NABC Chapter 271: Heart of the Earth
Chapter 271: Heart of the Earth
“Fire the cannons!”
With the bald man’s furious roar, all the cannons on the ships fired simultaneously. The deafening sound of explosions filled the air, and fire erupted across the pirate ships.
“Boom...”
“Boom...”
“Boom...”
...
The dense barrage of cannonballs rained down across the island. When they struck the ground, they sent sand flying dozens of meters high. Houses were blown apart, and in the crowded areas, flesh and blood flew everywhere as the shells detonated.
One round of cannon fire wasn’t the end—there was a second, a third, and then a fourth round.
As the continuous blasts of cannon fire echoed, countless cannonballs fell like they cost nothing, pounding Big Lonely Island with relentless bombardment. Buildings across the island were instantly leveled to the ground, engulfed in flames. The number of dead and wounded was too high to count, with many bodies charred beyond recognition amidst the wails of the injured.
Everyone on the island was stunned by the sudden barrage.
The Windstorm hadn’t even passed, and no one expected the Black Dragon Pirate Crew to attack at this moment. The various clans on the island were caught completely off guard.
The island lord, Leng Qianqiu, scowled as he looked toward the direction from which the cannonballs were coming and roared, “Return fire! Sink those pirate ships! Whoever sinks a pirate ship will be heavily rewarded!”
Following the island lord's command, the Gu cultivators on the island rushed into the fortifications. Some ran to the cannon batteries, while others headed to the walls lined with cannons, aiming the black cannon muzzles toward the Black Dragon Pirate Crew.
A fierce exchange of fire followed as both sides engaged in a cannon battle. The continuous volleys of cannonballs lit up the sky, with explosions as dense as firecrackers and the sound leaving no gaps.
Big Lonely Island was pouring everything into this battle, having invested heavily in cannons and fortifications. They had newly constructed many cannon towers, and there were no fewer than 3,000 cannons in this direction alone. The firepower was no small matter.
The barrage of cannonballs splashed wildly across the sea, sending water plumes into the air and creating turbulent waves. Some cannonballs landed on the pirate ships, causing the ships to shake violently.
The cannon fire crisscrossed in the sky, the explosions ringing without pause, with fire and smoke everywhere—on both the island and the sea. The continuous blasts were deafening.
Long Xuan was jolted awake from his sleep by the incessant cannon fire.
“Who’s firing cannons?”
He rushed outside, not even bothering to put on his clothes. When he saw the scene outside, it was as if fireworks were lighting up the sky with constant flashes of firepower, and he was completely stunned. rä????obĚş
“What kind of firepower is this?"
The rest of the Shenlong crew were also alarmed by the intense fire. They hurried out of their rooms and froze when they saw the fierce battle raging outside.
Nie Qingcheng looked up at the fiery sky, her face dark, and said, “Damn! The Black Dragon Pirate Crew is attacking the island! How did they get here so quickly?”
“I was planning to leave as soon as the Windstorm ended, but the Black Dragon Pirate Crew couldn’t even wait for the storm to finish before attacking. Now, we’re completely trapped on the island.”
Upon hearing this, everyone’s faces grew grim, and their moods turned sour.
Whether Big Lonely Island could fend off the Black Dragon Pirate Crew remained unknown. If the island fell and the pirates broke through, they would be in serious trouble.
They hadn’t forgotten that they were in possession of the Ocean's Heart, the primary target of the Black Dragon Pirates pursuit. If the pirates managed to land on the island, they would be doomed.
Long Xuan frowned slightly but wasn’t too worried about the pirates breaking through. He had a way out.
Worst case scenario, he could retreat into the Sou Gu Hut and escape thousands of miles away. However, if he did that, he would end up being transported inland, rendering the last six months of his voyage useless.
Then, he’d have to make his way back from the mainland toward Sky Island, and by that time, it would clearly be too late.
The crew didn’t have time to be shocked as they rushed into the space inside the Earth Heart.
"Wait! Don’t leave me behind! You can’t leave me on this island to be killed by the pirates!"
Just at that moment, something seemed to slip into the Earth Heart and then disappeared.
Long Xuan rubbed his eyes. What was that just now?
---
Meanwhile, chaos reigned at the entrance to the hall where the teleportation formation was located.
"Let us in quickly! The Black Dragon Pirate Crew is about to attack! Do you really want us to die here with you?"
"Why hasn’t your teleportation formation been fixed yet? How much longer do you need to repair it?"
"I think the claim that the teleportation formation is broken is a lie! You’re doing this on purpose! I believe you deliberately sabotaged the teleportation formation to use us as cannon fodder!"
Under someone’s incitement, everyone was furious. A riot was about to break out when suddenly, the aura of a Gu King descended, suppressing the crowd. Everyone instantly fell silent, no longer daring to speak.
However, their gazes were still filled with anger, glaring at the figure in the sky with fiery eyes.
The person was the island lord’s wife, renowned for her beauty and kindness. She was known as the number one saintess of Big Lonely Island and was currently pregnant.
She never participated in the island's affairs, but she was still a genuine Gu King. Even though she was a pregnant woman, her presence alone was enough to silence the crowd.
After slowly descending from the sky, she held a Integrity Gu in her hands and spoke apologetically to the people around her: "I’m truly sorry, but the teleportation formation has indeed been broken, and it was destroyed by the Black Dragon Pirate Crew."
"According to our informants, a group of people stole the Black Dragon Pirate Crew’s Ocean Heart, and that group is on this island."
"The Black Dragon Pirate Crew is afraid that those people will escape through the teleportation formation, so they destroyed it as soon as possible."
"This is also why the Black Dragon Pirate Crew couldn’t wait for the Heavenly Wind to end completely before launching an attack on Big Lonely Island."
"Otherwise, they could have waited until you all left to attack the island. Why would they be in such a hurry? The Black Dragon Pirate Crew isn’t foolish. Why would they increase their own casualties needlessly?"
---
In the crowd, Di Xin was astonished as she looked at this pregnant woman, who was lying through her teeth. Unable to hold back, she turned to Long Xuan and asked via soul transmission, "She’s lying so blatantly, yet that Integrity Gu isn’t reacting. How is she doing this?"
Long Xuan was unsurprised. He was the ancestor of deceiving Integrity Gu and was highly skilled at tricking them. He knew many ways to fool a Integrity Gu.
For instance, during the incident at the Empress’s Ancient Tomb, Long Lie had easily tricked the Integrity Gu in his hands with a word game.
However, word games don’t apply to all lies. This pregnant woman had spoken at length, and it was obviously not a word game.
At that moment, Long Xuan thought of another possibility: the pregnant woman was telling the truth.
Since she was telling the truth, the Integrity Gu naturally wouldn’t glow.
But whether what she said was actually true was beyond the Integrity Gu’s ability to judge.
That’s one of the limitations of the Integrity Gu. It can only tell if someone is lying, but if the person has false information, the Integrity Gu is powerless.
Even if someone said that one plus one equals three and truly believed it, the Integrity Gu wouldn’t react.
So Long Xuan was almost certain that the pregnant woman was telling the truth, but this innocent woman had been deceived by the crafty island lord, making her believe false information, thereby fooling the Integrity Gu.