Chapter 400: Section 187: Bold Confession
The tavern saw the successive exits of Qi Ya and Sha Ji.
Watching the two disperse, within a hotel room about a kilometer away, Cang Xu and Sanda exchanged silent glances.
Ever since the ghost had sneaked in, they had been privy to the entire conversation between Sha Ji and Qi Ya.
Sanda clicked his tongue, “Giant Sha Ji… this guy is really something!”
This was genuine admiration from his heart.
As a former mercenary group leader, Sanda had found that compared to Sha Ji, his own vision, scale, and the latter were simply worlds apart.
“This is a strategist.”
“Ambitious and politically savvy.”
Cang Xu, who had once been a noble’s housekeeper, considered Sha Ji’s negotiation and mediation skills displayed throughout the conversation to be quite experienced.
“Just from seeing Qi Ya’s behavior before and after, one can tell that Sha Ji has been successful.”
“In fact, many things have been used by him.”
“Like the relationship between Qi Ya and the Lord of Fire City, the former’s adoration and respect for the latter, and likewise, these giants’ love and attachment for their homeland of Fire Island.”
“He also places great importance on collecting intelligence; while stationed in the city, he investigated and uncovered many things.”
“This shows that the giant Sha Ji exhibits certain qualities, such as moving only after careful planning and being adept at utilization.”
After discussing, Cang Xu and Sanda decided to return and report the situation here first.
Because the treasure box was right under the eyes of Sha Ji and the others, it was extremely difficult to steal.
Judging by Sha Ji’s performance, he probably hadn’t noticed the loss of the Holy Domain Puppet yet.
Cang Xu and Sanda returned to the agreed-upon location, while Zi Di and Lan Zao had just gotten back as well.
Upon hearing the accounts from both parties, the Captain and others were deeply moved.
“We didn’t expect that we would be saved by the customs of the giants, winning us some time.”
“But will the giants check the treasure box after they return to their station?”
“Should we steal the red and blue elemental essences before they notice? After all, once discovered, their defenses will certainly tighten.”
“If they check the treasure box, we simply won’t have enough time.”
“The Alchemy Array in the hotel hasn’t been dismantled yet, which is very risky. Once discovered, there will be many traces we left behind. But if we steal again, we will definitely need to use it.”
“Also, now that Clan Leader Zhenjin has arrived, what should we do?”
Everyone conversed, each with their own opinions.
The situation had become very complicated.
Just then, an urgent message came from the Deep Sea Monster Fish, indicating that Zong Ge’s condition had taken a turn for the worse and was critical!
“Haven’t we been maintaining his vitality with green liquid all along?” Sanda immediately became anxious.
The message continued to relay that the Array producing the green liquid had encountered a problem. According to the Tower Spirit’s monitoring records: a great tremor had suddenly occurred in the Green Jade Gold Coffin, resulting in severe damage to the core area’s Array, thus causing the Alchemy Array to fail.
Green Jade Gold Coffin?!
Everyone was shocked and uncertain.
That Divine Artifact was imprisoning the true body of the Charming Blue Divine Sect deity and the main spirits of the Feathered Snake god.
Cang Xu’s expression was grave: “It seems that the standoff between these two gods has become unstable. We must rush back to repair the Array.”
Up to now, other healing methods had already been unable to stabilize Zong Ge’s body.
They could only rely on the green liquid.
But the healing effect of this green liquid was gradually weakening on Zong Ge.
A more perfect Alchemy Array needed to be constructed, definitely making use of the red and blue crystal clusters, to make the effect of the green liquid outstanding, thus healing Zong Ge.
Upon returning to the Deep Sea Monster Fish, everyone was shocked to discover that the Green Jade Gold Coffin was empty.
“Where’s the Goddess?!” Everyone stared at each other as if they were falling into an abyss.
They hurriedly checked the Tower Spirit’s monitoring records and found that after the tremors of the Green Jade Gold Coffin, which had destroyed the Alchemy Array, the Goddess’s body within the coffin slowly disappeared.
“The Goddess left?!” Lan Zao’s eyes widened.
“Why didn’t she take revenge on us?” Zi Di frowned.
“Perhaps her state was too weak?” Sanda guessed.
Cang Xu shook his head slightly: “If the Goddess wakes up, what about her own injuries?”
The Charming Blue Goddess had sustained severe injuries and was able to sustain her life only by self-deception, falling into slumber.
If she were to wake up, it would signify she was heading towards her end.
The young Captain suddenly said, “She must still be inside; our vision has just been deceived. Remember the Sky Pillar Sea Eye? There was no half-plane there at all. The truth was that the area was a Divine Domain emitted by the slumbering goddess.”
The young man’s speculation made a lot of sense.
There had been precedents for such situations.
But who could be certain?
“Let me prove it.” In the crucial moment, the young man mustered his courage and approached the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, he prepared to reach his hand into the coffin.
His movement halted, and the youth’s body surged with red light before he transformed into the Fishman Divine Son.
Only then did he reach in and begin feeling around.
Immediately, the youth exclaimed with joy, “I’ve touched Him.”
“However, this sense of touch is also slowly fading.”
The crowd exhaled a murky breath, “The Goddess is still here, that’s good.”
“But this can’t go on.”
“That’s right. The Charming Blue Divine Domain will keep expanding, at least to form a massive size within the Sky Pillar Sea Eye.”
“We simply can’t handle that.”
“By then, we will all be trapped inside the Divine Domain, deceived and misled.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish will also fall because of this.”
“Damn it, just at the critical moment, a huge fire has broken out in our rear.”
Everyone was fraught with worry.
Some held their heads, their faces already showing a hint of despair.
It was as if Fire Island was about to become a tomb, a giant tomb burying everyone.
Cang Xu’s voice remained calm, “Think about it, it’s not surprising.”
“The state of the Charming Blue God is different from that of the Feathered Snake God.”
“The Charming Blue God has many believers, even if the Charming Blue Divine Sect is destroyed, there are still a large number of believers remaining outside.”
“The Feathered Snake God, on the other hand, has almost no spread of faith.”
“The two gods were in a standoff, but the Charming Blue God is gradually recovering. Given time, she will certainly overpower the Feathered Snake God’s soul.”
Sanda’s face turned fierce, “What’s the use of analyzing this now? What do we do? Lord Zong Ge can’t last much longer!”
Cang Xu sighed deeply, “We can try to rebuild the Alchemy Array. The condition of the Charming Blue God is stable now.”
Zi Di suddenly said, “Perhaps, it is because we used the Green Jade Gold Coffin that we further weakened the power of the Feathered Snake God’s soul, causing the Charming Blue God to begin to gain the upper hand.”
Sanda’s body trembled as he stared at Zi Di.
Zi Di looked back at him and said to Sanda, “I am simply stating the fact, not giving up on Zong Ge.”
“However, even if we take advantage of the stable period of the Green Jade Gold Coffin to rebuild the Array, we don’t have the Purple Crystal cluster.”
“The Array we build will be no different from before and won’t be of much use to Zong Ge.”
Everyone fell silent.
“Then what are we waiting for? I’ll go steal it now, or negotiate!” Sanda shouted immediately.
“Steal now? In broad daylight? In front of the giants?”
“To steal, we would still need to rely on the Silver Stone Statue Ghost Puppets.”
“I always feel negotiating isn’t a good option either. From what you’ve said, that Sha Ji is no ordinary Holy Domain, he’s very cunning!”
Every word spoken by the people deepened the gloom on Sanda’s face.
He caught the implication behind their words.
“Zong Ge is in a very bad state,” said the young Captain after inspecting, standing up beside Zong Ge.
Zong Ge had already been moved to the Core Cabin.
After all, the core of the green liquid Array was the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
“First rebuild the original Array,” the young Captain ordered directly, “This way, Zong Ge can at least last until the night after tomorrow.”
“Tonight we act again, aiming to carry out the heist. We’ll try to steal the Purple Crystal cluster!”
“Understood, my lord,” Cang Xu bowed respectfully, “In fact, we only need to make some repairs. After all, the core of the original Array was damaged.”
Sanda looked gratefully at the youth, truly relieved.
However, while Cang Xu was repairing the Array, the Justice Pirate Group came upon earth-shattering intelligence.
“What? The Imperial Navy Headquarters has been destroyed by pirates?”
“It was the Firebeard Pirates?!”
“These people set out from the Pirate Holy City, reached the Sky Pillar Sea Eye, then divided their forces to confuse the enemy, and finally launched a surprise attack on the Big Military Port. Firebeard almost single-handedly burned down the Big Military Port. Bi Tong was seriously injured and forced to retreat, and the Throne of the Charming Blue God just flew away…”
“Second in command Duobi, third in command Feng Yao, and the newly-minted Holy Domain Red Headband all participated in this battle.”
“Not just Feng Yao, it’s said that a figure in grey was also rescued by Firebeard from the Sky Pillar Sea Eye.”
The entire Justice Pirate Group was stunned.
This was the Big Military Port, the headquarters of the Imperial Navy!
And it had been taken down.
By a pirate gang.
This was… truly a disgrace to the Empire.
For thousands of years, there had never been such a huge blow to the Empire.
Firebeard…
For a moment, the name was deeply engraved in everyone’s hearts.
After several days of spreading, the intelligence of the Big Military Port finally thundered across the world!
Fire Island was just one of the stops.
On the Holy Tablet in the Pirate Holy City, Firebeard’s name was prominently at the top of the list.
This was the first move by the three legendary pirate groups since the battle for the pirate throne began.
No one thought that their first move would be earth-shattering, as if they had punched a hole in the sky.
“How will the Empire react now?”
“Firebeard will definitely face a counterattack from the Imperial Duke!”
“Is the great war between legends and gods about to unfold?”
“It’s not just that. Now that Firebeard is approaching the pirate throne, how will the other two legendary pirate groups act?”
“They will surely act against Firebeard.”
“In an instant, the Firebeard Pirates have made enemies on all sides, their situation is very dangerous!”
“No, he must still have allies. Think about it—the Beastmen will likely protect Firebeard, show him favor. Firebeard, in his current state, is already one step away from the threshold of becoming the King of Pirates.”
The crowd was abuzz with discussion.
The Captain, a young man, was in a very somber mood, “The situation is bad, mates.”
“Didn’t I tell you?”
“Feng Yao was cursed by the Love God; he can sense the location of Mei Lan. Even the Charming Blue Divine Sect cannot block this ability!”
“Our Pearl Bubble would also have a hard time concealing us.”
“That means Firebeard knows the location of the Divine Son of Mei Lan, knows that we’re hiding on Fire Island.”
Those words brought the discussion to an abrupt halt, and everyone fell into a deadly silence.
“So, our enemies… include the Firebeard Pirates?!” After a long while, a voice broke the silence.
“That seems to be the case,” Cang Xu said with a heavy sigh, “If they snatch the Divine Son of Mei Lan, they will surely gain unimaginable pirate divinity. By then, Firebeard will firmly take the throne and become the new Pirate King!”
“There are other pirates, too.” Zi Di’s voice became hoarse, “Firebeard is too bold. He even dared to attack the Big Military Port. He won’t show much concern for Fire Island.”
“He got the information from Feng Yao. Once he makes a move, it will certainly attract a lot of attention.”
“The other two legendary pirate groups will not sit by and watch Firebeard succeed; they will definitely act to stop him. They might also take action against us!!”
Everyone’s faces turned pale.
The Imperial Navy…
The three legendary pirate groups…
Fire City Lord, Qie Ya, Sha Ji…
And the life-threatening situation Zong Ge found himself in…
The Divine Son of Mei Lan, who was gradually getting out of a standoff and slowly gaining the upper hand…
“Oh, God, what should we do?”
“How did it come to this?”
“If we had known it would be like this, we might as well have died on Mysterious Monster Island!”
“In this situation, even if we manage to save Zong Ge, what then? He will die again.”
Unable to come up with a solution, everyone’s gaze eventually turned unanimously to the young Captain.
The young man slowly shook his head; what could he do?
He walked out of the cabin with a furrowed brow.
Zi Di glanced at the others and quickly followed the young man out.
The sky outside was clear, the sun was bright, the sea and sky blended into one, and a gentle breeze was blowing.
The young man sneaked out of the Deep Sea Monster Fish and onto a deserted beach, looking at the scenery before him. His heavy heart strongly contrasted with the natural beauty around him.
Zi Di came over.
The footprints she left on the sand were erased by the rising tide.
The young man sat on the beach, and Zi Di sat down beside him.
The two were together yet silent.
After a long silence, the young man whispered, “I feel guilty.”
“It was me who led everyone to leave Mysterious Monster Island, but now we’ve walked into a dead end.”
“How did it come to this?”
“We just wanted to clear our names, to find connections, to contact the upper echelons of the Empire, and to gain understanding and redemption.”
“Perhaps…”
The young man lowered his head, looking at the sand between his feet, “I’m not an excellent leader.”
“My strength isn’t strong, and I’m not good at power and strategy.”
“If I were like Sha Ji, perhaps things would have greatly improved, or perhaps we would have already succeeded in exonerating ourselves.”
“No, that’s not the case.” Zi Di placed her hand on the young man’s arm, “If you were Sha Ji, we would have already fallen apart.”
“Sha Ji is an ambitious person, restless and unsatisfied, he would recklessly venture, even at the cost of the entire tribe.”
“His chances of success are very low; to satisfy his own selfish desires, he treats the entire tribe as tools to be used.”
“You’re different, trust me, you’re better than Sha Ji!”
“In our group, who can really trust each other? To trust a Half-Beast, or a goblin, or perhaps an Undead Mage?”
Zi Di smiled, “Only you can lead us. Because you are fair and just, you’ve never given up on any companion. The virtues of a Knight live and shine within you. Everyone trusts and believes in you.”
“Without you, we would have already been rife with internal strife.”
“You’re the leader of us all, without you, this group would not have held together until now.”
The young man shook his head and smiled bitterly, “Am I a Knight?”
“Aren’t you?” Zi Di raised her eyebrows, “You train in Fighting energy, Bai He Fighting energy, according to the clues we’ve collected, you should be a Knight of the Empire, just not well-known. A relatively ordinary Silver Knight, even if trouble arose, it wouldn’t cause a big commotion. The War Merchant chose you to be the substitute for Zhenjin for a reason.”
The young man nodded, “That’s what I guessed as well.”
“Unfortunately, the memories that truly belong to me have never surfaced.”
“Do you know? I had a plan.”
“After exonerating myself, I wanted to find my original identity, to return to being myself.”
“Because that’s me, the real me.”
“But now, I’m just an idiot who knows nothing about his own identity, a wild beast, a monster.”
“Sometimes, I’m also frightened, when I transform into a Dragon-man, or a Fishman, I worry that I’ll give up on who I once was, to live for power,” the young man said, looking at his own hands.
“Regarding that.” Zi Di suddenly held the young man’s hand, “I have a different opinion.”
“I like that about you.”
The young man’s body trembled, and he looked towards Zi Di.
Zi Di didn’t dodge his gaze, her amethyst eyes calmly gazed back at the young man.
On the sandy beach, they sat together, eyes locked on each other.
Zi Di earnestly said, “In this world, no one is always content with their fate. At some moment, people always feel indignation, hatred, irritation, and even despair.”
“Everyone… including those geniuses.”
“And for us, who are relatively ordinary, even more so.”
“God says, man is sinful.”
“So, man must be redeemed.”
“I admit.”
“In times of life’s adversity, I have had bad thoughts, thought about murder and plunder.”
“Everyone has dark thoughts, or a past they cannot bear to recall.”
“But with you, around you, all this can be understood, accepted, and tolerated by us.”
“Because you are a Beast Knight.”
“In you, we all see ourselves. And the justice and morality you always uphold make us also believe in the goodness of humanity, that we ourselves are redeemable.”
“Yes, don’t doubt it, you’re that special, that exceptional, making me… deeply infatuated.”
“Zi Di.” The young man softly called out, his emotions turbulent as he grabbed Zi Di’s hand.
Zi Di no longer pulled away.
She boldly made her confession.
She was not willing to repeat the same mistake she made on the Mysterious Monster Island.
She wanted to seize the chance.
It was likely that tomorrow, the Justice Pirate Group would face total destruction.
She didn’t want any regrets!
The young man gazed at Zi Di, and she gazed back at him.
Their faces drew closer and closer.
Under the sunlight, their shadows finally merged into one.
After a while, their lips parted.
The wonders of love brought a blush to Zi Di’s cheeks, her amethyst eyes shining even more brilliantly.
And the young man drew endless courage and motivation from it.
He stood up abruptly, “I’ve decided!”
“What?” Zi Di was startled.
In the next moment, she saw the young man’s resolute face and his bright eyes.
“I’m going to negotiate face-to-face with the Mei Lan Goddess.”