Above the mage!

Chapter 489 Invitation
It's not that Gao De is greedy; in fact, he's quite conscientious and restrained.

Because of this cooperation, they clearly hold the absolute initiative.

A fourth-circle mage capable of commanding an entire area is far rarer than a hunting fleet.

Following this logic, if Gaode wanted to, it could easily find many partners similar to Apache.

Finding another fourth-circle mage willing to cooperate with Apache would be an impossible task.

It was precisely because Apache understood this stake that he rushed to Santos's door that night after receiving news of his death, fearing he might miss this rare opportunity.

Upon hearing Gao De's terms, Apache's expression changed slightly, and his Adam's apple bobbed noticeably. However, after weighing the options for less than two breaths, he nodded decisively and said, "Alright, 64 it is, you get 60% and I get 40%."

"It's a pleasure to cooperate with you." Gaode extended his hand.

Apache, beaming with enthusiasm, hurriedly reached out and gripped Gao De's wrists tightly. The calluses on his palms were painful to the touch, unlike the hands of a mage.

"Then I'll take some men to subdue the Embroidered Anchor Gang at the slaughter docks," he added.

The slaughter docks were important, but the remnants of the Embroidered Anchor Gang who worked skillfully there were also very important.

Subduing them is the only way to seamlessly maintain the dock's previous "operational" status, saving a lot of trouble compared to starting from scratch.

“Go ahead,” Gao De nodded, but before Apache turned to leave, he casually asked, “Do you know Ash Isle? Could you tell me about it?”

Apache paused for a moment at Gao De's sudden change of topic, then quickly recalled before replying, "If I remember correctly, Ash Island is a semi-burnt island. Blue flames occupy 70% of the area, and the remaining 30% has also seen blue flames. It is one of the extremely dangerous subsidiary islands."

As a local native, Apache has a certain understanding of the many islands of the Blue Flame Islands.

"Is there anything special about it?" Apache's answer did not satisfy God, so he continued to ask.

Apache was stumped by the "special place," frowned and fell into deep thought. After a good ten seconds of silence, his eyes suddenly lit up.

“I remember now! Ash Isle wasn’t originally called Ash Isle. It was only renamed in the last few hundred years because an event that occurred on Ash Isle five or six hundred years ago had a huge impact on Black Sails City at the time.”

“Tell me more.” Gao De’s eyes lit up slightly, and he leaned forward a little, signaling Apache to continue.

"About five or six hundred years ago, the blue flames on Ash Island, which was originally a half-burnt island, suddenly went out and disappeared for some unknown reason."

"Without the Blue Flame, the Blue Flame Crystal Mine on Ash Island, which was buried under the Blue Flame, is like a naked beauty lying there for anyone to pick."

Apache licked his lips, revealing a slightly lewd expression, and continued, "At first, many people were worried that the blue flames would reignite and adopted a wait-and-see attitude, and did not go to the island."

However, some desperate individuals disregarded all this and went ahead to the island to mine, returning each one with bags full of blue crystals, making a fortune.

"Seeing this, everyone disregarded their own safety, fearing that if they were late they would miss out on the soup, and they all rushed to the island. Ash Island was bustling with activity for a time."

"This magnificent scene lasted for more than a month, and the blue flames on Ash Island never reignited. Everyone believed that Ash Island had become a safe zone like the main island, including Dracula, the leader of Blackwing, the most powerful gang in Black Sails City at the time."

“But Dracula is even more greedy,” Apache said with a smirk, “He not only has his eye on the exposed blue crystal veins on Ash Island, but also on Ash Island itself, which has been turned into a safe zone. If it weren’t for the blue flames, it would indeed be a fertile land.”

"So he led most of the gang's elite men in five or six warships to the island, and immediately began clearing it out, wanting to take over Ash Island for himself."

"Although people were dissatisfied, they had no choice but to bow down and withdraw from Ash Island in the face of his overwhelming power."

"And the result?" Gao De asked curiously.

"The result was a reversal. The day after Dracula finished clearing the area and took over Ash Island, the vanished blue flames returned without warning, turning Ash Island into a fire island in an instant."

"The blue flames reignited too suddenly and too fiercely. Instead of burning slowly, they burst forth all at once, instantly engulfing the entire island in blue flames."

"None of the Blackwing Clan members on the island, including Dracula, were able to escape from Ash Isle."

"The Blackwing Gang, once a dominant force in Black Sails City, has fallen into decline and become a thing of the past."

"It was after this incident that Ash Isle came to be called by this name, meaning that everything turned to ashes."

"If this hadn't happened, the Black Sails might have entered the David Jones era even later?" Apache wasn't sure either.

After all, the decline of the Blackwing Gang did plunge Black Sails City into chaos for a long time.

The gangs in the city have been engaged in a fierce struggle for over a decade over the Blackwing's assets and territory, resulting in heavy losses for each gang and a sharp decline in their strength.

But even without this incident, given Davy Jones's methods and strength, it seems inevitable that he would dominate Black Sails City by stepping on gangs.
"The blue flames on Ash Island burned for fifty years before they subsided and it was transformed back into a half-burnt island."

"After Ash Island was reduced from a fire island to a semi-burnt island, many people continued to venture onto the island."

"As for the reason," Apache spread his hands and pursed his lips, "it's naturally to search for the treasures and property left behind by Dracula and other Blackwing gang members, or rather, to scavenge."

"Blue flames are different from ordinary flames. They have extremely low temperatures and their damage only targets the mental realm of living beings, without harming the material itself."

"This means that the items carried by the Blackwing Gang members who died, whether money or supernatural equipment, must have been intact."

"The Blackwing Gang was the most powerful gang in Black Sails City at the time, and those who followed Dracula to the island were all the gang's elites."

It's obvious without a doubt that these people are carrying extraordinary equipment of considerable quality; even picking up some scraps would be a windfall.

“Most importantly, Dracula’s relics are also on Ash Isle,” Apache exclaimed. “Although Dracula’s status in Black Sails City was not as high as that of the current Pirate King Davy Jones, he was still a former overlord of Black Sails City, and he was equipped with high-level extraordinary equipment.”

"Moreover, Dracula possesses an extremely special treasure, priceless in value. Of course, only a few people know exactly what it is and what its effects are; I'm not quite sure myself."

"But in short, even a fifth-ring mage would be tempted by this treasure and be willing to risk going to the island to find it."

"It's been so many years, and although many scavengers on the island have made some gains, no one has ever been heard of finding Dracula's treasure. I don't know if they really haven't found it, or if someone is making a fortune in silence."

"I see." After listening to Apache's explanation, God nodded thoughtfully.

"Then you can go ahead and get busy." After receiving a detailed explanation, Gao De waved his hand at Apache, who was still waiting for his questions.

Apache got up in response, walking even faster than when he arrived, probably afraid that something unexpected might happen if he was a step too late.

In the cabin.

"Lanwen, what do you think?" Gao De took the playing cards out of his pocket and looked out the porthole at the sea shrouded in night.

The blue flames of the scattered islands, like chess pieces, were particularly bright and conspicuous at night, resembling clusters of will-o'-the-wisps scattered across the sea, surrounding the brightly lit main island in the center.

“I have a feeling that Sarah might have chosen Ash Isle as the location to test our courage,” Lanwen said after a moment of thought, uncertainly.

Do you dare to go? Can you escape unscathed from an island surrounded by blue flames?

"But I don't understand why she was testing our courage," Lan Wen said again. Whether they were cowardly or bold, what difference would it make to Sarah?

This is something Gaode can't understand.

He stroked the address on the piece of paper, lost in thought. After a long while, he suddenly smiled: "Since it's an invitation from a legendary figure, there's no reason not to accept."

At the very least, he needed to figure out what Sarah wanted to talk to him about.
If this point is not clarified, it will be like having the Sword of Damocles hanging over one's head, and one will not be able to live in peace in Black Sails City from now on.

"Besides, Dracula's relics sound very tempting, so why not try our luck along the way?"

Gao De is a very self-aware person. Under normal circumstances, he would not unrealistically believe that good fortune would befall him alone, something that others have been searching for for hundreds of years without success.

But the situation is different in the Blue Flame Islands.

Compared to others, he has a unique advantage.

"When do we set off?" Lan Wen raised an eyebrow.

"It's better to get this over with sooner rather than later. If things don't go well, we can leave this place of trouble as soon as possible," Gao De said decisively. "Let's leave now."

As soon as he finished speaking, he got up and pushed open the cabin door.

The sea breeze at night made his clothes flutter.

He summoned Boeing, chose to possess it, and with Boeing's blessing, he sped towards Ash Isle in the inky night.

Lan Wen quickly used his [Flight] technique to catch up.

Ash Isle is not particularly far from the main island; it can be reached by flying.

The closer you get to Ash Isle, the stronger the blue flame aura becomes in the air.

In Gaode Maps' view, one can already see the eerie blue flames cascading down like a waterfall on the cliff face of Ash Island by the sea.

Using the faint light emitted by the blue flames, the two could clearly see the outline of Ash Island.

This island is even more desolate than imagined, with most of it covered in blue flames, especially in the center where a dark blue sea of ​​fire has formed.

The areas not covered by the blue flames were bare, jagged rocks, resembling protruding, strangely shaped skeletons.

Upon approaching Ash Isle, Gaode did not rush to land on the island, but instead circled around it to carefully observe the situation.

After circling the island, they still couldn't find any signs of life. After all, so many years had passed that even the lucky scavengers had basically disappeared.

Furthermore, Gaode also discovered that the blue flames on Ash Island are very unstable, with the concentration on the west side being significantly higher than that on the east side.

However, under the powerful influence of Mandora's Eye, even in the darkness of night, God still managed to discover some anomalies.

On a rock wall at the edge of the island, the lower half is clearly hollowed out, as if it had been cleaved by a giant axe, creating a natural, huge cave.

Inside the "cave," Gaode saw some faint shadows.

Those were several sections of rusted iron stakes protruding from the sea, gleaming with a dark red light under the blue flames. They looked like they had been there for many years, and were most likely remnants of the temporary dock built by the people who landed on the island back then.

However, next to these rusty iron stakes, Gaode also saw several stone stakes. The chisel marks on the surface of the stone stakes were brand new, and fresh wood chips remained in the grooves at the top of the stakes, indicating that they had been erected recently.

Looking further inward along the direction of the stone pillars, deep within the cave, a huge ship was clearly moored.

The main body of the ship is dark black, and the wood looks like ebony that has been soaked in seawater for a hundred years. The ship is more than 30 feet long, and the deck to the waterline is covered with scratches of varying depths.

Three masts pierced the shadows of the cave like the ribs of a giant beast.

On the side of the ship, Gao De saw a pattern of a huge, burning long sword.

He immediately realized that this must be the Fire Knife pirate ship that Sarah had taken from the Fire Knife pirate crew, as Apache had mentioned.

Gao De and Lan Wen flew into the cave, making no attempt to conceal their movements.

Therefore, about twenty people quickly poured out of the cabin, each one exuding a fierce aura. However, compared to the people from Black Sails City, these people lacked some of the banditry.

The twenty or so people all scrutinized the two "uninvited guests" with a critical gaze.

The burly man leading the group even raised his right palm and waved it downwards.

As he moved, half the people behind him reached their hands to their waists.

The next moment, nearly twenty psionic guns were all pointed at the two of them.

"Bao Zai, don't make a move. These two are my guests." Just as the atmosphere was tense, a very magnetic female voice came.

The next moment, Sarah slowly walked out of the cabin.

"You two arrived quite quickly." She looked at Gao De and Lan Wen, her expression calm.

"Since a legendary figure from Black Sails City has invited us, we will naturally accept the invitation as soon as possible." Gao De's expression was equally calm, revealing no emotion, but he uttered a polite remark.

"Come in and talk," Sarah said with a slight smile.

Squeak—

Gao De stepped into the cabin of the Fire Knife. Contrary to his expectations, the Fire Knife, with its typical pirate ship exterior, had a surprisingly different interior space. It was not the usual stuffy and dirty place, but rather had a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

No wonder people say that having a woman in the house and not having a woman in the house are two completely different things, Gao De thought to himself.

Continue walking inwards until you reach the innermost room of the ship's cabin.

"Please sit down," Sarah said, taking her seat in the main seat first before inviting the other two to sit down as well.

Her voice was unlike that of ordinary women; it was an extremely magnetic voice with a slightly husky quality.

In this world, such a sound may not conform to mainstream aesthetics, but in Gaode's previous life, this timbre was very popular and was regarded as "sexy".

Since they were already there, Gao De and Lan Wen were quite at ease and sat down casually, following Sarah's suggestion.

As soon as I sat down, I felt extremely uncomfortable.

"How did you guess that I have a grudge against David Jones?" The red-haired beauty's lips curled up slightly as she looked at Gao De with a half-smile.

(End of this chapter)