Humanity Forbidden Island [Full Text] - 27

Chapter 383: The Death Label of the Flesh

I sniffed hard, took a deep breath of the air in front of my face, and turned to Dumo, saying, "Dumo, you should know that Jason Jody abandoned you, which is why the child molester is so brazenly toying with you."

Dumo lowered his head sadly, shook his heavy head, and said dejectedly, "How could I not know! Ever since that day when I returned to the Sea Demon and tried to help you get back Yiliang, Jason Jody has been acting strangely. He even allowed me to go into the storage hangar, to eat whatever I wanted, and take whatever I wanted. I had a bad feeling about that."

I let out a heavy sigh. Dumo is indeed cunning, but I hoped he was just saying this for the sake of saying it, and not trying to imply that he had ended up like this because of me.

Actually, I also wanted to tell Dumo that even without me, he wouldn't have fared well on the Sea Demon, because that framework of interests had already locked him in tightly, and he had no chance.

Jason Jody always has someone like Dumo on his shortlist whenever he needs cannon fodder or a "gecko's tail."

But I can't say that directly; I have to let Dumo sense it himself, let him reveal the meaning—that's the true essence of persuasion, so he'll wholeheartedly stand on my side.

"Dumo, don't wait for the future. You need to know that three years from now, when you're stronger, Love Prisoner won't be idle either. He'll definitely be stronger than he is now. At that time, you'll still be you, and he'll still be him. I'll help you kill him, and you'll assist from the sidelines—right now."

Dumo was stunned by my words. He hadn't expected me to be so radical, but he had to consider the consequences. I'm not a reckless or radical person; if I'm going to do this, it means I'm somewhat confident, or rather, Love Prisoner has to be killed.

“If you don’t kill him, you’ll never escape this shadow, and you’ll never improve yourself. Tomorrow is always just another day. The training you received on the Sea Demon, to me and the Headhunters, only exposed you, allowing us to use your textbooks to attack you. But you’ve only encountered the Child Lover, only seen the tip of the iceberg of that terrifying thing. But this kind of thing can’t be taught by a teacher; you have to rely on yourself, be your own teacher. If the tactics of those eight legendary assassins could be found in textbooks, they would have been killed long ago.”

Dumo had a solid foundation, especially his wisdom and a restless yet principled heart. He understood what I meant, and the bloody lesson the Child Lover taught Dumo solidified his determination to pursue a certain state.

"Alright, I will keep being reborn, improving myself in each rebirth. If it weren't for you, Little Dumo would have been killed countless times already. To be honest, I know in my heart that a nobody like me will only struggle aimlessly in this pirate war, and if I continue to be confused, death is only a matter of time. If I want to live, I can only hold my life in my own hands; that's the only way to go far. But the premise is that I must be strong enough. Even if in the end, I can't defy God, and I die, I will die in peace. I will be proud and gratified for the days I have lived."

I glanced at Dumo, watching him mumble a lot of things incoherently. He was actually trying to dispel my concerns.
In name, I drew my knife against the child lover for Dumo's sake, but in reality, I shot and killed the child lover's twin brother in Madagascar. This grudge cannot be settled with money; it can only be settled with lives—either mine or the child lover's.

When I faked my death to free Luya, I also took Dumo's woman, Duoguwa, with me, forcing Dumo to have some expectations of me. He only knew Duoguwa was safe, but he didn't know where she was now.

This unexpected event tightened around my heart like a wire, and I couldn't let Dumo know a thing. Jason Yodi controlled my woman, I controlled Dumo's woman, and Mingzhongshui controlled both my and Dumo's women.

This was a combination of hard and soft coercion, but in practice, the effect was the same. So, when everyone's goal is the same, it's a contest of who has the more skillful methods. So-called good is also a kind of skill.

"Mr. Zhuima, what do we do now? I don't even know where that bastard Lianqiutong is." I looked at the vines above my head, sighed with relief, and said, "He's no longer on this island."

Dumo was stunned. He didn't understand why I was so sure, as if I had divine powers or a magic crystal ball that had seen the guy leave.

Just as Du Mo said, the moment Demon's Blood Lamb attacked Du Mo with armor-piercing bullets, Love Prisoner already knew that the guy wasn't his mortal enemy, the Abyssal Monk.

Therefore, Love Prisoner didn't take the risk. With his abilities, he could easily gauge the opponent's strength, and perhaps he also knew about the Twelve Demons.

As the saying goes, "When two tigers fight, one will surely be injured." Before killing the Abyssal Monk, Love Prisoner wouldn't engage with any powerful opponents outside of personal grudges. Even if he could potentially kill Demon's Blood Lamb, he didn't want to be injured prematurely; he needed to give his all to avenge his enemy.

So, after labeling Du Mo with the mark of death, Love Prisoner ran away, leaving this place to search for the Abyssal Monk on other islands.

But now, apart from me and that Burmese woman, no one knows that the Abyssal Monk has been summoned back to Hell, and that his and Bo Yue's remains are buried in the territory of the Hopea Tree.

I absolutely will not tell Love Prisoner this, and the Withering Soul Conch will certainly not mention it either. It's like a retired high-ranking official who, at a dinner table surrounded by relatives and friends, wouldn't boast about how much money he embezzled, because such vanity is fatal.

As long as the Love Prisoner doesn't know that the Avici Monk is dead, he will search frantically until he's exhausted and dies in a daze at the hands of someone else or me.

At that time, one of the puppet strings binding the nine hanging crows to my body broke. Whether I can survive Jason Jody's clutches doesn't actually depend on whether I colluded with the Fate Water, nor on whether I killed Baba Tu. Even without these things, whether Jason Jody could ultimately let me escape the whole mystery alive is another matter.

Chapter 384: The Horror in the Stone Cave
Although I now know that the Love Prisoner has left, I can't be sure which nearby island he's on. Du Mo's knife wound on his waist will require at least a day or two of rest; he's extremely weak right now.

"Dumo, let's go. You stay behind me and don't crawl around on your own." I adjusted my gear and repaired some of the wilting plants on my camouflage, then led Dumo towards the cave containing the corpse of the Demon Lamb.

The sun rose from behind the rocky walls of this gaping island, and the damp, lush trees began to steam, the ground radiating a gloomy, oppressive air that made it difficult to breathe. Dumo and I had to endure this suffocating discomfort, crawling carefully forward.

Even though the Demon Lamb was dead and the Love Prisoner had left, I still had to be wary of the increasingly powerful pirate soldiers. Because their sniper bullets wouldn't be less effective just because the shooter wasn't skilled.

"Mr. Chasing Horse, where are we going? I feel terrible, I want to find a place to sleep." Dumo followed closely behind my legs, his voice barely audible.

"Let's find a cave so you can get a good night's sleep. That way your immunity won't weaken and your wounds will heal faster." As I said this, I quickened my pace, digging into the ground with my limbs.

Once we reached the cave, I had Dumo lie down against the bundle, then I crawled out myself and replaced the branches blocking the entrance.

Overnight, the leaves on the severed branches changed. Although still damp with rainwater, they were now detached from the roots. When the sunlight hit them, the withered leaves would become even more noticeable.

It wasn't hard to imagine that sharp-eyed snipers, seeing this anomaly among the lush green leaves through their scopes, would immediately lock their guns on the vicinity.

After climbing back into the cave, Dumo was asleep. I was also exhausted, so I moved a few stones, intending to take a nap with my sniper rifle.

Suddenly, a wave of fear washed over me, and my heart sank: "Where is the Demon's Blood Lamb's body?! How could it be gone! I clearly slit his throat, and his body was lying there when I left last night." The more

I thought about it, the more frightened I became. But I knew that no matter how powerful the Demon's Blood Lamb was, he wasn't made of machinery; once his body was destroyed, it couldn't be resurrected.

There's only one possibility: after I left the cave, that guy's body was dragged away by someone else. But I can't be sure if the person who dragged away the Demon Lamb was already watching it before I fought it.

If that's the case, I'm in big trouble. If word gets out that I killed the Demon Lamb, the other eleven Demons will definitely seek revenge.

Regardless of whether they're saddened by the Demon Lamb's death, killing me, whether in the eyes of outsiders or in their own moral compass, is upholding the Sea Demon Pact, and I will become a victim of that pact.

If the person who dragged away the Demon Lamb's body sneaked in after I left, only wanting to take the two metal epaulets related to pirate wealth, and then reveal that I killed the Demon Lamb, then they'd gain both profit and a smokescreen.

If I'm captured alive because of this later, even if I'm subjected to torture and have a thousand mouths to say I didn't take those two metal epaulets, at that point, probably only God would believe me.

When that guy sneaked in and rummaged through Xinggao's body, he must have thought I only took some food and supplies. He never imagined I'd tampered with the epaulets on the corpse.

So, after searching the corpse's shoulders in the dark for a long time without finding what he wanted, he assumed Xinggao had hidden it elsewhere on his body and needed to search carefully.

To avoid me suddenly returning, he dragged the body away to a safe corner, turned on a small light, and slowly and meticulously searched.

The result was inevitable; he couldn't find Xinggao's two epaulets because they were in my pocket. However, since that guy knew the importance of the epaulets, he must be a very important person, perhaps even one of the planners of this battle.

So, if that's the case, this matter has become a huge problem. At this very moment, the guy who didn't get the metal epaulets will definitely use a considerable amount of manpower and resources to tightly seal off this island, all in order to capture me alive and retrieve those two epaulets.

I quickly got up and patted the face of the sleeping Dumo. "Dumo, Dumo, wake up, we need to leave immediately, it's not safe here." Dumo jolted awake, his chubby face twitching as he suddenly sat up, quickly grabbing his rifle.

"Huh? Huh? What's wrong? Who's outside the cave? Is that guy, Lian Qiutong, back?" Dumo was panting heavily, his eyes darting around, looking out of the cave in fear.

"It's not Lian Qiutong. I just heard a lot of footsteps outside. If we wait for those guys to hide nearby, and you're injured, it will be very dangerous for us to leave this island."

Dumo let out a big sigh of relief, as if he felt that as long as it wasn't Lian Qiutong, those pirate soldiers weren't so scary. "Where are we going? It's so bright outside. If we go out through the gap in the island, we'll be riddled with bullets."

"Go back, back to that layer of vines, hide until dark, and then sneak out through the gap in the island. Can you hold on?"

Du Mo grimaced and frowned, as if checking if his wound still hurt. "If I can't hold on, I'll die. Mr. Zhui Ma's judgment won't be wrong. Let's go."

Seeing Du Mo grit his teeth and say these words, I felt even more urgency. I first had Du Mo get into a crouching, jumping position. After I swooped out of the cave entrance, Du Mo, like my tail, also darted out of the cave.

"Ouch!" Du Mo's wound throbbed with pain. He gritted his teeth fiercely and quickly followed behind me, crawling rapidly along the route we had come from.

Actually, staying in this cave wasn't necessarily dangerous, but it certainly posed a safety hazard. If my first guess is correct, then the guy who dragged away the lamb's corpse will most likely come back here, or he might have already returned a second time near midnight, and after finding I wasn't inside, he went to look elsewhere.

Chapter 385: The Night Boatman on the Rock Wall
Although he doesn't know the guy's movements, he will definitely come back several times to check this cave to see if I've returned to hide.

Therefore, I can't hide in this cave with Du Mo to recuperate. But now, thinking of these dangers, I can no longer be like a mouse, dart around before coming out, hiding behind the branches at the cave entrance to observe for a while.

To avoid being shot at by snipers at the cave entrance, I must dart out unexpectedly, and Du Mo must also dart out immediately to distract the enemy's lock-on aim that might injure us.

At this moment, Du Mo has to endure the pain, even if it hurts; he knows he can't fall behind. My heart was filled with anxiety, beads of sweat forming on my forehead. I focused on the treetops above, my limbs frantically digging into the grass and stones, crawling deeper into the dense vegetation.

Speculation on the battlefield is always the most mentally taxing and life-or-death factor. Although I was currently fleeing with the wounded Dumo, I couldn't help but consider another possibility.

Perhaps, the Demon Lamb had some extremely small tracking device implanted in it. I had noticed it last night when I examined his body, but due to limited resources, I hadn't been able to find it immediately.

Another possibility was that the guy who dragged away the Lamb's body sensed the tracking device suddenly stop moving, and when the coded communication failed to respond, he assumed the Lamb was dead and came to take his body.

If that were the case, no one but myself would know who killed the Lamb, and no one would be looking for the metal epaulettes from me. I truly hoped that this was the case.

But I can't be certain of either of these possibilities, which is precisely what makes this battle so terrifying. Since my involvement with the Sea Demon, there have been far too many uncertainties and speculations.

I feel like I'm lost in an endless black forest. I don't know if I'm on the right track, or if I'll ever make it out, but for the sake of those important to me, I have to grit my teeth and keep moving forward, so that their last hope of survival won't be extinguished.

When I swam across from that valley island, I wasn't seen by anyone. Even those few who were alive were all killed by my gun.

If I can maintain this "invisibility" and remain unseen by those lurking in the shadows before leaving this gaping island, then the prime suspect in the death of Xinggao will undoubtedly be Lian Qiutong.

Until I determine the person who dragged away Xinggao's body and their level of understanding of the incident, I must actively and deliberately create this illusion to cater to all those who suspect Lian Qiutong of killing Xinggao.

Dumo and I climbed back under the wisteria vines. He curled up under a pile of dark, damp stones and quickly fell asleep again. By this time, my previous fatigue and sleepiness had been somewhat diminished by the fear brought on by the disappearance of the lamb's corpse.

But I knew that concealing it and not expressing it wouldn't help; the accumulated tension would only erupt more violently. I tried to fall asleep, to stop thinking about things I couldn't be sure of.

The gunfire on the island was less than yesterday, but that didn't necessarily mean the pirates were nearly wiped out.

Yesterday's gunfire, though intense and fluctuating, hadn't been very deadly. Like when Dumo shook the tree, triggering so many shots, yet he was still alive.

But today, especially with these slow, infrequent shots, that's the most likely form of a deadly hunt, the most terrifying.

To allow Dumo to recover properly, when we took turns on guard duty, he slept for three hours, then I slept for one. Although our rest time was pitifully short, it made us both feel the immense happiness that time brought.

The dense vines overhead quickly darkened, the last rays of the setting sun casting a crimson glow on them, making me feel like a chicken in a slaughterhouse cage.

After darkness completely fell, Dumo and I regained some energy. Dumo rubbed his swollen eyes and cautiously asked, "Mr. Zhuima, shouldn't we head towards the island's opening?"

I pulled a sealed bag of pork sausages from my pack and gave it to him, while quickly chewing on dried shrimp myself. "No, let's climb up, starting from this rock face behind you."

"Ah! Didn't we say we'd exit through the island's opening after dark?" Dumo was somewhat surprised, but he bit down hard on one end of the sausage, twisting it fiercely.

"Ah!" I quickly swallowed a mouthful of chewed food, gazing at the now-dark rock face.

“I said that back then to appease the wounded. If I still wanted to stay on this island and kill people, I would definitely be staking out the breach right now.”

Du Mo ate heartily, wiping his nose with his finger. He didn’t argue anymore, just muttered as he chewed on his sausage, “My little injury doesn’t matter. I’m just afraid of holding you back. This rock face is so high, and it’s pitch black everywhere. If I’m not careful and slip and fall, wouldn’t that be…”

Du Mo actually knew that I would definitely use a rope to carry him when we were climbing the rock face to escape, so all his concerns, although he never cared about his weight normally, were now a big concern for him.

“Don’t think about that too much. Just think about how to be careful while climbing the rock face.” After we finished eating, I used a grappling hook to tie Du Mo securely, then dragged him ahead of me, starting to climb into the dark night sky.

The lower part of the rock face was covered with dense vines. As I climbed, I was always careful with my hands and feet, not easily putting my weight on these plants. I only gripped them firmly when I felt a hard rock or a groove.

This wild vine forest wasn't content to just cling to the branches; it had invaded the rock face extensively, as if it wanted to grow into heaven, reaching all the way to God's windowpane.

Pulling on Dumo's heavy body, when my head could touch the vine layer, I felt like a spider larva about to emerge from its cocoon.

"What's wrong, Mr. Chase?" Dumo, clinging to my feet, asked immediately when he saw me suddenly stop climbing.

"Shh! Don't make a sound, just hold on to the rock face." Reminding Dumo, I slowly freed one hand, pulled out a dagger from my shoulder, and tried to cut a hole in the top of the vines so someone could crawl through.

Although these vines appeared dense and tangled, they also had their own patterns. Therefore, I had to be extremely careful when cutting them, not just carelessly chopping and cutting until we were out of the wood.

Because if Du Mo and I reached the middle of the rock face and something went wrong, making us stuck and unable to go up or down until dawn, then snipers lurking elsewhere would spot the clues when they scanned this layer of vines, and danger would follow the traces we carelessly left behind.

Moreover, I had to be extra careful not to expose myself, and not to let Lian Qiutong be ruled out as a suspect in the killing of Xing Gao.

Chapter 386: The Corpse Embracing Wood Under the Moonlight

Du Mo followed cautiously behind me. He slipped several times and almost fell off the rock face. Because many shrubs grew in the crevices of the rough rock face, Du Mo did not fall straight down as he slid down; he struggled through the process.

During this process, I could hold him up with the rope connecting us, while he would simultaneously grip the surrounding plants to resist the immense force of gravity.

Otherwise, who would dare to be so certain of being tied to someone of Dumo's size, weighing over 100 kilograms, and climbing such a high rock face in the pitch-black night?

Although the rock face was only about 100 meters high, it took us a full hour to reach the summit of the island. It was the only way, given the harsh conditions.

A bright, clear moon, as if washed clean by the rain of the previous days, hung directly above Dumo and me, its pale silver light bathing the entire island.

We crouched down, peering through the branches to see if any pirate soldiers on night watch were nearby. Du Mo was panting heavily. After resting for a while, he nervously said to me, "Mr. Zhui Ma, I feel my wound is bleeding a little."

I was also panting heavily, and turned to Du Mo, saying, "Bear with it for now. We're on such a high island peak, there's no light at all. Sigh! This moon is so bright at such an inopportune time."

Du Mo brought his face close to his fingers, trying to use the moonlight to see how much blood was on his hands after touching his wound. "If we go down like this, it'll be covered in blood. That bastard Lian Qiutong."

After I put the rope away, I tied it to Du Mo's strong body again. This time, he would go down first while I stayed above to watch over him. We descended to the sea carefully, one after the other.

"Splash, splash, splash..." The sea surface was silvery-black, but the spray splashing off the rocks was surprisingly silvery-white in the moonlight. “Mr. Zhui Ma, can I swim across the sea with this wound? Look at the moonlight. If we slip out from under the leaves, it will be easy for the snipers on the island to spot us.”

Du Mo’s concerns were not unfounded. I had thought of this problem when I was on the island peak. “No, you can’t go on. You should squat here and rest for a while. I’ll go check the foot of the nearby island to see if there’s a suitable cave where you can go in and rest. I’ll also re-bandage your wound.”

Dumo nodded quickly; he needed what I said right now. I left Dumo, grabbed my sniper rifle, crouched low, and started walking west along the base of the mountain wall.

The sea breeze was exceptionally cold; its temperature only varied with the difference between day and night, not much changing due to the sunlight during the day. I came out alone, and although I told Dumo I was looking for a cave to spend the night in, what I needed first were a few corpses.

I jogged along the bumpy, slippery rocks for over two hundred meters before finally spotting the third corpse. So, I used a grappling hook to tie the three corpses together and pulled them back. As

soon as Dumo saw me return to the tree, he asked expectantly, “Did you find it, Mr. Chase Horse?” "Like a boatman, with a heavy rope draped over my shoulder, I struggled a few more steps forward, then stopped, turned around, and began to tighten the rope.

'Found three.' Dumo was greatly puzzled. He couldn't understand why I had dragged the cave back with the rope. 'Why are you dragging these pirate soldiers' corpses?'

I ignored Dumo and simply said, 'Because you're more afraid of bullets than they are now.' After saying that, I told Dumo to keep an eye on the three corpses, and then I disappeared into the denser woods."

A moment later, I found three thick, rotten logs, cut them into sections from the hook rope with my dagger, and tied the three corpses to the logs. Then, I quietly climbed to the beach and slowly pushed the three corpses into the sea.

"Oh! Got it." Dumo grinned. "Now, observe this rock face. If possible, we'll be on another island after dawn."

Dumo and I leaned against a tree, our heads like radar, constantly observing the high rock face behind us.

With the turbulence and impact of the tide, the corpses, clinging to the rotten logs, gradually drifted away from the shore. The dark objects couldn't completely dissolve into the silvery-black sea; the farther the floating corpses drifted from the shore, the more clearly their outlines became in the moonlight.

At this moment, this blurry outline was clear to the sniper's eyes—a clearness born of the hunter's mentality.

Just as Du Mo was about to raise his chubby hand to rub his sore neck, a bright red line shot down diagonally.

Before Du Mo could turn around in surprise to see if my guess was correct, two more shots rang out from elsewhere on the rock face. "Bang, bang, bang." In an instant, countless streaks of fire, like a rain of meteors, shot down from the island peaks and rock walls.

I inwardly cursed, thinking that the moon had risen at the worst possible time. If it had been a day later, and Du Mo and I had escaped tonight under the cover of darkness, everything would have been perfect.

"Chase, chase, chase Mr. Ma! Where did all these pirate soldiers come from? They seem to have come back to life like the corpses on the island." I knew perfectly well that these suddenly appearing pirate soldiers must have been mobilized by the guy who dragged away the corpse of the Blood Lamb last night under the cover of darkness. Read the full text of the novel at www.16k.cn(16k.cn.literature.net).

My guess was right. Although it's still uncertain whether that guy saw me kill Xinggao, the only thing he knows right now is that two important epaulets on Xinggao's corpse are missing.

Before he finds those two epaulets, no one's body will be able to sneak out of this gaping island alive. Every corpse on this island will eventually be stripped naked and examined by him.

"I don't know, but you and I are still alive. We'd better eliminate them before dawn, otherwise this gaping island will become our eternal tower, and we'll never get out."

Du Mo's mood suddenly turned sullen. He was injured and couldn't help me much; he was also immobile. "Mr. Zhui Ma, you saw it yourself. There were at least twenty pirate soldiers lurking on that rock wall. And who knows if another terrifying guy is involved?"

I sighed helplessly and replied to Du Mo. "But Du Mo, if we don't kill them one by one, the healing of your wounds will be meaningless. Before tomorrow evening, we'll both be..." "We're doomed."

Although that's what I said, it made Dumo feel that I was caught up in all the crises on this island because of him.

But the real reason I had to kill those guys under the moonlight was that I couldn't contact them during the day.

Chapter 387: The Bloody Feast of the Sea

Even though my face was covered in camouflage paint and my face was always covered by a tattered fishing net, once those guys saw my outline and the way I ran, the possibility of them suspecting me later was very high.

So, no matter what, I had to kill these guys under the hazy moonlight of the night, so that they would not only not see tomorrow's sunrise, but also not see me after the sunrise.

“Du Mo, run west along the foot of this mountain. About two hundred meters down, there’s an irregular crevice in the mountainside. I’ve already pulled out the large rock blocking the opening. Lie down inside, then use the rope to pull the rock back in and block the opening again.”

Du Mo nodded incessantly, his mouth half-open, his large eyes bulging with terror. “But Mr. Zhui Ma, I feel unbalanced. In such a critical moment, you’re risking your life alone, while I have to hide.”

I frowned and said coldly to Du Mo, “Why don’t you grab a gun and we climb up together to kill them?” Upon hearing this, Du Mo immediately scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, stammering and unable to speak.

“Alright, enough of this nonsense. I'm climbing up here to gauge their strength first. If I can't withstand the pressure, I'll naturally hide somewhere else. You have all the supplies in your pack, so manage them well and don't be greedy. If something unexpected happens, I might not come to find you for three days. If I don't distract them, can you rest peacefully in that cave?”

After hearing what I said, Du Mo's face showed sadness. This was a helpless situation, and Du Mo himself knew that if he didn't heal his injuries as soon as possible, he would always be a burden to me.

I shouldered my pack, readjusted my sniper rifle, and climbed towards the location of the gunshot above the rock face, leaving Du Mo alone among the trees.

The moon hadn't lost its silvery light because of the gunshot; instead, it shone even brighter in the depth of the night.

I carefully pressed myself against the rock face, using the bushes and branches growing in the crevices for cover, and continued to climb vertically upwards. I had to climb back down the same route I 'd

taken; only then would the chances of encountering the enemies hidden on the cliff face be slim.

When I reached halfway up the cliff, I looked back at the three corpses floating in the sea. Sure enough, several guys had swum into the ocean, intending to retrieve the bodies after they'd been killed and were floating on the surface, hoping to find the two epaulets that Wuji and the others desperately wanted.

I quickly turned away and continued climbing towards the island's summit. Without Dumo holding me back, my speed increased dramatically. Once I reached the cliff, I immediately found a dense thicket of bushes and slowly extended the barrel of my sniper rifle.

Through the sniper scope, I discovered that the guys who had been forced to dive into the sea to retrieve the bodies were four pirate soldiers.

Due to the limited light, I couldn't see their faces in my sniper scope, but that didn't stop me from killing them. 1⑹

One of the pirate soldiers, quick as a flash, reached a corpse first, then only his head surfaced, his feet struggling to push off the water, trying to get back to shore and into the well-hidden trees as quickly as possible. The head bobbing on the dark

sea slowly aligned with my T-shaped sniping line. The other three, still carrying corpses, followed twenty or thirty meters behind. My brain processed the situation, instantly issuing the command, and my index finger on the trigger pulled hard. A gunshot rang out

, and a crimson line of fire, tearing through the moonlight once more, shot down the rock face. At the end of my sniping line, a dark, round head exploded and disappeared into the sea, while the corpse he clutched was swept away by the current.

"Bang, bang bang bang bang, bang bang bang bang." The bullets whizzed towards the guys dragging the corpses behind me. With lightning speed, I deflated the magazine, pulled back my sniper rifle, and ran towards the back of the island peak.

With the sniper rifle slung over my shoulder, I ran with my head down, weaving through the dense bushes, while reaching into my satchel to reload the magazine.

I had run out of ammunition out of necessity, because the other three guys were on high alert. They knew perfectly well that recklessly going into the sea to retrieve corpses was gambling with their lives. If there were enemy snipers on the cliff face, they would inevitably be shot at, regardless of how many accomplices were lying in ambush there.

The three men, seeing a streak of fire suddenly erupt from the dark rock face, aimed directly at their comrade, knew it was no joke. So, they swiftly released the corpse, intending to plunge into the deep sea to escape death's clutches.

Unable to see their exact movements, I could only deduce their underwater location from their actions before diving, firing several shots in quick succession to ensure my safety.

Now, in the frantic running and rapidly reloading, my mind clearly knew that all four men were dead, their feet no longer able to touch land.

388—The night boatman on the rock face,

though unaware of the man's whereabouts, would surely return several times to check the cave, to see if I had come back to hide.

Therefore, I couldn't retreat to this cave with Du Mo to recuperate. But now, considering the dangers, I could no longer act like a mouse, cautiously observing from behind the branches at the cave entrance before emerging.

To avoid snipers who might be lying in wait at the cave entrance, I had to burst out unexpectedly, and Dumo had to follow suit, disrupting the enemy's lock-on aim that might wound us.

Dumo, no matter how much pain he was in, had to endure it; he knew he couldn't fall behind. I was extremely anxious, beads of sweat forming on my forehead. I kept my eyes on the treetops above, my limbs digging into the grass and stones, crawling deeper into the dense vegetation.

On the battlefield, guesswork is always the most mentally taxing and life-or-death factor. Although I was currently fleeing with the wounded Dumo, I couldn't help but consider another possibility.

Perhaps the Demon's Blood Lamb had some extremely small tracking device implanted in it. I had noticed it last night when I examined his body, but due to limited resources, I hadn't been able to find it immediately.

Another possibility is that the guy who dragged away Xinggao's body sensed that the tracking device had suddenly stopped moving and there was no response to the coded communication, so he assumed Xinggao was dead and came to take his body.

If that were the case, no one but myself would know who killed Xinggao, and no one would be looking for the metal epaulets from me. I truly hope that this is the case.

But I can't be sure about either of these possibilities, which is precisely what makes this battle so terrifying. Since I became involved with the Sea Demon, there have been far too many uncertainties and speculations.

I feel like I'm lost in an endless black forest. Although I don't know if I'm going in the right direction, or if I'll ever get out, for the sake of those important people, I have to grit my teeth and keep moving forward, so that their last hope of survival won't be extinguished.

When I swam across from that valley island, no one saw me. Even those few who were alive were all killed by my gun.

If I can maintain this state of "invisibility" and remain unseen by lurking eyes before leaving this gaping island, then the prime suspect in the death of the Blood Lamb will undoubtedly be the Child Lover.

Until I determine the identity of the person who dragged away the Blood Lamb's body and their level of understanding of the incident, I must actively and deliberately create this illusion to cater to all suspicions that the Child Lover killed the Blood Lamb.

Dumo and I crawled back under the wisteria vines; he curled up under a pile of dark, damp stones and quickly fell fast asleep again. By this time, my previous fatigue and sleepiness had been somewhat diminished by the fear brought on by the disappearance of the Blood Lamb's body.

But I knew that concealing the truth was useless; accumulating it until it finally erupted would only make it more intense. I tried to fall asleep, to stop thinking about things that were temporarily uncertain.

The gunfire on the gaping island was less than during the day yesterday, but that didn't necessarily mean that the pirates had been reduced to few remaining.

Yesterday's gunfire, though frequent and intermittent, didn't have a high kill rate. Like when Dumo shook the tree, triggering so many shots, yet he still survived.

But today, especially with these slow, infrequent shots, that's the most likely type of kill—a one-shot kill—that's the most terrifying.

To allow Dumo to recover properly, when we took turns on guard duty, he slept for three hours, then I slept for one hour. Although our rest time was pitifully short, it made us both feel the infinite happiness that time brings.

The dense vines overhead quickly darkened, the last crimson rays of the setting sun casting their glow upon them, making me feel like a chicken confined in a slaughterhouse cage.

After darkness completely fell, Dumo and I regained some energy. Dumo rubbed his swollen eyes and cautiously asked, "Mr. Zhuima, shouldn't we head towards the island's opening?"

I pulled a sealed bag of pork sausages from my pack and gave it to him, while quickly chewing on dried shrimp myself. "No, let's climb up, starting from this rock face behind you."

"Ah! Didn't we say we'd exit through the island's opening after dark?" Dumo was somewhat surprised, but he bit down hard on one end of the sausage, twisting it fiercely.

"Ah!" I quickly swallowed a mouthful of chewed food, gazing at the now-dark rock face.

“I said that back then to appease the wounded. If I still wanted to stay on this island and kill people, I would definitely be staking out the breach right now.”

Du Mo ate heartily, wiping his nose with his finger. He didn’t argue anymore, just muttered as he chewed on his sausage, “My little injury doesn’t matter. I’m just afraid of holding you back. This rock face is so high, and it’s pitch black everywhere. If I’m not careful and slip and fall, wouldn’t that be…”

Du Mo actually knew that I would definitely use a rope to carry him when we were climbing the rock face to escape, so all his concerns, although he never cared about his weight normally, were now a big concern for him.

“Don’t think about that too much. Just think about how to be careful while climbing the rock face.” After we finished eating, I used a grappling hook to tie Du Mo securely, then dragged him ahead of me, starting to climb into the dark night sky.

The lower part of the rock face was covered with dense vines. As I climbed, I was always careful with my hands and feet, not easily putting my weight on these plants. I only gripped them firmly when I felt a hard rock or a groove.

This wild vine forest wasn't content to just cling to the branches; it had invaded the rock face extensively, as if it wanted to grow into heaven, reaching all the way to God's windowpane.

Pulling on Dumo's heavy body, when my head could touch the vine layer, I felt like a spider larva about to emerge from its cocoon.

"What's wrong, Mr. Chase?" Dumo, clinging to my feet, asked immediately when he saw me suddenly stop climbing.

"Shh! Don't make a sound, just hold on to the rock face." Reminding Dumo, I slowly freed one hand, pulled out a dagger from my shoulder, and tried to cut a hole in the top of the vines so someone could crawl through.

Although these vines appear dense and tangled, they do have their own patterns. Therefore, I had to be extremely careful when cutting them, not just carelessly hacking and slashing until we were out of the wood.

Because if Du Mo and I were halfway up the cliff and something went wrong, trapping us and preventing us from going up or down until dawn, then snipers lurking elsewhere would spot the clues when they scanned this layer of vines, and danger would follow the trail we carelessly left behind.

Furthermore, I had to be extremely careful not to expose myself, and not allow Lian Qiutong to be excluded from suspicion of killing Xing Gao.

Chapter 389: The Throat-Slitting Knife Under the Dark Moon

Like a nocturnal lizard, I cautiously crouched on the rocks and grass, my hands and knees aching from the pressure. But I knew I would make this guy, whose eyes I had locked onto in the moonlight, suffer even more.

This pirate soldier, armed with an SVD weapon, was focused intently on the front, trying to find me first and kill me with a single shot.

Just as my nose was about to touch his heel, he used one hand to push aside the bushes, craning his neck like a turtle peering into the distance.

My fierce eyes widened, like a vengeful ghost rising from a dry well, and I slowly rose from behind him. When my nose was level with the back of his neck, I swiftly ripped my left hand from his left ear, covering his mouth. Before he could even flinch in fear, the sharp blade sliced through his Adam's apple with a sharp "whoosh."

"Ah..." I gritted my teeth, exhaling a low, cold breath, and forcefully pulled his struggling body backward. Ten seconds later, when only the muscular nerves remained on his flesh, I slowly released my rough hand from his mouth and dragged his corpse into a clump of weeds.

These pirate soldiers lying in ambush at night must have insignia to distinguish friend from foe, but after carefully examining this recently slaughtered body, I saw nothing unusual.

I had to admire how flawlessly these men of the Pirate King had executed their plan. Therefore, I absolutely could not change into the corpse's clothes and try to blend into their ranks to kill them one by one. In

such a tense and dangerous situation, even if my teammates, within the established formation, suddenly and inexplicably changed positions, intentionally or unintentionally moving closer to me, I would kill them without hesitation. Even if it was a mistake, the report would be submitted to the Pirate King, and he wouldn't say a word.

When blending into enemy lines, the greatest danger is that I have no idea what hand signals they use. If they wave at me, signaling me to search forward, and I respond with what I think is the correct signal, or simply turn my head to do the same,

the moment they turn their head, their brain will have a jolt: "Wrong signal, target found." After that, whether they shoot me is out of the question.

Although I don't know their precise hand signals for identifying friend or foe in the dark, I can clearly tell that they are pursuing me using a "pyramid-shaped" formation.

That is, they are swarming towards me in a fan shape, the closer they get to the target, the smaller the distance between them becomes, until they completely trap me within an isosceles triangle, relying on this shrinking formation to kill or capture me alive.

This method is essentially a desperate gamble, because even when they surround me, I might be able to shoot and kill a few of them, but the rest would still have enough time to break my limbs.

The reason they would take such a huge risk and adopt this tactic was because of the importance of those two epaulets; they were forced to carry out this order.

Knowing the approximate distribution of these pirate soldiers, I quickly retreated forty meters, then circled around to the back of another nearby pirate soldier, and like a lizard, slowly crawled towards them, severing their throats.

However, although they were all pirate soldiers, their strength and luck differed. Just as I was about to finish off the seventh pirate soldier searching for me, an unexpected event occurred.

The night sky above, due to the passing of dark clouds, suddenly dimmed by half. This process causes night blindness for a period of time; the pupils need a while to adjust before one can see the surrounding outlines more clearly again.

When I was about to finish off the seventh pirate soldier, to my utter surprise, that guy actually crawled towards me.

I was genuinely startled. It felt like I was a train, heading straight according to a timetable, when unexpectedly, I saw another train coming from the opposite direction on the same track. I suddenly slammed on the brakes, while the other train continued its journey at full speed.

It was a paradoxical situation. The other train might not have seen me yet, or perhaps it had, but was determined to accelerate and collide with me. My train couldn't simply run away like a frightened fat woman, lifting its skirt to let the other train pass.

If I hurriedly went around it, I would inevitably expose myself, because the seventh pirate warrior, as he crawled back, would certainly be keeping a close eye on what was ahead.

At that moment, the light was so dim that I could only see my own hand, not my fingers. If I made any sudden movement, he might shoot at me because we couldn't clearly distinguish friend from foe. That gunshot would be like a siren, making me a "street rat" on the island once again.

Chapter 390: The Catapult of Revenge

I pressed my chin hard against the ground, my eyes, both bloodthirsty and tense, rolled upwards, staring unblinkingly at the approaching figure.

The seventh pirate strongman, perhaps sensing the deathly atmosphere around him, hadn't been able to find me, and his search for his companions nearby had yielded no results.

So, this guy wanted to take advantage of the cloud cover to sneak back a few dozen meters, even though doing so might allow me to escape, it would at least make him safer.

After all, the four guys who had just died in the sea weren't his relatives or friends, and this order from the coordinator didn't concern him much of his personal interests.

But I wouldn't let him leave alive because of his cowardice. The SVD sniper rifle he was holding had fired quite a few shots at me earlier; he had lost confidence because he hadn't managed to kill me, and that's why he was trying to escape tonight's unsuccessful contest.

The light grew dimmer as the seventh pirate soldier approached. My nose was almost touching the ground; I could clearly smell the damp, salty odor of rocks and wild grass.

These guys had already figured out I was alone while I was fleeing, so once I lay in wait, they wouldn't dare fire again. Perhaps they took advantage of my vulnerability, which is why, after noticing me, they resolutely turned and crawled over, wanting to engage me in hand-to-hand combat with melee weapons.

On the battlefield, I've encountered almost every kind of person. If this guy was a complete idiot, stubborn and headstrong, he wouldn't consider the consequences once his temper flared up, completely unaware that his impulsive actions had deviated from objective interests and become purely an emotional outburst.

In my left hand, I had already gripped an FN57 pistol, lying flat and aimed at him. I did this firstly to guard against him playing tricks halfway through; secondly, if he started fighting with me, I had a pistol hidden under the grass beside me, and he would deserve to die.

As the moon, like a yellow dot in the night sky, was obscured by a thick, inky cloud, the seventh pirate soldier climbed faster and faster, his intention to rush towards me becoming increasingly clear.

At that moment, I fully understood that this arrogant fellow actually wanted to capture me alive by himself, which would bring him a much greater reward than bringing my corpse back.

"Hmph!" I exhaled a soft breath through my nostrils, a cold smile curving my lips, but I remained motionless, lying tightly on the ground, my eyes fixed on him.

Just as the seventh pirate soldier, his hands gripping the ground, was about a meter and a half away from me, I grabbed a large, angular rock with my right hand and swung it with all my might at his dark face. If I was lucky, it wouldn't be a problem to break one of his eyeballs.

I had intended to grab a handful of sand and pebbles and throw them unexpectedly into his eye sockets, but due to the erosion from several days of rain, the island peak was covered with large, mottled rocks and rugged cracks in the mountainside, so I could only throw stones at him.

As soon as the sharp-edged stone left my hand, I pushed off the ground with my back foot and lunged forward. Although it was pitch black, the guy still saw my throwing motion.

He quickly ducked and covered his head with one arm. With a thud, the stone hit his arm, but I took the opportunity to grab both of his wrists. Now that he was alive and close to me, I had to extract something from him that I couldn't get from a distance: pry open his mouth. This guy was as big as a buffalo, and if he stood up, he was probably half a head taller than me. The moment I grabbed his wrists, his body suddenly flipped to the right, and I flipped onto my back with him.

I was already astonished by his brute strength. In that split second, a dark mass suddenly swept past above my eyes, and a sharp pain shot through my lower abdomen.

This sudden pain made me realize immediately that this guy had, in a very short time, used his feet to clamp a rock the size of a basketball and, like a catapult used to destroy a city, retaliated against me in the middle of my body.

Luckily, it hit high; if it had hit lower, it would have injured my most manly area. And that guy had attacked me out of the same vengeful mindset.

He knew very well that since I had thrown a rock at his face, I was deliberately trying to puncture his eyeballs. He must have been furious, which was why he used his feet to clamp a rock and strike my vitals, intending to kill me.

The ball-sized rock rolled off my body, and my feet, clamping a large rock, retaliated with a whoosh. But instead of retaliating by hitting his groin, I used my foot to clamp a rock between my legs and smash it upwards towards my head, hoping to smash his face.

Before this guy brazenly crawled over, I had intended to capture him alive and extract some important information from him. But now, his attack was so fierce, beyond my expectations, and I had only one thought: to kill him by any means necessary. Because his danger was too great for me to even consider interrogating him.

The large rock I used to retaliate slammed into the rock with a thud, and by the sound of my ears, I knew he had tilted his head to avoid it. Before he could pick up another rock to hit me, I thrust my hips forward and pulled him over to his side.

In an instant, this guy became like a roaring bear. He quickly knelt on one knee, trying to kick me in the stomach with one foot, sending me flying and crashing onto a large rock nearby.

Anyone who lives on their own flesh and blood, if subjected to such torture, would surely suffer broken bones, fractured tendons, and complete paralysis of the intervertebral discs. I twisted my body, preventing his heavy boot from pressing against my stomach from exerting any force.

I pressed down on his wrists with both hands, pulling him to my left, while simultaneously delivering a powerful elbow strike to his temple with a dull thud.

The guy winced in pain, his large head twitching, but he gritted his teeth, refusing to call for his companions. It seemed this guy was still very confident in his strength, intending to capture me single-handedly.

"Shh! It's me," I whispered anxiously, trying to make him think I wasn't an enemy, that if he relaxed even slightly, I could kill him unexpectedly. But he mumbled something under his breath, showing no sign of loosening his grip on me.

Chapter 391: Weapons Made of Personality

I immediately understood; this was a code from the Pirate King's side. I couldn't even understand it, so how could I respond? Since manipulation wouldn't work, I had to resort to force.

"Hmph!" Seeing my predicament, the man immediately recognized my scheme and gave me a contemptuous, mocking laugh.

"Kid, hand over those two epaulets, and I guarantee you won't die. In the future, you'll follow the real Pirate King, and your wealth and power will surpass what you're enjoying on the Sea Demon."

My heart sank again. Although the moonlight was dark, judging from his deep, calm voice, he was about forty-six or forty-seven years old, similar to Jason Jody and the twelve guardian demons who had protected the Sea Demon.

"Oh! Unless you're a senior among the twelve guardian demons, don't try to fool me with your lies." Although he said that, I was already eighty or ninety percent certain that he was likely one of the pirate demons.

"Hmph, young man, you're overthinking it." Although the man's grip didn't loosen, I understood his tone and implication perfectly. He was indeed one of the twenty guardian demons.

"All you want are two epaulets. There are so many skilled craftsmen in the world; just make a brand new set. We're all risking our lives on pirate ships, why force things? Tonight, the moon is dark and the wind is strong; I might not die by your hand."

I said these words only to create a smokescreen, to make him think I was a seasoned pirate soldier. More importantly, to make him think I had no idea about the astonishing secret hidden behind those two epaulets.

"Heh heh heh... when did Reef produce such a formidable pirate soldier like you? Truly a promising young man, yet you have quite the arrogance!"

This bear-like man spoke to me with a mixture of admiration and anger. But I knew very well that once he sensed that I didn't match the two lost epaulets, his murderous intent would erupt immediately. At the same time, I also vaguely understood that Jason Jody's code name among the Twelve Guardians was: Demon Reef.

“However, I do know a little about the whereabouts of those two epaulets you mentioned. But I can't be sure if telling you this information will be as valuable to you as directly giving you the epaulets, enough to make you fulfill the treatment you just demanded.”

I swallowed, making myself appear weak and exhausted. “This battle has no end. It's not that I'm afraid of death; I just don't want to fight to the end, never knowing the taste of wealth and glory before being buried on these islands. I came from a poor background, so I swear I will live a life of extravagance, even if only for three days, I will die without regret.”

I wrestled with him, my words resolute and persistent as I rattled off a long string of words. Of course, these words were just a smokescreen; I was still attacking him with my mind.

I only told him that I was involved in this battle for wealth, not that it was because my woman was being held captive by Jason Jody, forcing me to this point.

Because I still couldn't be sure if the Pirate King knew about Luya being abducted by the Water Spirit.

If Mingzhongshui hadn't told them about this, and I had let it slip, causing them to demand Luya from me upon their return, using it to blackmail me into handing over the epaulets, or forcing me to find a way to get them the epaulets, then I would be in even more pain than if I had shot myself in the foot.

"Oh? Hmph, that depends on whether the information you've provided is valuable. If it is, I guarantee with my integrity that I'll get you into my pirate crew. Don't think you can live like a king for three days; even for three or thirty years, you'll be able to live like a king."

"Really?" I asked, feigning interest. In truth, I knew very well that he was just giving me a smokescreen.

To become one of the Twelve Guardian Demons, vying for the top spot among the Headhunters, and to accumulate such blood-stained and filthy wealth, having killed countless innocent lives and employed countless inhumane schemes—

what kind of integrity could he possibly have? He only knew how to kill with his integrity. If I believed this nonsense, tonight, the cliff face would surely be my final resting place.

"Alright, since you are a highly respected senior pirate, and you've gone this far, I won't doubt anything anymore. I'll take this gamble, whether you live or die. I'll tell you the clues."

"Good, you're indeed a shrewd and pragmatic man, just like me when I was young, hehe." This guy pressed his advantage, releasing another psychological smokescreen at me.

"Among those who came to this island with us was an assassin hired by the old captain at great expense. I don't know his name, but he has cages etched on his face and blood-red pupils; he's terrifying. We all respect him."

As I spoke, I took a breath, loosening my grip slightly to lull my opponent into a false sense of security. I would still be wary if he dared to launch a surprise attack.

"That day, after dusk, the night was very cold. The assassin we hired on our ship saw a faint light flickering from a cave and quietly lay in ambush. But I don't know what happened after that, because there were no gunshots from the fighting. Although I really wanted to go and warm myself by the fire, I didn't dare to get too close, so that's all I know. It wasn't until late at night that the red-eyed assassin called us to assemble. He told us to stay on the island and that he had to leave for a while. It was then that I saw him put two things that looked like epaulets into his pocket."

Chapter 392: A Killing Line from a Thousand Meters Away

In fact, Lian Qiutong did leave Huokou Island. Although he left before the dispatched pirate soldiers arrived, he also left at a very opportune time, precisely after the death of the Demon Blood Lamb and the disappearance of the epaulets.

Any outsider to the Demon Contract who gets involved in this clue of searching for the epaulets will ultimately be led to death. Now that Du Mo and I are trapped on Huokou Island because we left late, I can't let Lian Qiutong get away with it.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, without Lian Qiutong's knowledge, I secretly attached this increasingly close clue to him from several kilometers away.

I currently only know that the dead guy was called Demon's Blood Lamb, the old captain of the Sea Demon was called Demon's Reef, and this guy in front of me, although he implicitly acknowledges being one of the Twelve Guardians, until I see if he wears similar epaulets on his shoulders, I can only believe half of what he says about his true identity. As for his name, I know even less for now.

"Hmm! Not bad, the clues you mentioned are somewhat similar to my guess. Go wait for me in the palm grove on the west side of the island peak. I'll leave for a bit to gather my men back and redeploy them to other islands to find that red-eyed guy with the painted cage on his face."

The moon was still suffocatingly obscured by the thick, inky clouds. This powerful and unnamed Demon and I crouched under the dense bushes, each locked in a tense physical struggle.

Although I couldn't see his eyes clearly, I could sense that he had carefully considered his words before speaking.

"Alright, I'll wait for you in the palm grove on the west side now." With that, I forcefully pushed our entangled bodies apart, took a big step back, and jumped to the spot where I had hidden my pistol under a rock.

In the dim light, my eyes were wide open, constantly watching his figure about two meters in front of me. If his arms moved even slightly, I would have to defend myself immediately.

I crouched on the scattered pebbles and weeds, one hand reaching behind me to feel for my pack, as if I were carrying a bag to move.

The dark figure of his also seemed to turn around in an instant. Seizing the opportunity, I swiftly pulled out a dagger from my right shoulder and, like a grasshopper suddenly leaping up, pounced on his back. In mid-air, I swung my arm with all my might, aiming the sharp tip of my knife downwards, straight for the back of his head.

A dazzling burst of sparks sent us flying. His reaction was incredibly fast; in the darkness, he managed to draw his knife and parry. The two gleaming, sharp, blunt weapons clashed violently.

"What do you mean! Want to die?" he suddenly asked in a chillingly deep voice.

"No, I don't. Although I've told you the whole truth, I know you won't let me live. You told me to wait in the palm grove on the west side, but you actually wanted to gather them to ambush me."

I said, slightly angry, my tone tinged with helplessness and despair. "Hmph! Young man, don't be so arrogant. If I wanted you dead, you'd be lying dead in front of me right now. Otherwise, why would I crawl over here to drag you away?"

I was silent for a moment, then asked tentatively, "You...you really can tolerate me, are you willing to accept me as your subordinate?" The dark figure remained motionless, also silent for a moment, before letting out a heavy, impatient breath from its nostrils. "I

've given you a chance. You know who I am. If you dare to ramble on and waste my time, I'll kill you with one blow. Now, get the hell out there and wait in the palm grove on the west side."

After saying this fiercely and coldly, the guy no longer seemed wary of me. Instead, he turned and picked up his luggage, intending to walk into the island peak.

I deliberately made a big movement as I sheathed the dagger in my hand. But out of the corner of my eye, as I turned and picked up my bag along with him, I kept a close watch on the guy as he left.

Suddenly, a gust of wind rushed towards my left ear. Before I could even release the hilt of my dagger from its sheath, my hand lashed out again, and I turned to meet the attack.

"Clang!" Another dazzling shower of sparks erupted. I felt the base of my thumb and forefinger go numb from the impact. This guy's explosive power was no less than Baba Tu's.

"Clang, clang, clang." The two sharp, blunt weapons clashed fiercely a few more times, scattering countless tiny sparks that, under the dark moon's branches, were like firecrackers igniting their fuses.

I concentrated all my energy on fighting him. We both crouched low, our sharp knives darting between each other's necks and cheeks. If either of us were to be caught off guard and struck, the cut would be like slicing through raw pork—a five-centimeter-deep gash.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Countless plants growing around us were sheared down. This guy had thick, long arms. Every time he missed with a left hook, I would lean forward and swing my knife in a right uppercut to stab his chin. If it hit, he wouldn't even have a chance to scream.

"Huff, huff, huff," we were both panting heavily. Although the fighting movements weren't large, each of our attacks was packed with immense power, with a destructive force of at least 300 kilograms. From a physics perspective, the pressure on the blade tip and the destructive force were unimaginable.

"Heh, not bad, young man. Alright, no need to fight anymore. I suddenly attacked you to test you, to see if you were lying to me." This guy suddenly spoke in a low voice, and his tone implied appreciation and a desire to recruit me.

But he let slip that he was testing me. If he had used all his strength and still couldn't defeat me after a dozen moves, then with my own strength, I might have been able to kill that scoundrel.

If he had still held back his strength, after our fight, he would have been able to gauge whether I was capable of killing him.

But I was in a very passive position; I couldn't conceal my strength to face his swift and sharp attacks. His moves were a mix of feints and real attacks, making it difficult to discern the truth. He wouldn't fight me like a master would train a beloved disciple, stopping short of killing.

So, only God knows if, at the moment he had the chance to kill me, he might suddenly show mercy, as he said, as a test, not to take my life.

Chapter 393: The Fake Name on the Death Contract

If this guy had already used his full strength in our fight, then his words were simply to scare me, to psychologically undermine me, to make me mistakenly believe he was unfathomable, and thus to erode my hope of survival.

“Vakor! Would I lie to you about something like this? Look at the islands around here, how many people have died? You're so narrow-minded and suspicious of me, even if I die tonight, I'll bite you hard.”

I said angrily, trying to sound like a complete sucker who had finally given up, but my words were full of deceptive and misleading smokescreens.

“Hmph... Since you say so, then I'll believe you! But you should know that believing you and killing you are two unrelated things, huh? Kid! Now I'm opening the paradise of death, come in and play!”

Just as I expected, this guy ultimately refused to leave any survivors. I could figure it out with my own eyes; no one would waste a single moment or expend a single ounce of their energy in this fierce and intense battle for someone else's future.

I knew his inner thoughts very well. He believed that the Child Lover was the prime suspect in killing the Blood Lamb, and he also believed that, at present, there was a high probability that the Child Lover had put those two epaulets in his pocket.

However, during our fight, he also had a vague feeling that, given my strength, I might be able to kill the Demon Lamb. For example, the Lamb might have been injured or simply had bad luck in the moment, which wasn't entirely impossible.

To confirm this suspicion, this guy wanted to kill me, to search my body for any unexpected finds. Even if he found nothing, he wouldn't lose anything—just an unrelated life.

At the same time, he wanted to silence me, preventing the Demons from revealing their search for the dead's epaulets. From the moment he made contact with me, he had no intention of letting me live, so I had no intention of letting him leave alive.

Because he had already made contact with me, and this was now a potential threat to me. Since we were each other's threats, a deadly battle was inevitable.

Underestimating one's opponent is foolish and terrifying; similarly, overestimating one's opponent is also foolish and terrifying.

From the moment this guy fought me, he already sensed that killing me would also be risky. Perhaps in his eyes, I was an extremely rare, monstrous pirate warrior, while he, though a demon with astonishing strength, wasn't the kind of vulgar person who would act recklessly and foolishly. In reality, he wanted to call upon his scattered men nearby to swarm and attack me.

He had just picked up his luggage to leave, but a change of heart had already occurred to him. Although I had verbally agreed to wait for him in the palm grove on the west side of the island, once we separated, who could say

whether I would run east or south? Therefore, both in terms of time and circumstances, he couldn't afford to separate from me first and then go find his pirate warriors. Similarly, he dared not shout for his nearby men, partly for fear of sniper fire, and partly because I would engage him in a fight; in the darkness, if stray bullets came, we would both die.

But he had so much wealth to worry about, and I had Yi Liang and Lu Ya to worry about; neither of us wanted to die. If they wanted to suppress me and force me to go with them to find those pirate warriors, I certainly wouldn't agree. Even if I sincerely surrendered, I wouldn't be foolish enough to recklessly follow the wolf into its den.

Besides, as one of the twelve guardians, the Demon King, if he had to call for his men's help when faced with someone like me, a mere pirate warrior, even though he knows I'm not to be underestimated, his subordinates wouldn't see it. So, he'd lose face a bit.

More importantly, he always felt that even a fat horse can't outnumber a camel, and I, a pirate warrior, no matter how outstanding, shouldn't make a high and mighty Demon King frown or hesitate.

But all along, my most fatal flaw against my enemies has been that I almost always appear as a pirate warrior, causing the other side, who knows their enemy well and is invincible in every battle, to pay the ultimate price. Of course, even so, I also paid the price in blood and flesh.

Among these powerful pirates, the eight legendary headhunters, and the twelve guardians, I was a fugitive mercenary thrown in by the wheel of fate. Though I had no interest in their power or wealth, only a desire to leave with my woman, my wish was as fragile as a piece of paper, unnoticed by anyone.

They were only focused on their own interests, ignoring me, this "evil beetle" caught in a spider's web. Since the filth and bloodshed of this web prevented me from leaving, I had no choice but to bare my teeth and devour them one by one, or be devoured by them.

"Hehehehe, hehehehe..." I chuckled softly, a chilling, sinister sound, mimicking the Nine-Lives Raven. "Old friend, your Death Playground? It's quite a sight in this carnage. These past few days, I've been killing people until I'm feeling rather dull; I'd love to see something new. But I have nine lives, can you handle it?"

Chapter 394: The Peak Death Playground.

The figure in the darkness suddenly paused, immediately becoming serious, his previous contempt gone.

"The moment I clashed with you, I sensed you weren't a pirate warrior. If I'm not mistaken, you're the Nine-Lives Raven, a minor celebrity among the Headhunters."

I had fought the Nine-Lives Raven below the deck of the Sea Demon, and although I didn't know much about his fighting style and tone, I could now imitate about seven-tenths of it.

"You're too kind. I don't care about empty fame; that's too tiring. Those two epaulets you're looking for are none of my business, and I've already told you the truth: they were taken by the Love Prisoner. What can you do about it? However, your talk of Death Paradise does pique my interest! Let's play a game. Don't be afraid; the only stake is death."

I said this to deceive this demon whose name and strength I didn't yet know. If he escaped during the fight, these lies would buy me some time.

By the time he went to find the Love Prisoner and Nine Lives Raven, I'd probably have escaped the battle and fled with my woman.

However, this process wouldn't take long; I was always struggling to survive. "Do we have any grudges?" he suddenly asked. I shook my head but remained silent. "Is there a conflict of interest that requires killing?" I shook my head again in response.

“Then what’s the point of us fighting? It’s pointless. You go find what you want, and I’ll go find what I want. Besides, I won’t let you suffer. I’m a generous senior; consider this treasure a private gift to testify to our friendship.”

With that, the guy lowered his head and reached behind his back to touch what he was referring to. Although I was a little panicked, a cold smile played on my lips in the darkness.

Suddenly, a gleaming Knife flashed out, aimed straight for my face. With lightning speed, I raised my right hand and snapped it away. Unexpectedly, his hand, still holding the Knife, only managed to bounce halfway before he stabbed back towards my abdomen.

My right hand lashed out, grabbing his wrist holding the Knife, while simultaneously leaning to the right and elbowing him straight at the chin.

But in the dim light, the guy tilted his head, dodging my attack, and in that instant, his right hand slashed into my crotch.

“Damn it, a dirty trick!” I inwardly screamed and swiftly raised my left leg to block his claws, simultaneously aiming to tear through his defenses and deliver a vicious knee strike to his abdomen.

"Ugh…!" A piercing pain instantly shot through my body like electricity. It turned out this guy's real attack was to press down on the K-knife he held, intending to sever the back of my right hand that was gripping his wrist.

"Hehehe, this treasure is pretty good, isn't it? You'll have the honor of becoming a victim of my blade." The excruciating pain in my hand felt like a venomous snake bite, and hearing his gloating tone only fueled my rage.

"This feels fucking awesome!" I grimaced, baring my teeth in pain, determined not to give him any psychological advantage. But as soon as I finished speaking, he pressed down on the K-knife, already embedded in my hand, and the pain surged like a second electric shock.

"Hehehe, then I'll let you have your fill, senior!" I knew very well that if this passive stalemate continued, the back of my hand would be crippled.

I endured the pain in the back of my hand, once again gathering all my strength, leaning back to increase the range of my counterattack, preparing to knee him in the abdomen a second time, bursting his bladder.

But I knew that such a direct attack would inevitably cause his muscles to contract, either dodging my attack or feigning to take it. Of course, if that were the case, my explosive power would be greatly reduced; I wouldn't be able to knock him down in one blow, or even make him cry out in pain.

So, the moment my knee rose again, I changed it into a feint. With a muffled "thud," my forehead slammed into his cheekbone.

Because this guy was exceptionally large, his torso was long, making it difficult for me to break his eyebrow with my forehead. But even so, my attack still caused a piece of flesh to bulge from his cheekbone.

"Ugh..." But I never expected this guy to be such a hot-tempered madman. The pain fueled his anger, and he actually slammed his forehead into my cheek.

"Bang bang bang..." Neither of us gave an inch, and we started fighting head-on. At that moment, I only wished I didn't have the hard, sharp horns of a buffalo, otherwise I would have pierced his skull.

In the darkness, I could feel a large patch of dampness on my forehead, blood oozing from the bruised flesh.

At first, when our foreheads collided, I could still feel the excruciating pain, but after a few violent impacts, the pain became numb. My vision gradually darkened, and countless jumping and spinning stars appeared before my eyes, while my brain grew increasingly foggy.

I knew in my mind that I was at a disadvantage fighting this tough-skinned guy in a hysterical, death-defying manner. And this guy was the kind of person who, when provoked, would fight like a madman. If I didn't change my mind, even if I killed him in the end, I would suffer extremely serious injuries myself.

"Damn it, headhunters, huh? You think you're so great? You want to fight me? I'll smash your head against mine..." Seeing that I was afraid of pain and showing weakness, he started smashing his forehead against mine while saying fiercely. His emotions seemed to be getting more and more agitated, more and more terrifying.

I was indeed a little dazed, and my center of gravity began to waver, but I didn't dare to loosen my grip on his wrist holding the K knife. I knew that once that kind of blunt weapon struck flesh, the damage would be far greater than the damage from forehead-to-forehead collisions.

Suddenly, he pinned me down, and this guy took the opportunity to straddle my chest, his right hand gripping my neck tightly, giving me no chance to break free.

I immediately felt short of breath, and the veins on my face bulged and seemed about to burst. So, I used my left hand to tear open his hand that was gripping my neck. But his brute strength was astonishing, and his killing intent was even stronger than mine; he wouldn't let me pry him open so easily.

At the critical moment, I tried to clamp a large rock between my legs, hoping to use my body like a catapult to smash the back of his head.

But this guy was on top of me; he could sense my movements, so before I could swing my legs up with the rock, he kicked it away with one of his thick thighs.

Then, he let out a playful, smug laugh—a terrifying laugh that signaled to me that I was completely trapped in his death trap.

Chapter 395: The Door Knocker on the Reef
I was furious but helpless, so I focused my strength on my toes and attacked the back of his head. Because one of his legs was wrapped around my back, pressing down on my legs, my kick was difficult to land, and although it hit him, it didn't cause much damage.

A resounding slap landed hard on my face. "Damn it, I told you not to kick me, I'll beat you to death!" This guy's emotions were truly at their peak; the hand that was gripping my neck actually loosened slightly, and he slapped me hard across the face.

I immediately felt a burning pain on half my face, and a metallic taste filled my mouth. This guy's strength was like that of a monster, which was why he dared to warn me so confidently.

I didn't try to kick the back of his head again, but instead reached for the rocks beside me, hoping to find a sharp-edged stone and smash his temple when the opportunity arose.

But this guy wasn't going to give me that chance. He slumped down with his heavy buttocks, sitting on the lower part of my chest, and then dug his toes into my groin, preventing me from easily raising my leg to attack.

And with the K knife in his left hand, he pushed against the resistance of my right hand and pressed it towards my chest. At that moment, my neck was completely strangled by his right hand. Even if my left hand tried to help relieve the pain of suffocation, it would be useless because he was too strong.

When my right hand touched the stone, this guy had already used a joint lock on me. His right knee pressed my left elbow firmly down, and he was just waiting for the hand choking my neck to release its vicious force until I died.

The stone I picked up couldn't even reach his temple; it could only keep hitting his thigh. However, this resistance was like a weak woman being forcibly taken hostage by a savage man, throwing a small punch out of fear.

"Pah!" This hateful guy actually spat in my face at the moment I was dying, at the moment my eyelids were weakly drooping and then unwillingly opening again.

"You self-righteous headhunters, you little brats, you've really been getting ahead of yourselves these past few years! Now you know your place!"

I trembled weakly and painfully, the stones in my left hand becoming a symbol of defiance, inflicting no actual harm on him.

But little did he know, I was taking a desperate gamble, dragging him into a death trap.

Hitting his head with my foot, striking his thigh with stones—these were all preludes, a deception to distract him.

When I collapsed after our head-on collision, I deliberately lay to the right of the rubble where the FN57 pistol was buried.

If I had reached for the gun from the start, his alertness would have made it easy for him to spot me. So I let him see the light at the end of the tunnel, in the slowing tapping of my left hand, before I pulled out that "divine weapon" that altered the death list.

"Hmph!" As I lay dying, my face swelled up like a red balloon about to burst, but to his surprise, I suddenly gave a sinister smirk, and a cold snort escaped from my bleeding nose.

The guy immediately realized he'd fallen into my death trap. Because instead of the tickling sensation on his right leg, he felt the muzzle of a pistol pressed against his thigh, motionless.

Bang, bang bang, bang bang bang. "You thought I wouldn't dare make a gunshot? Well, I'll make sure you die from a gunshot." Thinking viciously, several hot bullets pierced his powerful quadriceps and lodged in his pelvis.

Just as he let out a heart-wrenching scream, I pushed him backward with my right hand, pinned his wrist holding the K-knife down with one foot, and pried open his mouth with my other, shoving the muzzle of an FN57 pistol inside.

“I’m telling you, I’m the ‘child pedophile’ you’re looking for. Go to hell and reflect on your actions!” The words were spoken rapidly when a bullet rang out, shattering all his teeth and tongue. A spurt of sticky blood sprayed all over my face.

In the instant his consciousness was snatched away by death, I couldn’t know how he understood my last words to him. Perhaps he knew I was the one who took the epaulettes, that they were in my pocket; perhaps he truly believed I was the child pedophile himself.

The sound of pistol shots was particularly jarring on the dark island peak; those guys nearby should be chasing us soon. I didn't even have time to catch my breath. I grabbed the man by the back of the collar, dragged the corpse, and ran towards the seaside edge of the summit.

I vomited as I ran; it was an awful experience. I felt blood streaming down my face, and I coughed up blood from my swollen throat.

Finally, enduring the pain, I threw the man into the dark forest at the foot of the island.

Even though his body would be shattered, I knew his two epaulets would be fine. "Bang, bang bang, swish, swish swish..." Several more streaks of fire shot towards me from the dark bushes behind me.

Taking advantage of the darkness, I quickly pulled out my grappling hook and climbed down the rock face. My sniper rifle and another grappling hook were still on the island peak, but I couldn't go back for them now. I needed to find a place quickly to treat my forehead and the back of my hand.

As soon as I reached the foot of the island, I ran quickly towards where Dumo was hiding. If I hadn't been injured and hadn't abandoned my weapon on the peak and couldn't retrieve it immediately, I would have jumped into the sea with Dumo and swam to another island.

"Dumo, Dumo, are you asleep? It's me, I'm back. Answer me, are you conscious?" I endured the pain in my forehead and hand, anxiously crouching outside the large rock blocking the hole in the rock, calling softly to Dumo, who was probably fast asleep inside.

"Hmm! Hmm! Who? Who is it?" Dumo, inside the rock, wiped the drool that had dripped from his mouth in his sleep, asking in a startled whisper. I knew he was frightened by the child lover, and his emotions hadn't completely calmed down yet.

"It's me, Big Guy Gale." I called out anxiously into the rock again, my voice strained. Behind me, the seawater crashed against the reef, creating huge waves that soaked my already cold body even more.

At that moment, how I wished there was a campfire to warm myself by, even if the flames were cold, just a little light would be my greatest gratitude.

I crouched outside the rock, surrounded by darkness, my body trembling. My mind was filled with images of flames, while seawater splashed behind me. This pain of being half fire and half seawater was unbearable; I wanted nothing more than to pry the rock open and pull Dumo out.

But I didn't. Dumo was fast asleep, and that guy was suspicious. If he carelessly shot me, it wouldn't just be a bad situation, it would be certain death. Even if he wounded me, my blood wasn't unlimited.

Chapter 396:

Du Mo, the Remaining Criminal on Huokou Island, seemed to be in a daze. He hesitated for more than three minutes before coming to his senses. He pushed the large rock outward and whispered to me, "Mr. Zhui Ma, I didn't expect you to actually come back safely. Thank God." As soon

as the large rock was pushed aside, I told Du Mo to curl up and try to get as close to the hole as possible, and then I squeezed in as well. In an instant, the bodies of two strong men filled the hole.

I didn't have time to pay attention to Du Mo. I quickly used the rope to lasso the large rock at the entrance of the hole, making it block the entrance again like a bottle stopper, sealing us both inside the mountain.

"Huff, huff, huff..." In the dark and narrow space, I could clearly hear the tense and uneasy breathing of myself and the other person.

I took off my clothes, which were soaked by the seawater, and used the stones to plug the gaps left after blocking the hole. Then, I quickly took out a small flashlight from my bag and handed it to Dumo. Using the tiny light, about the size of a ping-pong ball, I began to disinfect, stop the bleeding, apply medicine, and bandage the wounds on my forehead and the back of my hands.

"Mr. Zhuima, are you seriously injured?" Dumo asked cautiously. "It seems to be just some superficial wounds. If it doesn't heal quickly enough or gets infected, it will be a big problem."

After tending to my wounds, I sat against the cold, damp stone wall, hugging my legs to my chest. After thinking for a long time, I said to Dumo, who was curled up in a ball, "It seems we really will have to hide on Huokou Island for a while."

Dumo was surprised and asked anxiously, "What? Are there still many hostile pirates on the island? How long are we going to hide in this living coffin?" As he spoke, Dumo seemed agitated, and his breathing became rapid.

I quickly and coldly told Dumo, "The real danger is outside. You need to understand the situation and adjust your mindset. This cave, though cramped and suffocatingly dark, is at least a place you can grit your teeth and survive. If you can't stand it and go out, and get hit in a vital spot by a bullet, even biting your tongue won't help."

Hearing my words, Dumo's breathing gradually calmed down. I knew his bulky body couldn't withstand this kind of compression, but I wasn't any smaller than him, and I was also feeling very uncomfortable curled up.

It felt like thousands of refugees crammed onto a dilapidated train, so crowded that you couldn't stand or squat, causing an indescribable discomfort.

But the more cramped the cave, the safer those willing to endure the hardship of hiding inside would be. If those guys outside still wouldn't give up the search, they would likely search for larger caves.

Dumo and I hid in the cave for two days and two nights, only sneaking out around three or four in the morning each night to get some fresh air. And on the second night, under a cloud-covered sky, I quietly climbed the island peak to retrieve my weapon.

The demon's corpse I'd left in the woods at the foot of the island that night—I'd assumed it would be found and taken—was still buried under the leaves, stiff and cold.

In the darkness, I felt around on the corpse's shoulders and discovered his two epaulets were missing. But this didn't necessarily mean the third guardian demon had been there, taken the epaulets, and then abandoned the body.

This demon wielding the K-blade knew perfectly well that the epaulets had been taken after the first guardian demon's death, so he might have been prepared and hidden them elsewhere on his body.

So, like a blind man feeling his bones, I carefully examined the stiff corpse in the dark. Finally, I found the two epaulets under the insoles of the corpse's boots.

To destroy the evidence, I pushed the body to the seashore, letting it ride the giant waves to feed the sharks.

As I crouched low and made my way back to the cave along the rocky cliff by the sea, I felt an indescribable sense of relief. It wasn't because I'd acquired two more epaulets, but because they had sparked another possibility, a possibility that would be advantageous to me.

On the island of the gap, the Pirate King might have only placed two Guardian Demons. If one died, the other Demon would be burdened with a right and an obligation.

The obligation, of course, was to properly bury the deceased and avenge them; but the right was the most important, the guarantee that would lead to the fulfillment of the obligation—that is, to acquire ownership of the wealth represented by the epaulet.

As for whether one could enjoy this pirate wealth alone or only receive a large share, that was a deeper secret within the Sea Demon Contract, probably known only to the Pirate King and the twelve Guardian Demons.

Therefore, the Demon wielding the K-blade, although he had summoned a group of powerful pirates from other nearby islands, certainly wouldn't have announced it beforehand.

If my prediction is correct, and the second demon is also dead, the news of the two guardian demons' deaths on the breached island won't reach the ears of the pirate king and the other guardian demons for a while. This becomes an opportunity for Dumo and me to leave the island alive.

"Mr. Zhuima, I'm feeling better now and have adapted to the environment in the cave. Why don't we just stay here and wait until they've fought each other to the last few, then we can go out and clean up the mess?" Dumo chuckled twice after saying this.

“Hmph, Dumo, do you remember me telling you that encountering a terrifying expert is more dangerous than encountering a dozen pirate warriors? We’ve already wasted two days and two nights. If we delay any longer, I’m afraid that when we get out, we’ll be surrounded by guys like Lian Qiutong, their sharp eyes searching for anyone with your kind of thinking.”

“You mean, we should take advantage of the chaos to kill him now?” Dumo asked seriously.

“Yes, after Xuan Ya, Tiao Hun Men Luo, and that Lian Qiutong who always appears in your nightmares have wiped out the enemy pirates, once the three of them get together, do you think you and I can still gain an advantage over them?”

Dumo stopped talking and fell into deep thought. I pulled off the clothes that were stuffing the gaps in the hole and put them on, then told Dumo to pack our things together, preparing to cross the sea and leave under the cover of darkness tonight.

If we were a day later, and the pirate king’s main force arrived, even God might not be able to spare us.

Dumo and I waded through the slippery rocks, mingling with the pervasive sea air, slowly entering the icy water, swimming towards the valley island covered with towering trees to the north.

When we finally reached the foot of the island, I asked Dumo if he was cold and if he could keep going. He nodded. Then, we each ate a piece of chocolate, rested for only twenty minutes, and then swam back towards the island where the Nine-Lives Raven was located.

Chapter 397: A Curse-like Slander

I now sincerely hope to be as far away from Open Pass Island as possible. It will soon become a purgatory within a purgatory. As for which unfortunate pirate warriors are still hiding on Open Pass Island, once the Pirate King focuses on sealing it off, everyone captured alive will be tortured to death to find out the whereabouts of their epaulets. As

the moon was about to sink below the island's peak, Dumo and I landed on our destination island. At this moment, due to the darkness and being at the foot of the island's mountains, I couldn't see the surrounding terrain clearly.

But I knew in my heart that Jason Jodi must have had a profound purpose in placing the Nine Lives Raven on this island.

"Mr. Chase, it's almost dawn. Let's find a place to hide. Maybe that guy, the Child Lover, is here too," Dumo whispered to me, shivering as he was soaked to the bone.

"Okay." I knew Dumo. He was a little hesitant about the Child Lover, not because he was inherently cowardly, but because he was injured and unsure of himself.

"Dumo, do you miss Doguwa?" Dumo and I jogged along the rocks at the foot of the mountain.

"Yes! I've missed her ever since we parted. I just don't know how she's doing now! Is she short of money?"

Since I gave Dumo 100,000 euros, he was now a small-time millionaire. "That's right, so you need to cheer up. Don't struggle for years only to end up with women and money, but your freedom of life robbed by death. The gun is still in your hand, isn't it?"

These words were a great encouragement to Du Mo, who immediately chuckled and patted the M25 sniper rifle he was holding. "Yeah, I almost forgot, you must..."

Du Mo stopped mid-sentence. "Mr. Zhui Ma, there's something I've been wanting to ask you, but I was afraid of upsetting you, so I didn't dare."

I actually knew what Du Mo wanted to ask, so I went along with it, saying, "You've piqued my interest, so go ahead and ask!" Du Mo shrank back slightly and chuckled again.

"We came to this island and got caught up in this endless battle, but I see absolutely no connection between this and your rescue of Miss Yi Liang and Ms. Chi Chun. Of course, I know you must have your reasons, I'm just curious because I can't figure it out right now."

This guy, Du Mo, although he can't compare to the headhunters in a fight, his wisdom and shrewdness always amaze me. Although he's ostensibly asking me, he definitely wants to tell me something.

"Heh, do you think I like getting involved in this mess? If I knew where Yi Liang and the others were, I would have left this hellhole long ago." I gave a bitter laugh, my tone filled with melancholy, and said helplessly to Du Mo.

"Hehe, I've always wanted to ask you something. I know it's stupid of me to ask this, and it won't affect or change your final decision in the slightest."

Hearing Du Mo say this, although my feet kept moving, my heart skipped a beat. I could sense that the question Du Mo wanted to ask was unusual.

“We’ve come this far, what can’t we just say? Ask away. If you want to leave, I won’t stop you.” I knew Du Mo didn’t really mean it, but I said it on purpose.

“You, you, you…you won’t you kill little Du Mo in the end!” Du Mo suddenly stopped, half-bent over in the darkness facing me, the muzzle of his gun pointed intentionally or unintentionally at my lower abdomen.

I knew in my heart that words carried no weight, and if I wanted to dispel his concerns, verbal communication would be difficult to achieve.

I remained silent for a long time before speaking to Dumo in a calm and serious tone: "I know that the incident of the Love Prisoner plotting against you has caused you great psychological damage. This will inevitably force you to reconsider many things. I won't make any promises, but I'll just present some facts for you to consider. If you can understand, then persevere with me. If you can't, then we'll part ways. You're a penniless and foolish man, so Doguwa is of no value to me. I'll send her away whenever I have the chance. Go to the slums of Buala City and wait in that little wooden house. You'll find her soon."

I knew these things couldn't be explained clearly in a short time, but I had to make them clear. Otherwise, this black kodo beast that I risked my life to save would ultimately be of no use to me, or even have the opposite effect.

“No, no, no. Mr. Chase, do you know how much I wished you weren’t this kind of person, that you could be honest with me about this. But you’ve disappointed me so much. You don’t even know where Doguwa is. What’s the point of me going to the little cabin? Going there would only bring me pain, like waiting for Godot in the play.”

Dumo’s emotions were fluctuating; his disappointment and pain far outweighed his current dissatisfaction. In the darkness, I didn’t speak, only my Adam’s apple bobbed, and I slowly lowered my head.

The spray crashing against the rocks behind me splashed down from above, as if expressing Dumo’s indignation at my words. The sea continued its vast and heavy swaying, completely indifferent to the complexities and vicissitudes of human nature in the world.

"Say something! Why aren't you saying anything? Why are you treating me like this? I've gone to great lengths to please you all, and what have you done? In the end, you all want me dead. I've had enough!"

At this moment, my own mind was already a mess. Du Mo, who had been laughing and joking just moments before, suddenly seemed like a different person, pressing me so hard that I was speechless.

I had countless grievances on my mind, and even if I spent time digging them out and throwing them at Du Mo for the one reason he wanted, how could he easily believe me, or not take my words as evasions and lies?

Du Mo shouldn't know about Duoguwa and Luya being taken away by Mingzhongshui. If he knew the truth, he could probably understand and forgive my mistake. I fear he might have listened to malicious slander, making everything I said now futile.

Chapter 398: The Black Curse on the Heart
I silently warned myself to keep my emotions in check. Although I could unexpectedly knock the rifle out of Du Mo's hand, sending him to another world in one fell swoop, thus saving myself the trouble of explaining anything,

if I did that, the opponent who had used treacherous tactics against Du Mo would have achieved their goal. I risked great danger to rescue Du Mo alive from Gaps Island, but now it seems I only saved his physical body; this guy's heart has already been afflicted with a dark "curse."

"In the maze of battle, what's more terrifying than bullets?" I remained silent for a long time before calmly asking Dumo. Dumo didn't answer; instead, he gripped his sniper rifle even more cautiously.

"It seems I was a step too late. I only protected your body, but not your heart. Whoever leaked this information to you, you need to understand one thing: what was their purpose in telling you this? The so-called psychological warfare, using real information to mislead the opponent, is the most effective and terrifying tactic."

Dumo took a few steps back. He began to feel afraid. Facing his gun, it seemed that my calm and composed demeanor was brewing a sudden burst of killing intent.

"I can roughly guess who leaked this information to you, and I can also guess that guy's purpose." Waves crashed against the rocks, scattering onto my hair and shoulders.

"Tell me," Dumo asked cautiously.

"Who else could it be! Except for the headhunter assassin hired by your respectable and lovable old captain at great expense, hmph. But Dumo, when you and that Burmese woman stayed at the Buala Apartment, after I returned to the Sea Demon, what exactly happened between me and those two guys, and what kind of powerful relationship we had? How would you know?"

These words finally touched Dumo a little. He hesitated for a moment and asked in return, "But why did you make me take your place as your partner with that bastard Lian Qiutong, and then you risked your life to come to Huokou Island to save me like a merciful God? How am I supposed to know if you came to the island to save me or if it was just a chance encounter?"

Dumo's emotions became agitated again, his words filled with complaints and accusations. "No matter how capable you are, no matter how confident you are, it shouldn't be my turn to partner with Lian Qiutong. You overestimate little Dumo!"

Since Dumo had confronted me about the Duoguwa matter, I wasn't surprised to hear him say these words now. "Hmph, why would I do that? Can you give me a reason?"

I retorted to Dumo, but before he could answer, I continued, "Dumo, if one day I'm lying under the guillotine, and I have to use you as a scapegoat to save myself, that's certainly possible! Just like one day Jason might be sitting on a golden throne, surrounded by women and drinking a bottle of liquor, and suddenly burst into tears for the death of Dumo, that's also a possibility; even more so, if you survive this time and return to the Sea Demon, Jason might take you in as an apology, making you his adopted son and inheriting all his wealth, that's also a possibility."

I finished speaking coldly, but Dumo chuckled, his smile carrying a deeper meaning. "Mr. Chase, please don't be sarcastic. You know I hate the Sea Demon to the core. Even if that old devil Jason might take me in as his adopted son, I might not go back, that's also a possibility."

Hearing the hidden meaning in Dumo's words, although my face remained serious, I breathed a long sigh of relief. His shrewdness and wisdom have always been key factors in my decision to choose him as my deputy.

I'm finding it increasingly easier to talk to Dumo; he understands me accurately, and this understanding isn't blind obedience, but rather an adaptation to the current situation.

Therefore, working with someone like him means that even if I carelessly relay an order one day, he won't rigidly adhere to dogma. Dumo's smile stems from the fact that he heard what he wanted to hear and saw the hope he desired in my sarcasm.

From the current situation, Dumo himself can't find any reason why I should die for him. Moreover, Dumo knows that if I were to use him as cannon fodder one day, it would be a moment of utter desperation for me.

But right now, I only face the possibility of being killed; no one, or for any reason, is going to capture me and force me to agree to let Dumo be my scapegoat so I can live. Making Dumo realize this at this moment is crucial.

"What else did that Nine-Lives Raven say to you?" I asked Du Mo in a low voice, my tone conveying a magnanimous sense of right and wrong, turning the awkwardness of the misunderstanding into a displaced anger towards Nine-Lives Raven, thus giving Du Mo a way out.

"Mr. Chasing Horse, do you know? Being with you is truly terrifying. You're practically, practically, like you could take your eyeballs out and place them on the Sea Demon to see everything."

Du Mo flattered me while sliding down the "step" that had eased the awkwardness.

"Hmph, such insidious tricks, and ulterior motives, can only come from someone like him, a member of one of the eight legendary headhunting clans."

After saying that, I turned my back to Du Mo, stepping on the rocks lightly covered by the seawater, and whispered, "If we don't leave now, it'll be dawn."

Du Mo knew that I had given him a lot of face this time, implying that I was judging him by my own standards. "Mr. Chase, wait for me! I haven't finished!"

Dumo called out in a low voice from behind in the darkness, wading through the seawater as he caught up. "Really, I really haven't finished. Let me finish. I have good news for you."

The damp, cold sea breeze swirled past my ears, but Dumo's voice, both near and far, still carried the words "good news" to my brain.

I couldn't help but smile wryly. Dumo, even with me, always liked to play with his cleverness, which was only outstanding among pirates of the same rank. After all that fuss, it turned out he was just using a little trick of first whipping and then sweetening the way.

But I stopped abruptly, like a machine receiving the right signal, waiting for the dark, sleek kodo beast to catch up, panting.

"Huff, huff, huff... Ouch! I said, I, I need to catch my breath." Dumo was panting heavily, carrying his large pack on his back, his hands on his knees. After swallowing hard, he finally managed to utter half a sentence, his thick, dark lips twisted as he looked up at me.

Chapter 399: Dumo's African Textbook

"Mr. Chase, Mr. Chase, this good news... will definitely make you forgive my earlier rudeness. Ouch..." Dumo swallowed again, looking very anxious, rushing to tell me before he could even catch his breath.

"Hmph, don't mistake your petty temper for the measure of my magnanimity. This isn't your fault; you were just hit by a bullet sniped from the Heart of the Crow. As long as the 'bullet' is removed safely, you're alive and well."

Dumo understood; I used sarcasm instead of blame to deal with his self-defeating attempt. "Hehe, I knew it, Mr. Zhui Ma is very understanding. But, you should still hit me a couple of times, um... or scold me a couple of times. Otherwise, Du Mo is quite uneasy about what happened earlier!"

Du Mo knows my hands well; they're not only strong but also incredibly bloody. So, as soon as he said he wanted me to hit him a couple of times to vent his anger, he immediately realized it was inappropriate and quickly changed it to "or scold me a couple of times." This guy's skin is thicker than his upper lip.

Actually, I know very well that Du Mo's insistence on me hitting or scolding him isn't because he truly feels guilty about what happened earlier, but because he's afraid I'll hold a grudge.

"Didn't you say you had good news? Hurry up and tell me. If you keep dragging this out until dawn, your good news will rot in your stomach."

Dumo, his round face chubby and increasingly like a spoiled child, insisted, "Before you tell me the good news, please allow me to explain what just happened clearly."

Although Dumo was a young man in his early twenties, and probably hadn't read any African textbooks, the hardships of life had given him a lot of practical knowledge and survival instincts. He knew the saying "serving a ruler is like serving a tiger," so he was extremely afraid of leaving a bad impression on me.

"Okay, but don't ramble on. I'll listen carefully." To reassure Dumo and get him to come with me to kill the child lover, I agreed to Dumo's request.

“Alright, enough rambling. His real name is Nine Lives Raven, I guess that’s him, the assassin hired for a hefty sum on the Sea Demon. As soon as that creepy woman and I got back to the ship, this guy called Raven struck up a conversation with me like we were on the same wavelength. He seemed so calm and unassuming, but I never expected him to be so cunning.”

I frowned helplessly, glanced at the stars in the night sky, and said coldly to Dumo. “Still rambling.”

He nodded apologetically and continued, “That guy called Raven first asked if I had a girlfriend, then he asked about Doguwa. At first, I thought he was just curious, that he overheard these things about me from the gossip of the other guys on the ship. So, I acted very sad and told him that my beloved woman had gone to heaven.”

I sighed heavily, there was really nothing I could do with Dumo. “Alright, let’s talk as we walk. Mobile access: ωар.ㄧбκ.сn”

Dumo scratched the back of his head sheepishly and nodded at me like a chicken pecking at rice. Actually, he was also anxious about how to summarize the matter. So when I was anxious, he was even more anxious than me.

“That guy, what’s his name, Crow, asked me if I believed in the art of bringing the dead back to life. My heart felt like it was being twisted by red-hot tongs. I was terrified that he would expose our ruse. I was standing on the deck of the Sea Demon at the time. If this got to Jason Jody’s ears, he would skin me alive. You think about it, just a few days ago, he was doing me a favor, allowing me to eat and take whatever I wanted in the ship’s warehouse. Even if he really skinned me alive, I’d be embarrassed!”

Dumo and I were both soaked in seawater, and now walking on the bumpy, smooth rocks was incredibly uncomfortable for our feet. Of course, sitting around a fire, taking off my boots to warm my feet would be ideal, but at this moment, that was a terrible luxury. I'd be lucky if I just got some blisters and they didn't get infected.

"I pretended to be stupid, begging him not to play a trick on me, and to respect a poor woman who had already died. But he still insisted that my Dorguwa had been resurrected. He definitely meant it!"

Dumo, wading through the seawater, followed closely behind me. "At first, I thought he and you must have some kind of tacit understanding, which is why he used this unspeakable truth to play this trick on me. But..."

I walked quickly, but my ears were attentive to what Dumo was saying. "But, even if we had a tacit understanding, I wouldn't be so reckless as to tell a third, unrelated person our secret." I continued, picking up where Dumo left off.

"Yes, yes, I think it definitely wasn't you, unless, unless..." I continued, finishing Dumo's sentence. “Unless I sell you out.”

This time, Du Mo remained silent, but I was clearly right; his silence was tacit agreement.

“Then, that guy called Hanging Crow told me to be careful, not to be foolish enough to go down a dark path and end up being someone else’s scapegoat without even knowing it.”

Chapter 400: The Punishment of the Sea Demon Contract

Du Mo and I stopped at a place where the mountainside was covered with branches. After resting for a while, we prepared to climb onto the island. Although we were separated by the thick mountain and could only see the undulating waves, we could also faintly hear rumbling sounds coming from inside the island.

"Alright, Dumo, this happened unexpectedly too, but I won't hold a grudge against you. Jason Jody's initial plan was to pair me with the Child Lover. But on the night of the operation, when I got off the speedboat, I saw you and the Child Lover on the same boat, and that's when I realized the plan had been changed without my knowledge."

As I spoke, I opened my bag, took out the last bottle of liquor, took a swig myself, and handed some to Dumo. We both warmed up, preparing for the cliff climbing.

Seeing Dumo shivering from the cold, I even felt a little sorry for him, thinking he was dragged down by my troubles, ending up like this.

But if we hadn't met, he might already be among those pirate soldiers, dead at my hands.

I continued to Dumo, "At that time, I no longer had the time or opportunity to separate you and Love Prisoner. And this sudden change is all thanks to Mr. Raven, who reminded you to keep your eyes open."

Dumo took two swigs of his drink, wiping his mouth and cursing, "Damn it! These hired killers are all the same, not a single one is any good. Raven and Love Prisoner are the same kind of scum."

Dumo handed me the bottle, and I gave him some beef jerky to eat, then continued, "Raven intentionally arranged for you and Love Prisoner to be together. He's after me, trying to cut off my arm first."

Before I killed Love Prisoner, I didn't want Dumo to know that I had a blood feud with Love Prisoner, otherwise, that shiny black kodo would think I was using him.

"Hehe, looks like that kid is jealous of our relationship." Dumo said, taking the bottle from my hand.

Seeing Dumo dispel all his worries and lean against the rock next to me, happily drinking his little bottle of liquor, I immediately felt much more relaxed, and at the same time, I couldn't help but think of something.

Back in Boulay, the guy who impersonated Nine Lives Raven and worked with me, Water of Destiny, sneaked into my apartment one night, wanting me to join him in intercepting Babatu.

He told me then that Luya and Doguwa had already been escorted to Mauritius by Little Coral. Now, it seems Water of Destiny's words were quite profound; he sensed I was about to come into contact with the real Nine Lives Raven and intentionally leaked this information to me, so I could have a backup plan.

Moreover, he emphasized one point, warning me not to look at Little Coral. Although he was only seventeen or eighteen, the number of mercenaries and pirates who had died at his hands was staggering, and he should not be underestimated. The reason

Nine Lives Raven secretly manipulated things, getting Captain Jason Jody to change his mind and arrange for Dumo to be cannon fodder for the child pedophile, was clearly to keep me in a helpless and isolated position. Later, when we cooperated, he could work with Little Coral from the inside, leaving me alone.

But his sinister plan failed. Seeing Dumo still alive, squatting beside me greedily licking the bottle's neck, I wanted to burst out laughing, thanking God for the opportunity and luck.

"Dumo, stop licking the bottle. Look at you, so pathetic. After dawn, kill more pirates, then sneak up and search their backpacks tonight. Maybe we'll find something even better than this little bottle of liquor."

Dumo tilted his head back, turned the bottle upside down, and smacked it against his tongue a few times, squeezing out the last drop of liquid before tossing the delicate little bottle into the dark sea.

"Hehe, Mr. Chase, I'm sure you'll laugh out loud when you hear this good news." I frowned, looking up at Dumo.

"Hehehe, this isn't my first time on this island behind us! You know, although I'm just a pirate soldier, not exactly known for any glorious missions or honors, I'm still a nuclear-powered soldier, no less!"

Dumo said smugly, casually picking up a piece of dry, hard jerky and stuffing it into his mouth. "Hehehe, so, last year when the small submarine escorting the Sea Demon was undergoing maintenance, First Officer Blue Eyes and I came here. We repaired the ship here. Those days were truly pleasant! Bright sunshine, magnificent and beautiful scenery, and plenty of free time... Ah! Just thinking about it makes my mouth water."

Although Dumo spoke in suspense, I could clearly sense that he seemed to know the current location of the small nuclear submarine, and even the current location of the mother ship, the Sea Demon.

"Hmph hmph hmph..." Dumo was right; what he said actually made me smirk and let out a few cold laughs. This absurdity stems from inner joy, yet is expressed in a cold and disdainful manner.

Seeing that I was moved, Dumo quickly continued, "I had just been transferred to a small nuclear submarine. There weren't many delicate maintenance tasks I could handle, and not much physical labor, so I grabbed a rifle and went with that Indian kid to hunt game in the woods of the island valley to make soup for everyone. But as we were walking in the valley, we saw a swarm of dark island bats, startled, flying out of the mountains in broad daylight."

Dumo chewed on beef jerky, struggling to eat, but still spoke with great enthusiasm. "We both felt that something was wrong on the other side of the mountain—either someone was up to something, or a large wild animal was active—so we sneaked over to check."

As I listened to Dumo, I handed him a piece of chocolate, gesturing for him to continue. This matter concerned whether I could rescue Yi Liang and Chi Chun. Knowing the current location of the Sea Demon would allow me to return and rescue them while the large ship was short-handed.

This was an excellent and rare opportunity for me, the second option that had appeared after all the fighting.

Rescuing the hostages being used to blackmail me was no small matter; it concerned the interests of many people, and was not only difficult to execute but also very risky. Therefore, Du Mo couldn't explain it clearly in a few words.

If he really glossed over the complex and ever-changing situation in a few words, then this kid was truly unreliable and was genuinely just giving me the runaround.

If Du Mo was truly a careless fellow who was likely to ruin things, I wouldn't get entangled with him; I could simply find an opportunity to kill him.

"What did you see?" I asked coldly, but inwardly I was eagerly anticipating some truly good news from Du Mo.

"Hehehe, guess!" Du Mo grinned again, revealing a set of white teeth. Seeing him being so suspenseful only excited me more. Because this meant that what Du Mo was about to say was of great value and significance.

"Could it be a flock of female swans swimming?" I said, feigning indifference. "Hehe, that's right! Not a flock, but one, a female swan as big as the Sea Demon is swimming."

As soon as Du Mo finished speaking, his white teeth on his dark head almost shone brightly. I could no longer contain my excitement and finally revealed a smile of pure joy.

"The Indian boy and I lay under a tree in the valley, watching the Sea Demon slowly sail into a large natural cave. We immediately understood what was going on. It turned out the Sea Demon was also undergoing repairs. The old captain had settled most of the pirate crew on a distant island, leaving them plenty of food, drink, and women. The pirate crew didn't complain; it was like a holiday, and they just enjoyed themselves. But the old captain took several dozen veteran pirates and secretly went into that secret cave to repair the ship."

Dumo finished speaking in one breath, took a deep breath, and said with deep emotion, "At that time, although the Indian boy and I were new to the trade, we knew what was important. On the Sea Demon, we shouldn't know things we shouldn't know. So, we didn't dare to go and see what was going on, let alone know what the cave looked like. Besides, we were busy hunting at the time. If the old captain saw us slacking off and playing around, it definitely wouldn't be good."

After hearing this good news, I was extremely glad that I had not only not abandoned Dumo, but also hadn't lost him. Dumo kept this matter to himself, which was also a form of value. If I wanted to gain it, I would have to rescue him and protect him.

This vast Chagos Islands originally belonged to British territory, but the troops stationed there were actually controlled by the US military. It would be impossible and extremely risky for the Sea Demon to treat this place as public waters, as deserted islands, coming and going as it pleased to repair the ship.

Because the navy patrolling nearby ports would simply blow it up and report it as a successful destruction of an intruder.

So why did he have such privileges right under the noses of these navies? It's not hard to imagine. The highest commander on the island must have had some connection with him, even if it was just a little, it was built on huge interests.

I think that not long after the Pirate King left the Sea Demon, Jason Jody, also known as the Demon Reef of the Twelve Guardians, violated the Sea Demon Contract and activated the wealth of the two epaulets on his shoulders.

Linking it to politics, linking it to the military, and then arrogantly facing everyone who didn't want to be associated with it but still wanted to live. Only this Demon Reef could possibly use his astonishing pirate wealth to purchase a small nuclear submarine that was nearing or already retired, thus protecting his mother ship and guarding against the pirate king's counterattack.

This guy's capital to rebel against the pirate leader, if not for these connections, even if he had the guts, he wouldn't dare take the risk and suffer the punishment of the Sea Demon's contract.

Chapter 401 The Catfish at Tongtian Waterfall
I asked Dumo to recall exactly where he and the Indian had seen the Sea Demon enter the cave for repairs when they went hunting in the valley. Dumo racked his brains for a long time but couldn't pinpoint the exact location.

So, we started climbing the cliffs, and once we reached a high point, with the light of dawn, Dumo could easily identify the cave's exact location on the island.

"Dumo, hold on tight to those branches. Before you grab them, make sure to test the roots to see if they're firmly attached to the rock face. If you grab a ghost, you'll fall!"

The rock face on this island is very high, nearly a thousand meters above sea level. Halfway up, the face became increasingly steep, so I gave Dumo a friendly reminder.

"Don't worry, Mr. Zhuima. I have such important information on my head; how could I give up at this crucial moment? However, I feel it's getting harder as we climb higher."

The section of rock face Dumo and I chose was dark. At the foot of the mountain, only the first hundred meters seemed easy to climb, but as we reached the middle, I started to feel nervous. The surface of the rock face began to cave in, making it difficult to find a stable foothold when we were clinging to the crevices and plants.

"Mr. Zhuima, what do you think will happen if we fall?" Dumo asked me anxiously, trying to ease his anxiety.

"Hmph, what else could it be! It's all reefs below. Even if you jump backward the instant you lose your footing, you'll still land on the shallow shore, only a meter or so deep, and break your bones."

As he spoke, the rumbling sounds that had been emanating from the island earlier became even clearer. I asked Dumo what that sound was, and he told me it was many towering waterfalls cascading down the cliff face hundreds of meters high into deep pools.

Dumo also told me that the bottom of those pools was very deep, full of delicious wild catfish. He said that catching a few, cooking them with garlic and tomatoes, and making a stew would be so delicious it would make you swoon.

I couldn't help but laugh at Dumo's exaggerated descriptions of food and cooking, and I warned him again to persevere to the top of the cliff, lest a moment of carelessness lead to disaster.

After climbing the difficult hundred-meter section in the middle of the cliff, the remaining few hundred meters were much easier to climb. Dumo and I simply threw the grappling hook onto the 60-70 degree slope ahead, and once the rope was taut, we climbed up the rock face.

Pitch blackness enveloped us; the water from the tree branches seeped into our already soaked clothes, mercilessly stealing the last bit of warmth from our skin.

Fortunately, mountain climbing is physically demanding, and our bodies still retained some warmth, so we didn't fall to our deaths on the steep cliff face due to the cold and lack of strength in our hands.

After a full two and a half hours, we finally reached the top of the rock face. Before us lay only large, dark shadows; the lush vegetation had thinned considerably, but the icy, biting sea wind still blew relentlessly, chilling Dumo and me.

“Mr. Zhui Ma, why is this mountaintop all big rocks? It looks like an abandoned quarry.” Although Du Mo had been to the island before, this was his first time reaching such a height and seeing the landscape at an altitude of over 1,000 meters for the first time.

“Du Mo, look at the time. How long until dawn?” Hearing my words, Du Mo quickly rolled up his sleeves and looked at the digital watch on his wrist.

“It’s 6:15,” Du Mo said excitedly. I raised an eyebrow and pressed, “Is your watch accurate? Is it damaged or waterlogged?”

Du Mo quickly emphasized earnestly, “No, no, I bought this digital watch in South Africa. It cost me 273 rand. You know, this is a standard sailor’s watch, capable of withstanding the pressure of a 100-meter-deep underwater surface. On small submarines, I’m the only one with one like this. Most of their watches aren’t waterproof, and even if they are, they can’t withstand as much pressure as mine.”

I strained my eyes and looked around, feeling that the time didn’t seem right. “A magic watch? Who told you all this? Mobile access: wàp.①⑹k.cn”

Dumo immediately replied, “The watch seller himself said so. Their shop is considered a big store in South Africa City. It even has air conditioning, and the doors are made of those large rotating glass windows.”

I shook my head helplessly and sighed affectionately at Dumo. “Yes, even if the watch seller is right, when you actually wear this thing down to a depth of 100 meters, your eyeballs will probably be squeezed out by the water pressure and snatched away by fish. You won’t have the mind to think about the pressure of this little thing.”

Dumo immediately became embarrassed. He stammered for a long time before muttering with his thick black lips, “Anyway, this, this time is definitely right, it’s 6:15.”

Hearing him say it so confidently, I felt a little anxious. "If the timing is correct, it seems a thick fog rolled in during the night."

I glanced down into the valley inside the island, where a dense, damp cloud blanketed the entire island, like a somber, ink-wash painting, suffocating and oppressive.

"Dumo, try to recall roughly where that natural cave is located on the island."

"Ah!" Dumo exclaimed, looking troubled. "Mr. Zhui Ma, don't be so anxious. We're standing so high up now, and I still feel dizzy. Besides, look at that thick fog; it's like we're in God's palace. My vision can't penetrate the clouds at all. Even if I wanted to ramble on, I wouldn't know where to point." Seeing

how pitiful Dumo sounded, I realized I was indeed a bit anxious, wishing I could rush to the cave immediately to see if the Sea Demon was really hiding there.

“Mr. Zhui Ma, I think we should find a sheltered place to rest for a while. Once the midday sun dissipates the gloom, I can pinpoint the location of the cave, and then we'll have time to act!”

I was soaking wet, my clothes clinging tightly to my body; from head to toe, there wasn't a single patch of skin that felt comfortable.

The mountaintop was quite open, with large rocks, each as big as a small newsstand, crouching in the island mist.

Du Mo, like a fat bear that had just fallen into the water, hunched over and walked ahead of me. He groped his way forward through the swirling mist, and I followed behind, my eyes wide open, trying to see as much of the surrounding scenery as possible.

“Oh no, Mr. Zhui Ma, have we accidentally stumbled into a time tunnel and arrived in another world?” Du Mo, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped, turned around, and said, trembling. I couldn't even find a patch of skin.

The mountaintop was quite open, with large rocks, each about the size of a small newsstand, crouching in the island mist.

Dumo, like a fat bear that had just fallen into the water, hunched over and walked ahead of me. He groped his way forward through the swirling mist, and I followed behind, my eyes wide open, trying to see as much of the surrounding scenery as possible.

"Oh no, Mr. Zhui Ma, have we accidentally stumbled into a time tunnel and arrived in another world?!" Dumo, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped, turned around, and said, trembling.

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