Sail Shadows in the Sea of ​​Fog

Chapter 128 The Key to the Dock
In the thick sea fog, Captain Senfa, who could already speak, stared blankly at the Valkyrie, which was getting closer and closer through the fog.

He was absolutely certain that this was the Valkyrie, or rather, the so-called "Storm" from back then.

No matter what he was called, he was certain it wouldn't be wrong, because his friend Cheng Lang was standing on the open-air deck on the second floor of that ship, waving enthusiastically at him.

Senfa recognized Cheng Lang, the Cheng Lang wearing a mask of hypocrisy, but he couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the approaching ship that had turned into such a miserable, ghostly state.

The ship's sails were tattered, its hull was covered in large and small tears and black mold, and of course, there was the huge undead lady on the deck, as well as the ghastly green, seaweed-like undead.

Not only that, he also saw the skeletons of the dead with their scarlet eyes wide open. These skeletons were busy jumping up and down the mast, but it was hard not to worry that the skeletons might suddenly fall down and break apart.

Because of the strange ship flag that Qin Jinyan left for Cheng Lang, the Valkyrie that Senfa saw was an image even more ghostly than a ghost ship.

Of course, it wasn't without its advantages. At least he was absolutely certain that he could exchange the rare, large-scale ship armor he had unexpectedly acquired for the ship bottle he had been longing for.

"Captain Senfa, we meet again." Cheng Lang greeted Senfa with exceptional enthusiasm, then swung his whip to entangle the mast and skillfully swung onto the open deck of the Flamingo armed merchant ship.

"Long time no see, Captain Cheng Lang."

Captain Senfa, who seemed to have just taken a good bath and was dressed in clean clothes, did his hat off and then gave Cheng Lang a warm hug before inviting him into the exceptionally clean captain's cabin.

"My friend, welcome to the Brotherhood Fleet," Cheng Lang said sincerely.

"I haven't even had a chance to thank you yet."

Senfa brought over a glass of juice and said, “My friend, war is about to begin. This is the last chance for maritime trade. I want to thank you for lending me your fleet at this time to conduct maritime trade.”

"Senfa, let's not waste time on mutual flattery and politeness."

Cheng Lang said, "Let me tell you about the current situation. Since we parted ways, I've been almost constantly in a sea of ​​despair."

"The six kingdoms of the Star Sea Continent and the Pirate City are all preparing for war."

Senfa explained succinctly, "But the newly emerging Ghost Fleet has become a problem for both the six kingdoms and the pirate city."

"Very powerful?" Cheng Lang asked.

"According to the Siren Tavern's statistics, there are currently more than 5,000 armed ships that have publicly joined the Ghost Fleet, and more than 3,000 that have signed contracts with the Ghost Fleet. This number exceeds the total number of the official fleets of any two continental principalities combined."

At this point, Senfa took a sip of his juice. "To put it more bluntly, if the Ghost Fleet wanted to destroy any country right now, it would be effortless. But the latest news I've received is that the Ghost Fleet is preparing to declare war on the Elven Duchy."

"The Ghost Fleet has declared war on the Elven Principality?"

Cheng Lang asked, puzzled, "What's going on? I remember..."

Nobody knows what happened.

Senfa shook his head. "But it's true that everyone is actively preparing for war. Oh, and with the gradual announcement of methods to transform normal ocean-going ships with hulls into ghost ships, the Starsea Continent and Pirate City have already lost a great many people."

On the contrary, the value of Poseidon's blood has plummeted to less than a thousand gold coins per cup, while the price of armor pieces has skyrocketed, with each piece now exceeding ten thousand gold coins.

"Why is this again?"

Having finally adapted to the energy rules of this world, Cheng Lang asked in bewilderment.

"As far as I know, the artificial ghost ship is extremely averse to the blood of Poseidon, and that is the main reason."

Senfa explained, "Secondly, armor pieces are almost like currency in the Ghost Fleet. If you possess a large number of armor pieces, you can even specify the types of abilities granted to the ship's core when you become the captain of a Ghost Ship. Of course, the prerequisite is to sign a contract with the Ghost Fleet."

"Such a good thing?" Cheng Lang asked, puzzled. "Where did this news first come from?"

"The ghost fleet dispatched a large number of noboru."

Senfa said with lingering fear, "Almost all the ocean-going ships sailing in the Star Sea received promises from those undead Believers whose skeletons are now just skeletons."

"What do you think?" Cheng Lang asked.

I don't think this is a good thing.

Senfa said from a merchant and business perspective, "Every change of currency is accompanied by the collapse of the regime and existing rules. Poseidon's blood served as the monetary benchmark before the appearance of the Ghost Fleet."

Although it currently appears to be merely a transfer of the monetary base from Mr. Poseidon's blood to his scales, someone must bear the consequences, and…

"What?" Cheng Lang asked.

"Moreover, it's not just the six kingdoms and the pirate city; even the Ghost Fleet is secretly acquiring Poseidon's Blood."

Senfa frowned and said with lingering fear, "But can you believe it? It's definitely not just me and my Flamingo Trading Company that discovered these clues. But apart from the official authorities, any individual or trading company that stockpiled a large amount of Poseidon's Blood encountered one or more accidents soon afterward."

"An accident?" Cheng Lang frowned.

"Yes, it was an accident."

Senfa sighed, "Looting, shipwrecks, tax evasion, assassination, bounties, and even blasphemy against the royal family have been used time and time again."

"So, the blood of Poseidon is actually more precious?" Cheng Lang asked.

“It is more precious than ever since Poseidon was killed,” Senfa said earnestly.

"Senfa, is there any other information to share?" Cheng Lang asked, taking a deep breath.

“The intelligence is gone, but I have a deal,” Senfa said.

Now we can finally get down to business.
Cheng Lang muttered to himself, then feigned curiosity and asked, "A trade? With me?"

"certainly"

As Senfa spoke, he pulled out a leather cord hanging around his neck. At the end of the cord was a key, a golden key inlaid with various small seashells and conches.

"This is an exceptionally rare large marine armor. It was seized from the captain of a pirate ship when my Flamingo and Furnace were conscripted by the Rican royal family."

As Senfa spoke, he took off the leather strap hanging around his neck and pushed it to Cheng Lang, "I want to use it to exchange for a boat bottle from you."

"Change to a different boat bottle?"

Cheng Lang glanced at the other person, then asked curiously, "What's this key for?"

Its name is the Key to the Dock.

Senfa said, "It might be the same as the Reversing Hourglass, the ship armor you exchanged with me, both works of the legendary armor-making master Vanhart. It is said that each dock key can open a large dock."

"Perhaps? It is said?" Cheng Lang became more vigilant. "This dock key requires a password to use. Before it is opened, there is no way to determine whether it is the work of Master Van Hart."

Senfa said awkwardly, "I don't know the secret code, but its value is indeed far greater than a boat bottle."

"What do you need the boat bottle for?" Cheng Lang asked, changing the subject.

“Of course it’s the liquor trade!” Senfa said without hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Lang tapped the table lightly with his fingernails as he fell into deep thought. He needed to carefully consider how to maximize the value of this deal.

Just then, Yun Ji, who had already donned a mask of hypocrisy, also boarded the Flamingo and went straight into the captain's office.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, I must interrupt."

Wearing a fake face, Yun Ji said apologetically, "Captain, there's a problem in the cabin that you need to deal with immediately."

I'll be right back.

Cheng Lang nodded apologetically to Senfa, then hurriedly followed Yun Ji out of the captain's cabin of the Flamingo.

He knew that unless there was a very important situation, Yun Ji would never have called him out in such a rude and impetuous way.

"Captain, the Magic Mirror wants to talk to you."

As they boarded back onto the Valkyrie's open deck, Yun Ji began to explain, pointing to the forecourt entrance not far away.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Lang did not ask Yun Ji any further questions and quickly ran into the forecourt.

"Captain, esteemed, distinguished captain, I am very sorry, your faithful servant has inadvertently overheard your conversation with Mr. Senfa."

Before he could stop, the Magic Mirror burst through the wall and said urgently, "Before you forgive my rudeness, Captain, we must get that key no matter what! Even if it costs us all our ship bottles, we must exchange them for the dock key!"

"Tell me the reason," Cheng Lang stopped and asked.

"Eleanor the Pirate Queen's shipyard, isn't that reason enough?" the Magic Mirror asked instinctively.

"Our captain probably needs a more detailed explanation."

As they were talking, Yun Ji also entered the forecourt and said without any apology, "I also overheard your conversation just now."

"Actually, if you want to hear it, you can just listen openly," Cheng Lang waved his hand, both amused and exasperated. "So, who can explain this?"

"The key to the shipyard was not rare, at least not in the time of Van Hart. It was almost standard equipment for large fleets, and that was the most glorious era for pirates."

The Magic Mirror explained with intonation, "But the dock key is also very rare. Before it was made into armor, Vanhart only made one dock key for each of the 19 pirate kings of Pirate City. The rest of the dock keys are basically imitations by the armor-making masters. Of course, even the imitations are not much different."

"so."

“My esteemed captain, I cannot be mistaken,” the Magic Mirror said with certainty. “This dock key is one of the 19 genuine ones.”

"You won't mistake me?" Cheng Lang raised an eyebrow. "You've seen me before?"

"I"

The Magic Mirror paused for a moment, then finally said, "I once spied on the opening process of 19 dock keys at the urging of one of the captains of the Valkyrie. I not only recognized them, but I also knew the password for each key, provided that the password was not changed after I spied on them."

Before Cheng Lang could ask a question, the Magic Mirror added, "However, even if none of the 19 secret codes I know work, it doesn't matter. You still have to pay 10 cups of Poseidon's Blood to invite Lord Shenwei to meet you. She can easily open any dock locked with any key."

"Two questions"

Cheng Lang made a peace sign. "First of all, why did one of the captains of the Valkyrie encourage you to spy on the process of opening these dock keys?"

"That captain was a pickpocket, the greatest pickpocket ever."

The Magic Mirror reluctantly explained, "After being refused Master Vanhart's request to forge a dock key, he planned to steal one to use."

"The results of it?"

"But he died in battle before he could put his plan into action."

The Magic Mirror's tone grew increasingly reluctant, "Dear Captain, please do not continue to explore this matter further."

“Okay, second question, are these dock keys really that important?” Cheng Lang asked.

Let me answer this question.

Yun Ji explained, "The Dock Key is Master Vanhart's greatest invention. Using the Dock Key, you can open a void dock at any pier and lock the ship inside. Theoretically, unless it is a sea monster-level being, you don't have to worry about the ship being stolen or damaged while docked."

"That's amazing?" Cheng Lang asked in surprise.

“Essentially, it’s just carving out a piece of sea from the fog of the Sea of ​​Despair to use as a docking area,” Sunglasses explained. “The principle is similar to that of Exile Island.”

"If that's the case, why now?"

"Because after Vanhart was forged into armor, the most crucial part of the Dock Key's blueprints also became invalid."

Yun Ji said, "Piracy is a high-risk profession, with death almost always present. If the owner of the Dock Key dies unexpectedly while Van Hart is alive, at least Master Van Hart can help reset the secret code."

However, after Vanhart, who possessed the core blueprints, became that grotesque figure, no one could help him unlock the dock.

With the fall of the pirate king, these keys gradually became luxury items symbolizing wealth because they lost their secret codes.

At most, they could only exchange it for a permanent free berth in Pirate City and a permanent exemption from the city's entrance fee from Lord Panini, the Nine-Headed Sea Monster.

"So it's possible that we can launch the ships stored in the dock?" Cheng Lang asked.

"It's not impossible."

The magic mirror said, "That is, if there is a ship docked in the shipyard that this key opens."

"Your Excellency, you can discuss the price with Mr. Senfa, but please be sure to obtain that key."

"I'll give it a try," Cheng Lang replied.

After leaving the forecastle and boarding the Flamingo again, Cheng Lang, at Senfa's invitation once more, re-entered the captain's cabin.

"Sorry, there was a minor incident in the cabin just now," Cheng Lang said, sitting down. "Where were we?"

(End of this chapter)