Chapter 455: Section 242: Battle of Pine Wind Sea 1
Captain’s quarters aboard the Iron Lump.
Cang Xu’s first order of business after boarding the Iron Lump was to contact the dragon-man youth to change the previous battle plan.
At this Undead Gathering, Cang Xu gained immensely.
He had no intention of executing the original plan anymore.
The intended battlefield was near Crying Pine Island.
“If we start the fight here and the Undead Gathering changes the location and time, or even excludes my participation, the loss will be significant.”
“In the short term, the value of such a gathering is irreplaceable!”
With that thought in mind, Cang Xu had just activated the alchemy communication device.
Then the voice of the dragon-man youth came through the device, “Cang Xu, you’ve finally emerged!”
“The situation has changed; we’ve discovered a large group of pirates heading straight for Crying Pine Island. Try to delay them as much as possible; we are already on our way at full speed to reinforce you!”
Cang Xu, holding the communication device, was astonished.
The sudden appearance of a group of pirates disrupted his original plan and also prevented him from adjusting the new plan.
Cang Xu recalled Ku Feng’s words—”If all goes well, it’ll be the same time and place next year.”
“Things often go wrong when you least expect them,” Cang Xu said with a wry smile.
The dragon-man youth continued to provide intelligence, “This group of pirates comprises our old acquaintances.”
“They are all from pirate groups that participated in the melee at Twin Eyes Island: Stinky Sky, Clapping, and Jidian Pirate Group.”
“All their ships are covered with Disguise Magic, and even the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s scouting was misled for a while.”
“Based on your scouting, you probably wouldn’t be able to detect the pirate ships.”
“This might be something we can take advantage of.”
“In any case, please try to hold on until we arrive to join you.”
“Zong Ge suggests that you could abandon the ship and land on the island, and by moving through the pine forest, you could fight for time.”
Cang Xu’s expression turned grave, and he took a deep breath, “All three pirate groups are at the Silver Level, but I don’t wish to surrender the Iron Lump before the battle even begins!”
The dragon-man youth paused momentarily, “The decision is yours to make, Cang Xu, I trust you.”
“I understand, squad leader,” Cang Xu ended the communication.
The dragon-man youth trusted Cang Xu, leaving him in full control of the situation.
Likewise, the Undead Mage also trusted the dragon-man youth implicitly; he had no doubts about the dragon-man youth’s full support!
Logically, retreating to the island would be safer.
But because of such trust, Cang Xu decided to take a risk.
“To show cowardice before the battle, and to hand over the Iron Lump is inappropriate.”
“The large number of people entering the pine forest would actually make it difficult to hide their tracks. I am not adept at such spells, and Qing Xin is no different.”
“What would Menshi’s reaction be if I abandoned the dwarves and allowed them to be slaughtered by pirates or the Undead Mage?”
“How would Qing Xin feel about abandoning those of the Human Race in the future?”
“Calmness is needed to devise the most effective strategy.”
Cang Xu couldn’t help but feel tense.
The enemy was too strong.
And our side too weak.
Cang Xu was actually at the Black Iron Level, and with the help of the Fire Magic Ring, he could play the role of a Silver Level for a short time.
But Deception and Disguise Skill, and the like, did not enhance his combat power.
This was evident when he faced the Summoner Ya Ma during the melee on Twin Eyes Island.
Qing Xin was the true strength aboard the Iron Lump.
However, she severely lacked equipment, although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had tried to replenish it before.
Cang Xu’s biggest worry was that they only had one ship.
The Iron Lump was indeed a Bronze Level magic-powered ship, but its sea combat ability was very low.
Lacking proper sailors, the Iron Lump had left right after the melee at Twin Eyes Island without the chance to repair the cannons and so on.
The Iron Lump was virtually akin to a pleasure boat.
“In a head-to-head confrontation, the Iron Lump would be utterly defeated!”
“The guardians in the ship’s sword chamber could be trusted, but to get them into action meant boarding battle.”
“Such a battle would mean heavy casualties among the humans and dwarves aboard.”
And this was precisely what Cang Xu wanted to avoid.
Cang Xu frowned deeply, feeling puzzled, “Why would these pirates band together and strike at Songfeng Island?”
“The island is covered with pine forests but lacks conventional resources.”
“Something significant must be enticing these pirates to work together. But what could it be?”
“If it were imperial forces sent to encircle the Undead Gathering, that would be normal. But why pirates?”
Cang Xu had limited information.
After some thought, he felt, “It’s very likely that the pirates followed me here.”
“My identity was exposed on Twin Eyes Island, and outsiders knew I had bought many valuable items at the auction.”
“Although I seized the Iron Lump, to these pirate groups, its sea battle capacity is weak and insignificant.”
“So, it’s very likely that they have no idea that the Undead Gathering is taking place here!”
“Can I utilize this point to my advantage?”
Cang Xu was not a Dragon-man youth, lacking the strength to take on numerous foes.
Cang Xu was also not Zong Ge; he did not possess the talent to lead armies and was not of a character to force his way through direct confrontation.
Cang Xu was his own person.
He had the calmness of a Mage, the vicissitudes and experiences of an elder, and he had long served as a butler to Nobles, doing it exceptionally well.
He had outstanding social manipulation and political acumen.
Faced with the same problem, every person’s approach would be different.
Zong Ge suggested abandoning the Iron Lump, moving around Songfeng Island, and using space to buy time—an approach grounded in military strategy.
Cang Xu, on the other hand, employed a political strategy.
He racked his brains, pondering, “Can the group at the Undead Gathering be made useful to me?”
“How can I use them in a way that won’t antagonize them and might facilitate my continued participation in these gatherings in the future?”
After a brief period of rapid thought, Cang Xu immediately sprang into action.
First, he ordered the ship to set sail, informing Qing Xin that his ghostly spies had detected pirates approaching.
Then, he used the alchemy communication device to connect with other Undead Mages.
Fortunately, this group of Undead Mages had not yet teleported away from the island via Sorrowful Song Tombstone.
Rather than urgently seeking help with a steep offer, Cang Xu simply informed them of the urgent military situation.
“These people likely followed the Iron Lump here, tracking it all the way.”
“If that’s the case, I will seek to compensate you all in the future when the opportunity arises.”
“I apologize for the trouble this has caused everyone.”
“I have now set sail from the island and look forward to our next meeting!”
Without seeking assistance, Cang Xu put out the warning and immediately retreated.
The Iron Lump was thrown into disarray.
It was Qing Xin who, upon receiving Cang Xu’s intelligence, promptly released all the restrained Human Race and Dwarf captives from the ship’s hold.
Qing Xin spoke candidly about the situation, hoping everyone would pull together and pass through the crisis.
Neither the Human Race nor the Dwarves wanted to fall into the hands of pirates; though they did not trust the Undead Mage, their circumstances were dire—they were all in the same boat, so to speak.
Cang Xu stood forth, publicly promising that he and Qing Xin were friends, and, although he was an Undead Mage, he never harmed innocent life. Once the immediate crisis was over, he would grant everyone their freedom.
Despite rallying everyone, the unfortunate truth was that among this group, there were barely any capable of handling the ship.
The Dwarves came from the same tribe and had always lived in the mountains.
And the Human Race mostly propagated inland, rarely even having the chance to board a ship.
However, the Dwarves still had star-iron hand axes, and should boarding combat ensue, they possessed a degree of combat effectiveness.
The Iron Lump officially began its journey, moving away from its mooring position.
It made its way westward around Songfeng Island.
The reason for this navigational choice was based on intelligence provided to Cang Xu by the Dragon-man youth.
The three Silver Level pirate factions were not all swooping in together.
The Clapping Pirate Group was racing in from the northeast, the Stinky Sky Pirate Group was attacking from the east, and the Jidian Pirate Group was advancing diagonally from the southeast.
This military deployment clearly revealed that the west side of Songfeng Island was unguarded.
Therefore, for the Iron Lump docked on the eastern shore of Songfeng Island, the best strategic maneuver was to circle around the island into the western waters, potentially breaking free from the pirate blockade.
The new squad leader of the Clapping Pirate Group, Back Elephant, stood atop the bowsprit, peering through a spyglass and spotted the latest movements of the Iron Lump.
He immediately called out, “Damn it, the target is escaping.”
“It seems the opponent is no simpleton, at least they’ve seen straight through our ruse!”
“Drat, why couldn’t they just let me rob them quietly?”
Back Elephant scratched his back.
He knew this battle was critical for him.
Being recently promoted, he desperately needed a victory and a handsome share of spoils to cement his authority.
He urgently shouted, “Full speed ahead, chase them down!”
The newly appointed First Officer hastily sought instructions, “Squad leader, shall we deploy the combat teams?”
Back Elephant hesitated for a moment before waving off the suggestion, “It’s too early to engage now; the flagship should not easily break away from the fleet. The target is of little concern, but we still need to be wary of the other pirates.”
Although a temporary alliance among pirate factions had been formed, there were mutual suspicions.
Meanwhile, amid the Jidian Pirate Group’s fleet, Dian Wan also noticed the Iron Lump’s movements.
He laughed heartily, brimming with confidence, “Given the sailing speed of the Iron Lump, where can you run? Hahaha.”
On the eastern front, the leader of the Stinky Sky Pirate Group, Onion Head, squinted his eyes, still worried, “It’s best to resolve this fight quickly. If it drags on and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps finds out and meddles, that would be troublesome!”
“Perhaps my concerns are unnecessary. If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has any sense, they’ll not oppose the combined forces of three Silver Level pirate factions.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had spotted the three pirate fleets, which in turn had long noticed them.
All had participated in the melee at Twin Eyes Island, and although they hadn’t personally clashed with the Dragon-man youth, they could tell that this Mercenary Group was strong.
The pirates were after loot; it wasn’t worth it to them to lock horns to the death with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Therefore, they gave a wide berth to the deserted island where the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lay at anchor.