Chapter 336 - 257: Boarding the Black Ship, Searching for the Magazine (Part 2)

Chapter 336: Chapter 257: Boarding the Black Ship, Searching for the Magazine (Part 2)

There were only three ways to enter the lower cabins.

One was in the central deckhouse. It was the largest passage, but no ordinary sailor dared use it, for it was the exclusive path of the captain and first mates.

The other two were located on either side of the deck, and these were the main passageways for the sailors.

After emerging from the corner, Ichida Keizai whispered, "In a moment, just keep your head down and follow me. If anyone asks questions, don’t say a word. I’ll handle it."

"Mm," Wu Liangchen grunted in assent, following along slowly.

He wasn’t worried about Ichida Keizai pulling any tricks.

At this distance, with his level of skill, he could snuff out Ichida Keizai’s life in an instant if the man made the slightest suspicious move.

Soon, the two of them arrived before the passageway on the eastern side of the deck.

Ichida Keizai explained, "Back then, we were blindfolded and used ropes to transport the ammunition down. Even though I couldn’t see, my intuition doesn’t lie. I’m certain this is the way down."

But then he hesitated before adding, "However, this passage goes through the crew’s quarters. We might run into other people, so you must not act rashly. Do exactly as I say."

"Alright. But won’t people find it strange to see an unfamiliar face like mine?" Wu Liangchen asked.

"No," Ichida Keizai explained. "There are a lot of people in the fleet. Besides us crewmen who belong to the navy, there are also numerous lower-deck sailors. In the eyes of the high-born navy crew, those men are no different from slaves or cattle. They won’t pay you any mind."

By this time, they had descended the stairway and entered a long corridor.

The corridor was lined with one crew cabin after another.

As they walked, Wu Liangchen noticed most of the cabins were dark. Light seeped from under the door of only one, from which came the sounds of laughter and drinking games.

Ichida Keizai’s face filled with apprehension as he looked at the cabin. He whispered to Wu Liangchen, "The ones living in there are the scions of noble families, all related to the captain or the first mate. That’s why they dare to openly defy military orders, gathering at night to drink and gamble."

A flicker of light crossed Wu Liangchen’s eyes.

Even through the door, he could instantly determine how many people were in the room and their exact positions just from the sounds of their breathing and heartbeats.

There were eight in total: four were sitting, three were standing, and one was lying on a bed, resting.

Just as they were about to pass the door, a cheer erupted from within. A man was heard cursing as he stood up, pulled the door open, and slurred drunkenly.

"Dammit, I’m gonna go take a leak, change my luck."

As he turned to step out, he came face-to-face with Ichida Keizai.

The man froze for a moment, then broke into a sinister cackle.

"A yokel dares to shirk his duties?"

In the East Sea nation, "yokel" was a deeply insulting slur. As for "shirking duties," it meant slacking off.

For instance, their secret gathering in the room to drink and gamble was a form of shirking their duties.

But in this man’s eyes, Ichida Keizai, this workaholic from the countryside, was someone who was never late nor left early.

So, he was rather surprised to see the man, who should have been on duty on the deck, appear here in the cabins.

Ichida Keizai was long accustomed to the taunts and insults from these scions of noble families. So, although a flash of anger crossed his eyes, he lowered his head and quickened his pace, trying to get through the corridor as soon as possible.

Normally, the man would have just tossed out a couple of jeers and gone about his business.

But for some reason today—perhaps because he was on a losing streak and his luck was sour—when he saw Ichida Keizai hurry past with someone in tow, a fire ignited in his heart, and he barked out a cold command.

"Halt!"

Ichida Keizai’s heart tightened, but he had no choice but to stop and turn to face the man who had spoken.

"Master Ono, is there something I can help you with?"

This man belonged to the same clan as Ono Shunyu, the commander of the landing forces, but their blood ties were far more distant. He was from a minor branch of a side branch.

However, that didn’t stop him from feeling a sense of superiority when facing Ichida Keizai.

After all, even as a bottom-tier disciple of a noble family, he was still far better off than some pauper from the remote countryside.

He glanced arrogantly at Wu Liangchen, who was behind Ichida Keizai, and then pointed a finger.

"Who’s this?"

"Oh, he’s a sailor. I have an errand for him," Ichida Keizai explained.

"A sailor...? How come I’ve never seen him before?"

A cold sneer on his face, the man walked closer, ready to teach this yokel a lesson. But just as he drew near, he froze on the spot.

Because he had gotten a clear look at Wu Liangchen’s face.

The tales of Wu Liangchen’s exploits had long since spread among these scions of noble families; even his portrait had been circulated.

After all, he was an existence the Monarch considered a great enemy, so the noble clans had no choice but to take him seriously.

And though this member of the Ono Clan was not from the main lineage, he had seen Wu Liangchen’s portrait once and had been deeply impressed by it.

Therefore, when he saw Wu Liangchen’s face, he was instantly stunned.

He never would have dreamed that Wu Liangchen—the man who had performed countless miracles and was secretly idolized by the sheltered young ladies of the East Sea nation—would actually appear on this giant ship.

’What is he doing here?’

The thought had just flashed through his mind when he suddenly felt a chill on his neck, and all the strength drained from his body.

Before he could fall to the ground, Wu Liangchen caught him and leaned him against the wall.

The man’s eyes bulged as he struggled to speak, but Wu Liangchen’s slash had precisely severed his vocal cords and throat. He couldn’t make a single sound. All he could do was clutch desperately at his neck, trying to staunch the massive wound from which blood was now gushing.

At the same time, a foul stench rose from below his waist, quickly spreading and mingling with the thick smell of blood.

An exaggerated shout came from the room. "What’s that smell? Why does it stink so bad?"

"Don’t tell me that bastard Ono took a crap in the hallway!"

"Go check it out!"

As someone headed for the door amidst the cursing, Ichida Keizai’s face went pale with fright. Wu Liangchen, however, remained perfectly calm. With a silent leap, he rushed into the cabin.

The men in the room, drunk as they were, didn’t even have time to scream before their lives were taken by a brilliant flash of the blade.

But one man was still lying on the bed.

This man seemed unable to hold his liquor and had already fallen asleep. But when he heard the sound of a blade slicing through a neck, he was startled awake and was just about to open his eyes to see what was happening.

Just then, Wu Liangchen flicked a stone. A streak of white light shot through the man’s head, pinning him to the bed.

The entire process, though long to describe, took only a few seconds in total.

All eight men had been killed at Wu Liangchen’s hand.

Afterward, Wu Liangchen cleanly and efficiently dragged the body from the hallway into the room. He then poured the alcohol from the table onto the floor to mask the smell of blood as much as possible.

Once finished, he closed the door and said to Ichida Keizai, "Let’s go. These tricks will only buy us a little time, so we need to speed up."

Only then did Ichida Keizai snap out of his shock. He took a long, hard look at Wu Liangchen, then nodded. "Follow me. I know a shortcut that can shorten our journey."

The rest of the journey went much more smoothly. After leading Wu Liangchen through several corridors as complex as a spider’s web, Ichida Keizai suddenly stopped and covertly pointed to an inconspicuous fork in the path ahead.

"This is it. If my memory serves me right, the ammunition depot should be at the end of this fork."

"Good. Keep leading the way."

Of course, Wu Liangchen wouldn’t so easily trust Ichida Keizai’s words. The safest option was to have him continue to lead the way.

But they had just turned into the fork and hadn’t gone far when Wu Liangchen suddenly stopped.

Ichida Keizai was still confused, but then he heard something as well, and his expression changed.

From the end of the fork, the faint sound of conversation could be heard.