Chapter 86

The situation on the battlefield was gradually improving, but there was still no sign of joy on Luo Zhengdao's face. The muscles on his cheeks twitched uncontrollably, and he felt as if he had been stuffed into an oil press, a mere bean forced to give up all its oil. No matter how unwilling he was, under the immense pressure of survival, he had to play all his cards, one after another, and to Luo Zhengdao, this taste was truly terrible.

Extremely anxious, Luo Zhengdao stood on tiptoe in the dense crowd. When he saw the boatswain nearby, he immediately shouted:

"Zola, haven't you finished cleaning the ship's bottom yet?"

"No, those twisted vines are entangled too tightly, and no matter how we cut them, they never end."

After calming down a bit, Luo Zhengdao also realized that the enemy's plan was meticulously and thoroughly laid out, and they would not make such a low-level mistake. It seemed that the only option left to him was to use brute force to break through the clever trap, and he muttered to himself:

"Well, does this mean we have to fight to the end? Damn it, what went wrong?"

The worries that troubled Luo Zhengdao were far more than just the current predicament. The most incomprehensible thing was how he had attracted the attention of the Demon Queen Lloth. Could it be that his identity as a magic card master had been exposed? He had already done his best to conceal it, and these extraordinary powers could be勉强 explained by the bloodline of a sorcerer. The more Luo Zhengdao thought about it, the more troubled he became.

"Boom—"

"It's moving, the ship can move."

As the body of the Yangwei shook violently several times, Brandt Fieryjoy shouted in ecstasy:

"The warship can move, let's leave here."

After confirming the news from the first mate, Zola Hegel also shouted loudly:

"Captain, we have cut the twisted vines, and now we can set sail."

The body of the Yangwei shook violently twice, and then the slightly tilted hull slowly righted itself and continued to move forward. Seeing this, the pirates collectively cheered after their initial surprise. This was one of the few pieces of good news they had heard on this particularly unlucky day. Needless to say, as long as the warship could leave the shallow waters, the actual threat posed by the drow elves to the pirates would drop to almost zero. Although the drow elves, who had long been entrenched in the Dark Sea, were not a bunch of pure landlubbers and were more familiar with the Ether Sea than their underground world counterparts, their sailing skills were far inferior to those of the pirates, who specialized in navigation.

Luo Zhengdao, of course, understood this point and said with a smile:

"Prepare to set full sail, follow my orders, and immediately lower the wooden barrels. Don't forget to fill them with stone pine powder and give those twisted vines a good hit."

Zola Hegel, rubbing his hands together, took the order and shouted:

"What are you waiting for? Didn't you hear the captain's orders? Clear all the remaining enemies from the deck, we're leaving."

"Rumble..."

In a hurry, the drow elves who were approaching or had already boarded the Yangwei were driven away, and only then did the process of thoroughly dealing with the twisted vines begin. A wooden barrel, whose outer seams were sealed with wax to make it waterproof, was kicked off the stern by the boatswain. After a brief and long wait, a thunderous explosion sent a water column ten stories high into the air. With the force of the explosion, the Yangwei broke free from the deadly entanglement of the demonic plants. Although the twisted vines were damaged, their tenacious life force allowed the dark green vines to continue clinging to the ship's bottom.

Seizing the opportunity to escape, the pirate ship turned without hesitation and headed out to sea. The drow elves, who had been at a disadvantage in the previous battle and had never been able to seize a decisive victory, could only sigh in frustration. Although there were some unexpected twists, the pirates managed to extricate themselves from the drow elves' trap in time. They had no intention of纠缠 with the drow elves, and even refrained from retaliatory fire as they set off on their high-speed voyage. Once the Yangwei had freed itself from the shallow waters and the twisted vines, Luo Zhengdao had no reason to continue fighting the drow. What benefit would he gain from defeating a bunch of poor devils?

At this moment, under the boatswain's orders, the pirate ship quickly left the battlefield. The drow elves could only jump and curse on the shore. For Luo Zhengdao and his men, this inexplicable battle offered no tangible benefits if they won, and would cost them their lives if they lost. Only a fool would want to continue fighting.

Looking back at the enraged drow elves on the shore, Luo Zhengdao let out a long breath and said, rubbing his forehead:

"Alright! The battle is over, tally the casualties."

Each time Luo Zhengdao gave the order to tally the battle losses, he couldn't help but think of the old saying, "A general's success is built on the bones of countless soldiers." The soldiers' heroic sacrifices, which were so tragic, were reduced to a cold, dry number on paper. How could this not make one feel disheartened? Each time, it seemed he could only say, "So many more have died?"

Luo Zhengdao had a deeper understanding of death than most people. As the power of the magic card master gradually permeated his body and soul, he gained some extraordinary abilities, even if they were not directly related to combat. For example, at this moment, Luo Zhengdao could clearly see the souls of the fallen leaving the Yangwei, some being drawn into the spatial rift leading to the underworld, while others seemed to linger, reluctant to leave their dead bodies. These souls emitted silent wails and circled around the pirate ship, like moths drawn to a bright light at night.

Seeing this, Luo Zhengdao couldn't help but feel a sense of fear. No matter how much wealth one possessed in life, death always left one with nothing. This was probably why people were so afraid of death.

"Clang!"

Seemingly sensing Luo Zhengdao's intense emotional fluctuations, a magic card that he had always thought was an ordinary land card automatically popped out of the hidden pocket in his sleeve. Witnessing the unexpected behavior of the magic card, Luo Zhengdao felt a mix of panic and a sudden clarity, as if a stream of clear water had flowed through his mind, and he suddenly felt as if he understood something.

"Haoshan Mountain!"

The words that came out of Luo Zhengdao's mouth felt as if they were not his own. A towering, verdant mountain, hundreds of meters high and with a steep and majestic peak, appeared in the void. Except for Luo Zhengdao, no one else seemed to notice this strange scene, as if it was beyond their sensory range. At that moment, only the little fairy Dang, who loved eating yogurt pudding, looked up at the sky with a puzzled expression, muttering something. Her small brain couldn't handle such deep thinking, and she soon returned to her battle with a lollipop.

Realizing that this was a power granted to him by the magic card master, Luo Zhengdao, both surprised and delighted, calmed down, closed his eyes, and tried to sense the chaotic information in his mind.

A moment later, when he opened his eyes, he hesitated for a while, then tentatively said:

"Return, O souls!"

A low, almost inaudible call echoed, and a faint halo, like a halo around the sun, rapidly spread outward from the mountain. In an instant, the halo rebounded at high speed back to the mountain, and the souls wrapped in the colorful light also landed on the mountain. Then, the mountain, which seemed both real and illusory, disappeared, leaving only a card floating above Luo Zhengdao's head.

Unable to suppress his excitement, Luo Zhengdao's body trembled as he walked forward. Under the suspicious gazes of the sailors, he pretended to stretch and reached up to take the card.

Breathing heavily, Luo Zhengdao returned to the cabin and, under the light of a ceremonial candle, carefully examined the card. He could only see a lush, green mountain on the card, which looked no different from other land cards. However, after witnessing the mysterious scene, Luo Zhengdao could not possibly believe that this magic card was just a simple land card. Perhaps the scene he had just witnessed was proof that he was not yet worthy to reveal the true secret hidden in the card. Thinking of this, Luo Zhengdao's interest waned, and he silently put the card away, feeling a myriad of emotions. The world of the magic card master was far deeper and more unfathomable than he had imagined.

.........................................................................................

"Lord Count, I guarantee that Yasha is not on the ship."

Furiously making a promise to Luo Zhengdao, the one-eyed Foul Chopin, who was clearly in charge of the tedious and boring search, was very confident. Only a loyalist like him would tirelessly carry out Luo Zhengdao's orders for days without complaint. If Zola Hegel and Brandt Fieryjoy were tasked with this, they would have complained endlessly.

Falling into the same trap twice was a stain on the life of the穿越者 Luo Zhengdao. The mysterious woman Yasha had stabbed him before disappearing, and every time he thought about it, he felt a deep-seated hatred. Therefore, he issued an order to thoroughly search every corner of the ship, eliminate all possible risks, and ensure that there were no more hidden dangers.

Even though he knew that Foul Chopin was a trusted and loyal ally, Luo Zhengdao did not dare to easily believe this conclusion. The previous lesson had been too painful, and he slowly said:

"Can you be one hundred percent sure?"

Faced with such harsh questioning, although Foul Chopin felt a bit wronged, he still answered honestly:

"Um, we searched the entire ship and found no trace of her or any signs of damage. If Yasha is deliberately hiding in some corner, it would be difficult to find her."