Chapter 295: Swift Battle

Against living corpses with bodies as hard as steel, spiritual-body damage is still the most effective!

In his thoughts, layers of dark-gold scales surfaced on Klein's left-hand glove, and his pupils suddenly slit.

He used the psychologist's "Madness" again.

Steel Maiweit's body briefly went rigid, and under successive blows he could not restrain the malice within, losing the shackles of his sanity.

Black, stiff hairs sprouted from his face, his teeth and nails kept lengthening, his skin began to writhe as if trying to coalesce, his complexion shifting from dusky black to pallid—like a true, mad, blood-craving living corpse!

Pfft! Pfft!

Tu Ba Ge's two paws rhythmically patted the ground, and the earth around Maiweit instantly bulged up one after another.

Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

The sound of soil being stirred rang out, and strange plants drilled up from the ground—some like thorny vines bristling with fangs, others continually branching, like twisted arms.

These eerie plants either entwined or tore at Maiweit.

Daniz exerted himself even more to spread his spiritual power, even using his left hand, which Klein had helped him shift the wound to and which was fractured.

"Hiss!"

The sharp pain in his left hand made Daniz's face twist as he bared his teeth.

Klein's left-hand glove again burst forth with radiant light like direct sunlight.

He raised his right hand, having taken the revolver from his waist pouch, and quickly pulled the trigger.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

As Klein pulled the trigger, bullets trailing clean streams struck Maiweit's head accurately.

Bullets bearing the "Purification Slash" effect easily pierced his steel-hard flesh, leaving round holes on his skull that smoked black.

The 6000-pound-valued pirate froze in place, the purifying power contained in the bullets spreading wildly through his body.

For a moment, he could only emit painful groans through his nostrils.

Klein stepped forward at an unhurried pace until he stood before Maiweit, pressing his right-hand revolver to the man's forehead and pulling the trigger again.

Bang!

The last bullet in the revolver sank into Maiweit's forehead, no blood spilling out, only wisps of black smoke rising and quickly dissipating.

Steel Maiweit's nasal groan froze for an instant, then his breath vanished swiftly.

"He's dead."

Klein spoke in a tone neither flat nor emotional, at the same time returning the revolver to his pouch and extending his gloved left hand forward.

The radiant light that had bloomed on the glove faded, and after a writhing motion a somewhat illusory mouth full of sharp teeth split open in his palm.

The Wriggling Hunger began to feast on Steel Maiweit's corpse.

The strange plants Tu Ba Ge had summoned quickly withered and retreated, burrowing back into the ground, leaving only traces of disturbed soil.

Daniz also loosened his clenched right hand, the incandescent flame whip losing its spiritual support and swiftly turning into specks of fire that vanished.

After the Wriggling Hunger had consumed Steel Maiweit's corpse entirely, Tu Ba Ge approached and handed over a new Faded Paper Person:

"The boss said you'd better not herd this living corpse's soul; the Rose School has some control over these traits."

"Place this paper person over the glove to temporarily conceal his spirit and traits; after the séance, destroy the traces."

Klein reached out to take the Pale Yellow Paper Person Tu Ba Ge handed him, glanced at it, and saw it was completely different from the one I tailored, whether in craft or function.

He removed the Wriggling Hunger from his left hand, wrapped it in the Pale Yellow Paper Person Tu Ba Ge gave him, put it inside his coat, then straightened up, looked around, and said:

"How many paper persons do you have left?"

"How do we get out?"

Tu Ba Ge scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly and said uncertainly:

"Um, this magic lasts five minutes; we just need to wait a bit longer."

"The boss only gave me two paper persons; this is the last one—remember to return it after you use it."

Klein maintained Gehrman Sparrow's coldness, giving a slight nod:

"Hmm."

"This rabbit is truly not cute; you could totally ask for two more paper persons—no one would notice a falsified bill."

Daniz at the side twitched the corner of his mouth; he had just reviewed the battle, from Steel Maiweit's appearance to his death taking at most two minutes.

"Gehrman Sparrow and this rabbit are terrifying—taking down a 6000-pound-valued pirate in two minutes, they're practically here to collect traits at sea and earn pounds on the side!"

Then, thinking of something, Daniz's expression grew solemn again; he gave a light cough, attracting Klein and Tu Ba Ge's attention, and said:

"Cough! Well, no matter what schemes you have against Steel, I must remind you: he's probably not alone; his underlings surely still have members of the Blood Sea Pirates in Baiyam."

"What they're after is still the Golden Dream."

Klein glanced at Daniz beside him and said in a cold, hard voice:

"Bullshit! It's just a baseless treasure—how could it possibly attract any big shot's attention!"

While speaking he also warily glanced at Klein and Tu Ba Ge at his feet; he deliberately said that, and it's also true.

"Gehrman Sparrow and that fat rabbit surely aren't after that supposed treasure, are they? Bullshit! Which traitor on the ship leaked this news!"

Klein glanced at Daniz, who still didn't know the true reason, and spoke in a flat tone laced with cold:

"They're not after the treasure, but the truth."

"The truth? What truth? The truth hidden behind the treasure? But there's no treasure at all!"

Daniz looked at Klein, utterly perplexed.

Klein glanced at Daniz, then stopped speaking—was this guy just unwilling to let go of the treasure?

He walked over to a nearby slightly leaning coconut tree, leaned against its trunk, gazed up at the bright white moon, and stared blankly.

Until this mysterious manifestation reached the limit of its duration, the surrounding scene again fell like a drawn curtain, revealing once more the aspect of Coastal Defense Street.

Everything around remained unchanged; gusts of wind swept by, rustling the pointed leaves on both sides with a clatter, no one noticed what had happened here, and all seemed so harmonious.

The trunk Klein was leaning on disappeared, and for a moment he lost his balance, but he quickly steadied himself, took a few steps to the side, and picked up the suitcase he had thrown under the roadside tree.

"Find a place to stay first."

Klein spread his hand and caught a falling drop of rain.

Still pondering the so-called big figure behind Steel Maiweit and the matter of the Golden Dream Ship, Daniz hadn't yet come to his senses and instinctively nodded in response:

"Good!"

"Damn it! Maiweit was killed, so why am I still following him."

Daniz hesitated slightly as he watched Klein's back, the scene of just killing Maiweit flashing in his mind; he involuntarily shuddered, then quickly caught up to Klein's pace.

"Steel is dead, but he still has his subordinates and the big figure he mentioned; only by staying beside Gehrman Sparrow am I truly safe, and I still need to find an opportunity to inform the captain of today's events."

Central Suinya Sea, near Olawi Island.

The Golden Dream Ship had just finished a resupply and was now heading toward the Rothschild Archipelago.

Inside Edwina's captain's cabin, Leyton sat in a chair with his eyes closed, sensing something.

Moments later, he reopened his eyes, a faint blue light hidden in his pupils.

He exhaled with a soft 'huh', rose from the chair, walked to the bulging window, and gazed out at the sea toward the Rothschild Archipelago, letting out a light laugh:

"The investigation by the Rose Sect has begun; I will head straight to Biayam next, where some fairly intense fighting may occur, so keep the Golden Dream Ship from getting too close to avoid being caught up."

Edwina frowned slightly and said in a solemn tone:

"Whatever happened on the Flesh and Blood Tree Ship will inevitably draw the attention of the Rose Sect's angels; even if it's just routine investigators, they are likely to be saints."

Leyton gave a slight nod and said:

"The Rose Sect is likely responsible for this incident, probably an angel, or a saint who can summon angels at any time."

"The residual contamination on the Flesh and Blood Tree Ship is clearly near the level of a true god; they will certainly pay attention."

"However, their focus is more likely to be on the 'Death Ship' that was also in the nearby waters at the time; compared to us, it, which has close ties to the Abyss, is far more suspicious."

"Are demons and exotic species on related paths?" Edwina merely mentioned it lightly, then changed the subject.

"Yodesen told me you want to recruit him and send him to preach on the South Great Road."

"Is that appropriate? He isn't a follower of Knowledge."

Leyton leaned against the bulging window, rubbing his chin with his right thumb, pondered briefly, then smiled and said:

"This is a divine revelation!"

"My subordinates? Well, I actually have none, so I can only find someone on your ship to serve as my assistant."

Edwina remained silent for a moment, then lightly nodded, indicating her agreement with this reasoning.

(End of chapter)