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

Chapter 292 [Ghost Ship] [Liuli Island]

Before Xia En could process what was happening before him...

On the panel, several lines of information flowed by like a waterfall.

[The obsession with the "Diamond Star" has been dispelled!]

[The Diamond Princess has been restored from damaged to complete! All attributes have been upgraded!]

The spirit of the Diamond Star has chosen you as its master!

[Overall Qualifications: 12 → 17!]

[Diamond Star unlocks the Ghost Ship feature!]

[Quality: Legend]

[Description: The Diamond Star, resurrected from destruction, returns from the Secret Sea, becoming a ghost wandering the vast ocean.]

[Can enter "Ghost Ship" mode, greatly increasing speed, granting immunity to most physical attacks, significantly increasing resistance to all attributes, and greatly increasing durability recovery speed.]

……

[Diamond Star unlocks a special feature: Mirror Reflection!]

[Quality: Epic]

[Description: The Diamond Star has submitted to you, but it does not wish to remain on the surface of the sea.]

It's willing to hide in the reflection of the "Black Swan" to protect you.

When reflected, the "Black Swan" receives a moderate boost to all its attributes, making it impossible to detect the "Diamond Star" using conventional methods.

……

……

at the same time.

Xia En could clearly feel a massive secret power surging into his body, constantly transforming his limbs and bones, filling every strand of his flesh.

This is precisely the effect of [Captain's Majesty].

As the Diamond Star's status changed from "damaged" to "complete," the ship's attributes underwent another dramatic transformation.

Before this, although the Diamond Star's various stats were also very strong, they were still far from the "Noah's Ark" that Shane had expected.

Only after the two ships were merged into one, and the crucial defects were repaired, did they undergo a complete transformation.

Thanks to the boost from [Captain's Majesty], Shane's overall stats skyrocketed from 12 to 17!

It should be noted that the fifth-tier advancement ritual only increased his stats from 9.5 to 12.

—While that's because the fifth-order ritual focuses more on mastering secret power and tempering one's will, it's enough to illustrate how exaggerated the transformation of the Diamond Starship is.

This was quite a surprise for Xia En.

"call……"

Xia En took a deep breath and used his powerful mental strength to calm down the secret power within his body.

At the same time, his entire body trembled at a strange frequency—a special method of physical training that could help Shane quickly adapt to his strengthened physique.

Only with his current mental strength and meticulous control could he achieve this.

While absorbing this power, Shane's gaze fell on the two newly unlocked features of the Diamond Starship.

The [Ghost Ship] trait needs no further explanation; it can be summed up in one word—

powerful!
Pure power!
When Shane saw the ghostly flames around the Diamond Star, he thought it was some kind of illusion or a flashy special effect.

But now it seems that the flame contained some kind of unique secret power, and the reason for its formation was also extremely unique.

It is a flame generated by the reaction of the three secret powers: the Lord of Radiance, the Mist, and the [Secret Sea]. No wonder it has so many strange effects.

Moreover, there's something about the [Ghost Ship] feature that particularly pleases Shane.

Awesome!

Imagine, when other ships are besieging the Black Swan, suddenly a ghost ship emitting will-o'-the-wisps sails in menacingly; how many people would be terrified?

Xia En's absurd idea of ​​"racing on the sea in a ghost ship" seems to have come true now.

However, after seeing the description of the [Mirror Reflection] property, Shane's expression became somewhat strange.

What does it mean to be unwilling to show one's face on the sea?

The Diamond Princess cruise ship has this kind of temper?

After thinking about it carefully, Xia En felt that there was some justification for it.

Because of the legend of the Diamond Star ghost ship, its past deeds have not been forgotten by the ships of the Seven Seas; on the contrary, they are often brought up.

For sailors and captains at sea, it was just casual conversation.

But for the Diamond Star, these are bloody scars.

It probably doesn't want to show itself at sea because it doesn't want others to point fingers at it, which is why it chose to hide in the reflection of the Black Swan.

Thinking about this, Xia En felt more like the Diamond Star was a gloomy, landmine-like woman.

"The spirits of different ships do indeed have different personalities..."

Xia En grinned and gently touched the mast beside him.

But whether it's an energetic girl or a landmine girl, they're both his boats, and Xia En likes them both.

As he stroked the mast, Shane used his [Communicating with Ship Spirit] talent to whisper to the [Diamond Star].

"Now, you are mine."

"It's a pleasure to travel with you on the journey ahead."

【……Um. 】

After a rather long wait, Shane finally heard a response from the ship's spirit, the Diamond Star.

Moreover, even so, its consciousness only lasted for a moment before dissipating, and it immediately hid after responding.

Xia En felt like a little black cat with its fur standing on end, hiding in a corner and watching him warily.

Such a strong sense of vigilance...

Xia En's mood grew increasingly strange, but thinking of the fate of the Diamond Star, he felt a pang of pity.

Moreover, at the moment of their first contact, Shane also sensed a deep-seated intimacy beneath its guarded exterior.

So, Xia En started rambling on and on.

"From now on, we'll be inseparable partners. There's no need to be so polite, and you don't need to be afraid of me."

Would I ever harm you?

"By the way, the name 'Diamond Star' is too hard to pronounce. How about... Little Diamond? Little Stone? Little Diamond?"

The Diamond Star, which had been silent until now, finally couldn't hold back any longer and whispered something in a very low voice.

[It sounds...awful...]

【Change……】

Its way of expressing chill is clumsy, unlike the natural and smooth way the Black Swan expresses it.

With a slight smile, Xia En guessed that the Diamond Star would react, and then uttered the nickname he had already thought of.

"Xiao Xing! That's a great name!"

"Our future journey is to the stars and the sea!"

The Diamond Princess clearly didn't think the name was great, but it was still better than those other random names, so they had to accept it with a bit of regret.

After that, Xiaoxing's consciousness hid away again, and she stopped responding no matter what Xia En said.

Xia En wasn't in a hurry about this.

Deepening the relationship and changing Xiaoxing's personality is certainly not something that can be done in a day or two.

Fortunately, they still have a lot of time to spend together in the future.

Soon, with a thought, Shane broke free from the Diamond Star, which was hidden in the reflection, and returned to the deck of the Black Swan.

Joey, of course, stood safely beside him.

"Captain Shane!"

"Captain, what just happened?" As soon as the two appeared on the deck, Faye and Trish immediately surrounded them, their faces full of concern.

An, clad in heavy armor, stepped forward, and Xia En could almost see the worry in his eyes through the armor.

Even Vivian, who was usually as lazy as a salted fish, floated out and blinked her eyes curiously.

It's no wonder the crew members were so worried.

The scene that just happened was truly terrifying.

The two Diamond Starships charged forward without reservation, their ghostly flames soaring into the sky, their roaring waves crashing against the sea...

Seeing that spectacular scene, even though the crew had great confidence in Shane, they couldn't help but doubt that he would be smashed to pieces in such a collision.

What happened next surprised them even more.

Two large ships, similar in appearance but different in character, miraculously merged into one after colliding.

Shane and Joey then disappeared.

If it weren't for Faia's calm persuasion of the others, the crew might have already boarded that ghost ship.

Fortunately, the captain reappeared unharmed.

Moreover, in Fei Ya's keen perception, the captain's aura seemed to have become much stronger.

Instead, the massive Diamond Star suddenly disappeared?
All I can say is, he truly lives up to his reputation as Captain Shane!
Fei Ya sighed inwardly.

He hadn't forgotten the first time he met Xia En at the bar.

At that time, he had not yet overcome the hidden dangers of the vampire bloodline and was forced to drink heavily to relieve his thirst for blood. The two became acquainted through a fight.

However, at that time, Fei Ya's strength was slightly superior to Xia En's.

But right now, his rank is still at the third level, while Captain Xia En is already a fifth-level expert, and most likely not just an ordinary fifth-level expert!

This cannot be blamed on Fei Ya; by the standards of a typical secret path practitioner, he has already advanced very quickly.

However, the bloodline of the vampires is, after all, the bloodline of a long-lived species, and the improvement of their strength depends on the accumulation of time.

Another point is...

Shane's promotion was too fast!
It's something that's unprecedented and unparalleled; you probably can't find another one like it in the entire Seven Seas.

It would be a lie to say that Fei Ya had no regrets, but he was at peace with himself.

On the one hand, as a steam mechanic and a priest, Feiya has never liked fighting and killing.

He felt fulfilled dealing with the ship's steam system every day.

On the other hand, he still has a long life ahead of him, and perhaps one day in the future he will be able to have another good sparring match with Captain Shane.

Unaware of what Fei Ya was thinking, Xia En simply told everyone, "I'm fine."

"However, how much time has passed since we boarded the Diamond Star?"

Fia replied, "It shouldn't have been more than five minutes."

Xia En thought to himself, "It hasn't even been five minutes..."

His experience in the space of obsession felt exceptionally long, but in reality, it was very short.

No wonder all the pirates who boarded the ghost ship disappeared.

They probably don't know how many times they've "reset" in the space of obsession, ultimately becoming completely lost within it.

Honestly.

This boarding was one of the most dangerous of all of Xia En's many adventures.

If Joey hadn't happened to be nearby, he might have really fallen for The Undertaker's trick.

All I can say is that Shane was pretty lucky.

Fortunately, the gains from this adventure were also very substantial.

It wasn't just an improvement in overall qualities; more importantly, the conversation with Edward allowed Shane to learn about some past secrets and even the inner workings of the Truth Society.

The unknown is the scariest thing.

Now, the veil of mystery surrounding the [Truth Society] has finally been lifted by Shane.

and……

Xia En turned his head and glanced at Joey beside him.

The silver-haired girl's eyes were slightly red, but her emotions had stabilized, and she even felt a sense of relief.

Clearly, meeting Edward helped Joey resolve some of her past issues and gave her a longer-term goal.

This is undoubtedly a great thing.

"Captain?"

Joey looked at Shane with a puzzled expression, then suddenly smiled slyly, her smile as bright and beautiful as a blooming flower.

“My father said he was very confident leaving me in the captain’s care…”

Xia En couldn't help but blush, unsure of what to say.

However, Joey didn't want to put Shane in a difficult position and quickly asked.

"Captain, where are we going next?"

Xia En looked into the depths of the mist.

All that could be seen was a vast expanse of white mist, as if the entire world had disappeared beyond the mist, and no further places could be seen.

Although he learned from Edward that this "Misty Sea" also held a great secret that could shake the world.

But the most pressing issue now is the impending cataclysmic flood.

If the world were submerged, even the greatest secrets would be meaningless.

Xia En had no choice but to temporarily suppress his desire to continue exploring and said, "Let's go!"

"Target... [Liuli Island]!"

……

……

Five days later.

The area near where 【Liuli Island】is located.

Five large ships silently sailed out of the port and gathered in an area dozens of nautical miles from [Liuli Island].

These ships have different flags and different tribal emblems.

What they have in common is that their color scheme is often dominated by red and black.

Among the crew members on deck, there are often a few who are pale-faced and handsome.

If someone with keen senses were near these ships, they would probably be able to smell an incredibly strong stench of blood.

Wow!

Accompanied by the sound of water splashing.

The body of a young girl who had just lost her life was thrown into the sea by a sailor with an expressionless face.

Strangely, no blood seeped out after the body was submerged in water.

The girl's skin appeared even paler and drier in the waves.

In no time at all, the body, which had been bound with heavy objects, sank into the sea.

"Hey, this carcass has been drained of its blood so thoroughly, even a typical mutated sea beast probably wouldn't dare to eat it, right?"

Another sailor chuckled and said to his companion who was dumping the body, "This girl is quite pretty. I wish I could have some fun with her first."

The expressionless companion coldly replied, "Captain Simon only feeds on the blood of virgins."

"What a choice!"

The sailor complained, "We can't even get a drop of ordinary people's blood!"

"But speaking of which, what exactly is Captain Simon planning to do on this voyage?"

(End of this chapter)