Chapter 4780 — The Danger Lookout

A short while later, under everyone's watchful eyes, Ren Zhongyuan strutted into the dining hall, his steps jaunty and triumphant, swaggering like a conqueror.

"Uncle Ao, I'm truly sorry to have troubled you to come all this way—your nephew begs your pardon." Ren Zhongyuan did not so much as glance at Liu Ziqi and the others; he walked over to Aotianba's side as though no one else existed and sat down. The two of them did seem to be on genuinely good terms.

"What's this talk of begging pardon? I'm your uncle—coming to look in on my nephew is only natural, isn't it? Haha!" Aotianba patted Ren Zhongyuan on the shoulder and gestured to the crowd. "No need to sit there frozen, everyone. Come, come, let's eat."

Ren Zhongyuan looked smugly across at Wei Zhao, his face fairly dripping with provocation; he even brazenly drew a finger across his throat in a menacing gesture, not putting Liu Ziqi in his eyes at all. After all, aboard this ancient warship, Liu Ziqi was no match for Aotianba.

Wei Zhao's heart gave a slight jolt, and he cast a calm, unobtrusive glance at Aotianba. Now that the other side had suddenly produced such a powerful patron, matters had indeed become rather difficult; from the look of things, the man would certainly not let the matter drop, and would surely seize the chance to stir up trouble again.

Sure enough, before anyone had eaten more than a few bites, Aotianba suddenly spoke. "Vice Principal Liu, besides looking in on the Eastern Isle disciples, I came here especially this time because there is another important matter I wish to discuss with you."

"Oh? Whatever the captain wishes to say, pray speak plainly." Liu Ziqi exchanged a glance with Wei Zhao and the others, and could not help but feel a sinking sensation in his heart.

"It's like this. Our ship has a post called lookout, whose sole duty is to monitor for danger. I hardly need to explain the importance of this position—without a lookout, we cannot continue sailing the seas. Unfortunately, our original lookout has fallen ill, and rather than waste time at sea, I wish to select a replacement from among you Eastern Isle disciples. The prerequisite, of course, is sufficient sailing experience." Aotianba spoke with a meaningful look.

"This..." Liu Ziqi was slightly taken aback, and was about to ask the others who among them had sailing experience, but before the words left his mouth, Aotianba cut him off.

"I've heard tell that on the way from the Northern Isle to the Western Isle, the treasure ship once encountered pirates in the sea mist, and at that critical moment a disciple by the name of Wei Zhao stepped forward and took the helm himself, turning peril into safety. I think this young man is a fine one—let it be him!" Aotianba declared flatly.

At these words, every eye in the hall instantly fixed upon Wei Zhao—some with sympathy, and some, of course, gloating. Everyone could see that Aotianba had come this time to stand up for Ren Zhongyuan, and was aiming squarely at Wei Zhao!

Watching Ren Zhongyuan's smug grin of a plot come to fruition, Wei Zhao remained unmoved; Huo Yudie and Ning Xuefei, however, were secretly frantic, and both turned imploring looks upon Liu Ziqi. This so-called danger lookout was an absolute pit of fire—once Wei Zhao agreed, he would surely come to great harm.

"Captain Aotianba, Wei Zhao is a new disciple, and moreover the Western Isle's consort. Suddenly appointing him to such an important post seems rather inappropriate, does it not? Perhaps you might consider other disciples?" Liu Ziqi argued.

"Hmph. Vice Principal Liu, don't blame me for not sparing your face—aboard this warship, my orders supersede all else!" As he spoke, Aotianba's aura abruptly shifted, and a heaven-overturning pressure instantly bore down upon everyone's heads. Wei Zhao bore the brunt of it, his ears filled with the man's cold words: "He doesn't want to do it, does he? Very well then—men, throw him overboard!"

Everyone was struck with horror. A moment ago he had been laughing heartily and genially; the next instant he was ready to have a man thrown into the sea. This captain changed faces faster than turning the pages of a book!

"Stop!" Liu Ziqi's expression changed, and she too released a heaven-overturning aura to stand against him as an equal. Though in this place she was not as powerful as he, Wei Zhao was a man she had long since acknowledged, and it would not be so easy for the other to take Wei Zhao away.

The atmosphere in the hall turned instantly incomparably tense. Once these two titans set themselves against each other, the deterrent force and destructive power were simply unimaginable. Though no one present was weak, none could truly withstand such aftershocks—even the mere pressure of their auras was already more than anyone could bear.

At this moment Wei Zhao suddenly rose to his feet, his gaze falling upon Aotianba's face with neither servility nor arrogance, and said calmly, "Wait. It's only a lookout post, is it not? No problem. Since it is work done for the whole ship, it is work done for ourselves as well. I accept."

At these words the whole hall was astonished. Ren Zhongyuan, hearing this, only sneered all the more—even at death's door, the man still had to make himself look noble; even now he was putting on airs. What a damn fool!

"Good. Very good. That's spirit." Aotianba's aura instantly withdrew, and he pointed at Wei Zhao with a hearty laugh. "I like young people with guts. But let me say this plainly beforehand: once you're up on the lookout platform, you'll be treated the same as any other crewman. Out here, the sea is the battlefield—if anything goes wrong, you'll be dealt with under military law!"

These words made Ning Xuefei and Huo Yudie's hearts pound with fright. This was simply driving Wei Zhao down the road to death. In ordinary times, even a small mistake would not amount to much—after all, he was only a temporary replacement, an Eastern Isle disciple—but the phrase "dealt with under military law" sealed off every avenue of retreat. When the time came, a single word from Aotianba could cost Wei Zhao his life, and even Liu Ziqi would be unable to stop it!

Liu Ziqi's brows knitted tightly, and she was about to find some pretext to turn down this deadly assignment, but unfortunately Aotianba gave her no such chance at all; having spoken, he rose and left, trailing a string of laughter that seemed hearty but was in truth ruthless.

"Finish your lunch and get to your post—we're all counting on you, our danger lookout, to keep us safe and sound. Do be sure nothing goes wrong, won't you? Hahaha!" Ren Zhongyuan laughed triumphantly along. Sure enough, the moment Aotianba, that great deity, made his move, scum like Wei Zhao had not the slightest power to fight back; a casual sentence or two had sent him straight into the pit of fire. The feeling was one word: sweet!

"Master, what do we do now?" Huo Yudie asked Liu Ziqi anxiously, seeking help. There was still some room to turn things around now, but once Wei Zhao actually mounted the lookout platform, having a mistake pinned on him would be the work of a single sentence—and then it would truly be too late.

"Don't worry, Die'er. I'll go speak with Aotianba again. Wei Zhao will not come to harm," Liu Ziqi said in a low voice. Given the attitude Aotianba had just displayed, this matter was all but impossible to negotiate—but she could not simply watch Wei Zhao go to his death. Even if it meant a complete falling-out, she had to make one final effort.