Extraordinary Rise: Starting Contract with the Silver Dragon Countess

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Ghost ship!
The obsession with the ghost ship was like a steel stamp, deeply imprinted on the soul of Governor Torg Chambers.

Even when he was wearing the uniform of the Central Empire's naval admiral, with his chest adorned with medals symbolizing conquest and glory, Governor Torg had longed for the ghost ship under the command of the ancient pirate king.

Unlike his colleagues who were keen on smuggling routes and the bountiful harvests of colonies, Torg was only interested in the secrets of the ancient seas.

In his private study, among the various precious furnishings, the most eye-catching item was not the marshal's sword bestowed upon him by the late emperor.

Instead, it was a map of the endless sea, made of dark oak and covering the entire wall.

Although this nautical chart also depicts an endless sea, the lines marked on it with different colors and as dense as a spider web indicate the routes of the Pirate King from ancient times.

Every coordinate that was repeatedly marked was a sea area secretly traversed by his most elite and loyal secret fleet.

Following the route guided by those fragmented ancient songs, Torg's secret fleet travels along the route the ancient pirate king took to conquer the endless sea, in search of the greatest treasure belonging to the ancient pirate king—the ghost ship!

Tolger was not seeking the ghostly sailing ships that existed only in the drunken tales of bards and adventurers, but rather those things that truly existed in ancient times:
A mysterious entity capable of easily piercing through storms and sailing like a ghost, leaving the Southern Empire's massive naval fleet helpless.
A dark ship capable of devouring light and sound, driving sailors into silent madness;

It can even cross the boundaries of space and the deep sea, becoming a mobile gateway connecting different waters and the gaps between the worlds!
However, the cold reality repeatedly dampened his enthusiasm.

Torg's fleet searched almost every sea area where the Pirate King's ruins might exist, but found nothing.

After spending a huge amount of money and losing a large number of people, his secret fleet brought back only more confusing fragments and blurry images.

The true core legacy of One Piece remains like a mirage in the sea fog, something that can be seen but not reached.

The "ghost ship" seems to have become an ethereal concept in maritime legends, a legend that may have long since disappeared from the annals of history.

until--

A message from a distant Eastern Empire struck Thorg's almost desperate heart like a bolt of lightning piercing through the clouds.

In the northwestern waters of the Endless Sea, a pirate crew called the Crimson Raiders, led by their captain, Yann Hughes, who is said to be the son of a demon, annihilated the North Sea Fleet of the Kingdom of Ceylon with their "ghost ships"!
This news rekindled the long-dormant heart of Governor Torg.

Ghost ship!
The ghost ship, which had disappeared for tens of thousands of years, has finally reappeared!
Just as he was struggling to figure out how to make contact with a pirate captain in the far northwest seas, an even more shocking message arrived—

Yann Hughes, the heir to the Pirate King, captain of the Crimson Raiders, and owner of the Ghost Ship, will be married to Princess Grace Tang of the Eastern Empire!
Just as Manfred, that viperous intelligence officer, had analyzed, upon learning of this news, Governor Torgue quickly devised an excellent way to obtain the ghost ship.

Grace!
A princess who sits at the pinnacle of imperial power but has a weak foundation and is surrounded by ambitious individuals.

An heir who yearns for the imperial crown she nominally possesses, yet which could be overthrown at any moment.

This is the biggest breakthrough.

What Grace urgently needs right now is real, tangible strength and support to stabilize the situation and help her seize the throne!
What power could compare to the friendship of the governor of the "Thousand Streams Court," the wealthiest of humanity's strongest empires, who controls the lifeline of maritime trade and possesses a large private army?
This friendship can provide her with everything she needs:
Gold, warships, and political influence that led to the Central Empire and other continents were enough for her to gain a foothold in the turbulent power struggles of the Eastern Region.

This stake is worth more than enough to get what Governor Torgue has longed for most of his life—the ghost ship!

Thorg took a deep breath of the expensive incense in the room.

He could almost see himself sitting opposite Princess Grace in the exquisite and luxurious reception room of the state guesthouse.

He will act like a shrewd businessman, offering enough sincerity and benefits that are irresistible.

Then, by the flickering candlelight, in an atmosphere of heartfelt conversation, they fulfilled their wishes!

He believed that a princess who desperately needed the power to seize the crown would never refuse such a friendship offered to her.

Torg's gaze sharpened, and a knowing, determined smile, typical of a former naval admiral, curled at the corner of his lips.

He saw his own stairway to the deep blue throne.

……

Beneath the dome of the Imperial Arena, a few rays of morning light pierced through the thick dust and fog, and the final match of the semi-finals officially began today.

This match can be said to represent the highest level of competition in the Silver Division of the Noble Martial Arts Festival.

Regardless of whether it was the Northern Empire's Crown Prince Jinlunga Cox, who had easily crushed his opponents in previous matches and was considered the "strongest Silver" before the start of the tournament.

Or perhaps it is like an abyss shrouded in layers of mist, never truly revealing its full form, the King Cohen Corleone of Effie, who can instantly kill any opponent with a single move, even those involving rules and skills.

The duel between the two was destined to be a fierce battle.

The massive circular barrier of the Imperial Arena emitted a scorching heat under the blazing sun.

On the arena, the glory of the Northern Empire, Jinlunga Cox, exuded an aura of extreme cold that could freeze everything, like a moving ice fortress. Wearing heavy armor and fully armed, he walked step by step to the center of the vision of tens of thousands of spectators.

Opposite him, Cohen calmly walked onto the field.

His presence was completely different from Jinlunjia's; it wasn't the imposing aura of a mountain, but rather like a deep, unfathomable pool.

He was dressed in a simple and elegant samurai outfit, his hands hanging casually at his sides, without holding any weapons.

However, it was precisely this calm indifference that made Jinlunjia dare not underestimate him in the slightest.

This was a clash that, in everyone's perception, had long surpassed the "silver" level.

There was no provocative eye contact, no verbal declaration.

The two were only thirty steps apart, yet the space seemed to be torn apart and squeezed by an invisible force.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment, the heartbeats of tens of thousands of people merging into a dull drumbeat, pounding on the foundation stone of the Imperial Arena.

Everyone knows that this match will truly determine who is the "strongest Silver"!
As expected, the Frost Warriors of the Northern Empire lived up to expectations and won the crown.

Is it still the mysterious king from Effie who can continue to defend the championship for Effie, just as his queen did for the past ten years?
All the waiting, all the preparation, all the ultimate clash of beliefs and strength will happen in the game in just a few minutes!

The eyes of the nobles and common people of the Northern Empire burned with a last hope and unspeakable anxiety.

The Effiin people held their breath, their eyes burning with ambition for a rise to power, anticipating that their king would create yet another miracle.

The powerful figures on the high platform had complex expressions as they gripped the armrests or scepters tightly.

The vice principal of Shenghui Academy, who was in charge of hosting the competition, and the chief referee also noticed the strange and heavy atmosphere.

He took a deep breath and infused his voice into amplification magic, as if sounding the horn of the final battle of the apocalypse:
"The Northern Empire - Kinlunga Cox!"
A showdown!

The Kingdom of Effie – Cohen Corleone!

fighting……"

The staff in his hand was raised high, and the magical runes instantly shone as bright as day:

"……start--"

"start!"

The two words were like a spark igniting a powder keg; even as the sound still echoed in the arena, Jinlunga had already begun his actions.

The ground beneath his feet was instantly covered by a rapidly spreading layer of pale blue ice, emitting a faint but teeth-grinding freezing sound.

A bone-chilling cold wave instantly engulfed the entire arena, and the ultimate ice-attribute magic erupted, as if an invisible iceberg had descended out of nowhere.

His eyes became the core of the icy abyss vortex, and icy blue magical flames surged forth from every gap in his armor like a tangible ice storm.

Immediately afterwards, under the intense gaze of millions, Kinlunga Cox's already towering physique underwent a terrifying transformation that could stop a person's heart—

His body suddenly burst forth with dazzling blue light, and then, amidst the ear-piercing cracking of bones and the terrifying sound of ice crystals condensing, it visibly expanded and rose.

Every muscle and bone in his body was reconstructed by the violent surge of icy power from the far north abyss.

Thick, dark blue ice crystal armor plates materialized out of thin air and covered his body, with ferocious ice spikes growing from his joints, and his shoulder armor transformed into the head of a roaring ice beast.

The spine rises segment by segment, causing the entire torso to expand inhumanly.

In just a few breathtaking moments, a colossal creature, over ten meters tall and towering like a moving glacier fortress, completely swallowed up Kinlunga Cox, who was originally a "human".

His head was encased in a massive, dark blue ice helmet covered with a non-human faceplate. Through the gaps in the ice helmet, only two eyes burning with icy blue soul flames were locked onto the tiny figure in front of him.

His body was no longer a combination of flesh and armor, but a solidified glacier, radiating a suffocating, chilling winter pressure originating from the ancient Ice Age.

This is the true strength of the player recognized as the "strongest Silver" before the competition even started; this is the true power of the imperial prince of the Northern Empire who has awakened the most perfect bloodline—

A living, walking, roaring frost giant!
In the war between gods and demons, as a god-level deity, the ice element and goddess of ice and snow, Daphne Frost Guard is an ice giant!

Under the leadership of the gods, defeat the frost giants of the demon army!
Woo——!
The temperature in the entire arena plummeted by more than ten degrees, and spectators near the battlefield even felt their skin sting from the cold.

With each breath he took, he spewed out a storm of white frost that froze everything.

With each step he took, the several-foot-thick ice beneath his feet would burst and collapse with a deafening roar.

Huge fragments of ice crystals were tossed up and fell back down, producing a terrifying roar like a glacier collapsing, as if the polar ruler had stepped onto his divine territory.

The giant's eyes, burning with icy flames, were fixed on Cohen Corleone, who looked like an ant in its enormous shadow.

Jin Lunjia knew all too well the power of Cohen's incredible, rule-based "disarming" ability—the bizarre ability to instantly strip an opponent of control of their weapon.

In order not to give Cohen any opportunity, he resolutely abandoned the two-handed sword that had been with him for many years.

The moment the match began, he immediately activated the rich Frost Giant bloodline within his body.

He wanted to combine the purest, most inalienable power of his icy bloodline with the absolute power of the frost giant's body.

To inflict the most thorough, unavoidable, and absolute crushing on Cohen Corleone in both physical and legal terms.

He is a walking glacier!
He is the descending glacier!
He is the glory of the gods on the continent!

"Roar—!!!" Another earth-shattering roar.

The Frost Giant Jinlunga no longer emitted a human voice, but a roar like that of an ancient glacier moving and an ice storm raging.

He raised his right arm, which had transformed into a giant ice crystal fist, and the surrounding air emitted a sharp, mournful cry as it began to condense and swirl.

A rapidly spinning vortex of ice crystal storm formed around his fist.

The light in the entire arena was drawn to this concentrated, icy magic, and the ground trembled violently from the immense force.

This punch was no longer a traditional move or technique, but rather the embodiment of the will that annihilated all things during the Ice Age.

The enormous ice fist, carrying the kinetic energy to destroy everything and the aura to freeze all things, smashed down on the tiny black figure in the arena with an overwhelming force.

Joren, Casimir, Mills...

Those contestants who had already been eliminated looked at this scene that resembled the end of the world and felt a wave of bitterness rising in their hearts.

Only now did they realize the chasm between them!
The gigantic fist, capable of freezing everything, like a collapsing glacier mountain range, carrying a biting cold wind and a violent force capable of crushing everything, hovered less than three meters above Cohen Corleone's head.

The air was frozen and crushed by the extreme cold, emitting a tooth-grinding groan.

A massive shadow completely enveloped Cohen, and the rough, icy textures on the surface of his fist, solidified with frost power, shimmered with a deadly, eerie blue light in the dim light.

Its enormous size seemed poised to smash a corner of the entire arena into dust.

Time seemed to stretch out at that moment.

Cohen Corleone, facing a punch from the frost giant that was comparable to divine punishment, showed no change in expression on his angular face.

His eyes were still fixed on that silent black pool, reflecting the massive ice crystal fist that was getting closer and closer, almost obscuring his entire vision.

Just then, Cohen moved.

His movements were not spectacular; they were even extremely simple.

He calmly raised his right hand.

The next moment, space itself seemed to undergo some kind of inexplicable distortion and reshaping in his palm.

An energy, so intensely hot that it was difficult to fully perceive with the naked eye, began to converge wildly.

It was not forged by alchemy, nor piled up by fire elemental magic—but rather a more primal, higher-level power was coalescing.

The power from the dragon!
The air boiled and distorted, first bursting forth with a dazzling golden-red light, like the vertical pupils of a dragon awakening.

Then, more streams of light intertwined like wildfire. They were no longer just simple flames or energy; at their core lay an ancient majesty that sent shivers down one's spine.

The flames twisted and stretched like molten metal, emitting a deep, soul-stirring hum like the roar of a dragon.

Moment!
Just a moment!
An indescribably beautiful longsword appeared out of thin air in Cohen's hand.

Professional Skill: Transform into Ten Thousand Soldiers!

The sword blade is not made of solid metal, but is forged from extremely condensed, almost tangible, blazing dragon energy.

Its entire body is covered with gorgeous patterns of gold and red, with light flowing through it, and the hilt is exquisitely carved like the body of a coiled dragon.

The extended blade is shaped like the outline of a roaring dragon's head—sharp, ferocious, and exuding a pure pressure that surpasses all mortal creatures.

Just before the massive, icy fist, carrying devastating power, crashed down, Cohen's body suddenly became ethereal.

This was accompanied by the sharp, buzzing sound of countless glass blades gliding at high speed across the ice.

Then, one, two, ten, a hundred...

Countless magnificent golden-red ribbons of light, composed of pure destructive sword light, suddenly exploded around the frost giant.

Rune: Blade Waltz!

Cohen's movements were not linear trajectories, but rather instantaneous leaps and thrusts that completely defied the laws of physics—

The first blinding streak of light struck precisely the tip of that terrifying giant fist.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, but rather a complete dissolution and decomposition.

The giant ice fist, imbued with the supreme power of Jinlunga's ice and the divinity of the giant, was like a snowflake thrown into a furnace. The moment it came into contact with the Dragon Force Sword Light, it silently disintegrated and shattered along the massive structure, starting from the point of contact.

Countless massive fragments and powders containing residual ice energy exploded outwards like an out-of-control ice storm.

And this is only the first beat of the dance!
Immediately afterwards, countless magnificent sword light afterimages, or rather, countless blurred and sword light-transformed phantoms of Korn moving at high speed, instantly engulfed the massive body of the Frost Giant Jinlunga.

Like countless precisely guided, deadly spears of light, they swirled around the frost giant, forming a golden-red vortex of pure sword light.

The spectators in the arena only saw a dazzling, all-consuming golden-red storm suddenly engulf the giant.

Countless streaks of light flashed and darted around the giant's massive body.

The speed exceeded the limits of human vision, and all that could be captured was a chaotic, deadly, and breathtakingly beautiful afterimage.

The space where the Frost Giant Jinlunga was located seemed to be cut by countless invisible spatial razors at the same time. There were no loud crashes, only the high-frequency, ear-piercing, omnipresent sound of space tearing and the hissing sound of ice crystals being instantly evaporated.

The storm comes quickly and goes away quickly.

Almost before the ice dust from the giant's shattered fist could fully disperse, all the afterimages suddenly converged and solidified a few meters behind the giant.

boom.

A soft but clear thud landed in everyone's ears.

Cohen Corleone landed smoothly on the ground behind the Frost Giant.

With his back to the frozen frost giant, who remained motionless and still in a fist-pumping stance, he resembled an elegant nobleman who had just finished a court ball.

The dragon-shaped longsword in his right hand, formed from pure dragon power, began to silently transform from its tip into wisps of drifting golden-red particles.

The entire Imperial Arena fell into an unprecedented, vacuum-like silence.

What exactly happened just now?
The audience's eyes were stung by the incomprehensible, dazzling light show, and their minds were thrown into chaos by the speed and destructive power that exceeded their comprehension.

They only saw Cohen's figure blur for a moment, as if he had turned into countless illusory streams of light that passed through the giant's body.

Then he appeared there, with his back to the giant, and sheathed the longsword that seemed like a dream.

So who actually won?

Is the match over?

What about the giants?
What about Prince Kinlunga?

Why is he not moving at all?
The enormous frost giant remained in its fist-pumping posture, like an ice sculpture frozen for millions of years in an ancient glacial mountain range.

At first glance, there were no obvious wounds on its massive body.

An indescribable deathly silence spread through the arena.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Finally, after a brief pause.

Two violently twisted flames suddenly ignited in the giant's enormous pupils, which were formed from pure frost power and were filled with supreme power and majesty.

next second.

*Sizzle...* *Crack...*

A chilling cracking sound began to ring out.

At first, only a tiny crack appeared on the giant's arm armor, which then triggered a chain reaction of collapses.

Countless clear, crisscrossing cracks instantly covered the frost giant's massive body.

From the thickly armored chest to the robust limbs, and then to the enormous head.

These cracks are not natural cracks, but more like perfectly cut lines that burst out from the inside out!
Om-!
The giant's covering of solid ice and the frozen icy energy could no longer maintain their form.

The enormous body collapsed instantly, as if it had been shredded from the inside by countless sharp blades into billions of uneven ice crystals and energy fragments.

There were no wails, only the huge, deep rumble of the ice crystals breaking apart, shattering, and annihilating.

Like a ten-thousand-year-old ice peak suddenly collapsing, it unleashed a bone-chilling and massive blizzard!
Countless ice dust particles and huge shards of ice, imbued with a pale blue aura, poured down from where the giant had just stood.

The ground shattered and shattered, eventually turning into a cold, empty void.

In the heart of this raging ice storm, a figure crashed heavily onto the ice shards.

It was none other than the Northern Empire's Crown Prince, Kinlunga Cox, who had regained his human form and completely lost consciousness!
Time seemed to stand still completely.

Tens of thousands of eyes stared wide-eyed, reflecting the only standing figure in the arena—King Cohen Corleone of Effie.

He still had his back to the wreckage of his opponent, as if the earth-shattering annihilation behind him had nothing to do with him.

The Imperial Arena was deathly silent! (End of Chapter)