Chapter 122: Dark Sorcery in the Pirate World [Please Subscribe]

On the deck.

For a fleeting moment, the silence was so profound that one could hear a pin drop. The captain of the merchant ship, his crew, and the passengers all stared, eyes wide and mouths agape, witnessing the scene before them. This sudden turn of events had left them completely stunned. Their minds had essentially short-circuited, unable to process the reality of what had just unfolded.

Tang Shen, meanwhile, wore a bright smile as he picked up the wallet from the floor, pulled out the cash, and tucked it into his pocket. Well, it was money he had seized, so naturally, it belonged to him. Looking smug, he walked over to the captain and said earnestly, "Say, Captain, let’s make a deal. If I drive this group of pirates away for you, would you be willing to raise my reward to one million?"

"Huh?" The merchant captain was utterly bewildered. His brain was still in a state of shock, unable to react; after all, he had already steeled himself to accept the losses, only for this wild card to suddenly appear out of nowhere.

Tang Shen pouted, patted the captain on the shoulder, and repeated, "You just need to nod."

This time, the captain’s reaction was obedient; he nodded blankly.

Satisfied, Tang Shen turned to face the group of pirates, his smile sunny and handsome. If not for the fact that he had just kicked one of them to death, everyone would have thought Tang Shen looked entirely harmless.

"Kid, who are you?" Alvida finally regained her composure, shouting with irritation. She hadn't reacted in time, and just like that, one of her subordinates was dead.

Tang Shen found it hard to look at her directly. She was hideous—a flat, pancake-like face covered in freckles, a body as fat as a pig, and a coarse, screeching voice that sprayed spit everywhere when she spoke. It was truly disgusting. He had to admit, the Devil Fruit was truly magical; to think it could turn a woman like this into a great beauty. Even plastic surgery in South Korea couldn't achieve that level of transformation. It was a form of dark magic, even more bizarre than makeup, but he had to concede—the Devil Fruit was impressive.

"Can I ask you a question?" Tang Shen ignored her query and asked with a serious expression.

Alvida froze. "What?"

"You're ugly, fat, and covered in pockmarks. Where do you get the courage to claim you're the most beautiful woman in the world? Who gave you that confidence? And who gave you that courage? Please answer me honestly; I'm very curious." Tang Shen’s face remained solemn.

...

...

...

There is nothing more terrifying than a sudden, heavy silence, or the feeling of everyone staring at you like a fool. The remaining pirates behind Alvida began to retreat frantically, as if they had seen a ghost, looking at Tang Shen with a mix of awe and pity.

"What did you say?!!" Alvida’s eyes turned bloodshot, her fury instantly peaking. Her obese body trembled violently, her rolls of fat shaking. Her subordinates knew that the thing Alvida hated most was being called ugly or a monster. Even though it was true, she refused to hear it; she obsessed over beauty, even decorating her pirate ship with swan heads and hearts, genuinely believing she was the most beautiful woman on the seas.

Tang Shen’s question had naturally exposed the deepest, most painful scar in her heart. Furthermore, whenever Alvida flew into a rage, she became indiscriminate, her personality turning brutal and vicious. Her subordinates quickly backed away to distance themselves. In their eyes, the thin and scrawny Tang Shen was simply courting death; he would surely be beaten into a bloody pulp—the messy kind—even if he had just kicked their comrade to death.

"Sigh, I really wish Kuina were still here. There’s no one to keep the conversation going or back me up," Tang Shen thought, his mood suddenly dipping. If his apprentice were here, she would definitely nod in agreement and voice her support. That’s right, he missed his apprentice. It was so good to have her around.

Alvida felt like she was losing her mind. This man, who had insulted her, was actually daydreaming in front of her. Daydreaming... It was an unforgivable humiliation; he clearly didn't take her seriously at all.

Boom!

She swung her massive iron mace high, stomped her foot, and charged forward like a small mountain of flesh. As her arm swept through the air, the mace whistled toward Tang Shen’s head, creating a terrifying friction in the wind. Seeing Tang Shen standing motionless, many onlookers felt a surge of pity and dismay—the speed was too great; there was no way to dodge it.

The merchant captain, having finally processed the situation, felt a wave of disappointment. It was no use, after all. This was the Alvida Pirates; he had never heard of anyone escaping unscathed after crossing paths with them.

Alvida’s pancake face was twisted in a grimace, her eyes filled with the smugness of a five-hundred-pound fool. To dare oppose her with such pathetic strength? It was suicide.

But just as the mace was about to strike the top of his head, Tang Shen’s figure shifted slightly.

Alvida felt her vision blur. The mace, which should have struck his head with precision, instead whistled through the air where he had been standing and slammed into the ship's deck.

Boom!

Her brain couldn't even process what had happened.

"Too slow," Tang Shen said calmly.

He spoke only two words, and Alvida heard them clearly, but she couldn't stop her momentum. The mace smashed heavily into the deck, instantly shattering the wood and dragging her down along with the force of the blow.

And in that moment—

Tang Shen reached out, grabbed her by the collar, and brought her massive, obese frame to a sudden halt.

With his feet firmly planted and his waist engaged, he swung his arm.

"Left hand... right hand... a slow-motion move." If one were close to Tang Shen, they could clearly hear him muttering these words.

With his movements, the hideous, obese Alvida was tossed onto the deck like a ragdoll, over and over again.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

That five-hundred-pound weight felt like nothing in Tang Shen’s hands. The deck splintered and cracked under the impact, wood chips flying everywhere. The scene was too brutal to watch. Alvida was beaten beyond recognition, unconscious and limp.

Tang Shen tossed her casually into the air and delivered a swift kick.

Splash!

She fell into the sea, creating a massive spray of water.

Tang Shen then turned, grinning at the pirates who were staring with wide, terrified eyes.

Clang!

For the first time, the blade at his waist left its scabbard.

"To save time, please cooperate with me," Tang Shen said, his gaze sharpening, his eyes suddenly glowing with intensity. He stomped his foot and appeared in the middle of the pirates in a flash of lightning.

"Draw-Blade Circular Slash!"

The draw-blade technique was faster, its trajectory impossible to track, and sharper than any other. Tang Shen’s figure flickered like a ghost, darting past seven or eight pirates. The fear on their faces hadn't even faded, replaced by expressions of utter shock as they froze in place.

Click!

The sword returned to its scabbard with a soft, final sound.

It was as if that sound were a signal. On the deck, a thin red line slowly appeared across the necks of the pirates, deepening until their flesh began to part...