Chapter 4425 — A Vicious Move

"What's going on here? Is he just riding on my coattails?" The middle-aged man was both startled and suspicious. His name was Wang Baitiao, and he had once been one of the most notorious pirates in the Demon Cold Sea, until Hai Wuliang subdued him and made him a guard for the Four Seas Escort Agency.

Say what you would about him, but when it came to familiarity with the Demon Cold Sea, there was absolutely no one in the world who could surpass Wang Baitiao. After all, he had been born and raised here; whether running as a pirate before or working as an escort after, his life had been spent back and forth across these waters—he was a true local snake, rooted in this ground.

This stretch of sea route in particular—for the sake of this race, he had spent two full months surveying it bit by bit, and only then had he finally found the safest round-trip course. Apart from himself, not another soul in the world knew it!

So as far as this race was concerned, Wang Baitiao was brimming with confidence. Every other escort agency had been wiped out entirely; only the Number One Sailing Ship, representing the Four Seas Escort Agency, had returned safely—that was the demand Hai Wuliang had set for him.

Everything had gone smoothly at first; all the ships that ought to have capsized had more or less done so. But Wang Baitiao had never imagined that at this moment, a Cheng Yaojin would come crashing out of nowhere!

Wang Baitiao simply refused to believe that this thing had caught up through sheer skill, because no matter how superb one's seamanship, it was absolutely impossible to pull that off. The only possible explanation was that this thing had been following the route he himself had taken, picking up the ready-made gains all along the way—only that made sense.

"How can this be? If I let this thing follow me back safe and sound, Chief Escort Hai will flay me alive!" Wang Baitiao broke out in a cold sweat on the spot.

Never mind that Hai Wuliang ran an escort agency—when it came to getting things done, his hand was far more ruthless and vicious than any pirate's. Otherwise he would never have been subdued so easily back then; lend Wang Baitiao ten times the courage, and he still would not dare face Hai Wuliang's wrath.

Though he had made up his mind to do away with the ship behind him, Wang Baitiao did not dare act rashly before he had sized up the situation. In a place like this, killing someone did not necessarily require a face-to-face showdown—this sea route was naturally one giant death trap. Use it well, and never mind one man; ten thousand could be killed just the same.

The two sailing ships moved one ahead, one behind, keeping a distance neither far nor near, and so it held for a moment—but then the Number One Sailing Ship ahead suddenly changed course, tracing a zigzag of enormous amplitude. It was not that he deliberately chose to do so; the hidden reefs ahead were thick as a honeycomb, and without such a path there was simply no getting through.

At the same time, Wang Baitiao was using the opportunity to observe the movements of the ship behind him more closely. If it could not keep up, all the better—then it would certainly die among these reefs. If it did keep up, that would prove the ship behind was indeed riding on his coattails, and had already fixed its eyes dead on him.

He did not know what secret art the other side possessed that let them keep track of him in this sea fog which blocked a cultivator's divine sense—but track him they certainly had!

A moment later, a cold gleam flashed in Wang Baitiao's eyes. From the sound of the water, that ship had actually followed him through. This thing really was a tag-along riding on his coattails!

From first to last, Wang Baitiao had never once considered the possibility that the other party was navigating by their own ability, because in anyone's understanding, such a possibility did not exist—no exceptions.

Little did he know that some things in this world truly defy the imagination of ordinary folk.

"This thing's got some skill," Wang Baitiao muttered with a curl of his lip and a cold snort. Following a ship like this in ordinary waters would be no challenge at all, but under the interference of this thick sea fog, to trace such a wide-amplitude zigzag and still keep from being shaken off—that truly tested one's mettle. Without seasoned experience, it was simply impossible.

By this reckoning, Wang Baitiao knew in his heart that shaking off the ship behind purely by speed would be very difficult. Even knowing the safe route, he dared not truly push his speed—there were simply too many dangers here, and the slightest mishap meant a wrecked ship and dead men. No one dared take that risk.

But then a sinister, savage grin crept onto the corner of Wang Baitiao's mouth. Since you're so bent on following behind and picking up ready-made gains, then you'd better follow closely—Papa's just going to add a little something to the mix for you!

One ahead, one behind, the two sailing ships plowed through the waves. In the wheelhouse of the Number Five Sailing Ship behind, Wei Zhao's heart was by now growing ever more astonished and doubtful. His own safe passage all this way had depended entirely on the jade pendant's warnings—but what was going on with the ship ahead? Surely the other side did not have a jade pendant too?

Yet from Wei Zhao's observation, he found that the route the ship ahead chose—especially at the various turns—was far smoother than his own.

He himself only changed direction after receiving the jade pendant's warning, and often a single adjustment was not enough, forcing him to correct again the other way, which left his course crooked and stiff. But the ship ahead was different: every time, it entered the turn with perfect accuracy and in advance, as though it knew the safe route outright—so smooth and natural it was a sight to behold.

"Seems this so-called absolutely fair Southern Continent Escort Agency Grand Meet can't escape a few dirty tricks done in the dark after all," Wei Zhao said with a mocking smile. If anyone tried to tell him the ship ahead had not made meticulous preparations beforehand, he would not believe it even if they beat him to death. Even if the other side had some cheat of their own, surely they could not manage such flawless, heaven-made smoothness?

But this way, following behind this ship actually saved Wei Zhao no small amount of trouble. At least when the jade pendant's warnings came, he was no longer as flustered as before; he only had to listen to the changes in the water sounds ahead to prepare in advance—much easier and more relaxed.

From first to last, Wei Zhao had never thought of overtaking the ship ahead. For one thing, there was no need—this round of the race was not scored by ranking; so long as one returned safely within a set time, one earned the corresponding points. Their relationship was not wholly one of kill-or-be-killed competition.

For another, this sea route was simply too dangerous. Even with the jade pendant's warnings to keep him in an invincible position, Wei Zhao did not dare advance rashly, because doing so would be tantamount to courting death.

To be honest, his own seamanship probably did not even reach the entry level—he was limited to being able to operate a ship, and not even fully proficient at that. If he truly had to compete with real masters of navigation, he would very likely blunder in his haste, and at that point even the jade pendant's warnings would not save him.

Wei Zhao was self-aware enough to know this, so he would not do anything foolish. The only thing to do now was to reach the required checkpoint steadily and then sail back; all other distractions were so much passing cloud.