Chapter 364: Interception on the River

Before climbing onto his Black Dragon, the Heart of Corruption temporarily transferred command of the fleet to Kanowar. Watching the True Dragon stirring up the winds and waves in the sky, every Black Ark pirate captain realized that what followed would be a race between life and death.

The Bi Hai Nuzhu had returned; could her Dragon fleet be far behind? No Elf had time to argue about who was responsible for the intelligence failure; they pushed the Black Ark's power cores to the overload limit to make a quick getaway.

As Luoxiya's deputy, Kanowar knew more. During their raiding, they had captured two Dragon-Blooded—descendants born from the mating of a True Dragon and a mortal, or perhaps descendants of descendants.

Although Dragon-Blooded were rare, they had existed for a long time, so there were quite a few Dragon-Blooded born within the Cathayan Celestial Empire. Beyond status, the blood of a True Dragon primarily granted them stronger physiques and spellcasting abilities.

These two Dragon-Blooded wanted to take responsibility for their people and thus stayed to fight, but they had underestimated the Dark Elf air force. The Dragon Horses they rode might not be stopped by Harpies, but the massive Black Arks carried apex predators like Manticores and Black Dragons!

The ringleaders of the Blessed Scoundrels believed that if they presented this man and woman to the Witch King and the Witch Queen, the two might even reward them with the rank of Dreadlord if they were in a good mood. Such rare specimens would be highly sought after, whether in the boudoirs or on the altars.

Conversely, however, laying hands on the Dragon-Blooded meant an endless feud with the rulers of Zhendan. The Heart of Corruption personally went out to entangle Yin Yin, and after the Sorceresses spent some time dispelling the vortex, the fleet advanced rapidly.

Seeing that they were not far from the river mouth, Kanowar suddenly discovered that the Jade River beneath the ship was actually flowing backward! While marveling at Zhendan's terrifying war potential, he was also glad that the Black Ark had its own propulsion; sailing against the current would at most just slow them down.

After sailing a while longer with his heart in his throat, they were almost at the sea after passing the bend ahead. The pirate captain had just relaxed and prepared to have some fun with the slave girls when the scene just now occurred.

"By Maselan! What is that? The Ironclads of the Haimenguan Dwarfs, how could they be here and mixed up with the Cathayans?"

He roared at the fleet filling the bend. Compared to the treacherous and cunning nature of his kin, Kanowar had put more of his talent points into his physical durability, which also made the Heart of Corruption trust him a bit more.

Dark Elf society was on par with the Skaven when it came to infighting. Unlike the Grey Claw High Priest who hoped to maintain a facade of unity, Malekith openly encouraged this behavior to maintain his supreme authority.

"My Lord, what do we do?" Two small Black Ark Admirals held up their shields and sought orders from Kanowar.

"Has your brain been scorched by potions? Is that even a question? In the name of the Master of Blades Aidelazuo, charge through for me!" The Admiral grabbed one of the guys by the collar and roared.

"Kill, kill, kill! Glory to the Druchii!"

On the *Tower of the Blessed Scoundrels*, a large number of Dark Elves brandished their weapons and screamed. They had no other choice; either charge out a path to survival or sink to the bottom of the Jade River.

"Fire! Hit them hard!"

Watching the approaching Black Ark fleet, Sinuoli also gasped. He had not expected the *Tower of the Blessed Scoundrels* and the *Palace of Pleasure* to be much larger than the one he had sunk off the coast of Tilea. The dense artillery fire landing on them struggled to achieve any visible, significant results.

"Shoot! Anyone who dares to block the path of the Blessed Scoundrels will only meet destruction!"

As the distance gradually closed, the Admiral drew his Scimitar and hissed. Firing ports across the tower were flipped open, and Reaper Bolt Throwers were pushed out from within.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

"Rat-tat-tat!"

For a moment, two different sounds of piercing the air rang out over the defensive position.

"Raise shields! Watch out and dodge!"

As soon as he saw the shadows of the bolt throwers, Sinuoli reacted. These war machines were the most notorious tools of the Dark Elves. They were improved from the Yingzhua Nupao, trading a small portion of range for greater lethality.

"Grimnir's beard! Replace the wounded, maintain fire!"

Even with the warning, the deck of the treasure ship was filled with wails. The Reaper Bolt Throwers could fire a volley of hail-like shrapnel or a single long arrow capable of piercing dragon scales.

The Dark Elves fired these two types of projectiles mixed together; the Dragon Guards and Jade Warriors holding shields in the front row failed to play their intended role.

"I suppose I have to do it." Sinuoli muttered, swinging his hammer to prepare to strike his Doom Anvil to help the Cathayans resist the second round of fire, when he noticed the lady-in-waiting Jiuniang walking quickly out of the main hall.

"How dare mere stray arrows harm the warriors of the Celestial Empire! You bring this upon yourselves!" Seeing this, the Jade Blood Clan woman swung the round fan in her hand fiercely, and a dark, faint light screen, which one would not notice without looking closely, enveloped the treasure ship.

"Whoosh, whoosh!" The unfathomable darkness and howling gale obstructed the second round of arrows from the Reaper Bolt Throwers in mid-air, even reflecting them back. The Dwarfs who witnessed this scene were stunned; such unique sorcery was unheard of in the Old World.

"I hope they are still this fertile when we get back to the slave pits of Kalongde-Ka'er! Is it the 'Arrow-Returning Art' again? Why is the range so big?"

Kanuduoer cursed irritably. Although the Dark Elves were prepared for this move and most of the bolt throwers were deployed behind the city walls, the trajectories of the reflected arrows were scattered, still causing a wave of panic.

"Someone, bring out those two wretches! The Cathayan sorcerers can't reflect their attacks!" The Black Ark pirate captain sneered. Following his order, a "creak, creak" sound came from the dungeon of the *Tower of the Blessed Scoundrels*.

A moment later, two massive Shenkan dripping with blood were pushed out by a group of guards. These guys wore masks polished like mirrors, and their exposed skin revealed an eerie flush.

All this strangeness stemmed from the terrifying semi-serpentine creatures locked on the Shenkan. Legend had it that they were once noble sorceresses of Ghrond who were cursed by the Lady of Desire, Asati, for their pursuit of beauty.

She stripped the sorceresses of their beautiful forms and bound them in the shells of monsters. The cruel goddess even reduced most of the Medusas' intelligence, leaving only a tiny bit for them to feel the torment brought by "loss."

"Bloodwrack Shrine!"

Sinuoli was observing the enemy situation with a telescope when he suddenly felt his blood boiling, as if it were about to gush out from his pores. Fortunately, the Dwarf's innate resistance was high enough, and his own strength far exceeded his peers, which bought him the time to drop the telescope.

"How do the Blessed Scoundrels even have such monsters! No wonder they dare to penetrate deep into the heart of Zhendan; it really wasn't easy for Fuzhou to hold out."