Martial Arts: Starting with Upgrading the Dilapidated Temple

On the deck of the Zhenyuan, Luo Meng lay on the side of the ship, looking at the densely packed masts in the distance, and felt a chill run down his spine.

"Boss, the entire way ahead is blocked. These bastards have blocked the waterway to Mingzhou so badly that not even a fly can get through." Luo Meng turned to Xu Hao, "How about we just use this thick fog to force our way through? Our ship is sturdy enough, after all."

"What are you trying to do?" Xu Hao leaned against the mainmast, toying with a tattered sea chart that he had just gotten from Gui Shuai.

"Second brother," Xu Hao said, looking at Chen Yuanzhi, patting the side of the ship. The icy armor echoed dully. "If this ship were different, do you think we could sneak in?"

Chen Yuanzhi was taken aback, then smiled wryly: "Boss, don't tease me. This ship is over ten zhang long, with a dark blue frost pattern all over. Unless we find a large dock to moor it for a month or two, and strip off the entire outer skin and repaint it, how can we change its appearance?"

Luo Meng scratched his head beside him: "That's right, boss, we can't just cover the boat with mud, can we? It'll all melt as soon as it hits the water."

Xu Hao scoffed and ignored Luo Meng's bad idea.

He stood in the center of the deck, his mind completely absorbed in the blessed landscape he had been contemplating.

Inside the scroll, the golden light representing the blessed land energy of the Zhenyuan is shining brightly.

This is the wealth accumulated after swallowing the corpse and warship of the Inner Strength Realm Sea Corpse Ghost General, along with top-grade resentment crystals.

Looking at the golden light, Xu Hao felt quite at ease. With grain in hand, he wasn't worried.

With a slight thought, he directly locked onto the newly unlocked feature, the Thousand Faces Illusion Armor.

launch.

The image in my mind suddenly jolted.

The once incredibly bright golden light seemed to have been sucked into a bottomless pit, instantly dimming by more than half.

Xu Hao clicked his tongue in disbelief, his heart aching with pain.

This ship eats a lot and spends a lot too.

I just saved up a little bit, and then a magic trick drained all that energy away. It's like an insatiable money-devouring beast.

However, you can't catch a wolf without risking your cub; in order to sneak into the Sea King's Tomb, this toll had to be paid.

As the energy of the blessed land was forcibly extracted, the Zhenyuan ship beneath our feet emitted a low hum, and the entire ship began to tremble violently.

The dark blue frost patterns that originally covered the ship's surface quickly disappeared, and the hard, extremely cold iron armor turned into the color of rotten, blackened wood.

The towering masts were dilapidated, and even the sails were riddled with holes, exuding a chilling, deathly stillness.

In the blink of an eye, a majestic demon ship transformed into a ghostly black ship that had been adrift at sea for countless years.

Luo Meng's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He reached out and touched the ship's side, which was originally made of iron armor, only to find it was rough, rotten wood.

"Oh my god! Boss, our divine ship has changed?!" Luo Meng jumped three feet high in surprise.

Chen Yuanzhi also gasped in astonishment. He had never seen or heard of such a miracle in the world.

"It's not exactly becoming a spirit, it's just that he's got nothing better to do." Xu Hao clapped his hands, in high spirits. "If people can disguise themselves, then ships can too. With this disguise, even if Xian Tieshou had seen this ship before, he wouldn't recognize it as the Zhenyuan, the ship that stole his Han Tiemu."

Chen Yuanzhi quickly calmed down, his mind racing, a fervent glint in his eyes: "Boss, since the ship can transform, why don't we disguise ourselves as members of the Twelve Bandits and infiltrate! This Sea King's Tomb is a piece of meat we shouldn't pass up!"

Xu Hao gave him an appreciative look.

This strategist is indeed shrewd; his mind works much faster than Luo Meng's.

"Tell Luo Ying to get ready to work. Now that the stage is set up, it's time for us to change into our costumes and make our appearance."

……

Luo Ying strode over, carrying several black robes and a pile of masks.

She took out a blank mask without any facial features and handed it to Xu Hao. "Boss, as per your request, this is made from the toughest hide from the Ghost Commander. It's breathable, fits the face perfectly, and can't be cut with a knife. Please try it."

Xu Hao took the mask and put it on his face.

Perfectly fitted.

The pale mask without facial features coincided with Xu Hao's cultivation reaching the Inner Strength Realm, the same level as the legendary Faceless One.

Luo Meng, watching from the side, swallowed hard and subconsciously took a half step back.

"Boss, your appearance at night could scare people to death."

"That's called style." Xu Hao's voice came through the mask, carrying a dull and chilling tone.

At this moment, a tattered black flag was hung on the bow of the ship, with a human face without features casually drawn on it in white ash.

He turned to Chen Yuanzhi and Luo Meng, "You two, and everyone on deck, change into black robes. From now on, there are no Zhenshan and Zhenhai on this ship, only the Ghost Shadows."

The sailors all changed into black robes and wore makeshift masks hastily made by Luo Ying. They stood on the deck, looking like a group of deadly messengers.

Mud Monkey tugged at his black robe, rubbing his hands excitedly. "Brother Luo, does this count as us upgrading from slingshots to cannons? If a real fight breaks out, can I just throw away this Bone-Melting Poison Smoke?" After the previous battle, Chen Yuanzhi had already ordered the crew to retrieve the discarded bamboo tubes and reuse them.

"Throw your head at me!" Luo Meng slapped the mud monkey on the back of the head. "If the boss hasn't given the order, anyone who dares to reveal their abilities will be chopped up by me!"

Xu Hao walked to the bow of the ship, looking at the massive fleet of the Three Alliances and Twelve Bandits in the distance, his mouth stretched from his mask to his ears.

"Shengfan. Let's go and meet these local bullies from Shengzhou."

The black ship silently cut through the waves, like an impenetrable shadow, heading straight for the blockade line of the combined fleet.

"Boss, the Salt and Iron Society's defense zone is just ahead." Luo Meng said in a low voice, staring intently ahead through the eye holes in his mask.

Even with a different outfit, his calves, despite being at the Bone Forging Realm, still couldn't help but cramp a little when faced with the massive fleet stretching for miles before him.

Xu Hao stood with his hands behind his back at the bow of the ship, his wide black robe billowing in the sea breeze. A deep voice came from beneath his pale, faceless mask: "Sail forward. Anyone who dares to block your way, just ram them."

Luo Meng swallowed hard and gritted his teeth, gripping the helm tightly.

Several miles ahead, the Salt and Iron Society's fleet was lined up across the sea, completely blocking the outer shipping lanes.

At the bow of the flagship, Xian Tieshou paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, the veins bulging on his dark blue hands.

Ever since the Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron Mother was stolen right under his nose, he hasn't slept a wink for the past few days, and he sees everyone as a thief who stole the iron.

He had previously fought with Electric Serpent Sun of the Blood Corpse Alliance, losing several speedboats and sustaining minor injuries. However, Electric Serpent Sun did not gain any advantage either, resulting in a draw. At this moment, he was on the verge of exploding at the slightest provocation.

"Master, there's movement in the fog!" the lookout on the mast shouted at the top of his lungs. "A wrecked ship flying a black flag is coming! It looks unfamiliar; it doesn't seem to be one of the Twelve Bandits' registered fleets!"

"A wrecked ship?" Salty Iron Hand abruptly stopped in his tracks, his crimson eyes fixed on the shadowy figure appearing and disappearing in the mist. His pent-up rage finally found an outlet. "What kind of Tombs and Dogs dare to get involved in the fun at the Sea King's Tomb?"

He swung his livid hand and roared, "No need for questioning! Prepare the ballistae, and riddle that wrecked ship with bullets! Sink it and feed it to the fish!"