69novels Chapter 217 The Souls Still Live On
Chapter 217 The Souls Still Live On
Chapter 217 The Souls Still Live On
Watching the newly recruited knight named Dick Buchanan carry the mutilated remains of the loyal dog back to the dog-headed ship.
Henry Gijano Panza, finally exhausted, collapsed onto the deck.
"Boss!"
Upon seeing this, Benson exclaimed in surprise and rushed forward to help.
He helped Henry up and sat him down under the main comb.
Henry turned his neck and scanned the sores on the deck.
The floor was covered with cuts and holes, the fenders were broken into pieces, and the mainmast had a large hole in it, making it extremely vulnerable.
Even his octopus cave was completely messed up.
He not only chopped up the two gold coins Natalie gave me, Henry thought, but also smashed my two gold coin numbers.
But what bothered Henry even more was that he raised his left hand.
Henry's entire left forearm, along with his elbow, was taken away by the loyal dog.
His hand has been "swallowed by the black hole" and will never come back.
That's why, even though he ultimately won, he still feels lingering fear.
If it weren't for the two gold coins, he would have absolutely no chance against the loyal dog.
His eventual victory was undoubtedly largely due to luck.
In fact, the loyal dog did indeed drive him to the brink of death twice.
If the loyal dog catches Henry again and gives him another chance to deliver the fatal blow, he will be able to kill Henry as he wishes.
Therefore, sacrificing only an arm to defeat a loyal dog in a deadly fight is by no means a heavy price to pay.
Losing just an arm will certainly make life difficult for a long time to come.
If Natalie saw me like this, would she be sad?
Henry didn't want Natalie to be sad, yet he also wanted her to be sad.
He didn't understand why he had such conflicting feelings.
But when Henry touched his face, the obvious scar was branded in the middle of his face.
He was convinced that his current appearance must be terrifying and ugly, and that Natalie might distance herself from him because of it.
Henry let out a deep breath, but suddenly felt that perhaps this wasn't so bad.
He's a despised pirate; perhaps he should stay away from Natalie and Cathy as well.
"Boss—"
Benson suddenly knelt down beside Henry and gently grasped Henry's left upper arm with both hands.
"Your hand—"
As he spoke, Benson choked up.
"Stop crying, Benson. At least I'm not dead yet. You're a pirate captain, act like a man."
"Boss, I'm not a leader. I'll always be just a shrimp next to you."
The words made Henry feel a little embarrassed when they reached his ears.
But he knew these were Benson's heartfelt words.
They had known each other for almost twenty years. Perhaps this is not the right way to describe pirates, but they seemed to have become like family.
But Henry would never reveal his true feelings, nor would he ever admit it.
He told Benson, "The ship needs repairs. Get Victor aboard. Also, notify all crew members to return to their posts. Since we've encountered a loyal dog here, it means this area is unsafe; we need to set sail immediately."
"Yes, boss!"
Upon receiving the order, Benson wiped his eyes with his sleeve and immediately ran down into the cabin.
Henry sat on the empty deck, listening to the sea wind weeping in the night, unable to calm down.
He recalled the battle just now, and the conversation between the loyal dog and his servant, his mind filled with many thoughts.
Hubert Payton, the loyal dog, was definitely the most formidable opponent Henry had ever encountered.
He also had to admit that Hubert Payton was definitely a real man worthy of his respect.
Even though he was covered in wounds and scars, Henry never heard his loyal dog whimper even once.
Even when faced with death, the loyal dog never showed a moment's hesitation or attempt to escape.
Instead, they resolutely chose to face death head-on and calmly accept their fate.
Henry couldn't help but ask himself if he could do the same.
the answer is negative.
He was a pirate, and for pirates, a loyal dog is foolish.
Every thief is constantly struggling to survive.
Loyalty is not in line with the values of pirates.
But this did not prevent Henry from having a deep reverence for loyal dogs.
Even though he defeated the loyal dog, the loyal dog won Henry's admiration.
"Rest in peace—" Henry murmured.
He prayed to God, the sea god, and the stars, wishing that his loyal dog could go to the afterlife, which he believed in.
Just then, the others went up onto the deck.
Victor was the first to come up. He walked up to Henry and stared in surprise at the scar on Henry's head and the missing left arm.
"Master, this—" Victor was speechless.
Henry ordered, "Victor, repair my ship."
“Of course, sir,” Victor nodded, “but we can’t fix your hand.”
"Nobody can fix it," Henry smiled.
Viktor paused for a moment: "Is it a loyal dog?"
Henry nodded: "Only he could have pushed me to this point."
"He really is persistent; it's been almost twenty years—"
“Hatred doesn’t fade with time,” Henry said.
But he felt that the loyal dog's feelings for him were not hatred.
At least, and more than that.
It was more like an obsession with destiny, as if they were destined to have such a final battle.
One of them will inevitably see this final battle as the end of their life.
Henry was lucky, but the loyal dog was not so lucky.
"Master—" Victor's tone was tinged with sadness, "We never imagined that someone could hurt you like this."
"This is not surprising, and losing arms and legs is commonplace for pirates."
"But we've never seen you lose."
"I haven't failed yet."
Viktor was speechless, but still did not inspect the ship.
After waiting for a long time, he finally spoke:
"Sir, you shouldn't have agreed to the loyal dog's suggestion."
Perhaps Victor is right; if he hadn't agreed, Henry would probably be perfectly healthy right now, and neither his body nor the two gold coins would have been injured.
The two gold coins Natalie gave him were still intact in his pocket.
"Victor, you must understand," Henry replied, "some battles a man cannot run from."
"Of course I understand, but—" Viktor sighed, "Well—to be honest, I thought you would win easily. When I heard Loyal Dog challenge you to a duel, I thought he was crazy. He's definitely asking for trouble."
Henry was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this:
"You have no idea how strong a loyal dog can be."
"We don't know, or at least our information is incomplete."
Viktor said,
"In the past, sir, you have clashed with the loyal dog many times. We know that the loyal dog is a top strategist and commander, but we never thought that he was also a formidable warrior."
"We've always believed that the only way for a loyal dog to defeat you is through strategy. We never imagined he could be this powerful."
"My God, we were hiding on the deck and heard the huge noise of you and him fighting. We even thought it was the gods getting angry."
"Through the holes in the deck, we also saw dazzling lights and towering walls of fire. Is this really a human war?"
Henry was the same; although he knew the loyal dog was powerful, he hadn't expected it to be that powerful.
If Henry hadn't mastered "Meteor" and "Gemini," he probably would have been instantly defeated.
"The loyal dog is powerful, Victor, but you should get to work too. Although you're not my subordinate, I expect you to quickly check the damage to this ship and repair it as soon as possible."
"It would be my pleasure, sir."
Viktor curtsied and went about his business.
Next to Henry was Mico.
He didn't say a word, but simply squatted down in front of Henry and stared at Henry's arm with his bright, piercing eyes.
After what seemed like an eternity, he finally spoke:
"That's all."
"Um."
"Henry, will your hand grow back?"
Henry wanted to laugh: "Of course it won't grow."
"Can Henry still sail the boat?"
Henry gave a wry smile: "I'm afraid it's unlikely. The rudder is too heavy to hold with one hand. Even if it could be steered, it certainly wouldn't be precise enough."
Mico nodded: "Henry needs a good helmsman."
"yes,"
Henry also felt that the old helmsman was not trustworthy at all.
"Mico promised Henry that he would become Henry's cabin crewman after he recovered."
"I remember."
"Mico will definitely work hard to recover!"
Looking at the serious-looking Micoe, Henry was somewhat moved; this big, goofy guy could be quite endearing at times.
"Thank you, Miko."
Miko nodded, then continued to stare at the arm.
Micoe did not get up and leave until Cyril came over.
He bowed to Henry: "This is bound to be a fierce and evenly matched battle."
Henry nodded: "Obviously."
Cyril was a smart man; he always spoke concisely and to the point.
However, the two did not spend much time together, and Henry did not believe that Cyril would care about Henry's injuries, but rather should be more indifferent.
As Henry had anticipated, Cyril inquired:
"Chief, what are your plans next?"
Henry needs a detached person to keep an eye on the ship's course for him at all times, just like now.
Only Cyril was contemplating the ship's next destination.
Henry paused for a moment: "Let's go find Knut and the others first."
.
Before returning to the Two Gold Coins, Zanley had the wizards sail the ghost ship away.
However, Zanli still had the hope of completely giving up and mastering soul enchanting.
Although his previous attempts had all ended in failure.
But perhaps it was due to some detail he overlooked that led to the final failure of the enchantment.
The sudden appearance of the loyal dog prevented Zanli from having a chance to think about the problem, as it disrupted his previous plans.
Now that he has killed the loyal dog, he needs to reconsider.
The first step is to rendezvous with the ghost ship that is teeming with dozens of ghosts.
Cyril nodded, then looked again and asked:
"And what about you?"
Zanli thought for a moment: "I need a break."
Cyril bowed: "Shall I help you in privately?"
After Zanley shoved the axe into his waistband, he stretched out his right hand toward Cyril.
Cyril helped Zanli up, supporting the weakened Zanli, and returned to his octopus den.
Cyril then bowed to Zanli and took his leave.
Zanli sat in the chair, looking at the messy room and the large hole in the wall, thinking to himself that he really was being chased by a loyal dog.
But isn't this just a microcosm of my long-standing entanglement with Loyal Dog Beach over the past ten years?
Thinking of this, Zanli forced a smile and shook his head helplessly.
Zanli was very tired, but he did not lie down on his bed.
Instead, he went to the desk and took out a book from the box.
Stars, Moon, Night, and Enchantment.
Zanli turned to the section on soul enchanting in the book and studied it carefully.
Where exactly did things go wrong?
Zanli knew the magic circle by heart; there was no way he could make a mistake.
But where exactly did things go wrong?
Zanley believed his previous conjecture was correct; the Stargazer must have concealed crucial details about completing the soul enchantment for some reason.
That detail might just be the core of this magic's revenge technique.
Zanley previously speculated that the stargazer's reason was that he did not want to enslave his soul.
But upon closer examination, this guess seems a bit far-fetched.
The curator had told Zanli about history; the stargazers were people from the early human era.
In that era, slavery was a very common thing.
In such an environment, would stargazers really be so averse to enslavement?
Zanli felt that there was room for further discussion.
But if Henry is wrong, then what reason would the Stargazer have for choosing to conceal his methods and theories?
What are stargazers worried about and afraid of?
Right there on the beach of Zanlis, someone knocked on the door.
Upon hearing this, Zanli hurriedly stuffed the books into his clothes.
"Come in."
Benson: "Boss!"
"What is it?"
"Something's wrong," Benson said. "The enemy!"
Zanli was startled upon hearing this.
He immediately got up and, with Benson's help, went up to the deck.
As we walked, Benson explained the situation to us:
"Vehicles have appeared on the sea side and are closing in."
"A circumference?" Zanli's heart skipped a beat. "You mean the fleet?"
"That's right."
How many ships are there?
Benson shook his head: "I don't know yet. The jellyfish are counting, and Cyril has gone up too."
Zanli had a bad feeling.
Why are other fleets targeting us now that we just defeated the loyal dog?
Moreover, Zanli is currently in poor condition and does not want to encounter any further conflict under these circumstances.
At this moment, he had finally reached the deck.
He walked onto the bridge, stood still, and looked around the sea.
Then he froze.
Countless ships have arrived from all directions.
But the sheer number wasn't what surprised Zanley:
"Why are they so close together!"
"When our men spotted those ships, they weren't much further away than they are now," Benson replied.
"Where's the jellyfish?!" Zanley roared. "What's it good for?!"
“Boss, you really can’t blame him,” Benson replied. “He had just climbed up to the crow’s nest when he immediately reported the enemy situation, and it was you who called him down earlier.”
Upon hearing this, Zanli gasped.
It was indeed him who brought the jellyfish down.
In the past, even when Zanley was on duty, he would never leave the crow's nest unattended.
And the reason he wanted to remove the jellyfish from their posts today...
Zanli, without thinking, called out the name of the person who had already become a ghost:
"Loyal dog—."