Chapter 23

The Sea of Floating Light is a dream paradise for algae, and of course, a nightmare for all sailors. In this warm sea, within the visible range of a ship's lookout, there is nothing but algae—various sizes and colors of algae. It is extremely rare to see any land in the Sea of Floating Light. Islands large enough to accommodate intelligent races for long-term settlement and with fresh water resources are extremely scarce in the entire Sea of Floating Light. Of course, it is impossible for such a vast sea area to have no islands at all. The reason why people have long found it difficult to discover these hidden lands is simple: they are the playgrounds of pirates, not open to ordinary merchant fleets.

During the middle period of the rule of the Kingdom of Light, when the shipping trade between the mainland and the outer sea was at its most prosperous, on average, more than fifty merchant ships were plundered by pirates on the Sea of Floating Light each month.

The pirate fleet, which made huge profits, relied on these hidden islands far from the sight of ordinary people for their supply ports and bases for fencing stolen goods. The Mili Atoll, with its white sandy beaches, lagoons, and swaying coconut groves, is also one of the hidden pirate supply ports in the Sea of Floating Light.

"Hey! Isn't this Old Blade Zola? I heard the Seventh Fleet of the Elven Federation gave you a good lesson recently. You sure recovered quickly!"

The scar-faced, muscular man who greeted Zola Hegel, the boatswain, was bare-chested, and his well-defined chest muscles looked like those of a professional bodybuilder. Although this man's face was handsome, a scar from his left temple down to his mouth made his face always look like it was sneering, even when he wasn't mocking anyone. Just looking at his face, one could tell he was the standard MT (Main Tank) type that attracts hate and monsters.

Being reminded of his old wound and mocked, Zola Hegel, despite his deep scheming, couldn't keep his composure. His facial muscles twitched, and he slammed his hand on the table, shouting coarsely:

"Shut up! Boss, bring the drinks quickly."

In long-distance voyages measured in months, the amount of fresh water and food a ship can carry is limited and difficult to store. Not every fleet can afford to store supplies in a spatial bag like Luo Zhengdao. In the New World, spatial equipment is a relatively high-end magical item, and larger capacity spatial equipment is even more valuable than a battleship. If pirates could afford such luxurious magical items, they wouldn't need to go to sea for a living. Only the wealthy nobles who don't mind spending money would pursue the ultimate luxury of fresh vegetables and fruits on a long voyage. Pirates and ordinary sailors can only make do with what they have, eating whatever is available, with little choice in their meals.

The food and water carried by long-distance fleets are stored in the damp, dark, and often infested bottom hold. It's no surprise that fresh food and water quickly spoil and mold in such poor conditions. Even fresh water sealed in oak barrels usually goes bad and stinks within two weeks. Hard, dry biscuits often attract bugs, and the extremely salty, rock-hard salted meat is no better. The taste of such poor-quality food and water is unimaginably terrible for those who haven't experienced it.

For most sailors navigating the seven seas, drinking large amounts of beer and cheap, strong rum is one of the few happy moments in their lives. After all, drinking is better than tasting the foul, contaminated water. This is why most sailors develop a habit of heavy drinking. Each sailor is given two large cups of beer or rum made from molasses and sugarcane waste from plantations as one of their main daily benefits. Correspondingly, alcohol prohibition is used as an extremely severe punishment on board. If someone offends the captain and the quartermaster, having their alcohol ration withheld is almost as severe as being whipped with a cat-o'-nine-tails. Ninety-nine percent of alcoholics would rather be whipped than go without alcohol for half a month, as the mental pain is worse than physical pain.

Luo Zhengdao's fleet was warmly welcomed by the local residents of Mili Atoll. Recently, the aggressive behavior of the goblin fleet has been constantly stimulating the sensitive nerves of merchants, pushing their psychological limits.

Undoubtedly, merchants are willing to take the risk of the gallows for excessive profits, but the goblins' methods of execution are not as simple as hanging. Their torture methods are even more varied than those of many pirates. There are many people who love money and many who value their lives, but not everyone is prepared for a life ending in brutal torture. Many merchants have been scared away by the exaggerated rumors of the goblins' cruel customs, leading to a great depression in the shipping industry of the Sea of Floating Light. Pirate groups, cut off from their main source of income, have had to gradually move their hunting grounds to the outer sea. As a result, even a well-situated supply port like Mili Atoll, which sits on a golden waterway, has experienced an unprecedented downturn.

Thus, it is not surprising that Luo Zhengdao's small pirate fleet would be especially welcomed and treated with courtesy.

"Ha ha ha, noble guests, welcome to Mili Atoll. We are a pirate paradise, please enjoy yourselves as if you were back home!"

The bar owner greeted them warmly, but to Luo Zhengdao, it sounded more like a poor advertisement for a resort. He smiled and scanned the bar's decor, asking:

"Oh, is it safe here?"

Hearing Luo Zhengdao's slightly skeptical question, the bar owner laughed heartily, wiping a glass with a white silk handkerchief and boasting:

"Ha ha ha, of course it's safe. See the reefs outside? They are a natural barrier. Without our pilots, even the Elven Fleet couldn't get in."

Luo Zhengdao's face remained expressionless. He nodded and said:

"Is that so? That's great."

Looking out through the simple wooden window of the bar, the golden sun cast its light over the entire Mili Atoll. The snow-white sand and warm, emerald-green sea looked even more beautiful under the sunlight. The beautiful scenery was like a fairyland, but the fortress built of gray-white rocks nearby was a bit of a eyesore. Luo Zhengdao felt this place had a leisurely charm reminiscent of a Southeast Asian island resort in the Old World.

"Hey, Will, do you want to go to the exchange with me?"

A half-elf beauty called out from the bar entrance. Luo Zhengdao was surprised and asked:

"Oh, there's an exchange here too?"

Hearing this, Vena Dubov rolled her eyes, both amused and exasperated, and said:

"Look at you. Pirates have to eat too. They can't just rob a ship of linen and use it to make clothes, or rob a ship of salt and eat it all. How long would that take?"

Before crossing over to the New World, Luo Zhengdao had never been involved in illegal activities. His experience of a life of danger and bloodshed was limited to what he read in novels. Films and TV shows about pirates often focus on grand, fantastical battle scenes rather than the daily lives of pirates. It's reasonable that he was unfamiliar with how to prepare for a robbery and deal with the aftermath.

Seeing this, Luo Zhengdao scratched his head and laughed self-deprecatingly, saying:

"Right, you're right. No matter how much you read, it's not the same as seeing it for yourself. You have to experience it to truly understand."

Leaving the bar, Vena Dubov, who knew the way, led Luo Zhengdao through the winding streets of the port city, making sure they weren't being followed. They stopped in front of a three-story white-painted building, one of the most impressive structures on Mili Atoll.

To modern people in the Old World, the profession of pirate is shrouded in mystery. Hollywood has produced blockbusters like "Pirates of the Caribbean" to entertain moviegoers, and the filmmakers have also made a fortune.

The term "pirate" has different connotations in Eastern and Western cultures. Easterners, who did not experience the Age of Discovery and the Age of Exploration, see pirates as fierce bandits who dress in strange costumes and raid at sea. The most typical example is the description of the Wokou in Chinese history. In reality, the vast majority of the Wokou were local Chinese sea merchants, with only a small number of Japanese ronin, who were hired as hired hands. The leaders of the pirate groups were all Chinese.

The Ming Dynasty attempted to monopolize the profits of overseas trade, not only failing to restore the overseas trade of the Song and Yuan dynasties but also issuing a maritime ban, hoping to keep all the benefits of overseas trade for itself.

As the saying goes, cutting off someone's means of making a living is like killing their parents. A red-headed document could not stop people's strong desire for wealth, and harsh laws could not prevent illegal activities. When the Ming court did not ban the sea, these people were engaged in trade as sea merchants. Once the maritime ban was issued, they became pirates. Therefore, the Wokou in the Ming Dynasty were never eradicated.

The poor impression of pirates in China is understandable. In Western culture, pirates have a much more positive image, embodying the spirit of adventure and progress. Imagine poor, low-born boys who, with nothing to their name, embark on a sailboat and venture to the horizon, seizing wealth and honor in a distant land, and returning home in glory years later. This is a highly inspiring and legendary story, regardless of the legality of their wealth or the means they used. In Western culture, the spirit of piracy represents more than just plundering wealth at sea; it is a grand and difficult-to-achieve dream.

Following Vena Dubov into the exchange, Luo Zhengdao suddenly found himself surrounded by a variety of goods. This was not a department store, although many items were on display, they had to be picked up from the warehouse at the dock. The exchange did not engage in retail, and the minimum transaction amount was calculated in barrels and boxes.

The knowledgeable exchange owner, seeing a well-dressed young human man and a half-elf beauty enter, smiled and greeted them warmly, as if they were old friends:

"Feel free to look around, guests. If you want to sell goods, remember to bring samples."

PS: It's a new week, please give me red tickets and favorites!