Dao Ke's heart clenched in terror.
He had been exposed.
Exposure meant only one thing. Death.
There was no hesitation in his mind. Run.
Just then, Li Daoxuan chuckled lightly.
"I'll give you a chance to escape right now. Jump into the sea and swim away. If I fail to catch you, you live. If I bring you back, I'll forgive this escape attempt and no harm will come to you."
Dao Ke's heart surged with joy.
Oh? Showing off?
This was a gift from heaven. A single escape attempt, no punishment, no tricks. Only a fool would refuse.
Does he even know where we are?
This was the outer edge of the Zhoushan Archipelago. Treacherous currents, jagged reefs, strange rock formations everywhere.
If I dive down, hold my breath, swim far enough, then surface behind a reef for air before diving again, there's no guarantee he can catch me.
Dao Ke shouted loudly, "Is that a real promise? Everyone here heard it. If you go back on your word, you'll lose face in front of your men."
Li Daoxuan smiled calmly.
"A promise is a promise."
Dao Ke nodded hard.
"Good!"
He said nothing more.
Splash.
He leapt from the bow, twisting midair like a dolphin. His dive was clean and elegant, barely disturbing the surface.
The smaller the splash, the deeper the entry. And the deeper he went, the harder it would be for anyone above to track him.
Dao Ke held his breath and swam toward a nearby reef.
As he moved, confidence grew in his chest.
How will he chase me? Spread ships to search? Seal off the sea? Hmph. No matter what he tries, I have a way out.
Then he heard another splash behind him.
Someone had jumped in after him.
Dao Ke turned his head.
What?
That Dao Xuan Tianzun actually jumped in himself?
Absurd.
You want to compete with me in swimming?
He kicked hard with his legs, his body surging forward like a mermaid flicking its tail. His speed shot up sharply.
At this speed, almost no one can keep up with me.
He glanced back.
His heart skipped.
Why is he closer?
Not only was he closing the distance, the man was not even moving his limbs. His body was straight, streamlined, gliding forward like a fish cutting through water.
Impossible.
Humans do not swim like this.
Panic surged. Dao Ke flailed with all his strength, swimming desperately.
It made no difference.
Li Daoxuan soon caught up.
He did not grab him.
Instead, he swam alongside Dao Ke, perfectly matching his pace. Calm. Effortless. And he even spoke while swimming.
"Keep going. Faster. That dive earlier, I'll give you a 9.8. I only deducted 0.2 for the splash."
Dao Ke had no idea what this "decimal" nonsense meant.
He wanted to shout, What kind of monster are you?
But water flooded his mouth.
He could only swim harder.
Then he realized Li Daoxuan was circling him.
Once to the left. Once to the right.
Like a fish playing with its prey.
Every so often, that calm voice drifted over.
"You still haven't surfaced for air? Impressive lung capacity."
Dao Ke finally lost control and cursed, bubbles bursting from his mouth.
Blub blub blub.
He was out of breath.
He kicked upward with all his strength and shot toward the surface.
Whoosh.
He burst out of the water and sucked in a huge breath of air.
After a brief struggle in his not very sharp mind, Dao Ke gave up.
He sighed deeply.
"I can't escape. Your swimming skills are truly admirable."
Since he surrendered properly, Li Daoxuan did not make an example of him.
They returned to the ship.
Orders were given, and the fleet landed.
Not long after, the entire Zhoushan pirate stronghold fell into the hands of Gao Family Village.
This place was the future site of Zhoushan Dinghai Port.
Along the eastern coastline of the harbor lay another stretch of land. It would later become the Zhejiang Kailing Shipyard.
Li Daoxuan had only seen this place in news reports before. Now he stood here in person, gazing at the deep-water harbor, then at the open land across from it.
There was no need to rack his brain.
He could simply copy the layout from his own era.
He was only a shut-in, far inferior to the experts of later generations. If those experts had chosen this place for a military port and shipyard, there was certainly a reason.
He only needed to give general directions.
He waved Jiang Cheng over.
"First, pacify all pirates on the island. Those who surrender will be sent to labor reform. Those who resist will be shot on the spot. Then have Gao Family Village send more ships. Bring Blue Hats, supplies, and production technology."
He pointed to several locations.
"Here, here, and here. Build the military port."
Then he gestured outward.
"Reserve this area for a shipyard."
"The labor reform camp will be built behind the port."
Jiang Cheng accepted the orders without hesitation.
Gao Family Village already had a mature system for handling labor reform prisoners and was extremely efficient. Before long, under the muzzles of muskets, the pirates were busily constructing their own labor reform camp.
At this time, supplies and Blue Hats had not yet arrived. There was no rush to build the port.
Instead, the more articulate members of the militia sailors were dispatched to conduct ideological instruction.
While these people were being reshaped…
Back in Gao Family Village.
Young Master Bai was packing his luggage. Graduate students, Blue Hats, and technical specialists were doing the same.
Madam Bai, now over forty, hurried into his room, her eyes red with tears.
"My son, must you really go in person? For such matters, sending your expertise would be enough."
Young Master Bai shook his head firmly.
"Mother, a steam-powered giant is no small matter. There are countless technical difficulties. I have built small river steamships before, but never a massive sea-going vessel. If I don't go myself, any problem that arises will take too long to communicate back and forth."
Madam Bai's voice trembled.
"It's too dangerous. That island is far out at sea, isolated and barren."
Young Master Bai replied calmly, "The militia will be there, and Dao Xuan Tianzun's avatar as well. What is there to fear? Besides, Wang Zheng is coming too."
Madam Bai paused.
"Wang Zheng? What will he be doing there?"
"He's skilled in mechanics," Young Master Bai explained. "Using the blueprints from Dao Xuan Tianzun, he built a chronometer for determining longitude and latitude at sea. He's going this time to test whether it truly works aboard a ship."
Madam Bai let out a long sigh.
"Alright. My son has grown up and is going out to make his name. As your mother, all I can do is wish you success."