Knock, knock, knock.
The door was knocked.
Zhang Rongfang slowly returned to his senses from meditation, fully awake.
"Who is it?"
"Daddy asked me to check if you need any help, Uncle Zhang. You haven't come to eat for several days," said Nini, daughter of the ship's captain, Yan Zheng.
"It's fine, I have some dried food in my room. I've been busy these days, so I haven't gone out to eat. Thank you for your concern," Zhang Rongfang replied.
He practiced the Cultivation of Literature without regard for time or days, and now he didn't even know how long had passed.
"That's good. It's been two days, so if you need anything, remember to let us know. Out here on the sea, we're so isolated that apart from helping each other, there's really no one else we can rely on," Nini said softly.
"Alright, thank you." Zhang Rongfang got up and went to open the door.
Outside, Nini held a wooden tray with some dry biscuits, jerky, and dried fruits on it.
"I'll leave you to it. By the way, there seems to be some ship following us. There might be some bumps ahead, my dad plans to shake them off," Nini warned.
"Okay, got it, thank you." Zhang Rongfang took the food from the tray.
He didn't give it much thought, as this departure meant he was no longer Zhang Ying, the Daoist, but Zhang Jing.
With the identity of Zhang Jing, there's no need to worry about anything he does.
After Nini left, Zhang Rongfang ate and went out to the deck.
The sea breeze howled, and there was a gentle drizzle outside.
Zhang Rongfang looked back and vaguely saw a small white ship closely tailing the merchant ship.
From a distance, the ship was entirely white, and someone seemed to be looking this way from the bow.
On the merchant ship, Captain Yan Zheng was nervously instructing the sailors to turn and accelerate, trying to shake off the white ship behind.
Judging by the sweat on his forehead, this wasn't as simple as he thought.
Zhang Rongfang contemplated that if they were caught, he'd have to disable the white ship.
But doing so would mean abandoning his plan to hide his strength.
Exposing his power so early could attract a lot of trouble.
Woo~~~
A sudden burst of cheers startled Zhang Rongfang from his gaze. "All clear!"
Yan Zheng shouted loudly.
"Let's go back and have a good meal!"
"The boss is generous!"
"Elephant Pavilion! Elephant Pavilion!"
"Alright! Elephant Pavilion it is!"
Yan Zheng and a group of sailors happily celebrated.
Zhang Rongfang looked back again but couldn't see any trace of the white ship.
Like him, the dozen passengers who came out onto the deck sighed in relief.
"Wasn't that the White Thief's ship?" A middle-aged man nearby said in a deep voice.
The man wore a blue robe, held a black fan, and had a small beard under his chin. He was tall and strong, his eyes sharp, not like an ordinary person.
Beside him were a young man and woman. They seemed to be around eighteen or nieen years old.
The young man's gaze frequently followed the ship captain's daughter, Nini.
The young woman curiously watched the white ship that had followed behind.
"Yes, Daddy. I heard from cousin that it was the White Thief's ship. They often intercept passing merchant ships and charge tolls.
I didn't expect our ship to be able to shake off the White Thief, this ship's speed isn't like ordinary merchant ships."
"Good thing our ship is fast; otherwise, if caught, we might have to expose..." The young woman didn't finish her sentence.
She seemed to notice Zhang Rongfang listening and turned to glare at him.
Zhang Rongfang didn't intend to listen, but his senses were too sharp, and the three were only seven or eight meters away from him; it was hard not to listen.
Facing the woman's glare, he didn't look at her nor care.
The middle-aged man whispered to his daughter, then turned and left.
The two children lowered their voices this time, exchanged a few words, then turned back to the cabin.
Zhang Rongfang didn't pay attention to these three. To him, whether it's the White Thief behind or this family hiding identities, they're just background noise in his journey.
As long as nothing involves him, everything else is fine.
After shaking off the White Thief's ship, the merchant ship sailed in the drizzle for a day and a night. The storm grew, causing the ship to sway, pitch, and tilt.
Fortunately, amidst the storm, the ship quickly arrived at the transit port—Liaozhou Port.
Half of the cargo was unloaded, and half was newly loaded.
A few passengers disembarked, while more than ten new ones boarded.
The next day, the Feiyun set sail again.
Unexpectedly, not long after, the White Thief's ship appeared again.
Yan Zheng and his team were on alert, continually trying to shake off the opponent but to no avail. Their helmsman was excellent, and the ship was faster than before.
The distance between them was steadily decreasing and shortening.
On the white ship's deck.
Kong Yuhui and the other ten members of the Western Sect were ready, prepared to act as soon as the two ships got close enough.
Last time, the Feiyun encountered them midway. Despite an effort, they were shaken off directly.
This time, there's no way the Feiyun can escape.
"We tailed them from the port and caught up. I refuse to believe it this time.
If they escape again, the old monk may never raise his head again!" Kong Yuhui said, gripping his copper staff angrily.
"Everyone, prepare!" The bespectacled monk beside him raised his hand, shouting.
This group survived Shangguan Feihua's siege and slaughter; they are absolute elites.
The Kong-disciples included Kong Yuhui, a Grandmaster, and two members of the Three Emptiness Gods.
The Hui-disciples consisted of five people, all with Three Emptiness and internal techniques.
Then there were Jue-disciples, nine of them. All were adept at internal techniques and External Medicine Gods.
Such strength was enough to destroy a typical city, let alone a mere merchant ship.
"Master, the distance should be enough," a dwarf on the bow approached from behind and reported respectfully.
"Then prepare to light the fire." Kong Yuhui chuckled coldly.
First, start firing; let's see what the merchant ship is capable of.
Suddenly, ten or so sailors switched roles to part-time gunners, starting to take out flints, responsible for loading cannonballs, and igniting the cannons.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!
In an instant, a barrage of cannonballs thunderously fell down.
The entire white ship shook violently.
"God damn it! Who's firing recklessly?!" Kong Chi immediately cursed out loud.
"M... Master, it's not our cannons, the merchant ship ahead fired first!!" The captain looked shocked, staring at the merchant ship ahead.
"Damn! Is that really a merchant ship!!?"
Looking at the front, free to navigate, with more than a dozen densely packed cannon barrels.
Everyone on the White Thief ship was stunned.
This, it wasn't there just now, but now some covered tarps have been uncovered...
"Damn, there's double the cannons compared to us!! Who's the pirate here!!?"
Kong Chi was dumbfounded, watching the cannon muzzles of the Feiyun ahead spewing fire continuously, momentarily not knowing how to react.
*
*
*
On the Feiyun.
"Trouble, the White Thief behind is getting closer. If they make a move...."
Yan Zheng sighed.
"We're just a merchant ship, getting hit would be a huge loss."
The helmsman beside couldn't help but twitch his eyelids.
"So you made the first move? No wonder I've always heard you've never encountered pirates on your voyages.... It turns out you sink them, so it's not meeting pirates, but shipwrecks, right?"
"... Sigh, it's also out of helplessness." Yan Zheng's eyes showed helplessness. "These days, kind people are bullied, and gentle horses are ridden; if you don't resist, you suffer losses."
But is this really resistance? This is more like proactive bombardment!
The helmsman didn't dare to speak out.
"Hahahaha!!" A middle-aged man came over, showing admiration in his eyes.
"I didn't expect to encounter such a hero on a casual voyage, truly worthy of being the people of my Great Spirit! Brave and extraordinarily heroic!"
He clasped his hands in salute, smiling at Captain Yan Zheng.
"I am Kong Yuhui, and seeing Brother's actions, it's worth a big toast!"
"Too bad there's no wine! I am Yan Zheng, former navy, just know a bit about self-defense. It must have amused you." Yan Zheng returned the salute with a smile.
"No wonder... a former navy man." Kong Yuhui was the person chatting casually with his children on the deck just now.
Now he was interested and started chatting quietly with Yan Zheng.
Meanwhile, with constant cannon fire, the White Thief ship behind was forced to widen the distance.
After several rounds of cannon fire, the White Thief ship was also hit once, breaking a section of the ship's railings.
Zhang Rongfang stood at the edge of the ship, with his eyesight, combined with his dark vision's peration, he had just seen the group of bald monks on the White Thief ship.
Their robust figures and obvious martial prowess were evident.
He originally thought he might need to take action.
Unexpectedly, the Feiyun, truly an old hand at long-distance cargo operations, had some tricks up its sleeve.
"Indeed, if not for having a trump card, such a cargo ship wouldn't have been this safe for so many trips. It would have been crippled on its first voyage."
Zhang Rongfang could understand.
Cargo ships in these times were hardly clean.
Some ships even resorted to occasional piracy when business was bad.
But having such exaggerated firepower like the Feiyun, it was his first time seeing this.
Previously with Citong's cargo ships, he hadn't seen such a powerful setup.
His gaze shifted towards Captain Yan Zheng.
Yan Zheng was having a hearty conversation with the middle-aged man.
The man's two children were chatting with Yan Zheng's daughter, Nini.
The two sides seemed to have become quite familiar.
'Well, it seems they escaped a calamity.'
After releasing his restraint, Zhang Rongfang had no fondness for bald monks. If they dared to board and hijack the ship, he would drain them dry.
Now he had a more convenient way to deal with the gods, no longer having to search for Spirit Cores or repeatedly kill them to resolve the situation.
Directly dealing with them, whether they worshipped gods or not, draining their Qi and blood was the fastest method of killing.
Seeing the White Thief ship being forced to gradually widen the distance and eventually unable to keep up.
Zhang Rongfang lost interest, turned around to return to the cabin, intending to continue his cultivation of literature.
Though he had settled down.
On the White Thief ship, Kong Chi and others were seething with anger.
"Get me closer!! It's just a merchant ship! A cargo ship!!? Didn't you claim to be a former battleship!!?"
Kong Chi roared loudly, banging the bronze staff fiercely into the deck.
In front of Shangguan Feihua, he fled around like a dog. He couldn't beat Shangguan Feihua, but it didn't mean the opponent could kill him!
Because he could run!
But now, even a mere cargo ship couldn't be beaten!?
The dwarf captain was sweating profusely under the scolding, but the gap was indeed a gap. The distance between the White Thief ship and the Feiyun continued to grow.
Until all the people from the Western Sect absolutely gave up the idea of pursuit.
Kong Chi clenched his teeth, trembling with rage.
"A bunch of useless fools!!"
Boom!
He lifted his Zen staff and struck, sending a sailor beside him flying, spitting blood, his side collapsed, clearly not surviving.
Watching the Feiyun gradually disappear into the sea fog.
"Consider yourself lucky!" Kong Chi's only hope to recoup the losses vanished completely.
He already foresaw what awaited him upon his return.
With emotions surging within, Kong Chi slapped the ship railing fiercely.
Splinters flew, and another section of the railing was smashed to pieces.
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