Chapter 52

In the Elorin Port of the Elven Kingdom, Sky-Shaking Cannon was also a somewhat well-known player.

As a dwarf, he had traveled a thousand miles from the Dwarven Kingdom to the Elven Kingdom, aiming to use the Elven Kingdom as a base to run a trade business and make money. The Elven Kingdom's handicrafts were widely recognized as bestsellers in the Alliance of Light. A statue that cost 100 gold coins could be sold for 800 or even 1000 gold coins in the Human Kingdom, a huge profit.

However, handicrafts were high-end goods in the Elven Kingdom, and only players with high merchant certificates could buy them. Moreover, the Elven Kingdom was far from the Human Kingdom by sea, requiring a large ship to make the journey. In reality, international trade required large cargo ships. Who would risk sailing a small boat for just a few shipments, risking capsizing and spending over a dozen game days at sea?

Thus, Sky-Shaking Cannon teamed up with a dozen or so good friends to run a trade business and boost their reputation and levels, then they planned to pool their funds to buy a large ship. After earning enough money, the advantage of being a dwarf would come into play—forging weapons! Dwarven weapons were the best in the Alliance of Light, or even the world.

In short, Sky-Shaking Cannon and his friends had a pretty good plan for their future.

And today, they had an unexpected surprise on their trade route! Red-named players had no rights, so killing them would be a service to the people, and they could also claim the high bounty on the wanted list. Why not do it? Of course, looting red-named players and their equipment was a bonus.

Blood Sea Studio.

These days, Blood Sea Wave was very busy. Setting up the studio, clearing the premises, recruiting people, hiring trusted acquaintances to manage, establishing studio rules, setting wages, forming an alliance with the Dragon Slayer Guild, and many other tasks. Fortunately, Blood Sea Wave had many brothers and a wide network of connections, so things were progressing smoothly.

Since Blood Sea Wave was a famous naval hero in the Chinese region, the studio's development direction was naturally focused on the sea. The port of Elorin, which produced handicrafts, had shown its value during the beta test, and Blood Sea Wave naturally intended to station studio members there to develop. First, they would run a trade business, then strengthen their military.

Now, Blood Sea Wave received a report from a player: his enemy was spotted near Elorin!

Blood Sea Wave's spirit was lifted, and he glared, saying, "Tell them, kill! Once the wanted list is issued, we'll keep our word! Money is not a problem! I'll contact that player when I log in!"

Money was certainly not a problem; this was an opportunity to establish the credibility and prestige of the Blood Sea Studio! It would be perfect to start the studio's first day by taking down an enemy! As long as he respawned on shore, he wouldn't escape the vast sea of people, and they would hunt him down to level zero!

At this moment, near Elorin, Sky-Shaking Cannon shouted, "Brothers, the big boss has spoken, kill! 100,000 gold for his head, 5,000 gold each for you all!"

The crowd roared, "Charge!"

Twenty small sailboats immediately changed course, forming a wolf pack to encircle the Flying Ship.

The unusual movement of the small boats naturally alarmed Da Fei.

"Damn! Instead of running a trade business, you want to start a fight!" As a seasoned healer, Da Fei knew these players were definitely not there to welcome him.

In the near sea, the water was calm, and large ships usually couldn't outpace small boats. Moreover, there were only two people on the ship, so running away was impossible. Of course, Da Fei didn't plan to run.

"I need to set an example to prevent others from targeting me because of my red name!" Da Fei's confidence came from his master-level ballista. One shot would sink one of their small boats, and they would die halfway before even getting close. Then there was his dear Katarina. Although she wasn't a combat hero, her angel-like combat power was more than enough to kill these 10-20 level players with 50-60 HP, preventing them from boarding the ship.

Katarina asked, "Captain, are we going to fight?"

Da Fei nodded, his face dark, "Yes! They're asking for it."

Katarina laughed, "I've never seen a merchant attack me first. I didn't even initiate the fight."

Loot? Da Fei's heart skipped a beat. Killing them would lower his reputation, so looting their goods would be a way to compensate for the lost reputation, as restoring reputation costs money.

Da Fei asked excitedly, "Can we loot?"

Katarina smiled, "At their level, we can loot everything, even their pants!"

Hold on, my dear, you can only loot my pants, not theirs. However, if they were to loot, there were 10-20 players and at least 1-2 NPC sailors on each small boat, making them quite numerous. If any of them had magic, Katarina's 73 HP wouldn't be safe.

Da Fei suddenly remembered he had a Magic Sea Anemone King's Heart in his bag, originally intended for sale. But in this situation, it was better to use it. He didn't want his dear to be in danger. With her terrifying attack speed, the paralyzing effect would be incredibly effective.

As the two sides approached, Da Fei deliberately slowed down to avoid ramming them. When they got close, Sky-Shaking Cannon's small fleet suddenly surrounded the Flying Ship, trapping it.

Sky-Shaking Cannon was stunned, and Da Fei sighed inwardly. How were they supposed to board such a tall ship? Did they think they were pirates who could perform acrobatics on the mast? Even if they could, the top of the mast wouldn't reach the ship's deck. In short, attacking a large ship with small boats was as difficult as attacking a city.

Indeed, the players were shocked, "Brother Cannon, we can't board! What do we do?"

Sky-Shaking Cannon gritted his teeth, "Then we'll sink the ship! Sink it!" It seemed looting the ship was out of the question, so they would go for the bounty.

Da Fei was startled! Damn, did they really think they could board his ship? A slight turn of the rudder would sink them!

Da Fei quickly threw down two ropes, "Hey! If you dare, come on board!" He threw two ropes to encourage them.

Sky-Shaking Cannon was delighted, "If you dare, come on board!" He shouted, "Brothers, let's go! The big boss will pay the bounty no matter what!"

The players immediately climbed up the ropes and onto the deck, relieved that they weren't attacked as expected.

This was a large ship! The players cheered as they stepped onto the smooth deck, thinking they had the ship in their hands. "Where is he?"

"Idiots, come in if you dare!" Da Fei's voice came from the cabin corridor.

"What's he up to?" the players wondered.

Sky-Shaking Cannon waved his hand, "Go, we outnumber him! We can wear him down!"

The players rushed into the cabin. As they all entered, Katarina jumped down from the bridge, wielding her dual blades, and chased them into the cabin corridor. The corridor was filled with screams and white flashes. Katarina's 60 attack power, 20 damage, and 22 attack speed, combined with her pirate attributes and sneak attack, were far beyond what 20-level players with 40-50 HP could handle.

Indeed, if it were a deck battle, Da Fei was worried they might form a包围圈, making it difficult. So he lured them into the narrow cabin corridor, where they were easier to handle.

When Da Fei and Katarina met up, Katarina, sweating and proud, waved a stack of papers, "Captain, look what I have!"

Da Fei was delighted, "Purchase orders! We really got them! Good job, my dear!" But thinking about the 4,000 reputation points he lost for killing 20 players, he sighed. He hoped the value of the goods would compensate for his reputation loss, or he might have trouble entering the port.

What were the purchase orders? They were the receipts players used to buy goods from the exchange. Without purchase orders, the goods were considered black market, and the exchange wouldn't accept them. The navy would also seize them. Players trading goods essentially traded purchase orders. Only with a purchase order could one legally own the goods. So, if Da Fei hadn't looted the purchase orders from the players, even if he took their goods, he couldn't sell them, making the loot worthless.

(Note: The earliest form of futures contracts was similar to these purchase orders. Students interested in futures can ask their physical education teacher.)

---

End of Chapter