Chapter 110 The Lord of Taboo

Forbidden Lord

"Gho-Ghost Ship!"

"The legends are true! The Ghost Sea really does have a Ghost Ship!"

"We, we need to escape quickly! The Wind Capital Ship's logbook records that no sailor who entered the Ghost Sea ever escaped alive."

The sailors on the Wind Capital Ship cried out.

Some panicking crew members even wanted to lower the lifeboats and abandon the Wind Capital Ship to escape.

The old helmsman shouted, "A Ghost Ship is a Ghost Ship, what's there to be afraid of?"

"Haven't you seen a ship full of adventurers?"

"Haven't you seen the Gold-Grade adventurers here!"

After the old helmsman's rebuke, the panicking crew members calmed down considerably.

The old helmsman turned to the Crown Prince and apologized, "Your Royal Highness, I apologize for letting you and the esteemed sirs see such a spectacle."

"They are all new, they haven't seen much of the world."

"It's fine. You should take the sailors and hide back in the cabin for now. Don't come out."

"Some unpleasant things might happen next, and you won't be able to intervene."

The Crown Prince's hand was already resting on the hilt of his sword at his waist, his handsome face filled with a solemn and serious expression.

The Foreign Swordsman was the same, his combat boots making a 'thud-thud' sound as he stepped to the Crown Prince's side.

"You sensed it too?"

The Foreign Swordsman's voice was low and hoarse, muffled by his helmet.

"It's that we all sensed it!"

Heather, the Insectoid Monk, the Half-Forest Human Archer, and other Gold-Grade adventurers all stepped forward, standing side by side with them, gazing up at the ship's hull, which resembled a dark, somber cliff.

Every inch of the hull's wood was covered in thick barnacles and blackened seaweed, like festering skin, dripping with a foul-smelling, viscous fluid.

The sails had long since turned into tattered rags, hanging low, occasionally stirred by an unseen wind.

Suddenly.

An inhuman clamor came from the Ghost Ship.

It was like the wails of countless drowned victims rising from the water, yet also like some giant arthropod scraping against decaying wood.

Dense, shadowy figures silently appeared on the ship's railing.

They... no, they should be 'its'.

They weren't entirely transparent, but rather the bloated, blackened outlines of bodies that had been submerged in seawater for too long, their edges eerily twisted,

emitting a phosphorescent green glow.

These strange beings, though humanoid and wearing tattered human clothing, upon closer inspection, could not possibly be human.

Some had no eyeballs; tiny, pale sea eels swam in their empty eye sockets.

Some were missing arms and legs, having somehow attached crab claws to their bodies.

Others had no heads at all, an octopus perched on their necks, its tentacles flailing wildly.

Ghosts!

Monsters completely different from those on the Goblin Slayer continent.

"%*.—.+?/&#**"

The Ghost crew members mumbled for a while, then suddenly, ropes dangled from the ship's railing.

These Ghost crew members, their bodies bloated like giant corpses, clung to the ropes and rapidly slid down.

Some even jumped directly, plummeting onto the deck of the Wind Capital Ship, shattering into pieces, only to mysteriously reassemble themselves.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang!"

For a moment, the sounds of falling and impact were incessant.

Ghost crew members continuously descended onto the deck of the Wind Capital Ship.

"It seems a battle is inevitable. Everyone, attack!"

The Crown Prince drew the orange-quality royal sword from his waist, shouted, and led the charge towards the Ghost crew members.

The Ghost crew members roared, letting out sharp, angry cries, seawater and sand dripping from their mouths.

For a moment.

The Ghost crew members and adventurers were locked in battle.

Their attack methods were extremely bizarre; they moved across the deck with serpentine agility, skilled in clawing and biting.

Each Ghost crew member was far more difficult to deal with than a Goblin.

"Everyone, be careful! Physical attacks are useless against these guys, they can't be killed, they can't be killed!"

"Ah—my arm!"

"Don't get scratched or bitten by them! Even a tiny wound will cause frostbite or rot."

"A curse, this is a curse! Where is the Priestess? I need [Purification]! Potions are useless on me."

Screams, curses, and cries for help filled the air.

In the initial skirmish, the adventurers, lacking information, quickly suffered a great loss.

Even with Gold-Grade adventurers present, clearing the regular enemies quickly, they couldn't withstand the sheer number of Ghost crew members, who appeared almost unendingly on the deck.

"To catch the bandits, first catch their leader. I'll destroy this Ghost Ship, so it can't deploy any more small soldiers."

Seeing the situation was somewhat unfavorable, Heather leapt up, gripped her Fire Crystal Spear with one hand, and unleashed a powerful skill again, violently blasting it towards the massive Ghost Ship.

The Fire Crystal Spear broke through the sound barrier cloud, transforming into a straight, fiery rainbow.

Logically speaking.

It could easily pierce even the unbreakable scales of a Flying Dragon, let alone rotten wooden planks.

But things were just that strange.

After the Fire Crystal Spear was launched, just as it was about to hit the giant Ghost Ship, the tattered ship planks actually opened like jagged teeth, allowing the Fire Crystal Spear to shoot into the pitch-black interior of the ship, then closed again.

"My Fire Crystal Spear—was—was eaten?"

Heather, who had always been invincible, was stunned.

What exactly just happened?

Her weapon was actually swallowed by the Ghost Ship.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"

At this moment, the huge barnacles attached to the Ghost Ship's surface opened like mouths, shooting out highly corrosive viscous fluid. With their large numbers, the fluid rained down like a storm, engulfing Heather, who was still in mid-air and hadn't landed yet.

"Heather, be careful!"

Doria cried out in alarm, quickly waving her staff and summoning a wind wall to shield Heather from the damage.

Just then, the Ghost Ship, like a giant living organism, whipped out black kelp-like tendrils, lashing out at everyone on the deck of the Wind Capital Ship.

The adventurers, who were originally preparing to slay a dragon, were instead caught off guard by a mere Ghost Ship.

"Brave warriors, your courage, your strength, your dedication have been recognized by the King! I hereby confer upon you the title of Royal Knights!"

The Crown Prince raised the magnificent royal sword in his hand, and a golden circle expanded outwards from him, bestowing a positive buff upon everyone.

Immediately, the retreating adventurers felt a surge of powerful strength from deep within their hearts.

"This won't do. I'll go perform a decapitation strike and eliminate the mastermind behind the Ghost Ship!"

The Foreign Swordsman said to the Crown Prince, then pushed off the ground, launching himself like an arrow towards the Ghost Ship.

Along the way, he encountered a large number of Ghost crew members jumping down to block him. The Foreign Swordsman drew the katana from his waist and instantly slashed dozens of times,

the sharp sword light even leaving faint cracks in the air.

"Crash!"

The dismembered Ghost crew members continuously fell, smashed onto the deck, then reassembled and revived, continuing to join the battle.

"Physical attacks are completely ineffective, magic attacks are effective but not very much so. They are immune to wind cutting and fire burning. The only effective method is the Earth Mother God Priestess's [Purification]!"

Doria's doll-like face grew increasingly solemn.

Even her magic couldn't completely kill these strange beings.

Only when a few of the Earth Mother God Priestesses among the adventurers cast the [Purification] miracle, with two large hands of light reaching out from nothingness, could the Ghost crew members be completely annihilated.

This resulted in several Gold-Grade adventurers, despite their high combat power, having no way to utilize it, being completely suppressed.

"This can't go on."

"The Ghost crew members are getting more and more numerous, crowding us so much that we have no standing room on the deck."

"Are we really going to have to abandon the Wind Capital Ship and take small boats deeper into the Ghost Sea towards Dragon Island?" the Crown Prince said with a grim expression.

The Insectoid Monk replied, "Impossible. Without the Wind Capital Ship, even if we could reach Dragon Island, we wouldn't be able to return."

They were being forced back constantly.

It was strange, even though the Ghost crew members were no match for the Gold-Grade adventurers, the situation remained grim.

Even if the Crown Prince used his ultimate move to clear the area, slaying a hundred or so Ghost crew members with one sword, these Ghost crew members would quickly revive.

"Speaking of which—where's Naruto?"

"Maybe he has a way!"

Doria and Heather stood back to back, constantly waving their staffs, resisting the approaching monsters.

Heather, without her Fire Crystal Spear, was still formidable, like a female warrior. Each punch and kick could blow up a Ghost crew member.

The Crown Prince shook his head and said, "I know about Naruto-dono's information. Although he possesses unparalleled bravery, capable of being an army unto himself, he can't kill these troublesome ghosts. He'll just be worn down to death!"

Everyone fell silent, their hearts sinking to the bottom.

At the same time.

In a certain cabin, Naruto's Shadow Clone, sensing the Wind Capital Ship's vibration, immediately realized something unexpected had happened. So, he automatically dispelled himself, allowing his memories to return to the main body, notifying Naruto to come back.

Before long, Naruto's main body appeared out of thin air in the cabin.

"Something happened?"

Just as he was thinking, a pop-up window appeared.

[Forbidden Sea]

[Source World: Goblin Slayer]

[Recommended Level: 35-80]

[Description: According to the Wind Capital Ship's sailing manual, this is a forbidden place known as the Ghost Sea. Even the most experienced sailors, if they venture in rashly, will become lost within it until they turn into immortal Ghost monsters.]

"Level 35 to 80, is the level span that wide?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

A large level span meant that this Underground City dungeon was extremely dangerous and completely unsuitable for grinding and leveling up.

Because you might encounter monsters that a Level 35 can handle, but also encounter bosses that even a Level 80 might not be able to defeat.

Indeed.

After refreshing the dungeon, the dungeon quest also appeared.

[Main Quest: Forbidden Lord]

[Quest Content: Legends say a terrifying sea monster lives in the Forbidden Sea. It is the father of the Sea Serpent Dragon, the culprit behind the Wind Capital Ship's disappearance in the Forbidden Sea, one of Dragon Mother Tiamat's heads, and also the current BOSS of this Underground City. Its name is—North Sea Giant Monster Kraken! Eliminating the Kraken is the only way to dispel all the Ghosts!]

[Quest Reward: Black-Iron Grade Underground City Key * 1, 80,000 EXP, 5,000 Exchange Coupons]

[Hidden Quest: Lost Ghost Ship]

[Quest Content: The Forbidden Lord has imprisoned every living being who died in this sea, binding and enslaving them for thousands of years. It's time to liberate them, let their souls return home, let the Wind Capital Ship's age of sailing officially end, and then let the wind raise the sails again.]

[Quest Reward: Ghost Ship * 1 (Gold-Grade), 20,000 EXP, 5,000 Exchange Coupons, Rare Title "Ghost Friend"]

One main quest, one side quest; the two quests combined were 100,000 experience points.

"More importantly—a new Underground City Key. Although it's only Black-Iron Grade, it's still a new world!"

Naruto was still looking forward to what new world the Black-Iron Grade Underground City Key would bring him.

"Bang!"

The sounds of fighting outside grew louder and louder.

Naruto casually waved his hand, consolidating all the pop-up windows into [Messages], then strode out.

Leaving the cabin and arriving on the deck, what greeted his eyes were the adventurers forced back into a corner, and Ghost crew members almost completely filling the entire deck.

The Wind Capital Ship was built quite large.

But with several thousand Ghost crew members packed together, it immediately looked like a sardine can.

"It's Naruto, he's here!"

"Naruto, be careful, these monsters can't be killed!"

"They are the legendary Ghosts, and if you get scratched or bitten by these monsters, your body will rapidly rot, and ordinary potions are useless."

"Don't get surrounded by the Ghosts, come over quickly."

Heather, Doria, and others shouted, reminding Naruto.

"Ghosts? So that falls under the category of undead, then."

"In that case—"

Naruto saw the Ghost crew members swarming towards him and calmly put on his [Shinigami] title.

"Kneel!!"

In an instant.

The Ghost crew members, who had given all the adventurers, even the Gold-Grade ones, goosebumps and left them helpless, all knelt in unison before Naruto.

"!!?"

Everyone was shocked.

On the deck, the Ghost crew members who had just been fighting fiercely, showed no resistance at all, directly surrendering to Naruto.

"Na—Naruto-dono—how did you do that?"

The Crown Prince and the others turned to look at Naruto, and instantly, their faces all changed dramatically, their expressions either terrified, fearful, or disgusted.

adventurers with weaker mental fortitude were already trembling in fear, constantly backing away.

In their eyes, the sunny, cheerful blonde youth had completely disappeared, replaced by a dark, twisted,

indescribable shadow, exuding cold, terrifying, tentacle-like crimson mist that continuously encroached in all directions, carrying the aura of death.

If you gazed at him, it was like gazing into the abyss, and the abyss was also gazing into you!

"No, Naruto-dono—dono is too terrifying—"

"Ugh—"

"I'm experiencing a dual discomfort, both soul and body!"

The Insectoid Monk leaned over the ship's railing and vomited profusely.

The Crown Prince frowned tightly. The court etiquette he had learned since childhood allowed him to restrain himself from appearing too rude.

Even so, that fear and disgust still surged like giant waves.

"Wha-What exactly is going on—"

The Crown Prince frowned tightly, his body instinctively backing away.

But when his peripheral vision caught sight of Heather and Doria, he froze.

Doria not only showed no disgust but her eyes sparkled, muttering "So handsome."

As for Heather, on one hand, her mental fortitude was exceptionally strong, and on the other, her favorability towards Naruto was quite high, so she also endured it.

Naruto ignored everyone's reactions, like a king among the undead, surrounded by the Ghost crew members, he walked towards the bow, looking at the giant Ghost Ship before him.

The pop-up window above the Ghost Ship clearly displayed four large characters: Forbidden Lord!