Super Mothership
Boom! The eight high-output thrusters mounted on its back erupted with blazing exhaust trails, generating overwhelming thrust. Consumed by rage, the Karon Beast dragged its colossal body forward like a miniature celestial body, charging straight toward the Ghost Pirates.
At the same time, tens of thousands of bizarre beast-like creatures poured out from the various ships of the Karon fleet.
Round ones, flat ones, pointed ones, square ones—land creatures, flying creatures—their sizes ranged from mere centimeters to dozens of kilometers. The spectacle before them was like an encyclopedia containing every alien lifeform humanity could possibly imagine.
Mixed among them were even some indescribable horrors straight out of Lovecraftian nightmares, making the scene especially unsettling.
Most of these hideous, savage-looking creatures were synthetic beasts created through human body modification technology, each bearing varying degrees of cybernetic enhancements.
Like fledgling birds returning to their nest, they all burrowed into the Karon Beast's enormous body, hiding beneath the dense forest of bone spikes as they followed the living bioweapon into battle.
The Karon fleet trailed behind the Karon Beast, acting as long-range fire support and forming their signature "rear artillery" assault formation.
This was the Karon Pirates' most commonly used battle tactic.
The bioengineered army centered around the Karon Beast was no weaker than a conventional mecha force in terms of combat power, while being even more terrifying in close-quarters assaults.
"Karon! Wait!" Shadow hurriedly tried to stop him.
Although the brief exchange earlier had revealed that Flint seemed to be deliberately shifting the blame onto the Ghost Captain, proving that the alliance between them was anything but solid—and perhaps even riddled with distrust—there was no telling whether Karon's impulsive attack would escalate into an all-out melee.
Putting actual combat strength aside, the hastily assembled "Anti-Gold Alliance" fielded significantly more ships than their own "Beastman Coalition." Starting a battle now would be highly disadvantageous for them.
Furthermore, the Ghost Captain's repeated and deliberate provocations only convinced Shadow that there had to be a scheme behind all this.
However, the enraged Karon no longer cared about anything.
He completely ignored Shadow's warning.
Ever since his body's transformation, Karon's mind had become deeply twisted. He was extremely sensitive to ridicule and had always devoured anyone who dared mock him.
Yet now, for the first time in his life, someone had labeled him an "endangered protected species," a title he regarded as blatant racial discrimination.
The fragile-hearted Karon Beast had made up his mind.
One of them had to die.
Seeing this, Shadow could only curse inwardly before ordering his fleet to provide cover for the Karon fleet from the flank, while the Shadow itself vanished from everyone's sight in a ripple of distorted light.
The Ghost Pirates now found themselves targeted by both Karon and the Dark Temple.
But that wasn't the end of it.
Suddenly, an angry shout rang out from their rear flank as another force unexpectedly entered the battlefield.
"Ghost Captain! Pay us back for our losses!"
Nie Yun looked over in astonishment.
A pirate fleet of more than five hundred ships was charging toward him in a somewhat disorderly attack formation.
"Huh? I have... this many enemies?" Even Nie Yun himself was dumbfounded.
He had clearly used a single-target taunt.
So why had it somehow turned into an area-of-effect skill?
"Ghost Captain! Return our cargo and compensate us for our losses, or this matter won't end today!"
"Everyone! If we're going to do this, then let's go all in! Why should they be eating meat while we're forced to cut flesh off ourselves to feed them? Are they looking down on us? Small-time pirates have dignity too!"
"That's right! Today we'll show everyone we're not people they can bully whenever they want! Bring down the Ghost Pirates! Give us back our hard-earned money!"
"Yeah! Bring down the Ghost Pirates! Give us back our hard-earned money!"
"..."
After listening for a while, Nie Yun finally figured out what this resentful bunch was here for.
It turned out that after the destruction of the Gold Coin Pirates, these pirates had suffered massive financial losses and had temporarily formed a... well... Victims' Alliance.
They lacked the courage to demand compensation from the veteran pirate lords, but now that the Ghost Pirates had become everyone's target, how could they pass up the opportunity to kick them while they were down?
After all, this might very well be their only chance to recover their losses.
Great...
I'd finally managed to get rid of one creditor, only to attract an entire crowd of new ones?
Nie Yun suddenly felt mentally exhausted.
In truth, provoking the Karon Beast had been entirely intentional.
The Karon Beast wanted to kill the culprit responsible for everything.
But Nie Yun wanted to kill him just as badly.
News of Gold Dagger's death had already spread, meaning he had completely offended the mysterious force backing Gold Dagger. Reconciliation was virtually impossible.
If the Dark Temple and Karon joined forces against him after today, fighting one against two would be a genuine headache.
In that case...
If chopping off one claw was necessary, then chopping off two wasn't much different.
Leaving them alive would only mean constantly worrying about being stabbed in the back.
He might as well strike first while the Anti-Gold Alliance was still intact and eliminate one of its members, weakening the mysterious force behind the scenes.
At least, for now, there were still others to help absorb some of the enemy's firepower.
So even if neither side wanted a battle today, Nie Yun intended to manipulate them into fighting anyway.
The only thing he hadn't anticipated...
...was this suddenly appearing Debt Collection Alliance.
Of course, Nie Yun was certain that plenty of opportunists had joined its ranks simply because they smelled profit.
Anyone could imagine the immense fortune represented by the Gold Coin Pirates' spoils.
Even honest citizens would be tempted, let alone pirates.
The Ghost Pirates already looked overwhelmed.
If they didn't rob them now, then when?
"Don't chicken out, everyone! Charge together! The Ghost Pirates just fought a huge battle. Even if they really did wipe out the Gold Coin Pirates, they must have suffered enormous losses themselves. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"
"Exactly! They may have lots of warships, but there's no way they've had enough time to reorganize and integrate the surrendered fleet. At best, they probably have only about a hundred combat-ready ships. We can win!"
"Brothers! Their ships are overloaded—they can't escape! Every ship we capture is pure profit! Capture two and we'll never have to worry about food or drink again! Charge!"
...
"So... you're not just going to stand by and watch, are you? We agreed that the Anti-Gold Alliance would stand together through thick and thin." Nie Yun looked toward Flint, Messiah, and the others.
"It's not that I don't want to help. It's just that we suffered enormous losses attacking the base earlier. We still haven't recovered, so there's nothing I can do." Flint sounded helpless, though the grin on his face couldn't have been brighter.
Weren't you having fun setting me up just now?
Talking about the Four Quadrants and all that?
Now you suddenly remember me?
Stand together through thick and thin?
I'd sooner hang myself from a tree than stand together with you!
"Still seriously injured." Madman's reply was short and to the point.
"Don't worry! Brother Ghost, I've got your back!" Red Dragon stepped forward without hesitation, displaying remarkable loyalty.
Messiah sighed helplessly before adding,
"There are too many enemies. Red Dragon and I can only help you deal with one direction."
"That's enough. As long as you deal with the Dark Temple, I can handle the rest myself."
Everyone froze.
What did he just say?
In the Ghost Pirates' current condition...
...he still wanted to fight Karon and the Debt Collection Alliance by himself?
Had killing Gold Dagger through sheer luck really convinced him he was now invincible throughout the Shattered Star Region?
Wasn't he getting a little carried away?
"However, Black Sail and Madman must cooperate with the Dragoons in attacking the Dark Temple." Nie Yun added another condition.
Those two pirate crews absolutely couldn't be allowed to sit idle.
Otherwise, if they stabbed him in the back at a critical moment, even he would find it hard to endure.
"The Anti-Gold Alliance has only managed to eliminate Gold Dagger so far. Don't forget who our true target is. Compared to him, what does the Gold Coin Pirates' wealth even amount to?"
"Of course, if Captain Flint's vision really is that limited, then let's consider our previous agreement null and void. At worst, I'll abandon all my supplies and run. If the mysterious figure behind Gold Dagger wants to do something in the Shattered Star Region afterward... I won't bother getting involved."
Nie Yun's tone clearly implied:
If you stand by and watch, then I'm walking away.
Messiah and Red Dragon exchanged glances.
"If Captain Ghost withdraws, then so will we."
It wasn't because they were especially close to the Ghost Captain.
Rather, the Twin Dragons feared the force behind Gold Dagger even more than Nie Yun did and had no desire to see this fragile alliance collapse.
Flint looked at the determined expressions of the three men and immediately realized that watching the tigers fight from the sidelines was no longer an option.
"Hmph! Don't think you can provoke me. If you've got the guts to fight two enemies at once with only a few hundred warships, then a mere Dark Temple isn't something I fear!"
"My injuries are severe, but my command abilities remain unaffected."
Nie Yun immediately smiled.
...
"Boss! We'll be engaging the enemy in ten minutes. How are you planning to deal with enemies on two fronts?" Codename asked with a frown.
"Simple. You'll lead the fleet against the Debt Collection Alliance. I'll handle the Karon Beast myself."
"Uh... but it's an endangered protected species. It's extremely valuable! Several biologists from the research institute have already submitted multiple requests to study it..."
Codename didn't seem remotely worried about whether Nie Yun could defeat the Karon Beast.
Instead, his attention was focused on something completely different.
"Relax. In the hands of a Master Trainer, every Pokémon has only one fate—being captured." Nie Yun smiled confidently.
"You really think being huge makes you invincible? Heh. Today I'll teach you a lesson. Any Jinchūriki who hasn't unlocked Second Gear is trash! Besides, you're only a One-Tail!"
Codename: "Uh..."
TL Note- Catch'em all?
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