novelraw Chapter 257: The True Monster
Chapter 257: The True Monster
Pull off a big score?
The seven White Tower Hunters stared at Chen Qi in utter confusion.
"This... this... this can't be right..."
The glasses-wearing hunter, Aelor, adjusted his glasses once again.
Just moments ago, they were discussing how to deceive Chen Qi and pull him into their team.
But now, Chen Qi was acting like a grand pirate covered in gold and silver, dragging them into his team instead.
Why do these people look so stunned... Chen Qi couldn't help but question the professional competence of these White Tower Hunters.
Chen Qi took a step forward, lightly brushed his hand over the sea chart on the table, and said in a slightly tempting tone:
"Gentlemen, was I not clear enough? Is there anything you don't understand?"
Marie, the female mechanic of the White Tower, trembled as she raised her hand:"Excuse me, Mr. Lamp Keeper, what do you mean by 'a big score'?"
Good question! I want to ask that too... Melanie, the team captain, nodded appreciatively.
Chen Qi frowned helplessly, stepped forward, and lightly traced the map on the long table:
"Let me explain simply. As the Lamp Keeper, I will board the Viper Father and head to the island harboring the Deep Blue Fire treasure."
"Viper Father..."
Melanie murmured softly.
They had long known that the excavation site for the Deep Blue Fire was deep within the Sea of Calamities.
In such a dangerous place, even food stored in Backpack Cards would rapidly spoil, and the constant disasters would inevitably damage the excavation equipment on the island.
In other words, Sea God Island had to regularly send supplies to the Deep Blue Fire excavation site.
Melanie had long suspected that the Viper Father was the supply ship for the Deep Blue Fire excavation site but lacked direct evidence and the means to track the ship.
Now, the seemingly innocent, reckless, and stubborn Lamp Keeper junior brother had answered her questions.
Could I have misjudged him? Is this person brave? Melanie wondered.
Chen Qi looked up, sweeping his gaze over the seven people like a teacher asking:
"Understood?"
"Understood."
They instinctively nodded obediently like students.
Then Chen Qi moved his index finger back to Sea God Island:
"So, once we leave the Sea God Island waters and reach uninhabited seas, we can strike and seize the Viper Father directly...
And once we capture the Viper Father, it means we hold the coordinates to the Deep Blue Fire island. At that point, we can proceed step by step. Whether it’s the Deep Blue Fire or the treasures on the Viper Father, all will be ours!"
"Of course, the specifics depend on the island’s defenses. Even if we can’t take the island, having the Deep Blue Fire island’s coordinates and the Viper Father’s treasures will be enough for us to make a huge profit!"
"Huge profit!!"
Chen Qi slammed the table fiercely, like a pirate captain announcing his goal to his crew.
Since the last Night of Shadow Tide, the White Tower Hunters had been eager to launch new operations.
Chen Qi’s words only made their excitement grow stronger.
However, they still remained cautious.
After all, Chen Qi was not one of them from the White Tower, and they didn’t understand how he knew about the Deep Blue Fire island or why he knew their target was the Deep Blue Fire.
Am I being played... The glasses hunter Aelor adjusted his glasses:
"Mr. Lamp Keeper, it’s a highly feasible plan, but before that, I want to ask, how do you know about our objective?"
Chen Qi replied exasperatedly:
"Your captain Melanie told me, and she comes to me every day tempting me with all kinds of benefits. Unless I’m deaf, I wouldn’t be unaware of your goal."
Everyone looked towards Melanie.
"..."
Melanie cleared her throat twice:
"This is part of my plan. But, little Lamp Keeper, you should know that tracking ships near Sea God Island recklessly is a capital offense. So even if we know the Viper Father’s destination, we dare not follow them easily."
Chen Qi asked:
"How fast is your ship?"
Melanie smiled confidently:
"White Tower craftsmanship, second in the world! Far faster than the Viper Father!"
Chen Qi ordered:
"Good. Melanie, give me one positioning card and one communication card. If they head to the Sea of Calamities, they must pass near the area of Water Spirit Number Three’s mobile dock. You can prepare in advance and wait there."
Melanie was a card maker, and such masters were known for their powerful functionalities.
Fireball cards, Backpack Cards, Flower and Bird Magic Cards, Massage Cards, Fight the Landlord Cards, Clown Cards, Good Person Cards, Bank Cards...
In short, as a card master, Melanie had all kinds of cards!
Positioning and communication cards were also very common.
Chen Qi’s finger traced a route gently on the sea chart on the long table:
"When the Viper Father leaves the protection of the Sea God Pirates, I will send you the coordinates via the communication card. Then, we will mobilize all forces and capture the Viper Father."
"Hmm..."
Melanie carefully examined the route Chen Qi drew.
He had thought Chen Qi was just acting on impulse, but both the command and the planned route were very professional.
One could even say it was far better than the rough plan she, as the captain, had devised.
Could this rookie be pretending? Is he actually part of some profound organization? The White Pigeon Times? Impossible, impossible... Melanie crossed her arms, nodded, and asked:
"When will the Viper Father act?"
Chen Qi smiled and said:
"To avoid exposing their whereabouts, I guess they will most likely act tomorrow morning."
"Hmm..."
Finally, Chen Qi looked at everyone.
They still hadn’t recovered from their surprise, lost in thought.
A newly promoted third-tier Transcendent suddenly appeared and commanded their professional team of seven, which was beyond their expectations.
Moreover, although Chen Qi’s plan seemed flawless, it still hid many risks.
First was the threat of the Viper Father himself.
Though Chen Qi was a Lamp Keeper, as a newcomer Transcendent, he was no match for the Viper Father.
Once he sent the coordinates, he might face a direct threat from the Viper Father.
Or worse, he could be tied up before sending them.
Second, the Sea of Calamities and the night under the Smiling Moon caused severe signal interference...
Meaning even with communication and positioning cards, they might not arrive promptly.
This was an extremely dangerous operation...
Of course, the most dangerous person was not the White Tower Hunters but Chen Qi himself aboard the Viper Father.
Yes, the real danger was Chen Qi right in front of them!
Melanie and the others stopped their busy thoughts and seemed to finally understand why Chen Qi had come to the White Tower Hunters.
Why he was so anxious.
In Melanie’s eyes, Chen Qi had no choice.
This was a cry for help to them... Melanie imagined.
But she also deeply admired Chen Qi’s courage.
A newly promoted Transcendent dared to fight back against the veteran Viper Father of Sea God Island and even involve himself in the Sea God Pirates’ Deep Blue Fire plan. That took immense courage.
Everyone exchanged glances and nodded.
As the captain, Melanie stepped beside Chen Qi and placed her right hand on his shoulder:
"Brave! Lamp Keeper, rest assured, we will protect you on this trip!"
Protect? Did these people misunderstand something... Chen Qi showed a speechless expression.
But no matter what, the White Tower Hunters’ goal was aligned with his.
After a brief discussion, they quickly reached a cooperation agreement.
"Pleasure working together. By the way, the tea tastes good~"
After the discussion, Chen Qi waved and left the meeting room.
...
...
The next day, Sea God Island, early morning.
Thick fog and dark clouds made the entire Sea God Island gloomy and dim, as if a massive storm was about to strike.
On the broken road, cold light spilled down; the pirates looked sullen, their scars and bloodstained weapons making them particularly chilling.
After instructing the first mate Water Spirit Number Three, Chen Qi went to the tavern, bought a cup of mead, a smoked meat sandwich, and then bought a new newspaper from the White Pigeon.
Finally, Chen Qi spent 200 contribution points to buy two 'Lamp Dice' divination coins.
These were among the few good items he found in the tavern’s exchange shop.
The divination coin had a gambler’s head on one side and dice on the other, used to predict good or bad luck.
However, the usage conditions were very strict; except for those with Dice Lamp affinity, the probability of correctly using the coin was less than fifty percent.
Moreover, divination was just divination. This ordinary Lamp Dice item had an accuracy of only eighty percent and did not provide specific answers, only vague images...
Besides, it couldn’t be used for major matters or events unrelated to oneself...
In short, it was a highly limited dice affinity tool.
Chen Qi played with the coins in his hand while holding the newspaper with one hand, reading various information about the Witch Sea.
Recently, the Witch Sea had countless news stories. Besides the Night of Shadow Tide, B-tier rifts had appeared everywhere, making the whole Witch Sea situation extremely dangerous.
Of course, the biggest news on Sea God Island was the conflict between Bonfire Energy Company and the Sea God Pirates.
Bonfire Energy Company and the navy had consecutively sunk twenty Sea God Pirate ships...
And all these events happened in the waters near them.
Chen Qi was secretly amazed and began to speculate.
It seemed Bonfire Energy Company also knew that the Sea God Pirates had an island in the Sea of Calamities that could mine Deep Blue Fire.
To find this island, the navy and Sea God Island sent out many patrol ships along the route to the Sea of Calamities.
Sure enough, the Witch Sea was unsettled after the Smiling Moon...
Unconsciously, Chen Qi arrived at the dock.
Opposite him was the dark green Viper Father, which looked even more terrifying under the dull, gloomy clouds.
On the deck, a pirate of the Viper Father coldly said to Chen Qi:
"Get on board. The ship’s about to leave."
"Alright!"
Chen Qi pinched the divination coin in his fingers and silently prayed:
"Great God of Luck, God of the Twenty-Sided Dice, please grant your servant your blessing and answer me: will this sea journey be good or bad?"
With that, Chen Qi flicked the coin lightly into the air.
At that moment, a special prompt appeared before his eyes.
[You triggered the Principle of Light; divination accuracy increased.]
Snap!
The coin landed back in Chen Qi’s hand.
The Principle of Light could improve divination probability... Chen Qi silently looked at the coin’s result.
The gambler’s head, the front side, meant good...
Good news!
Chen Qi couldn’t help cheering inwardly.
Then another prompt popped up.
[You triggered the Principle of Light. Within the gray fog, a fist strikes from the shadows, hitting your abdomen violently...]
Chen Qi closed his eyes and felt the scene in his mind.
In an instant, he seemed to see himself suddenly punched, knocked into the deep sea, bloodied, creating huge waves in a terrifying scene...
"This is..."
Chen Qi opened his eyes, waking from the vision.
I was hit? And my defenses were broken? Why?
It shouldn’t be. The result was good, so why was I hit, even brutally beaten, seriously wounded...? Chen Qi was tangled in confusion.
And the prophecy was too vague. He could only sense that the fist looked small, even weak, with seemingly low power, but in reality, it was devastating...
That punch almost cost him his life.
Chen Qi shook his head; he couldn’t guess who beat him from such a fuzzy vision.
Could it be that I will have a bitter battle with the Viper Father...? Chen Qi thought silently, raising his head to look at the Viper Father looming above on the deck.
The Viper Father was watching him.
From the spiritual energy field perspective, Chen Qi believed that defeating the Viper Father at sea wasn’t a big problem.
He was sixty to seventy percent confident of taking down the Viper Father.
Not to mention many dangerous sea snakes, the Viper Father’s main attack method, had no effect on him.
On the deck, the Viper Father coldly said:
"Time to come up, Lamp Keeper. Divination is just divination; it can’t change your fate..."
At this moment, the Viper Father did not hide his dark green terrifying pupils or the malice lurking within them.
"Alright."
Chen Qi climbed the gangway and boarded the Viper Father.
Once aboard, the ship started its engine, heading at full speed toward the Sea of Calamities.
Chen Qi was invited into the VIP room to stay with six second-tier hired hunters.
The VIP room wasn’t lavish; simply a long table with ten window seats.
Chen Qi sat by the window, watching the distant scenery.
Unconsciously, the nearly hundred-meter-high lighthouse of Sea God Island became smaller and smaller until it disappeared from sight, leaving only endless white sea around.
The entire ship was unusually silent on the four-hour voyage.
Almost no one spoke.
Almost there... Chen Qi estimated the distance, secretly took out a card, and sent the coordinates.
White Tower Hunters, now it’s your turn to perform... Chen Qi pocketed the card.
At that moment, a thin hunter finally spoke softly:
"Everyone, after we set off this time, will we never return...?"
His face was filled with gloom. If not for the Viper Father’s coercion, he would never have boarded this ship.
The room fell silent except for a few murmured ‘hmm’ replies.
Chen Qi looked curiously at them.
Besides himself, the other six hunters seemed like forced ‘workers’ brought aboard by the Viper Father.
Just then, the long-awaited Viper Father finally entered the VIP room.
He ignored the second-tier hunters. In his eyes, most third-tier Transcendents were tools, let alone second-tier ones.
Below third-tier were all ants to him.
The Viper Father looked up coldly and said:
"Lamp Keeper, come with me. I have a private matter requiring your help."
Finally... Chen Qi was now certain there were only three third-tier Transcendents aboard.
Facing the Viper Father, Chen Qi was confident he could walk away unscathed if conflict broke out.
"Alright—"
Chen Qi followed him to a room at the bottom of the ship, an extremely sealed chamber.
Its walls were thick black steel, monotonous and oppressive, with fresh blood stains on the walls.
The moment he stepped inside, Chen Qi sensed overwhelming murderous spiritual energy behind him!
On the wall before him, a shadow grew larger and multiplied until from beneath a cloak, a snake head emerged.
Creak, creak—in an instant, the Viper Father’s body swelled to two meters tall, and the body under his cloak was covered in non-human snake scales!
Goblet Technique: Snake Corpse Transformation!
Third-tier Goblet profession: Beast Transformer - Snake Man!
This was a powerful profession capable of ‘beast evolution,’ possessing extraordinarily strong physical stats.
However, because their bodies changed drastically, many people in cosmopolitan cities that valued human diversity looked down on beast transformers, so they often concealed themselves tightly under cloaks.
At this moment, the Viper Father silently lowered his cloak, flicked out a forked snake tongue:
"Lamp Keeper, don’t be afraid. I am not a monster..."
Afraid... Chen Qi turned back.
At this moment, the Viper Father stepped forward and continued:
"Lamp Keeper, your abilities are decent, but no outsider is allowed in important positions on Sea God Island. So, in the name of the Sea Goddess, I will give you a mark, the mark of the snake...
From now on, you are one of the Sea God Pirates, a servant of the Sea Goddess!"
He produced a scalpel and a sticky, tentacled little creature.
This was a parasitic sea beast tainted with black whale blood, processed—Heartseeker Sea Touch! Once implanted, the Viper Father could easily crush Chen Qi’s heart through a secret technique!
At that time, Chen Qi, a third-tier Transcendent, would become the Viper Father’s loyal and obedient subordinate.
Within the Sea God Pirates, high-tier Transcendents were controlled by special parasitic sea beasts as their 'initiation ritual.'
Similar methods were used within the Blackfin Crew and Sea God Pirates to control subordinates, which was the main reason Chen Qi didn’t want to join the pirate group.
Soon, I will have a sharp blade called the third-tier Lamp Keeper... The Viper Father’s eyes glistened with hunger:
"Of course, Lamp Keeper, my ritual is much crueler than usual. You know, I follow nature and dislike anesthesia! I believe only pain can make people truly feel the Sea Goddess’s blessing!
Only the pain of flesh can make one feel everything!"
Chen Qi turned his head, cracked his neck, and flexed his fists:
"Enough nonsense, old Lamp!"
There was no need for politeness toward this rotten Sea God Pirates; only fists could speak!
"You!"
"Rude."
The Viper Father suddenly bulged his muscles, clenched his snake-scaled fists, twisted his body, and charged out, throwing a fierce punch.
But a gust of wind flashed past...
In an instant, Chen Qi moved faster and appeared before the Viper Father, throwing a punch!
Quick reflexes, some skill... The Viper Father reacted in time, blocking with both hands and withstanding the blow:
"Not enough! That punch is too weak!"
"Not enough! Far from enough! Such a fragile punch!"
The Viper Father roared loudly. The body of a Goblet practitioner was several times stronger than ordinary third-tier Transcendents!
His body could even withstand tens of thousands of bullets!
Come on, let’s have a passionate clash of flesh and bone!
The next moment, the Viper Father’s pupils widened. Behind Chen Qi, more and more huge dark tentacles slowly grew thicker and formed whipping motions...
In this small, dark room, the shadows of the thick tentacles reflected on the walls.
Compared to this massive tentacle shadow, the Viper Father’s shadow looked tiny and insignificant.
"Tentacles..."
The Snake Corpse Transformed Viper Father was stunned momentarily.
The next second, countless lashes struck toward him.
Smack!!!