Chapter 996: Before the Hurricane Arrives

Ye Qing shook his head: "Who says He Lingchuan's reinforcements are only the Spider Queen? What if he has other trump cards? How long have you been on the island to be able to figure out his bottom line?" This point still held water, and Wanqi Feng had no way to refute it.

Ye Qing added: "Furthermore, our side must plant one of our people in your team."

Wanqi Song was displeased: "You don't trust us?"

A person equals a spy.

"This matter is of great importance; we must be cautious," Ye Qing explained. "This way, no matter which side encounters an accident, the other can quickly know, which is beneficial for adjusting tactics."

Having negotiated to this point, although the Wanqi uncle and nephew were unhappy, they eventually made concessions.

As for planting spies among the Beijia people, they didn't even mention it, because Ye Qing certainly wouldn't agree.

Both sides finally finished their discussion, and Ye Qing was about to leave again. Wanqi Feng asked him: "Has your main force arrived yet?"

"They have already reached Suoding Island."

Suoding Island is right on the Golden Shipping Lane, open to all merchant ships and travelers.

Suoding Island, Hot Spring Villa.

Upon receiving Ye Qing's message, a trace of a smile finally appeared on Yu Zecheng's face.

The plan was taking shape bit by bit; the Bailong people's ambush was the fuse for his operation this time.

The most important trick to taking down He Lingchuan is one word:

Chaos! One must make Suoding Island chaotic, and make He Lingchuan himself panic.

The more chaotic, the better; only then can his side fish in troubled waters and defeat the many with the few.

These Bailong people take themselves too seriously. In reality, they are just chess pieces, just cannon fodder, just a diversion, and can even be bait when necessary.

Yu Zecheng never truly relied on them. The real force behind this operation must be his own people!

"Has Little White returned?"

Little White is that white bird. If it were here, communication with Ye Qing would be much more convenient and fast.

The guard behind him immediately replied: "Not yet. Little White has been out of contact for three days; its last mission was to tail He Xiao."

Yu Zecheng gave a cold snort: "A fine He Xiao!"

Daring to mess with Beijia's demon guards? Since the man surnamed He wants to go head-to-head with him to the end, don't blame him for being impolite.

The guard hesitated before saying: "My lord, this He Xiao seems to have some tricks up his sleeve."

Yu Zecheng glanced at him, knowing what he wanted to say: Should they send a message back to Lingxu City to investigate clearly? That look made the guard immediately shut his mouth.

"He Xiao defeated Fan the Second, so of course his skills are not bad," Yu Zecheng said indifferently. "But the Fan brothers can manage the Tongxin Guard because of their loyalty, not their martial prowess! Only Fan the Eldest among the three Fan brothers is a constant victor on the battlefield; if He Xiao could defeat him, that would be true ability."

"He Xiao could go to Lingxu City and come out safe and sound, firstly because he has the Chiyan Crown Prince as a backer, and secondly because he became the focus of the whole city. Someone everyone is watching is naturally very safe," Yu Zecheng said slowly. "But there are many kinds of wisdom; some people have the wisdom to maneuver and the wisdom to seek self-preservation, but they may not have the wisdom to command a region and overcome difficulties."

It is rare for so many traits to appear in one person simultaneously.

Yu Zecheng had only seen one exception: State Preceptor Shuangye.

The guard nodded hurriedly. Listening to Lord Yu's analysis, the man surnamed He wasn't so remarkable after all.

However, there was one thing Yu Zecheng didn't say out loud:

He had his own difficulties.

There was not enough time left.

Sending a message to Lingxu City and waiting for a reply—by the time it returned, the hurricane and the Emperor's Flowing Plasma would have long since passed.

The best timing to attack Zhu Xiuer had passed, and it would be even harder to make a move later.

"Ye Qing also asked, before the hurricane arrives, should we send people to infiltrate Pansi Island?"

"No need," Yu Zecheng shook his head. "On the night of the hurricane, do you know where Zhu Xiuer will be?"

"N-not on Pansi Island?"

"Any operation must consider the timing, the terrain, and the people. We chose to act on the night of the hurricane; do you think He Lingchuan can't guess that?" He Lingchuan knew very well why he was staying on Suoding Island. "That night, Zhu Xiuer will neither be on Suoding Island nor likely on Pansi Island."

Since the Beijia people might act on the night of the hurricane, there was no need for Zhu Xiuer to foolishly stay on Pansi Island.

Why stay there, waiting to be ambushed by him? The guard thought for a moment, not understanding: "Then, where will it be?"

"How would I know?" Yu Zecheng glared at him. "There are dozens of islands and hundreds of reefs on this sea; who knows which island it will go to to take shelter from the wind!"

No matter how large Zhu Xiuer's body is, in the entire Yangshan Archipelago, it is but a drop in the ocean! "Therefore, our target can only be He Lingchuan."

They could not determine Zhu Xiuer's whereabouts, but they could be certain that He Lingchuan would definitely be on Suoding Island that night.

Only with a clear target can the mission proceed.

"Sending people to Pansi Island is a waste of combat power," Yu Zecheng said coldly. "We don't have many people to begin with, and every one of them is precious. Tell Ye Qing, on the night of the operation, we must let the Bailong people take the lead. Only after they strike first will we make our move."

For his tactics on the night of the hurricane, he would focus on acting only when the opportunity arose!

￥￥￥￥￥

At nightfall, the Blade Harbor Shipping Office suddenly issued another warning: according to more precise measurements from the movement instrument, the hurricane was highly likely to make landfall the following night.

Sure enough, it was earlier than the first prediction.

The Soul-Absorbing Mirror let out a "Wow": "Natural disasters and man-made troubles all at once, are you capable of handling this?"

Calculating the time, the Emperor's Flowing Plasma was also coming soon, and there was a hurricane tonight.

It would be one thing if the Bailong people wanted to cause trouble, but now the Beijia team was also involved.

This is what they call "misfortunes never come singly."

He Lingchuan just chuckled: "Is there ever a time when I'm not capable?"

The next afternoon, after finishing his various affairs, He Lingchuan set off for Suoding Island.

It was calm before the ship departed, but just as He Lingchuan's journey was halfway through, a sudden gust of wind hit the sea, fast and fierce.

The high winds and rough waves came unreasonably; he watched helplessly as the waves grew higher and the ship tossed more violently.

In the end, the ship tilted ninety degrees, with half the bow submerged. When the ship finally managed to climb back onto a wave, seawater poured off the deck like a waterfall.

If not for the highly skilled veteran captain hired at a high price, the ship would likely have sunk halfway.

Faced with such divine power, no cultivation base or magical ability was of any use!

After helping to tie down the items on the ship, everyone hid back in the cabin; only He Lingchuan, channeling power into his feet, stood like a nail at the bow, experiencing the helplessness of drifting with the waves and leaving his fate to the heavens amidst the gale and raging seas.

His cultivation technique required him to fight for his life amidst the waves.

Besides that, such divine power also helped him constantly remind himself:

Keep a clear head in the mortal world, and do not be blinded by the myriad phenomena of sentient beings.

The violent waves roared and struck the deck, soaking him completely.

If one has never fought the wind and waves, how can one talk about laughing in the face of life and death? Lingguang wouldn't go crazy with him and slipped away to hide with the veteran captain.

An hour later, the ship finally sailed back to the sheltered dock of Suoding Island. As soon as Dong Rui stepped ashore, his legs were shaking.

Lingguang walked onto the pier, swaying, and vomited with a "wah."

Dong Rui had been holding it in, but seeing the monkey set the example, how could he hold on any longer? The man and the monkey lined up and vomited loudly, tears and snot streaming down:

"If I ever board a ship during a typhoon again, I'm a dog!"

How wise Zhu Xiuer was to have arrived early, avoiding the suffering of the wind and waves.

The Ghost Ape kindly patted their backs, and the veteran captain jumped off the ship and laughed: "Young man, the hurricane hasn't even arrived yet; this is just the prelude."

Everyone looked out at the sea and saw the silhouettes of four or five ships, their masts and sails twisted by the strong wind, still rushing toward Suoding Island.

Every time a ship entered the harbor, special personnel ran over to help.

Suoding Island is a supply station on the Golden Shipping Lane and also a shelter when storms arrive. Seeing the weather change, experienced captains would turn their bows and come to Suoding Island to shelter from the wind.

Over the past month, the number of fleets received by Suoding Island was far greater than before, but it had never been this bustling.

An hour later, the number of ships that had reached the island had already reached thirty-seven, and fleets were still arriving from the sea in an endless stream.

In fact, most ships preferred to go to Blade Harbor to shelter, as they felt the accommodation and dock conditions there would be better. But on one hand, the wind and waves at sea were truly too strong, and they were afraid they couldn't make it; on the other hand, they were afraid the Blade Harbor docks were already full and they wouldn't be able to park, so they had to hurriedly find a place to land.

None of them expected that Suoding Island would have more than enough room to accommodate so many ships.

One of the first two major things He Lingchuan did after becoming the island master was to renovate and expand the supply docks on Suoding Island and add two more sheltered docks—

These two new docks were completed in just over twenty days because they happened to catch a major low tide, which greatly accelerated the progress, and they were put into use just in time for this hurricane. Several captains gave He Lingchuan a thumbs up, praising his foresight.

Suoding Island has a superior geographical location with several natural sheltered harbors and is one of the islands He Lingchuan focused on developing.

Qiu Hu and Min Tianxi rushed over first, their expressions grave.

He Lingchuan pulled him aside and asked in a low voice: "How is the situation?"

"I only arranged for thirty of them to go on duty on Suoding Island, but Huang Zhao's subordinates just went to Heiye Island twice; there are only a few Bailong people left in the camp, and in particular, the Wanqi uncle and nephew are nowhere to be found. Asking others in the camp, they all said the Bailong people left for the pier in twos and threes this morning, and within two hours, they were all gone."

These people even knew to go out in batches, but unfortunately, after He Lingchuan sensed their intentions, the Heiye Island camp was full of Qiu Hu's spies.

Qiu Hu had already mixed the Bailong people into the duty shifts. According to his arrangements, the Bailong people from the Heiye Island camp should not have been the ones working on Suoding Island today.

Personnel travel frequently between islands, and traffic between the Yangshan Archipelago is busy with fixed ship schedules. As long as the island authorities give a heads-up in advance, the ship captains can keep an eye on who is there and who is not.

Qiu Hu whispered: "Ships have quietly landed at the southwest end of Suoding Island."

The master had long deduced that the Wanqi uncle and nephew might choose to strike on the night of the Emperor's Flowing Plasma, but who knew a hurricane would suddenly intervene.

Now, things were getting interesting.

Where were the Wanqi uncle and nephew hiding? If they were on Suoding Island, they would definitely use the cover of the hurricane and the Emperor's Flowing Plasma to strike at He Lingchuan;

If they didn't come, they would miss the opportunity, and it was unknown when they would be able to act next, as long nights bring many dreams.

He Lingchuan nodded, and the Yin-Serpent also reported that ships had landed on the southwest beach of Suoding Island, but they couldn't count and couldn't say the exact number, only that there were quite a few.

(End of chapter)