Chapter 1 The Shock of Nature

Although Su Lun already knew the situation in this sea area, he was still deeply shocked by the power of nature before him.

The "Devil's Sea" could serve as a natural barrier for the pirate city, so it was naturally extremely dangerous. Dozens of sea ships were buried here every year due to improper operation. The sea whirlpools here had diameters of up to a kilometer, and there were various hidden reefs. Even a mid-sized warship like the White-headed Eagle was rocked upside down inside.

Fortunately, the navigator on board was experienced, and the fleet passed through without any major incidents.

The fleet sailed through the vortex sea area, and suddenly it was calm.

Sunlight shone through the thick dark clouds, like golden ribbons, illuminating a magnificent scene.

"Hahaha...we're in Hasterlin!"

Everyone on the ship cheered.

Su Lun looked at the large group of buildings with unique styles in front of him, and his eyes sparkled with brilliance.

The pirate city's sea area has warm currents and winds from the northwest, and the original subarctic climate suddenly became a subtropical climate, with pleasant temperatures. Large areas of green vegetation grew on the islands, and the scenery was excellent.

The sea was dotted with various islands.

Those islands had very special shapes, like standing giant stone pillars. Wooden stilt houses with roofs painted in various colors, like colorful mushrooms, were built on those stone pillars. In the sky, huge animal skin airships floated, with wooden buildings connected under the airships, hanging various neon signs, a scene of feasting and revelry. Antique steam trains "woo wooed", dragging long white steam tails, shuttling between the islands. It was like a fairy tale world.

The most exaggerated thing was the wooden stockade building complex at the farthest point, more than thirty stories high.

Su Lun didn't know how the people here built such exaggerated buildings out of wood.

Their fleet arrived near dusk, and as the fleet slowly approached, the sky darkened.

When they were about two or three nautical miles away from the city, lights suddenly lit up in the tall buildings in the distance.

Then, a shocking scene appeared before them.

The closely arranged wooden buildings radiated a brilliant orange light under the illumination of the lights, making the entire stockade look like it was cast in gold, shining brightly. The lights were reflected in the dark cyan sea water, as if there was also a city of gold in the water. Looking up again, the sea and sky were all cyan, and between the dazzling flashes, it was hard to tell where the reflection was and where the real building was.

"Thirty-three floors of golden buildings, connected to the Yellow Springs below and the sky above..."

Su Lun squinted his eyes and looked at the "Golden City That Never Sleeps" in the distance, and thought of the legends about the pirate city.

Now it seemed that the legends were indeed well-deserved.

This was definitely the most heartwarming architectural spectacle that Su Lun had ever seen in this world.

.......

The pirate city has existed for over a thousand years.

In addition to pirates, there are also tens of millions of indigenous people.

They are the descendants of exiles, retired pirates, fishermen, criminals, and believers of the Northern Continent's Four Kingdoms. It is a mixed bag here, and even the people of the Northern Sea King's fleet do not dare to be too presumptuous.

But the Northern Sea King's fleet still had some clout.

Su Lun and the others had only recently formed the Ninth Fleet and received a warm welcome from the merchants in the Golden City.

As soon as they entered the port, various brokers and pimps poured onto the dock, greeting them enthusiastically.

"Hey, sir, there's a big performance at the 'Sun City Bathhouse' tonight, shall I take you there?"

"Sir, the 'Silver Knight Casino' has a group of performers from the Royal Opera of Lu Ying Imperial City. Oh, those are exquisite dances that only true nobles can enjoy!"

"Our 'Spartan Gladiator Arena' has a gladiator competition tonight with a fifth-tier professional fighting a sea monster. There are big bosses opening unlimited betting, if you like betting, sir, you'll be satisfied."

"..."

After all, it's a pirate city.

It has the most developed entertainment industry in Lu Ying, a dazzling scene of extravagance and debauchery.

The pirates risk their lives to rob, and naturally come here to spend money. They will not be stingy with the coins in their pockets, and are willing to be completely emptied in gambling dens and brothels.

After getting off the ship, the fleet commander, "Gluttonous General" Pei Weng, didn't go with the several squadron leaders or the newly recruited rabble under his command. He gave them some money and entered the city.

Because it was a reorganized new group, everyone wasn't too familiar with each other, and there was no friendship or loyalty to speak of.

The captain of the fifteenth squadron that Su Lun was in didn't plan to take his "brothers" to spend money. He distributed the money and said, "The docks are the cheapest, the best girls are always in the city. You can go around and broaden your horizons if you have nothing to do. Don't forget to bring your communicators, the boss said there might be a big operation in the next few days..."

"Yes, Captain!"

Everyone had been holding back for half a month on the ship, and their hearts were burning with desire.

After taking the money, they entered the city gate with their arms around each other's shoulders.

The treatment of the Northern Sea Fleet was indeed good.

With a wave of the fleet commander's hand, Su Lun, a basic member, received more than 10,000. Plus the previous 50,000 settlement fee, it was enough to squander in the city for a while.

Extravagance, debauchery, and enjoying life in time are the reasons why many people choose to become pirates.

Su Lun had things to do and didn't plan to hang out with those people.

But at this time, someone patted him on the shoulder, "Brother Johnny, what are your plans?"

Turning his head, he saw a young man with yellow hair.

This was a fellow gunner he had recently met while playing cards in the same cabin, named Sharp.

His nature was not too bad.

This guy wasn't originally a pirate, he was a city defense gunner in Blizzard City. He joined the Northern Sea Fleet purely because his family was so poor that they couldn't make ends meet, and he had a seriously ill old mother. He had his eye on the settlement fee to help with the emergency, so he came.

Su Lun thought for a while and replied, "I plan to go to a geisha house."

Sharp looked slightly bored when he heard this, "Hey, don't listen to Martin and those guys bragging. I've heard people say before that geishas are a waste of money, you can only feast your eyes, and you can't even get any meat. That's a place for rich big shots to relax, our little money is only enough for a few cups of tea. If you really want to play with girls, it's better to go to a brothel. I heard that a batch of war slaves has recently come to the pirate city from who knows where, their skin is as smooth as soap, shall we go try them out together?"

Su Lun shook his head with a smile: "Forget it. After all, I've never seen it before. I want to find a cheap one to see what the legendary geishas are like, and broaden my horizons."

"It's up to you then."

Hearing this, Sharp looked bored, waved his hand, and quickly followed the previous few people: "Then contact me with the communicator if anything happens."

"Yeah."

Su Lun nodded with a smile and entered the city alone.

.......

Entering the Golden City, the space here seemed extremely three-dimensional and complex, a bit like the old Lingdun of the past, densely packed with very crowded buildings everywhere. It looked like a city, but entering it was like entering a wooden building forest. The streets were very narrow, and overhead were various spider web-like pipes and bridges.

Most of them were wooden buildings, but there were also some steel buildings and steam pipes. The architectural style was also very mixed, not the Gothic style that was mainstream in Lu Ying, or the Baroque style. Instead, it was a variety of strange styles, as if hundreds of civilizations were mixed together.

The most eye-catching thing was the pedestrians on the street.

Like the foreign pirates, you could recognize them at a glance from their attire.

The attire of the indigenous people was very strange.

Ronin, monks, nuns, missionaries, Spartans, wrestlers, adventurers...their attire was varied, their professions were strange, and their skin colors were also diverse.

Moreover, many of the indigenous people's attire had strong religious characteristics.

In Lu Ying, there were almost only alchemists, but here, Su Lun saw all kinds of god believers.

"One hundred and eight thousand gods, so many beliefs are actually mixed together..."

Su Lun found it a little unbelievable.

Moreover, as he walked along, the soul fires of some passers-by felt very strange. Among those god believers, there were many strange guys.

Su Lun sized them up, and those passers-by would also size him up with cautious eyes that hid danger. Only when they saw the symbol of the Northern Sea Fleet would they restrain themselves a lot.

In other places, a pirate's identity was avoided by ordinary people, but here, it was ordinary.

This was the "City of Sin", a place with a high crime rate. Any random passerby on the street was a vicious criminal. But no one indulged anyone, and there was a risk of death at the slightest disagreement.

Su Lun had harvested many memories about pirate ships before, so he wasn't too unfamiliar with the streets here.

He planned to go to the alchemy material shop to pick up some goods, and then go to the geisha house in the city to have a look.

He wanted to watch a geisha performance, but it wasn't that he was really interested in that kind of entertainment.

It was because the geisha business was an official business of the Mountain Hermit Kingdom.

Su Lun came to the pirate city, and understanding the Rune Warlock lineage was one of the most important purposes. That "Rune Old Man" was in the Mountain Hermit Kingdom.

Moreover, he was now indeed full of interest in that almost isolated civilization.

Su Lun had been very puzzled before, Qiandiao's kimono and kendo were different from the mainstream alchemists. Later, he learned that the population of Old Lingdun was filled with slaves from various places. Qiandiao himself couldn't explain the origin of those things, and many of them were things inherited from his family.

But the problem was that if there was inheritance, there must be a source.

None of the major territories of Lu Ying had heard of the habit of wearing kimonos.

Now that he had come to the pirate city and saw those ronin and geisha, Su Lun understood that Qiandiao's ancestors were very likely from the Mountain Hermit Kingdom.

If he really wanted to go to that place, it was always right to learn more about it in advance.

Su Lun contacted Qiandiao with the communicator.

That gambling-addicted young woman had been in the pirate city for some time.

According to her own words, after coming here, she also had a sense of belonging and was investigating some things.

Now she seemed to be in a little trouble, didn't say where she was, and didn't plan to meet up first.

Su Lun didn't need to worry about Qiandiao's strength, so he didn't ask any more questions and hung up the communicator.

He sensed that no one was paying attention around him, shook his body, and changed into an inconspicuous adventurer's attire, delving deep into the city.

.......

The sky had completely darkened, and the pirate city was brightly lit, becoming more and more lively.

The most lively thing in the pirate city was the entertainment industry, with all kinds of red, green, and pink neon signs that could blind people. These gold-selling caves also occupied the best positions in the city.

Pirates had a special area for selling goods, located at the bottom of the city.

The memories Su Lun harvested were not too detailed. He wandered around the maze-like stockade several times before finding the alchemy material market.

It was a "city river" like a sewer, with sewage flowing everywhere. The river was filled with small boats packed with packages of goods unloaded from the port, stopping and returning in front of various shops. Some guys with their heads covered were going in and out of the shops.

It was dark, damp...and there were all kinds of little devils coveting the wealth of tourists.

Those sneaky half-grown kids could tell at a glance who was in the pirate city for the first time and would take special care of them.

Because it was a black market, it wasn't like a regular shop with those fancy signs.

It was normal for pirates to double-cross each other, so for safety, pirates usually sold their goods in shops they were familiar with.

Su Lun walked into a small shop. In his harvested memories, it was "Aunt Tang's Magic Material Shop". The prices for buying and selling goods were fair, and they generally didn't cheat acquaintances.

He walked straight in.

The space in the room was not spacious. It was a store and a warehouse. The limited space was filled with various materials.

Behind the counter was an old woman like a witch, holding a crystal ball and muttering to herself.

She didn't even open her eyes when a guest came in.

A middle-aged man with tattoos all over his face was looking at the ledger, looking like the old woman's son.

The copper bell at the door rang, and he glanced over indifferently.

Su Lun glanced over silently. These two people were clearly god believers.

But he didn't know which god they believed in. Their soul perception was a bit cold, like black mages.

He didn't look too much, knocked on the table, and said, "Wandering in the shadows of the tomb, blood gives fear to mortals."

The black language between pirates, indicating that he knew the ropes.

The content of this sentence seemed to be related to the beliefs of the shopkeepers.

Hearing this, the tattooed man knew that an acquaintance had come, and finally raised his eyebrows, "What do you need?"

"I need some materials."

As Su Lun spoke, he took out a list filled with densely packed materials.

The tattooed man glanced at it and skillfully quoted the prices: "Pink lizard marrow 800 per gram, Devil's Mushroom 3000, purple crystal with a purity of 8, 150,000, a pair of three-tailed sea snake eyes 200,000, white phosphorus whale oil..."

"No problem."

Hearing the quotation, Su Lun immediately agreed and said, "The quantity of materials will be according to my list."

This was already a price he was very satisfied with.

If he were to buy these materials elsewhere, it would cost at least several times the price.

And he might not even be able to buy them.

This was the benefit of the pirate city.

The stolen goods were much lower than in Lu Ying's regular merchants, averaging 40-50% off. Some rare gold and dark gold materials were not only not expensive, but were surprisingly cheap, even at a discount of 10-20% of the market price.

After all, the pirates' cultivation techniques and implants were very ordinary, and not many could use high-level materials.

Su Lun bought alchemy materials here that he had not been able to buy before.

With this batch of goods, he could make more high-level enchanted puppets.

The tattooed man said in a deep voice, "Some of the materials you want need to be prepared. Pay a deposit first and come back to pick up the goods after tomorrow."

"Okay, everything will be done according to the rules."

Su Lun took out a deposit of one million without hesitation.

He knew that his batch of goods was very mixed, and it was impossible for a normal shop to have all of them in stock. But these black market merchants would borrow goods from each other, and as long as the pirate city had them, they could find them.

This also saved Su Lun the trouble of going to shops everywhere to find them.

After paying the money, he casually asked, "Are there any good goods? Cursed items, mechanical equipment, etc..."

Su Lun hadn't been mixing in the nineteenth fleet for nothing. Recently, he had heard internal news that the Mafa Empire had indeed funded Oleg with a lot of cutting-edge mechanical equipment. Not to mention the void implants.

Since there was a large-scale outflow, some of it might flow into the black market.

Moreover, the pirates had a lot of good goods they had robbed, so maybe he could find a bargain.

Seeing that Su Lun knew the rules very well, the tattooed man didn't waste any words. He touched the glass display case.

The black cabinet suddenly became transparent.

Su Lun's eyes fell over, and he saw a pile of small boutiques, a flag, a pair of bracers, a compass, a quill, and some small objects...

He had the All-Knowing Eye, so he didn't need much introduction.

[Columbus's Navigation Flag] affects wind power circulation and increases sailing speed; [Amitich's Magic Bracers (Silver)], inject energy to provide shield defense; [Damaged Compass] is useless...

Some of the things were good and some were bad, but they were all alchemy items with good effects.

Unfortunately, none of them were useful to Su Lun, "Hey, I need real good stuff."

Seeing that he frowned, the tattooed man touched it again, the glass shimmered, and the things inside changed again, all of them were mechanical parts.

A broken mechanical arm, a 70% new steam-powered boiler, a piece of broken steel plate with the TTR logo, and some small parts...

Su Lun took a look, he was just asking casually to try his luck, he didn't expect to find good things!

In the display case, he saw some wreckage of Mafa mechanical armor!

And that steel plate was also "Adaman Alloy", Mafa's top-secret technology!

The things were good things. However, there was too little of it.

It wasn't even enough to make a puppet.

"How much are these items in total?"

"Seven hundred thousand."

"I can give you forty at most."

"Fifty."

"Deal!"

Su Lun got those mechanical parts.

Then the tattooed man changed another batch, and Su Lun suddenly let out a soft sigh, he then realized that those mechanical parts with a very unique style were actually produced in Old Lingdun!

[Frost Giant Mechanical Armor], some external skeletons, and neuro-mechanical parts...

The tattooed man introduced, "This is a batch of good goods from the Northern Sea Fleet..."

Su Lun naturally knew where these things came from.

Before, Oleg's Fourth Fleet had plundered Old Lingdun and brought out a large number of underground machines. There were also many good things with superior technology in that batch of goods.

In the pirate city, there were probably a large number of Old Lingdun "specialties" now.

He didn't show anything too abnormal, and casually picked a few that he was satisfied with.

Su Lun felt that coming to the pirate city this time was the right thing to do. He had already gained a lot of good things at the start.

He was still continuing to pick up goods, wanting to take away all the mechanical equipment, blueprints, and materials in this shop that he was interested in.

But as he was picking, he suddenly felt a chill in his heart.

In his perception, a very special soul fire appeared not far away.

It was the "suspicious person" next to "Butcher" Banner!

......

"Okay, that's all."

Su Lun didn't continue to stay in the shop. He paid the money, took the things, and walked out of the shop unhurriedly.

Banner was in the Fourth Fleet. Their fleet was leaving Blizzard City two days earlier, so it was not surprising to run into them in the pirate city.

That "suspicious person" also seemed to be picking out materials and stayed in the shop not far away for a while.

Su Lun planned to follow him, not necessarily to figure it out at once, but also to feel out the guy's bottom line.

Most of the people shopping in the black market were dressed in cloaks and trench coats, so Su Lun wasn't afraid of being recognized. He instinctively felt that his tracking skills were very high, and it was impossible for him to be easily discovered.

Before long, that "suspicious person" seemed to have bought the materials, walked out of a shop, and seemed to be planning to go to the upper city.

"He's here alone..."

Su Lun observed for a moment and didn't find anyone else with this guy.

He was not careless, but instead felt a sense of vigilance in his heart.

If this guy was really what he guessed, he was the "mysterious mechanic" who was modifying Banner's mechanical body.

Then Banner should focus on protecting him.

Now that he was alone, it was either to keep his whereabouts secret or he had the strength to protect himself.

"Who exactly is he? It's really getting more and more curious..."

Su Lun muttered to himself.

Seeing that the man turned into the alley, he thought for a moment and followed.

But he didn't follow too far before he immediately realized something: "As expected, I was discovered..."

........

Su Lun could sense the soul fire, so he easily captured the other party's unusual anti-reconnaissance movements.

But he also pretended not to notice and continued to follow.

In his opinion, this mysterious person was probably from Old Lingdun.

If so, he had a rough assessment of the other party's strength.

Under normal circumstances, the members of the Mirror Organization were already considered the strongest in the underground.

It was difficult for this mysterious person to be higher than Qiandiao and the others.

So even if he was discovered, it wouldn't be a big problem.

Besides, with Su Lun's current strength, if he was determined to leave, even a fifth-tier professional might not be able to stop him.

He was also very curious about how he was discovered.

As soon as he walked into the alley.

That mysterious person appeared behind Su Lun like a ghost.

Before Su Lun could speak, the other party asked directly, "You have the smell of 'X Serum' on you, who exactly are you?"

Su Lun was shocked when he heard this.

But at the same time, he captured a key word and instantly understood how he was exposed.

"Sense of smell talent?"

Being able to smell the taste of the potion and knowing "X Potion" meant that nine out of ten times he was from Old Lingdun.

He instantly thought of someone.

A friend in the underground city, the pharmacist Danny!

Su Lun's eyes turned and he had a bizarre idea that he thought was very bizarre. But he also opened his mouth to confirm, "Are you someone related to Danny Banks?"

"..."

Hearing this, the mysterious person on the opposite side obviously paused.

Obviously, he was also extremely surprised that Su Lun would ask this.