Chapter 351: Is She Overestimating Us Too Much?

On the open ocean today, who holds the greatest power? Undoubtedly, the Blackpress Pirate League, under the protection of the dragon.

After wiping out all other maritime forces, the Blackpress Pirate League has become an unprecedented behemoth, boasting over sixty large ocean-going ships, hundreds of medium and small cargo vessels, and thousands of small sampans.

But that's as far as it can go—the ocean is vast, yet the population is too small, and the economy is not particularly active. After unifying the entire sea, survival has become the biggest problem, because they can no longer raid as freely as before.

Of course, in the foreseeable future, the number of ships traveling the seas will increase, and the economy will gradually flourish.

Since all pirates have been eliminated, the risk of maritime routes has dropped dramatically; many merchants will inevitably choose sea routes due to lower costs.

Even traveling from the Star Republic all the way south, circling the entire continent along the coast to reach the east, the transportation cost is still lower than overland routes, making it ideal for bulk trade.

Not long ago, Silver Coin told Nagelis in his mind-space that he should organize personnel to start maritime transport, shipping the bird droppings from Dragonfall Valley via the West River of Dragonfall Lake to the sea, then sailing south, bypassing Westwind Cape, and reaching the east directly—saving massive costs.

But developing a maritime route takes time, yet people must eat every day—especially now that all pirates have defected and joined Blackpress, feeding them has become a major problem.

Blackpress's main income comes from protection fees, but the problem is, you can't collect them as aggressively as you used to raid—slow and steady wins the race, right?

With no fewer people but less income, they must increase revenue and cut expenses.

What's the fastest solution? Renting.

Over sixty large ships, hundreds of medium and small ones—leaving them idle will make them rot. With pirates gone, they don't need so many ships; better to rent them out for cargo and passenger transport.

Black Crow couldn't handle this, so Silver Coin finally sent people to assist—but the people Silver Coin sent were… hard to describe.

A group of sailors gathered on deck, clapping loudly: "Clap, clap, clap! Clap, clap, clap! Dragon's Blessing! Enthusiastic Service! Clap, clap, clap! Clap, clap, clap! Favorable Winds! Stormproof!"

Their shouts were loud and painfully awkward—so awkward that listeners felt embarrassed. Inside the cabins, some knights clad in Holy Light Armor wore constipated expressions: "This… are these even pirates?"

"They don't look like pirates. More like goblin merchants."

"This isn't a business. Why 'enthusiastic service'? Who are they serving? The heretics they cut down?"

"These are heretics themselves. 'Dragon's Blessing'? Where did these heretic believers come from? Let's go kill them right now."

"You're overthinking it. Don't you remember what they shouted when they boarded? 'Man on board, ship on board; man dies, ship dies.' If you kill them, the ship will explode. Can you swim to shore?"

"... orget it. I can't swim. I've been vomiting since I got on board. My legs are still weak."

"Our lord is brilliant—he thought of ambushing at sea. We didn't have enough ships, so we rented pirate vessels. When we suddenly storm ashore, Anthony the dog will be stunned."

"Yes, yes, he'll definitely be stunned."

When they stormed ashore, they were indeed stunned.

Two large ships activated their bow ramming arrays, ignoring the rocks along the shore, and plowed straight onto the beach. The front doors opened, and mounted Judgment Knights surged out, charging toward their target.

This was precisely why they had to rent pirate ships: first, high cargo capacity; second, bow ramming arrays capable of beaching directly; third, the bow could be lowered onto the sand, allowing troops inside to rush out immediately for attack.

"Charge! Holy Light Protects! Judgment Unbeatable! Judgment Knights, Long Live! Long… Long… Oh no?"

The Holy Judgment Knights expected to see the enemy formation in chaos—Grand Inquisitor Carlock would exploit their focus on the sea by striking from the flank, scattering and disrupting them.

Then, once they disembarked, they'd simply push forward. This was their original plan—and the simplest, most efficient one under these terrain constraints. More complex plans were impossible due to their inability to control the ships.

But they hadn't expected the plan to collapse so fast. Was Grand Inquisitor Carlock really that incompetent? His corpse had been skewered on a lance and planted on the shore.

Not just Carlock—all the accompanying knights had perished, their bodies treated the same way. So the Judgment Knights disembarking now faced, first and foremost, a forest of corpses.

Meanwhile, Ang's side suffered zero casualties.

This was incredible—but who else could resurrect? As long as their heads weren't completely shattered, they could be revived—and after healing, their skin became even softer and paler than before.

The Judgment Knights stood frozen on the beach, unable to advance or retreat.

Clearly, under enemy readiness, they had to assault uphill from the beach, passing through a forest of corpses.

Though the corpses themselves weren't an obstacle, they were heart-rending—who could march through a forest of still-warm comrades' bodies, then charge a prepared enemy position and keep morale?

At that moment, a cleric was pushed forward on Ang's line—the same one who had sent the signal earlier. He wore a mournful expression and shouted loudly:

"My children, Grand Inquisitor Carlock has betrayed the Light! He launched a treacherous attack on Lord Anthony! His crimes are heinous! He deceived others, leading them astray! Don't be fooled! Surrender! Surrender to the merciful Lord Anthony!"

"Traitor! Damn goblin traitor!" shouted the leading officer among the Judgment Knights, his voice vicious. He was Carlock's loyalist and would never surrender to the enemy—he was already plotting revenge.

"Won't surrender, huh?" Anthony turned to the little angel and whispered.

The little angel beamed, instantly unfurling her true wings and soaring upward.

The Judgment Knights on the beach erupted into chaos: "S… Saint Angel!"

"Don't panic, don't panic—it's just a two-winged low-rank angel. Stay alert."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than light streamed from behind the little angel, and a second pair of wings unfolded.

"F… Four-winged angel!" The Judgment Knights' voices trembled. The greatest difference between four-winged and two-winged angels wasn't combat power—it was the ability to unleash the ultimate technique: Holy Radiance.

They had to scatter—or be obliterated.

"Don't panic, don't panic!" The voice that had just calmed them now sounded shaky: "It's just a four-winged angel! Form ranks! Form ranks!"

They barely formed their formation—when suddenly, the little angel drew a Great Angelic Staff.

"G… Great Angelic Staff?" The Judgment Knights panicked further.

"Don't panic, don't panic—it's just a Great Angelic Staff! Hold formation! Front row, Holy Ward—Ward of Protection!"

Just as everyone assumed the little angel was about to unleash her ultimate attack, she turned and flew back, raising the Great Angelic Staff toward Ang: "Aow!"

Ang shook his head: "Aow!"

"Aow~" The little angel drooped, dejectedly took flight again, raised the Great Angelic Staff, and began aiming.

The Judgment Knights were utterly panicked: "S… She's doing what? Trying to buff the Great Angelic Staff?"

"Looks like it. She asked that ascetic Ang to buff her Great Angelic Staff—he refused."

"A four-winged angel, with a Great Angelic Staff, and she wants a buff? S… She thinks too highly of us, doesn't she?"

"... un!"

The Judgment Knights shouted as one and scattered in all directions.

"Don't run! Don't panic! Hold—" The lead Judgment Knight shouted desperately—but before he finished, a thick beam of light struck him, engulfing his body, then his loyal followers behind him, and carving a trench into the sand beyond.

When the light vanished, every Judgment Knight struck by the holy radiance had disappeared.

No wonder Ang refused to buff it—this power was already overflowing. Add a buff, and she'd blast it out to sea.

But the little angel didn't care. She wanted even greater power. If the power wasn't maximum, she wasn't happy—and if she wasn't happy, she'd vent.

She flipped the staff upside down—it became a Great Angelic Hammer—and charged forward, but Ang, prepared, grabbed her by the collar.

"Aow!"

No need to charge—the Judgment Knights were trapped. They'd just realized the two pirate ships that had beached had quietly raised their bows, and crews on deck were straining at the anchors.

As the anchors were hauled in, the heavy ships were swiftly dragged back into the sea, regaining mobility. Then, the skull flags lowered, and Anthony's emblem flags rose.

"God of Misfortune! Even our ships were arranged by Lord Anthony? His wisdom is everywhere—we lost fairly."

"Hey, hey, hey—you weren't saying that on the ship! You called Lord Anthony 'dog thief'!"

"Got proof?"

"I…"

The now-mobile pirate ships began chasing the smaller vessels brought by the Judgment Knights. These ships lacked beaching capability, so they'd hung back to watch the spectacle—never expecting this outcome.

The small ships couldn't match the large ones and couldn't escape—they soon lowered their sails and surrendered.

Anthony had them all bound and herded to one side. No one cared how he'd handle them—by Anthony's methods, these prisoners could be molded into any shape, flattened or rounded, and would obediently comply.

Nagelis, however, was far more interested in the two large ships at sea. The group boarded them.

"This ship's huge. How many tons is it?" Nagelis asked.

The captain and first mate greeted them, and replied proudly: "Nine hundred tons."

"That's not small. Where's your captain?" Nagelis asked. He didn't recognize any of these people except Black Crow—none of them were familiar, so he couldn't ask any sensitive questions.

The captain pointed toward the distant sea: "Over there."

The sea was boundless, unobstructed. Nagelis looked—saw nothing. Not a ship, not even a flying creature.

But soon, a splash echoed—and three strange vessels surfaced nearby.

They were fully enclosed, olive-nut-shaped vessels, small in size—less than one-tenth the length of their current nine-hundred-ton ship—but each bore a massive ram.

The ram was currently pressed against the hull, connected by iron cables—clearly, tightening the cables would raise it into a slanted angle.

Nagelis instantly recognized the ram's danger. If these three vessels could travel underwater, raising the ram—even at low speed—would pierce an enemy ship's waterline and punch a massive hole in its hull.

One vessel's top hatch opened. First, a snake-person emerged, then Black Crow. Seeing Ang and the others on the ship, she bounced and waved excitedly: "Lord! Lord Nagelis!"

Then she unleashed her aura, stepped onto the sea surface, and used her aura to propel herself across the water—running across the waves.

But her power couldn't sustain it for long. Halfway there, she cried "Oh no!" and plunged into the water.

She crawled out, dripping wet, and grinned awkwardly: "Too far… miscalculation… miscalculation… Achoo."

Ang waved his hand gently—elemental repulsion instantly dried her clothes.

Black Crow shook off the dampness, then knelt on one knee: "Hail Lord Ang!"

The captain and first mate trembled, exchanged stunned glances, then dropped to their knees as well.

Black Crow was a legend among pirates—the so-called King of the Four Seas. No one except the Golden Dragon had ever seen her kneel. Who was this "Lord Ang"?

Ang tilted his head, silent—but waved his hand, lifting her with elemental force. See? Ang wasn't just good at making people awkward.

Black Crow asked excitedly: "Lord, why are you here? Did you come to see me?"

Nagelis rolled his eyes: "Yes, yes, we came specially to see you. How've you been? What's going on? How'd you end up with the Holy Church?"

Black Crow ignored Nagelis's eye-roll and explained the situation with the ships.

"So that's how it is. Renting out ships? Not a bad idea. Not something your dim-witted brain could've thought up." Nagelis said.

Black Crow scratched her head awkwardly: "Uh… Silver Coin sent professional advisors to come up with it."

Nagelis slapped his waist: "I knew it! I knew I wasn't wrong!"

Black Crow smiled shyly, as if praised—then realized: Nagelis wasn't wrong… which meant she really was a dim-witted brain?

"What are those ships? So weird. Where did you find them?" Nagelis asked about the strange vessels everyone was curious about.

"Oh, those are the Unicorn Whales—a type of semi-submersible capable of brief underwater travel. Snake-person technology. But since their god died, they couldn't build them anymore. These three were built with help from Lord Brucek."

"Oh, that kid? Alright, I'll go ask it about the mechanism later." Nagelis said, knowing he couldn't get the full explanation from the dim-witted Night Raven.

That kid?! The captain and first mate tensed involuntarily—Golden Dragon Bruce had just been called "that kid" by this juvenile dragon? Just who the hell were they?

"The Church of Light chartered my ship to transport people—I immediately knew they were setting an ambush. Fine, I let them charter it since they paid well enough. But I feared they'd break their word and attack my ship and crew afterward, so I had my narwhal silently follow them underwater. If they dared lay a hand on my people, I'd wait until they seized the ship, then ram and sink them all, drowning them in the sea."

The captain and first mate wiped away cold sweat.

"By the way, my lord, while I was hiding underwater just now, I spotted some structures and several statues beneath the sea."