Chapter 4792 — Turning on a Dime

This was a blatant provocation, a deliberate slap in the face.

"Speak your mind, Young Hero Lin!" Oda Ba said hurriedly.

He could not afford to offend the Ren family over such a trifle.

"That thing is an eyesore. Best send him back to his cabin to stay. I do not want to see him—it vexes me." Wei Zhao pointed offhandedly, straight in the direction where Ren Zhongyuan stood.

The gesture was casual, almost lazy.

"Someone! Escort Ren Zhongyuan to his cabin. He is not to set foot outside that door until we reach East Isle!" Oda Ba issued the order without a flicker of hesitation. Such a condition cost him nothing at all. Even if he confined Ren Zhongyuan to quarters, the boy's father would not dare fall out with him over so petty a matter. Things would go on exactly as before—not a thing would change.

Everyone was stunned.

"Uncle Oda! No! You and my father are sworn friends—how can you take this outsider's side!" Ren Zhongyuan howled, frantic with rage and humiliation. Even in his wildest dreams he could never have foreseen such a turn. Not only did Oda Ba refuse to help him deal with Wei Zhao, he was actually siding with Wei Zhao to deal with him. What in the hell was this maddening farce?

Oda Ba did not so much as glance at him.

"Enough of your noise. Are you all deaf? Move!" Oda Ba frowned, and at once crew guards strode over and hauled Ren Zhongyuan away. Unable to circulate his true qi, he was now utterly useless—he could not even struggle, and was dragged off like a dog.

The onlookers watched in disbelief.

The crowd stared at the scene, jaws hanging open, too shocked to speak for a long while. This time they had learned two old sayings to the bone: one was that fortune's wheel turns, and the other that a man can turn on a dime.

It was a lesson in human nature.

"Young Hero Lin, will this do?" Oda Ba turned a smile on Wei Zhao, deaf to Ren Zhongyuan's heartrending cries.

The smile was warm, genial.

"It will do." Wei Zhao nodded. In his heart he had gained one more measure of understanding about this creature. Capable? Beyond doubt. Black-hearted and thick-skinned? Equally true. One had to keep one's guard up dealing with the likes of him—never mind that honest, bluff, big-man look; he could laugh and chat with you and sell you out the very next breath!

A useful lesson, that.

Oda Ba smiled in satisfaction. Though he had failed to bring Wei Zhao fully aboard, the present arrangement was not unacceptable. A mere honorary vice-captain was an empty title—he need not even pay a regular stipend, and he had roped in a first-rate navigator for nothing. However one looked at it, this was a bargain with no loss.

The deal was sealed.

In the blink of an eye Wei Zhao had become honorary vice-captain, and his standing aboard the warship soared overnight to a place beneath one man and above all others. Even the original vice-captain and the first mate had to speak to him with courtesy. His treatment was so lofty that Liu Ziqi could not help eyeing him with envy, sighing again and again that people truly could not be compared with people!

It was quite the ascent.

After an uneventful day free of incident—when no attack came—the warship set sail once more amid the cheers of the crew. Wei Zhao, for his part, took to wandering through the various vital cabins whenever he had a moment; these were precisely the things he was most eager to learn about.

His curiosity was insatiable.

He was the honorary vice-captain, after all. Oda Ba never stopped him, eager as he was to win him over. In the captain's eyes, a man who could manipulate the Starfall Array with such consummate mastery had no secrets left to hide anywhere else. If one spoke of secrets, the Starfall Array was the very core of them all—and this fellow understood it far better than any of them did!

So the reasoning went.

As for the lookout tower, Wei Zhao never climbed it again after that. Oda Ba had only asked him to lend an eye when he had the time; if danger lay ahead, he could sense it without ever going up—easily, effortlessly, he could steer them clear in advance. He was far more accurate and timely than the veteran lookout who had held the post before.

A marked improvement.

After several such displays, the name of the genius navigator spread far and wide. Almost without realizing it, Wei Zhao had become a rising star of the maritime world…

His reputation was made.

As for Wei Zhao's extraordinary treatment, Ning Xuefei was happier even than Wei Zhao himself, her face glowing with reflected glory. This was not mere wifely pride in her husband's honor—her interest in that ancient warship ran far deeper than his. Now she could openly follow along and steal a few lessons, all in preparation for building one of their own someday.

She had her designs.

Huo Yudie, by contrast, found it rather trying. Ning Xuefei was forever trailing along wherever they went, and she never again had a chance for time alone with Wei Zhao. As for that bold notion that had stirred in her heart atop the lookout tower, she did not dare so much as think of it now. She could only bury it deep for the time being.

Buried, but not forgotten.

After a full month of sea voyage, the warship at last entered the legendary Yellow-Rank waters of East Isle. Though he had come to Cloud-Tier Isle only a few years ago, Wei Zhao had seen a fair share of the world—he had visited not only North Isle but the central isles, South Continent, and West Isle as well. Yet even so, the sight before his eyes now could not help but leave him shaken.

It beggared belief.

Vast! Absolutely vast! That was Wei Zhao's first reaction upon seeing the Yellow-Rank harbor of East Isle. The docks of North Isle and West Isle, set beside this one, were behind by no one knew how many times over. This—this was a true top-tier harbor that stretched to the horizon!

It stretched beyond sight.

And if it were merely the size of the harbor, that would be one thing; the crucial point was that the ships moored before them were simply too magnificent. Seen from afar, more than half of them were treasure ships, and among them were even several warships of enormous tonnage!

A forest of masts.

As for the ordinary sea vessels—even the top-grade ones of staggering tonnage—in a place like this they seemed utterly beneath notice. Moored alongside those leviathans of the sea, they looked for all the world like little fishing boats; a man would be ashamed to hail anyone from their decks.

Simply humbling.

"Treasure ships, warships—I was told such things were exceedingly rare. How is it they are everywhere here?" Wei Zhao could not help swallowing hard. He had thought possessing a single treasure ship would be a remarkable feat; now, on reflection, that was laughably naive. He had truly never seen the world.

A humbling thought.

"Quite right—rare they are, and rare strategic assets at that, treasure ships no less than ancient warships. It is only that more than eighty percent of the treasure ships among the five Cloud-Tier Isles are gathered here at East Isle, which is why they seem so many. A sight like this is one you will never see anywhere else," Huo Yudie explained with a smile.

Her tone was amused.

"So that is how it is." Wei Zhao nodded, silently marveling. East Isle deserved its name as the largest and strongest of the Cloud-Tier Isles—seeing it today, the reputation was well earned!

Well earned indeed.

To the low, mournful blast of the harbor horn, the warship slowly came alongside the dock at last. Ren Zhongyuan, confined to his cabin for a full month, was finally let out—though this time he did not dare come looking for trouble. Now that even Oda Ba was siding with Wei Zhao, even a fool could see he had no cards left to play.

He had learned his lesson.