Lord of Rot

The *Porcupine* was stopped in the middle of the sea.

Several small boats ferried fully armed infantrymen from Porcupine Territory aboard.

The *Porcupine* was a two-masted sailing ship, thirty meters long, with a cargo capacity of 100 tons and room for 100 people.

Once everyone was aboard, the *Porcupine* officially set sail.

Leech had made ample preparations for this trip.

The hold of the *Porcupine* contained twenty Alchemy Bombs, each with a blast radius of about ten meters.

Furthermore, all the infantrymen on board were equipped with firearms and ammunition, as well as shields, swords, and full lamellar armor.

Leech had also boarded the *Porcupine*.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be an armchair general, but the distance was too great. He wouldn’t be able to stay in contact and command them remotely.

Of course, the Transcendent Corpse Ghosts were also indispensable members of the party on board.

There was another reason Leech dared to operate so openly: this world had no cannons. All naval battles were boarding actions.

Even if they ran into pirates, the enemy would just ram their ship and swarm aboard to plunder.

But the *Porcupine*, armed with firearms, was an absolutely impenetrable fortress. Leech was even a little excited at the prospect—if a pirate ship truly did approach, he would make sure they got a taste of hand-thrown Alchemy Bombs!

With the Water Nymph guiding them from below, Leech just had to follow her lead.

Piri was fulfilling his duties as an obedient captain perfectly. Wherever Leech told him to go, he went.

A captain’s dignity? ’That doesn’t exist. As long as the Lord is happy, that’s all that matters.’

Besides, this whole formation looked like it was heading into war. He didn’t dare make a mistake.

’It took the Water Nymph over a day to swim back, so the *Porcupine* will probably need a full day and night, maybe even longer.’

Leech could only give a rough estimate.

He sat on the deck, letting the sea breeze ruffle his hair.

”They have three Transcendents,” Ah Yamei said, sitting beside Leech.

Her robes couldn’t hide her long red hair, nor could they conceal her curvaceous figure. Many of the Soldiers had already been sneaking glances in her direction.

It was the Water Nymph communicating with Leech through the Necromancer’s Corpse Ghost body.

”Mm,” Leech replied calmly. ”I’m more curious about their treasure.”

The fact that they hadn’t detected the Water Nymph proved that his side was superior when it came to high-end combat power.

They had fewer people, their troops weren’t as elite, and their strength was inferior. The possibility of losing this battle was minuscule.

Leech suddenly wished he had brought the Brass Dragon along. With that fellow’s knowledge, he would have surely known a secret or two about the treasure.

Sailing on the open sea was incredibly dull.

The monotonous sea was interesting at first, but it slowly became nothing but boring.

The midday sun beat down on the ocean’s surface, its reflection like a sharp spear that forced one to squint.

”Anyone seasick?” Leech asked as he returned to the cabin.

Kuai Ren wasn’t among the traveling Soldiers; someone had to stay behind and hold down the fort.

The Soldiers were sitting in the cabin, most of them lovingly polishing their firearms. What man could refuse a tool made for taking lives?

”No, sir! Everyone is in good shape.”

”Good.”

On a ship, even more so than on land, all meals were kept simple.

Lunch was just meat stew with bread.

This was a surprise attack, and it was also the first time Leech would truly put his firearms to the test. After all, it was a small island, and the Monkey Clan’s crew were like fish in a barrel. There was no better target for live-fire practice.

In a way, this was a small-scale military exercise.

’If we were to sail for ten days or half a month, vitamin supply would be a major problem,’ Leech mused while sipping his stew.

He hadn’t brought a manservant, and there wasn’t even a cook on board.

Fortunately, they had prepared jerky, heating packs, salt, sugar, and the like. They had enough to eat for a month without issue.

With the Water Nymph and a compass, they couldn’t possibly get lost unless some sort of Magic event occurred.

’Maybe I can make canned fruits and vegetables to supplement what’s needed for long voyages.’

Leech was very optimistic about maritime transport. Once his side mastered more advanced sailing techniques, it wouldn’t be a problem to sail south from the Eastern Gorge, round the coast, and head straight for Endor.

In the latter half of the night, Leech was drowsily hunting a silver dragon in his dreams.

The silver dragon in his dream was incredibly cunning, transforming into a beautiful dragon-girl dressed in a maid outfit.

Just as Leech was about to pin her to the ground and forcibly break off her tail, a faint tremor of Spiritual Power woke him up.

”We’re almost there.” It was the Water Nymph.

Leech’s eyes snapped open. He had just stepped out of the cabin when Piri rushed over. ”Lord, I was just about to inform you! There seems to be an island ahead!”

He stood on the deck and gazed out, startled. ”We’re this close already?”

Telescopes had not yet been invented.

If they could see the island with the naked eye, then anyone on the island looking in their direction would surely spot the approaching ship at a glance.

”Wake everyone up,” Leech ordered. ”We’re preparing for a beach landing!”

”Yes, sir!”

Everyone readied their weapons. Seven or eight Soldiers took up crossbows instead of firearms; firing a gun in the dead of night was tantamount to announcing their arrival.

Sneak ashore quietly. No shooting.

The *Porcupine* steered clear of the Monkey Clan’s ship, hiding behind a reef.

They lowered the small boats, and the advance party was the first to land.

After they gave the all-clear with hand signals, the others took the boats ashore.

Leech rode in the same small boat as the Corpse Ghosts.

When he stepped onto the reef, his body was still swaying from habit. He felt a bit weak in the knees, and it took a moment for him to get his land legs back.

Leech commanded, ”Aina, you and Ah Yamei go and take care of the people they left on the ship.”

The two Corpse Ghosts moved swiftly, melting into the darkness. If one didn’t look closely, it was impossible to see the two rapidly moving figures.

Although he had told the Corpse Ghosts to act on their own, Leech was actually supervising them.

Their physical abilities were otherworldly. After reaching a position close to the ship, the two Corpse Ghosts slipped into the water one after the other, diving deep and moving quickly.

The surface of the sea showed no change.

A Soldier armed with a crossbow was standing watch on the ship, but he completely failed to notice two drenched figures clinging to the gunwale and climbing aboard.

The night was the best camouflage.

Once close, Aina suddenly burst forward, her hand clamping around the Soldier’s neck.

CRACK!

The Soldier had no idea what was happening. All he knew was that just before his consciousness faded to black, he looked down and saw his own back.

PLOP!

The body fell into the water with a small splash, and then all was quiet again.

The people on the ship were completely unaware.

The two Corpse Ghosts split up, the sound of the wind and waves helping to conceal their footsteps.

”There are five people on the ship and fifty on the island! The Transcendents are all on the island.”

The moment they finished dealing with the people on the ship, Leech received the message.

Unfortunately, the Water Nymph could only move in the water, so she had no idea what was on the small island itself.

Leech whispered, ”Stay hidden. Advance by stealth!”

Only a sliver of moon hung in the sky.

It barely illuminated the path ahead.

Relying on his excellent night vision, Leech easily guided the Soldiers forward, navigating them around uneven ground and what might have been man-made pitfalls.

’They probably don’t know anyone is coming, but I can’t let my guard down. Those Transcendents might have perception-type abilities.’

RUMBLE!

The ground shook violently.

A behemoth suddenly appeared in front of Leech. It was about as tall as a person and covered in green algae and moss, looking very much like a large boulder.

But this boulder was striding on eight legs, scuttling sideways toward them.

”A crab?”

A Giant Crab as tall as a man, its pincers spread wide like an adult’s splayed legs.

”Get out of the way!”

Leech ordered his squad to move aside, but the Giant Crab seemed determined to attack them, actively charging in their direction.

A stream of curses flashed through Leech’s mind. He was just about to draw his sword and charge forward to cleave the Giant Crab in two when he noticed someone chasing it from behind.

The person was running at an incredible speed, catching up to the Giant Crab in the blink of an eye. The crab swung a pincer back at him, but he dodged nimbly while bending the fingers of his right hand into a claw and striking the crab’s shell.

SCREEECH!!

Sparks flew in the darkness.

”What a tough shell!” the man exclaimed.

Leech was also inwardly astonished. ’What tough claws!’

Anyone could see that the crab’s shell was at least a hand’s-breadth thick. You probably couldn’t crack it with a sledgehammer, yet this guy was scratching it with his fingernails. Wasn’t he afraid of breaking them?

The Giant Crab’s charge toward Leech and his men didn’t slow.

”Damn it!”

Seeing this, Leech knew he couldn’t wait any longer. If the Giant Crab crashed into them, his squad would be scattered. Then, if that speedy Transcendent closed the distance, some of his men would surely die.

He took a deep breath, summoned his body’s Extraordinary power, and shouted, ”Focus fire on that man! Open fire!”

The man chasing the Giant Crab was clearly startled, not expecting anyone else to be on the island.

Then he saw Leech charge out. Leech had snatched a shield from a nearby Soldier and, holding it to his side, slid into a tackle in front of the crab, transitioning into a low crouch to brace himself.

BOOM!

The Giant Crab crashed into Leech’s shield.

’Such immense force!’ Veins bulged on Leech’s forehead.

The sheer difference in size nearly sent him flying; he could barely hold his ground.

Fortunately, he had lowered his center of gravity and deliberately angled the shield.

’A triangle is the most stable shape.’

The moment the crab hit, Leech suddenly put his strength into it, heaving the shield upwards.

BOOM! With another loud noise, the Giant Crab toppled over.

”Such incredible strength!” the Transcendent chasing the crab exclaimed in surprise. Then he saw a group of Soldiers pop up, holding strange iron tubes.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!!

A rank of ten men fired in a volley, the gunshots shattering the night’s silence.

A pungent smell filled the air, acrid enough to make one’s eyes water.

The rank that had just fired fell back to reload their ammunition.

The next rank stepped forward, took rough aim, and fired.

Several ranks firing in rotation turned the slow-firing firearms into a continuous barrage.

The Transcendent, who had just been astonished, was suddenly assaulted by a deafening roar, followed by a terrifying sense of crisis.

”Not good!” He didn’t even know who these people were, only that they were extremely dangerous.

THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!

Several bloody blossoms erupted from his body.

His body began to twitch violently.

The unsuspecting Transcendent tried to turn and flee, but that only meant exposing his back to another volley, getting shot through from front to back.

THUMP. The corpse hit the ground.

He’d been shot into a honeycomb, worthless for reanimation as an Undead.

”Advance!” Leech commanded.

The gunshots would have given them away. They had to press the attack while they had the chance.