Chapter 78 - 74 - In the Midst of a Starskiff Chase

Shuashuashua! "Look! It's a bird!" "What bird! That's a Starskiff!" "And it's... so many Starskiffs!" The people of the Xianzhou at the Starskiff Sea Central Hub watched in amazement as a grand drama unfolded on the skiffways. A whole fleet of Starskiffs was pursuing a single, incredibly fast Starskiff, and the one being chased was still far in the lead! "Captain! We can't catch up at all!" The pilot of the patrol Starskiff had already pushed the throttle to its limit. If they accelerated any further, they would exceed the maximum speed the Xianzhou's inner structures could withstand! "Dammit... How can a cargo Starskiff be faster than our patrol skiffs!" the patrol captain gritted out. "Have you contacted the Cloud Knights yet?" "Not yet. The Jade Abacus network across the entire Xianzhou seems to be down. Some of our brothers have already gone to notify Lord Yukong and General Jing Yuan!" "Sigh... I hope they hurry. What a mess. First, the Starskiff Sea gets locked down, then we have those Disciples of Sanctus Medicus causing trouble, and now we've got a super-speeder... It truly is a season of calamities!" the patrol captain lamented deeply. "Stay on them. As long as we stick to their tail, the rest won't be our job." The patrol captain glanced with a hint of pity at the Starskiff still operating at high speed up ahead and gave his order. "Yes, sir!" "Lord Yanqing, we found two suspicious individuals nearby." Near the Starskiff Haven dock, a Cloud Knight shoved two furtive-looking people they had just captured in front of a young boy. This boy was none other than the personal guard of the current Luofu General. He had come this time specifically to investigate the "mysterious incident" at the docks. For the sake of confidentiality, only the Cloud Knights under the Divine Foresight General's command had been dispatched. Other organizations, not even the Ten-Lords Commission, knew anything about this matter. "Just as I thought. The General's judgment is never wrong. Speak! Who are you!" Yanqing demanded sharply, placing his sword horizontally before the two bound men. "My lord! My lord! We were wrong, my lord! We shouldn't have trespassed into Starskiff Haven! Spare our lives, my lord!" A man dressed in a yellowish-green robe begged Yanqing for mercy, his voice so miserable that anyone who didn't know better would think the Cloud Knights were carrying out some sort of private torture. "Trespassed into Starskiff Haven? Haha, do you really take me for a child?" Yanqing laughed in anger, the edge of his blade moving closer to the man's neck. "Starskiff Haven has been under a multi-layered lockdown by the Cloud Knights for days. Did you two just stay here without eating or drinking? Men, take them to the Ten-Lords Commission. Let's see if you can keep your mouths shut in their hands." Withdrawing his sword, Yanqing turned his back to wipe the blade, then glanced back with a razor-sharp gaze at the two men who were still being stubborn. "The Ten-Lords Commission... No, no, no! My lord! It was we humble ones who overstepped! We were just acting on someone else's orders! They told us to scatter something here and then escape on a Starskiff they had prepared. But when we got to the port, we found the Starskiff was gone! That's why we could only wander around here, and that's how we accidentally offended you all!" one of the men pleaded, wiping snot and tears from his face. He truly had no idea his crime was serious enough to land him in the Ten-Lords Commission!! "Oh? Scatter what?" Yanqing raised an eyebrow, turning to ask the man. "Er... this humble one doesn't know either! That group of people told us to wear masks when we scattered the stuff, so we just did as we were told. We really don't know what that stuff was!" "..." "Take them away," Yanqing frowned, waving a hand at the nearby Cloud Knights. "Yes, sir." "My lord! My lord! Don't send us to the Ten-Lords Commission!!" The man continued to wail, but Yanqing was already lost in thought. I must report the situation here to the General as soon as possible. And also about that soldier whose Mara subsided... Yanqing walked toward the container storage area, where a squad of Cloud Knights was setting up a defensive perimeter. Upon seeing Yanqing, they looked relieved. "Lord Yanqing, the brother whose Mara receded has already..." the Cloud Knight captain said with deep regret. "But his body did not dissipate. It has been perfectly preserved." He waved a hand at the Cloud Knights behind him, and a "corpse" wrapped in a white cloth was carried before Yanqing. "Mm. Thank you for holding your ground here. I will report your deeds to General Jing Yuan," Yanqing nodded, then had his men take the "body." "Thank you, Lord Yanqing. We still have the duty of guarding Starskiff Haven, so please forgive us for not being able to see you off," the Cloud Knight captain said, a little ashamed. "No. If you all hadn't held your ground here to protect the gateway to the Xianzhou, our work now would not be progressing so smoothly," Yanqing said, shaking his head. He then led the Cloud Knights he had brought with him back to report on his mission. Watching Yanqing's departing figure, the Cloud Knight captain nodded with great emotion. Each generation truly brings forth its own great talents. For Lord Yanqing to serve as the General's guard at such a young age, and even be accepted as his head disciple, his future is truly limitless. "Everyone, on your feet! We must continue to guard this place!" the Cloud Knight captain called out, rallying his troops. "Yes, sir!" "Hey, does anyone else feel like the Starskiff is slowing down?" Wende asked the group, noticing the scenery outside was beginning to recede at a slower pace. "Yeah, it really is. Could it be that it's finally reached its preset destination? We're going to land!" March thought excitedly. Who could have imagined that they'd been on the Xianzhou for nearly a day, yet still hadn't truly entered its interior? After spending so long on the Starskiff, everyone felt physically and mentally exhausted. Stelle had already thrown up several times from motion sickness. Wende had originally thought about giving her a needle to alleviate it, but on second thought, considering what was in her stomach... It was probably better to just let her puke it all out. "Captain! Their Starskiff seems to be losing speed!" a patrol member holding a pair of binoculars reported to the captain beside him. As for why he was using binoculars to look out the window... Well... Glancing at the rainbow-colored smear radiating a sour stench on the front of his own Starskiff, the patrol captain once again tried to calm his queasy stomach. "Could it be their Starskiff has lost power? Quick, deploy the barrier net! Stop them!" the patrol captain ordered decisively. "Uhm, everyone, while our speed has decreased, it seems... our altitude has also decreased," Tingyun said, craning her neck with a helpless smile on her face. Great. We're still going to crash! "AAAAHHHHH! Uncle Yang! Quick, use your invincible hidden power and do something! AAAAAHHHH!"