Chapter 323: Chapter 279: A Happy Shot, The First Drop of Blood
"Don’t engage in hand-to-hand combat—fire your guns! They’re no longer normal people; they’ve all turned into flesh-eating monsters."
"Block them quickly! If we let the coral disease spread, we’re all done for."
BANG! BANG!
The sporadic gunfire was soon drowned out by louder growls.
"They’re all mad, completely mad! Don’t eat me—AHHH—!"
CRUNCH! SLURP!
The sounds of gnawing quickly replaced the roars.
The coral disease outbreak occurred at a naval port specifically established by the Navy, far from Jamestown Royal Harbor’s main anchorage, which handled the heaviest ship traffic.
Originally, this location housed over a dozen naval warships, including the Fourth-rate Ship, the Supporter, as well as a Privateer Fleet allocated to Bill.
Some of the neglected ordinary Navy personnel were temporarily drafted by The Sea Hunter and were "fortunate" enough to escape the calamity.
The remaining ship, the Supporter, and five or six vessels crewed by the Newman Family’s trusted loyalists and Direct Lineage members were struck by severe misfortune.
Especially since the harbor defenses were weak that night, they had all been summoned from taverns and pleasure quarters, gathered at the port on standby.
Midnight had just passed when outbreaks erupted simultaneously in various barracks.
Many of the Newman Family’s private soldiers, who before sleeping had been relieved they wouldn’t have to risk the dangers of the sea, suddenly fell ill.
Once human brains were completely occupied by Barnacles, the most primitive instinct—hunger—was activated!
They went mad, bursting from their barracks and biting anyone in sight.
Even though the naval port had a full complement of patrols, they were utterly inadequate against the sudden, widespread outbreak and the uncontrollable masses of Coral People.
Once infected with the coral disease, one person would infect two.
Then two would infect ten, and ten a hundred. The entire Newman Family naval encampment transformed into a slaughterhouse.
No soldier had any energy left to pay attention to events unfolding within the city.
Strangely, amidst the chaos of the coral disease, there was no sign whatsoever of the octopus warship, the May Wind.
The source of the widespread coral disease outbreak could not be found at all.
However, an intelligence and assassination unit composed mainly of [Phantom Blade] members took advantage of the chaos, quietly slipping out of the naval port and escaping unscathed.
They changed their clothes and blended into the entertainment district, becoming indistinguishable among the drunks reveling all night.
It was the Storm Cloak, led by Gus!
In this first operation behind enemy lines, they showed not the slightest hesitation against the upper-echelon troops of the Pioneer Guiding Colonial Trading Company, striking ruthlessly.
By now, they were true rebels who acknowledged only Byron and had no regard for the King.
Meanwhile, a group of old sea dogs, long stationed at Jamestown Royal Harbor and intimately familiar with the area, kicked open the doors to the Newman Family’s treasure vaults, estates, and businesses, their arms full of plunder.
They began a frenzied looting spree.
As the turmoil in the port fully erupted.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Simultaneously, alarm bells atop the nearby lighthouse rang out urgently, and a silvery Law Network enveloped the entire city.
An invisible beam of light shot straight into the sky, automatically sending distress signals to other nearby colonies by leveraging the collective subconscious connecting all humans.
Lighthouses fueled by Whale Oil and Spices certainly had high maintenance costs, but they could truly be lifesaving at critical moments.
This had been proven by the Kingdom of Castile’s Havana when it was attacked by the Aztec Empire.
And Jamestown Royal Harbor, as a royal colony of the Kingdom of Hightins, certainly had more than just the Newman Family’s Transcendents.
The island they were on, Arawak Island, covered an area of 11,000 square kilometers and ranked fourth in size among all eastern islands, surpassed only by Yucatan Island.
Most of the Kingdom’s Nobility, Colonial Companies, and free Pioneers had their colonies on this island.
There were numerous Transcendents of various levels; while Middle Sequence Transcendents were scarce, they were not nonexistent.
The size of the colony also allowed one to gauge the overall strength of the Kingdom of Hightins among other nations.
In peacetime, they would all be obligated to reinforce each other. Those nearby or within the city would have to provide immediate support, while those farther away would need to deploy their Warships.
Unfortunately, Jamestown Royal Harbor was not so fortunate this time.
"Coral disease? The port has been locked down for half a month. Why would it suddenly break out now?"
They heard crystal clear that the attack on Jamestown Royal Harbor was a terrifying coral disease, one against which even people from the Old Continent had no resistance.
Even a Middle Sequence Transcendent, if infected, could inadvertently lose their life.
Not to mention the May Wind, whose lurking position was unknown.
They were not like The Sea Hunter, blindly loyal and foolish pawns at the beck and call of the Newman brothers. Their own lives were surely more valuable.
Even the Transcendents most loyal to the Kingdom could not help but begrudgingly think:
Since Coral People can’t move beyond two kilometers, the coral disease spreading at the port won’t reach me. The Kingdom only gives me a few pounds a month as a Transcendent’s allowance; why should I risk my life?
This was the Gao Ming in using the coral disease as an opening move in the plan to infiltrate undetected.
It was like someone walking at night who, upon encountering a robber, doesn’t shout something beneficial to everyone, like, "Fire! Help, fire!"
Instead, they naively yell something potentially harmful to others: "Murder! Help me! He’s a wanted serial killer, and he has a gun!"
Who would dare come out to help then?
Thus, whether inside the city, outside it, or in other nearby port cities, most capable Transcendents locked their doors tight.