Chapter 4383 — As If It Were the Secular World
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
Before setting out, however, Wei Zhao had one last gathering with Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao—their final meeting before parting. After a reluctant farewell, the next morning at first light, the giant treasure ship of the Morning Star Academy slowly pulled away from the Weihu docks under the eyes of the multitude.
From then on the three were scattered to the far corners of the world, and if Wei Zhao wished to see the two women again, it might well be a wait until the Year of the Monkey and the Month of the Horse.
Still, if all went smoothly and his strength rose quickly enough, then perhaps—
With the Morning Star Academy's company gone, Weihu City, which had been boiling with noise and excitement for some time, settled back into its old rhythm. It was still chaotic, but at least the streets and alleys were no longer so crowded, and by comparison it seemed a good deal calmer.
The Weihu docks finally reopened, and amid the bustle and clamor, a mighty vessel raised its sails to the shouts and cries of the crowd. On the flagship's mast, four great characters in black and gold streamed in the wind: the Qingtian Escort Agency.
Grand as the ship was, it could not remotely compare with the Morning Star Academy's giant treasure ship; yet beside the other vessels at the docks it was already a leviathan. Not strictly a treasure ship, it nonetheless possessed the rudiments of one—a rare sight in the Weihu waters, and a display of the strength and deep foundations of the Qingtian Escort Agency as one of the five great agencies of the Southern Continent.
This year's grand gathering of the Southern Continent's escort agencies was not to be held in the Weihu waters, but at the far end of the Southern Continent, in the Demonic Cold waters a thousand li away.
As one of the five great agencies, the Qingtian Escort Agency set out a step ahead of the rest. By the rules, each gathering required the five agencies to send one man apiece to serve as judges and form the panel of judges—such was the privilege conferred by their standing in the jianghu.
Yet even with a judge on the panel, cheating under the gaze of the assembled crowd was out of the question. After all, the other four agencies would check one another, and no single house could bend the gathering to its will.
The judges' presence at most ensured that one's own house did not suffer loss; beyond that, there was only honor left, and not much in the way of substantial gain.
From the Weihu waters to the Demonic Cold waters, even by the fastest sea route, took at least five days. But with the Qingtian Escort Agency's banner flying and a host of skilled hands out in force, the journey went unimpeded.
Even the most shortsighted pirates had to give them a wide berth at this point—otherwise they would truly be hurling themselves against the muzzle of a gun. Kill first, and never mind the burying.
The journey passed without incident, and Wei Zhao came with the Qingtian Escort Agency's people to the Demonic Cold waters and into the city, where Steward Song arranged lodgings at a first-rate inn.
The others had nothing pressing for the moment, but Qi Mingyuan, the chief escort who headed the agency, was busy the moment he stepped off the ship.
On the face of it, each of the five great agencies sent one judge, and anyone could be sent. In truth, however, the panel of judges was a summit of the five agencies' leaders—an unwritten rule of long standing. An ordinary man sent there would not even have the right to open his mouth; only the chief escorts themselves could attend in person.
Qi Mingyuan had business to attend to, but Qi Wenmo, the young master, had nothing at all to do. Steward Song saw to the arrangements for all the agency's people, and he need only wait quietly for the gathering to begin. Wei Zhao likewise had nothing to occupy him, and the two hit it off at once and promptly went out to look around.