346: Chapter 294 346: Chapter 294 Ye Tian returned to the Ye Family, where his grandfather and father summoned him.
They heard of his recent gains and that he had obtained leverage over Liu Xu, which made him more cautious.
His father and grandfather both praised his actions and supported him in driving out and annihilating the terrorists.
They could not allow the people of the nation to be harmed; it was their duty as guardians.
Ye Tian didn’t stay long with his family.
After receiving information that the terrorists were stirring again, possibly looking to create panic in the Imperial City, he had to act.
He had only a lead but did not know where the terrorists were hiding.
He needed to find traces of their presence, and for the time being, he couldn’t return to the North City Immortal Sect to protect the Imperial City.
What Ye Tian didn’t know was that, a thousand miles away from the Imperial City, there was a coastal city that served as a gateway to foreign seas frequently visited by pirates.
In this coastal city of Ancient Xia Country that connects to foreign lands, there were soldiers guarding it, preventing pirates or foreigners from entering and leaving at will.
The merchants of Ancient Xia Country also wanted to take their goods overseas for trade, exchanging items between countries or trading with multiple nations to earn higher profits.
The merchants had to hire high-level bodyguards to conduct such business, as the pirates at sea were rampant, and some even disguised themselves as pirates to rob the cargo.
The soldiers of the state couldn’t always protect the merchants.
They might only arrive in pursuit after an incident, possibly finding everyone gone or the victims of murder and looting.
One late night, when the guards were lax, a group of small boats with their engines running surrounded a large ship.
The sailors and captain of the large ship noticed these small boats, but by that time it was too late.
Still, the captain sounded the alarm, “Whoosh, whoosh.”
The sound woke the workers who had been sleeping soundly, including the steward on the large ship and a wealthy young master who was onboard as a bodyguard.
The pirates had already jumped from the small boats onto the large ship, brandishing their weapons and taking control of the crew.
Numerous in number, they weren’t really pirates.
Some could turn invisible, suddenly reappearing to launch stealth attacks.
More attacks came in the form of enchantments and using drugs to bind the people on board.
Unable to withstand the onslaught, the crew was eventually overpowered by the pirates.
The pirates abandoned their small boats and, using illusion techniques, took control of the original crew, forcing them to sail the large ship back to Ancient Xia Country.
The large ship was carrying cargo, and the pirates hid in the hold, attiring themselves in Ancient Xia Country civilian clothes and drugging the food of the workers daily.
People on the large ship were controlled, their minds not their own, but outwardly they seemed normal.
They evaded discovery by officials multiple times.
The hidden pirates laughed sinisterly, mocking the officers for their stupidity and thinking of how once again they had infiltrated Ancient Xia Country in large numbers to avenge their fallen comrades.
They had already planned how to take control of Ancient Xia Country, starting with capturing the King.
This time, while orchestrating terror, they planned to use chemical weapons to conquer the nation in one fell swoop.
When the large ship arrived at the coast of Ancient Xia Country, this particular ship, belonging to a certain trading company, had entered and exited this coast several times.
The ship returned earlier than expected, and with no one to receive it, many laborers looking for work gathered at the shore.
They crowded the waterfront, waiting for the ship to dock.
Those controlled on board operated normally, unloading the cargo to the shore and then evacuating the ship.
With the ship seemingly empty, people assumed there was no more cargo, and more people thought there might still be crew guarding the ship.
The ship appeared normal, and without any officials inspecting it, it remained dark even as night fell, which seemed odd.
Some viewed the ship strangely, but no one dared to investigate.
The ship’s owners had disembarked and did not return to check on it.
In the deep of the night, with no lights shining from the pitch-black hold under the moonlight, people began to emerge from the ship’s hold.
In secrecy, they disembarked onto the shore and snuck into the city under the cover of darkness.
In the quietude of night, a killing intent simmered beneath the surface.
The officers patrolled the coast and found many small boats unmanned, a curious phenomenon that reminded them of the large ship previously encountered.
Could it have been harboring pirates?
The officers immediately returned to the coast and brought the small boats back.
By this time, it was already daylight.
Searching the large ship, they found it completely deserted.
The officers pursued the crew, only to discover that they had all returned home, acting almost normally, though somewhat wooden in expression.
Unable to uncover any useful information, they had no choice but to report to their superiors.
Their superiors sensed something odd about the situation and ordered an investigation.
Some people had made it to a coast over a hundred miles away, and by the time Ye Tian received the news, half a day had already passed.
Ye Tian, upon receiving the message, understood the oddity; these people were controlled with drugs, which clouded their judgment, making them unwitting accomplices in deeds they were unaware of.
A day and night had passed, and if these individuals were quick enough, they might have already infiltrated cities near the Imperial City.