When a person faces a creature larger than themselves up close, fear kicks in instinctively.

The bloodthirsty pressure rolling off Black Bull hit Chen Qi like a raging beast pressing down on his chest.

“Huff… huff…”

Chen Qi tightened his grip on the scimitar, but he couldn’t stop trembling.

Just transmigrated, and now I’m facing death?

Undying witches, steam mechs, extraordinary powers…

He hadn’t even gotten a taste of this world yet, and he was about to become some nameless corpse floating in the ocean.

No, probably not even a corpse left behind.

Chen Qi gave a bitter smile, then stared intently at Black Bull.

I’ve got decent agility for a starter, and Black Bull just went through a full-on brawl with eight people—he’s gotta be low on stamina.

Plus, thanks to my talent, I got a +5 to Strength and +5 to Agility! That’s already a top-tier boost for early game!

Based on Chen Qi’s gaming instincts, even though they looked mismatched in size, he should at least have a fighting chance.

Black Bull didn’t strike immediately. Instead, panting heavily, he picked up a long-handled axe.

“Get that a** in the air, boy! I’m gonna chop it right off and—”

Now!

Chen Qi crouched low, dropped his center of gravity, and launched an upward thrust.

Clang!

Black Bull didn’t have time to block with his axe—he had to take the blow directly on his forearm.

“You little sh*t!”

He roared and lashed out with a savage roundhouse kick aimed at Chen Qi’s thigh.

Does this guy not feel pain?!

Chen Qi quickly pulled back his blade and stepped back, dodging the strike.

“Good thing I didn’t get greedy…”

This was his first time landing a real attack on someone, and the counter was way more brutal and fast than he expected.

But Black Bull was still just human. After that counter, his arm couldn’t stop trembling.

When it comes to speed and reaction time—I've got the edge!

Chen Qi readied his blade again, searching for his next opening.

“Woooah!”

His move ignited the crowd of watching pirates.

They’d all thought Black Bull was untouchable. No one expected anyone would dare land a hit on him!

“Nice slice, kid!”

“Do you even know what your odds were? Thirty to one! Thirty!”

“Kill Black Bull and you’re a free man! You’ll be one of us—part of the Black Whale Crew!”

“And that’s not all! I’ll throw in a bottle of rum!”

“If you win, I’ll get you a woman for the night!”

“By the Goddess, you land one hit and these guys start losing it. Look at Black Bull—does he look scared to you?”

The one-sided bets were suddenly thrown into chaos.

Plenty of pirates looking for high odds were now shouting their support for Chen Qi.

“Thought I’d overlook you in the end, huh, pipsqueak? I’m not giving you a second chance!”

Black Bull sneered, tilting his head high like he wasn’t a slave anymore, but a noble knight holding the power of life and death over the commoners.

He stomped forward twice, then swung the axe at Chen Qi’s neck.

Clunky and slow…

Chen Qi sidestepped the attack and countered with a slash of his own—landing a clean hit on Black Bull’s deltoid!

Critical hit!

The blade tore a bloody gash into Black Bull’s flesh.

He wasn’t in good shape. After all, he was just a regular human. The prolonged fighting had drained him to the limit.

Plus, all the accumulated wounds were slowing him down more and more.

Chen Qi saw the light at the end of the tunnel:

“I’ve got the upper hand!”

Black Bull’s life force was flickering like a candle in the wind.

How could this be?

Black Bull staggered—he had killed multiple people, but now he couldn’t even stay upright?

The tide had turned, and the pirates started jeering again.

“Black Bull, you’re struggling with the last guy? Come on! Use your weapon already!”

“Kill him! Kill him now! Black Bull, think of your woman lying in someone else’s bed! Give it everything you’ve got!”

The shouting crowd was like a pressure cooker ready to explode.

Black Bull had once been a low-level gang leader, sold to this ship after sleeping with the boss’s woman. He always believed he was on another level compared to these lowborn, cowardly slaves.

“Trash from the sticks! I refuse to die to a country bumpkin like you!! I’m gonna slice you into chum and feed you to the fish!”

Panting heavily, Black Bull reevaluated his strategy.

He didn’t want to die here, not because he underestimated this little punk.

The guy was weak and small, sure—but way too quick. Blind attacks weren’t working. All they’d do was expose openings.

Bring it on…

Chen Qi focused with everything he had, ready to dodge and counter for the finishing blow.

But the next second—everything changed!

Black Bull gritted his teeth. Instead of charging, he retreated—and suddenly grabbed some disgusting, octopus-like creature from the deck!

The pirates gasped again.

“No way—Black Bull, you’re using a parasitic sea beast?!”

“Seriously? You’re the one pulling this sh*t now?”

“That’s it. Fight’s over. Kid, you won’t even have a head left!”

Parasitic sea beast…

Chen Qi broke into a cold sweat. Memories rushed through his mind.

Parasitic sea beasts—just like the name implied—were marine creatures that fused with humans.

In the Witch Sea, these things were terrifying, and fishermen feared them more than anything.

They’d drag humans into the ocean, turning them into monsters.

But to pirates who didn’t give a d*mn about rules, these creatures weren’t just threats—they were tools for boosting combat power.

Deadly as they were, once the parasite fused with a human, it could grant insane strength and speed for a short time!

Among players, this was a mid-game item—popular but super dangerous.

“Kill you! I’ll kill you!”

Black Bull snarled as he shoved the parasite into the gash on his shoulder.

The beast’s tentacles snaked into his body, and in an instant, dark blue veins spread across Black Bull’s skin.

“Black Bull was already tough. Now, with the parasite, no newbie statline can stand a chance…”

Chen Qi analyzed the situation calmly, stepping back.

He was way too weak right now. He had no power.

These pirate deathmatches actually involved this kind of forbidden gear?!

“Who the f**k left that sea beast lying around like a weapon?!”

“Wasn’t this thing supposed to be under the ship doctor’s watch?!”

“Whatever! He took the bet—now pay up!”

The pirates were yelling among themselves. Some who had bet on Chen Qi started backing him up.

But he couldn’t hear their words clearly.

Black Bull’s monstrous killing intent was soaking into every fiber of his body.

His situation had just gone from dangerous to deadly.

He had to focus everything on reading the enemy’s next move.

“DIE!!”

The next moment, Black Bull charged forward, one massive parasitized arm swinging the axe single-handedly—like a mountain crashing down!

Too fast! I can only move on instinct!

Bang!

In the instant their weapons clashed, a smug grin crept across Black Bull’s face.

But that smile vanished as quickly as his consciousness.

Chen Qi’s curved blade had driven straight into Black Bull’s heart!

“Huff… huff…”

Chen Qi gripped the hilt tightly, twisting the blade as he stared into Black Bull’s disbelieving eyes.

Blood surged out of the man’s chest.

Bullseye.

With a loud thud, Black Bull collapsed heavily onto the deck.

Did I… one-shot him!?

The sudden reversal stunned the pirates into dead silence.

None of them could believe what had just happened.

Black Bull—after fusing with a sea beast—was killed in one strike!?

Chen Qi’s hands were trembling. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught movement near Black Bull’s right shoulder.

The parasitic sea beast slowly peeled itself off his flesh, withdrawing its tendrils and darting away as fast as it could.

It looked like a rabbit frightened by a lion.

Without the sea beast’s power, Black Bull’s body had no ability to resist.

Why did the sea beast flee?

Deep Sea Affinity…

Chen Qi had a pretty good guess. His talent let deep-sea creatures see him as one of their own.

That parasite must’ve sensed something from him—maybe fear, or another kind of instinctive rejection.

The moment it bailed, Black Bull's movements stiffened completely.

But the others didn’t dwell on that detail. After all, sea beasts were known to be unpredictable and dangerous by nature.

I won.

Chen Qi exhaled deeply. His blade-wielding hand wouldn’t stop shaking. This starting arc really gave him zero time to level up.

Looking at the hot blood dripping from the curved blade, he let out a faint smile.

No matter what—he won. He survived. For now.

“Well done, kid! You made me a hell of a lot of money!”

“Nice job! From now on, you’re a free man!”

“Hahaha, Black Bull, you actually dared to use that kind of sea beast? Even if it was modified by the ship doctor, you couldn’t handle it!”

“Captain Blackeye, I like this kid! Don’t treat him badly now!”

After a brief silence, the pirates erupted in celebration—especially the ones who’d bet on him.

Chen Qi felt the pressure finally lift. He slumped to the deck, everything around him suddenly quiet.

Black Bull still had a sliver of breath left, muttering something under it.

But with all the cheering and shouting, Chen Qi couldn’t make out a word. No one cared about a dying slave’s last words—only about the money in their hands.

After the betting was over and the pirates had finished dividing up the pot, a middle-aged man in a black captain’s hat finally made his way over to Chen Qi.

Leaning against the railing, Chen Qi stared up at the sky, watching seagulls fly past, mind racing.

He had transmigrated—onto a pirate ship, no less.

In New Sun, the Black Whale Pirates were a terrifying faction tightly linked to the main storyline.

In-game, they were infamous for their self-destructive tendencies.

According to the lore, the entire Black Whale Crew would embark on countless deadly voyages, all in pursuit of summoning an otherworldly horror.

Chen Qi shook his head. Even though he had awakened his spirituality, he still didn’t have a true transcendent class.

This was a post-apocalyptic supernatural world—without power, forget exploring, you couldn’t even protect yourself.

In New Sun, the only way to gain skill points and rare class cards was by defeating monsters inside instances known as “Rifts.”

Only then could you become truly transcendent.

If this had been a free-start scenario, he would’ve probably already killed a few slimes, bought some gear, practiced some skills, and gotten ready to enter his first Rift.

But right now, everything was under the pirates’ control. He couldn’t level up at all.

And pirates had an incredibly high death rate. That’s why they were always recruiting new crew.

Any day now, he could end up as cannon fodder…

This wasn’t somewhere he could stay for long.

He had to find a way off this ship. Only by reaching a safe, beginner-friendly area could he level up and fully take advantage of his talent.

“Hey, kid…”

A tall, lean man stopped in front of him.

It was the captain of the Sawshark, the Black Whale Crew ship—Blackeye.

He had a black pipe clamped between his teeth, looked around forty, had a scruffy beard, and both his eyes were pure black—no whites at all.

Chen Qi studied him. New Sun was a massive open-world game, with far too many NPCs to count.

He hadn’t seen this minor captain mentioned in the forums.

But one thing was certain: with his current strength, this no-name Blackeye could easily decide his fate.

By pirate rules, winning the duel earned him a job aboard the ship.

And on a pirate ship, all roles were assigned by the captain.

If the man followed through on his promise… Chen Qi silently prayed it’d be a job that made “escaping” easier.

Captain Blackeye gave Chen Qi a long look, then finally spoke:

“Kid, I didn’t think you’d actually beat Black Bull. That last strike of yours… brutal. Not afraid of dying—that’s a basic requirement for every warrior on this ship.

But you know the rules out here on the Witch Sea. Anyone infected with sea sickness is considered a plague, a walking disaster. They’re supposed to be buried at sea on the spot.

If this were a Navy ship, you’d have been hogtied and tossed overboard by now.

But lucky for you, the Black Whale Pirates don’t give a d*mn about those rules. You should be grateful.”

Grateful? Chen Qi mentally rolled his eyes.

Blackeye tapped his temple, glancing across the deck.

“Let’s see… we’re not short on salvage crew. You’re a young guy, probably not trained in any real skills, and your body doesn’t look too tough either… hmm… any openings?”

“Captain, my assistant for processing medicinal ingredients just died. Give him to me.”

Chen Qi’s ears perked up instantly. His whole body stiffened.

To his left, a gentle female voice had drifted over.