Chapter 130: Dan Heng... Is That How You Write It?
"Miss Sushang, what has happened on the Xianzhou?" Luocha spoke up at just the right moment, gently steering the conversation away from dangerous territory. "I have traveled here many times as a merchant, but I have never seen Starskiff Haven in such a state."
He believed his disguise was flawless. Yet, for some reason, the young man named Leon had ended their exchange with a knowing smile, a look that seemed to see right through the mystery he carried within his coffin.
'Fortunately,'Luocha thought,'he doesn't seem to have any intention of exposing me on the spot.''Of course I won't expose him,' Leon mused internally, a smirk playing on his lips.'That's Welt's job. Besides, I need to hurry up and find a place to stash Jingliu; I've got someone else I need to shove in there in a bit!'
"This... I'm not really at liberty to say," Sushang admitted, successfully distracted as she scratched her head. "To be honest, I'm not entirely sure myself. I was just ordered to come to this area and evacuate civilians. Anyway, you three should follow me for now. Safety is the priority."
"We're here to meet up with some friends, so please don't trouble yourself, Miss. We can leave the port on our own," Dan Heng interjected. He glanced at Leon, who was holding up his phone and snapping several pictures of Luocha, clearly preparing to send them to Welt. Dan Heng felt compelled to add, "It won't send. There's no signal here..."
Before the words had even fully left his lips, a crisp notification popped up on Leon's screen: [Message Sent].
Dan Heng fell silent. '...It seems your phone and my phone are two entirely different devices.'
However, Welt had yet to reply. He was likely preoccupied and hadn't had a chance to check his messages.
"No, no, what are you thinking?" Sushang waved her hands repeatedly, her expression turning serious. "There's absolutely no one left in Starskiff Haven right now. If your friends are alright, they must have been moved to the safe zone. Don't worry, just come with me. You'll see them when we get there!"
She turned and started walking, her high ponytail swaying gently behind her.
"Let's go! The three of you, keep up. Cloud Knight Sushang will make sure you're kept safe."
After taking a few steps, she suddenly remembered something and turned back, offering a slightly embarrassed smile.
"Oh, right! When we get to the registration desk in a bit... could I trouble you to sign your own names? I don't know that many characters, so I'm afraid I'll write them wrong..."
Dan Heng simply nodded, assuming it was a show of modesty.
That is, until Sushang pulled out the registration book and, with a flourish, neatly wrote two characters that were vaguely supposed to represent "Dan Heng."
Dan Heng was silent for two long seconds. He took a deep breath.
"...I'll just do it myself."
At the Stargazer Navalia, the five members of the Astral Express crew also set off toward the agreed-upon meeting point.
From a distance, they saw Tingyun already standing at the entrance to Starskiff Haven, looking as if she had been waiting for quite some time.
"Oh my, you're here!" Upon seeing them, Tingyun greeted them with a radiant smile, her tone as warm and familiar as ever.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Stelle said.
"Not at all... I've only been waiting for half an hour or so," Tingyun replied, covering her lips with her hand as she chuckled, her eyes sparkling.
'Damn it,'she cursed inwardly, the smile never leaving her face.'To think that I, a Lord Ravager, have been left standing here waiting for so long...'
"Why does it feel... like that sounded a bit passive-aggressive?" March 7th blinked, muttering softly to herself.
But looking at Tingyun's gentle, smiling appearance, it didn't seem like she was being intentionally sarcastic at all.
"No, no," Tingyun quickly waved her hands, naturally guiding the conversation elsewhere. "Starskiff Haven falls under the jurisdiction of the IPC's Engineering Department. It took some time to get the reporting and permits sorted out, so I took the opportunity to inquire about the recent situation."
Her smile receded, replaced by a more serious expression. "Just like at Cloudford, the Starskiff Harbor's navigational compass has stopped turning, and the checkpoints have fallen. The Cloud Knights are fully focused on investigating the whereabouts of the Stellaron and have no time to attend to anything else."
She paused, a thoughtful look in her eyes. "Now, monsters are running rampant in the port, and there are few signs of people... It certainly is a great place to hide one's tracks."
"In other words, we have no helpers and no support, we have to deal with a bunch of monsters, and we have to catch a Stellaron Hunter with an astronomical bounty from the IPC," March 7th sighed. "Fine. It's not the first time, anyway."
"You've caught a Stellaron Hunter before?" Stelle asked, leaning in with genuine curiosity.
"Just chatting, don't worry about the details~" March 7th replied, vaguely brushing it off.
"To say there is no help would not be entirely true. I have brought a helper that will surely be of assistance to you all."
Tingyun smiled and nodded, stepping aside to reveal a mechanical construct sitting quietly at her feet.
"The hunt for Kafka is of great importance, and the Sky-Faring Commission cannot afford the responsibility of letting her escape. So, I used some favors to borrow a 'treasure' for pursuit from the IPC's Engineering Department."
The construct was shaped like a traditional Xianzhou lion-dog, its body made entirely of precision components joined together. A faint blue light flickered in its eyes as it tilted its head, nimbly observing the group.
"This... is so cute!" March 7th couldn't help but exclaim.
Then she noticed that the others were all looking at her in silence.
"If you say that, Ice Pop will cry," Stelle said, crossing her arms with a flash of her signature Trailblazer charm.
"Ahem," March 7th cleared her throat, forcibly changing the subject. "What can this... treasure do? Pounce on Kafka, bite her, and not let go?"
"Yes, and no," Tingyun said, leaning down to gently stroke the construct's back.
"This is 'Diting,' created by the IPC's Engineering Department and modeled after the five senses of my Foxian race. Its sensitivity is even greater than the original. Whether it's footprints or scent, once it locks onto a trait, it can track the trail until it reaches the target."
She looked up, a determined smile gracing her lips. "As long as we can find a single trace left by Kafka, that will be enough. No matter how deeply she hides, she cannot escape Diting's nose."
Immediately after, Tingyun demonstrated how to operate Diting for the Astral Express crew, letting them test it by tracking the scent she had left just moments ago.
Leon, from his past life, knew that many players suspected this was the exact moment the Lord Ravager Phantylia had swapped places with the real Tingyun. In later versions, however, it was revealed that Tingyun had been replaced from the very beginning.
So, from their very first meeting, the smiling Amicassador before them, the one who kept calling them "Benefactor," had been the Lord Ravager Phantylia all along...
'Thinking about it that way,'Leon's distant thoughts echoed,'...makes it even more exciting.'
"Miss Tingyun..." March 7th observed the other woman's consistently calm expression and couldn't help but speak up. "You look... not at all worried about the current situation on the Xianzhou."
It wasn't an accusation, just an observation that this Amicassador seemed a bit too relaxed in the face of such chaos.
"What are you talking about..." Phantylia's expression didn't change as she answered fluently, "For those of us who do business, the key is to never show one's emotions. Besides, the Alliance has weathered so many storms. Today's chaos... is nothing of great consequence."
She then changed the subject, her tone softening. "A word of warning... if you truly encounter Kafka, please handle it yourselves. This humble girl really can't be of much help. At most, I can only stand to the side... shivering, and cheer you all on."
"But Lady Yukong ordered you to..." Stelle began, slightly confused.
"Oh my, Benefactor, there's no need to use Lady Yukong to pressure me," Tingyun feigned a look of grievance, lowering her eyelashes slightly.
"The Helm Master only ordered me to guide you all through Starskiff Haven, which is no different from my usual duties of acting as an envoy and dealing with merchants."
"When it comes to combat, I am neither skilled at it, nor do I ever risk my life. Being able to borrow Diting for you is already the most I can do."
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