Chapter 495: Hell Admiral

Leiketon stared expressionlessly ahead, a deep blue radiance flowing in his eyes, as if carefully examining something.

After a moment, he moved forward at an unhurried pace, as if stepping onto an invisible staircase; with each step, brilliant starlight solidified beneath his feet, supporting him onward.

Reaching a height of about four or five meters, the gray‑black monster assembled from countless flesh pieces also approached the Future from beneath the sea; innumerable dark‑black, green‑tinged tendrils clung to the hull as if alive, dragging the Future and making it hard to sail.

The crystal sphere in Leiketon's right hand suddenly flashed with brilliant starlight, becoming clear from its previous haze.

A dazzling, indescribably colorful radiance burst from the crystal sphere in Leiketon's hand, surging into the sea and striking the massive gray‑black monster.

It is a ray from the starry sky, capable of destroying the enemy's bodily structure at the flesh level and difficult to heal.

Beneath the sea, a faint gray‑white layer appeared on the assembled body of the massive gray‑black monster, indicating a tendency toward chaos and fragmentation in its flesh‑stitched form.

Woo— Woo— Woo—

A high‑frequency, hoarse, grating tone emanated from the ocean floor; the sound made the listener feel dizzy and irritable, instinctively urging them to tear apart everything around, including themselves.

The pirates on deck grimaced in pain, clutching their heads; some even rolled on the deck, veins bulging on their foreheads, eyes bloodshot, looking extremely uncomfortable.

Leiketon's eyes darkened briefly; the crystal sphere in his right hand again emitted a burst of light, this time striking the tendrils clinging to the hull.

The dark‑black, green‑tinged tendrils instantly turned dry‑yellow and curled, and soon began breaking apart at the roots.

Leiketon kept moving his hands; his left hand reached forward, grasping forcefully in mid‑air, while the crystal sphere in his right hand simultaneously burst forth a spray of brilliant starlight from within.

The sea ahead of the deck seemed to flip upside down, water splashing upward, and the massive gray‑black monster hidden beneath the surface was hurled by an invisible force, tossed hundreds of meters into the air together with the seawater.

In mid‑air, an abrupt rise in invisible air pressure caused the massive gray‑black creature, composed of countless flesh pieces, to deform and twist like a balloon being violently battered.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Finally, the monster's resilience reached its limit; with a sizzling sound, the huge creature shattered into countless fragments, spilling a mingled dark‑red and yellow‑green fluid that reeked of foul rot.

The nauseating fluid, a mixture of pus and dark‑red blood, carried countless tiny flesh fragments down toward the sea surface.

As they fell, the loosened flesh pieces spread out "limbs", adjusting their descent mid‑air, surging toward the Future's deck in an overwhelming tide.

Boom! Boom!

A crow wreathed in crimson flame materialized beside Anderson; under his control, the fiery crow spiraled toward the falling flesh‑turned monsters, unleashing continuous explosions.

Craine also at this moment took out several white‑tin talismans from his coat pocket, casually selected one pre‑marked talisman to focus its spirit, and whispered an ancient Hermes word:

"Storm!"

A howling gale suddenly formed, roaring in all directions, blowing the yellow‑green and dark‑red mixed liquid and the limb‑spreading monsters away from here.

Specks of brilliant starlight spread outward from Leiketon, quickly covering the entire Future; as the starlight surged, the deep‑blue radiance gradually took on a golden sheen, bursting forth as bright as midday sun.

Around them, ethereal golden flames sprang up from nothing, exuding the majestic aura of the sun, densely forming a sea of fire.

As the golden starlight rippled, pure and sacred golden flames raised heavy waves in mid‑air, covering all the falling bizarre flesh pieces and the poisonous yellow‑green liquid.

Amid the hoarse, grating screams, the airborne monsters burned down to candle‑like droplets, drifting up as wisps of blue smoke.

The dazzling golden flames lasted nearly half a minute before they completely incinerated the monster formed from the shattered flesh.

Jadelia also at this moment stepped out of the cabin; a golden bird‑shaped brooch with a long trailing feather had somehow been attached to her black classical robe.

With her arrival, the surrounding atmosphere suddenly became calm and tranquil, and all panic and tension inexplicably vanished.

Not far ahead on the sea, as if sensing the commotion, a massive sailing ship steered toward them.

The huge sailing ship was chiefly black and somber, with dark green hues; its stark white main sail bore a blooming black tulip pattern.

Almost simultaneously, everyone on deck noticed the approaching massive sailing ship; Anderson instinctively glanced at Leiketon and said in a deep voice:

"This is the flagship of Hell Admiral Ludewell, the 'Black Tulip'!"

"It is a regular in these waters!"

"Black Tulip"—we just resolved a sudden incident, and now we encounter the Hell Admiral again. Isn't this a bit too unlucky? Craine couldn't help turning his head to scrutinize Anderson, who was brandishing a black short sword.

Sensing Craine's gaze, Anderson's mouth twitched, and he feigned composure as he spoke:

"Ludewell is often active in these waters; encountering him is normal."

"The misfortune I carry at most attracts monsters like the one we just faced; if I alone could cause such misfortune, our treasure‑hunting party would have been wiped out from the start."

"Did your treasure‑hunting party endure the misfortune for a long time?" Craine asked calmly.

Anderson swallowed and said, "At least one day, I mean a day in the outside world!"

Leiketon glanced at the eager Craine and the ready‑for‑battle Anderson, and said calmly:

"Do you intend to hunt him? I can hold the front line for you."

Anderson began to nod but quickly stopped himself, saying:

"Of course. Wait, hold the front line? You aren't stepping in?"

"If I keep taking the blows, you won't gain anything," Leiketon replied in a flat tone.

"Indeed." Anderson shrugged, and exchanged a glance with Craine, both seeing eager anticipation in each other's eyes.

Leiketon, hovering in mid‑air, suddenly looked upward toward the space above the Future; a nearly transparent eye emerged from there, its pallid pupil staring unblinking downwards.

In the next instant, a pure, bright yet non‑glare sunlight burst forth, its rays flowing like water toward the ethereal transparent eye in mid‑air.

The eye of the spiritual being hovering in mid‑air, still assessing below, had no time to retreat before being engulfed by the light, emitting a scream that pierced the eardrum; its "body" rose a wisp of blue smoke, then evaporated and vanished.

The distant Black Tulip suddenly slowed its speed, began turning its sails and adjusting its course, sailing toward the side of the Future.

Anderson, watching the Black Tulip's sudden course change, felt a flash of disappointment and said:

"This Hell Admiral doesn't seem to be taking advantage of the fire; looks like my luck isn't that bad after all!"

"You, stop talking." Craine gave him a speechless glance.

Anderson turned his head, made a closed‑mouth gesture, then walked to the side rail of the ship, his gaze fixed unblinking on the distant Black Tulip.

Four to five hundred meters to the side of the Future, on the foredeck of the Black Tulip, stood a man dressed as a captain, quietly watching this side; he was also the only living person aboard.

He wore a triangular hat embroidered with a white skull and feather, a richly ornate brown short coat, and a slender rapier at his waist.

His face was covered by a silver‑white mask that concealed his entire visage, leaving only a few holes representing eyes, nose, and mouth.

Although his facial expression was hidden, everyone on the Future could sense tension from his posture; this Hell Admiral seemed even more nervous than they were, fearing that someone on their side might suddenly strike.

What is he afraid of? Kèláiēn tilted his head in doubt, looking toward Léikèdùn, who had already fallen onto the deck nearby; the deep blue radiance flowing in his eyes had dissipated, and the crystal ball he held was no longer bright and transparent, as if a layer of watery mist had clouded it from within.

"He should have noticed the glance I just cast his way." Léikèdùn gave a brief explanation, then headed toward the cabin.

Seeing this, Āndésēn, who had remained vigilant, also relaxed, putting away the short sword he held, and gazed calmly at the "Black Tulip" as it sped away from this sea area, sighing:

"It seems there's no danger after all, a pity—I thought I might have a chance to remove Ludewel's mask and see what face lies behind it."

Kèláiēn glanced at Āndésēn indifferently, swallowed the two words "shut up" he was about to say, and walked toward the cabin without looking back.

Āndésēn looked around, seeing no one paying attention to him, he indifferently raised his hand and said:

"So difficult."

"I'll go drink by myself."

The crew of the "Future" under Jiādélìyǎ's command quickly cleared the aftermath; Léikèdùn, coming out of the dining room, glanced at Āndésēn lying supine by the stairs, his expression composed, his breath restrained.

The latter seemed to sense the movement nearby, struggled to lift his head, and murmured as if in a dream:

"Is the drink here... problematic?"

"Frank added a sedative to the drinks on the ship." Léikèdùn answered expressionlessly.

"." Āndésēn lay silently on the edge of the stairs, unable to speak, fallen into an unusually calm state, not even wanting to think.

Léikèdùn twitched the corner of his mouth, stepped over Āndésēn, and walked toward Jiādélìyǎ's cabin.

Thump—thump~

"Come in." Jiādélìyǎ's cold, calm voice came from inside the cabin.

Léikèdùn pushed the door open directly, glanced around the cabin, and said:

"Captain, I plan to leave the 'Future'."

Jiādélìyǎ looked at Léikèdùn somewhat surprised and said:

"Leave the 'Future'? This sea area is very dangerous."

"Are you confident you can leave this sea area without a ship?"

Léikèdùn nodded lightly and said:

"My destination is the Forsaken Land; I won't linger long in this sea area. Well, when I leave, I might still need you to send a boat to pick me up."

"No problem." Jiādélìyǎ nodded lightly, not asking further.

After leaving Jiādélìyǎ's cabin, Léikèdùn successively bade farewell to the other people on the ship, briefly explaining his reasons and plans for departing the "Future".

Having recovered from the sedated state, Āndésēn said with a look of being cruelly abandoned:

"You're leaving the 'Future'? Then what about the misfortune on me?"

Léikèdùn spoke up to remind him:

"I cannot solve the problem of your misfortune."

After thinking, he added: "However, I can give you a hint."

"What hint?" Āndésēn immediately asked.

Léikèdùn glanced at Kèláiēn, who was scouting the sea surface at the front of the deck, then withdrew his gaze and chuckled lightly.

"Choose a faith; you can pray to a great existence for a hint, obtaining a method to dispel your misfortune, rather than directly begging them to speak and clear your misfortune—this way the price won't be too high, within what you can afford."

(End of chapter)