The east of the Free Continent is full of pirates - this is something that almost all players who have played in this era know, but in their eyes, those guys who spend all day wearing tattered sailor uniforms and holding scimitars go around burning, killing and looting.
They are just a bunch of monsters that give them experience every day. Although to this day, when players inquire about any aboriginal in the Free City, they will get the message "Pirates are scary, and pirates are the biggest threat to this city."
Replies like this, but judging from the fact that the major guilds stationed here organize activities every day to encircle and suppress those guys, if you want to make a fortune in this city and make a lot of money, it seems that eating, sleeping and fighting pirates is also a task.
It seems like a very easy project.
But that's only for the big guilds, and... they fight almost all land battles.
"With the current level of shipbuilding and naval warfare of players, almost all of them will be killed if they encounter pirates in the sea." Teacher Zhou Xue said in a low voice: "I don't know if it's because of their ability bonus at sea, or if it's those guys.
Do you have any special skills?"
"So we just have to wait for them to disembark?"
"Yes, this is the safest way."
Crouching on the river bank farthest from the mouth of the sea, several people hiding behind rocks were discussing the next plan with each other: "Although there are only five of us, as long as we cooperate properly, it should not be a problem to kill a few pirates. With some luck,
If you're good... maybe you can even seize one of their boats. Not to mention how many treasures there are on it, even if the whole boat is sold..."
"I said, can you sail a boat?"
"Uh... forget it, let's forget about that for now."
Ignoring Tian Xingjian's question with a slight embarrassment, Teacher Zhou Xue once again leaned out half of his body and did not take his eyes back for a long time: "If I remember correctly, this flag should represent the Soyani pirates.
They have two chains on their skulls and a small flower..."
"Hey, is there any point in finding out their identities?"
"At least we can measure their strength."
Turning around and pointing to their north, Teacher Zhou Xue replied in a low voice to Duan Qing: "The closer you get to the Sangui zone in the north, the more rampant the pirates there are, so many players have been stationed there frequently, fighting pirates every day.
It’s a business. Not only can you seize pirate supplies there, but the heads you bring can also be exchanged for rewards from nearby battlefield merchants. However, there is no resurrection point, so if you miscalculate your ability and are accidentally sent back...
…Then the gains outweigh the losses.”
"Over time, people there have become more familiar with the names and corresponding strengths of these pirates." He smiled helplessly: "You can think of it...as a special battlefield instance."
"...Lao Zhou is so familiar with that place. Did he live there before?"
"No, I heard about it too."
Turning his attention back to the sail in the distance, Teacher Zhou Xue, whom Duan Qing called Lao Zhou, replied in a low voice: "Accordingly, I am not very clear about the strength represented by these flags, but..."
"I haven't heard much about the deeds of Soyani in front of me. It should be...not a powerful pirate group."
The canvas and flags blown by the wind grew bigger and bigger in front of their eyes, and gradually sailed into the Hongshui River. As several boats approached, people stood on the boats and ran back and forth.
The moving figures gradually became clearer. They shouted to each other and moved things on top from time to time. At the same time, the high singing voice mixed with the sound of breaking waves reached the ears of Duan Qing and others. Several people
Quietly looking at the enemies who were more than ten times their size, they involuntarily grasped their weapons. The pirates who were in a state of excitement did not seem to notice Duan Qing's existence, and just sang incomprehensible songs loudly.
Musical notes, and then displayed the figures of giant ships at different distances, first large and then small, in front of them.
They drove slowly past the bank where Duan Qing was, heading towards the direction where the river water came from.
"They...are not here to attack the City of Freedom?"
Slowly releasing his hands that were soaked with sweat, Tian Xingjian, who was holding the sword, quietly stretched out his head: "Why are you going upstream?"
"The Hongshui River is the longest river in the Free Continent, so when we get here... we can completely allow ships like theirs to pass." Teacher Zhou Xue lowered his head and analyzed: "The farthest distance... is probably to the garrison.
At the fortress, the river further up is not that wide, and the water depth is much different..."
"In other words, they are going to attack the garrison fortress?" Duan Qing asked.
"How is it possible? That place has been abandoned now. Not even a ghost can be found, let alone a human being." Pan Pan, squatting aside, replied in a muffled voice: "If an entire army wanted to use that place as a
It's possible to have a stronghold, but with just these few ships and dozens of pirates... what can they do?"
"There's no point in guessing these things. After all, we don't know each other's purpose yet." Teacher Zhou Xue stopped the conversation immediately: "Let's decide quickly... Should we just let them go, or should we continue to follow them?"
"Well... there are only two of them, and their goal is not the Free City. In terms of strength... we won't be afraid of them."
"But they are driving a boat. Can we catch up with them with just our own two feet?"
"They are going upstream, so they can't go very fast, and their destination may be right ahead, so we don't need to run for a long time at all..."
"Okay, okay, everything you said is right. I hope the final result... will be what you want."
"If you don't have much confidence in yourself, won't you just finish the robbery and die? Remember not to show off in the city, we will go back to find you..."
"Go, go, hurry up and get started. If this job is done, we might be able to live for a whole month."
"Watch your words. We are good young people who abide by the law. This trip is to punish pirates, not to rob..."
Watching the boats move away, the three guys who were quarreling with each other stood up together. The leader of them waved his hand forward, and then scratched his head as if he remembered something.
The head turned around and asked: "Ah, Brother Qingshan... you should also follow, right?"
"Of course."
Glancing in the direction of the cloaked woman, Duan Qing smiled and nodded: "Such a big bargain..."
"Why don't we make money, huh?"
***************************
Things developed just as Lao Zhou had expected. It didn't take long for them to stop in front of a forest on the river bank, because several ships flying pirate flags had already stopped by the river there.
Under the command of several of the leaders, they quickly moved the wooden boxes on the ship off the deck, and then filed into the depths of the woods with the unique high-pitched feeling of pirates. The flow of the waves and the magic elements
The collisions that appear from time to time are like the high wind in autumn, quietly beating the surrounding leaves, but the returning calm cannot conceal the arrival of those uninvited guests, but the players who have been watching this scene, at this time
He did not pay attention to those boats: "It seems... they are indeed a group of delivery people."
"Pirates are actually talking about business? Is it some big boss in the Free City?"
"If they want to sell the stolen goods, the Free City is of course the best choice, but if it is these pirates... wouldn't it be a better choice to take the sea route?"
Among the few people who were hiding behind the tree again, Teacher Zhou Xue, who was holding his arm, guessed in a low voice: "The sea is their territory. Regardless of the caravan in the city, their appearance will depend on their appearance. If this group
If people really want to sell us some useless goods, why can't they just trade them at sea and be done with them? Why go to all the trouble to transport them to land and come to our home ground?"
"Probably no one dares to eat their food at sea." Duan Qing responded in a low voice: "If I were a businessman, I wouldn't dare to trade with pirates at sea. If they turn their backs and deny me, they might as well rob me.
what to do?"
"...It makes sense, but it doesn't constitute a reason for them to take the initiative to run to land."
Teacher Zhou Xue shook his head and said: "The previous victories in the pirate battles were almost all achieved on land. These guys should be very afraid of the land environment..."
"There is no fear that cannot be overcome by interests." Duan Qing replied: "As long as you make money... these difficulties are nothing."
"Well……"
A few gleams flashed in his eyes, and Teacher Zhou Xue's eyes finally left the few ships, and then looked into the depths of the woods in the direction where the pirates disappeared before: "In other words...those things
Very valuable?”
"Unless there is a reason why they have to do this, it must be very valuable." Duan Qing replied in a muffled voice: "But... I won't believe it if there is no one to handle a large transaction."
"...Let's follow up first."
Seeing Teacher Zhou Xue's expression as he pondered again, Tian Xingjian took the lead in shouldering his long sword: "Let's take a look at the situation first. Spending time here is not an option."
"He is thinking about grabbing a boat and leaving." Panpan snorted and replied, "But... let's not talk about the difficulty of grabbing these boats. Even if they get to the city... I'm afraid there's nothing they can do about it.
ah."
"Yes, yes, we have to take down those skull and crossbones flags first, otherwise we won't even be able to enter the harbor."
"The most important thing is that they are not worth much money. These sails look very old. Maybe the pirates are not very capable, so they don't have the money to repair them..."
"Okay, okay, you don't need to hint at the other party's strength."
Teacher Zhou Xue frowned and interrupted the murmurings of the two people, and finally showed a funny expression: "Then... follow us first, meet with the Soyani pirate group for a while, the worst is to die and return to the city, and then
Drink northwest wind today..."
"It's not as serious as you said." Duan Qing replied in a low voice: "Even if it doesn't work out, you can take two heads back and exchange them for some of the rewards you mentioned, right?"
"Swapping heads is a unique reward for battlefield dungeons. Freedom City has never promised these."
Looking back at Duan Qing, Teacher Zhou Xue pulled up his weapon: "The lord of Freedom City is a lord who never takes care of things, and the citizens of Freedom City..."
"I never look for adventurers when I'm in trouble."
With the player's unique method, a few people found the unobstructed traces of the pirates without much effort, and then with the help of these traces, they passed through the rocky hillside in the center of this unknown wild forest.
Then they appeared outside the wilderness on the other side of the woods, with large and small earth slopes surrounding them. Duan Qing, who had better eyesight, stared at it for a while, and finally took the lead in discovering the movement in the distance: "Over there, there is someone over there.
film."
"No need to hide, they probably won't find out." Teacher Zhou Xue immediately gave the order: "Let's go, follow us."
"Speaking of which, this place... should be in the northwest of Freedom City, right? What are they doing here?"
“Is there anywhere near here that would be suitable for delivery?”
"I don't know...well, that canyon should be very close to here, probably just go south..."
"There are also the Andacier Mountains. You can see some outlines here... Hey, have we forgotten something?"
Quickly crossing the hill at the front, the running footsteps of several people stopped immediately. Then they looked at the scene at the foot of the mountain and slowly closed their mouths: "So that's it...
"
"What we forgot...that's it."
At the foot of the mountain, a complete iron train was parked quietly on a railway extending into the distance, and dozens of pirates were working hard to move the goods while the leaders were talking with several other men in black.
Moved into the carriage: "It's actually a train..."
"Where is this line leading to? The City of Freedom?" Duan Qing, who was lying on the top of the mountain, immediately asked in a low voice: "How come you don't know it?"
"Since the new version was released, all NPCs in the free world seemed to have accepted this setting overnight, and they accepted this new mode of transportation that appeared in major cities without any sense of violation.
." Teacher Zhou Xue, who was lying aside, replied in a low voice: "But the players can't do it! It makes me feel uncomfortable just looking at those trains! And not many people can afford the expensive tickets, let alone be familiar with them.
The nearby railway lines are distributed..."
"...The trains that appear now almost exclusively travel between large cities in the Free Continent."
Xue Ling Huan Bing, who had not spoken a word along the way, suddenly made a cold voice, but his eyes never moved away from the figures of the men in black: "Since this mode of transportation has not been popularized yet, then this
This line... is almost certainly leading to the City of Liberty."
"But on the other side... we don't know."
Looking at the carriage door that was slowly closing under the combined efforts of the pirates, Duan Qing's voice also became deeper: "Look at that carriage, they seem to be heading west."
"Oops, they seem to have run out of luck." Tian Xingjian, who also discovered this, immediately wanted to get up: "Hurry, we won't be able to catch up if we don't take action!"
"Don't worry, do you want to die?" Panpan immediately pressed the opponent down again: "Let's check the situation first. At worst, we will only deal with those pirates... uh."
"It seems we have been discovered."
Among the crowd at the foot of the mountain, one of the men in black suddenly pointed in the direction where Tian Xingjian stood up just now, and said a few words to the pirate leader in front of him. The leader then pulled out his scimitar and turned towards Duan.
Qing and the others rushed up in the direction where they were.
This chapter has been completed!