Chapter 592: Icebound Pirates

Blue skies and white clouds.

Sea Birds perched on the ship's ropes as the Mermaid gently rocked with the waves.

As captain of the Mermaid and commander of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's First Navy, Mei Lin was handling official duties.

She studied a piece of intelligence in her hands, a thoughtful expression on her face.

This intelligence concerned the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.

“Yesterday, Long Fu accepted a silver level challenge. He chose a private duel format and directly slew the silver level challenger.”

“An interesting approach...”

There were many forms of duels.

Some allowed spectators, while others were strictly private.

“Those who challenge Long Fu seek fame and glory, but by choosing a private duel, even if victorious, the challenger gains far less renown.”

“By killing the challenger outright, Long Fu sought to demonstrate ruthless ferocity and intimidate others.”

“Of course, this also serves to protect his intelligence, concealing further tactics from public view.”

Beyond this intelligence, Mei Lin also kept tabs on Yao Ma (Zi Di).

“Has she still not registered for this Warm Snow Cup?”

The Snow Bird Harbor branch has resumed operations, departing the port to conduct military training at sea.

“Interesting.”

"Oh, and another squad has set out from Snow Bird Harbor. They will inspect and audit all the Dragon Lion shops along the route. They will ultimately enter the royal capital to report to the commander, Long Fu, and Magician Yao Ma."

Upon reading this, Mei Lin was suddenly seized by the urge to dispatch troops to ambush them.

But the next moment, she shook her head slightly, dismissing the notion of military action.

“Even if we killed every last one of them, we couldn't destroy the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”

Their highest-tier magic ship is merely silver level. A single gold level cannon and a feathered serpent sail are their most advanced alchemy components.

“Given the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' current earning capacity, they could easily afford all of these.”

“Is that precisely why they're continuing their military training?”

“No. Perhaps they also intend to lure me into action!”

“The Li Jian Clan has deep ties with them, and the former possesses formidable spatial technology. They could easily set an ambush even in the vast ocean.”

Mei Lin's primary focus was drawn to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps detachment led by Tripleblade, paying little heed to Fei She and his group.

Intelligence indicated this iron level squad's objective was clear: to audit and verify the operational status of local merchants.

Mei Lin couldn't be bothered to intervene. She even hoped they might uncover some shady dealings, potentially driving a wedge between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan.

After some deliberation, she concluded that the Li Jian Clan had likely set an ambush. Such a significant risk further diminished her desire to launch an attack and wipe out the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch.

Zong Ge's analysis was correct; Mei Lin's personality shaped her approach to warfare. She preferred targeted strikes, precise calculations, and meticulously deploying every ounce of strength, rather than spreading her forces thin in an all-out effort to eradicate the enemy's support network.

With a soft sigh, Mei Lin decided against moving against the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' branch.

She set aside the relevant intelligence and retrieved another report to examine.

This one had nothing to do with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.

Instead, it concerned pirates.

“With the National Ceremony approaching, the seas have indeed begun to stir.”

The intelligence in Mei Lin's hands pertained to the Spray Pirates.

Their captain was a gold level alchemist, exceptionally skilled in battlefield healing.

According to the report, the Spray Pirates had been invited by a coalition of other pirate crews. Nearly all these crews were gold level forces.

Mei Lin put down the report in her hand and inspected the rest of the other documents.

Eventually, she fixed her gaze on one report.

“The Icebound Pirates!”

“Pirate Captain Da Han, a saint level sorcerer and the fourth-in-command of the Fire Beard Pirates.”

“The reason so many pirate crews have flocked here is because Da Han is leading the Icebound Pirates straight toward our nation.”

“Of course, this is merely the stated reason. Behind the scenes, there may be a mastermind pulling the strings.”

The Fire Beard Pirates were one of the three strongest pirate crews in the Main Plane, with Fire Beard himself a legend level powerhouse. He commanded several saint level individuals, Da Han being one of them.

Da Han alone was reason enough for the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to take extreme caution.

After all, the nation's strongest experts numbered only three saint level individuals.

Not to mention Da Han's crew brimmed with talent, their fleet boasted numerous magic ships, and though their flagship was merely gold level, the pirate crew raised a saint level Ice Crystal Jellyfish.

“This Ice Crystal Jellyfish possesses aerial flight capabilities and formidable regenerative powers—a truly troublesome foe.”

"In contrast, our navy has just completed its rearmament. While equipped with new warships, they haven't undergone proper combat integration. Even the Li Jian Clan's previous combat tests against pirate fleets yielded poor results."

Mei Lin sighed inwardly, the weight of pressure bearing heavily on her heart.

The Icebound Pirates alone compelled the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to take notice. Preliminary estimates suggested over twenty gold level transcendents among the other pirate fleets. Like sharks sensing blood, they swarmed in.

All because of the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony.

During this period, envoys from various factions, merchant alliance ships, and countless important figures would be invited to attend.

If they couldn't seize merchant convoys, pirates could capture these VIPs as hostages to extort their factions.

Pirates frequently engaged in this hostage-taking extortion.

It offered greater advantages than standard cargo plundering.

Much of the seized merchandise was useless to pirates, forcing them to sell it at a discount, a waste of time and manpower. Extortion, however, allowed them to demand direct payment, equipment, arms, or even ship repair services.

As a commander in the Kingdom's First Navy, Mei Lin bore heavy patrol duties during the national ceremony.

Her primary focus had to be on this task, not the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.

In truth, this applied not only to her but to the other duelists as well.

For instance, Xue Tuan Zi was participating in this year's Warm Snow Cup, while Mo Gui Ji, Yun Zhong, and others were competing in the Kingdom Grand Duel.

Others like Zhu Gan had no interest in dueling, much less following Mei Lin's orders to risk confronting Zong Ge and his crew.

“For now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps must be set aside.”

“But they absolutely cannot be allowed to continue operating!”

Mei Lin's resolve to crush the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was unwavering, especially after reviewing intelligence estimating their profits from trafficking dragon rider potions.

The sheer scale of their gains sent a chill down Mei Lin's spine.

“Money can solve many problems.”

“After the National Ceremony, we must eliminate them swiftly. The longer we delay, the harder it will become.”