The night raid went smoothly.

Zhou Yi's team infiltrated from the sea floor without the raiders noticing.

The experienced samurai crabs boarded the ship, and the enemy did not put up a fight, very consciously kneeling with their hands raised in surrender.

The raider leader, Yuan Tong, had half-white hair, a thick beard, blackened teeth, and the hardships of his years were evident in the wrinkles around his eyes—he was a genuine middle-aged man.

He wore a wide-brimmed hat, and his belt had two metal buckles hanging from it.

Later, Zhou Yi learned that these two buckles were one of Yuan Tong's little inventions.

He required every crew member to wear them, so in the event of turbulence in the Dead Sea or a strong external shock, they would lock the ropes fixed to the ship onto the buckles, so that even if they fell off the deck or were blown away, they would still have a chance of survival.

Yuan Tong had a black leather strap diagonally tied over his head, covering the position of his left eye.

He could only use his right eye.

With the help of Red Kestrel's "Bird's Eye View," Zhou Yi was able to read Yuan Tong's mental activities in real-time.

"Now I ask, and you answer," Zhou Yi said.

Yuan tong nodded.

Zhou Yi signaled, and the samurai crabs took the other raiders to the rear of the ship for unified management.

Thus, only the two of them were left on the foredeck.

Zhou Yi rested his hand on the ship's railing, gazing across the misty and boundless Dead Sea.

"Tell me how you got into this business," he asked.

Yuan Tong began to speak.

Zhou Yi was somewhat surprised.

The pirate leader used to be a shipyard craftsman and came from a technical background.

Zhou Yi asked him, "Are there many like you?"

"If you mean becoming the head of a pillage group, not many, craftsmen just specialize in technology. But there are quite a few who start as repairmen accompanying the ships and end up as raiders unable to leave the ship."

Yuan Tong pondered for a moment: "Later, I learned that the shipyards have dealings with the raiders due to business reasons. This interaction varies in depth depending on the shipyard."

"Most Knight Orders have their own shipyards, but raiders have to buy ships from the outside; otherwise, they can't enter the Dead Sea. Having a ship, becoming a pirate, it's not easy to be encircled by the Knight Orders."

"The pillage groups formed by raiders are actually important clients for the shipyards; it's just that the transactions are done through intermediaries and are very discreet."

He continued, "Pirates have their own territories, and they usually make their money within their areas. If protection fees are paid, most pirates will allow ships to pass through—the common term is 'sea passage money.'"

"But if the other party doesn't pay, they'll also hijack some small merchant ships, and depending on the situation, they might plunder the goods or the ship. Activating enhanced ships to navigate the Dead Sea is very costly; they need to balance income and expenses."

"The ships they capture are also sold to some shipyards; after modification, they can be resold..."

Zhou Yi interrupted him, "Pirates divide territories, is this a requirement of the Dead Sea Knights behind the scenes?"

"Not just them, but the bigger pirates all have backers."

Yuan Tong's beard fluttered as he spoke: "Some pirates belong to certain cities, others are backed by business conglomerates... there's a big difference between pirates."

"Small groups like ours, who accept sea passage money, would provide merchant ships with the latest movements of nearby monsters, marking rapids and Light Burst areas, to avoid maritime disasters."

"In the long run, if there are fewer merchant ships, pirate profits will also decrease. At least that's what I think: more merchant ships mean we can survive even if we take less money."

Zhou Yi sized up this technically-skilled pirate leader.

Before launching the surprise attack, he had read the minds of these raiders and understood the non-lethal plundering methods of Yuan Tong's group, as well as the issues surrounding difficulty in retiring. His men, although puzzled and complaining, were surprisingly supportive.

Now, it seemed Yuan Tong was indeed managing well and had a deep understanding of the business of sea plundering.

Zhou Yi asked him, "How do other pirates operate?"

"If it's a small group like ours, one to three ships, there's actually not much we can do. Basically, we rob some small merchant ships or threaten mid to large-sized transport ships that are clearly in a hurry, to take some sea passage money."

"Some will also go to land, landing near the Dead Sea, to rob ordinary people."

Yuan Tong paused for a moment and said, "But some pirates are different. Our area is close to a gang operating in the nearby seas. They specialize in kidnapping women and children for human trafficking, which is their main source of income."

"Two years ago, there was a group of pirates who specifically captured live victims for evil ritual sacrifices. They would extract hearts to offer to the Heart-eating Ghost, which made their ships faster and stronger. They were wanted by all sides and eventually disappeared without a trace."

"I've also heard that some pirates target ships specifically from certain cities. At first, I thought it was the work of hostile forces from those cities. But later, it turned out to be a few merchants' conspiracy, creating panic to influence the market and engage in buying low and selling high..."

After listening carefully, Zhou Yi tapped his fingers on the railing, "Tell me about this ship."

Yuan Tong blurted out, "This is a modified light enhanced ship, with a maximum capacity of 11 people, can carry a 15-day supply of fresh water, 12 days of food, and has limited load capacity. The ship next to it is basically the same."

"Their maximum speed can reach 18 kilometers per hour, energy consumption is 1 Energy Pack per 12 hours, and they have no weapons installed. They rely on speed for harassment and interception."

Speaking of ships, he became a bit verbose, "These two ships were originally produced by the Gaoling Shipyard in Little Smoke Ridge, standard Light Imprint Skill processing, and the ship covering is also very uniform. Although they have been in operation for 12 years, the condition of the ships is still very good."

"Just a year ago, I reinstalled both ships with E-grade Light Imprint 'propulsion' and 'Light Floating'. With proper maintenance, they can still be used for another 4 years."

Yuan Tong caressed the ship's side lovingly with a touch of reluctance on his face.

Zhou Yi's expression didn't change, but his mind was buzzing.

What was Light Imprint?

It seemed he had heard it mentioned a few times.

He thought to himself, "Red Kestrel, look up Light Imprint."

Moments later.

A synthesized voice rang out in his head, "Light Imprint is an applied technology developed from 'Light Imprint Skill.' The basic principle involves imitating the Guangna Organs of various Guangna Species and replicating them using Light Imprint Structures. High-precision Light Imprint Skill can make the Light Imprint Structures nearly identical to their templates, but cannot surpass them."

"Light Imprint Skill arranges Dead Light through a specific Ring Array using metals, wood, stone, or ceramics as a stable framework and, through special processing technology, ultimately produces a functional Light Imprint."

"Light Imprint is the specific manifestation of Light Imprint Skill; different Light Imprints have different effects, but all require Dead Light Energy to operate. Their common energy source is the Energy Pack."

"This technology is applied in many areas, such as enhancing organisms, vehicle operation, weapon manufacturing, and ammunition encapsulation... all are supported internally by Light Imprint Structures."

Zhou Yi recalled the trapped dream bomb he had captured, "Ammunition encapsulation uses Light Imprint Structures?"

"Yes."

Red Kestrel added, "In the military field, common weapons like swords and Knight Firearms have Light Imprint Structures. The Light Imprint Structuring in ships, tanks, and those installed in cities are even more complex and precise. Various firearms are activated by directly stimulating Dead Light Energy through the Light Imprint."

"The greatest advantage of Light Imprint weapons is their stability. Once installed, they can be effective against any target within their range."

"On the other hand, because Light Imprint is a biomimetic clone, it is extremely difficult to breach its existing limits. Whether expanding the range or increasing the power, it requires a lot of calculation, research, and repeated testing. The requirements for Light Imprint Technology are very high, and successful cases are rare."

Zhou Yi began to understand.

Light Imprint was 'Artificial Skills'.

This was the core Wasteland technology possessed by new humans - essentially a replication of the 'skills' held by the existing Guangna Species.

Zhou Yi thought to himself.

No wonder he had seen new humans first using flintlock guns with lead bullets, then spears with glowing cold weapons emerged, followed by the Tong Niu's rocket artillery, and bizarrely short-ranged main guns on battleships... It gave a sense of a confusing muddle of eras twisted together.

Although new humans had inherited some things from the Old Humans, the technological direction was completely different.

Zhou Yi grew curious, "What about gunpowder then?"

Red Kestrel said, "Gunpowder is an inefficient and unstable form of energy usage, a rather outdated technical means, only superior to ordinary cold weapons. It comes with many limitations when used. For Guangna Species of grade D and above, gunpowder can't even penetrate their defenses."

"Its destructive power, explosive force, sustainability, stability, and universality cannot compare with Light Imprint."

Understood.

But Zhou Yi was still a bit puzzled, "If humans have mastered Light Imprint Skill, why are they still oppressed by Skywalkers and sea lords?"

The drone answered immediately, "In this area of technology, Electromechanical Life is at the forefront, and the large Guangna Species powers, led by the Heavenly Kingdom, have also conducted deep research with many results in application fields. Humans started late, developed slowly, and are mainly involved in processing raw materials and components, as well as creating low-grade Light Imprints. They are at the bottom of the entire Light Imprint industry chain."

Zhou Yi gave a sound of realization.

These Guangna Species inherently had an advantage in their bodies.

And technology was ahead as well.

Indeed, new humans had a tough battle...