Chapter 155: Cooperation Without Trust

With the sound of a small bell, a holographic projection automatically popped up from the wristwatch; Feng Xue glanced at the forum—a regional team-up section—where over a dozen red-marked posts dominated the homepage, and further scrolling revealed older posts marked as completed.

Feng Xue did not rashly open any red-marked posts; instead, he systematically opened those marked as fully assembled, confirming the team-up procedure.

The Seekers' Association provided encrypted communication channels specifically for Seekers, clearly acknowledging that these Seekers likely distrusted one another; Feng Xue mentally rehearsed his words before speaking:

"Join the channel, but don't forget to encrypt."

"Don't worry, Master—I'm using my main body's weather satellite as a relay; no one can crack it!"

After receiving partial divine power from the Moon Goddess and the Sea God, Xiao Lingdang's biases grew more pronounced; as soon as it opened its mouth, it offered up equipment it had long kept locked away.

Feng Xue merely smiled faintly, his gaze shifting to the region's encrypted channel, where by now several others had already joined.

Feng Xue casually scrolled through the codenames, while Xiao Lingdang split the screen to display each codename's associated forum information—

【Plague Doctor】: A hacker-type profession skilled in puzzle-solving, occasionally exchanges low-level pre-civilization cipher-breaking techniques; previously used dye-balls were his invention.

【Star Seeker】: Operates an armed trading guild, holds official status over the Free, Jade, and Coral archipelagos, frequently accepts commissions from other Seekers and can acquire many restricted items.

【Abyss】: Specialized in underwater combat, a veteran Seeker who has participated in countless underwater ruin explorations, with seven documented independent expeditions.

【Iron Curtain】: Owns a heavy-firepower warship that once directly sank three Admiral-class divine-art vessels and escaped unscathed.

【Ash】: An information broker who occasionally works as a bounty hunter; sources are unusual, suspected of worshipping a deity with information-related authority.

…

Feng Xue's gaze swept across each name, but before he could finish reading, a line of text popped up:

【Iron Curtain】: "Our main cannon needs ninety seconds to charge; hold them off during that time, and I'll guarantee a path."

"This guy must think we're all idiots," Fen Na muttered under her breath, yet the characters flashing into the channel were far more direct than Fen Na's comment.

Watching the Seekers begin to bicker, Feng Xue pinched the bridge of his nose—but then, a highlighted avatar signaling a senior forum member suddenly lit up—

【Plague Doctor】: "I can disable the linked shield of the divine-art ships, but need at least four teams attacking from different directions—here's the decryption data."

As the text appeared, a shared file followed immediately.

Sara immediately connected to Xiao Lingdang's data stream; as the dog's pupils flickered with data, she nodded slightly: "Success probability: 78.4%. Worth attempting."

【Ash】: "In five minutes, the tide will shift southeast."

Another message popped up, followed by an explanation:

"When dusk turns to night, the Sea God's power surges with the tide; combined divine-art techniques require adjustment during this phase—this is a rare opportunity."

Watching the veteran Seekers converse as if speaking to themselves—seeming to settle on a plan, yet not quite finalizing it—Feng Xue was unsurprised; in truth, Seeker cooperation always worked this way: everyone shared publicly available plans, and those with ideas would naturally leverage others' plans.

Communication and tacit understanding were unnecessary—if someone were trustworthy, they'd have already coordinated privately and wouldn't be posting on the forum at all.

Feng Xue slowly scrolled up the channel, mentally reviewing each plan, then picked up the tortoise shell and entered stillness…

"Kan represents water; the sixth-fourth line stirs…"

Xiao Lingdang interpreted the hexagram; Feng Xue's eyes narrowed: "Cooperation possible… but beware betrayal…?"

Looking at the hexagram, Feng Xue pondered briefly, then said:

"Xiao Lingdang, replot the sea chart, predict the movements of these senior figures—we'll find an entry point… five… no, three minutes from now, charge!"

"Understood, Master." Xiao Lingdang began calculations; Fen Na clenched her fists; Sara pulled up a resigned emoji and sighed:

"You really plan to cooperate?"

"I was going to act anyway—whether they move or not, I'm moving. Now I get more targets to draw fire—why not?" As he spoke, Feng Xue rechecked his gear.

First, swap the Five Elements Jade Seal for a full set: of the three main runes, the constant ones were 【Doppelganger】 and 【Yin Thunder】; the third was replaced with 【Soul Binding】.

As his exoskeleton activated, time was nearly up; suddenly, the collar around the dog's neck glowed, followed by a series of marked light points emerging—

"These are the warships I can observe; the markers are my predictions based on the earlier plan—may be inaccurate."

"That's enough."

Feng Xue stared at over seventy light points on the sea chart, pulled out a Divine Speed Talisman, and pressed it onto the Dayun; his spiritual energy spilled from his mind-sea, transformed into wind, and was solidified onto the Dayun via Soul Binding.

…

The sun's light finally sank into the sea; as night swallowed the last glow of dusk, the tide's power shifted.

Though the physical phenomenon wouldn't change so abruptly, mystical concepts reversed in that instant.

The previously ink-black Sea God's divine power surged violently; divine-art warships that had been stealthily submerged could no longer maintain dive, bursting through the surface.

Yet the divine-art fleet was accustomed to this shift; before the power destabilized, the Colonel-class warships, armored like coral, already formed a line, emitting a faint glow and linking together into a new formation.

But precisely at this moment, warships hidden elsewhere surged simultaneously into the divine-power defense line!

"Electromagnetic cannons—fire!" On the heavy warship flying the flag of steel and rock, orange light flashed in the night sky; the sea surface was sliced open by projectiles exceeding ten mach. Deep-blue shields rippled, yet the deep blue beneath the sea boiled at once.

Nine-headed sea serpents, armored titans, multi-legged behemoths… vast divine-art constructs rose from the sea, blocking the path of the divine-art warships and intercepting every following attack!

"Whirrr!"

Suddenly, a piercing hum exploded, followed by several light points visible even to the blind.

No further words were needed—anyone who had seen 【Plague Doctor】's shared data understood: aim here!

Feng Xue narrowed his eyes; the Dayun's speed had reached its limit. An orange beam shot from its electromagnetic cannon, joining dozens of other attacks converging from unknown directions, hurtling toward the nearest light point.

In that instant, Feng Xue felt only darkness; only when he saw the night sky illuminated by artillery fire from his over-the-shoulder view did he realize belatedly that someone had thrown a dye-ball.

The Dayun, enhanced by the Divine Speed Spell, swiftly passed the divine constructs temporarily blinded by the dye-ball; the divine-art warship was now less than a hundred meters away. Fen Na stood on the rail, her fused dog tail whipping rapidly; her crimson eyes, brimming with excitement, seemed to scream two words—"Boarding!"

(End of Chapter)