Chapter 262 A strange voyage
Hide under the gray sky, the waves are rolling endlessly.
The clouds in the distance were extremely low, as if they were about to swallow up the entire world.
Amid the undulating waves, a sailboat puffing out steam floated alone on the water.
The sides of the ship are covered with salt patches left after the sea water has dried, and there are not many coals piled on the deck. Even the ghoul sailors who should have no complaints seem to be moving slowly at this moment, silently manipulating the worn-out cables and masts.
Standing on the bow of the ship, Lumil stared at the boundless sea, clenching his fists tightly, like an anxious trapped animal, unable to open his eyes due to the dazzling sunlight.
Drifting at sea for many days, his skin was tanned and his lips were chapped. The captain's uniform he wore became stiff due to the alternate erosion of sweat and sea breeze.
At this moment, he is facing a cruel reality——
He is lost.
About a month ago, I was ordered by His Majesty the Demon King to investigate the truth behind the fiasco at Saldo Port, so I changed the original course. He thought it was nothing, but he overestimated his ocean navigation ability.
This sea is completely different from the whirlpool sea he is familiar with.
Although there are turbulent undercurrents there, at least it is surrounded by land, and even the most dangerous waterways have reference points.
But in this vast and vast ocean, all directions became illusory. He originally thought that he could find the correct direction with the help of navigation charts and sun positioning, but he underestimated the power of ocean currents and monsoons.
In short, he has been trapped in this uninhabited sea area for half a month, and there is no sign of leaving at all.
lumil's expression was solemn, and his eyes fell on the deck.
There is not much coal left, supplies will soon be exhausted, and the nearest port is not yet known how far away.
Although the corpse does not need to eat, it is impossible for him to drift on the sea forever. What's worse is that the waves are undulating, and he can't describe the teleportation array, or even report his current situation to the Demon King.
If he can't find the direction again, he may really die in this strange sea.
Just as Lumil was desperately thinking about the next step, the ghoul sailor on the watchtower suddenly let out a hoarse roar: "There is a ship ahead, approaching us..."
Hearing the voice of the ghoul, he suddenly raised his head and looked in the direction of the ghoul's finger.
The shadow of a ship was breaking through the waves, rushing towards them at full speed against the wind and waves. The sails of the ship were bulging, accompanied by a faint black smoke, which was suspected to be coming from the boiler of a steam engine.
His heart felt happy at first, as if he saw an oasis in the desert, but within half a second his heart sank suddenly, and he felt something was wrong from the crowded deck.
Not like a serious merchant ship, but like a wild beast chasing its prey...
Is it a pirate? !
Lumir's heart was beating wildly, and he was surprised and happy.
At this time, looking at Lumil who had not replied for a long time, the corpse adjutant said in a hoarse voice.
We don’t want to be followed by the merchant ships of Thunder City, and they didn’t ask us to become pirates!” Lumir cursed irritably, and then stared at the pirate ship with bright eyes, holding on to the guardrail with his fingers, his fingertips turned white.
A crazy idea suddenly came to him——
He might be able to take advantage of this!
The adjutant was silent for a moment and did not refute. He just looked at him quietly, waiting for his next order.
lumil took a deep breath and glanced at the rolling sky in the distance.
Although he was not familiar with this sea area, based on his sailing experience on the Whirlpool Sea, it was obvious that a storm was brewing there. He even faintly heard the low muffled thunder echoing in the clouds and smelled the smell of heavy rain!
The heavy rain can provide good cover, so that the pirates cannot see the situation on the deck!
He made a prompt decision and shouted at the top of his lungs: "Go at full speed! The target is southwest!"
The ghouls immediately took action.
The steam engine roared, the rudder adjusted its direction, and the ship dragged billowing black smoke toward the storm.
The pirate ship behind did not stop. Instead, it seemed to smell the blood of its prey and accelerated to catch up.
lumil raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and tightened his grip on the rudder, with excitement sweating in his palms.
At the moment when he was about to encounter the storm, he waved his hands fiercely and shouted loudly: "Reef the sails! Turn the engine to first gear! Lower the fire in the boiler!"
With the creaking sound of gear friction, the roar of the steam engine gradually subsided, the sails were quickly furled, and the thick black smoke dispersed into a wisp.
The entire steamship suddenly looked like scrap iron that had lost power, teetering on the edge of the storm, as if it would be engulfed by the strong winds in the next second... It was as if a malfunction had occurred!
Looking at the pirate ship getting closer and closer, Lumil's palms were filled with sweat, and he moved it to his pants to wipe it.
He knows very well that this is a gamble——
But he believes that he will win!
Since the opponent is a pirate, he will be greedy and eager to take everything instead of salvaging scraps from the floating wreckage.
As for why, it was because he had dealt with these dogs a lot when he was doing the stolen goods and smuggling business under Jack.
He understands the psychology of those people very well.
Even he himself is a kind of person.
On the Black Shark, the sea wind whistled between the masts, like a bagpipe playing a triumphant song of fighting.
The salty waves crashed against the hull of the ship, breaking into mist that filled the sky, soaking the tattered linen sailcloth on the deck, but it could not wash away the smell of musty, sweat and old wood!
The environment here is suffocating.
On the deck, more than a dozen pirates were in groups, either leaning against the mast and smoking low-quality tobacco, or squatting aside to gamble, and some were boringly sharpening rusty machetes.
Their clothes are shabby, their skin is tanned by the scorching sun, their lips are chapped, and their eyes are tired and anxious.
Like Lumil, their experience was not beautiful. They had been wandering on the sea for the past few days, like a group of wild dogs that had been driven out of their dens.
No wine, no women, not even a decent target for robbery.
The resentment among the crowd is like the smell of rotting fish in the cabin of a ship. It is gloomy, suffocating, and may explode at any time.
Ti Qi stood at the bow of the ship, holding a copper telescope tightly in his hand, squinting one eye and staring into the distance through the lens.
That was a steamship, and judging from its model, it should have come from the northeastern coast of the Whirlpool Sea.
The canvas on the mast has been folded, and the black smoke from the steam engine is no longer coming out. The entire ship seems to be a lifeless wreckage, being ruthlessly tossed by the waves.
The sailors on the deck moved slowly, as if they had resigned themselves to their fate, letting the sea breeze blow their tattered clothes.
Ti Qi suddenly put away the telescope and raised a cruel smile at the corner of his mouth, which then turned into a wild laugh.
「Ha...hahaha!!」
Hearing the leader's laughter, all the pirates on the deck looked at him, with a trace of disgust and unlucky look on their blank expressions.
"Devil God, thank you for your gift! Damn, what the hell kind of luck is this?!" Tiqi spat hard, the ecstasy on his face was like a wild dog that had been hungry for a week and suddenly smelled the aroma of barbecued meat.
He was once a minor nobleman of the Aussie Empire, with land, merchant ships, and a group of servants surrounding him, but all of this was lost because of the failure of the colonial business.
In order to make a comeback, he was like a loser gambler who sold his last possessions and wandered to the sea with a group of villains pursuing money and women. He changed from a graceful imperial man to a ragged pirate.
The past glory and the dignity of the nobility have long gone with the wind. Now the only meaning of his life is to plunder——
In order to survive, to drink strong alcohol, to let those heavily made-up pheasants scream on his bed, and then imagine that he is still in the original castle.
Saint Sith's faith was forgotten by him early on.
He cursed the guy without eyes, who never refused to listen to his wishes, and even led his fate into deeper and deeper abyss time and time again.
He still believes to this day that he joined the wave of developing overseas colonies not for money, but to spread that damn belief.
If it weren’t for Saint Sis, he would never have lost everything and fallen to where he is now!
The most unlucky thing was a few days ago.
He had just finished praying when he was in bad luck. A group of imperial fleets appeared on the sea level. He was so frightened that he was forced to leave the hastily built pirate port before he could even replenish supplies. Then he fled into this unfamiliar sea in embarrassment, wandering aimlessly.
The morale of the sailors was low and they were full of complaints.
He knew that if he could not find prey, his own head would have to be hung on the mast of the ship.
Happily, His Majesty the Demon God did not abandon him!
He had just converted to the Demon God, and he had even prayed once. A wonderful opportunity appeared in front of him like rain——
The steamship that lost power was like a whale stranded on the beach, waiting for them as hunters to cut open its belly and take away the rare treasures and gold inside!
Ti Qi turned around suddenly, stepped on the railing with excitement, and shouted loudly with a louder voice.
"Idiots, look over here! Look what your father found!"
The pirates on the deck were attracted by his voice and turned their heads.
Their eyes were still a little numb and sleepy, but when Teach pointed his finger at the steamship, everyone's breathing became a little faster.
"Tell me - you bastards, when was the last time you drank rum?!"
Teach glanced at them fiercely, with a mocking smile on his lips, "Or are you accustomed to licking the smelly water coming out of the boiler?"
The decadent eyes were gradually filled with a trace of desire, as if fat and fine wine were right in front of their eyes.
"Tell me, what the hell are you!"
Tich's voice cut into everyone's ears like a knife, making a sharp and mean sound.
"Are you a pirate, or that damn monk who talks nonsense?! Tell me, do you want to play with that damn coconut shell, or the sweet and soft girl!"
The tiredness on the pirates' faces was replaced by a hint of excitement, and whispered curses and whispers spread among the crowd.
Some people clenched the hilt of the knife in their hands, and some people licked the gaps between their teeth, with some kind of primitive desire igniting in their eyes.
Tiqi could see the change in their moods, and the smile on his face became more and more wild. He suddenly pulled out his sword, and the blade reflected the sunlight and shone with cold light.
"Your dream is on that ship! Ah... haha, I can already smell it! It's the smell of gold, as well as boxes and barrels of rum, and wool shipped to the colonies! Maybe there are passengers on the ship from the north shore of the Whirlpool Sea! There might be a few beautiful noble girls inside!" He said with a sinister smile, his voice full of greed, "As long as we take that ship, everyone can drink and eat to their heart's content!"
This sentence completely ignited the fighting spirit of the pirates and brought the morale that had fallen to the bottom back to its peak.
"Boss! Charge up and kill them!" A strong man with a beard brandished an ax and shouted loudly.
"Kill them all! Steal everything!" Someone was already shouting fanatically.
Ti Qi looked at the group of men who were gradually getting excited.
There is no trace of decadence in their eyes, only pure desire is left!
Very good!
He took a deep breath, raised his saber, and roared like a trumpet.
"Go at full speed! Don't fire the cannons, I want the whole ship! Once we capture him, I will hold a banquet on top!"
He licked his lips, his eyes full of bloodthirsty excitement, "Kill all the men, steal all the property, and keep the girls - don't accept surrender!"
Some people were waving machetes wildly, some were laughing excitedly, a group of people climbed up the mast like monkeys and lowered the sails, and some people ran to the side of the steam engine, trying to squeeze more power from the old and worn-out parts so that the broken pirate ship could run faster.
They have been suppressed in panic and despair for who knows how long, like hungry hyenas.
They were extremely hungry for the coming hunt and wanted to rush over immediately to burn, kill and plunder.
However, just when the "hunters" thought they had a sure chance of victory, the "prey" showed a ferocious smile on their lips.
Treasure?
Food?
Woman?
There are none here——
There are quite a few corpses.
The surging waves were like knuckles tightened by blood vessels, hitting the piano keys in G major, making a sudden falling tone!
The waves whipped up against the hull, causing the two warships to sway. The storm rolled in the sky, and the thunder exploded among the black clouds, casting a pale light on the battlefield about to begin.
Lumil stood on the side of the ship, looking at the pirate ship that was getting closer and closer. There was no trace of panic on his face. Instead, the corners of his mouth were slightly raised with a cruel sneer.
The plan was successful.
They deliberately turned off the steam engine and furled the sails, creating a look of power loss and crumbling, which indeed attracted these greedy pirates...
The rainwater flowing along the railing took away the sweat and tension in Lumir's palms. The prey was approaching step by step, without realizing that he was sailing from safe waters to a cemetery.
The real hunting has just begun.
Lumir glanced at the ghoul sailors around him. They stood quietly in the wind and rain, their faces as pale as death, their eyes dull and dull, like a group of ghosts that would be swallowed up by the waves at any time.
He exhaled softly and ordered in a low voice: "Be prepared, wait until they board the ship before taking action!"
The ragged corpses nodded silently, and at the same time clenched the weapons in their hands, like sailors who died in despair...at least in the eyes of the pirates.
At the same time, the "Black Shark" on the opposite side has approached to a distance that can almost be jumped over.
Teach stood on the bow of the boat, the wind and rain washing away his excitement, his eyes locked on the "prey" in front of him like a bloodthirsty jackal.
"Hook line ready, pick up the side!" He roared, raising the command knife in his hand.
The pirates could no longer restrain themselves and excitedly threw out iron hooks and hooked them tightly onto the side of Lumil's ship. Several strong sailors immediately began to pull, and with a few shouts of all their strength, the two ships were brought closer together.
The pirates on the deck grinned wildly, pulled out their scimitars one after another, vented obscene words, rubbed their hands, and licked the defenseless sailors with greedy eyes.
Teach is not in a hurry.
This cautious jackal licked his chapped lips and said with a ferocious smile: "First give them a little greeting gift - open fire!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
flintlock guns spurted out flames, and two volleys swept across Lumir's deck like a torrential rain!
The tattered sailor uniforms were penetrated by projectiles, and each "fragile" figure staggered to the ground. The black blood spread rapidly in the heavy rain, and was swept into the sea by the waves that swept over the deck.
"Hahaha! A bunch of trash!" Tiqi laughed, his voice as loud as thunder in the storm.
Lumil stood at the edge of the cabin, witnessing all this, but still expressionless.
The fallen corpses were still lying quietly on the ground without any movement.
The smell of blood that permeates the wind and rain becomes more and more real, but if you smell it carefully, you will find that it is more like smelly fish that has failed to be cured.
Seeing that "most of the sailors on the other side were killed or wounded", Tiqi waved his hands excitedly and shouted loudly: "Kill them all! Take everything away!"
He stepped on the hook rope immediately, stepped on the side of the ship, kicked off his feet, and jumped directly to Lumil's deck.
As a former nobleman, although his glory has fallen, his skills have not weakened much, and he still has bronze-level strength!
The pirates behind him also swarmed up, jumping over one after another, eager to divide the spoils.
Ti Qi's feet stepped heavily on the deck, holding the command knife tightly and preparing to kill!
However, at this moment, a rusty blade suddenly slashed at his throat, and the cold breath made him feel like he was dreaming back to the Warcraft Forest of the Empire.
Ti Qi was full of intelligence and swung his sword fiercely to meet it. There was a metal clang, and he was able to block this unexpected fatal blow!
「亡，亡灵？！」
蒂奇的眼神骤然收缩，整个人僵住了。
He looked up along the cold blade, and what he saw was a lifeless face—pale, hollow, and lifeless.
A fallen "sailor" suddenly stood up, stopped his staggering steps back, and stared at him expressionlessly.
Immediately afterwards, another dead sailor stood up from the ground unsteadily.
His pupils shrank violently, and a fear alarm suddenly sounded in his mind.
"Something's wrong! Retreat! Retreat—" Tiqi roared at the top of his lungs, a look of horror finally appeared on his face, and he fell backward while waving the command knife in his hand.
It's a pity that it's too late.
When the pirates jumped onto the deck one after another, they were horrified to find that the "bodies" that had fallen on the ground stood up one after another.
The bullet holes in the sailors who were hit by them were clearly visible, but they still showed no expression of pain. They slowly raised their heads, staring at the group of intruders with empty eyes, and even a stiff and weird smile appeared on the corners of their mouths.
"This... what the hell is this?!" A pirate's voice had changed its tone, and his legs began to weaken.
"It's... it's the undead! This is the Necromancer's ship!" Another pirate screamed in horror.
"Damn it! Why are those guys playing with corpses going to the sea to do business?!"
「No, I don’t know! Ahhhh——!」
Until this moment, the pirates on the deck realized that the real prey was themselves.
lumil calmly walked out of the shadows and ordered in a cold voice.
"Leave five alive, kill all the others!"
The next second, the corpses on the deck pounced on the frightened pirates scattered around, waving the rusty blades in their hands wantonly, black blood mixed with rain splashing everywhere, causing huge casualties to the pirates unprepared.
The pirates were completely panicked. They originally thought it was a robbery without any suspense, but in the blink of an eye, they became the slaughtered lambs.
They waved their scimitars and resisted desperately, but no matter how they stabbed and slashed, the ghouls were still approaching. Even if half of their arms were cut off, they still pounced on them like mad dogs, biting their necks and tearing apart their flesh...
In this dark, bumpy and chaotic environment, it was not just the ghouls who were in danger. They also had to be careful of teammates who were going crazy out of fear and slashing around them randomly.
"Quick! Get back to the ship! Run!"
Tich's roar was filled with unprecedented fear. He frantically chopped down a ghoul, desperately trying to retreat.
But when he turned back, he was horrified to find that all the pirates had already boarded Lumil's ship. At this moment, only the expressionless corpses were standing on the side of the ship, blocking their retreat.
They have no way to escape.
Ti Qi's breathing was rapid, and a trace of despair arose in his heart. His throat was so dry that it hurt. He was holding the scimitar tightly in his hands, but he had no idea how to break out of the encirclement.
At this moment——
“Boom!”
The howling waves crashed against the hull, and the two ships that were torn together shook violently. The pirates and ghouls were blown around and rolled into a ball on the deck.
The sky was torn apart, thunder exploded, and the thick dark clouds looked like a wild beast, watching the prey beneath it.
lumil raised his head, and a hint of imperceptible fear gradually appeared on his gloomy face.
That is the instinct of all living things when facing nature.
This storm seemed to be more violent than he imagined, once again exceeding his expectations.
"Damn..." He cursed in a low voice, and tightly grasped the door panel of the cabin with his right hand, trying to stabilize his body.
And all this is just the beginning.
The mighty waves have just revealed their fangs, and the previous huge waves are just the prelude!
The waves are rolling wildly!
Two ships next to each other are like crumpled pieces of paper in a hurricane, and may be torn into pieces at any time!
Lumir was rolled down on the deck by the strong wind, and his clothes had already been soaked by the heavy rain.
Water drops dripped down his hair, blurring his vision.
He grabbed the cable with one hand and tried to steady his body. He looked through the storm and tried to distinguish the current situation. He happened to see the pirate leader opposite, looking around with the same fear and helplessness. He held the command knife in his right hand and held on to the railing with his left hand.
Ti Qi also noticed him and cursed in anger.
"Damn it - are you fucking crazy? Drive here..."
Lumir gritted his teeth and growled back.
"I say! My name is Tikki!" Tikki yelled and gritted his teeth and said, "What the hell is your name?" You have to know who the hell I died by——"
Lumir didn't hear clearly what he farted. Just when he was about to ask, a huge wave as tall as a castle suddenly hit him and threw two bumpy boats into the air.
lumil felt himself flying up, being grabbed by the throat by a big invisible hand, and then thrown to the sea.
「Boom!!」
The whole world seemed to be overturned in an instant!
His vision went dark, and his body was completely engulfed in the turbulent water. He didn't even have time to struggle, and he completely lost consciousness, and disappeared into the violent turbulence...
…
I don't know how long time passed.
The sea breeze is still blowing, but it is much softer.
His body gradually regained consciousness, Lumir's eyelashes trembled slightly, and then weakly opened a crack.
His chest felt like it was being crushed by a heavy hammer, and every breath seemed to be burning his lungs. The remaining seawater in his lungs made him cough several times before finally spitting out the suffocating fishy smell.
In order to understand the current situation, he forced himself to sit up with his arms and his eyes slowly swept around——
What comes into view is an unfamiliar beach.
Finely broken shells and seaweed cover the shore, and the steady waves beat against the rocks on the shore, making a low echo.
In the distance, he could see two severely damaged ships stranded on the coast. The huge sails were torn into rags and the masts were tilted here and there, telling the story of the tragedy of that night.
He moved his stiff neck and moved his eyes along the coastline to the shore.
I saw some surviving ghoul sailors slowly crawling up from the sand, as if they had just emerged from the grave.
The pirates who survived by chance shrank back and begged for mercy in panic, but they could only utter a hoarse whine.
As expected of the corpses summoned by His Majesty the Demon King himself, they actually still have the strength to move.
And the corpses seemed to still be carrying out the orders he gave when he was awake - rigorously counting the number of living people to ensure that only five were left alive.
Don't worry about it for the time being.
lumil's mind went blank. His eyes swept across the messy beach, and he slowly raised his head to look at the end of the beach.
There is a dense forest full of vitality, and the dense vegetation is as if no one has ever been there.
This is... an uninhabited island?
Or—
An unclaimed land?
lumil subconsciously looked for the end of the coastline, but could only see an endless outline.
The unfamiliar sea breeze blew over his cheek, and the sunlight in the sky felt particularly dazzling. Lumir's lips trembled slightly, and his hoarse voice sounded like a moan——
"The Demon King is above..."
"Where...is this?"
If he could find the magic crystal in the cabin, he would have a chance to contact His Majesty the Demon King, and it would not be difficult to go back.
It's just that he didn't know how to explain to the adult that he had completely messed up the job he had given him, and he had ended up like this.
"Devil? What a coincidence... As soon as my mother-in-law converted to the Demon God, the Demon God sent a Demon King next to me to make me unlucky..."
A hoarse voice appeared behind Lumir.
He subconsciously touched the flintlock gun at his waist, but found nothing. A cold command knife was already placed on his neck.
"Don't move!"
Teach stared at the back of his head with an evil look on his face, spitting a mouthful of saliva mixed with seawater and blood on the ground, his murderous eyes full of threats.
"If you want to survive, let your rotten men...put down their weapons!"
Lumir's heart was in his throat, but he didn't have much fear in his heart.
He took a deep breath.
Feeling the blade was an inch closer, he continued with a calm voice.
"Since you are a believer of the Demon God, you should know what the Demon King means."
Tich did not speak, but stared at him with cold eyes.
Lumir's Adam's apple moved and he said calmly.
"We can make a deal."
"Or...die here together."