Chapter 785: Boarding

Banamo Port, on a street near the pier.

Jenna hid in the shadow, watching Anthony mingle among the crowd and get along well with the pirates.

She didn't deliberately follow the well-known pirates who entered the port with the *Newins* to confirm their whereabouts. On one hand, she was worried that if such behavior were detected, it would make the "Admiral of the Deep" completely vigilant, believing that a huge conspiracy was waiting for him at Banamo Port. On the other hand, she didn't need to follow them to grasp the current information of the *Newins'* first mate, second mate, boatswain, etc., at the first opportunity:

The pirates at Banamo Port were all looking forward to the "Admiral of the Deep" or his capable subordinates teaching that unknown adventurer a lesson, so they would naturally pay attention to the movements of the corresponding personnel at any time and pass the news to their companions and friends!

In other words, with such high attention, the vast majority of pirates at Banamo Port spontaneously became reporters. No matter where the "Admiral of the Deep's" capable subordinates went, they would be noticed and widely publicized.

If they used stealth abilities or entered an invisible state, they could avoid the busybodies scattered in every corner of Banamo Port, but the problem was that they were currently raising supplies and completing replenishment, so they couldn't hide such a large pile of things.

Thus, one message after another was passed into Anthony's ears in time:

"The 'Giant Shark' has arrived at the Fiss Trading Firm."

"The 'Ship Destroyer' is heading toward the carnival bar!"

"Oh, Storm above, those guys have met at Black Stone Square!"

"They are one street away from the carnival bar!

"They have stopped temporarily, discussing things!"

"They seem to be going to Old Dante's place to buy large barrels of light beer first!"

"......"

Anthony felt the commotion of the pirates and saw them leave the current street one after another, surging toward the carnival bar.

He also stood up, lest he be too conspicuous.

During this process, he gave a wink to the shadow where Jenna was hiding.

Jenna understood, immediately used the shadows on both sides of the street, and rushed toward the carnival bar from the increasingly crowded road.

Lu Mian held the newly poured amber Rhenish and nodded with self-intoxication.

He then looked at the bartender in the bar and said with a smile:

"You can consider moving the valuable wine and items away temporarily, and it's best not to leave people here either."

The bartender was stunned for a moment before replying urgently after a few seconds:

"Okay!"

No one passed the message to him for fear of being heard by Lu Mian and affecting subsequent matters, but he roughly guessed that something was brewing and about to happen from the pirate group gradually gathering outside the bar.

This made him quite expectant, yet very uneasy. After all, the place where the conflict was about to happen was the carnival bar, and he was directly at the scene!

Seeing the bartender order the waiters to move the valuable items out the back door, Lu Mian took out a blank sketchbook and a fountain pen, and while writing and drawing, asked as if inadvertently:

"How much is your bar worth? Including this two-story building."

"Uh......" The bartender was stunned again.

What does this mean?

Does it mean that the conflict in a moment might destroy the bar and cause the entire building to collapse?

Recalling those crimson, near-white fireballs containing power, the bartender became trembling with fear. He forced a smile and said:

"You want to compensate? You, you can just look at it and give, or let the loser compensate......"

"This building is a simple small building built by local residents, so it must be very cheap itself. The bar you face is also bottom-tier pirates, so whether it's the decoration or the tables and chairs, they are all the cheapest kind......" Lu Mian didn't lift his head and made an assessment, continuing to depict something on the blank sketchbook.

"Right, yes." The bartender nodded quickly, expressing approval.

Lu Mian lifted his head, shook his head, and smiled:

"Everything I say, you answer 'right' or 'yes,' which makes it very difficult for me."

"......" The bartender closed his mouth, not knowing how to answer.

Lu Mian lowered his head again:

"How about 2,000 gold pounds?"

"Okay." The bartender changed a word, completely without any intention of bargaining.

The fountain pen in Lu Mian's hand didn't stop, and he said in a calm tone:

"I'll pay after confirming the specific damage later. If the great pirates coming later are willing to compensate for me, that's also fine."

"Okay." The bartender responded hurriedly.

He looked left and right, wishing he could grow wings now and fly out of the carnival bar.

According to the conversation just now, he was worried that if he stayed at the scene, he would become an incomplete corpse.

After a few minutes, the waiters moved away the small amount of valuable items, and the remaining cheap goods were left in the bar.

The bartender left from the back door, and the real or fake pirates, including Mason, all walked out of the carnival bar and waited and watched outside.

They didn't dare to linger in this preset battlefield either.

This was a summary of experience.

Lu Mian drew for a while, stopped the fountain pen in his hand, and drank the remaining amber Rhenish slowly.

After waiting for a few more minutes, Franca sneaked into the shadow of the bar and whispered:

"The 'Admiral of the Deep' hasn't come, but his first mate 'Giant Shark' and others are almost nearby. They will arrive in about two minutes."

Lu Mian gripped the fountain pen again and continued to outline on the page on the sketchbook surface.

He laughed in a low voice:

"Remember to prepare 2,000 gold pounds for compensation, and also, return the 1,000 gold pound bounty for the messenger summoning mission to me when we go back."

"Ah?" Franca was a bit surprised.

Lu Mian laughed "hehe":

"This is helping you digest 'Pleasure.' All expenses must naturally be paid by you, including the consumed Beyonder items."

"No problem." Franca wasn't resisting just now, but didn't expect Lu Mian to suddenly bring up this matter.

At this time, she saw that Lu Mian was about to finish the depiction on the blank sketchbook and asked curiously:

"Why not directly take out the 'Armor of Arrogance,' put a robe on it, disguise it as a person, and then let it sit on this chair, with its back to the incoming pirates?"

Anyway, under the circumstance that Lu Mian was present, the "Armor of Arrogance" couldn't be used, so it might as well be placed here to play some role.

"You really want this building to be destroyed?" Lu Mian laughed, "And the 'Armor of Arrogance' can't use 'Lie,' so it can't disguise as me. The 'Admiral of the Deep's' subordinates will find something wrong before they even enter the door."

While speaking, Lu Mian finished the last stroke on the blank sketchbook.

It was a sketch outlined in dark blue ink, and the person in the painting was Lu Mian himself.

The paper gradually blurred, and the Lu Mian in the painting suddenly moved, expanding and growing larger like a balloon being blown up.

In the blink of an eye, a dull-faced Lu Mian appeared in front of the bar, blocked by Lu Mian's body.

It possessed the instinct for a few minutes of combat and part of Lu Mian's abilities, and would obey the drawer's orders.

While arranging for the Lu Mian in the painting to sit with his back to the bar door, Lu Mian transformed into a shadow creature and disappeared in front of the bar.

Not long after, the *Newins'* first mate, Jörg, nicknamed "Giant Shark," arrived at the carnival bar with several companions of similar strength, under the watch of a large number of pirates.

Glancing at the unknown adventurer sitting calmly in front of the bar, the tall, sturdy, bald "Giant Shark" waved his hand and was the first to pass through the door.

Just as these Beyonders of the *Newins* entered the carnival bar, Lu Mian, who had changed his appearance and had long been squeezing to the window to watch, pressed his right hand on the glass.

A black mark hidden by his clothing lit up.

"Bottle of Fiction"!

He put the carnival bar into the "Bottle of Fiction," with the condition for entry and exit being "not a Beyonder."

Immediately after, Lu Mian turned his body, and amidst the chaos of the pirates suddenly losing the scene before their eyes, squeezed out of the crowd, came to a nearby alley, and "Teleported" to the pier with Franca.

The two met with Jenna and Anthony at the agreed location and, with the help of shadows and psychological invisibility, boarded the alchemical ship named *Newins*.

Compared to when they first arrived, there were many fewer pirates on this ship, only enough to maintain the most basic vigilance.

Lu Mian wasn't worried that their actions would give the "Admiral of the Deep" a sense of danger, because judging from the intelligence gathered from all aspects, Haer Constantine wasn't a Beyonder of the "Demon" pathway and didn't have a perception of malice. What he showed before was more like a Sequence 5 "Ocean Songster" of the "Storm" pathway, and according to the feedback given by the "Tarot Club," the "Admiral of the Deep" had no relationship with the Church of Storms.

Therefore, Lu Mian had Jenna confirm whether the *Black Octopus* had followed the *Newins* to Banamo Port this time—the *Black Octopus'* captain, "Bone-Breaker" Luo Lei, was a "Demon."

Considering that the changes in the carnival bar might make the "Admiral of the Deep" highly vigilant after being passed back to the *Newins*, Lu Mian and the others didn't delay and quickly sneaked into the cabin.

In less than a minute, they discovered a lone pirate in a room in the corridor.

Franca confirmed whether the mechanical devices around had early warning functions, and after several seconds, whispered to Lu Mian, who was in the state of a shadow creature:

"Can act."

Lu Mian immediately sneaked into the room, wandered behind the lone pirate, and emerged, humming.

Two white lights flashed and disappeared, and the pirate fell into a coma.

Anthony turned into this room and quickly performed hypnosis.

Jenna and Franca guarded in the shadow outside the door and soon heard the sound of friendly communication coming from inside:

"Where is the Admiral?"

"In the captain's cabin."

"The Admiral can become one of the most famous pirates. There must be some major force supporting him behind the scenes, right?"

"I don't know, but the Admiral is indeed a bit mysterious."

"......"

After a simple inquiry, Anthony made the pirate forget that there was such a friend who had boarded the ship.

They then sneaked to the upper cabin and stopped outside the captain's cabin door.

Looking at the silver-white metal door, Lu Mian's eyelids suddenly twitched.

This was his association with the "Admiral of the Deep's" possible pathway and sequence.

On such an alchemical ship, the power an "Ocean Songster" could exert might not be inferior to that in the deep sea and the air!

Amidst Lu Mian's thoughts, two pirates pushed a dining cart and arrived outside the captain's cabin with the help of a mechanical lift.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 786 =====