784 Mask

Lumian immediately retreated into the nearby shadows, closely watching the slowly opening metal door of the captain's cabin.

As the cart filled with various foods was pushed in, he finally saw their target, Admiral Deep Sea, Howl Constantine.

Though he had heard many rumors and seen the wanted posters, nothing compared to witnessing the reality of his sea monster lineage firsthand.

Admiral Deep Sea, Howl Constantine's face looked as if a translucent, palm-sized octopus clung to it, with numerous slimy tentacles hanging down to his chest. His deep blue, almost black hair was thick and coarse, falling to his shoulders, and his body was entirely wrapped in a black cloak, even his hands hidden within.

He was nothing like a normal human.

Lumian couldn't help but feel this was unusual.

His face, fused with an octopus, was exposed, so what was there to hide about his body?

Even if he was truly an octopus beneath the cloak, no one around would be surprised!

The only reason to cover his body so tightly was if there was something even more unpresentable there.

Puzzled, Lumian carefully observed Howl Constantine's fate.

Being in shadow form didn't prevent him from doing this since shadow beings could still "see" the real world, though the perspective was slightly different.

As the two pirates arranged the food on the long table in the captain's cabin, Lumian's eyes reflected the illusory river of fate composed of complex mercury symbols.

Given that they were less than fifteen meters apart, Lumian extended his right palm, letting it stay at the edge of the shadow, and remotely touched Howl Constantine's river of fate.

Most of Admiral Deep Sea's fate fragments instantly materialized, flowing turbulently.

Knowing time was limited, Lumian could only browse briefly.

He saw Howl Constantine diving in the dark, lightless ocean depths, fighting a half-giant over two and a half meters tall wielding a huge sword. He watched as Admiral Deep Sea passed through ruins filled with bizarre buildings and saw his future self removing the translucent octopus from his face...

Removing the octopus clinging to his face? It isn't Howl Constantine's face; it's a mask? He isn't a descendant of sea monsters? Lumian was stunned. Reflexively, he decided on the fate fragment he would exchange.

It was a fragment of Howl Constantine being injured on the seabed.

In this fate fragment, back when he was only Sequence 7 or 6, Howl Constantine failed to return to the surface in time, suffering the crushing pressure of deep water and the suffocating sensation of liquid flooding his lungs.

This was different in severity from Moran Admiral Deep Sea's fate fragment of lust outburst, which had irrevocably changed Moran's fate, forcing him to an early death. In contrast, this fragment merely influenced Howl Constantine's subsequent exploration style, making him more cautious. However, Lumian couldn't find a more suitable fragment in such a short time.

As fate began to swap, Howl Constantine, who was seeing off the two pirates, suddenly turned his gaze towards Lumian's hiding spot.

His spirituality had warned him!

Almost simultaneously, Admiral Deep Sea's eyes lit up with intense lightning.

With a crackling sound, thick lightning struck Lumian's hiding spot, hitting the wall and shattering into countless tiny electric serpents, which spread out, covering the area with their fierce and erratic energy, using the properties of the metal door, walls, and floor to launch indiscriminate attacks inside and outside the captain's cabin.

The two food-delivering pirates were hit first, their bodies trembling and convulsing as if performing a grotesque dance.

Their skin quickly charred.

Amid the cracking sound, mirrors hidden in the shadows where Franca and Jenna were hiding shattered, but the Demonesses' figures did not appear.

...

At the Carnival Bar, Great Shark Jorg and his companions, including Ship Destroyer, had just entered the hall and were staring at the unknown adventurer's back. Before they could speak, the noisy surroundings abruptly fell silent. The pirates' chatter and conversations seemed muffled, vanishing instantly.

Wh- Great Shark Jorg instinctively looked towards the window, seeing the dim sunlight through the fog replaced by deep darkness.

At that moment, Lumian, sitting at the bar, turned on his stool. His expression was indifferent, his gaze calm, looking at the few big pirates as if they were dead men.

A huge crimson-white fireball shot out.

Boom!

Amidst the flames and wind from the explosion, the pirates either used their agility or abilities to dodge in different directions.

Behind Ship Destroyer, Lumian's figure swiftly emerged in the chaos, letting out a hum.

Two beams of white light shot from his nose, causing Ship Destroyer to faint instantly.

Witnessing this, Great Shark Jorg felt a chill down his spine, instinctively muttering to himself, "Formidable..."

...

Aboard the Newins.

Having used the Lightning Strike ability and created an area attack effect utilizing the current environment, Admiral Deep Sea, Howl Constantine, had a figure suddenly appear behind him.

It was Franca, dressed in an assassin's suit.

Franca gripped an almost invisible triangular spike in her right hand while raising her left palm, with an iron-black spiked ring targeting Howl Constantine.

Lightning flickered in her eyes.

As Franca used Psychic Piercing on Howl Constantine, Jenna appeared by the door, throwing a Louis d'or at Admiral Deep Sea, seemingly to distract him and make him momentarily ignore Franca's assassination attempt.

A golden brooch carved into a gorse flower was pinned to her chest.

Covered in gray-white scales, Anthony appeared in the corridor, with tiny electric serpents still crawling over his body, paralyzing him and preventing rapid movement.

But this didn't stop Anthony from using his ability.

Staring at Admiral Deep Sea, with a translucent octopus clinging to his face, his pupils turned vertical, glowing golden.

Awe!

This ability made the target feel as if they encountered a true dragon, panicking instantly.

As fate began to swap and Howl Constantine noticed the anomaly, he struck out lightning. At that moment, Lumian teleported into the captain's cabin, landing on a wooden chair by the window.

Soon, tiny electric serpents covered the area, but they didn't last long due to the wooden chair's material.

This caused Lumian's body to show signs of paralysis.

However, he didn't reveal himself because he was now a true shadow creature, and no shadow being would leave the shadows due to a mild electric shock.

Lumian chose to stay in the shadow provided by the wooden chair, quietly watching the upcoming battle.

During the fate exchange, he couldn't attack Howl Constantine, which would interrupt the process.

So, the next step was to see if Franca, Jenna, and Anthony, three Beyonders below Sequence 5, could hold off Admiral Deep Sea for at least two minutes!

Of course, if they really needed to kill Howl Constantine, Anthony could do it quickly with the Winter is Coming revolver, but that was impractical and went against their original goal.

Awe and Psychic Piercing hit Howl Constantine, but the Admiral's face, fused with the translucent octopus, glowed faintly, protecting his soul and spirit, causing only minor effects.

As his octopus-like face dimmed slightly, Howl Constantine, puzzled by the unfamiliar assassins, suspected some adventurer group wanted to make a name for themselves and earn a huge bounty. Enduring the dizziness, he grabbed an obsidian trident from the nearby weapon rack and thrust it at Franca.

The trident immediately surged with violently flickering silver-white lightning, its heavy tip seemingly trying to pull Franca onto itself.

Crack!

Franca's body, clad in the assassin's suit, shattered into numerous mirror fragments, while Jenna threw a silent black flame at Howl Constantine before hiding in the shadows again.

Anthony also pulled out the exquisite Winter is Coming revolver, aiming at Admiral Deep Sea for a standard shot.

The gunshot had just sounded when a sharp wind pierced everyone's ears.

Howl Constantine, wrapped in a whirlwind, flew into the air, avoiding the yellow bullet and eerie black flame.

He then pointed the obsidian trident at Anthony.

The silver-white currents on the trident converged into thick lightning, shooting out.

Anthony, experienced as ever, immediately dove away from the door, changing his position and avoiding the direct hit from the lightning, though the resulting tiny electric serpents still affected him, causing his body to tremble and paralyze.

The two pirates, just recovering from the previous shock, were struck by the new wave, falling unconscious and twitching on the ground.

Franca and Jenna were also affected by the indiscriminate attack, revealing themselves from their hidden states.

Admiral Deep Sea, Howl Constantine, showed no joy or bloodthirsty emotion but grew more vigilant, his octopus-like face showing doubt.

There should be one more assassin!

Why hasn't he appeared?

What is he preparing?

At that moment, out of the corner of his eye, How! Constantine saw a figure leisurely sitting on the wooden chair near the window.

The figure had black hair, blue eyes, a handsome face, and wore a thick dark jacket, reclining against the chair with his right foot resting on his left knee, a mocking smile on his face.