Chapter 1 The Pirates' Nest

Not long after, eight pirate ships docked.

Suren squatted in the slave pile in the ship's hold, listening to the noisy activity on the pier outside, without the slightest emotional fluctuation.

Because they were disembarking, the pirates finally removed the slaves' hoods.

After squatting for many days, the slaves were dizzy. In the corner, a few patients who were barely breathing were a little slow, and the whip lashed across their backs with a crack.

"Get in line and follow! Stop dawdling!"

Suren also received two lashes.

Walking out of the cabin and onto the deck, he no longer had to breathe the turbid air of the hold, and his expression became refreshed for a moment.

Suren looked at the lively and bustling pier, and his face showed an expression no different from the other slaves, numb but with a little curiosity as he looked around. He seemed to want to know where they were being sold. But the curiosity in his eyes was fleeting.

Mining, hard labor, reclamation, war... there was no difference.

The slaves lined up and disembarked, then went to the city gate along the pier's walkway.

The "Toxter Void Royal Alchemic Academy" had a white stone city wall surrounding most of the peninsula, a hundred meters high, with a grand momentum. It was a pity that now only some broken walls and ruins remained.

Two teams stood at the city gate, one team of mechanical warriors, and the other team of pirates.

These people had very sharp eyes, carefully examining everyone entering the city.

Suren knew that these people were checking to see if there were any spies entering the city, but he didn't panic at all.

He knew everything about this camp like the back of his hand, so there was nothing to be nervous about. There were perception-type professionals among these gate guards, and normally Suren's fourth-tier strength could not be concealed. But he had a very special mechanical alchemic item called the [Energy Fluctuation Disruptor].

This was the latest spy equipment from the Mafa Empire, and he had harvested a few when he intercepted the submarine before.

Mafa's mechanical warriors could distinguish the ranks of professionals because their helmets had a set of energy observation equipment. The principle was the same as the methods of perception-type professionals, which could accurately capture the energy overflowing from the body of the creature, so as to judge the rank of the target. Moreover, machine observation was more precise and had less error.

But energy fluctuations could be observed mechanically, so naturally they could be disrupted.

Therefore, there was this disruptor.

This was cutting-edge technology that no force on the market could currently imitate.

Suren had tested it before, and it could even hide the strength of fourth and fifth-tier professionals. Now, wearing it on his body, he entered the city very smoothly.

...

The North Sea Fleet had been operating in this secret realm for several years, although it had only been in the past six months that they had almost cleaned up the cursed space in the main building complex of the academy. But in fact, there were still many void monsters in these ruins.

This place was very similar to the situation in Old Lingdun.

It was also an ancient relic, also a space channel leaking energy from another dimension, and the monsters that had bred for countless years already had their own ecological system.

Suren could clearly feel the soul fluctuations of monsters in the sewers as he walked along. Those intricate underground caves were also the best habitat for monsters. And near the space rift that looked like a vertical pupil in the distance, rich space energy was continuously overflowing. That was the space channel.

Even though it was midnight, the city was brightly lit, and pirates carrying weapons could be seen everywhere.

Some taverns and brothels for entertainment were open for business, and it was very lively.

There were not only marching tents in the city, but also large-scale construction, and the pirates were building new buildings, which had become a bustling city.

Those buildings were hung with the flags of the North Sea Fleet, as well as the divisional flags of the "Void Fleet."

Suren also saw that Oleg, the King of the North Sea, probably planned to turn this place into one of his main bases.

It was for long-term development.

Normal humans had a high probability of becoming distorted when they fused with void materials, and staying in an environment with rich void energy for a long time could increase the spatial affinity of professionals and increase the probability of fusion.

Just like the former Old Lingdun, the people who lived there had a very high affinity for dark spiritual power.

In a few years, a large number of spatial ability users would appear in the North Sea Fleet, and some very strong high-level professionals might even appear.

This was definitely Oleg's foundation.

"Yo~ This batch of female slaves that came today is of very high quality."

"Tsk tsk, tonight will be fun. I just went to the cursed space yesterday, and I earned enough points, so I have to have some fun."

"Hahaha, your Tenth Squad is indeed lucky. The last mission actually cleared an A-level cursed space, and the points you earned mean you don't have to work for the next six months..."

"Haha, that's right."

"..."

Suren and his group of slaves were escorted into the city. There were also many female slaves with only rags covering their bodies. The pirates couldn't help but point and stare along the way. Saying that it was a secret realm, but it was almost like a prison, and it was rare for fresh women to come.

After walking for a while, the female slaves were sent to the brothel. Suren and the male slaves were locked in a dark prison in the city and continued to be held.

However, unlike before, the slaves were rewarded with a hearty meal as soon as they were imprisoned.

The slaves were well aware that eating well meant they were probably going to work.

In the dark and lightless cage, the slaves scrambled to eat the food that was distributed with relish.

Compared to the days when they only had a little fresh water and black bread every day, the current meal of mashed potatoes with minced meat and rum was much better.

No matter what they were going to do, even if they were sent to the gallows, it was good to have a full meal before dying.

It was no exaggeration to call it a "last meal."

Suren knew very well that the female slaves could still be sent to the brothel, while the male slaves were going to fill the cursed space as cannon fodder.

The survival rate of slaves sent to this space secret realm was less than one percent.

Even if they survived once, they might not survive the next time.

Suren didn't show any difference and ate the food distributed by the jailer.

Before long, after they had their fill of food and drink, a fourth-tier pirate leader walked to the top of the cage.

He waved his whip and struck the cage with a "pa" sound.

This was a method of disciplining slaves, signaling everyone to listen to him.

The slaves also looked over in horror as a conditioned reflex.

"You are slaves, and in other places, you will be slaves for the rest of your lives! But in our North Sea Kingdom, you have other choices..."

"Now I'm giving you a chance to participate in the cursed space exploration. I won't hide it from you, the death rate is not low. But as long as you can complete the mission, you can survive. If you can get enough points, you can also join our North Sea Fleet, get rid of your slave status, and become an official crew member..."

"..."

Suren listened quietly to the small leader "drawing a big cake."

His words were also very straightforward, participating in the exploration of the cursed space not only had a chance to survive but also to get rid of slave status.

This was indeed very attractive to slaves.

In Luying, as long as they were slaves, they would be slaves for life. Then their status was the same as that of mules and horses, the private property of the slave owners. If they were lucky, they could be slaves on a plantation for the rest of their lives. If they were unlucky, they would directly mine until they died, using their bodies to block artillery fire on the battlefield...

So now that there was an opportunity to get rid of slave status, it was definitely a big temptation.

The quality of this batch of slaves was very high, mostly war slaves from various territories in Luying, and there were quite a few second and third-tier professionals.

Suren knew before he boarded the ship that they had been deliberately selected to develop the cursed space.

The pirates naturally hoped that the slaves would respond more actively, rather than sending a bunch of soulless walking corpses who had no desire to survive to their deaths.

At the end, the small leader shouted again: "So, raise your hands if you are willing to explore the cursed space! Once you decide to participate, you will be able to eat the same food as tonight every day from now on!"

It looked like he was asking if they were willing.

But in fact, there was only one choice.

Either you were willing to go yourself, or you were forced to go.

As soon as these words came out, someone immediately raised their hand excitedly.

"I'm willing to go!"

"Me too!"

"Count me in. I'd rather die than be a slave for the rest of my life!"

"..."

Suren knew that there were "shills" arranged by the pirates, but when those people spoke, the atmosphere did pick up.

This made the slaves who were still hesitant raise their hands one after another, for fear of missing this opportunity.

Suren watched and when he thought it was about right, he also raised his hand.

...

Just as Suren was still in the prison.

In a luxuriously decorated building in the ruins city, the lights were bright, and a group of people were discussing the plan to explore the cursed space.

Even in the ruins, the royal princess from Mafa enjoyed the best living environment.

However, because the "Royal No. 7" was intercepted and the culprit had not been found yet, Princess Stika had been in a bad mood these past few days.

The development difficulty of that [Unstable Plane Channel] was very high, and the people of the North Sea Fleet were not in a hurry at first. Because even if they couldn't fully explore it, that space could provide them with a continuous stream of low-level cursed materials. As long as there was enough time, they would eventually find a way to crack it. If they could secretly develop for decades like Grand Duke Raphael, Oleg would inevitably build an extremely strong Void Fleet.

But the current situation was different.

The submarine being attacked meant that the location of the space secret realm was exposed.

Now the various forces of Luying were eyeing the space secret realm, and if they didn't excavate the treasures here as soon as possible, there was a high probability that something would happen.

The magic lamps lit up the room brightly.

A group of people sat around a luxurious mahogany round table.

At the head of the table, Princess Stika looked at the people at the table, her face not looking good, "Dr. Bacher, how is the situation on your side?"

"Yesterday, we just tried a 'Void Tolerance Potion' formula that we recently obtained. The test results showed that it can increase the tolerance of low-level professionals by 15-23%, and the probability of fusing void materials has increased a lot. But in the field of high-level professionals, the effect of this medicine is not ideal..."

The speaker was a big-bearded old man in a white coat.

He was the chief scientist brought by Princess Stika, Bacher Pearson.

Even in the academic circles of the Mafa Empire, this person was a well-known figure, specializing in biotechnology and machinery.

He was also the most critical figure sent by Mafa to jointly develop this void relic!

When the "Royal No. 7" was intercepted a few days ago, Bacher and several senior scientists came ashore, so they were not caught together, which made Princess Stika feel that things were not too bad.

As long as this person was still there, instruments and equipment could be obtained from Mafa again.

Speaking of which, the big-bearded old man continued: "Judging from the information we have obtained so far, this Void Academy has done a lot of research that can enhance human void tolerance. Moreover, several of them have achieved good results. And in those materials, I accidentally discovered that someone in this academy seems to have researched a special potion that can change human bloodlines [Void Gene Potion]. That potion would directly change people's gene chains and obtain permanent high spatial affinity, similar to obtaining an additional talent of [B-040-Void Favored]. So my point is, if we can get that research result, we can create a batch of professionals with high spatial tolerance in a short period of time..."

Hearing this, everyone in the room was shocked.

Man-made B-level bloodline, or rare void ability?

Even if there really was such a potion, it would definitely not be easy to configure, but if there really was, the value would be unimaginable!

Hearing this, Princess Stika looked up at the man in the white suit sitting on her left and asked, "What do you think, Lord Samigina?"

The man in the suit had a very gentlemanly smile on his face, without the slightest hint of pirate rage, and responded: "Your Highness, I have also heard of that potion. It is related to a person named 'Herbert Hillbo Lai'. But our people have been to the cursed space many times before and have never found such a person in the academy, or any information about him. So I even suspect that the project does not exist at all. Or, that person's existence was deliberately 'erased' by the Void Academy for some special reason. If you want to find clues, you must look in more dangerous areas, such as... the t-level experimental area."

This person was none other than the fleet commander of the "Void Fleet," Samigina J. Ro, a seventh-tier professional.

Although he had no bounty on him in the outside world, his strength could definitely be regarded as the top among all the fleet commanders of the North Sea Fleet.

Princess Stika listened to those words, without any expression on her face.

If this [Void Gene Potion] really existed, she would definitely get it!

After pondering for a moment, she said: "You have all heard it, what ideas do you have now?"

Hearing this, the group of staff members spoke.

"The dean of the Void Academy is very critical, and may even be the entry point to break the entire cursed space. We can find a way..."

"There is an archive room in the library, and you can also query some hidden information..."

"'T-level experimental areas' will definitely have some research materials, maybe you can find some physical information..."

"..."

These were all the Mafa royal think tank, and they were also very experienced in breaking the cursed space.

They quickly discussed several feasible plans.

At the round table, Samigina listened to the whole process without speaking, and the corners of his mouth raised a sly smile as he listened.

In his opinion, this group of guys from Mafa were really arrogant and didn't take anyone in the North Sea Fleet seriously. Even him, the fleet commander.

After they finished speaking, Samigina said with a hint of sarcasm: "It is definitely impossible to force it. The dean currently has at least the strength of a seventh-tier professional, and is also proficient in void formulas. Even if Lord Oleg comes, he will not be able to kill him in a short time. What's more, in the academy, no matter how many people we organize, it is impossible to be the opponent of the entire academy. Once we are hostile, then the teachers, professors, and all the students will be enemies. When the time comes, we will lose even the last chance of survival. As for the library, we have searched almost all the areas with permissions and have not found any clues. As for the top floor, only the professors of the academy have permission to enter..."

As soon as these words came out, the members of the staff group opened their mouths again.

"You can find a breakthrough from the 'Royal Investigation Team leader' in the space. I have analyzed the data, and his permissions are very high. He should be able to access the top floor of the library."

"There is no chance to do it on the airship, but there will be a chance after getting off the airship."

"I have assessed the combat risk. To control that guy, you need at least three fifth-tier professionals, or a sixth-tier professional is best. Although there will still be some risks, we must take risks if we want to make progress as soon as possible."

"Indeed, if you don't take some risks, the cursed space won't be broken for several years."

"..."

Hearing the word "adventure," Fleet Commander Samigina snorted coldly.

He swept his eyes over the group of staff members again, suppressing his anger, and squinted his eyes and said: "There is no problem with what you said. But after finding the clues, it may still point to the 't-level experimental area' in the end. Judging from the current situation, going there is a dead end. Before, it was to explore that area that I lost my most capable deputy. So, who do you think is suitable to send?"

These words were already very clear, and he was unwilling to let the sixth-tier professionals in the fleet take risks.

Hearing this, everyone at the round table closed their mouths.

The room was so quiet that a pin could be heard.

Princess Stika seemed to have made a decision. After thinking for a moment, she said emotionlessly: "This time, Major General Tadjina of the Royal Guard will lead the team."

Samigina raised his eyebrows slightly when he heard this, a little surprised, but smiled lightly: "That would be the best."

Princess Stika continued: "Also, recently all forces are staring at us, so try not to leave any survivors among the slaves sent in. Mark out the most dangerous places and arrange for them to explore."

...

Suren stayed in the prison for a few more days, enjoying good food and drinks.

When he had nothing to do, he would go to the small void realm to check the construction progress of the "War Workshop," and the time passed quickly.

He was not worried about not being able to go to the cursed space.

Now that the submarine had been intercepted, Suren guessed that Princess Stika and the North Sea Fleet would most likely suspect that the coordinates of the secret realm had been leaked, and would definitely speed up the exploration progress. Especially that [Unstable Plane Channel] with the lowest degree of development, the most dangerous, and the most treasures. It was most appropriate to use the lives of slaves to try and make mistakes.

The best proof was that none of the slaves who had gone out recently had returned.

This day, it was the fourth day he had been locked up.

Suren and a dozen slaves were squeezed into the prison.

The others were chatting and farting, while he was lying on the ground facing the wall, sleeping.

Suddenly, footsteps came from outside the prison.

Suren opened his eyes slightly and muttered: "That [Unstable Plane Channel] can be entered once every three days, and the last batch has been consumed. It should be the second batch going in..."

The footsteps were getting closer and closer to their prison.

The other slaves couldn't help but feel a little nervous when they heard it.

Suren was very calm. His luck seemed to be pretty good. Listening to the people discussing, they were really going to that [Unstable Plane Channel].

Sure enough, the prison door was opened, and the leading pirate said, "You can come out!"