"Is that true?"

Hearing this, Second Commander Xivier shot up from her chair.

From Black Gold’s perspective, the Nameless Cocoon suppressed beneath the Sealed Prison, despite having lost all fluctuations and "fallen into a deep sleep," still required the constant maintenance of the Sealed Prison. The commitment of manpower and resources was a massive, long-term drain.

If this Saint Hall Level Awakener was willing to help them, Black Gold could be completely liberated from its thirty-year mission! They would no longer have to waste manpower and resources on this matter.

Most importantly—

Once was a precedent.

When a powerful individual is willing to help you solve one problem, it means they are not opposed to lending a hand in general and might help you solve more problems in the future.

This was the "Franklin effect": those who have helped you once are more likely to help you again.

"Of course, it’s true. The message in the communicator is still fresh."

Iruka took out his personal communicator. The message from Shi Ming was still "warm." Although communication was limited and the message might have been sent over an hour ago, Iruka had indeed reported it to his superior the moment he received it. It was, for all intents and purposes, firsthand information delivered immediately.

Xivier took the communicator.

The message was concise and to the point.

[Iruka, I have long heard that Black Gold has stood guard over the Sea of Silence for thirty years without moving, all to suppress a bizarre and hard-to-kill S-rank sea beast, the Nameless Cocoon.]

[To be frank, I have found a way to completely eliminate the threat of the Nameless Cocoon. I am 99% certain I can help Black Gold resolve this problem.]

[After it is killed, I can gift its bloodless, energy-free insect body to Black Gold. However, for personal reasons, I will need to borrow the wondrous item, the "Sealed Prison," after the Nameless Cocoon is dealt with. I hope you will convey this to the higher-ups at Black Gold.]

[Shi Ming]

!!!

He was 99% certain he could kill it?

And he was willing to gift the corpse to Black Gold? Even if it couldn’t be used for Awakening, the corpse of such a terrifying creature was of inestimable value, perhaps even comparable to a wondrous item ranked around 100!

’He’s so generous, he doesn’t seem like a person of this era!’

Xivier’s head was spinning with joy.

No one understood better than Black Gold just how bizarre and difficult to kill that great cocoon was. In the past, the [Black Society] had been able to chip off some tissue and shed skin from the Great Black Heaven Dragon. But the Nameless Cocoon’s defenses were completely impenetrable. Even while it was sealed, they couldn’t even manage to pull off a single strand of silk!

"Reply to him! Yes, absolutely!"

"If he needs any other support, Black Gold will do everything in our power to provide it."

Xivier was afraid that if she delayed for even a moment, Shi Ming would change his mind.

The Sealed Prison had not originally belonged to Black Gold. It had been borrowed from the King-level Wandering Ship [Fire Seed], which stood guard over the Earth’s Lung. However, because of the long-term need to use this wondrous item to suppress the Nameless Cocoon, Black Gold had already traded another wondrous item to Fire Seed in exchange for it. Therefore, they had the authority to dispose of it.

The Sealed Prison was a wondrous item, but a Sealed Prison suppressing the Nameless Cocoon was a bottomless pit—a liability. If the problem could be solved, never mind just lending the wondrous item; they would satisfy other requests as well!

...

...

...

Shi Ming, with Ah Jian in tow, piloted the Da Yun back to the waters guarded by Black Gold. By deliberately concealing his aura, even an equally powerful Saint Hall Level being like the Abyss Lord, no matter how furious, couldn’t sense his location from such a great distance.

The Da Yun now had a domineering appearance.

Its hull resembled a black meteorite buried in the earth for millennia. Its sheen was reserved, yet it exuded a grim majesty. Wherever it went, it was an eye-catching presence.

But Ah Jian was very angry.

Sensing Black Gold, its desire for revenge was simply irrepressible.

This ship had suppressed it for thirty years, forcefully delaying its emergence. Moreover, if its master hadn’t intervened at the last moment, it would have sunk into oblivion under the suppression, never to awaken again. Even if it had awakened, it would have lost its current self.

"Ah Jian, be rational."

"If not for its suppression, we would have never met."

The vibrating of Ah Jian’s wings subsided slightly.

That was true.

’What Master says makes sense. I’ll spare them this once.’

The Da Yun sailed past Black Gold’s trading waters without stopping, heading directly for a closer position. The [Shark], which had been doing business here for decades, and various other trading vessels watched from afar as the ship sailed by, their hearts filled with admiration.

"Old Shark, that Wandering Ship is so damn cool! Do you know where it’s from?"

"Bro, you wanna know? One High-Level Sea Crystal Stone?"

"Pfft!"

The captain of the [Shark] stroked his beard. He made a living trading information and goods, and as it happened, he knew a thing or two about this particular Wandering Ship. Its owner was a truly great figure, arguably the number one powerhouse in the Endless Ocean today. To have the good fortune to see him from afar was already a great story to tell.

But what was even more worth bragging about was—

a few months ago, the captain of this domineering Wandering Ship had bought a temperature control system on his [Shark]. During their chat, he had even spent a High-Level Sea Crystal Stone to buy information about the Golden Sun from him!

This meant that he, Old Shark, was someone who had been up close and personal with a great figure!

’Huh, has that ship stopped?’

...

Shi Ming’s ship had not yet come to a complete stop when Xivier, the Second Commander of the Black Gold, personally led a team of Awakened to the docking port to greet him.

A grand welcoming ceremony.

Ah Jian, hidden in Shi Ming’s collar, was very unhappy.

’These detestable humans must be fawning over Master again with their fake faces. That leading woman put on new gold-rimmed glasses, and her clothes are so neat it’s not even her style. And that dark-skinned Awakened, the way she’s looking at Master is practically dripping with adoration!’

’The looks on their faces when they were in the lab, discussing how to deal with me, were much more terrifying than this!’

From now on, its Spiritual Power would constantly monitor this group of people, not giving them a single chance to pull any tricks.

"Stone Patrol Envoy."

In a formal setting, one should use titles. Shi Ming now held Da Yu’s title of "Supreme Patrol Envoy." Although it was an honorary title, similar to an "Honorary Knight," addressing him as such on this occasion was both respectable and deferential.

Shi Ming nodded and, with Ah Jian, entered Black Gold’s exclusive passageway, which led directly to the highest council chamber of this King-level Wandering Ship.

The former captain of the "Pointed Obelisk," Ah Bu, was also among the welcoming party.

Ptolemy, captain of the [Pharaoh], had spent a great deal of money and favors to get Ah Bu placed in this party. His goal was to find an opportunity to convey his sincere apologies to Shi Ming.

And to bring his utmost sincerity in begging for forgiveness.

There were four factions that had surrounded and tried to kill Shi Ming in the Sea of Yellow Sand:

[Moon Shadow] was eradicated root and stem, its parts scattered across the Endless Ocean. Its hull frame was even bought by [Shiva] and resurrected under a new guise.

The [Black Society] sank directly into the sea. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

A King-level Wandering Ship like [Lighthouse] had to apologize and offer compensation to this Evil Star. It was said they even gave up their most treasured heirlooms. Now, the grand king-class ship didn’t even have enough Pure Dome Crystals left to cover the reparations and had to pay in installments!

And his [Pharaoh] was just an ordinary general-class wandering ship!

He could run, but he couldn’t hide.

How could he dare not recognize the situation for what it was?

If he could obtain forgiveness, it would already be the best possible outcome.

Under the Golden Dome of the Pharaoh, Ptolemy was restless, unable to sit or stand still. ’Thankfully, thankfully, there’s still Ah Bu and Nia to mediate...’