Sail Shadows in the Sea of ​​Fog

Chapter 127 A Friend's Request for a Deal

On the edge of the Despair Sea, the island of Dragonfly, now without protection, has been filled with fear and unease, constantly on guard against pirates or sea monsters plundering them.

Fortunately, a trading fleet called the Brotherhood has recently been docked at Dragonfly Island for rest and repairs. They are said to be friends of Mr. Wilton.

Outside Dragonfly Island, amidst the thick sea fog, the Flamingo merchant ship had just been successfully transplanted with a full five pairs of dragonfly fins, an even better result than the Honest Man.

Fortunately, the pirate brothers didn't take it to heart. In the Brotherhood fleet under their control, there were also fast ships that had successfully transplanted five pairs of dragonfly fins.

In the heart of the dense fog, the Furnace was receiving a transplant of dragonfly fins. Captain Senfa, who was no longer young, was enthusiastically maneuvering the newly acquired fins, propelling the Flamingo, with its sails billowing, through the fog in various maneuvers.

Thanks to the precious ship armor that Captain Senfa had obtained from Cheng Lang, the Flamingo merchant ship had achieved exceptionally brilliant results in the previous period.

Using his ability to instantly turn the bow of his ship 180 degrees, he had lost count of how many merchant and pirate ships he had sunk or captured during that period.

Unfortunately, at the time, he and the Forge were working for Rica's navy, and all the captured pirate ships had to be confiscated. Otherwise, he could probably have built a fleet with more ships than the Brotherhood by now.

Recalling his previous glorious achievements, and looking at the fins of the dragonflies underwater on both sides of the ship, Senfa couldn't help but feel a little pained.

He didn't remember how many ships they sank or captured, but he remembered clearly that they had seized a total of 23 cups of Poseidon's Blood, 12 pieces of armor, and more than a dozen pieces of armor, including one particularly rare piece of ship armor.

One of the main reasons he decided to join Cheng Lang was that he planned to use the ship armor he had unexpectedly acquired to try and make a deal with Cheng Lang.

What's infuriating is that transplanting these dragonfly fins is really not cheap; the shipwright named Wilton quoted a price of one dragonfly fin and one cup of Poseidon's blood.

In other words, the Flamingo alone would have to pay a full 10 cups of Poseidon's blood.

If the Forge is transplanted with more than seven pairs of dragonfly fins, he might not have enough of Poseidon's blood and would have to pay for it with armor pieces or armor that are now much more valuable.

That would be such a loss!
However, he also knew perfectly well that transplanting an extra pair of dragonfly fins would make the ship run faster and more steadily. From this point of view, he wished that the Flamingo and the Furnace could be transplanted with a hundred pairs of dragonfly fins!
Wishes are always beautiful, and fortunately, reality wasn't too bad. With his patient waiting, the Furnace successfully received three pairs of dragonfly fins, bringing it to the same level as the Honest Man.

Captain Senfa, who had secretly breathed a sigh of relief after paying a full 16 cups of Poseidon's Blood, also showed a look of joy when he saw the exquisite and beautiful harp-tailed fishman band, who looked like porcelain dolls, leaping onto the open deck amidst the waves.

This is an "exclusive perk" for joining the Brotherhood fleet. What's more, I am now the vice-captain and trade manager of this fleet of eight ships, a total of eight ships and a 56-person harpfish band!

He couldn't even imagine how disgusting the scene would be when the eight ships surrounded the enemy ship and began their lovemaking prelude, or how desperate the surrounded sailors would feel.

"Are you Captain Senfa?" Just as Senfa was lost in thought, a smoky-voiced, harp-tailed merman drove over, chasing the waves, and asked in a manner resembling a miniature mature woman.

“Beautiful lady, yes, I am Senfa, the captain of this ship.” Senfa performed what he considered a gentlemanly hat-tipping.

"What a stinky, filthy thing!"

The smoky-voiced, harp-tailed merman leaped onto an oak barrel, looked down at Senfa, and said, "From now on, my band will be stationed on your wrecked ship, and from now on, my rules will apply."

First, the portion of the forecastle above the open deck is for the use of my orchestra. No one, including you, is permitted to enter the forecastle without my permission.

Correspondingly, we will take on the roles of cook, cell guard, and cleaner of the open deck.

Secondly, you and the other sailors must maintain adequate hygiene, avoid disgusting body odor, not wear dirty clothes, and absolutely not have messy, disgusting beards and hair.

Third, as long as you don't betray us, we will fight this ship to the very end.

"But maintaining hygiene requires a sufficient amount of blandness."

"There's no need to worry about freshwater."

The mature and sophisticated harpy said, "If you can accept it, I can now reward you by letting you eat our fingernails."

After saying that, the smoky-voiced, harp-tailed fishman and her band members each used their sharp teeth to bite off pieces of their fingernails and throw them into a soup pot.

The same scene unfolded on the Forge. Before the harpy-tailed fishmen could finish training their companions, Kervik, the captain of the Brotherhood fleet, abruptly issued an order to leave Dragonfly Island.

Although they didn't know what had happened, Captain Senfa and Captain Luting, who had become mute and would remain so for the next few days, didn't ask any questions. They obediently directed their respective ships, following the Honest Man, which was hiding in the fog, as they sailed away from the waters around Dragonfly Island.

When the sea fog dissipated, the islanders of Dragonfly Island were thrown into chaos. Having lost their last support, some on the island were even considering ways to escape.

Wilton remained silent on the matter, neither supporting nor opposing it, appearing completely free to come and go as he pleased.

This was something he did intentionally, and it was also something Kervik did intentionally; it's just that their purposes were different.

The former was to weed out those with weak wills. For Wilton and his men, Dragonfly Island was, in a sense, also a pirate ship, and they were the captains of that pirate ship.

As for the latter, it was merely to increase the bargaining power of the soon-to-arrive fleet commander.

Amidst their respective calculations, a full eight days later, a thick ring of sea fog enveloped the area around Dragonfly Island. Within this rare ring of fog, two ships slowly approached Dragonfly Island.

At the edge of Dragonfly Island, Wilton, riding on a dragonfly, and his lyretail merman wife looked on in bewilderment at the two approaching three-masted sailing ships.

Wilton was certain that the nine pairs of dragonfly fins on the first ship were definitely transplanted by him not long ago, so he was sure that it was the Valkyrie.

But not only did the ship look completely unfamiliar, even its nine pairs of dragonfly fins had become much wider and longer. This was something he had never encountered before, or even heard of.

What exactly did this ship encounter in the Sea of ​​Despair?
As Wilton speculated, he glanced at another ship, which was exceptionally lush—perhaps the only description he could think of.

“Mr. Wilton, we meet again.”

Just then, as a trestle bridge stretched from between the two boats to him, he heard Cheng Lang's voice.

“Captain Cheng Lang, it’s a pleasure to see you again,” Wilton said, already leading his wife onto the thorny pier.

“This is my partner’s ship. The captain is Gerta, whom you have met before.”

Cheng Lang explained that the captain of the Thorn was naturally not Gerta, but Yun Lan did not want to show up at this time.

“We have indeed met,” Wilton and Gerta shared a hug like old men.

"Wilton, I received a letter from Kerwick. Dragonfly Island hopes to receive protection?" Cheng Lang asked directly. He was being polite enough by not asking the other party to transplant dragonfly fins into the Thorn first.

"Indeed, and this suggestion came from a street circus that had announced its disbandment."

Wilton accepted Cheng Lang's invitation and sat down at a table on the open deck. He then looked at the magic mirror, which had brought him fruit wine, with slight surprise. He had never seen such a green and ugly undead.

"A suggestion from a traveling circus?" Cheng Lang frowned. "What else did they say?"

“They also suggested that you consider entrusting Dragonfly Island to Miss Yun Hai’s protection,” Wilton said. “But I don’t know who Yun Hai is.”

"Yun Hai, the warden of the exile island? Yun Ji's long-lost dark elf daughter?"

Cheng Lang frowned, then smiled and shook his head. "I'm not going to accept the suggestion from the wandering circus."

We are just seeking refuge.

Wilton said nonchalantly, "As long as we can survive, we don't care who protects us." "Mr. Wilton, I have two options."

Cheng Lang said, "First, I can send all the islanders to live in an underground city located deep in the Despair Sea, far from the strife, which is safe enough. Only the siren clan should be careful not to provoke the underground city's manager and become his food."

The advantage is that you can leave at any time. Although it's located very deep in the Sea of ​​Despair, as long as you're heading in the right direction, you can always swim to the Sea of ​​Stars.

"Gulu."

Wilton swallowed hard. "What's the second option?"

"My second option is to send you, including Dragonfly Island, to a place also deep in the Sea of ​​Despair. It's safe enough there, but once you go in, you'll probably have to live there forever."

"What price do we need to pay?" Wilton asked calmly.

"Whichever option you choose, you'll need at least 50 cups of Poseidon's blood to buy an immigration permit."

Cheng Lang said, "In addition, there are the dragonfly fins and the lyretail fishmen. Both of these places are my biggest secrets, so I need you to provide my ship with dragonfly fins and lyretail fishman sailors."

"So the second option is actually to leave?" Wilton asked.

“The cost of opening that place each time is very high,” Cheng Lang said. “It requires at least 20 cups of Poseidon’s Blood.”

“No problem,” Wilton and his wife exchanged a glance and agreed to the deal in unison.

“We hope to settle some people in both places,” Wilton said after exchanging another glance with his wife.

"No waiting, two places?"

“We can still produce 100 cups of Poseidon’s blood,” Wilton’s wife said.

"No problem, no problem! Two places it is!"

Cheng Lang readily agreed, "However, I don't understand why you want to separate?"

“If there’s a chance to take Dragonfly Island, why not?” Wilton retorted. “It’s just 50 cups of Poseidon’s Blood.”

"Good reason"

Cheng Lang didn't bother to ask any more questions and said bluntly, "I need to make some preparations before taking away Dragonfly Island. Before that, Mr. Wilton, please help Gerta's ship transplant dragonfly fins. I heard that Kervik has already paid the fee."

“Indeed,” Wilton’s wife said, pulling out a flute and shaking it. “This deal is perfectly fair.”

"I'm glad you're satisfied," Cheng Lang said, barely able to contain his excitement.

This is a huge business deal involving 100 cups of Poseidon's blood! As long as Aunt Shenwei is reasonable and doesn't forcibly take it, there will be a profit. Even if she forcibly takes it, there will still be a profit!
"Please make arrangements for the islanders going to the underground city to prepare as soon as possible," Cheng Lang said. "It's very desolate there, so bring as many people as you can."

"I'll arrange it right away."

Wilton's wife raised her glass, clinked it with Cheng Lang's and Wilton's, drank it all in one gulp, and then leaped into the sea.

"Let me start working too."

Wilton also downed his drink in one gulp, then walked toward the Thorn.

As soon as he entered the cabin and began to work, Cheng Lang immediately looked at Ye Di, who was hiding in the shadows of the sterncastle, and asked with exceptional respect, "Lord Ye Di, is it really possible for all the islanders to enter the spirit medium passage?"

"Can these islanders really help me raise those big fish?"

As Ye Di spoke, drool was already dripping from the corner of his mouth. He had been clinging to the side of the boat, watching the dragonfly on the sea. That big fish looked delicious!
"Of course"

"Then we can!" Ye Di said, slurping his saliva.

"Big cat! You're not allowed to eat those islanders!" Mist Shadow grabbed Night Demon's big tail, stood on tiptoe, and poked Night Demon's chest with her finger to remind him, "Otherwise, I won't be your friend anymore!"

"I would never eat those hybrid rats."

Ye Di said disdainfully, "I prefer those purebred water rats."

"No one is allowed to eat it."

The Silver Queen floated over and gently stroked Night's head, saying, "Sea monsters are also living beings, Night's. You can eat fish; there are enough fish on both boats for you. If you are keen on eating sea monsters, I'm afraid I will have to keep my children away from you."

"Your Highness, I will not eat those water rats again." Ye Di immediately made a promise, and also rubbed against the Silver Queen's hand.

In this situation, Cheng Lang and the others, for the sake of their own lives, naturally pretended to be blind and deaf and knew nothing. In the eyes of the big cat Ye Di, apart from the Silver Queen and Wu Ying, the others were basically rats, rats with different prefixes.

I'm glad you said that.

The Silver Queen kissed Ye Di on the forehead, and the latter's pupils dilated instantly as he began to knead his breasts frantically. His obedient and docile appearance not only made Cheng Lang envious, but also made Yun Ji, Shen Ba, and even Ya Fu Suo and Yun Lan on the other ship swoon.

Reassured, Cheng Lang entrusted the task of "first batch of immigrants" to the crew of the Thorn, and personally piloted the Valkyrie, heading towards the Flamingo and Honest Man in the distance through the thick fog.

Of course, compared to seeing his first friend at sea again, Cheng Lang's feelings were far less excited than those of the mixed-race sailors who boarded his ship and returned to the Honest Man.

They were all sailors who had previously helped control the sails of the Thorn. Although it is undeniable that everyone on the Thorn except for Old Man Gerta was a beautiful woman, they lived an exceptionally miserable life.

Every day, you have to learn to read and fight, learn court etiquette that you never know when you'll need to use, maintain hygiene, and are not allowed to greet anyone's mother, wife, or sisters. You are also not allowed to pick your nose in public areas, and you are not even allowed to stand on the side of the ship and urinate into the sea!

This is practically like being in prison! They can't wait to get back to the free Honest Man!
"I hope you'll still be this excited later."

Cheng Lang knew exactly what these mixed-race sailors were thinking, but he wouldn't tell them that the entire Brotherhood fleet was currently engaged in literacy and sanitation campaigns, which he considered very necessary.

In other words, the most these mixed-race sailors would have to do upon returning home is simply not have to learn those court etiquette and civilized language.

"Dear Captain"

The Magic Mirror came to the open bridge and said obsequiously, "The islanders of Dragonfly Island have begun preparations for immigration. In addition, the 100 cups of Poseidon's Blood have been paid in full to Miss Yafso. She is now hiding in the heart of the Thorn with the box containing Poseidon's Blood."

“Next up is our friend, Captain Senfa,” Cheng Lang said. “Did you get any information? What kind of deal does he want to make?”

"Based on Kervik's probing," the Magic Mirror cleared its throat and said, "Mr. Senfa seems to have taken a liking to your ship's bottle."

"Ship bottle?"

Cheng Lang asked curiously, "What treasures can he offer in exchange for the boat bottle?"

"Then we'll only know when we see him," the Magic Mirror said respectfully.

(End of this chapter)