Chapter 230: Section 18: Greedy Divine Bone
The sky was as blue as the sea, the breeze was light, and the sun shined on the ocean surface, creating a glimmering effect.
The Golden Chin and the Sea Snake Lady were docked at the pier, and the knight youth led his people slowly down the wooden staircase. A receptionist was already waiting on the dock and immediately stepped forward to greet them.
“Captain Long Fu, esteemed heroes of the sea, please follow me,” the receptionist slightly bowed, his attitude neither servile nor overbearing.
Since New Moon Town had been designated as the port for the secret mission, the dock had been under Imperial control. At that moment, aside from the Empire’s personnel, only the knight youth and his companions were present.
The knight youth walked at the forefront, closely followed by Zong Ge, who was disguised as Lion Flag, and 006, followed then by Grey, Golden Chin, and the Sea Snake Lady.
These latter three surveyed their surroundings with a vigilant gaze.
Although they had accepted the Empire’s spy mission, it was their first time coming to the Empire’s secret port. Naturally, they were somewhat nervous; after all, at sea, they could sail freely, but being in the port made them easy targets for an ambush.
Compared to them, the knight youth’s gaze was calm and Zong Ge looked around boldly, showing the demeanor of someone daring and skilled.
The receptionist accompanied the knight youth, his gaze sharp, capturing every nuance of the group’s demeanor.
“It seems that the information from Long Fu is accurate; he must be an Imperial Knight. He and his companions possess a natural trust in the Empire.”
“As for the other three, they were indeed seasoned pirates accustomed to the sea.”
The receptionist led them into the shipyard.
This shipyard was no small facility like the ones Cang Xu used to investigate cultists. It was massive, not only fully equipped but also included alchemy tools, indicating that the personnel involved in shipbuilding were at least Transcendents of the Black Iron Level since ordinary people couldn’t handle alchemy items.
“This shipyard, when operating at full capacity, can produce at least two warships of Black Iron Level each year. One and a half years is needed to build a Bronze Level warship. If it was a standard warship, then even more could be constructed.”
“Of course, the shipyard in New Moon Port isn’t responsible for building ships but for repairing and enhancing the ships’ performance for you, lords.”
“Ports like New Moon Port, with such shipyards, have been established by the Empire across thirty locations, spread across the Holy Bright Continent and various islands at sea. There will be even more in the future.”
The receptionist spoke with pride, himself being of the Bronze Level, and his words displayed the considerable power of the Empire.
The shipyard was not empty; a ship was moored inside.
It was a large three-masted sailing ship, its body wide with extended fore and stern castles.
The ship was 80 meters long, 36 meters wide, and 15 meters high. It had three decks, 24 cannons, and could carry around 500 sailors. This of course was not the full capacity, as it also took into account consumption of food and other aspects of a long voyage.
This ship was even larger than the Pig Kiss, which was 76 meters long, a commercial trading vessel capable of ocean voyages between two continents, nearly reaching the top tier.
They really couldn’t be compared simply because the Pig Kiss was for commercial use, while this sail ship was a warship!
Just one round of cannon fire could be enough to sink the Pig Kiss. The emergency lifeboats made by everyone on Mysterious Monster Island were even less comparable.
The knight youth and others showed no surprise upon seeing this ship.
In fact, acquiring this ship was one of his goals for this mission.
They had successfully destroyed a large number of ships from Rou Cang’s pirate group, showing significant achievements. Though they had retreated after a setback in their clash with Rou Cang, the knight youth and his group had demonstrated their potential and value.
The Empire decided to increase its support, and this ship was a testament to the Empire’s sincerity and a specific request from the knight youth.
He needed a ship to serve as his flagship.
He did possess the Deep Sea Monster Fish, but since that ship was acquired through War Merchants, it was better to keep it concealed if possible. This could reduce the likelihood of information leaks and allow him to use it as an unexpected asset, a hidden card.
As a leader, the youth naturally hoped to have as many such cards in hand as possible.
So up to now, Grey, Golden Chin, and the Sea Snake Lady were unaware of the existence of the Monster Fish.
“Let’s take a look at the ship first,” the knight youth suggested.
The receptionist immediately smiled, “This way, please.”
He led everyone onto the ship for a thorough tour.
The warship was fully equipped, including a chart room with sea charts and sextants, sailor cabins with single and double beds, a kitchen specifically for cooking and a spacious dining room adjacent to it.
Since it was a warship, there were few cargo holds, but the ammunition and food storage were substantial.
There were a medical room, a carpentry maintenance room.
It had an energy chamber equipped with a demon energy furnace, the heart of the warship, meaning that even in still wind, the warship could still move rapidly using demon energy.
Besides, there was an alchemy room, a meditation room, a combat training room, and even a prayer room.
Generally speaking, pirate ships do not have prayer rooms. National warships do, as they are designated for priests and fathers.
The captain’s quarters are located at the stern of the ship, offering the best views and the most spacious area. The wide brownish-red ship’s wheel and the mast, still exuding the smell of paint, along with the pristine sails, all confirmed that this new ship had just been launched and was at its peak condition.
The entire ship was made of top-grade oak, but the surface of the hull also exhibited a metallic sheen. This was a metal coating, an alchemy technique that had emerged only in the last hundred years, capable of greatly enhancing the toughness of the treated object. This wasn’t the expertise of war merchants, who specialize more in life alchemy and creating armaments. The concept of alchemy is actually quite broad, with many subdivisions. Indeed, a war merchant is an alchemy grandmaster, but he is not the only one.
Lastly, everyone toured the gun deck. The ropes for the gun ports were crafted from fine iron, but the gun deck itself was empty.
The tour concluded.
Zong Ge, trying to conceal his pleasure, although skilled in land warfare, recognized the quality of this warship.
One dressed in gray displayed a melancholic expression, the sight of the new warship reminding him of his own Grey Rat.
The knight youth was both satisfied and unsatisfied.
He was satisfied because the warship exceeded the specifications he had requested, being of the Black Iron Level powered by demon energy.
He was unsatisfied because the warship was still incomplete. The most notable absence was the cannons—not a single one was equipped. Even the sails, only one set was on the main mast. Besides that, food, water, liquor, and ordinary sailor’s sleeping bags all needed his supplementation.
Leaving the warship, everyone returned to the dock.
The receptionist had prepared tea and refreshments in the workroom, serving everyone while also handing the Magic Contract to the knight youth.
This was the youth’s first supply stop, of significant importance.
The content of the Magic Contract was an agreement, specifying the cooperative relationship between the parties, as well as their duties, including the consequences of breach.
After reviewing the contract, the youth handed it to others to inspect.
After examining it, the youth nodded to the receptionist, “The contract is fine.”
“Captain Long Fu, esteemed gentlemen, before signing this contract, please wait a moment as I need to verify some information with the relevant personnel,” the receptionist said with a gentle smile.
Captain nodding, 006 took the opportunity to communicate with the receptionist.
The receptionist needed to confirm 006’s status, whether there were any threats or coercion, or any previously undisclosed circumstances?
The youth was not worried about this.
Deep Sea Monster Fish, Cang Xu, and others, 006 was unaware of.
After the experience on Mysterious Monster Island, the youth had become more cautious and prudent in his actions. Whether it was a confrontation with Golden Chin, Sea Snake Lady, or a struggle with Rou Cang, he always kept the Monster Fish concealed.
As expected, under the influence of the Magic Tools, the receptionist confirmed that 006 possessed a free and complete will.
“I apologize for making you wait,” the receptionist said sincerely, although the wait had not been long, “Lastly, there is one item that needs verification. It involves the Divinity pointed bone in the intelligence report. May I personally identify it?”
The youth nodded, slightly turned his head, and signaled to the one in gray.
The one in gray then loosened the collar of his clothes, pulled out a necklace, took it off in front of everyone, and handed it to the receptionist.
The receptionist was well prepared, or rather the Empire was well prepared. He took out an identification scroll, which soon flashed with a brilliance like white gold.
The identification scroll was of high specification and not cheap; it successfully identified on the first attempt.
However, the receptionist did not stop there. He used another scroll of the same specification to confirm the previous identification.
Holding the white bone in his hands, the receptionist couldn’t help but admire, “To some extent, it’s already a demi-divine artifact! The bone of the fourth-generation Pirate King, I must say, your luck is truly amazing. It will be highly useful.”
The knight youth uttered an “oh,” and deliberately asked, “Could you explain in detail?”
“Of course,” the receptionist nodded. “So far, there have been six generations of Pirate Kings. The first three were Barbarians, an era dominated by pirates, whose existence troubled all the Nobles, even terrifying them. Today’s scholars refer to this as the Barbarian Dragon Era.”
“The Barbarian Dragon Era ended due to the fracture of the pact between Barbarians and the Dragon Clan, leading to a joint suppression of pirate activities by the nobles of all continents. It wasn’t until hundreds of years later that piracy resurged, giving rise to a new Pirate King.”
“The fourth generation Pirate King emerged, but he was not a Barbarian, instead, he was a goblin Thief.”
“Relying on what seemed to be an inherent devious talent and just the right amount of luck, he preemptively took the pirate throne. However, his strength was very low, only at the Golden Level. Therefore, he was later betrayed by other entities and lost his life.”
“However, how could a goblin who managed to steal the pirate throne be ordinary? He was not just a common Gold Thief; he possessed Divinity!”
“His Bloodline was extremely high-end, at the level of gods. During his growth, he gradually condensed greed Divinity. Any action that satisfied his greediness aided the growth of this Divinity. And the growth of Divinity made him even more greedy. This insatiable greed is why he risked so much to claim the pirate throne.”
“After his death, his greed Divinity settled in his bones. As spoils of war, his bones were divided and scattered to different corners of the world.”
“Normally, as long as intelligent beings obtained these Bone Fragments, the embedded greed Divinity would act. These Bone Fragments would point the user towards the location of what they desired most deep within their hearts.”
“No wonder the name of the one in gray rose to the first position on the Holy Tablet. Of course, he isn’t anymore.”