Chapter 628: Ghost Pirates

At this point, nearly two hours had passed since Luo De and the others set out.

It wasn't so much that they had reached the shipping route to Coral Bay as that they had entered the central expanse of the Monster Sea.

From Coral Bay, sailing north across the Monster Sea leads to the port of Karin.

Beyond lies not the territory of the Atheron Kingdom, but a nation called Karinshan.

The nation itself is not large, but its towns of Manshaka, Arwen City, and Manong City are key partners of Coral Bay.

And now, the wrecked vessel in the distance bore the national emblem of Karinshan.

Which specific town it belonged to, however, remained unknown.

Luo De activated 【Repulsion Technique】, which erupted into a white mist, propelling him forward with sudden force.

The scorching air currents of 【Inferno Leap】 surged around him, drastically increasing his speed—but the thick smoke trailing behind him was a serious environmental pollutant.

The ghost pirates below had not yet noticed him; they were shouting, eager to board the wreck and slaughter its crew.

Ghost pirates are typically cursed crew members or captains.

Bound by betrayal and greed in life, they cannot rest, and even as ghosts, they cling to the same obsessions.

Luo De had no intention of holding back.

He extended his right hand, and Shi Laimu instantly became coated in liquid metal.

A low hum resonated.

The columnar purple gravity magic of 【Gravitational Wave】 erupted, engulfing the ghost ship as it cut through the waves.

These spectral beings could pass through solid matter, but magic affected them powerfully—the ship was instantly pinned in place.

Only now did the pirates notice.

They turned, saw Luo De hovering in midair, wreathed in thick smoke, and instead of fear, they shouted curses.

"Hmph!"

Before Luo De could react, the dog-kin Sharon let out a cold snort.

She surged forward, raised her hand, and launched two flaming orbs crackling with lightning.

Spectral beings naturally have weak resistance to fire and lightning.

The two orbs slammed into the deck and hull, instantly blasting two massive craters.

The ghost pirates screamed and were blown overboard.

Yet from the ship's holes and broken edges, human arms began to creep out, slowly repairing the vessel's damage.

Ghost ships are formed from the souls of those drowned at sea. A skilled pirate captain can awaken the sleeping vengeful spirits beneath the ocean to repair himself or his ship—this captain must be at least high-stage seventh rank.

Sharon explained.

"Throughout history, countless bodies have been buried in the sea—wouldn't the ghost pirates' power be endless?"

"Not quite. At most, they're just durable. Even as spirits, they have limits."

Boom!

The ship's cannon fired a tongue of flame; a projectile wreathed in green ghostly fire hurtled toward them.

Sharon raised a magical barrier in front of Luo De.

But he immediately pulled her behind him.

He drew his golden sword and sliced the cannonball cleanly in half—the two halves exploded on either side of them.

Against the blast's gale,

Luo De glanced at Sharon's scowling face and laughed: "What kind of mage stands in front of a warrior? A seventh-rank rookie."

The girl bristled: "I'm already high-stage seventh rank—it's only a matter of time before I reach eighth rank."

"We'll see about that later. For now, watch—I'm testing a new technique."

"Hmph."

Luo De ignored her.

The hellish flames of 【Inferno Leap】 dissipated; his body glowed a brilliant blue, crackling with lightning.

【Thunder-Weave Sinew】.

At that moment, a burly man dressed as a captain stomped onto the ghost ship's deck, cursing.

He saw Luo De and showed no fear.

The wooden planks beneath his feet split open, revealing a brass cannon pointed directly at Luo De.

The ghost captain stood atop the cannon's muzzle, drawing his military saber with a menacing glare.

Boom!

As the cannon roared, the man's entire spectral form rode the soul-cannon's projectile straight at Luo De.

Pshhh!

Luo De's speed surged—he vanished in a flash, trailed by blue lightning plasma.

Boom—

Brilliant blue-white lightning and emerald explosion flames instantly repainted the sky!

Amid the billowing black smoke,

the ghost captain's charred spirit fell from midair and plopped into the sea.

The crew on the ghost ship panicked.

Yet the vessel seemed to operate on its own, requiring no crew—rapidly sinking, even 【Gravitational Wave】 unable to hold it, vanishing in an instant.

In the midair smoke, blue soul mist swirled.

A colossal Bai Long war-spirit suddenly emerged, roaring to the heavens.

The dragon's roar sent invisible pressure waves that instantly scattered the black smoke and clouds!

【Purify Weather】.

"Ran off that fast—and still didn't die?"

Luo De stared at the heaving sea, slightly surprised.

Sharon and the others flew up from behind.

Sharon said: "As cursed beings, ghost pirates won't truly die again as long as their bones and cursed objects remain in the sea."

The sea elf Lora added: "Yes, and actually, this entire ghost ship and its crew were summoned by the captain's spiritual technique. He was terrified by your strength, Luo De, and sank into the ocean to escape."

Tally flew over, smiling sweetly and purely:

"But with Master present, of course, there's nothing to worry about."

Luo De nodded.

The ghost captain's individual strength was indeed weak—if not for the ocean's shadow magic hindering Tally's spells, she could've defeated him easily.

Not to mention Sharon.

He glanced at the lightning dancing over his body.

Hmm.

At this stage, 【Thunder-Weave Sinew】 has decent burst power.

The main boost is speed.

Thanks to the witch-cat's 【Ability Ascension】 sharing skills, he could see the proficiency progress bars of other techniques.

Currently, 【Thunder-Weave Sinew】 was at about 70%.

All thanks to the past month, when Luo De occasionally sneaked off to meet the hawk-kin tribe chief in Eagle Claw Gorge.

Speaking of which,

the chief was a man who looked around forty, though his real age was likely much older.

Fortunately, the harpy's own genetics were strong—she was a mature, alluring woman, even if past her prime.

He found more enjoyment elsewhere.

Originally, Tally's presence beside him would've kept things from getting boring—but her abstinence effect hadn't worn off.

Every time Luo De visited, she'd cover her ears, hide in the corner, and face the wall—purely playing ostrich.

Learning 【Thunder-Weave Sinew】 wasn't bad—it came fairly quickly.

But Luo De's lightning resistance had improved, and the old chief's lightning summons were starting to look weak.

After all, he was just a low-stage seventh-rank old rookie.

And the old chief clearly sensed Luo De's indifference—each time he left, he gave him a deeply mournful look.

"Look, the wreck's crew are coming out of the cabin."

Dimea warned.

Watching the crew weeping and calling for help on deck, Lora pulled out her recording stone: "I'll do an interview!"

"Wait!"

Sharon grabbed the sea elf girl.

Her eyes narrowed: "The crew's condition seems off."

(End of Chapter)