Super Mothership
The joint fleet of the Dark Temple and Karon did not launch an attack immediately, but both fleets remained locked in a tense standoff. Every gun was aimed at the enemy, every shield was raised to maximum power, and the air was thick with the smell of impending war. No one knew whether the battle would erupt in the very next moment.
Just then, a jet-black crystal-like mech appeared out of thin air before Nie Yun's group without the slightest warning.
The entire mech was as translucent as crystal. Under the surrounding light, its surface shimmered with dazzling brilliance. Because of its black coloration, however, it blended into the darkness of space like a half-transparent ghost, so elusive that one could lose sight of it with the slightest lapse in attention.
Strange spherical crystals were embedded in its elbows, knees, chest, back, and many other places, making it appear as though countless eyes had grown all over its body.
Only after it deliberately revealed itself did Nie Yun's fleet radar sluggishly manage to detect its signal.
The Shadow!
The legendary mech piloted by Shadow, renowned for its mysterious cloaking ability and extraordinary close-range mobility. It was hailed as the greatest assassin mech in the Shattered Star Domain!
According to the intelligence Nie Yun had gathered, the Shadow seemed to be equipped with a special device capable of suppressing its own gravitational fluctuations. Ordinary radar simply could not detect it from long distances.
And by the time it got close enough for you to notice it...
To borrow a fashionable saying—
When you see me, you're already dead!
Although gravitational waves could not be completely blocked, they could theoretically be weakened or canceled out.
In theory, if one possessed a metal wall several light-years thick, it might reduce the energy of gravitational waves by a few percentage points.
Cloud Research Institute had recently begun researching similar subjects as well, such as Research on Mithril's Isolation Effect on Gravitational Waves, Exploration of the Possibility of Shielding Gravitational Waves with Ultra-High Energy Fields, Potential Interference Through Spacetime Distortions, and so on. Unfortunately, their progress had been minimal.
Clearly, the Wolf Empire was already ahead in this field.
The fact that Shadow possessed such cutting-edge technology demonstrated just how formidable his background was.
Besides owning this top-tier legendary mech, Shadow also ruled his pirate organization through religion. Every pirate in the fleet fanatically worshipped a deity known as the "Dark God."
Do not assume religion disappeared in the interstellar era. On the contrary, religions flourished throughout the Wolf Empire. Great gods, minor gods, righteous gods, evil gods—there were simply too many sects to count.
The more you understood about the universe, the greater your awe became.
And awe was the perfect breeding ground for faith.
Through religious indoctrination, Shadow cultivated an incomparably loyal pirate army. Anyone facing these fearless fanatics would find them exceptionally troublesome.
It was said that many years ago, Shadow had relied on the Shadow's assassination capabilities to wipe out nearly the entire leadership of one of the previous Seven Great Pirate Crews.
Combined with his fanatical followers' suicidal fighting style, which traded lives without hesitation, they terrified their enemies into submission, allowing Shadow to seize his place among the new Seven Great Pirates.
As Nie Yun carefully observed this legendary mech whose reputation had been forged through countless battles, Shadow finally spoke.
"Everyone, long time no see. Shouldn't I be congratulating you all on striking it rich?"
Over the wide-area communication channel, Shadow greeted Flint and the others as casually as if they were old friends meeting again. He even joked about it, appearing completely unconcerned over the destruction of the Gold Coin Pirates.
"Heh! It has indeed been a long time. But shouldn't I also offer you my condolences?" Flint replied with a smile that never reached his eyes.
From the very beginning, every word carried hidden barbs.
"So... Gold really is dead?" Shadow suddenly asked.
"Mm. I personally confirmed it. His corpse was already cold. Dead as dead can be."
Shadow fell silent for a moment before sighing softly.
"Sigh... An old friend I've known for so many years suddenly passing away like that... it really does make one feel the sorrow of the rabbit dying and the fox grieving."
"But what if I told you he committed suicide? Would you believe it?" Flint narrowed his eyes as he probed.
"Oh? Then I suppose... he was quite resolute." Shadow merely shrugged, offering no clear opinion about Gold's suicide.
He had already expected such an outcome.
Either escaping by luck or choosing death himself were the only two possibilities after Gold's defeat.
Capture had never been one of them.
"Whether Gold was resolute or not isn't what interests me. What we're really curious about... is exactly what secret he was so desperate to protect." Flint's expression grew serious.
When everyone first heard that Gold had committed suicide, none of them believed it.
For one simple reason—
There was no need.
One of the Seven Great Pirates was an important figure no matter what. As long as he surrendered, any opponent would give him a dignified treatment.
Well...
If necessary, they'd also give him a dignified death.
Even if defeated, as long as there was still room to maneuver, someone as proud as Flint would at least pretend to cooperate while secretly dreaming of making a comeback someday.
Yet before anyone had even decided how to deal with him, he had already poisoned himself.
Was he tired of living?
Had they not watched the surveillance footage and personally confirmed that he had taken poison, Flint would never have believed Gold would kill himself on the spot.
Pirates were neither loyal ministers nor virtuous martyrs.
Being captured wasn't supposed to mean ending your own life.
It made no sense...
Unless...
He had a reason he absolutely had to die.
For example...
To protect some secret.
Aside from the somewhat simple-minded Red Dragon, none of the pirate captains were fools.
If a pirate overlord was willing to commit suicide just to protect a secret, then whoever that secret concerned had to possess unimaginable influence.
Deep down, Flint and the others had always treated Nie Yun's "Second Prince Theory" with the attitude of "I'll humor you by listening."
But now...
They were no longer so certain.
Could it really be... that person?
The thought that they might have accidentally destroyed one of that great figure's subordinates made even Flint—who had earlier declared that he'd rather die than surrender—feel his legs trembling slightly.
"A secret? Then... what secret is it that you all wish to know?" Shadow slowly swept his gaze across the crowd, his words carrying hidden meaning.
Everyone remained silent.
Even though they already had their suspicions, they all understood one thing.
At times like this...
Knowing less was far safer than knowing more.
Some things, once spoken aloud, would only bring disaster.
Messiah and Red Dragon exchanged glances, complicated expressions appearing in their eyes.
"Ahem! The secret we're interested in is... your relationship with Gold." Flint immediately changed the subject.
"Weren't you and Karon fighting fiercely out there? So why make such a grand show over Gold? Were you all in league from the very beginning?
"Were you planning to let us wear each other down first, then have your three pirate crews join forces to clean up the survivors?"
"Heh. Captain Flint, that's rather rich coming from you. We heard you suddenly attacked the Gold Coin Pirates, and now Karon and I are the ones worried about becoming your next targets.
"Who knows? After destroying the Gold Coin Pirates and greatly increasing your strength, perhaps you'll set your sights on us next.
"Your four pirate crews have already upset the balance of power in the Shattered Star Domain. Karon and I only chose to rescue the Gold Coin Pirates because we needed to stand together for self-preservation."
Flint avoided exposing the truth.
Naturally, Shadow played dumb as well.
He had no intention of giving them additional room for speculation, so his gaze shifted toward the Ghost Pirates stationed on the edge of the allied fleet.
"Captain Ghost, we meet again. I never imagined that in just a few short months, the Ghost Pirates—whom I once didn't even consider worth noticing—would grow to such an astonishing scale.
"So then... what role exactly did you play in all of this?"
Before Nie Yun could answer, Flint chuckled and spoke first.
"Heh! Brother Ghost made tremendous contributions this time. He wasn't just the one who proposed and united our alliance—just moments ago, he personally led his elite forces in breaching Gold's base first. You could say he was the greatest hero of this entire campaign!
"A pirate as outstanding as him, with both brains and strength, deserves a status worthy of his achievements!
"After our internal discussions, we've unanimously decided that he'll receive the largest share of the Gold Coin Pirates' spoils. And as for the vacant seat among the Seven Great Pirates... from this moment onward, it officially belongs to the Ghost Pirates!"
A setup.
A completely shameless setup.
Nie Yun couldn't help twitching at the corner of his mouth.
Just moments ago, while dividing the spoils, Flint had been doing everything possible to downplay the Ghost Pirates' contributions.
Now he was practically praising them to the heavens.
There was no way he had good intentions.
By saying that, Flint had effectively pinned the entire destruction of the Gold Coin Pirates squarely on Nie Yun.
Well...
That wasn't far from the truth.
But taking responsibility for it meant that both Nie Yun and the Ghost Pirates would become the primary targets of retaliation from that mysterious enemy.
In truth, once someone conducted even a modest investigation, the truth would inevitably come out unless Flint and the others kept absolutely silent.
This was the inevitable side effect of Nie Yun stepping onto the stage so openly.
Of course he would have preferred manipulating events from the shadows...
But within the Shattered Star Domain, he simply didn't possess the same level of power or foundation as his opponent.
If he wanted to stay low-profile, he couldn't break the deadlock.
If he wanted to break the deadlock, remaining low-profile became impossible.
It was an unsolvable dilemma.
Flint truly deserved his reputation as a crafty old fox.
With a single sentence, he had not only shifted the blame but also tripped Nie Yun at the same time.
When a tiger is chasing you, you don't have to outrun the tiger.
You only have to outrun everyone else.
With the Ghost Pirates becoming the number one target, wouldn't the Black Sail Pirates be much safer?
Sure enough, the way Shadow looked at the Ghost Pirates immediately changed.
So...
The true culprit who had ruined their plans...
Had finally been found.
After being forcibly shoved into the spotlight by Flint's excessive praise, Nie Yun simply shrugged.
Since there was no way to conceal his brilliance...
Then let him...
Take control of the stage!
"That's right! I personally drove Gold to his death! So what? Come bite me if you can!"
Shadow: "..."
Flint: "..."
Everyone: "..."
This very scene was later immortalized by a pirate who eventually abandoned piracy and became a famous painter.
Rendered in the artistic style of the "Post-Interstellar Era," it was permanently preserved in the historical records of the future Shattered Star Domain.
Before a crowd of utterly dumbfounded pirates, the Pirate King who would one day shake the Wolf Empire had uttered the most arrogant declaration imaginable—
"If you don't like it... then come and fight me!"
It was said that this famous painting, Defiance, was later sold at auction for an astronomical price to a super-rich woman named Alice.
TL Note- Trap?
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