Two young girls, seemingly unfazed, casually dragged a corpse towards them, as if they were accustomed to it. Zhang Haiyan and the others found themselves in the path where the girls were disposing of the body, and they had no choice but to keep retreating. The girls approached quickly, and with the corpse lying across their path, they had no option but to lie down among the pile of bodies.

He Jianxi’s face was pressed against the cold body, and he was frightened enough to try to get up, but Zhang Haiyan held him down firmly. After the corpse was discarded, the girls did not say anything further. The sea breeze carried the sound to Zhang Haiyan’s ears, but he couldn’t hear clearly. As the wind blew, the spotlight on the ship’s mast turned, casting light over the area. Zhang Haiyan saw that the two girls looked very similar, wearing tight-fitting cropped tops. They had stunning figures, delicate and slender limbs, and both had shoulder-length hair, but their faces were covered with masks.

He recognized the masks; they were the same kind he had worn before while playing the role of a plague god at sea. The masks only revealed their mouths, so the people on the ship remembered the plague god only for the blades that were hidden within. The masks bore the painted faces of dragon maidens, adorned with various patterns. During coastal rituals, there were many stalls, and he had bought quite a few.

One of the girls began to search the body, pulling out documents and money, which she stuffed into her pocket. The light turned back, illuminating the scene for a brief moment. From his position, Zhang Haiyan could see through a narrow gap that the girl crouching down had slightly longer hair, which danced in the wind, making her look quite attractive, even with the mask on.

At this distance, Zhang Haiyan could easily spit out a blade and pierce what should have been a decent-looking face. After that, he raised his head, and the other girl was also within three meters. However, for some reason, he found the girl’s standing posture somewhat familiar. He refrained from making a move.

The two girls did not linger; they placed something beneath the corpse and turned to leave. Zhang Haiyan and He Jianxi sat up, with He Jianxi scrambling out of the pile of bodies, leaning against the ship’s railing to vomit over the side. The stench of blood and the smell of death made him feel nauseous, while Zhang Haiyan stood among the corpses, filled with confusion.

“What happened on this ship?” He Jianxi asked him. Zhang Haiyan examined the wounds on the corpse; they were small but very deep cuts on the neck, nearly severing it and damaging the brainstem. He found the wound familiar and was filled with various questions, but he couldn’t recall what kind of weapon could have caused it. It just felt very familiar.

“It could be pirates. The attack was so brutal, and the little girls acted swiftly; they clearly have been trained,” Zhang Haiyan speculated. In the South Seas, pirates often didn’t have ships, unlike the Caribbean pirates. They would blend in on ships, disguising themselves as entertainers or merchants, hijacking merchant vessels and demanding ransom from shipowners. Generally, if communication went smoothly, pirates wouldn’t harm the passengers, but they would invariably kill all the able-bodied guards on board. This was very similar to today’s actions.

Pirates in this region were hereditary, and children were taught to kill from a young age. So, it was not surprising to see young girls involved, but these two girls clearly did not have the demeanor of pirates. Moreover, over a decade ago, repeated crackdowns by the Qing court and warlord offices had nearly eradicated piracy in the South Seas, so the sudden appearance of pirates, especially on the Nan’an ship, made no sense.

“Pirates?” He Jianxi fell down, wiping his mouth weakly and said, “Then we need to report this to the people on the ship.”

“Wait a minute, they killed so many people, yet they didn’t throw them into the sea; there must be another reason,” Zhang Haiyan said, looking at where they had gone. That was the ship’s inner cabin; the deck was occupied by guests in the VIP cabins, while the inner cabin housed workers and lower-class passengers. The two little girls were heading downwards.

One of the girls moved in a way that felt so familiar—where had he seen it before?