From sailboats to star destroyers (Source: Web)

Chapter 7 Maritime Tales

"Splash splash~"

"Gah~ Gah~"

The annoying seagulls and the crisp sound of waves crashing against the rocks complemented each other, and Miao Meng was currently on a fairly spacious island.

Around him lay four or five pirates who had long since died, along with some swords and muskets, scattered haphazardly on the ground, stained with the pirates' blood.

These monsters weren't killed by Miao Meng; they were actually background decorations at the beginning of the dungeon, serving as the main element to create atmosphere. Of course, providing initial weapons was also part of their mission.

Miao Meng skillfully picked up two muskets from the ground, along with a bullet pouch near the muskets. Normally, this old-fashioned flintlock musket would also require a horn-shaped powder pouch.

However, these have been simplified in this instance, and it seems that considering players might not be able to reload, these muskets can even be reloaded with a countdown timer, which only takes 30 seconds.

For this strategy, Miao Meng plans to use dungeon items to fight as far as possible first, and then release the restraints and use the ship girl form to sweep through when she can no longer defeat the enemies.

Unfortunately, the starting point of this treasure island only had two muskets and two bags of lead bullets totaling 20. Otherwise, he would have preferred to fill his waist with muskets and give the opponent a grand slam first.

After spending some time reloading his ammunition, Miao Meng picked up a usable curved knife from the ground and headed forward along the path ahead.

Before him were two paths, each leading to a corresponding island. However, he could only make out the general shape of the nearby islands, while the distant ones were obscured by a hazy mist.

So, after gazing at the islands in the distance, he casually chose a small island with three or four figures moving around, intending to clear out the small monsters and develop his strength first.

As for the other island, there's only a campfire there now, a place to rest and recover from injuries, but he's in perfect condition and doesn't need it at all.

Upon arriving at the edge of the initial island, looking at the ocean between the two islands, Miao Meng did not hesitate and walked straight to a small boat tied to the shore.

The ship in this instance seems to be a teleportation device; he doesn't need to row it at all. He just needs to sit on the ship and wait a few seconds to automatically arrive at the next island.

It seems very convenient, but in reality it also limits Miao Meng's performance, because without a boat, there is no way to leave the current island, and even artillery attacks cannot reach the next island in sight.

"Hahaha~ Let's go again, this time I win and I get the money!"

"What bad luck, you've won four games in a row."

The three pirates were engrossed in playing cards, none of them paying attention to the changes in their surroundings. This was Treasure Island, a place that required overcoming numerous obstacles to reach.

For them, this was their base of operations, and it was impossible for any enemy to break through the outer defenses and reach their heavily guarded treasure cave without being detected.

After being teleported to the island, Miao Meng immediately rushed towards the pirates' location. He had no intention of hiding or lying in wait, after all, compared to these experienced pirates, he was a novice in combat.

Therefore, instead of attempting assassination, it's better to overpower the opponent with a flurry of punches. Just rush up close, fire a few shots, and take the head while the opponent is momentarily stunned.

"Who goes there?" Upon hearing footsteps, the pirate instinctively turned his head to look behind him, only to hear two crisp gunshots.

[Close-range shooting!] *2

At that moment, the two muskets in Miao Meng's hands simultaneously emitted thick smoke, and the two lead bullets that flew out carried terrifying impact, directly blasting the pirate away.

It didn't look like being hit by a bullet; rather, it looked like being knocked away by a speeding motorcycle. This is the powerful knockback effect of close-range shooting.

Although the range and accuracy of the old-fashioned muskets were problematic, Miao Meng still managed to achieve considerable success with these two shots thanks to the shooting skills provided by his abilities, the proficiency bonus, and the reduced distance.

One of the pirates who was knocked away had his head split open, while the other had a hole pierced through his abdomen, resulting in one death and one serious injury.

However, these pirates lived up to their reputation as a legendary pirate crew that roamed the seas. The last remaining pirate immediately rolled on the ground after hearing the gunshot.

After rolling around, he didn't even stand up. He picked up the musket next to him and fired bullets at Miao Meng. Without caring whether he hit or not, he charged forward with his scimitar.

This wasn't Miao Meng's first time fighting these pirates, so after emptying his musket, he also crouched down on the ground, ready to guard against any bullets fired by the pirates.

"Tap tap tap~"

The pirate with a red turban on his head rushed to Miao Meng in the blink of an eye and swung his sharp blade at him. There was no viciousness in the pirate's eyes at this moment, but rather a very calm one, as if he were eating and drinking.

【Psionic Radiance】

Miao Meng suddenly opened his tightly clenched left hand, and the sudden burst of bright light, like a flashbang, blinded the attacking pirates.

Although he was prepared to use the equipment in the dungeon as much as possible for strategy, Miao Meng would still not hesitate to use his skills in critical moments. He could still weigh whether it was better to gain less or to die.

However, after blinding the pirate, Miao Meng did not rush forward, but instead took a few steps back.

Watching the pirate frantically use the eight methods of night combat, attacking the surrounding air, attempting to suffocate his enemy by killing the air itself.

Taking advantage of the pirate's frenzied attack, Miao Meng circled around to the side, first finishing off the seriously wounded pirate, and then pulling out a musket from the waist of the already dead pirate, giving the blinded pirate the final blow.

This battle, though seemingly slow, was actually quite fast, lasting no more than forty seconds in total, and consuming only three lead bullets and three points of psionic energy.

But the rewards were 15 dungeon points, 18 lead bullets, three fairly intact scimitars, a deck of cards, and of course, a set of drinks and dry rations.

Of course, the most important thing is that we got two new muskets. After loading them all, we can bring four times the surprise to the other side when we enter the next island.

After tidying up these scattered items, Miao Meng took a coat from the pirate and wrapped it up. These items could be exchanged for supplies or resources in the shop, so it was better to bring them along.

Then, standing on the shore, he began to look towards the next island. Among the three routes, he still followed the principle of fighting monsters and developing his strength first, avoiding areas such as campfires and blacksmith shops.

Of course, if he encounters a shop, he won't deliberately stay away from it. Instead, he will actively head towards the shop, since the small boat can only hold a limited amount of supplies, and he can't let these miscellaneous items take up space indefinitely.

Once the first island was developed, things became much easier, especially as more and more muskets were captured, which snowballed the advantage and gave Miao Meng an unparalleled edge.

The backpack was used at this time. Normally, a pirate would be carrying six muskets, which would be quite cumbersome, but with the help of the backpack, Miao Meng could carry a whole bag of muskets.

You can even fire one and throw it away, as long as you're careful not to damage it during the battle, you can give the enemy a feeling of being caught in a hail of bullets.

Miao Meng's firepower alone is enough to rival an entire gunner squad, and with the help of his occasionally restored psionic points, he can even unleash cannonball-like effects.

The only downside is that the more exhilarating the battle, the more troublesome it is to pick up the gun and reload afterwards. After all, reloading takes 30 seconds, and with a musket, it takes at least ten minutes to reload.