Chapter 1 Time, Back Half an Hour

Time, back to more than half an hour ago.

Even though the weather on the sea was fair and sunny, beneath the surface…just a short distance down, the surroundings turned pitch black.

However, for Udine, this was not a problem.

Udine possessed many abilities that were well-suited for underwater action, one of which…was "night vision."

According to him, he had been repeatedly tortured with huoxing (a cruel form of punishment that leaves no wounds but can cause blindness; the specific method involves putting fresh horse urine in a sealed bucket, heating it over a fire, and then forcing a person's head into it until the urine evaporates), but the result was…his eyes not only didn't go blind, but they also became able to see in all kinds of murky liquids.

In addition, Udine also had the ability to breathe underwater.

Again, according to him, he had also been repeatedly tortured with waterboarding (a form of torture that creates the sensation of drowning; through years of research and development, many improvements and variations have emerged, "gilding the Buddha's face with gold paper" being one of them; the simplest and most traditional method is to repeatedly submerge a person's head in water, pulling them up at the point of asphyxiation, and continuously repeating the process until the torturer achieves their goal)…but in the end, he didn't confess a thing, and his lungs mutated…gills grew on both sides of his jaw.

There were many such "legends," and their truth was impossible to verify.

Perhaps Udine's abilities were innate, and he simply fabricated some torture stories to build his tough-guy image; or perhaps…everything he said was true, which would mean that Udine's true ability was actually—to induce physical mutations in extreme pain, in order to adapt to harsh environments.

In any case…as Blackbeard's right-hand man, Udine's strength was definitely not lacking; compared to others…he should be about the same as a mid-level "time officer."

It was precisely because Blackbeard had confidence in his strength and special abilities that he sent him into the sea to investigate.

Udine did not betray Blackbeard's trust; after jumping off the ship, he rushed through the sea like a torpedo, swimming rapidly toward the area where the "cannonball" had fallen.

Before long, he discovered the "cannonball" created by the "Master," which was still gradually sinking in the seawater.

Since Udine's orders were to "investigate" the situation of this thing, he definitely had to make contact with it; therefore, after confirming the target, he mustered all his energy and swam over cautiously.

However, at this time, he did not know…that this "thing" in front of him could not be dealt with by "caution" alone…

A dozen seconds later, Udine had arrived near the cannonball, and his swimming speed gradually slowed down.

Through the seawater, Udine saw a metal sphere emitting a faint silver light. He observed it for a few seconds, then thought to himself, "The captain's worries were indeed correct. This thing doesn't look like an ordinary cannonball, but rather some kind of 'magic item'; if we leave it alone, it may cause some kind of adverse change for us."

Udine also had some experience in dealing with such items. Generally speaking…if you don't touch it directly with your hands, you won't trigger any effects.

Thinking of this, Udine took off his coat, preparing to "wrap up" this thing and take it away.

Unexpectedly…just as he stretched out his hand, before he even touched the sphere, something terrible happened…

The silver metal ball suddenly burst open, transforming into a pool of mercury-like, irregularly shaped substance, its volume expanding in the blink of an eye to a size larger than Udine himself.

Seeing this, Udine's reaction was also lightning-fast; almost at the same instant as the explosion, he turned and retreated.

Unfortunately…he was too close to the ball, and in the end, he didn't have time to escape the danger zone.

Soon, the thick metallic liquid缠住completely wrapped Udine, engulfing him…and flooding into his eyes, mouth, nose, and ears…

…………

Time, back to the present.

Bang—

A figure landed, and the deck shattered.

Appearing before everyone's eyes was none other than the first mate of the Queen Anne's Revenge—Udine.

But at this moment, his appearance looked quite abnormal.

His eyes had lost their pupils, and his two eye sockets were filled with a mass of silver.

He was also no longer wearing clothes, and 80% of his body was covered in a silver, metal-like substance.

Most astonishingly, the peculiar murderous intent emanating from him…was so palpable that it forced the pirates on the deck to retreat.

"Mr…Mr. Udine…what's wrong with you?" A sailor who usually had a good relationship with Udine took a few steps forward and asked tentatively.

"Don't go over there! You fool! That's not…" An old crew member standing nearby immediately yelled, wanting to call him back.

But…it was too late.

In that instant, Udine acted without warning, piercing the sailor's chest with a single punch.

The latter looked horrified and died with his eyes wide open.

"Heh…" And Udine…or rather, the "parasitic creature that had taken control of Udine's body," revealed a sinister smile.

This kind of smile was familiar to Feng Bujue and most of the people on this ship; they all knew—this was the expression one made when they had obtained pleasure and satisfaction from killing.

"Careful!" Three seconds later, Honghu was the first to react, shouting loudly, "This guy is going on a rampage!"

As an outsider who didn't know Udine at all, Honghu quickly made an accurate judgment without any emotional factors.

While shouting, he summoned his weapon.

In the blink of an eye, a "whoosh—" sound was heard, and a bolt of light was already flying toward Udine's face.

Ping—

However, in less than half a second, accompanied by a crisp sound, Udine used his silver liquid-covered hand…to firmly grasp the light arrow shot by Honghu.

"His speed and reaction ability are ridiculously fast, and he can even grab pure energy attacks with his bare hands…" Seeing this, Snow said with a solemn expression, "This guy is probably not easy to deal with…"

"Hmph…" Honghu chuckled lightly and replied, "I knew he could grab energy before I even made my move…"

Before he finished speaking, another ear-piercing strange sound of "chi—" rang out in the distance.

It turned out that the arrow Honghu had just shot contained a hidden trick. In an instant, the light arrow exploded in Udine's hand and turned into a "light array," enveloping the latter within it.

"Hmm?" After being trapped in the array, although a hint of doubt flashed in Udine's eyes, he did not show any panic.

He thought for a few seconds, then raised an arm and punched the light wall in front of him.

Duang—

A violent tremor echoed within the spherical light array, shaking Udine himself, but he didn't seem to have suffered any damage.

On the other hand, the light array itself showed cracks under this single blow…

"Ho~ He comes with armed haki all over his body, huh?" Seeing this, Feng Bujue even took the time to complain, "I have to take care of this!"

While speaking, Brother Jue was already rolling up his sleeves, eager to try.

Feng Bujue still felt a little sorry for Blackbeard for having split the Brown Algae, because he also understood the feeling of "a set of limited edition collectibles missing just one piece"; and now, there was an immediate opportunity to contribute to the pirate crew, so Brother Jue naturally felt obliged to do so.

But…just as he was about to rush out…

Dong—dong—

That familiar, peculiar sound of footsteps…rang out again.

Immediately afterward, Blackbeard slowly walked out of a cabin leading to the lower level of the deck.

"What's all the commotion about…I thought something was happening…" Blackbeard said as he walked, heading straight toward Udine, "Turns out my first mate has returned."

Just at this moment, Udine also shattered the barrier created by Honghu with a wave of continuous attacks.

At this moment, on this deck, where the fierce battle had just ended and the blood had not yet dissipated…the number one and number two figures of the Blackbeard Pirates formed a confrontation.

"Heh…this is going to be a good show." Feng Bujue, who had just wanted to take action himself, suddenly completely restrained his fighting spirit, putting on the appearance of a spectator.

"Indeed…" Even Honghu put away his bow and said softly, "So far, we haven't seen Blackbeard's actual performance in combat. This is a good opportunity…to observe."

As the two players were talking, on the other side…

Udine had already opened his mouth to reply, "I am not your first mate."

His voice had changed slightly, sounding as if the original Udine had scattered a handful of thumbtacks into his throat.

"Then…who are you?" Blackbeard asked coldly.

"No one." The other party replied, "Of course, I don't mind using the name of the original owner of this body."

"I understand…" When Blackbeard spoke these three words, he spoke very slowly, and a hint of imperceptible disappointment flashed in his eyes, "In other words…my first mate is gone, never to return?"

"Hehehe…" The parasite laughed. He didn't answer Blackbeard's question, because the answer was already obvious.

"As expected…this man is a very important person on this ship, isn't he?" After the parasite laughed a few times, he continued to himself, "I felt it when I was 'devouring' him…This guy's will is surprisingly strong. I spent a long time…subjecting him to unimaginable high-intensity torture in the mental realm, but I still couldn't make his will submit. Helpless, I could only inflict a certain degree of damage to his brain on a physical level before I could seize control of this body."

He paused at this point, looking around, "Now that I think about it…the reason why he was willing to endure such great pain and resist until the last moment must have been to buy time for you people on this ship; he hoped that you would leave here if you didn't hear from him, so that…you wouldn't have to face me."

"Ha!" At this point, he laughed quite smugly, "It's really ironic…in fact…if he hadn't approached me, I would have at most parasitized some kind of marine creature and turned into a sea monster to attack you, but the upper limit of that kind of body…is simply worlds apart from that of this 'First Mate'." He shrugged, "I have to say…your luck is really not good."

His words successfully angered the surrounding pirates.

Obviously, Udine was highly regarded on the ship; even though he was a terrifying villain in the eyes of ordinary people…in the eyes of the pirates, he was a villain worthy of their respect.

The values and camaraderie of pirates are very strange and cannot be explained in a few words.

They pursue wealth, but they are not just pursuing wealth.

They admire strength, but sometimes they refuse to submit to strength.

They will curse each other, fight, and even kill each other, but this will not change the fact that they sincerely call each other brothers.

Udine had earned respect among such a group of people.

He also gave his last drop of blood before he died for this crude, sinful, inexplicable…yet unforgettable bond.

Even to Blackbeard, he was indeed worthy of the word "important."

"Luck?" After listening to the parasite's account, Blackbeard was silent for a few seconds before he spoke, "No…this has nothing to do with luck. I was the one who sent him into the sea to investigate, and it was my inconsideration due to insufficient information…that led to the death of my subordinate."

When Blackbeard said this, his tone seemed very calm. As he spoke…he took a few steps to a wooden barrel, casually grabbed a bottle of rum placed on the barrel lid that someone had drunk halfway.

"I am very sorry that Udine has left us." He continued, speaking more to the crew, "He was my most capable subordinate, more useful than any of you lazy bums; he was also the purest tough guy I have ever known, one of the few true tough guys left on the Chaos Sea, a hundred times stronger than those outwardly strong but inwardly weak sissies; and…he has saved my life more than once…"

Speaking of this, Blackbeard silently lowered his eyes and paused for a few seconds.

Then, he raised the bottle of wine in his hand and continued, "To Udine, a loyal friend, a terrible orator, and a villain who upholds the old-school pirate spirit."

After saying this, he poured about a cup of wine onto the deck in an atmosphere of silence and solemnity, and then he picked up the bottle and gulped down a few mouthfuls himself.

After finishing the drink, Blackbeard suddenly…swung the bottle and threw it at the parasite's face, as if to vent his anger.

The parasite did not dodge, not because he couldn't, but because a flying bottle would not cause him any harm.

Clang—

Amidst the sound of breaking glass.

Blackbeard turned around again and walked back towards the cabin.

Contrary to Feng Bujue and the others' predictions…Blackbeard did not choose to take action himself; he simply left three words in a light tone after doing all this and before leaving the deck—“Kill him.”