all 47 Soul Stones there. These were 47 Soul Crystals (Complete). For half of his soul, the Duke was quite willing to part with Soul Crystals.
Carrying the box of 47 Soul Crystals (Complete), Winnie left. When she reached the island's edge, she vanished directly. A pirate who witnessed this immediately went back to report.
In the captain's cabin of the Doom Number, Winnie set down the wooden box containing the Soul Crystals and took out various items from her black robe. After doing all this, she collapsed onto the small bed. It had been way too thrilling.
Su Xiao looked at the wooden box on the table. This was an unexpected surprise, a huge one.
"Kaisa, there's a share in this for you."
"Hehehe."
Kaisa opened the wooden box and quickly grabbed Soul Crystals from inside, one by one. After taking seven, he reluctantly closed the box. He had contributed two items this time, plus setting up the teleportation items.
Octopus Bro had also contributed items, but he didn't get a share of the Soul Crystals. He wanted a trace amount of Primordial Water instead.
"Good. On to the next one."
Baha looked at Winnie, who let out a mournful cry. Only today did she realize how exhausting it was to act tough.
Five hours later, in a Baroque-style castle, the vast bedroom was completely silent.
Twin Towers: Empress sat sideways on the large bed. A beam of sunlight streamed in through the thick curtains. Twin Towers: Empress was actually hard to find, but due to the terrifying and eerie aura of Winnie Wanda, Twin Towers: Empress had no choice but to grit her teeth and meet with Winnie.
The vast bedroom was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Cold sweat even broke out on Twin Towers: Empress's face. Her mental state was shattered. Ever since becoming a great pirate, she had navigated smoothly in all directions and had few enemies. Twin Towers: Empress racked her brains but couldn't figure out where she had offended such a thing.
Powerful, eerie, mysterious. Thinking of these things, Twin Towers: Empress felt a mix of fear and another strange emotion. Her gaze toward Winnie began to grow peculiar.
Noticing this gaze, Winnie was a bit confused inside. This wasn't in the script. Suddenly, she thought of a possibility and felt a chill of disgust.
"Are you going to kill me?"
Twin Towers: Empress lowered her head.
"This is the Soul Arrow. The method of use is... Go to Eternal Life Island for me and retrieve the Primordial Water. After it's done, I'll split it with you. Now, you either pay half your soul or provide an equivalent amount of Soul Stones. I have urgent matters. Destruction or cooperation—choose for yourself."
Winnie was already quite skilled. Her attitude clearly showed that she didn't care much about Twin Towers: Empress, or rather, she didn't think highly of her.
"What if I refuse?"
"Goodbye."
Winnie smiled eerily, and darkness gradually enveloped her.
"Wait. I was just joking."
Twin Towers: Empress called her subordinates and had them bring 38 Soul Crystals (Complete). Carrying these Soul Crystals, Winnie was gradually shrouded in darkness and then vanished.
"So what if she's powerful? She was grossed out by my flirtatious gaze, right? But what was that contract she mentioned?"
Twin Towers: Empress looked at the Soul Arrow in her hand, momentarily unable to decide.
At 8 PM that evening, Winnie sought out the last great pirate, Black Witch Sa. The situation here was quite unexpected. Black Witch Sa was dead. The one who killed him was his own biological son. This filial son was called Little Black Witch Sa, and he was less than twenty years old.
Earlier, Su Xiao had wondered why, while he was fighting fiercely with the West Sea King and the Duke, Black Witch Sa's side had been completely silent—so quiet it was baffling. Now it seemed that Black Witch Sa had been backstabbed by his only son.
Little Black Witch Sa's stubbornness reached an unbelievable level. He overruled all objections and immediately wanted to fall out with Winnie.
Facing such a ruthless and reckless guy, Winnie felt she was done for. In the end, she dropped the Soul Arrow and turned to leave.
That night, on Black Witch Sa's territory, the pirates held a grand banquet.
The Duke soon learned of Black Witch Sa's death. He was silent for a long time, asking himself honestly: on the Demon Sea, the one he feared most was Black Witch Sa—that venomous snake full of black witchcraft.
Such a figure, while teaching his own offspring black witchcraft, was stabbed through the head with a knife. This made the Duke feel a bit desolate. His former great enemy had died in such a ridiculous and absurd way.
Everything has a cause. Black Witch Sa's death was actually brought about by his own hands. To make his offspring more talented, he had set up black witchcraft when his wife was pregnant. He didn't realize that the child he had invested so much effort in cultivating was actually a selfish, twisted "deformed being."
The Doom Number sailed on the night sea. In the captain's cabin, Su Xiao put away the [Source], the Ancient God blood, the charcoal box, and other items into his storage space. Although there had been some deviations, he had achieved the result he wanted. Little Black Witch Sa would definitely go to Eternal Life Island. The fact that he was holding a banquet proved this—he was gathering people.
Given the speed of the three representative ships of the three great pirates, they would reach Eternal Life Island by tomorrow morning at the latest.
The Doom Number cut through the waves, returned to the waters near Eternal Life Island, and submerged to wait.
Unnoticed, the first rays of the morning sun climbed over the horizon. The first light shone on Eternal Life Island.
A blur streaked across the sky, breaking the sound barrier repeatedly, then dove toward the island's edge and landed with a thunderous crash. It was Scale Dragon: Alec.
Alec's claws and arms were covered in golden-black dragon scales. His pair of golden vertical pupils were imposing. His muscular upper body was covered in various scars, and the dragon wings on his back gradually retracted into his body.
"So this is Eternal Life Island?"
Just as Alec was about to sense his surroundings, he immediately retracted his perception and turned his gaze to the nearby beach.
"Nether Wolf."
Alec looked at the man a few dozen meters away. The man's image was too iconic—a head of wild black hair tied into short braids.
"It's Alec. Long time no see. You won't mind that I tore you in half last time, right?"
Nether Wolf's voice was very magnetic, and his expression was somewhat lazy.
"I don't mind. Last time, our positions were hostile, and I made the first move."
That was Alec's way. Although he wasn't exactly a good person, he was clear about grievances.
"Good. Want to cooperate?"
"Are you sure?"
Although Alec was somewhat tempted, he was more wary. Nether Wolf was crazy, but he had never betrayed his partners—provided both sides cooperated sincerely.
At best, these two had a thirty percent chance of cooperating.
While they were talking, a tall and a short figure crouched in the grass. The tall one wasn't too tall, about 1.75 meters. The short one was really short, only 1.45 meters. It was the dual-poison combo of Guangmu and Sweet Orange. The taller one was Guangmu, and the one with short hair was Sweet Orange.
The two had already signed a team contract, certified by the Void Tree. They weren't worried about being discovered by Alec and Nether Wolf. This was Guangmu's ability. Unless it was a contractor specializing in perception or a Technique-Type getting within a dozen meters of them, there was no way to find them.
The dual-poison combo's hearts were in their throats. If Alec and Nether Wolf cooperated, the joke would be huge.
"Guangmu, let's go beat them up."
"Calm down. We can't win."
"Uh~, true. But if they cooperate, what's the point of us fighting? 150 Soul Coins wasted."
Sweet Orange was furious. She puffed out her cheeks, getting angrier the more she thought about it.
"Don't worry. There's an even more desperate situation waiting for us. Look over there. The first-ranked Bai Ye is here too. What if the three of them join forces..."
Guangmu was halfway through her sentence when Sweet Orange headbutted her chin. Sweet Orange didn't want to hear the rest. Her heart ached.
"Guangmu, are you sure he's the first-ranked Bai Ye?"
Sweet Orange looked puzzled. In her understanding, Su Xiao should be stronger than Nether Wolf.
"No mistake. He killed Feishi. As infamous as Feishi was back then, Bai Ye is now just as famous."
Guangmu also had some doubt in her eyes. Su Xiao's strength wasn't as overwhelmingly powerful as she had imagined.
Su Xiao walked out from the shallow sea, the sound of waves reaching his ears. He had come specifically. The surrounding seawater was full of his eyes. This was an opportunity, but with one condition: Alec and Nether Wolf didn't know he was the captain of the Doom Number.
On the beach, Alec and Nether Wolf stood a few dozen meters apart. Neither spoke.
Su Xiao controlled the cursed people in the nearby sea to retreat, the farther the better. Cooperating with Alec and Nether Wolf was a good choice. Their frontal assault capabilities were incomparable to the cursed people. After all, they were a Death Ranger and a Violator.
With these two charging ahead and the cursed army following far behind, it was a great plan. If the situation changed, the cursed people could swarm in.
"Since you two want to cooperate..."
Su Xiao was halfway through his sentence when Alec spread his dragon wings and flew away, leaving only one line: "Bai Ye, Nether Wolf, see you if fate allows."
Clearly, Alec already knew that Su Xiao was the captain of the Doom Number. Before coming to Eternal Life Island, he had decided to avoid Su Xiao. Alec had witnessed too many times how miserable it was to be surrounded by a human wave tactic.
Su Xiao's gaze shifted to where Nether Wolf had been. Nether Wolf had also vanished.
"Hahaha, Alec and Nether Wolf both left. Their negotiation went really badly."
Sweet Orange in the grass was in a great mood. Guangmu, with her chin resting on Sweet Orange's head, looked worried.
Only Su Xiao remained on the beach. He wasn't too disappointed that the cooperation had failed. Alec and Nether Wolf had probably cooperated with a major force, which was how they knew he was the captain of the Doom Number. Most other contractors didn't know this—they only knew that the Doom Number was active at sea.
In the grass, the dual-poison combo was watching Su Xiao.
"Guangmu, I feel like we might be able to beat that guy called Bai Ye. Want to try? He's in the top fifty of the Legend Ranking. Killing him would take his Legend Points. I've killed someone in the top fifty before and took all their Legend Points. He's the first now. If we kill him, we split the Legend Points. You'd become first, and I'd be fourth. What do you think?"
Sweet Orange's proposal didn't move Guangmu. She felt that Su Xiao being ranked first must have a special reason.
"Opportunity knocks but once. The two of us together can handle Nether Wolf no problem. Even if that Bai Ye has a trump card, we can still fight. Fortune favors the bold. Otherwise, we'll just be dead fish. It's settled. I'm going in! Heal me well, but don't poison-heal me."
"Wait..."
Before Guangmu could finish, Sweet Orange burst out of the grass. Sometimes you have to take a risk. Otherwise, how would you ever know what despair really feels like?
"Hey, you over there, don't leave! Come fight!"