On a beautiful, sunny evening, the warm sunlight cast a golden glow across the sea, and waves gently lapped against the ship, creating a pleasant sound.
Jiang Mo stood leisurely on the deck of a steamer, seemingly enjoying the sunset, but his mind was not on the beautiful scenery at all.
His gaze occasionally swept across the distant horizon, silently calculating the time.
As he expected, the Dawn Merchant Ship had departed this morning with the Fujiwara Family's fleet, transporting the Pokémon supposedly destined for the North America Alliance according to the planned schedule.
As evening approached, an inconspicuous small steamer quietly sailed out of the Fujiwara Family's port.
Jiang Mo noticed it at a glance, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
He had long suspected that the Fujiwara Family's true objective would not be so simple; this suddenly appearing small steamer, heading in a completely different direction from the planned Pokémon transport route, must be on another secret mission.
For this, Jiang Mo had already instructed Lingxi to arrange a ship to wait by the sea.
As soon as the small steamer departed, Jiang Mo's ship followed it silently, like a Ghost-type Pokémon hidden in the darkness.
Under the cover of night, this ship carefully maintained a perfect distance from the small steamer, neither losing track nor being easily discovered.
Jiang Mo watched the departing small steamer, the corners of his mouth curving slightly into an amused smile.
He immediately turned and walked into the cabin, speaking to Lingxi who was beside him.
"Lingxi, follow them closely. Do not expose yourselves, and make sure to figure out their destination and actions."
Lingxi replied, "Young Master, rest assured. Our ship is already following closely and they won't notice anything amiss."
...
As night deepened, the sea was completely enveloped in darkness, with only the ships' signal lights twinkling.
The small steamer maintained its speed, cutting a white wake across the sea.
Jiang Mo's ship followed like a shadow, carefully maintaining its distance.
On the other small steamer, Fujiwara Ichiro stood at the bow, a smug expression on his face, occasionally checking his watch, seemingly calculating the time of arrival at their destination.
He was leading this operation, and although he found it troublesome, he was also filled with anticipation for the generous rewards and family commendations he was about to receive.
"Mr. Ichiro, can we really successfully complete this mission to pick up Dr. Bulano on Tan Shan Island?" a subordinate leaned over and asked, his face full of worry.
Fujiwara Ichiro glared at him, saying impatiently, "You little brat, stop being a jinx! Dr. Bulano is an important figure in the North America Alliance; if his research succeeds, it will be a major event that could change the entire Pokémon world's landscape."
"The Alliance has promised that as long as we successfully complete this escort mission, we will be amply rewarded."
The subordinate shrank his neck and asked again, "But I heard that the Shenzhou Alliance has been counterattacking fiercely recently, and many of the North America Alliance's military bases in the far seas have been taken out. Won't we be implicated?"
Fujiwara Ichiro snorted coldly, "What's there to be afraid of! The North America Alliance is powerful; it's not so easily defeated."
"Besides, Dr. Bulano's research is too important, so the Alliance must have made thorough preparations long ago."
"All we have to do is safely pick up the Doctor and his team, and deliver them to the designated location, and our mission will be accomplished."
It turned out that their destination was Tan Shan Island, and their mission was to pick up Dr. Bulano of the North America Alliance.
Dr. Bulano had been leading a team on Tan Shan Island for a secret research project, and the Pokémon previously collected by the North America Alliance were also transported to Tan Shan Island.
However, the Shenzhou Alliance's counterattack had been too strong recently, and most of the North America Alliance's military bases in the far seas had been wiped out.
If this continued, Tan Shan Island would also be discovered.
It was said that Dr. Bulano's research was of great significance, and the North America Alliance had to bring him, his team, and his research findings out intact.
On Jiang Mo's ship, the atmosphere was also very tense.
Lingxi kept a close eye on the signal of the small steamer ahead on the radar, not daring to relax for a moment.
"Young Master, the ship ahead seems to be speeding up. Should we follow more closely?" Lingxi turned to Jiang Mo for instructions.
Jiang Mo frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and then said, "Maintain the current distance, don't expose yourselves easily. Their haste indicates that their destination should be near. Let's wait and see, and clarify the situation first."
At this moment, Fujiwara Ichiro on the small steamer was contacting Dr. Bulano on Tan Shan Island via communication equipment.
"Doctor, we are on our way and expect to arrive by dawn. How are your preparations going?"
Dr. Bulano's voice came through the communicator, with a hint of urgency: "You must arrive as soon as possible; the Shenzhou Alliance's search range is getting closer to here."
"We have already organized the research results, and the personnel are all ready, just waiting for you to pick us up."
"Doctor, rest assured, we will arrive on time. Just wait patiently."
As night deepened, the sea was completely enveloped in darkness, with only the ships' signal lights twinkling.
The small steamer maintained its speed, cutting a white wake across the sea as it sped towards Tan Shan Island.
This sea area inherently harbored many dangers, with rampant piracy near the Taiping Islands.
However, the Taiping Islands Alliance was simply too weak, and the Alliance's control in this area was tenuous, allowing the pirates to become increasingly brazen.
And Fujiwara Ichiro's current route, unfortunately, passed through this area frequently frequented by pirates.
After hanging up the communication, Fujiwara Ichiro shouted to his subordinates, "Everyone, stay alert, speed up, don't delay important matters!"
No sooner had he spoken than a subordinate stumbled over to report, "Bad news, Lord Ichiro! Several speedboats have been spotted ahead, rushing towards us!"
Fujiwara Ichiro's face instantly turned pale, and he hurried to the bow to look out, his steps frantic.
On the sea, several speedboats, like black ghosts, appeared indistinctly in the moonlight, speeding towards their small steamer with strange cries, kicking up white spray.
"Woo woo woo!"
"Oh oh oh!"
The pirates on the speedboats were all ferocious, led by a One-Eyed Dragon whose facial scar looked particularly hideous in the moonlight, his wild laughter echoing across the sea.
The pirates in this sea area were notorious, using the Taiping Islands as their base, hiding in the complex terrain of the archipelago, and the Taiping Islands Alliance's numerous encirclement campaigns had all been in vain.
And this Sea King Gang was the most prominent among them, known for their ruthless actions and cruel methods.