Chapter 547, Why Revive It
"What's wrong?" Wu Heng asked.
Minnie asked, "Master, are you okay?"
Wu Heng patted her head. "Don't worry, I'm fine."
"What exactly does this new spell do?" Minnie asked curiously.
Wu Heng thought for a moment. "In crucial situations, I can use it to hide myself or ambush enemies."
"Oh, still doesn't seem very useful."
"An extra skill might come in handy at some point!"
"Hmm, Master is right."
Knock, knock, knock~!
As they chatted, there was a knock at the courtyard gate.
Minnie quickly ran over to open the door and turned back to call out, "Master, Steward Sheila Grey is here."
She then led Sheila Grey inside.
"What brings you here?" Wu Heng asked as he walked over.
Sheila Grey said, "Pirates have appeared at sea. I came to discuss it with you."
"Pirates? A newly formed group?" Wu Heng asked.
The two of them walked into the living room and sat on the couch.
Lop-eared rabbit girl Annette brought over tea and pastries.
Sheila Grey continued, "No. The fleet that docked yesterday brought news that five pirate ships without flags were spotted along the 'Lingaxi Trade Route.' They also have wyverns, strong combat power, and have already raided some ships."
Wyverns?
Five pirate ships.
Ever since Philipa led a fleet to clear out the sea routes, there had been no pirate activity.
The Emerald Sea had entered its most peaceful period.
Yet now, pirates had resurfaced so soon.
"Any pirate crew capable of keeping wyverns should be a major one. Didn't we wipe them all out?"
Sheila Grey shook her head. "That's what concerns me. Maybe we missed some, or they could be pirates from another sea."
She then took out a tattered, bloodstained leather armor. "This is from the pirates. See if the Prophet can find out anything."
Wu Heng took the leather armor. "Alright, wait here for a moment."
"Alright, just let me know when you find something."
Wu Heng took the leather armor and went upstairs to the room where the Skeleton Prophet resided.
Instead of having the Prophet examine the leather armor, he took out the Emerald Sand Table.
He hadn't let Sheila Grey follow him upstairs.
He didn't want her to know about the Emerald Sand Table.
It wasn't that he distrusted her—Sheila Grey was reliable, and they had a good relationship.
But if word of this artifact spread, it could bring unnecessary trouble.
The Emerald Sand Table functioned like a god's-eye-view map of the entire Emerald Sea.
It allowed him to track any ship's movement, route, and even its flag and type.
It wasn't very useful outside the Emerald Sea, but within it, it was an absolute artifact.
The Pirate King had been able to stand against the Guild thanks to this very artifact.
Wu Heng activated the Emerald Sand Table and examined the scene.
He didn't see any obvious pirate ships, so he focused on the Lingaxi Trade Route, scanning along the route.
After a while, he spotted five massive cargo ships docked at Scorpion Claw Island.
They were anchored near the island's shore, flying green flags with red wyvern wings.
Not the black skull-and-crossbones of traditional pirates.
But they were the only five ships on the entire trade route, and their flags were unfamiliar. That made them the prime suspects.
Wu Heng put away the Emerald Sand Table and headed back downstairs.
Sheila Grey was still in the hall, admiring the paintings on the wall.
"Any findings?" she asked.
Wu Heng said, "They're flying green flags with red wyvern wings. Do you know which faction uses that emblem?"
Sheila Grey furrowed her brows, thinking. "That's the Dragon Traders' flag. The wyverns used by Emerald Sea's pirates were purchased from them."
"What? The pirates bought their wyverns? I never heard of that."
"I only know some intel—I've never actually seen them myself," Sheila Grey explained, then added, "They should be here to sell wyverns. I don't know why they started raiding ships instead."
"What's your plan?"
"I'll lead a team to sea this afternoon. The Emerald Sea just regained peace—we can't let these guys stir up trouble again," Sheila Grey said, taking a sip of tea.
Wu Heng agreed. Recently, more merchant fleets had been docking at Gold-Silver Island, and trade was flourishing.
He couldn't allow these pirates to disrupt things and make merchants feel the routes were unsafe again.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "Gold-Silver Island can't be left without a leader. You stay and oversee things—I'll handle this myself."
Sheila Grey considered this and nodded. "At least take two squads with you."
"No need. The skeletons will do the fighting. Just wait for my good news."
"Alright, but be careful."
"Mm."
After a brief discussion, Sheila Grey left the manor and returned to the Guild by carriage.
Wu Heng began making preparations.
Then he put on the [Train Conductor's Hat], boarded the train, and wrote "Scorpion Claw Island" on the itinerary.
The ghost train dove into the void and disappeared.
...
Scorpion Claw Island.
Wu Heng sat quietly, waiting.
Before long, Glenda and Xiaoxiao flew back.
"Over 400 people. No slaves or hostages were found, but there are more than 40 wyverns," Glenda reported.
Xiaoxiao added, "There's a level 15 Professional in a house over there, picking his toenails. It's disgusting!"
"Let me see! Xiaoxiao, that part's unnecessary."
"Tch~!" Xiaoxiao folded her arms and pouted.
Glenda chuckled and merged into Wu Heng's body, sharing her vision.
The shore had been turned into a makeshift camp, crowded with people. Not far away, dozens of wyverns lounged on the ground.
None were flying—they all remained on the ground in groups.
Wu Heng released Glenda.
He began assigning tasks. "Xiaoxiao, keep watch for me. Glenda, take care of those wyverns. Do you need the Cursed Sword?"
Glenda shook her head. "Shouldn't be necessary."
Wu Heng nodded and looked at the other side. "Xiaoxiao, any issues?"
Xiaoxiao clenched her fists. "No problem!"
"Alright, let's start the battle." Wu Heng ordered, and the two spirits quickly flew off in different directions.
Wu Heng stood atop a high point, looking down at the encampment.
Raising his staff, he summoned a massive rift and a stone gate.
The sudden rift immediately alarmed the enemy, who shouted warnings and grabbed their weapons, eyeing the disturbance warily.
Wu Heng scanned the camp and gave the order, "Fire into the crowd, and target that stone house."
Boom! Boom! Boom, boom, boom!
The autocannons behind the stone gate spewed blazing fire.
The encampment and stone house exploded into a cloud of debris.
Screams and wails filled the air as panicked enemies scattered, some collapsing as shrapnel tore through them.
The encampment was utterly destroyed, leaving behind craters.
"Charge in and kill them all," Wu Heng commanded.
Clatter!
A horde of mutated skeletons surged through the stone gate, charging like rabid beasts.
They clashed fiercely with the remaining enemies.
...
Meanwhile, several figures mounted wyverns.
Over 40 wyverns took off, circling above.
One of the riders loosed a bolt from his crossbow, then pulled out an alchemical bomb and lit the fuse. "Damn undead, blow up and die!"
"Blow up who?" A ghostly face materialized before him.
Before he could react, it dove into his body.
The lit bomb in his hand was stuffed back into his fully loaded bag.
Boom!
Flames engulfed both man and wyvern.
Their charred bodies plummeted from the sky.
The spirit emerged again and possessed the next target.
Raising his sword, he plunged it into his wyvern's neck.
The wyvern shrieked in agony as blood gushed out.
It plummeted toward the ground.
The entire sky descended into chaos.
Even those who tried to flee crashed into the sea.
The battle lasted about half an hour.
The island gradually fell silent.
Only the crackling of burning tents remained.
...
The fight was easier than expected.
Even the so-called toe-picking strongman Xiaoxiao mentioned was probably obliterated in the first artillery strike.
The skeletons began cleaning the battlefield.
Some even dove into the sea to retrieve bodies.
Before long, corpses were neatly lined up along the shore.
Wu Heng walked among the wyvern corpses, selecting three that had been killed with precise sword strikes to the neck.
"Tie up these three—bind their wings and legs tightly."
The skeletons immediately got to work, securing the wyverns with ropes.
"Uncle, what are you doing?" Xiaoxiao asked curiously.
Glenda, standing nearby, added, "You really have some peculiar hobbies."
"What do you mean?" Xiaoxiao asked, even more curious.
Wu Heng said, "Don't put weird ideas in the kid's head."
"Then what are you doing?"
Wu Heng didn't explain. Instead, he cast [Resurrection] on the three wyverns.
The wyvern corpses trembled, then opened their eyes—returning from death, but still gravely wounded.
"Why did you bring them back to life?"