Chapter 137 - - 137 The one who laughs last is the winner_1

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After reaching a cooperation agreement with Duge, Vito’s daily ass-kissing rhetoric significantly decreased, only showing up when absolutely necessary. Otherwise, his demeanor was like that of a normal person, specifically, the humble kind with pleasant speech.

As he put it, “It’s not called getting fat if it’s initial weight gain, but it’s the last straw that breaks the bed.”

Power leveling attributes on a few individuals had no significance and only increased the risk of exposing oneself, thereby placing oneself in danger.

After all,

a month later, the top ten rankings would be published. Boosting attributes too high would turn oneself into a live target, subject to attacks from everyone.

An open attack might be avoided, but a sneak attack was difficult to guard against, and no matter how high the attributes, they couldn’t withstand a war of attrition.

Slowly enhancing attributes, blending into this world, until he became the right-hand man to a pirate king—by then, he would have power, a clear view of the situation, and all those poised to emerge would have done so.

By that time, he would make his move to turn the tide and rapidly increase his attributes. The top ten would naturally fall into his lap.

A classic academic approach, utterly contrary to Duge’s.

In Duge’s mind, if attributes didn’t improve, facing an enemy might result in getting flattened at any moment, eliminating any sense of security.

He preferred to be ahead from the start, always in the lead, and then leave everyone else in the dust…

It’s hard to say who is right or wrong.

But undoubtedly, Duge’s tactic was riskier.

…

After a night’s rest, the Smile Angel set sail again on its course. When the pink pirate flag was hoisted, the crew’s morale plummeted in an instant.

The glaring pink, the skull wearing a garland, and even the eye sockets that should have been dark were painted with two vivid eyeballs, looking so cute it could explode…

Going out with such a flag won’t scare any child, right?

Vito stared at the pink pirate flag, dumbfounded for a long time, remembering last night’s events, and in a low voice, asked, “Captain, so, you’re also a woman, aren’t you?”

“Where did you get that from?” Duge looked at his new pirate flag with satisfaction, raised an eyebrow, and asked with a smile.

The flag is pink!

Isn’t that obvious?

You’re not just a woman,

but you also have a cute girlish heart!

What mature woman would embrace a pink flag?

If not a woman, it can only be a pervert!

Vito ranted inwardly, yet his mood inexplicably improved.

In the simulated environment, women inherently had no advantage. A girl who could stand out among all the candidates must be very strong—either with special strength or superior intelligence, just like her.

This should be a sure win!

…

“Captain, Antonio will block the Herd Island route in two days, should we avoid them for now?” Barry forced himself to look away from the flag and came over to Duge, asking with a dark expression.

“Why avoid them?” Duge looked at Barry in surprise. “Our goal is to become the king of pirates. Have you ever seen a king of pirates who ascended by running away? We must participate in this battle, to temper our will on the iron and blood-soaked battlefield, to train our combat ability. Otherwise, what’s the use of my undying body exchanged with memories, just to catch fish in the sea?”

“But…” Barry wanted to say something more.

Interrupted by Duge, he waved his hand, “There’s no buts. We are pirates, the most ferocious ones, we should be fearless and march forward. Since we got the news ahead of time, we should seize the opportunity to rescue our colleagues defeated by Antonio, to strengthen our crew.”

The most ferocious pirates?

Barry subconsciously glanced at the pink pirate flag fluttering on the mast, the corner of his eye twitching involuntarily.

“Also, we must find the Witch He Ya at the first opportunity, and extract the whereabouts of the Sea God Scepter from her,” said Duge. “Otherwise, if any pirate gets wind of the Sea God Scepter’s location and then takes care of the witch, we would end up empty-handed.”

“No one can take care of the witch,” Barry said.

“You can never be sure of that,” Duge replied with a smile, looking at Barry, “Selma wasn’t infertile before either! Don’t worry, Barry, I’m not that foolish. If the battle indeed exceeds our expectations, we’ll just hide out in Herd Island, watch the excitement without going to sea…”

Do you believe what you’re saying?

Looking at Paul spewing lies, Barry was speechless, once again entertaining the idea of retirement,

but the thought only flickered through his mind briefly before it receded, and then he went to direct the crew, haul the anchor, adjust the sails, and head for Herd Island once more.

…

Not far into their journey, the Smile Angel encountered two merchant ships of the Dufei family that had been at Madock Port the day before.

Perhaps it was the pink pirate flag that caught the attention of the Dufei family’s merchant ships.

On the merchant ships, many sailors ran on deck, pointing and laughing at the Smile Angel, some even opened their trousers, mockingly thrusting their pelvis toward the Smile Angel, making obscene gestures…

At this sight, Vito spat harshly to the side.

Through his telescope, Barry’s old face grew even darker as he saw the actions of the sailors on the Dufei merchant ships. He barked at the crew in rage, “Adjust the sails and lose those bastards…”

“Barry, why lose them? We’re pirates, they’re merchant ships, aren’t we supposed to rob them? Besides, they’ve insulted our dignity. All hands prepare for battle, we’re going to make a big score, and the Smiling Angel’s campaign for fame starts with the Dufei family.”

Duge interrupted Barry with a smile. The moment the people on the Dufei merchant ship laughed, he felt a clear boost in his attributes.

Obviously.

The sight of his pink flag had brought them joy, and that was enough.

As for dignity, it was far less important than the increase in attributes.

Besides, they wouldn’t be laughing much longer.

“Paul, are you insane? That’s a Dufei family ship!” Barry’s eyes widened, “If we rob them, we’ll be hunted down by Admiral Mikaro, and besides, they have two ships…”

“The more lice you have, the less you feel, the more debts you have, the less you care. We’ve already angered Selma and Mahamadu, so I couldn’t care less about adding the Dufei family to the list. Barry, you’re too timid. Don’t forget, I have an immortal body now, I’m not the weak Paul I used to be,” Duge said with a laugh, “Just get close to them, I will take care of the rest, Vito, you’ll be my backup.”

“Alright.”

Vito quickly agreed.

This was their pre-set strategy to attract Mahamadu’s attention; without any battle exploits, it was impossible, as a pirate you had to play your role well, at least enough to make a name for yourself on a wanted poster.

Robbing the Dufei family’s ship was undoubtedly a fast track to elevating one’s renown.

And before the collaboration, he had to gain Duge’s trust.

Barry was stunned for a second, then remembered Duge’s terrifying skill of fighting ten men alone, and his confidence inexplicably grew. Maybe Paul was right, they were no longer the weak Giant Bird they used to be.

…

“F*ck, what are they doing?”

Seeing the Smile Angel suddenly speeding towards them, the sailors on the Dufei merchant ship were dumbfounded.

“If I’m not mistaken, there are only about a dozen of them on that ship, right?”

“You’re not wrong, there are indeed only about a dozen of them,” another sailor shook his head and laughed, “These foolish guys must be new to piracy, as stupid as their flag.”

“Men, prepare for battle, let’s send those clowns to hell, their very existence is an insult to the pirate world,” the first mate said dismissively, as he pulled out his pistol, “Yesterday those guys looked destitute, but their ship should fetch a good sum of money. Gunners, hold your fire, don’t damage the ship, that’s our prize now.”

“Hahahaha…”

Amidst the hearty and joyful laughter, more than twenty sailors drew their cutlasses and stood ready on the deck.

But the moment Duge leapt from the Smile Angel onto their deck.

They no longer had any laughter in them.

Duge was more agile than a monkey, his strength greater than that of a wild buffalo; almost no one lasted a full round against him.

The battle was over in less than five minutes.

And after striking them down, that fierce fellow had already leapt up, onto the other ship, dealing with the fight swiftly and decisively…

…

All of Barry’s crew were stunned.

They knew their captain was tough, but they didn’t realize he was this formidable; with just one man, he took down two of the Dufei family’s merchant ships. The fight was over so quickly it was almost enjoyable to watch.

It was the Dufei family, after all!

We’ve hit the jackpot!

The cargo and a full half-box of Gold Coins from the Dufei family’s merchant ships dazzled the eyes of every sailor on the Smile Angel, smiles climbing onto their faces.

Pirates are greedy, rough, and unruly, give them plenty of money, and they would swing their sword at God…

At this point, no one cared about the pink flag anymore.

Of course, even less about the Dufei family.

Duge had proven his strength to everyone.

Now, every crew member on the Smile Angel believed they were destined to become kings of pirates.

Praise Paul!

Praise Selma!

The treasure captured brought joy to the pirates like nothing else could.

Duge’s attributes rose once more.

The pink pirate flag, a heist, double the joy. Duge was forever the winner of life…

…

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