The pirate lackeys excitedly scavenged the gold and silver jewelry, luxury watches, and ornaments that the guests were forced to surrender.
Heavy gold and silver coins clattered into their pockets, one after another.
The gold reflected their greedy faces, but the true feast was not to be found here.
In the captain's quarters on the upper deck and within several high-value vaults, the captain of the Ghost Face Pirates and several core senior officers were conducting a much higher quality of plunder.
“Speak. Where are the Deep Sea Tears, the Weaver's Spindle, and that batch of ancient cultivator relics you swallowed from the Tide Auction last month?”
A fierce pirate with a scar across his face gripped the entertainment ship captain's throat with a massive hand, pinning him against the wall.
The entertainment ship's captain was a well-dressed middle-aged man. His face was flushed red, yet his eyes betrayed a fierce, desperate resolve.
Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth after several beatings, but he remained stubbornly silent.
He knew perfectly well that the moment he spoke, he would lose his value, and death would likely come even faster.
By gritting his teeth and saying nothing, he might be able to stall for more time.
Even an extra minute could mean the arrival of reinforcements and a reversal of the situation.
“Playing tough?”
“I have plenty of ways to make you talk.”
The captain of the Ghost Face Pirates spoke with a raspy voice that had the texture of scraping metal.
He had usurped the captain's seat and now slowly stood up. He wasn't particularly tall; in fact, he was somewhat gaunt.
Dressed in a deep purple pirate robe, his face was covered by a silver mask carved into the shape of a ghost face, revealing only a hard-lined jaw and eyes that were deep and bottomless.
The Ghost Face Captain walked up to the restrained entertainment ship captain and reached out his right hand.
A flicker of terror flashed in the captive's eyes, yet he remained silent.
Under the slightly awe-struck gazes of the surrounding pirate officers, the skin on the tip of the Ghost Face Captain's right index finger began to writhe and deform like melting wax. The color darkened until it eventually transformed into a long, sharp needle with a bluish-black sheen.
It was an ink needle used for tattooing.
Without any unnecessary movement, the Ghost Face Captain used this ink needle to pierce the clothing over the captain's chest and then jabbed it into his skin.
“Aaaagh!”
The entertainment ship captain let out a pained growl, his body struggling violently, but he was pinned firmly by the pirate officers behind him.
Ignoring the struggles and screams, the Ghost Face Captain moved the needle across the man's exposed chest with extreme speed.
Bluish-black lines formed rapidly following the movement of his fingertip, gradually outlining a ghost face pattern—identical to the iconic tattoos on the pirates' bodies!
As the final stroke was completed, the freshly tattooed ghost face glowed with an eerie light, writhing like a living thing before turning a dark green, looking as if it had been growing there for years.
The moment the ghost face was finished, all of the captain's struggles ceased.
The resistance in his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by submissiveness. He stood still even as the officers behind him let go.
He adjusted his messy clothes, turned toward the Ghost Face Captain, dropped to one knee, and lowered his head. In a voice filled with extreme reverence and even fanaticism, he said, “Master, I am your most loyal servant, ready for your orders at any time.”
The Ghost Face Captain retracted his finger, which returned to its original state, and gave a satisfied hum.
“Hand over everything of value on this ship, especially the items and records containing supernatural power.”
“As you command, my Master.”
The entertainment ship captain rose without hesitation, walked to a safe in the corner of the room, entered the code, and pressed several hidden switches.
A secret door slowly opened, revealing various items stored in categories.
There were crystals emitting various faint glows, ancient scrolls and books, potions and biological tissues sealed in special containers, and several strangely shaped artifacts.
A greedy light erupted in the Ghost Face Captain's eyes. This was his primary objective for this trip!
Common wealth was important, but these supernatural resources that could enhance strength, explore mysteries, or even contain ancient legacies were what pirates like him—who lived on the edge of life and death—craved the most!
“Hahahaha!” the Ghost Face Captain couldn't help but laugh.
He had truly returned with a full load today; his strength was bound to reach a new level.
However, just as he was basking in his success and taking stock of the precious spoils, and as some of the lackeys began to gather the scavenged wealth to transport it back to their own ship...
Strange things were quietly beginning to happen.
...
A team of pirates responsible for moving the wealth collected from the restaurant to the lower deck—and then back to the pirate ship via the gangway—cursed as they carried heavy sacks down the stairs leading to the hold.
The stairs were a common metal spiral staircase, extending downward under the dim emergency lighting.
They walked for about two minutes.
“Dammit, why is the hold of this crappy ship so deep?” one pirate muttered.
They walked for another two minutes.
“Something's not right. We just came down from the restaurant—it’s only three floors. We should have arrived by now.” Another pirate stopped and looked down in confusion.
The stairs continued to spiral downward, seemingly bottomless and without end.
“Let's try going up.” The minor leader felt something was wrong and ordered a return.
They turned around and began to climb.
They climbed for three minutes. By all logic, they should have returned to the floor where the restaurant was located.
But before them was the exact same metal spiral staircase extending upward, with the pipes and signs on the walls looking hauntingly familiar.
Down was an endless staircase.
Up was still the staircase.
They were trapped in a Mobius loop that extended infinitely in both directions.
No matter how they walked, the surrounding scenery barely changed. There was only the heavy breathing of their companions and a growing sense of panic.
Someone tried to carve a mark on the wall with a knife, but when they returned to that spot, the mark was still there, yet they were still on the stairs—neither at the top nor the bottom.
“Is this place cursed?!” one pirate said, dripping with cold sweat.
The leader, however, remained calm. “No, I think it's more likely... the defense measures on this ship are trying to trap us, or someone is attacking us from the shadows.”
...
Another team of pirates was transporting several crates of gold bars and gems from the casino vault through the side corridor toward the temporary gangplank connecting the two ships.
The corridor was spacious, and the lighting was better than in the stairwell.
“Hurry up. We switch shifts after this load,” the lead pirate urged.
At a T-junction, the pirate in front had just turned the corner when he ran straight into a familiar figure.
It was a teammate from his own squad, the one who had just said he was going to the bathroom.
“Hank? You're back already? How did you get ahead of us?” he asked in surprise.
Hank looked bewildered. “What do you mean 'ahead'? I just came from behind.”
Both felt it was a bit odd, but they didn't think much of it, and the team continued forward.
They passed another turn.
The pirate in second place saw Hank again. He was walking toward them from the opposite direction, a relaxed expression on his face as if he had just finished his business.
“Hank? How the hell did you...” The pirate froze.
The team stopped. The two Hanks stood a few paces apart, staring at each other.
Their clothing, appearance, and even the fresh scar on their necks were identical.
“Who are you?” the first Hank asked sharply, his hand moving to his sword hilt.
“I’m Hank! What kind of thing are you?” the second Hank replied in shock and anger.
“Bullshit! I’m the real one!”
“I’m the real one! You’re the fake!”
Their suspicion rapidly turned into an angry exchange of accusations, their voices growing louder.
The other pirates looked from one to the other, cold sweat pouring down their backs.
They couldn't tell them apart at all!
Their expressions, tones, even their body odors and shared memories were identical.
When Hank was asked how much money he had lost gambling last night, both gave the exact same number.
It was as if... one was a perfect duplicate.
Panic spread through the team.
If there was an extra, identical Hank, then what about themselves?
Were the companions beside them still the original ones?
...
Yue Shi was still sitting at the table by the window in the restaurant, a small plate of nuts before him.
He picked one up and peeled it slowly, but he didn't eat it. Instead, he placed it on the table, building a small pyramid.
The pickpocket beside him was telling rumors about the Bewitching Beauty Painting Workshop.
At first, he had kept his voice low, but after realizing that no matter how much noise he made, the pirates didn't notice him, he gradually let himself go. He even began to gesture wildly when he reached the interesting parts.
Yue Shi felt, however, that the pickpocket's tales likely contained a fair amount of artistic exaggeration.
Three hundred billion mortals?
That felt a bit exaggerated.
No, it was extremely exaggerated!
Was the Bewitching Beauty Painting Workshop as large as a continent?
“The Bewitching Beauty Painting Workshop is the lighthouse of the sea. Many who make a living on the water want to settle there, get a permanent residency permit, and enjoy the various benefits on the workshop.”
As he spoke, a look of longing appeared on the pickpocket's face.
Yue Shi raised an eyebrow. Back in Jinlong Continent, the intelligence he had gathered about the Bewitching Beauty Painting Workshop wasn't like this.
Jinlong Continent's evaluation of the place could be summed up in one sentence—the world's largest den of indulgence, where anything can be bought with enough money.
The pickpocket continued his animated description of the wonderful life on the workshop.
Yue Shi's gaze calmly swept over the two pirates at the restaurant entrance.
They were responsible for guarding the area to prevent anyone from escaping.
By now, expressions of confusion and alarm were beginning to surface on their faces.
Some of their companions had lost contact, and no one knew where they had gone.
But the overall number of pirates hadn't changed; there were just... some strange additions.
Beneath Yue Shi's feet, space ripples too subtle for ordinary people to perceive were spreading like ripples on a pond, quietly reaching every key node of the giant ship with him as the center.
For Yue Shi, creating some interesting little troubles inside this relatively closed steel vessel was as simple as moving a few pieces on a chessboard.
The infinite staircase was merely twisting the beginning and end of the space where that section of stairs was located, connecting it into a closed loop.
Creating a few pirate duplicates was even easier—accidentally being reflected by a smooth mirror surface, and a second later, a twin brother appeared.
Watching those pirates questioning each other, nearly reaching the point of infighting over the 'True or False Monkey King' dilemma, a wicked smile played on Yue Shi's lips.
The snow leopard in his arms seemed to sense its master's amusement and gave its tail a gentle flick.
“What are you laughing at?” the pickpocket asked, confused. He felt Yue Shi’s smile was somewhat mischievous.
Yue Shi: “Nothing. I just thought of something interesting.”
...
The guests trapped in the corner of the restaurant were initially just anxious and terrified.
But gradually, they also noticed something was wrong.
The pirates guarding the door were displaying strange expressions one after another. Their faces became increasingly suspicious as they whispered to each other, even starting to eye their companions with wariness.
A major problem seemed to have arisen within the Ghost Face Pirates!
A kind of chaos they couldn't understand was spreading.
In a dire situation, even the slightest change can ignite a spark of hope.
Among the tourists, the transcendents who had hidden their strength and chosen to endure when the pirates boarded began to have a glint in their eyes.
If it came down to raw power, all the transcendents on the ship combined should have enough strength to fight the pirate group.
But these people could never truly unite, nor were they willing to go head-to-head with the Ghost Face Pirates.
Because it was said that the captain of the Ghost Face Pirates possessed a special ability to control people's hearts.
In the past, many experts had sought revenge or challenged this captain, only to mysteriously end up as members of the pirate group.
Either the Ghost Face Captain had immense personal charisma, or he possessed a special ability.
Clearly, most people were willing to believe the latter.
The transcendents among the tourists were unwilling to have a direct confrontation. Losing some money didn't matter; the most important thing was not to be targeted by the pirates.
But now, the pirate group seemed to be having internal issues, giving them a chance to fish in troubled waters.
A middle-aged man dressed inconspicuously, who had been curled up in the crowd, very covertly traced a talisman on the floor.
A pirate near him suddenly froze, his eyes going blank for a moment as if he had become a walking corpse.
Not far away, a glamorous noblewoman’s unremarkable bracelet flashed with a faint red light.
The pirate who was forcing her to hand over her jewelry suddenly let out a muffled groan and clutched his stomach. His face went pale as he doubled over and hurriedly ran off to find a restroom.
He couldn't hold it in; if he was a second later, there’d be an explosive disaster.
Those skilled in mental interference tried to project even more chaotic and fearful thoughts to the pirates who were already becoming suspicious, adding fuel to their internal strife.
Those skilled in shadow shifting blurred slightly, quietly merging into the darkness.
Commotion was rising throughout the ship. The once monolithic pirate group was experiencing more and more chaos due to the mysterious internal confusion and these small actions by the tourists.
And at the source of all this chaos, Yue Shi remained leisurely seated at the dining table, looking as if the surrounding blood and panic had nothing to do with him.
He gently brushed the nut fragments from his hands and swept his gaze over the tourists in the restaurant.
The sea truly produced many talented people and many treasures.
“The good things should all be mine...”
“What did you say?” the pickpocket asked, looking dazed.
Yue Shi grabbed a handful of melon seeds. “Nothing. I didn't hear that rumor you just told clearly. Tell it again.”
The pickpocket: “ʘᴗʘ”
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