novelraw Chapter 356: Offer Yourselves, Humans!
Chapter 356: Offer Yourselves, Humans!
In the icy mist, black sails rose proudly.
Carol put on red gloves, pulled the Black Death Doctor to her chest, and patted his head:
"My dear old treasure, tell me, how should your big sister get revenge on that dog couple who sent me into the sea."
She deliberately emphasized the words "dog couple."
Carol still remembered the burning sensation of the Flower Witch's crimson flowers growing on her skin.
Because of that failure, she was unfortunately captured by the Azure Beast.
Her decade-long reputation as the Gunfire Queen, built upon the seas, was completely wiped out.
That was the power of the Flower Witch—almost impossible to defend against when caught off guard.
The Black Death Doctor remained expressionless, muttering:
"Carol, you're also a woman in her thirties now.""And you absolutely must not kill the Black Hunter;
he is our important vessel, obeying the Azure Beast. You won't come to a good end..."
Bang!
Before the Black Death Doctor could finish, under immense pressure, he was forced to his knees!
"Watch your language, old man!"
Carol looked down from above, pressing her iron boot onto the Black Death Doctor's head.
The force was so great it cracked the steel floor, and the Black Death Doctor's skull was crushed by one-third!
What shocked the Black Death Doctor even more was the massive spiritual energy covering Carol, blazing like a furnace!
Scalding, hard, like steel!
Spiritual energy sublimation, and already touching upon domain mastery!
Carol lit a cigarette and said calmly:
"In the days you couldn't see me, I hunted countless monsters."
"Whether to kill the Black Hunter, whether to enter the Witch's Coffin and contain the Ice Witch's corpse—that depends on us, not you."
"In this matter, you are merely spectators."
The Black Death Doctor, crushed underfoot, gritted his teeth until they cracked.
As one of the founders of the Blackfin Crew, he was actually being stepped on by a mere Pirate General, suffering such humiliation.
However, he had no choice;
the Blackfin Crew's battle lines were too stretched, and they needed the saint-level power of the Azure Beast to stop the Black Hunter!
Carol blew a smoke ring:
"Black Death Doctor, the power wielded by the Azure Beast is the very strength you've pursued for half your life—the power to defy the Reaper."
"..."
The Black Death Doctor closed his eyes, offering no response.
Carol chuckled:
"Pity, Black Death Doctor. In your youth, you were quite a dessert. Now, you're just a rotten egg."
After saying this, she turned her head, her gaze piercing through the icy cold mist, directly reaching Chen Qi on the Ghost Ship.
Carol exhaled a long smoke ring:
"Through the Azure Beast's trials, I have crossed the gate of sublimation and comprehended the path of domains."
Carol's red eyes met Chen Qi's cold, sharp gaze.
Then, her eyebrows slightly raised, revealing a pleased expression as she amplified her voice with spiritual energy:
"Black Hunter, Witch, long time no see!"
"..."
Chen Qi frowned.
He's staring at me—is he afraid of me? Does he like me? Carol smiled:
"Black Hunter, if I catch you and the witch, I'll lock the witch in a cell and bind her hands and feet."
"Then, right in front of her, I'll thoroughly enjoy you, my little cake~"
After speaking, the Gunfire Queen twirled the flintlock in her hand.
The Gunfire Queen enjoys tasting young men... Chen Qi couldn't help but feel a chill.
Although Carol wasn't bad-looking—even downright fiery—legend had it that all the men she kidnapped ended up crippled.
However, compared to Carol's provocation, her current spiritual energy field surprised Chen Qi even more.
Spiritual energy sublimation, plus domain mastery.
The tide keeps creating monsters... another troublesome enemy. Chen Qi glanced back at the weakened Fen.
Fen was too severely injured;
if they fought now, Fen would likely die.
"..."
Chen Qi drew his gun from his waist, ready to counterattack at any moment.
And at that moment, a terrifying scene unfolded!
From the sea, massive tentacle pillars covered with crimson eyes emerged.
Five tentacle pillars rose like walls, gently yet firmly enveloping the entire black-sailed ship, like a giant hand from the deep sea clutching a insignificant shell!
"This is..."
Carol's pupils contracted.
These weren't the Black Hunter's tentacles—this was an attack from the master of this dead city, the Tentacle Merchant!
In front of Chen Qi, the Tentacle Merchant gently paddled her oar, speaking with the authority of a 'master':
"If you have nothing to buy, get out of our city!"
Carol's pupils instantly shrank.
The terrifying aura emanating from the Tentacle Merchant instantly overwhelmed the black-sailed ship!
This was a deep-sea titan-level humanoid monster, a being even the Azure Beast had to be wary of!
However, what puzzled Carol even more was that they had just purchased goods from the Merchant's Coffin—a black-sailed ship worth two thousand Ancient Currency!
Currently, due to the Dimensional Tide's arrival, Ancient Currency production was increasing, with each piece fluctuating around five hundred thousand Shell Coins.
Two thousand Ancient Currency meant a staggering one billion Shell Coins!
Even merchants of legendary merchant rank would struggle to produce such a vast sum immediately.
This black-sailed ship could completely conceal itself at night, possessed the 'Black Mist' skill, and internally featured ancient kingdom rune paths that could quietly withstand legendary-tier attacks!
The Merchant's Coffin was an extremely dangerous place, but also a land of Shell miracles, where those with money, following the Shell Principles, were treated like gods!
Here, money was far more effective than power!
By all accounts, we should be the gods here! Carol glanced at Chen Qi's dilapidated boat, then looked at the Tentacle Merchant in confusion.
Normally, the Tentacle Merchant rarely initiated attacks.
She couldn't understand when she had offended the Tentacle Merchant.
It must be not enough money!
Carol spread her hands and laughed easily:
"Tentacle Merchant, I'll take another ship—one thousand Ancient Currency."
The Tentacle Merchant remained expressionless, coldly squeezing her hand:
"The guest behind me has already reserved the finest ship."
The finest ship—that ship from the Lightless Era, the Nether Sea Ship! Carol's pupils contracted as she stared incredulously at Chen Qi.
Even if two legendary merchants pooled all their resources, they couldn't afford that ship!
Then Carol looked into the Tentacle Merchant's crimson serpent-like eyes.
These three... driven to desperation after accepting the Tentacle Merchant's request... A smirk curled Carol's lips.
She never expected that the Black Hunter, whom they regarded as a major enemy destined for a final showdown in the Witch's Coffin, would make such a grave mistake.
Without money, survival in the Merchant's Coffin was impossible.
Crack!
The Tentacle Merchant gently clenched her hand, and cracks appeared on the incredibly sturdy black-sailed ship!
Carol looked at them as if they were slaves, smiling:
"Black Hunter, Flower Witch, see you at the Witch's Coffin. I'll enjoy my pastries right before your eyes."
"If we meet again."
After speaking, she raised the sails and wisely departed from the area.
One less minor trouble... Chen Qi thought to himself.
Soon after, his Ghost Ship followed the Tentacle Merchant to the center of the port.
At the port's center stood a massive deity statue.
The statue wore robes like ocean waves, beneath which was a sharply defined male face and hundreds of vague, indescribable tentacles.
It stood one hundred fifty meters tall, carved from deep obsidian, shimmering with a dark and mysterious glow as if it could devour all surrounding light, resembling the boundless deep sea.
Chen Qi picked up his lantern, observing the statue with great interest.
This was a famous ancient entity in the Great Sea Coffin, revered as the Storm God. It was said to have been the Sea Goddess's mortal enemy, also called the Primordial Sea God.
However, the Sea God refused to become the sea's subordinate. Attempting to devour the Lantern Reaper and grasp higher-tier power, he began absorbing abyssal energies, starting a war.
The Sea Goddess gravely wounded the Sea God at the cost of her own slumber.
Legend said that after being defeated by the Sea Goddess, it did not die but slumbered in the deep sea of the Witch Sea. Its breathing during slumber still influenced the entire sea;
all tsunamis, storms, lightning, and sea beasts in the Witch Sea originated from it.
Within the Witch Sea, many dimensional rifts also contained statues of the Storm God.
Additionally, according to the Sea God Pirates' doctrine, the Sea Goddess and the Storm God were not enemies but merely the female and male aspects of the ancient Sea God, the supreme guardians of the sea.
The Sea God Pirates believed that if the two could unite, a new deity would be born, preventing the Witch Sea's destruction!
Storm God... Chen Qi looked at the scene before him, reminded of the Sea God of the Sea God Pirates.
Legend said the Storm God also presided over fair trade at sea;
those who violated fair trade would encounter endless storms upon the ocean.
In the statue's right hand, it held a massive scale.
Little Crow looked up, terrified at the sight of the statue.
Many believers who joined the Sea God Pirates were fanatics of this very deity!
But she never imagined that a terrifying entity within an A-rank rift would also worship the Sea God.
The Tentacle Merchant walked before the statue, praying devoutly for a moment.
Then she turned back, smiling:
"Guest, let me introduce you to the supreme vessel in our shop!"
Then she happily rubbed her tentacles together.
Boom! Boom!
With a series of low, drawn-out rumbles, a massive ship named the "Nether Sea Ship" slowly rose from the pitch-black sea, its ghostly flames burning as if it were a ghost battleship crossing over from another world!
Its hull was covered in unknown black spirals and floral runes, the material gleaming with a cold blue hue in the bitter wind!
The Tentacle Merchant spread her arms, exclaiming:
"Let me introduce the Nether Sea Ship! It was one of the Noah's Arks that sailed during the Lightless Era, navigating the A-rank rift, the Nether Sea, for two hundred and ten years!
Finally, during a snowstorm, its master died, and we acquired this vessel!
Simply staying inside the ship allows resistance to all external mental attacks!
At night, its ghostly flames can also drive away all sinister Shadow Demons!"
"Guest, let me demonstrate this ship's durability!"
After speaking, the Tentacle Merchant raised her hand.
A massive deep-sea hand emerged from the ocean depths!
Its tentacles reached a hundred meters, its grip like a giant python, violently coiling around the Nether Sea Ship!
This time, the deep-sea hand's power was even stronger than the Abyssal Hand Chen Qi had used before!
This was already a legendary Release-level attack!
Yet, facing the boundless power of the Abyssal Hand, the Nether Sea Ship ignited an invisible shield, easily blocking the strike.
On its hull, the mysterious runes grew brighter under the tentacle's assault, devouring the attack's energy and converting it into its own power.
The entire ship remained completely unscathed!
This... Little Crow's eyes were full of astonishment.
This was the first time she had seen a ship that could resist a legendary Release.
Even the Great Shark Battleship couldn't withstand such a earth-shattering blow!
Not bad... Chen Qi nodded in satisfaction.
He was deeply impressed by this Nether Sea Ship. In the forums, players had once pooled resources from a thousand players to finally buy this massive ship, eventually leaping to become the strongest pirate guild in the Witch Sea, the 'Drowned Ghost Guild.'
Relying on this guild, they became a calamity in the Witch Sea.
But later, the Nether Sea Ship's auto-navigation led those thousand players into the netherworld, causing the guild's downfall.
Like the Abyssal Merchant, many items sold by the Tentacle Merchant had severe side effects.
For example, love potions could turn you into a tentacle monster obsessed only with reproduction.
For instance, Flesh Armor could make you lose control of yourself.
And the Nether Sea Ship, once activated, would uncontrollably head toward the netherworld!
Simply put, it was a cursed ship that meant certain death upon purchase.
However, although the Nether Sea Ship had extremely high side effects, its engine was one of the world's top-tier strongest engines.
Its powerful energy could support continuous use of the space leap engine, sustain shield defenses of equivalent level, enable high-speed sailing comparable to a Sea Dragon, and even travel through air and deep sea!
This way, they could avoid the Nether Sea Ship's side effects.
Little Crow stared dumbfounded at the hundred-meter giant ship before her. If it truly was one of the legendary Noah's Arks, its price might reach a shocking ten thousand Ancient Currency!
No, even twenty thousand Ancient Currency!
She had to remember that if she, Chen Qi, and the witch were sold to a great noble, their combined value might only be around ten thousand Ancient Currency!
Truly terrifying... Little Crow could already feel the Tentacle Merchant's hungry gaze.
Chen Qi said calmly:
"I only want the engine. Can I buy the engine separately?"
Just the engine... The Tentacle Merchant blinked her large eyes, flashes of boundless pleasure within.
Chen Qi's various expressions told her clearly:
He had no money!
He was broke, completely broke! That meant she could use this as a reason to buy him, to make him stay with her forever... The Tentacle Merchant's face flushed red, her two small tentacle tips gently touching:
"Sorry, guest, it's a single unit;
it can't be separated..."
Chen Qi took a deep breath, approached the Tentacle Merchant, and said softly:
"Please, my funds are... somewhat limited."
The Tentacle Merchant's ears turned bright red as she muttered:
"It's not... entirely impossible."
"!!!"
Little Crow beside them was utterly shocked. A monster of the Great Sea Coffin, the Tentacle Merchant, had actually agreed to the request directly.
Wait... The Tentacle Merchant blinked, quickly realizing the problem.
In her excitement at nearly capturing Chen Qi, she, being a sea witch, had unfortunately been charmed.
Her goal was to make Chen Qi a permanent slave of the Merchant's Coffin, to become like her!
The Tentacle Merchant muttered:
"Selling the engine separately costs... costs ten thousand Ancient Currency..."
Halfway through, the Tentacle Merchant suddenly changed her words:
"No, it's twenty thousand Ancient Currency!"
Twenty thousand Ancient Currency!
Twenty thousand Ancient Currency! This creature... Little Crow realized this monster hadn't lowered the price at all.
Even when sold separately, she hadn't reduced the price by a single coin.
Damn profiteer... Little Crow bit her finger.
Now she strongly felt the Tentacle Merchant's true goal wasn't money, but their bodies and souls!
Even if they emptied everything, they couldn't complete the transaction. Ultimately, under the Shell Principles, they would become part of the Great Sea Coffin.
This was the Merchant's Coffin—the resting place of countless heroes!
Twenty thousand Ancient Currency... Chen Qi felt a headache coming on.
Normally, a Nether Sea Ship engine should cost around five thousand Ancient Currency.
But the Tentacle Merchant had directly quadrupled the price!
However, upon reflection, the difference wasn't significant.
After all, he currently only had one hundred Ancient Currency in his pocket.
Chen Qi extended his hand:
"Sorry, this amount exceeds my expectations. I might need to sell some things or use other methods to pay."
Chen Qi remained composed, smiling calmly.
Bad news: he had no money and couldn't afford it.
Good news: he never planned to buy it with money in the first place!
Twenty thousand Shell Coins... Little Crow also took out her Disaster Messenger card;
this card should sell for about five hundred Ancient Currency!
If the Tentacle Merchant didn't try to cheat them, the Disaster Messenger card could fetch one thousand Ancient Currency.
Little Crow then took out her savings for marriage, buying a house, and purchasing healing medicine, barely scraping together two more Ancient Currency.
One thousand and two Ancient Currency.
That was Little Crow's entire current wealth.
But it was still far from twenty thousand Ancient Currency.
Hooked... Watching the anxious pair, the Tentacle Merchant was ecstatic inside:
"Of course, guest, we support you selling all your treasured items to exchange for trading chips."
Her tentacles swayed gently as she curled a witch-like smile:
"Of course, besides purchasing items, there's another special method in our Merchant's Coffin to obtain vast amounts of Ancient Currency."
A special method... Little Crow faintly sensed an ominous aura.
The next second, the Tentacle Merchant skillfully produced a contract of indenture.
Then she bowed, showing everyone the Sea God statue behind her:
"Guests, care to make a sacrifice?"
The moment she spoke, the Sea God statue's tightly closed eyes slowly opened, shimmering with profound, ancient light. Beneath the wave-like robes, dark, viscous tentacles encircled Chen Qi and Little Crow.
In that instant, the two resembled little lambs upon an altar.
The Tentacle Merchant could no longer contain her excitement;
her eyes burst with greedy, thirsty crimson light:
"Guests! Sacrifice now, and get fifty percent off!"