True Apocalypse Game

It was the plankton within the garbage drift, glowing fluorescently in the night!

Then, a great whale suddenly breached nearby, soaring out of the sea in a perfect arc. It swallowed countless glowing plankton and bits of debris before crashing back into the water with a long, melodious cry.

Shen Feng couldn’t help but marvel. ’This massive garbage drift has become a complete, enormous ecosystem, supporting countless life forms.’

Including the humans who were barely clinging to life.

The scavenging continued all night. By early the next morning, the pirates couldn’t find any more tires or door panels to use as rafts for their haul, so they had no choice but to stop.

Still, they were satisfied with their haul.

Each pirate had a veritable mountain of junk, piled high with useful plastic bottles, cans, tires, straws, keyboards, billboards, and other items, all filled to the brim.

Each of these piles of loot was nearly the size of the pirate ship itself. Tethered to the vessel by thick cables, they made the ship seem small in comparison.

After dawn, the wind shifted slightly. The massive garbage drift began to float away toward the deep ocean, moving away from the pirate ship.

The pirates watched the garbage drift depart. Though their eyes were filled with longing, they didn’t make any rash, greedy moves.

In Old Bill’s words, while it was an endless treasure trove, it was also a place of death. They could only scavenge at the edge of the "ore belt," never venturing too deep. Deeper in, it was said that the vast quantities of flotsam had compacted into land-like Floating Islands. But there was nothing there—only debris packed solid to a depth of several, or even dozens of, meters.

If their ship were to get trapped in a place like that, they would starve to death.

After all, these "minerals," despite their immense value, could only be used, not eaten.

After watching the massive "ore belt" drift into the distance, Old Bill saw the dejected looks on the pirates’ faces. He quickly rallied himself and shouted:

"Don’t get too greedy, everyone! We’re already incredibly lucky! This isn’t the only ore belt in the sea; we’ll find another one someday! The merciful Captain has bestowed his own share upon us! Right now, our priority is to follow the Captain’s orders and head to the nearest AN-13 Floating Island Market immediately!"

He then turned respectfully to Shen Feng, who was sitting on the sofa, and invited the Captain to address them.

Shen Feng waved a hand and said simply:

"Set out."

The crewmen immediately adjusted the sails. Then, taking their seats on either side of the ship, they grabbed the long oars and began to row with all their might toward the Floating Island Market.

Even though they hadn’t rested all night, the sight of the giant "ore mountains" being towed behind the ship lit a fire in their hearts. They were far too excited to even think about sleeping.

They’d struck it rich. This time, they’d really hit the jackpot!

Finding a floating ore belt was a once-in-a-lifetime event that every sailor dreamed of. It was far more rewarding than raiding ships, an opportunity that might never come again.

This time, every single one of them was going to be rich.

Towing a dozen small mountains of junk should have slowed the pirate ship to a crawl, but with the crewmen rowing their hearts out, its speed barely dropped.

By that afternoon, they could already see a cluster of structures on the water in the distance, with ships coming and going around them.

From what they could see, the place was bustling with activity—there had to be several thousand people.

Shen Feng felt a small measure of relief.

’If the sea levels rose slowly,’ he thought, ’then even if civilization has crumbled to the brink of extinction, there should still be a decent number of survivors.’

’Besides, a new generation, born after the apocalypse, has probably come of age by now.’

’As long as you can find a foothold on the ocean, food isn’t scarce.’

By now, Old Bill had lowered the black Pirate Flag from the mast and replaced it with a red banner bearing the image of two clasped hands.

"Captain, the red flag with the clasped hands means we’ve come to trade. As long as we fly it, the unwritten law of commerce says no one can attack us near the Floating Island Market. Anyone who breaks that rule will have everyone else coming down on them."

Old Bill was no longer surprised by his captain’s lack of worldly knowledge and explained respectfully at Shen Feng’s side.

Shen Feng nodded slightly.

’A law of trade makes sense. It would be stranger if there wasn’t one.’

’After all, if humanity is to survive, some semblance of order is necessary.’

’The Floating Island Market is one such place of order.’

When the ship of the Beast King Pirate Group appeared outside the Floating Island Market, towing a dozen massive ore mountains, people on the surrounding boats cried out in astonishment.

Soon, their ship arrived before the huge metal gates of the Floating Island Market. A pirate shouted:

"Open the gates! We’re the Beast King Pirate Group, here to trade!"

Shen Feng now realized that the Floating Island Market was built entirely on a massive oil rig.

’An oil rig can float on its own, so it’s actually a pretty good choice.’

However, all the machinery on it had been stripped away, leaving only the floating platform itself.

The inhabitants had also expanded out from the rig, using a haphazard collection of buoyant junk as a foundation. The entire structure looked to be about the size of a football field.

Hearing the pirates’ call, several guards on the "city gate" peeked over. After a moment of surprise, they opened the metal gates, revealing a channel wide enough for the pirate ship and its mountains of junk to pass through.

The pirates rowed with renewed vigor, and the ship of the Beast King Pirate Group, towing its dozen-odd mountains of junk, slowly entered the Floating Island Market.

Once inside, Shen Feng saw that while the oil rig formed the core of the Floating Island Market, a series of circular channels had been created around it using all sorts of flotsam. The center formed a sort of docking bay where ships could moor.

The entire Floating Island Market was covered in sheet metal shacks and tents, clear evidence of a permanent population.

The "ore mountains" brought by the pirates had sent the entire Floating Island Market into an uproar. Hundreds of people poured out from all corners of the market, crowding around the docking bay to gaze at the dozen-odd mountains, their voices a chorus of impressed clicks and murmurs.

The pirates on board couldn’t wait to start bragging to the onlookers about the massive floating ore belt they had found and the size of their haul, which drew cries of envy from the crowd.

This, in turn, brought the pirates immense satisfaction.

But for all their bragging, they never forgot their reverence for their captain. They waited for Shen Feng’s command before disembarking to trade on the Floating Island Market.

The pirates, with Old Bill at their head, all looked to their captain with eager anticipation, awaiting his command.

Shen Feng gave a slight nod, signaling that they were free to go.

The pirates immediately erupted in cheers of "Long live the Captain!" They leaped onto the platforms of the Floating Island Market and, dragging their personal ore mountains behind them with ropes, were instantly mobbed by eager merchants and residents, and the on-the-spot haggling began.

The entire Floating Island Market was electric. A trade of this magnitude hadn’t been seen in years. Usually, they traded in common flotsam and cheap scraps. But items from a floating ore belt? That was the good stuff, guaranteed!

Old Bill made an apologetic gesture toward Shen Feng before eagerly heading off to trade as well.

For many of the best items, they didn’t even need currency; they could simply barter for whatever they wanted.

The pirates were already driving hard bargains. Shen Feng stepped onto the Floating Island Market himself and began searching for his own target.

The wanderer of the seas, the carrier of civilization, the Minstrel.