novelraw Chapter 239: Welcome to the Deep Sea Monster’s Territory
Chapter 239: Welcome to the Deep Sea Monster’s Territory
Sea God Pirates!
The Flower Witch was underwater, holding her breath, curled up tightly, trying not to be discovered.
Chen Qi twitched his foot, lifted his head, and looked toward the captain on the Sea God Pirates’ warship.
The captain had seaweed-like green hair, wore round glasses, and had a long braided pigtail. In his hands, he held a Tentacle Book.
Of course, the most eye-catching feature was his green, snake-like vertical pupils. He was the Sea Serpent, the chief captain of the patrol fleet near the Sea God Pirates.
He was a third-tier spiritual power user with a Book affinity, a mage whose book was his core weapon. Despite his snake eyes, his appearance was surprisingly serious... Chen Qi probed the captain’s strength.
A fairly standard level of power.
At that moment, the Sea Serpent captain glanced at the ship behind Chen Qi and excitedly said,
“Brother, it’s Thursday, nice weather. Looks like you’ve been tangled by tentacles. Feeling weak all over, limbs limp? Give me 500,000 Shell Coins! I’ll rescue you! And throw in a bottle of moisturizing cream!”
The Tentacle Grass’s power wasn’t great; its main effect was a one-minute control.One minute of control! And it cost 500,000 Shell Coins!
That familiar feeling among peers! That signature Witch Sea trait!
Chen Qi couldn’t help but feel thrilled.
As a small ship captain who had traveled all over, he had never encountered one of the Witch Sea’s specialties—extortion and robbery!
On the Witch Sea, when two unrelated ships of similar strength met, they generally wouldn’t fight.
But once they got too close, the stronger ship would demand some “friction fees” from the weaker one.
The Sea God Pirates were no exception. Although their waters were called the Mad Sea, during the day it was a scenic place.
They even had a tourism business, allowing merchants, adventurers, hunters, and mechanics to live on their islands.
Also, due to the unique geography of the Sea God Islands, if the White Tower Federation wanted to enter the Witch Sea, the Sea God Islands were a great stopover.
Therefore, their islands hosted not only Beiguo people but also visitors from the White Tower Federation.
To maintain the island’s reputation and recruit new members, the Sea God Pirates usually didn’t launch attacks against non-hostile ships.
However, not making money through robbery didn’t mean they couldn’t profit from “rescue.”
After flipping through the bounty list and confirming Chen Qi was harmless, the Sea Serpent said,
“Traveler from afar, I’m telling you, these tentacles are vicious! If we don’t rescue you now, you’ll be strangled to death!”
“Just for dealing with this lousy grass? It costs 500,000 Shell Coins?”
Chen Qi mocked, showing no intention of paying.
There was no need to be polite with pirates.
And after all, these Tentacle Grass only stuck to him, causing no real harm.
The Sea Serpent frowned and said condescendingly,
“You’re weak all over now. Without us, how would you break free from the tentacles? We’re your lifesavers.”
“Get lost!”
Chen Qi mercilessly kicked, breaking free from the tentacles, then fiercely kicked the thick, fat tentacles again.
One kick! Followed by another ruthless forceful kick!
After his training, Chen Qi discovered that when facing relentless sea beasts, as long as he acted ruthless and merciless, these clingy sea beasts would obediently retreat!
“?”
The Sea Serpent captain suddenly shouted,
“Don’t kick! These are post-Smiling Moon Tentacle Grass, they’ll go berserk!”
“What did you say? I didn’t hear clearly!”
Chen Qi didn’t hesitate and kicked the Tentacle Grass hard again.
The Sea Serpent panicked,
“Stop! You’ll provoke their fury—”
But it was already too late when he said this!
Bang! Bang!
One tentacle after another turned bright red, suddenly awakening from the sea and fiercely attacking the Sea Serpent.
He kicked you? Why are you attacking me? The Sea Serpent captain was completely caught off guard.
Then, a terrifying forest of tentacles shot up violently from the sea, furiously charging the warship, binding about a dozen people onboard!
Moreover, these tentacles, to express their anger, wrapped the ten people tightly from head to legs, fiercely absorbing their spiritual energy.
Turtle shell bindings, quite professional... Chen Qi couldn’t help but comment, then turned to look at the Flower Witch hiding underwater.
Hmm...
Above the water surface, tiny bubbles bubbled up, floating alongside a small black flower looking terrified—
Fortunately, Fen wasn’t mistakenly harmed by the enraged Tentacle Grass... Chen Qi exhaled in relief and signaled Fen to hurry away. Drawing out the Black Blade, he leaped onto the deck.
“Help, help me...”
The Sea Serpent captain struggled to reach out from the tentacle trap.
As a pirate who had taken the “Deep Sea Protection Liquid,” he never imagined he would be attacked by his own trap!
He was tightly bound by tentacles, his energy rapidly declining.
Carrying the Black Blade, Chen Qi walked over and kindly said,
“Hey, need some help?”
“Need it, of course I need it...”
The Sea Serpent said chokingly.
Chen Qi patted the thick tentacles,
“Rescue fee, 500,000 Shell Coins per person, ten people, five million total. I’ll give you a 20% discount! Let’s round it up—six million Shell Coins!”
How much? Discount? Six million Shell Coins!
The Sea Serpent captain’s eyes widened.
Damn, indeed no good people come to the Sea God Islands!
Chen Qi smiled. When dealing with pirates, the pirate way was best.
“You want it or not?”
Chen Qi slapped the thick tentacles again.
“Want it!”
“Swear it.”
Chen Qi added.
Members of the Sea God Pirates were loyal devotees of the Sea Goddess.
They would never break a vow made under the Sea Goddess’s skirt.
To them, the Sea Goddess, an ancient deep-sea entity, was an existence not to be defied!
“I swear! Before the Sea Goddess as witness, I will pay! And afterward, express my sincere gratitude!”
Good... Chen Qi patted the Tentacle Grass again.
At this moment, seeing Chen Qi approach again, the Tentacle Grass slowly twisted and put the captured people in front of him.
Almost done... Chen Qi used the back of the Black Blade, gathering energy, and fiercely struck the Tentacle Grass.
Boom!
“Get down!”
Chen Qi commanded with authority.
Accompanied by a powerful gust of energy, the hated Tentacle Grass instantly twisted and retreated into the seabed.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Sea God Pirates were ruthlessly dumped onto the ground.
The Sea Serpent captain’s suffocating feeling finally ended. He grabbed the Tentacle Book and chanted a simple word in an ancient language:
“Silence!”
With that simple word, the Tentacle Book rapidly flipped pages, and the tentacles underwater instantly calmed down.
The Tentacle Book, a specialized book for controlling Tentacle Grass, was a powerful and useful weapon within the Sea God Pirates.
The Sea Serpent captain knelt, wanting to punch Chen Qi but remembered his promise:
“Thanks.”
You’re thanking me? Chen Qi walked over and rubbed his fingers,
“No need, just pay up!”
The Sea Serpent captain was stunned for a long time, gritted his teeth, took out a Backpack Card, frantically searched, and counted—only four million!
“Give me ten Wriggling Shadows as a supplement.”
Chen Qi thought for a moment and smiled.
Wriggling Shadows were rare and valuable. Combined with the Sea God Pirates’ twisted tentacle threads, they could make powerful protective talismans called “Tentacle’s Shelter.”
The other party was a third-tier Transcendent who definitely killed many shadow monsters last night.
This item was worth about 300,000 Shell Coins but had no unified market price yet.
Moreover, if Chen Qi’s next profession was a Lamp Keeper, he could take a rogue path: Monster Shadow Transformation.
Usually, due to the Lamp Keeper’s trait, the proper skill tree was to use Scale Phase affinity to learn various light skills, blocking monsters in darkness to earn skill points.
But actually, there was another good approach: abandon specializing in Lamp affinity skills and dual-cultivate, learning some Shadow affinity skills to use shadow against shadow.
A Lamp Keeper originally tasked with protecting others at night would become a monster reaping others’ lives.
Monster Shadow Lamp Keepers not only had strong night survival but also powerful attack capabilities.
However, pursuing this path required high Shadow affinity comprehension and abundant Shadow affinity resources.
Chen Qi had gained Shadow affinity comprehension at second tier.
The Witch Sea’s nights produced abundant Shadow affinity resources.
This path was feasible... Chen Qi concluded.
Cannot break the oath... The Sea Serpent gritted his teeth, took out a box containing Wriggling Shadows, and handed it to Chen Qi.
Good haul... Chen Qi happily accepted the money and box.
Then, the Sea Serpent snapped to attention and questioned,
“Outsider, what’s your purpose here?”
Chen Qi took out his second-tier Hunter License:
“I’m a hunter. Recently, war broke out. I heard the Blood Blade Pirates and Blackfin Crew are fighting fiercely, and the Sea God Pirates are recruiting hunters...
There might be good business here!”
“Also, I have Sea Beast Disease and was abandoned by the navy. So I came here seeking a cure from the Sea Goddess...”
Hunters from the Hunter Association were especially welcome in dangerous places like the Sea God Islands.
Hunter identity plus Sea Beast Disease plus being abandoned by the navy and seeking medicine...
Chen Qi’s short sentence directly stacked his identity buffs to full!
Then, without warning, Chen Qi stripped off his clothes, revealing muscular abs and a spider-shaped blue pattern on his back muscles beneath.
“Join our Sea God Pirates?”
The Sea Serpent blinked and swallowed hard.
Nothing was a better entry ticket to the Sea God Pirates than that spider-shaped blue pattern!!
After saluting the underwater Tentacle Grass, he said,
“Alright! Traveler, no problem. Tell me your name. Once we confirm your identity, you can join us. Until then, you can stay on the Sea God Island...”
Entering the Sea God Pirates’ territory was surprisingly simple... Chen Qi thought to himself.
Chen Qi got up, returned to his ship, and quietly gazed toward the distant sea.
This was a place with great potential.
Hopefully next time we meet, my strength will far surpass Fen... Chen Qi looked at Fen underwater, then at the reef where he had made an agreement with the Flower Witch, lowered the small houseboat, and followed the warship into the Sea God Island’s harbor.
After Chen Qi left, the Flower Witch poked her head out of the water.
I also need the power to protect others... Fen held Water Spirit No. 2, her eyes complex, looking toward the distant Chen Qi.
...
...
The battle between the Blood Blade Pirates and Blackfin Crew dragged on endlessly. The navy, angry at the attack on the Bonfire Energy Company, vented all their fury on the Sea God Island.
The navy had sworn that if the Sea God Pirates did not return the Bonfire Energy Company’s materials, they would inevitably face the flames of the Vritra war!
And the Bonfire Energy Company would dispatch the latest destruction mecha!
An imminent war made civilians uneasy, but at this moment, everyone on the Sea God Island wore joyful smiles, as if they had already defeated the navy.
All this was because of yesterday’s Smiling Moon. After that blood-red moonlight, the Sea Beasts’ strength had risen dramatically!
To them, it was a blessing from the gods. Soon, they would receive the Sea Goddess’s protection.
“The Sea God Pirates are developing nicely.”
Chen Qi looked around and praised.
The Sea God Island had a lighthouse built from piled stone pillars, several Tentacle Grass traps near the sea, and a thousand powerful cannons on the beach.
The Sea Serpent captain proudly smiled,
“Of course. The power we hold surpasses your imagination.”
“Come, since you’re from the Hunter Association, you should know its rules. Our hunters and pirates on the Sea God Island follow them as well.”
The Sea Serpent warmly welcomed Chen Qi.
In fact, their leader had long planned to recruit hunter groups.
Hunters from the Hunter Association were a bunch of powerful desperados.
Now, hunters from the White Tower Federation and many wild hunter groups had agreed to help resist the navy’s wrath.
The Sea Serpent led Chen Qi into a bar, which resembled the Hunter Association’s mission hall.
On the walls were numerous bounty missions.
Navy admirals, Fenrir, Flower Witch, Bonfire Energy Company’s third-tier staff...
The bar was packed, roughly half pirates, 30% Beiguo hunters, and 20% White Tower Federation hunters.
The quality was quite high, with over three hundred people total and ten third-tier hunters among them!
This many high-quality hunters were attracted by the bounty orders.
Besides regular Shell Coin rewards, there were contribution points.
Contribution points could be exchanged for special items far superior to rewards from the Blackore City Hunter Association.
Flesh Armor, bone armor, cute Muddy Pet, rare card prototypes, and the Book of Release...
These were excellent power boosters for third-tier Transcendents.
The Sea Serpent captain smiled,
“See? Our Sea God Pirates’ foundation is strong enough to attract powerful hunters. I really don’t know how those navy people dare declare war on us!”
Such strong confidence... Chen Qi thought quietly,
“Captain, relying on these disloyal mercenaries to defeat the united navy and Bonfire Energy Company’s war mecha is extremely dangerous.”
“Oh?” The Sea Serpent didn’t argue, just smiled,
“Yes, it’s an unfortunate choice. Not everyone has faith in the Sea Goddess, and our loyal members are limited. But ultimately, we need people to stand in front of us until we create the perfect creation.”
“As long as someone blocks their path for a little while, when they arrive, we can win decisively! And we can give them enough reward.”
Them... Chen Qi blinked.
The Sea Serpent smiled mysteriously and said to Chen Qi,
“Welcome to the deep sea monsters’ territory, hunter from afar. Take a look, we have a shop specially for monsters. Is there anything you want?”
Chen Qi walked over and looked at the contribution point shop on the wall.
Werewolf profession card, Wriggling Shadow’s touch, floral aspect mutation potion...
Suddenly, a blank card emitting black gas caught his eye.