Chapter 238

Chapter 238: Playing Tricks

“You say there’s a ghost ship roaming near this island?”

Chef Zhao nodded. “That’s right. People saw it before we arrived, but it was too far away to guarantee it’s the ghost ship that scares the island’s residents.”

Li Hui’s eyes gleamed with understanding as he explained, “The records say that after a disaster occurred on the ship, all the crew died and the ship drifted incessantly due to the monsoon winds. Over time, it accumulated dark energy, transforming into a ghost ship filled with ominous atmosphere. Such things are not uncommon. The crew was fierce and lived in cramped quarters for long periods, making it easy to build up volatile emotions, increasing the likelihood of them becoming spirits after death.”

“Boss, you are incredibly knowledgeable! It seems ghost ships are actually quite common!” Chef Zhao said as he reached for a roasted sweet potato from the table, chuckling as he ate it, which annoyed Huo Qiniang, who tugged at his ear.

Li Hui laughed and said, “Qiniang should eat as well. Let’s take the Mysterious Water Pearl to the shore after this, and let Chongguang go look for the ghost ship to see if it can trace its whereabouts.”

“Understood!” Huo Qiniang placed great importance on hierarchy. Even when Li Hui invited her to the table, she never dared overstep her bounds. She only regretted not having properly trained the gluttonous Chef Zhao and vowed to discipline him when she got the chance.

After coming out of Wan Nest Island and struggling below ground, they had finally escaped to the surface. Would they not seize the chance to relax? That would be too unkind to themselves!

Thus, when there were tasks, Qiniang and the glutton took on the hard work, while Li Hui pulled a lounge chair to the back of Sparrow Tower and lay down to bask in the sun. There was no other choice; his fair skin made him look healthier when he was a bit tanned. He didn’t want to be called a pretty boy.

Under the blazing sun, feeling warm all over and just as he was about to drift off, the glutton rushed over, out of breath. “It worked! I told you Chongguang wasn’t raised for nothing. Hey, just two hours and we found the ghost ship!”

“Found it?” Li Hui removed the leaves covering his face, doubt echoing in his voice.

Chef Zhao nodded vigorously. “Indeed! With Chongguang on the job, it’s like having three people! Look at the ship’s direction; it seems to be avoiding the mirage snails. We need to hurry, as Chongguang is nodding and shaking his head, suggesting there’s quite a distance from this island.”

“Alright, let’s pack up and go see,” Li Hui stood up, feeling pleasantly warmed after sunbathing for two hours. Although he couldn’t create talismans, his fingers itched to work. Even though Chef Zhao and Huo Qiniang had some artifacts on hand, they needed to save them for emergencies. The key was still to find the markets and gather artifact fragments; otherwise, the success rate for creating talismans would truly be painful.

There was nothing much to prepare. After greeting Lord Pan, the three rode on Ao Chongguang, speeding away. About half an hour later, several blood-billed sparrows soared from Sparrow Tower, disappearing into the horizon in no time.

As the sun began to set, Li Hui spotted a multi-masted sailboat from a distance.

Chef Zhao pointed ahead, saying, “That ship is fast! Chongguang’s speed chased it for so long, and there were several close calls when it nearly got away. Thankfully, Qiniang could do simple divination, or we would have lost it.”

Li Hui stroked his chin and shook his head. “No, I don’t sense any dark energy. Qiniang, perform a divination to see how many people are onboard.”

“Okay.” Qiniang quickly took out the divination tool, staring at the compass needle, and confidently said, “There are no ghost ships ahead; at least a hundred sailors are on the ship, just fooling those island residents without cultivation.”

“Look! Black smoke is rising from the ship!” Chef Zhao chuckled. “What is this? Producing black smoke and changing the sails to rags? It turns out they’re just playing tricks.”

Li Hui had sharp eyes and replied, “No, this ship isn’t just an ordinary sea vessel. The underbelly has mechanisms for navigation, and they deliberately set it up to appear as a ghost ship in the eyes of ordinary people.”

“Really? So impressive, with mechanisms too?”

“I’ll go ahead to take a look. You follow behind. If there’s danger, retreat immediately,” Li Hui instructed as he felt the wind rising beneath him, lifting him into the air. The strength of the Heavenly and Earthly Arrays was formidable; short-distance flight could even rival a Condensed Essence Stage practitioner.

His figure flew through the sky and landed on the ship’s mast. The crew quickly noticed the unexpected guest and shouted, “Quick! A practitioner has boarded our Minghai Gate warship!”

“Bang! Bang! Bang…” Crossbows fired almost instantly, and the crew’s reaction was surprisingly quick.

“Whoosh!” An unusual noise followed as the afterimage at the top of the mast shattered; Li Hui was no longer in his original position.

“Who dares to board my Minghai Gate warship?” The voice came as an old man in half-copper armor stepped out of the cabin, flanked by two brawny men. His eyes were icy grey and emanated a chilling aura, looking quite frightening.

“This ship is excellent; I’ll buy it for double the price to hire the crew,” Li Hui stated, standing on the ship’s railing without knowing when he had arrived there.

“Ha ha ha ha!” The old man’s brawny companions laughed, one of them glaring at Li Hui as if to assert dominance. “Where did this meat bun come from? Spouting nonsense! As long as there’s a ship, we can hire as many crew members as we want. Just call out at the island, and anyone can be chosen; why pay to hire?”

Another of the big men laughed and said, “Wen Lao, a meat bun has come knocking! This kid isn’t even a Condensed Essence Stage practitioner, knows nothing, and is probably a distressed rich kid or a thief’s target. The way he suddenly flew over must mean he has a flying artifact. Let’s deal with him quietly, and we’ll share the spoils evenly among the crew.”

Li Hui acknowledged his unfamiliarity with maritime customs. Upon hearing this, he realized that the other party wasn’t good. Why bother being polite? He had come specifically for a ship. If it were an ordinary ship, it might be one thing, but they just happened to encounter a vessel with mechanisms. No one said that a good-looking person couldn’t become a pirate. Being a pirate specializing in robbing pirates was something to be proud of.

“Attack!”

This was the first skirmish at sea. Li Hui didn’t dare to hold back. The old man before him was shrouded in mystery, so he drew his Ice Picking Short Sword. His whole body shone with golden light patterns, activating the Spirit Motion Nine Patterns, boosting with the Reverse Scale, and with the Seize the Day Talisman, the speed increased to eighteen times, causing the blade to hum with power.

“Not good!” The old man’s expression changed in fear. His icy grey eyes turned purple, then gold, tightly locking onto the blazing short sword. However, the speed was still overwhelming; as he made evasive maneuvers, his copper armor was crashing and clanging.

The old man’s two brawny companions, merely caught in the crossfire, were instantly turned to carbon ash. They were only Spirit Motion Stage cultivators with modest strength; their artifacts and protective gear exploded simultaneously, unable to withstand the terrifying heat.

The heat absorbed by the Ice Picking Short Sword was immense; just a casual swing could burn through gold and iron. The Cold Armor Emperor used it to pick ice; although it wasn’t a magical treasure, it could be considered an exotic treasure with remarkable material properties.

With Li Hui’s current height, wielding this short sword felt perfect, as if it had been forged specifically for him, and he handled it seamlessly.

“No!” The old man’s chest blazed crimson as the copper armor began to cave in. Just as he was about to react, the second sword light was already upon him, leaving him no chance to perish together.

The head rolled away, and before it could even reach the corner, it had already turned to ashes.

Li Hui waved his hand to put away the Ice Picking Short Sword and turned to the crew members who stood dumbfounded on the deck, saying, “This ship belongs to me now! Anyone wanting to leave can jump into the sea!”