Chapter 780: The Method of Arrival

Lu Mian had already flipped through all the information Franca had gathered, and he could roughly guess the reason for her choice:

"Admiral of the Deep" Haer Constantine, who was rumored to have sea monster blood, often went to an island named "Banamo" in the west of the Fog Sea for supplies. A few days ago, someone discovered Haer Constantine's flagship, the *Newins*, surfacing on a shipping route leading to Banamo, allowing the crew to breathe fresh air and enjoy precious freedom.

Based on the distance, sailing speed, actual conditions of the shipping route, and the weather in the Fog Sea, it was estimated that the *Newins* would reach Banamo in about two to three days.

Among all the pirate admirals, this was the only one whose trajectory could be predicted in the near future!

"We can give it a try." Lu Mian responded to Franca's suggestion with indifference.

As a "Hunter" who had actually participated in a demigod-level battle and played a certain role, he felt there was no essential difference in which pirate admiral they chose, as long as they were easy to find.

Franca glanced at Lu Mian, didn't stand on ceremony, and muttered:

"I think your current mindset is a bit problematic. You can't underestimate the top-tier Sequence 5s. You aren't a demigod yet, and your body is still very fragile. If you look down on the 'Admiral of the Deep,' you might suffer a huge loss. In my hometown, there's a saying: you can despise the enemy strategically, but you must take them seriously tactically."

"I know. Aurora often reminded me of that in the past, telling me not to underestimate the villagers' intelligence, thinking my pranks would inevitably succeed without any issues. After being chased and beaten by the villagers a few times, I deeply understood this saying." Lu Mian wasn't annoyed and said earnestly, "It seems there's another saying in your hometown: weakness and ignorance are not barriers to survival, arrogance is."

"Stop!" Franca muttered, "Just know that. Don't turn this into an exchange of famous quotes."

Seeing that they had determined their target, Jenna spoke up:

"The problem now is, how do we get to Banamo Island?"

Banamo was located in the northwest of the Fog Sea. It was once a colony of the Feysac Empire. Later, as the Feysac Empire's influence declined, the indigenous people of Banamo actively resisted and eventually achieved independence.

This was also because Banamo Island itself lacked valuable resources and only existed as a forward base for exploring the end of the Fog Sea, so it wasn't a pity to abandon it.

After independence, Banamo Island gradually developed into a pirate port, providing pirates with trading grounds and sufficient supplies.

Jenna's meaning was very clear: going from Trier to Banamo Island would take two or three weeks even if the route was clear and the weather was good. If they encountered even the slightest situation requiring a wider detour or waiting, they might not even arrive in a month. By then, the "Admiral of the Deep" would have long since left Banamo Island, and finding a pirate admiral in the vast ocean was almost impossible unless fate bestowed a gift.

Under the current circumstances, only "Teleportation" could ensure the team arrived at Banamo Island in time to wait for the "Admiral of the Deep," Haer Constantine. The problem, however, was that neither Lu Mian nor Franca possessed the Spirit Realm coordinates for Banamo Island. Attempting such a long-distance "Teleportation" would inevitably lead to getting lost in the Spirit Realm.

Lu Mian pondered for a few seconds and asked Franca:

"Is there any way to contact anyone on Banamo Island?"

"It should be possible. Banamo Island has a telegraph office." Franca replied after thinking, "We can find adventurers who have been to Banamo Island and have them send a telegram to friends on the island."

Lu Mian smiled:

"Good.

"If everything goes smoothly, we can reach Banamo Island tonight."

Fog Sea, on Banamo Island, which was foggy and gloomy all year round.

Inside the only port here, Mason carried a pile of things, passed through the coming and going pirates, and turned into an abandoned warehouse.

This place had been destroyed during a shootout between pirates and was never repaired, becoming a no-man's-land.

Mason was an adventurer. He hated those rude and cruel pirates but couldn't leave Banamo Island because this pirate port was full of opportunities.

Even if he didn't risk hunting down lone pirates with bounties, he could patiently wait for pirate feuds to end and take the remaining items from the losers.

That was how he became a Beyonder; he was currently a Sequence 8 "Warrior."

Today, Mason had taken a mission that was said to be very simple but had a bounty of 1,000 gold pounds, so he specifically found a hidden place to complete it.

He quickly cleared the pile of broken wooden crates, stacked them together, and turned them into an altar.

Then, according to the mission description, he placed candles, incense, and essential oils on it.

After completing the preparatory work, Mason took out the neatly folded mission description and read the subsequent content:

"The most difficult part of this mission is that you must possess the corresponding knowledge, which includes introductory Ancient Hermes and relatively proficient Hermes.

"If you do not meet the above conditions, please do not accept this commission......"

Fortunately, I learned a little Ancient Hermes and enough Hermes from other adventurers...... Mason felt quite fortunate about his choice back then when he accepted this mission.

It wasn't that he had more of a spirit of learning than other adventurers, but rather that several items he had harvested previously involved Hermes. To figure out their true value, he had specifically spent money to learn from adventurers who understood Hermes for a period of time.

After quickly reading the second half of the mission description, Mason evaluated the potential danger and felt there shouldn't be any major problems.

He then laboriously created a "Wall of Spirituality," lit the candles, dripped the incense, took two steps back, and whispered in Ancient Hermes:

"I!"

This was one of the few Ancient Hermes words he knew.

Then, Mason switched to Hermes:

"I summon in my name:

"The creature wandering in the Upper Realm, the penitent who awakens from the flames of pain, the messenger belonging solely to Lu Mian Lee......"

As soon as Mason finished speaking, he saw the candlelight suddenly grow larger, stained with a deep green, near-black color.

Within the firelight, a tall figure wearing a black clerical robe stood out.

Mason only took one look before retreating a step in fear.

The parts of the figure exposed outside seemed to have been burned by fire for a long time; the flesh and skin had turned charred black, clinging tightly to the bones. The eye sockets were pitch black, burning with deep-colored flames, and some viscous, water-like strange black flames flowed on the body's surface.

This looked like an undead creature!

It wasn't that Mason hadn't seen similar things at Banamo Port; some pirates were very good at communicating with corpses, but the "penitent" summoned made Mason instinctively feel fear, believing it was essentially different from ordinary living corpses.

Several pirate admirals who had been to Banamo Port had never left Mason with such a feeling!

Seeing the dry corpse wearing a black clerical robe looking at him, Mason braced himself and took out the letter.

His mission this time was to deliver a letter to a person named Lu Mian Lee!

The dry corpse messenger, with viscous black flames flowing on its body, took the letter and disappeared into the deep green, near-black candlelight.

Everything in the abandoned warehouse quickly returned to normal.

Only then did Mason raise his right hand, wipe away cold sweat, and mutter to himself:

"This matter doesn't seem simple......

"I've heard other adventurers say that some people were bewitched into holding special rituals, and as a result, they summoned evil gods and demons, destroying themselves and the town they were in......

"Could that have been the case just now? Will disaster befall Banamo Port?

"Is that Lu Mian Lee the true name of an evil god or demon?

"......"

Mason had seen that the ritual only summoned a messenger, which had nothing to do with evil gods or demons, and since he was already a Sequence 8 Beyonder, he was willing to give it a try. But the messenger just now made him feel uneasy.

While muttering, Mason packed up the items on the altar.

Suddenly, he stopped and frowned:

"I seem to have heard the name Lu Mian Lee somewhere......"

He tried hard to recall for a moment but gained nothing.

Before leaving the abandoned warehouse, Mason looked back at the altar made of broken wooden crates and found that something seemed to be floating in the shadows there.

His heart tightened, and Mason pretended he hadn't seen anything, quickly leaving the abandoned warehouse.

Trier, Memorial Hall District, inside the apartment rented by Franca and Jenna.

Lu Mian saw the "penitent" Bainfer walk out of the void and hand a letter to him.

He didn't even bother to open the letter, because it contained a blank sheet of paper; there was nothing at all.

He said directly to his messenger:

"Can you deliver the reply to the sender from just now?"

"I can." The "penitent" Bainfer replied in a low voice.

Lu Mian smiled and pointed to himself:

"I am the reply."

Banamo Port, permeated with light mist. Lu Mian leaned against the outer wall of the abandoned warehouse, watching the sender from earlier walk out of the warehouse with a slightly fearful expression and hurry away.

He smiled and took a golden straw hat out of his "Traveler's Bag," looked at it for a few seconds, and then put it back.

——The appearance of the great adventurer Louis Berry here would cause unnecessary suspicion, and it might even make the "Admiral of the Deep," Haer Constantine, change his destination and no longer come to Banamo Port.

Lu Mian straightened his body, tightened his thick jacket, put his hands in his pockets, and walked slowly along the streets of Banamo Port.

He planned to take a stroll first before going back to pick up Franca and the others.

Trier, late at night.

Angouleme arrived at the empty house he had agreed upon with "Sleeve Sword" to retrieve the emergency contact method for the next period of time.

Soon, he found the note and saw the content on it:

"If there's an emergency, summon my friend's messenger:

"The rabbit-shaped spirit body wandering in the void, the runner chasing knowledge, the messenger belonging solely to Seven of Cups."

"Seven of Cups"...... From the "Tarot Club"? "Sleeve Sword," your friend is actually yourself, right? Angouleme muttered silently.

He felt he probably understood why "Sleeve Sword" always had so many troublesome things to deal with.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 781 =====