We agreed to set sail, so you'd become the ruler of the deep sea?

Chapter 179 [After Calamity, Calamity Continues]

Thick black smoke billowed, and a rain of fire fell from the sky, melting icebergs—a scene resembling the end of the world.

But on the sea, which was glowing red from the firelight, the presence of the Black Swan and Shane was like vegetation under the sun and rain, or a young animal suckling milk, growing strong and healthy.

[Overall Qualifications: 2.8 → 3.0!]

[Talent: Chaos Runes (Rare) → (Epic)!]

[Black Swan: "Mysterious" +2!]

[Current "Storm Power": No attribute (0), Extreme Cold (0), Ember (1)!]

[Career fit: 50%!]

Looking at the text that appeared on the panel, Xia En clenched his fist.

A mysterious, molten power was slowly flowing through his body, gradually subsiding and disappearing.

Xia En's lips curled up slightly; the haul from this raid on the storm was quite substantial.

Not only did it improve overall stats, but it also upgraded the quality of the [Chaos Rune] talent to Epic!

More importantly.

This plundering storm made Xia En clearly feel that he had taken a big step on his way to the fourth tier.

Some kind of barrier, seemingly unseen, is being pried open.

"It seems we need to speed up the search for special storms."

Xia En muttered to himself, then patted the steering wheel in front of him.

"How are you, Little Black? Have you eaten your fill?"

"We're full, it's time for us to leave."

The feeling of being watched was not obvious and did not seem to be malicious.

However, Xia En keenly sensed that the opponent's strength was far superior to his own.

His intuition told him that the best course of action now was to leave this area of ​​water as soon as possible!

"Woo——"

The long, drawn-out whistle of the Black Swan echoed, responding to Shane's question.

Then its sails billowed in the gale, and the steam turbines deep inside the cabin emitted a heart-pounding rumble.

The ship's speed immediately increased, and it raced across the sea.

During this process, the dark red magic patterns on the surface of the ship lit up.

Under the glow of the heavenly fire, the Black Swan seemed to suddenly burst into flames, roaring and neighing as it sailed forward relentlessly amidst the rising firelight.

Before the helm, the handsome captain smiled, exuding confidence, as if he had become the master of this storm.

On the deck, Yan Yan stared blankly at the scene, his mind reeling.

He vaguely understood why Captain Shane had left him on the ship.

On Ice Island and the former Emerald Island, Yan Yan only witnessed Xia En as a warrior and leader.

Right now, he truly felt Xia En's indomitable spirit and lofty ambition as captain.

That's a dream to conquer the stars and the sea!

Before leaving this sea area, Yan Yan glanced at the direction of [Ice Island] with a complicated look.

Regardless, he was going to leave the island where he had lived for hundreds of years.

Although the island is as cold as its name most of the time, it also imprisons itself like a cage.

But those experiences, whether beautiful or cruel, seem to be etched deep within his being, never to be forgotten.

Yan Yan also knew clearly that there was still a part of his memories that were vague and unclear.

In that memory, flames still occupied most of the time.

What is somewhat clearer is the last fragment of memory—

All I could hear was the chaotic and noisy sound of fighting.

Around him were shadowy figures, like guards, and buildings of indistinct shapes burned and collapsed all around.

In the distance, the city streets are distorted and dimly lit, like phantoms.

And what he was sitting on seemed to be a...

What was it again?

No matter how hard Yan Yan tried, he couldn't recall it.

Suddenly, he felt an unprecedented dull pain in his brain, which stopped him from thinking.

Yan Yan closed his eyes, then opened them again, and turned his head to look in the direction of the volcanic eruption.

After so much time, the volcanic eruption has gradually weakened, but it is still spewing lava and black smoke, making a series of booming sounds.

Previously, Yan Yan only thought the roaring sound was noisy.

But now, he could hear a strange message in the roar, like the murmur of a volcano.

It was as if the volcano was saying goodbye to him—

We'll meet again...

When you awaken again, all the traitors will die!

Yan Yan looked bewildered. He didn't know why he understood the volcano's voice, nor did he comprehend the information in those words.

Xia En vaguely sensed Yan Yan's abnormality, turned around and glanced at him thoughtfully.

The eruption of this volcano may indeed be closely related to Yan Yan's departure.

but……

So what?

Everyone has secrets.

Shane has one, and so do his crew.

At least for now, Yan Yan is his crew member, and that's enough.

Meanwhile, Yan Yan thought to himself, "No matter who I was in the past, I am now a crew member of the Black Swan, nothing more."

The two exchanged a knowing glance and remained silent in tacit agreement.

……

……

[King], in the control room.

After a brief moment of embarrassment, Gold's expression returned to normal.

But the others in the room couldn't hide their strange expressions.

After all, that's Colonel Gold!

He is a seventh-tier powerhouse who can be called a "legend"!
The captain of the Black Swan, who was at most a fourth-tier ship, actually caused Colonel Gold to lose his composure for a moment.

That alone is enough for the other party to be proud of.

After hesitating for a long time, the soldier who had reported the situation earlier finally couldn't bear the silence in the room and asked.

"Colonel Gold, what do we do now?"

"Should we take action against that ship? It's still on the federal wanted list, after all."

Upon hearing this, Gold snapped out of his stone-sculpted state of thought.

He shook his head and said, "No need."

The young colonel chuckled and said, "I only remembered the name of this ship because of a junior colleague's request."

"Unexpectedly, this captain really gave me a pleasant surprise."

...Junior?
Upon hearing this, the people present began to speculate wildly.

The clerk who recognized the Black Swan was reminded of the Platinum Knight, Carl Rice, who was said to have some connection with the ship.

As far as he knew, Colonel Gold was the creator of the Platinum Knight!

The Creator, as the name suggests, is the master who creates the Platinum Knight.

According to common sense.

Steam knights like Karles are created with their strength fixed at the moment they leave the factory, much like the low-level steam dolls in the Rusty Wasteland. But Karles is different; from the day it was created, it has been constantly getting stronger and stronger.

From first order to second order, and then from second order to third order...

Now, that [Platinum Knight] has crossed the threshold of the fourth tier and seems capable of continuing to grow stronger.

There are even rumors that Karl-Rays has obtained special technology from the Apocalypse Merchant Guild and is about to become one of the legendary Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Regardless of which version is used, it is generally acknowledged that Carles has a bright future in the Federation.

Colonel Gold's mention of this matter at this time is likely an indication of his stance on the Black Swan.

At the same time, it also served as a warning to the vampires in the room.

The clerk was quick-witted and quickly figured out the ins and outs of the matter, then secretly glanced at her vampire colleague next to her.

As an important warship of the Federation Navy, the position on the King has always been coveted by various forces.

It's perfectly normal for vampires to have a few people planted here.

However, no vampire who has reached this position is a fool.

They quickly understood what Colonel Gold meant and became as quiet as a few quails.

The clerk sighed inwardly.

Can't these vampires be a little dumber?
He wanted to see a good show!

"We have important business to attend to at the Cold Sea this time, so there's no need to waste our energy on such trivial matters."

Colonel Gold stood up, his deep gray eyes finally revealing a lion-like majesty.

"Now, full speed ahead to the north!"

"Our destination is the far north!"

Most of the people on the ship knew that further north of the Frigid Sea lay a region called the Far North.

There are endless ice fields there.

Cold is the only dominant theme of that land.

Buried beneath the ice are old-time research stations and the relics of explorers.

The reason why the name "Far North" became known throughout the Federation was that a month ago, Federation experts deciphered a document from an old-era legacy.

Several of his sentences brought this almost forgotten land to everyone's attention—

The great flood came from the far north.

The other passage is...

After one calamity comes another.

After the flood, there will still be floods!

Even though the latter part of the statement sounded like an irresponsible prophecy made by some charlatan, it still attracted the attention of the federal leadership.

The bloody reality of the old civilization being submerged by floods remains vividly before our eyes.

Those ruins buried deep in the sea constantly remind the rulers of the Federation just how terrible a true calamity can be.

Compared to previous civilizations, the civilizations that have emerged on the various islands are still in their infancy.

It's like a newborn baby that happens to receive "milk" from the old era, which allows it to grow up quickly.

But in essence, it remains very fragile.

No one wants another great flood to sweep across the world and destroy new civilizations once again.

The King and God came for this very reason.

……

……

Shaen was completely unaware of the secrets within the Federation and the purpose of the [King's Ship].

He didn't even know that the far north was the source of the great flood.

At this moment, Shane had just sailed out of the range of the [Ember Storm] and had not yet reunited with the [Diamond Star] when he saw a scene that he would never forget.

On the sea to the northwest, a huge, dark gray steel warship was sailing majestically northward.

Its towering bow resembles a mountain floating on an icy sea, exuding an immense sense of oppression.

It features heavy armor, towering smokestacks, a uniquely structured bridge, and multi-gun turrets reminiscent of battleship main guns.

Due to its enormous size, its speed does not appear to be fast.

But its progress is so natural and inevitable.

The waves, icebergs, and ice fields ahead were all torn apart and crushed like fragile foam boards, demonstrating pure and powerful violence.

Nothing could stop this giant ship's advance, not even for a second.

It is the king of this sea!
Seeing this scene, Xia En was deeply shaken, and his eyes revealed shock.

For some reason, he recalled the scene when he first returned from his first sea voyage after transmigrating.

Back then, he looked at the Blood Duke, which was several times larger than the Black Swan, with the same gaze, standing there like a lackey.

Now, times have changed.

The Blood Duke has sunk to the bottom of the sea and become history forever.

The Black Swan became bigger and stronger through repeated battles and upgrades.

Thinking of this, a surge of fervor rose in Xia En's heart.

One day, the Black Swan will grow to the size of this steel warship!
At that moment, Xiao Hei's voice rang in Xia En's mind.

Master, that ship is so beautiful...

Xia En's lips twitched slightly.

It seems that without me having to remind them, the Black Swan already has a new target.

However, as the Black Swan's hull level increases, the total amount of enhancement materials required also increases.

To put it simply, it means they've become able to eat more.

Taking into account the gluttonous monarch starving for food deep inside the ship's hold and the consumption of each crew member, the daily resource consumption is getting bigger and bigger.

Not to mention, there's now an additional ship, the Diamond Star, to maintain.

"You don't know the cost of firewood and rice until you're in charge of the household!"

Xia En sighed, and a thought popped into his mind.

"If only a few more ignorant pirate ships came."

After a brief moment of reflection, Shane quickly rejoined the Diamond Star and continued south as planned, heading towards the Magnetic Thunder Sea.

As for encountering this steel warship, it was ultimately just a minor incident.

……

……

a few days later.

On a sea surface tinged with a faint purple hue, the mysterious forces of lightning and magnetic fields are particularly active.

High in the sky, thick black clouds were piled up.

Rumbling--

A low rumble of thunder rolled on, followed by a brief silence, then a deafening roar, and a terrifying tree-shaped bolt of lightning streaked across the clouds.

This was not a sign of an approaching storm, but rather that thunder was almost ubiquitous in this area of ​​the sea.

For ordinary ships, this area is practically a "no-go zone"!
But today, more than one ship has intruded into this area.

On the undulating sea, two ships of very different shapes came speeding in one after the other.

The ship in front was clearly a pirate ship, with a purple lightning bolt painted on its sail.

The ship behind was a beautiful mechanical vessel with a silver-white hull, bearing a distinct Federation style.

It is indeed the Thunder and the Heron!
At this moment, Loren, the "Thunder Fang" on the deck of the "Thunder" ship, was covered in dust and couldn't help but roar behind him.

"It's been three months already, why are you still pursuing me?!"

(End of this chapter)