Extraordinary Voyage

Meanwhile.

A deep incantation echoed around the "Ghost Ship" as if it were sung by real ghosts, with the sound coming from all directions, making it impossible to identify its source.

As the second eye on the head representing "pain" opened wider, the eerie green light in its eye socket reached its limit and was about to overflow.

In an instant.

A greenish-cold ripple spread out from the Ship's Figurehead as the center, making everything within a two-kilometer radius seem dragged into the deep water, causing everyone within this range to experience a strong feeling of breathlessness!

From the lowest ordinary sailor to the powerful Tier 3 Extraordinary battleship captains standing at the Knight Peak, they were all without exception!

To the sailors, there seemed to be ripples in the air as if the air had retained its original form but was forcibly altered in nature.

However, the sense of true breathlessness was real and... deadly!

Not only that.

The suffocation caused by [Military Witchcraft: Drowning Spring] affected not just physically but extended into everyone's spirit.

It felt as though the whole person was submerged in cold, calm spring water, giving no opportunity to surface for survival despite having no restraints.

It wasn't just the deprivation of breathing ability, but also a sense of helpless desperation!

The so-called "Military Witchcraft" is different from the usual single target or group attack witchcraft, with the power distributed within this range having a low upper limit, making it nearly impossible to kill extraordinary beings of the same level, but it's very effective in clearing minor soldiers.

At least equivalent to powerful spells that a Tier 3 Extraordinary High-Rank Wizard could cast, it exerted direct pressure on all naval officers and soldiers, with no one being exempted.

"Ugh... Huh..."

"I can't... breathe..."

How long can a person last in a state of suffocation?

In this state, an ordinary person would suffer irreversible brain damage in about three minutes, and with bad luck, even if saved, could end up in a vegetative state.

An extraordinary might last longer, but not excessively so, given that the physical constitution of an Extraordinary Knight is stronger, resulting in a faster consumption of nutrients and oxygen.

It can be said that this move, "Drowning Spring," truly lives up to the name of Military Witchcraft, being nearly irresolvable without counter-spell actions from an equivalent high-level wizard!

In a very short time, Aiven saw the navy soldiers around him had completely lost their combat effectiveness, and even Krell and the others were barely holding on, their faces slowly turning purplish-red.

Clearly, sudden suffocation and prepared breath-holding underwater are entirely different concepts!

Even though the six incredibly powerful battleships remained unscathed, they were now entirely just for display.

Aiven, feeling more acutely than ordinary people, saw in his spiritual vision that the air was already saturated with tiny black droplets slowly merging into a spring, silently engulfing everyone.

"No, something must be done!"

Aiven was unwilling to sit idly by and quickly raised his Alchemy Firearm despite the suffocating sensation. If people couldn't rely on this altered "air" to surface, then this "air" shouldn't possess water's resistance either.

The "Thorned Gold Rose" should still be usable, probably the only weapon in the entire fleet capable of precise strikes beyond a kilometer.

As a Wizard Apprentice, Aiven naturally knew that only by interrupting the caster could this continuous witchcraft effect be halted.

Without any hesitation.

Bam—

In "Strong Strike Mode," a brilliant line of fire cut through a thousand-meter space-scale, directly targeting the flamboyantly standing "Wack Wells" on the foredeck.

The "Ghost Ship," whose "Void" ability had temporarily failed, couldn't provide Wack with "Damage Immunity," and by the time he reacted, the Alchemy Bullet had already reached his chest.

Instinctively, he only had time to lift the "Box of Dead Souls" he had been holding before being hit instantly.

Clang—

The bullet hitting the pitch-black wooden box produced a metallic ringing sound, and with huge kinetic energy, Wack and the "Box of Dead Souls" were knocked off the foredeck.

"Ah, fool! You fool, how dare you use me to block a bullet!"

Yet even in adversity, hearing the "Box of Dead Souls" still sound full of vigor revealed that the shot had not affected it at all.

"What happened?"

Aiven had anticipated that this shot might not harm them, but it had already pushed them back. Logically, if they were indeed casters, the witchcraft effect should be interrupted; why was the suffocating feeling still there?

"Could it be that this witchcraft wasn't cast by them at all?"

Blue and white spiritual light flashed across Aiven's eyes, and he activated his spiritual power to gain Spiritual Vision again.

In the unique vision, the "Ghost Ship" in the distance appeared entirely different, shrouded in black and green Extraordinary Spiritual Light, most prominently at the ship's figurehead, perhaps using the word dazzling to describe it!

Witchcraft not released by a "person" must be some sort of high-tier witchcraft tool, although it's still unclear how this eerie magic comes about. But at least a rough target has been locked and can be attempted.

"Whatever! Rapid Fire Mode!"

Bam! Bam! Bam!...

Lines of fire connected and bombarded the spot on the ship bow where the Extraordinary Spiritual Light was most dazzling. Without a specific target, this was the best way Aiven could imagine.

The first eight shots gained nothing, with suffocation intensifying, and oxygen deprivation making Aiven's vision blur, causing his heart to steadily sink.

But after the eighth shot.

Crack!

A crisp sound like shattering echoed in the core of the mind, and suddenly the killing suffocation significantly lessened.

"Did I hit it?!" Aiven's spirit was instantly uplifted; the previously unbreathable state had greatly alleviated, as if now on a high-altitude mountain, but no longer deadly.

Gasping for air, he quickly searched through the scope for what he had just hit.

The refreshed state cleared his eyes, quickly spotting his target.

The black miscellaneous items on the ship's bow were ignored for now, but various carved figures on the ship wall, a sail tied at the bow, the charred foremast, etc., all bore traces of being ravaged by bullets.

Yet the most striking spot was undeniably the grotesque "Ship's Figurehead.

The "Ship's Figurehead" composed of three heads had one green eye representing "pain" shattered, leaving the other still dimly glowing. This unbalanced state drew Aiven's immediate attention.

"This Ship's Figurehead is peculiar!"

Upon glimpsing it through the scope, instinct prompted him to pull the trigger again.

Bam—

Crack!

The other green eye shattered upon impact.

Instantly the suffocating sensation vanished, a chorus of greedy breaths echoed, and everyone in the fleet seemed to live anew.

"Huff... huff..."

"Well done, Aiven!"

Paul, standing beside Aiven, also regained vitality, giving Aiven's shoulder a hard pat.

Though aware that truly high-ranking figures in the port were monitoring everything here, not allowing them to be completely annihilated easily, if everything required the upper echelons' intervention, then what was their purpose?

"No—! Damn it, what have you done?

My 'Ship's Figurehead'!"

The angry roar from the "Box of Dead Souls" was so loud that even Aiven and his group a kilometer away heard it clearly, indicating just how infuriated the "Box of Dead Souls" was with failure on the verge of success and the loss of its treasure!

This "Ship's Figurehead" wasn't like the "Ocean Treasure," albeit possessing magical powers; one was an artificially made witchcraft tool, while the other was a natural jewel formed in the sea, the difference between the two being enormous.

The most direct manifestation was that "Ocean Treasure" was practically indestructible, but the sturdiness of the "Ship's Figurehead" depended on its material; even with witchcraft enhancement, the green crystal eyes couldn't withstand Alchemy Firearm bullets!

"Quick! Seize this opportunity to finish them in one go!"

The fleet commander, experiencing fear from the recent encounter, barely recovered, immediately ordering the fleet to commence a second round of concentrated fire on the "Ghost Ship."

Signal lamps on the flagship flashed rapidly.

"Gunpowder Chief! Load the shots!"

Amidst the tense bustling atmosphere, no one in the fleet noticed that the crimson on the full moon above their heads was growing ever thicker...