Since the sky was covered, the heavens began to show their holiness

The fishy wind wrapped in salty waves hit the side of the ship, and the moonlight broke into sparkling silver flakes outside the harbor of Bilgewater. Gangplank kicked over the wooden box filled with goods in front of him, and the rotten wood and cheap linen were scattered all over the ground. His scarlet eyes swept over his men curled up on the deck, and a beast-like low laugh came from his throat.

"Is this just a bunch of junk?" The pirate leader wiped the gun on his waist and rolled over his men's trembling fingers with his boot sole. "You think you're worthy enough to ask me to go out to sea?"

Before he finished speaking, the muzzle of the gun was already against the other's head. The begging for mercy stopped abruptly. With a gunshot, warm blood splashed on the sail, and a dark red flower bloomed. Planck spat a mouthful of saliva mixed with gunpowder, kicked the body into the rolling waves, and the iron chain gloves shone coldly in the moonlight: "Feed this unlucky thing to the fish. At the next stop, find something worthy of the name 'Planck'!"

The bloody smell on the deck was swirled by the sea breeze, and the pirates looked at each other, their Adam's apples rolling at the same time. Several of them rushed forward, grabbed the corpse's armpits with their rough hands, and dragged their former companions to the side of the ship amid the harsh sound of wood and flesh rubbing against each other.

With a loud splash, the sea surface burst into a huge splash, and the floating corpse sank and floated in the whirlpool twice before being swallowed by the dark waves. No one dared to look at Gangplank's knuckles turning white from the force of holding the gun barrel, and no one noticed that a strange face appeared in the corner at some point - in Bilgewater, what was colder than the sea water was always Gangplank's moody gun muzzle.

The salty sea breeze swept across the deck, and Planck's action of wiping the gun barrel suddenly froze. He narrowed his scarlet eyes and stared at the figure in the shadows.

"Hmm?" The pirate leader's voice trailed off with ice, and the firing pin of his musket made a dangerous sound. "Then why is there a little guy?"

He raised his chin and pointed the musket in his hand at the shadow in the corner. "What are you still standing there for? Are you so inexperienced that you can't even clean up a child?"

The salty sea breeze suddenly became dead silent, and the pirates' hands holding their scimitars froze in mid-air. Following the direction of Planck's musket, everyone's eyes fell on the corner of the deck - without knowing when, a thin child was hiding there.

The pitch-black cloak wrapped around the small body, and the shadows hanging from the edges were like ink smudges. The moonlight fell on the fabric, creating a strange matte sheen, which was looming in the darkness, like a shadow crawling out of the deep sea.

The sea breeze whistled, and Zhou Xian walked out of the shadows slowly amid the exclamations of the crowd. He raised his head, and there was no fear on his young face, but a different light flashed. His clear eyes wandered over Planck with interest, as if the person in front of him was not a notorious pirate leader, but a novel toy.

Zhou Xian raised his chin slightly, and although his voice was clear and crisp like a teenager, it was also full of unquestionable certainty: "You must be Planck, come with me."

It was as if he was the king who dominated everything, and Gangplank was just a small follower who could be dispatched at will. As soon as these words came out, the deck was instantly silent, and only the sound of the waves hitting the hull was particularly clear. The pirates stared with their eyes wide open, their faces full of disbelief, and then they burst into laughter. Gangplank's eyes also flashed a dangerous light, and the corners of his mouth curled up into a cruel arc.

"I'm afraid this brat has been drugged since his mother's womb!" The bearded pirate slapped his thigh and laughed so hard that he couldn't straighten his back. Air leaked from his toothless mouth. "Dare to let the boss go with him? Let him taste the hook first!"

The other pirates laughed along, and the harsh sound of the iron hooks scraping against the deck mixed with foul language. Gangplank leaned against the rudder, his eyes glowing in the shadows, and the skull dice he was playing with made a small sound - in this sea area, no one dared to talk to him in this tone. "Noisy!"

Zhou Xian opened his thin lips and snorted coldly, like a heavy hammer hitting the noisy deck. His eyes were cold, and he casually glanced at the group of laughing pirates, with a barely perceptible glimmer in his eyes. At this moment, the air seemed to be tightened by an invisible hand, and the pirates' laughter stopped abruptly, and their movements suddenly froze.

They stood there as if they were under a spell, the smiles on their faces frozen into stiff masks. The eyes that originally flashed with fierce light quickly faded, replaced by a hollow dead gray, as if the soul was taken away in an instant, leaving only the body trembling slightly in the sea breeze.

Planck's eyes widened, the muscles on his face twitching slightly, looking at the strange scene in front of him in disbelief. Those men who were usually ferocious and obedient to him at sea were now like lifeless statues, so deadly silent that it made people feel cold. His Adam's apple rolled up and down, and he swallowed dryly. The fingers that were holding the flintlock turned white due to the force.

"What kind of evil magic is this?" Planck's voice unconsciously rose, with a barely perceptible tremor, echoing in the night wind. He stared at Zhou Xian, trying to find the answer from this seemingly frail child, but the calm expression on the boy's face made him feel an inexplicable fear. This fear was different from the vigilance he had when facing the enemy in the past, but a kind of awe and uneasiness of unknown power.

Zhou Xian seemed to have not heard Planck's startled question, and his aura was calm and cold. He looked directly at Planck, his eyes calm but revealing an irresistible majesty, and spoke again in a steady voice: "Can you come with me?" The words were concise, but they were like a heavy hammer hitting the deck, with a sense of oppression that could not be ignored. The surroundings were dead silent, with only the waves hitting the hull, making this brief question even more powerful.

Planck narrowed his single eye and stared at Zhou Xian, exuding a dangerous aura. Silence spread between the two, as if they could hear each other's heartbeats. After a long time, he slowly spoke, his voice low and cold: "What if I say no?"

The moment he finished speaking, he quietly loaded the flintlock in his hand. The subtle sound of metal collision was particularly clear on the silent deck, and the muzzle was faintly pointed at Zhou Xian. Planck had a provocative smile on his face, as if announcing to the young man in front of him that he would never give in easily, even if the other party had mysterious power.

Planck's face was full of madness and cruelty. His eyes were wide open and the scar on his face trembled slightly with his distorted expression.

"I don't care what you are, I'm not afraid of being scared! You want me to obey you? Dream on!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled the trigger without hesitation. The muzzle of the gun trembled violently, and flames gushed out along with choking smoke. The sharp gunshot echoed over the harbor, and the bullet rushed towards Zhou Xian like a meteor, breaking the silence of the night.

(End of this chapter)