While Lin Ruo was happily reliving the past and persecuting Roselle in the historical projection, while also digesting his Judge potion, the Future finally arrived in the waters where Admiral of Blood Senor had recently been frequently active.
However, before encountering Admiral of Blood Senor, the Future first met Admiral Hell Ludwell's Black Tulip.
From the outside, it was a sailboat similar in size to the Future, predominantly dark in color, emitting an ominous green glow that looked rather inauspicious. Additionally, a blooming Black Tulip was depicted on the Black Tulip's pale main sail, making it quite recognizable.
On the deck, Cattleya's expression showed no surprise as she watched the Black Tulip slowly approaching them. She merely glanced at Klein, who appeared very calm beside her, before continuing to look at the Black Tulip.
Klein naturally also watched the huge sailboat gradually approaching in the distance, a reply from Azik from two days ago flashing through his mind.
Aside from daily greetings and a recounting of Azik's experiences during this period, another key point in the letter was Admiral Hell Ludwell. According to Azik's narration, he would provide some assistance in their upcoming hunt for the Admiral of Blood.
This was mainly because after Azik learned of Klein's hunting plan, he was concerned whether there might be any traps from the Rose School of Thought hidden on Admiral of Blood's side. So, he took advantage of Admiral Hell's current cooperation with Admiral of Blood to have the former investigate the relevant situation, to prevent Klein from failing his hunt and instead being ambushed.
At the same time, Azik also ordered Ludwell to temporarily obey Klein's commands—for his status, this was not a big deal.
This was also why the Future and the Black Tulip met here.
As the Black Tulip approached, Klein also clearly saw the situation on board. Unlike the lively Future or the Golden Dream, the Black Tulip could not be called deserted; rather, its liveliness was misdirected—Klein could see skeletons, ghosts, and various strange Spirit World creatures moving about on its deck, but he could barely see any living people.
The only living person was probably the man standing on the foredeck at this moment, dressed in a way that clearly indicated he was the captain.
His attire perfectly matched Klein's imagination of a pirate from a certain period, the only difference being that the man's face was covered by a silver-white mask.
This mask was clearly not an ordinary decoration but some kind of mystical item. Klein stared at it for a while, then suddenly turned his head as if sensing something:
In front of the captain's cabin, on the Future's deck, a blurry black shadow quickly elongated, finally forming a Spirit Body.
The Spirit Body held something that looked like parchment in its hand and obediently presented it towards Klein.
Klein raised an eyebrow and, without hesitation, reached out to take the parchment from the Spirit Body's hand.
It wasn't that he trusted Ludwell so much, but rather that he trusted Azik, plus the Unshadowed Crucifix was currently on him, so he wasn't afraid of Ludwell playing tricks.
When Klein unfolded the parchment, he saw that it was actually a document, detailing who the Beyonder's around Admiral of Blood Senor currently were, their Sequence pathways, possible mystical items they possessed, and so on.
The Spirit Body then spoke.
"I have confirmed that there is no ambush targeting you around Admiral of Blood. He should be at…" The Spirit Body reported a more specific sea area, continuing: "There is suspected to be a Blood Emperor's ruin beneath the sea there. Senor will not leave before gaining anything."
Blood Emperor… Klein's eyebrows twitched upon hearing this, and he asked, "During this time, you and Admiral of Blood have been searching for the Blood Emperor's ruin?"
"Yes." The Spirit Body, or rather, Admiral Hell behind it, had no intention of concealing it. After all, even setting aside the matter of temporarily obeying the other party's orders, Ludwell was aware that the Death Consul stood behind Gehrman, and that Gehrman was highly favored by him, suspected to be his direct descendant.
Recalling the Death Consul whom he had the fortune to meet once, Admiral Hell Ludwell's heart trembled slightly. While trying to stabilize his emotions, he manipulated the Spirit Body to explain:
"Through some ancient texts, I discovered some hidden records. The Blood Emperor may have visited this sea area and left behind a ruin. I did indeed find some traces on the seabed, but I haven't yet confirmed whether a ruin truly exists, nor have I determined its specific location."
"I now suspect that if the ruin truly exists, its location might be in a special place, such as where the Spirit World and reality converge, and it should require some special means to open it."
Hearing Ludwell's words, Klein immediately thought of the special Elf Ruins where Sea God Kalvetua had previously stayed, which also required special means to locate. Then he thought of something else, furrowing his brow slightly, and said, "Then how did you come to cooperate with Admiral of Blood?"
Hearing this question, the Spirit Body paused for a moment before saying, "My second mate betrayed me. He had secretly colluded with Senor long ago and leaked this matter."
Ah, this… Klein didn't know what to say for a moment. If he wasn't in character, he would probably offer a few words of comfort, but since he was playing Gehrman…
Klein thought for a moment and said in a very Gehrman-like manner, "Has it been dealt with?"
Because most of those who could stay on the Black Tulip were not good people, Klein asked coldly and indifferently.
He would not sigh over the death of a scumbag.
"It has been dealt with. I have also re-cleaned the Black Tulip, but to prevent any remaining rats, I have not informed anyone about your matter," Ludwell replied.
Klein then realized—he wondered why there wasn't a single person on the Black Tulip. It seemed Ludwell was afraid of rats and simply didn't bring anyone.
However, Klein naturally didn't show this realization, only continuing, "Regarding that ruin, I want to know more information."
Although he wasn't particularly interested in Blood Emperor Alista, Klein knew about the grievances between the Blood Emperor and Lin Ruo. Now that he encountered a ruin related to him, he naturally had to learn more about it.
…
At the same time, in a sea area with a huge tent-like ship floating, located in the space where the Spirit World and reality intersected, the ruin with distinct fourth epoch characteristics was silent.
In the center of the ruin, on a seat piled with gemstones, an exquisite puppet sat there.
He seemed to be asleep, yet also seemed capable of waking up at any moment.