Chapter 822: Heading to Donghuang

While I'm away, please take care of the port area.

At the inner harbor dock, Qin Ge held the hands of Enterprise and King George V, saying. Behind them, a large group of shipgirls saw them off.

As for why Emperor Frederick isn't here?

That's because after Emperor Frederick completed the ship conversion, he didn't linger and returned to the test field, swapping back to Bisimai.

"Understood, Commander. Take care of yourself out there; we'll handle things at the port area." Enterprise smiled.

"That's right, the port area is now running very smoothly, with few things needing attention. So rest assured, nothing will go wrong here." King George V laughed.

"Hmm." Qin Ge nodded, then walked past the two, smiling and waving at the shipgirls behind them.

For a moment, there were sounds of farewell and sounds of wishing an early return; though a bit chaotic, it was full of feeling.

After finally saying goodbye to everyone, Qin Ge and Belfast boarded his command ship, and on the command ship, several high-ranking officials from Donghuang and Sakura Empire, as well as a few Yujin, had been waiting for a long time.

"Commander, shall we set off now?" Yixian smiled.

"Set off." Qin Ge nodded.

As the command ship began to sound its whistle, more than ten command ships gradually left the port area, heading toward Donghuang.

"Speaking of which, this is my first time going out to sea with the Commander, but this time it's not a battle—it's a victory celebration, hehe, a bit delicate." Wuzang sat beside Qin Ge and said with a smile.

Qin Ge chuckled, "I think that's great; if in the future whenever we go out to sea together, we face not war but celebration, then truly the seas will be peaceful."

"However, asking the Commander for that is just wishful thinking; frankly, that day is still far off." Yixian said.

Qin Ge shook his head, "I believe that day will surely come; even if it's not in our time, someone will surely see it. When weapons return to the arsenal and horses are released to the southern mountains, that will be the best outcome for us."

"Hah, I don't think that would be good either; at least now we have a common enemy and can ally with other factions. If that sole common enemy disappeared, who knows how things would develop afterward?" Zhenhai said with a laugh.

"What Zhenhai said makes sense." Wuzang smiled, looked at Qin Ge, and said, "If that day really comes, which faction would you help?"

Qin Ge blinked, "I don't think that day will come; if it really did, I wouldn't mind letting the nine major factions reunite."

Qin Ge's answer made the shipgirls' eyes light up, and Bisimai even more so nodded in appreciation at him.

"The Lord's answer is truly unexpected, yet it fits the Lord's character. Still, we don't expect such a thing to happen; if it did, we could truly end all fighting, all sorrow, and enjoy that hard-won peace." Tiancheng said with a smile.

"Peace won't last forever; we must strive for it ourselves." Song Lin smiled, "From ancient times to now, war has always been the driving force of human progress; perhaps we will face more battles in the future, and then we will surely advance side by side toward victory."

"Exactly! Rather than hoping for peace, we should create it ourselves—the Commander and I share the same idea." Bisimai laughed.

"Suddenly I feel the Commander's ideas have become increasingly stern and Iron Blood‑like; while such thinking is indeed necessary, being open‑minded and accepting differences is also necessary—don't be obstinate." The nearby Zhenhai said.

Qin Ge nodded, "Don't worry, this is just a standard; if I always held this view, I wouldn't go to Donghuang or Sakura Empire."

"Hmm, that's good; I also believe the Commander will discern the situation and make the correct decision." Zhenhai said.

Not far away, Yujin's Flying Dragon nodded at this scene, and nearby Reputation said, "Looks quite fitting."

The Flying Dragon grunted, "After all, it was recommended by that esteemed person."

"Actually, setting aside that person's influence, I think he's not bad—at least he can earn the sincere approval of many in the port area, and our impression of him is quite good, which is already quite rare." Reputation said.

"I say, is it appropriate for you two to be loudly discussing these problems here?" The nearby Retort said.

"They can't hear us." The Flying Dragon blinked, then said.

"Well, as long as you're happy." The Retort shrugged.

The command ship continued sailing; since there are no Sirens in the nearby waters, it proceeds at top speed. What originally took more than a week to reach Donghuang has now been greatly shortened.

However, compared to the time previously spent returning from the Atlantic Ocean to Guandao, this period basically amounts to a vacation.

These past two days, Qin Ge has been idle—either chatting with the shipgirls in the command room's grand hall, or going up to the command ship's deck to keep them company while they sunbathe; saying it's boring, it really is boring.

Fortunately, a few big foxes keep him company—when idle, he pinches one fox's tail or strokes another's ears, which sometimes feels quite pleasant.

Akagi and Kaga also come by to hang out, but perhaps because Qin Ge has always been with Tiancheng, they dare not act too radically in front of him, though verbal teasing is definitely unavoidable.

Finally, after several days of travel, everyone entered the waters of Donghuang; shortly after entering the Donghuang sea area, they encountered the Donghuang welcoming party.

"Commander Qin Ge, welcome back to Donghuang." Ninghai said with a smile.

"Hello, Ninghai, long time no see." Qin Ge smiled, "How is Donghuang's recovery now?"

The previous Siren Tide caused relatively large losses for Donghuang; basic infrastructure has mostly been restored, but combat strength temporarily cannot recover. At the very least, we, like other factions, have had to fall back to near‑shore defense; fortunately, there has been no Siren invasion during this period, otherwise even these actions would be delayed. Ninghai said.

Hmm, according to the latest intelligence I've received, the Sirens also suffered heavy losses from their previous attack and need time to recover, so this period can be well used to consolidate and strengthen our strength. Qin Ge laughed.

If that's the case, that would be great. Come back to Donghuang with me first—Yixian elder sister has been waiting for your return. Ninghai laughed.

Hmm.