William returned to his cabin to rest. Since many pirates had been thrown overboard, the room, originally occupied by five people, now only had him and Vallon. Vallon was already fast asleep, snoring loudly. William, exhausted after a long day, collapsed into his hammock and quickly fell into a deep sleep.
It wasn't clear how much time passed, but gradually, William regained consciousness. He opened his eyes and saw nothing but impenetrable darkness around him, except for a faint light in front of him.
He walked closer and realized the light was coming from an intersection that seemed like an ordinary country path. The only difference was that in this pitch-black environment, there were no lights or torches, and he couldn't tell where the light was coming from that illuminated this junction.
Ahead, directly opposite from where William had come, were three wooden signboards, each with a small path behind it extending in three different directions, without any intersections.
William wasn't too surprised. This strange place had appeared in his dreams on the first night after the Denton Pirate Crew was being hunted by the Navy. At first, he didn't pay it much attention, thinking it was just a result of his anxiety over the Navy's pursuit and his worries about being a time traveler. But when the same place appeared again the following night, he realized this was not an ordinary dream—there was no reason for him to come to the same place two nights in a row, with full awareness, and still be able to clearly remember the details in the morning.
William was not an overly optimistic person. On the contrary, he was very cautious. He immediately realized that this place, just like his being a time traveler, was a secret he must keep to himself. He examined the intersection that only appeared in his dreams with great care and curiosity, trying to figure out its purpose.
The sudden appearance of this mysterious place was just as perplexing as his unexpected time travel. There were no guides or tutorials, and if user reviews existed, he would give it the lowest score and file a complaint. Unfortunately, the reality was that he could only rely on his experience after time traveling, combining clues from the signboards, to explore this place through trial and error.
William approached the first signboard on his left. As he got closer, he could see that the path behind it was obstructed by a thin fog. If he stood a little further away, it was hard to notice. He had tried it before and knew that although it seemed like a light breeze would scatter the fog, in reality, he had to meet the conditions listed on the signboard to pass through. Without meeting those conditions, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get through.
The wooden signboard had rough edges as if it had just been made. It had small characters carved into it, looking like they were done with a knife:
"Desperate Counterattack"
A true warrior fears nothing. You choose to unite the Denton Pirate Crew, become the new captain, and lead the remaining pirates to defeat the pursuing Navy, walking the path of a new pirate nobility.
Requirements: 30 Fragile Threads of Destiny, 20 Resilient Threads of Destiny, 1 Unique Thread of Destiny.
Reward: Strength, Heroic Aura.
William had read this content several times before. His gaze lingered only on words like "Path" and "Reward," which seemed to carry deep meaning, but his attention focused tightly on the key "Requirements."
These were likely the conditions for passing through the thin fog. William had tested this multiple times, and now he skillfully raised his right hand and placed it on the signboard. He could see six fine threads of silk appearing from the void. One end connected to the back of his hand, while the other extended into the darkness.
Among them, three silver threads were quite fragile. When William moved his wrist, the threads snapped, only to slowly reconnect under an invisible force. These were the "fragile" threads of destiny mentioned on the signboard.
Additionally, there was one golden thread and two silver threads that were quite sturdy. William flicked them gently with his left index finger, and they produced a musical sound like strings being plucked. The golden thread, in particular, glowed faintly with golden light, standing out. These represented the "resilient" and "unique" threads of destiny.
Each thread of destiny seemed to represent a person's fate. As they moved closer to William, their destinies became linked with his. Depending on the closeness and recognition, the connection could be strong or weak.
The three exceptionally strong threads of destiny clearly represented Gin, Aramis, and Vallon. These three were closely connected to William, forming a solid small group on the ship. It could be said they shared both honor and misfortune.
The other three fragile threads of destiny were likely the people William had interacted with on the ship. They were somewhat close to him, recognizing his abilities, but their connections were not stable and could disappear at any moment.
What saddened William was that, during his last exploration, there had been five fragile threads. He wasn't sure if it was because two people had been left behind at the dock or for some other reason, but two fragile threads had disappeared.
The threads of destiny began to fade as William moved his right hand away from the signboard. He walked over to the second signboard:
"Endure the Hardship"
Life is never smooth sailing. You choose to abandon futile resistance and surrender to the Navy. In prison, there may be another adventure awaiting you, leading to an unpredictable path.
Requirements: Find and kill someone with a unique thread of destiny.
Reward: Supporting Character Aura.
The content of this signboard confirmed William's guess that the threads of destiny were tied to people's fates.
Although William had only watched a few episodes of the anime One Piece when he was in his previous life, he still recognized some characteristics of this fantasy world, thanks to the explosion of information from the internet and the bombardment of mobile game ads. After observing for a while after his time travel, he finally realized where he had ended up.
One Piece, with its Age of Sail-like background, was a fantasy world.
The person with a unique thread of destiny was likely a major character from the original work, such as Gin. William remembered seeing a character with similar physical traits to Gin in the anime, and the thread connecting him glowed brightly, undoubtedly belonging to Gin.
William then turned to the final signboard:
"Escape the Tiger's Mouth"
The wise are more cautious. You choose to leave the pirate crew and, after escaping the pursuit of the Denton Pirate Crew and the Navy, chart your own path.
Requirements: 1 Resilient Thread of Destiny, 1 Unique Thread of Destiny.
Reward: Lightning Reflexes.
William stood in front of the final signboard for a long time because this was a new signboard that confirmed his previous suspicions. These so-called "paths" were likely manifestations of the ideas and thoughts that had vaguely surfaced in his mind, more like concrete "choices."
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