Chapter 144: The Pirate Captain

The time Long Er had fought for was precious.

He dared not delay any longer, throwing open the door to a cabin and shouting Li Momo’s name as he searched.

The three who had changed into their disguises arrived to rendezvous with him. Officer Xiao, still weak and deathly pale, panted as he struggled to keep up.

A large number of guards had already gathered on the second deck. Listening to the commotion above, Long Er quickened his pace to the stairs, pulled out a length of fishing line, and tied one end to the pin of a grenade.

A simple tripwire trap was set.

After setting the trap, he looked at the three who had followed him and said, "We have to find her together. We’re looking for a woman named Li Momo, she has purple-dyed hair."

"Li Momo?" The chatterbox’s eyes widened. "Isn't our target named Mo Fei? And he’s not a woman, right?"

Qing closed his eyes in despair and jabbed his elbow hard into the man’s stomach. "Just shut your mouth."

The chatterbox groaned in pain, doubling over while clutching his abdomen.

"Mo Fei? He’s on this ship too?" Officer Xiao blurted out in surprise upon hearing the name.

"You know Mo Fei, too?" The chatterbox wheezed, trying to talk through the pain. "Officer, don't tell me you’re here to protect him too? Is this Mo Fei some kind of big shot? The intel didn't mention anything about that."

"Hurry up." Long Er glanced at the pale Officer Xiao. "You’re in my group, and you two take the other. Let’s find Li Momo first."

At this point, the two newcomers almost instinctively chose to follow Long Er’s lead. Since the man was capable of protecting the officer, he couldn't be a bad guy, and since he had experience and shared the same target, they would do as he said.

The four moved through the various cabins, engaging enemies without hesitation whenever they crossed paths.

The tripwire on the stairs was triggered within two minutes, the thunderous roar of the grenade echoing throughout the medical ship.

The firefight had officially begun.

If it were a one-on-dozens scenario in an open field, Long Er might have felt some pressure. But in the complex layout of the ship, it was the perfect environment for one man to hold off an army.

Long Er had no fear of friendly fire; he simply fired at anyone he saw holding a gun. When suppressed by heavy fire, he would throw a grenade to create an opening, then rush out to finish them off. Even with Officer Xiao as dead weight, he still moved with ease.

Mo Fei, sitting in cabin eighteen, knew Long Er’s operation had been exposed when he heard the gunfire and explosions outside. He sat cross-legged in the cage, supporting his head with a sigh.

He was starving.

This godforsaken medical ship provided nothing but glucose—just enough to keep him breathing, nothing more.

His pistol had been handed over to Long Er when he boarded, so Mo Fei pulled a small, self-fashioned micro-bomb from his pants and pressed it against the cage lock.

As he did this, the other captives in the adjacent cages, alerted by the sounds of the explosions, watched him with wide, hungry eyes.

With the detonation of the micro-bomb, the lock shattered.

Mo Fei stepped out of the cage, and the surrounding captives erupted into a frenzy. Chinese, Burmese, English, Thai—various languages filled the cabin as dozens of hands reached out from the cages, desperate for a chance at life.

Mo Fei took a deep breath.

"Hard to Kill" was a great trait; even after being blasted by a rocket launcher and suffering from hunger and cold, he could still keep moving.

*Super long battery life. I’ll outlive them all.*

As he thought this, he took one step and immediately collapsed.

The thud was heavy.

Mo Fei curled into a ball like a shrimp on the floor, gritting his teeth as he opened his character card.

Sure enough, his dear "Joker" had exited the stage.

[Identity: Pirate Captain]
[Active: Ship Piloting Mastery (The captain holds the direction; when the helm is in your hands, the world is in your hands!), Seamanship (You’re only a pair of gills away from being a merman; be careful, the ones who drown are always the ones who can swim.)]
[Passive: Adventurous Spirit (Thrilling adventures are the lifelong pursuit of every pirate; when you lose this spirit, you are not far from being captured.), Fortune in Misfortune (Perhaps "bouncing back from rock bottom" is more fitting; there is always a glimmer of hope in everything.)]
[Retained Skills: Moth to the Flame, Human Anatomy Mastery, Best Partner, Magic Mastery, Aura of Fear, Meat Cooking Mastery, Demolitions Expert]

After carefully reviewing the list, Mo Fei didn't know how to evaluate this card.

If he called it unlucky, both active skills seemed quite useful for this mission. If he called it lucky, "Hard to Kill" was gone.

He wore a mask of pain.

And what was the point of keeping "Demolitions Expert"? He’d used it all up; there was no room for it to shine after returning home. He swore that if he survived this, he would never go abroad again!

Mo Fei painfully climbed to his feet, his internal organs aching and his stomach acidic from hunger.

"Is Li Momo here?" Not seeing Long Er, Mo Fei still remembered his purpose for being on the ship.

He checked the cages one by one.

The people inside were desperate to escape, reaching out to grab him. The scene looked like hell on earth.

Mo Fei was the only human walking through hell.

As he checked the cages, he noticed one where no one reached out or wailed.

He leaned in closer. A person was curled up in the corner of the cage, head bowed, barely breathing.

He had a premonition that he’d hit the jackpot.

"Li Momo?" Mo Fei called out.

The figure in the cage swayed, seemingly reacting to the name.

Mo Fei looked through the dim light of the cabin. The woman’s hair had a faint, purple tint.

That old-fashioned color, that hair length—it was her.

Mo Fei felt the lock on the cage, pulled another micro-bomb from his pants, and pressed it against the mechanism.

With an explosion, the cage door swung open. He pulled the door wide and looked at the woman’s face. It was indeed Li Momo.

"Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket when I get back," Mo Fei muttered, giving himself a thumbs-up while offering a silent prayer for Long Er.

Searching for ages only to find her in the same cabin as him—Long Er, how embarrassing for you.

Mo Fei gritted his teeth and tried to drag her out.

Li Momo was an adult, weighing at least a hundred pounds or more, and without her cooperation, she was incredibly heavy.

He wished she had even a shred of consciousness.

Mo Fei felt like he was coughing up blood by the time he finally dragged her out of the cage.

"Listen, sister, just getting on this ship was hell-mode difficulty; could you please stop making it harder for me?" Mo Fei panted, hoisting her arms over his shoulders and moving forward with great difficulty, half-carrying her.

Li Momo’s head rested against his back, her lips still twitching.

She wasn't dead yet, but she was close.

The gunfire outside grew louder until, with an even greater explosion, the cabin door was blown off its hinges. A figure appeared, backlit by the hallway lights, looking like a savior descending from above.

"Ah—" Mo Fei let out a wail, "You're finally here!"

"Mo Fei?" A strange face appeared before him. The person held up a phone to compare. "It really is him. No filters, huh."

Mo Fei felt his brain buzzing. "Who the hell are you?"