The muffled sound of cannon fire roused the silent night.

The battle had begun at the island's harbor.

Soon after, a messenger arrived swiftly in the valley. "Emergency! The harbor is under pirate attack! All guards, proceed to defend it immediately!"

"Quickly..."

With the messenger's arrival, several patrol captains led their men toward the harbor without hesitation.

This left the members of the Shark Bite Gang, who had been patrolling alongside them, somewhat bewildered.

"What do we do now?"

"Of course, we'll go find the captain! What else can we do?"

The sudden turn of events sent the two men running into the valley without a second thought.

After listening to their report, Welter frowned in thought. "Too coincidental, too coincidental."

He took out his pocket watch and checked the time; it was almost midnight. "Why this time of day?" Welter squinted, his interest piqued.

He rubbed his hands together, silently opened his mouth, and a bird formed from glowing lines flew away into the distance.

Just then, a blue light descended from the sky.

Sensing the danger, Welter rolled forward without hesitation.

"Boom!"

Andre, who had descended from above, slammed his fist into the ground, sending rubble and dust flying everywhere.

Seeing this, Welter immediately understood who was behind the deliberate attack on the port. Without a word, he drew a sailor's scimitar from his waist.

Raising the blade, he charged forward, a faint blue light emanating from its edge, a sign that magic could be transferred and attached to objects.

Just as the other two crew members moved to provide support, Vanessa and Elena also descended from the sky.

Elena's attack mirrored her father's, her silver, gleaming iron fist smashing down directly onto an enemy.

Several faintly glowing threads shot out, entangling Elena's target, causing her blow to strike the enemy's shoulder squarely. The enemy was instantly sent flying backward, caught by a teammate nearby.

The battle raged on.

Ed and Jason had reached the stone pillar. Ed opened the cage, and the golden-horned hammer flew out, its tentacles gently striking the pillar.

There was no chirping, no sound. It was as if the strike had no effect; the mechanism hadn't activated.

Seeing this, Jason looked at Ed doubtfully. "What's going on? Is the mechanism not working?" This was completely different from what Andre had described during the day.

"Perhaps it's because it's night?" Ed replied worriedly; he himself had no idea why it wasn't working.

At that moment, a cracking sound came from the distant stone slabs, making both of them sigh with relief.

Behind the stone statue, the ground trembled, and dust began to rise. An entrance to a tunnel appeared with the tremors, the earth above shattering and collapsing downward to reveal a large hole.

"It's done. This should be the entrance to the treasure vault," Ed said with a smile. Both of them immediately moved toward the entrance.

Suddenly, they sensed something. Ed immediately grabbed Jason and pulled him back.

A flash of light emerged from the shadows, slicing past Jason's face.

Reacting quickly, Jason slid his hand under his arm, drew a pistol from his palm, and pulled the trigger.

In the instant he aimed, the figure hiding in the shadows leaped out. A woman, completely shrouded in black, appeared before them in the moonlight. Even hidden within her tight, skin-fitting clothes, her silhouette suggested a poisonous beauty.

Jason shoved everything he was carrying toward Ed and spoke with deadly seriousness, as if ready to fight this woman to the death. "Take the bag and go down first. Our goal isn't to fight; I'll hold her back until you return."

Seeing Jason's reaction, Ed nodded. A blue card appeared in his hand, which he shoved into Jason's pocket as a trump card. After all, in a fight, even the smallest advantage mattered.

He then turned and ran into the cave behind him.

The woman instantly tried to rush forward to stop him, but two bullets struck the ground at her feet with a dull thud. Jason then drew another pistol from his waist with his left hand.

"Miss, what's the hurry to chase after him?" He called out. "Don't I look good as well? Why don't we have some time alone? Believe me, I won't disappoint you."

Hearing this, the woman straightened up. A coiled whip appeared in her hand, its tip the very blade that had almost pierced Jason.

F*ck, seems like you're a rough player,* Jason cursed as he dodged her attack.

...

Meanwhile, Ed had already slid down the cave entrance. Lucilia had gone down ahead to scout, reporting the situation below to him.

After landing, Ed took a lantern from his waist and turned a knob. Light illuminated the surroundings, revealing a clearly man-made tunnel. The walls were reinforced with wooden stakes.

Ahead stood a large stone gate with peculiar writing above it. After looking carefully, Ed immediately recognized it as an ancient script meaning "five."

He took out the items Bobby had given him and scattered them on the ground ahead. The small objects landed without triggering any mechanisms. Only then did Ed approach.

After checking that the stone gate was intact, he placed his hands on it and pushed forcefully inward. The gate slowly opened.

When it was open just enough for a person to pass through, the surroundings suddenly lit up. Iron oil lamps mounted on the ceiling ignited, illuminating the interior.

Lucilia's figure reappeared, peering inside. "I don't see anything dangerous," She said.

Only then did Ed step fully inside. The scene unfolded before his eyes.

The space wasn't large, estimated at less than twenty square meters. Countless obviously valuable items were carelessly piled on either side. Jewelry, paintings, sculptures, and specimens stored in transparent glass cases sat nearby, all covered in thick dust and dense spiderwebs. They looked more like junk than treasure.

Ed immediately noticed a prominently displayed disc with an insect design.

Seeing this, Ed immediately pulled a cloth bag from his waist. This peculiar bag was the one Andre had brought from the Hidden Island, and it was far from ordinary.

He opened the yellowish bag and began stuffing the surrounding treasures inside, starting with the disc. No matter how much Ed put in, the bag never seemed to fill.

This was exactly what Andre had prepared, a means to quickly loot treasures and prevent the enemy from reacting. Although it was nowhere as good or convenient as his own Inventory, for most people in this world, it could be considered a godly artifact.

Ed's hands flew as he continuously stuffed treasures into the bag. Of course, whenever he found anything particularly interesting, he didn't forget to slip it into his Inventory.

After all, he was the only one in the treasure vault; who would know if he took something extra? There was no harm in claiming a little bonus share. He was, technically, the one who found it.

Time was of the essence.

Just as he had looted most of the items, Lucilia's voice came from beside him. "Watch out, someone's coming in."

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