Chapter 302

"My lord!"

"My lord!"

"Are you all ready?"

"Yes, my lord—the knight squad and griffin squad are assembled, and all four hundred guards have been fully gathered!"

"Good, then let's depart!"

Before the front courtyard of Baofeng Castle, having confirmed his subordinates were assembled, Gervas gave the order to move out.

"Yes, my lord!"

Lei Meng received the order, but just as he turned to leave, he subtly sensed something unusual and stared wide-eyed back at his lord.

"My lord, you… you've broken through?"

"You noticed, Lei Meng!" Gervas smiled and nodded.

Lei Meng's face broke into disbelief and delight.

The moment he saw his lord, he had sensed something different.

But this was his own lord—if he had boldly probed with perception, it would have been an offense.

That's why he had cautiously asked.

He never expected the answer to be true.

"My lord, congratulations on becoming a Silver Knight!" Lei Meng bowed respectfully in salute.

Nearby, Knight Mi Gen and the others had not yet reacted, but upon hearing Lei Meng's congratulations, they froze like statues.

"What? M…My lord has become a Silver Knight?"

"Yes! My lord, have you truly broken through to become a Silver Knight?"

"Correct—I just completed the breakthrough!"

"By the Glory of the Divine, this is wonderful! Congratulations, my lord!"

"Yes! Congratulations, my lord! The Storm Domain will surely grow even stronger from now on—this is truly amazing!"

Upon receiving confirmation again, all the knights erupted in excitement, cheering and celebrating.

Gervas's breakthrough meant his rule would become even more stable.

Moreover, they knew their lord's pace of advancement.

Could it be possible that their lord possessed the talent to challenge a Gold Knight—or even a Earth Knight?

After all, advancing from Great Knight to Silver Knight in less than half a year was undeniably genius among geniuses.

Even among powerful families with abundant resources, such a feat was rare.

"Enough! Keep it quiet! Everyone, proceed!"

Gervas was remarkably humble.

After all, this was the demeanor a commander ought to have.

"Yes, my lord!"

Immediately, the army set out.

Of course, along the way, the knights and the guards who had heard the news all grinned ear to ear.

…

When the column reached the coastal dock, four ships were already waiting.

Two warships and two merchant vessels.

The five-hundred-strong force boarded quickly, making the ships crowded—especially after the four griffins joined, leaving no spare space on deck.

But this was only temporary.

Once they found the three-masted sailing ship mentioned in the intelligence, this number would mean nothing.

Normally, a three-masted warship could carry at least two hundred seventy men.

If packed tightly, over three hundred was easily achievable.

…

After four hours at sea, the fleet finally reached the coastline of Viscount Wyatt's territory.

Gervas immediately ordered Old Jack to begin heading north in a straight line, starting about thirty li from the shore.

He also instructed the lookouts to observe the surrounding area carefully.

In his view, using islands as reference points, the three-masted sailing ship would be easy to find.

The only uncertainty was: which island?

"My lord, a black dot detected to the northeast—likely an island!"

Soon, the lookout's cry came from above.

"Old Jack, go take a look!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Old Jack immediately turned the helm southeast.

Twenty minutes later, a small rocky island appeared in their view.

"My lord, it's a guano island!" Old Jack and the others immediately grew excited.

They already understood the fertilizing power of guano and its value.

Moreover, guano islands weren't common—they required specific habitats to sustain large bird colonies over long periods and form unique guano deposits.

Since the discovery of the first guano island in the Storm Domain, this was the second.

"Old Jack, mark its location, then return to the course and search for the next island!"

Gervas showed little excitement—after all, he wasn't searching for a guano island.

"My lord, aren't you searching for Bird Dung Island?"

This left the subordinates puzzled.

They had assumed Bird Dung Island was their lord's target.

"No, the target I seek is a hundred times more valuable than Bird Dung Island!"

"A hundred times more valuable than Bird Dung Island?" The subordinates exchanged glances.

Of course, no one dared to question him; as the ship continued northward, they began to pay closer attention to the surrounding sea.

They were extremely curious about what island their lord claimed was a hundred times more valuable than Bird Dung Island.

Time passed second by second; over the next two hours, they encountered two more islands.

Unfortunately, neither was the one Gervas sought.

As dusk approached, just as Gervas began to worry whether he could find his target before nightfall, the lookout on the mast spotted something again.

"My lord, a black dot has appeared due north—likely another island!"

"Old Jack, full speed ahead!"

"Yes, my lord! Black Dragon, full speed ahead!"

As the sails aligned, the ship accelerated, cutting through the blue ocean with the wind.

More than ten minutes later, the island's outline came into view.

This island was larger than any previous one, estimated to be at least ten kilometers in length and width.

Moreover, the island was lush and thick with vegetation.

All the subordinates turned to look at Gervas.

In their eyes, if anything of high value existed, this large island was the most likely candidate.

"My lord, shall we dock?" Old Jack could not help asking.

"No, follow the outer coast and begin circling!" Gervas rejected the request to dock.

Amid their confusion, the ship began to circle the island's outer edge.

Gervas now hoped this island would bring him a surprise.

After all, if he found nothing by nightfall, he would have to wait until tomorrow or the day after to search again.

Fortunately, hard work pays off—this island did not disappoint Gervas.

More than ten minutes later, as the fleet rounded the towering Shanfeng blocking their view, a massive object came into sight.

It was a three-masted warship anchored more than a mile from the shore.

"Ah, look! What's that?"

"Good heavens, it's a three-masted warship!"

"Bad! My lord, should we turn around immediately?"

Amid the cries of alarm, Old Jack turned pale and looked at Gervas.

In the no-man's-land, the most dangerous situation is not encountering wild beasts, but encountering fellow humans.

Similarly, on the ocean, the most dangerous threats besides sea beasts are other ships.

Especially ships far stronger than your own.

Because you never know whether they might suddenly turn pirate.

Don't assume all pirates are mere bandits; often, noble fleets act as such.

And that three-masted warship ahead—if it harbors ill intent, our heavily laden vessel stands little chance of resistance.

"No need to change course—head straight toward it!" Gervas's eyes gleamed.

Majestic!

Truly majestic!

If a single-masted sailboat is a family car,

then the three-masted warship ahead is like a hundred-ton heavy truck.

Just one glance, and Gervas could not look away.

"Head... toward it?" Old Jack and the others nearly thought they had misheard.

"Correct. Yueyue checked this morning—the warship is unoccupied, an abandoned three-masted sailboat!"

"Abandoned... three-masted sailboat?!!!"