A few days later.

At dawn, as the vague outline of the island finally appeared on the boundless sea, Humphrey, standing on the bow deck of the HMS Steelbone, smiled faintly.

He lowered the binoculars and turned to Xia Liyan beside him, saying:

"Marshal, we can already see the outline of Chalme Island. It seems we will pass by Chalme Island before noon. Once we get there, our voyage will be only halfway complete."

Xia Liyang crossed his arms, adjusted his hat, and nodded, saying, "Mm."

"However, we can't waste time. We don't need to go to Chalme Island. We'll just go around it and get to Yan Kingdom as soon as possible."

"Yes, Marshal." Humphrey replied, and the Second Fleet slightly adjusted its course, but continued forward.

About an hour into the march, the soldiers on the watchtower sent an urgent message.

"Sir, a fleet has appeared behind us!"

When the urgent message reached Xia Liyan's ears, he was quite surprised and immediately asked which fleet it was.

The private replied that he couldn't see clearly; the distance was too great, and he could only see a blurry black dot, but there was no doubt that it must be a fleet.

Upon receiving this reply, Xia Liyan's first reaction was that it might be from the fleet of the Sa Ri Kingdom.

After all, when they sailed through the territorial waters of the Sari Kingdom, Xia Liyang had already seen their warships. So there was no doubt that the Second Fleet's deployment was also under their notice. Therefore, it was not surprising that the Sari Kingdom sent out its fleet. They also wanted to seize more territory in the Yan Kingdom, which was in line with their style.

"It should be the fleet of the Sasiri Kingdom, right, Marshal?" Humphrey asked at this moment.

Xia Liyang, with a calm expression, replied:

“Besides them, I can’t think of any other country. The Hunnic Kingdom couldn’t possibly be faster than the Sari Kingdom, and the Shenglu Kingdom… that’s even less likely.”

“They just met us a few days ago and went back; there’s no way they’d come back here.”

"Hmm... but they're sailing really fast. Logically, they set sail later than us, so they shouldn't be catching up at this time." Xia Liyang frowned slightly.

Humphrey frowned and said, "Our warships are all fully loaded. Perhaps the warships of the Sasiri Kingdom did not sink."

Xia Liyang nodded slightly: "Maybe so, we don't need to pay them any attention."

"Our goal is to land in Yan Kingdom as soon as possible. So what if they come? At least for now, we are still on the same side."

Humphrey echoed, "Yes, Marshal." He picked up the binoculars and looked ahead again. After an hour's sailing, Chalme Island, which had previously only been a blurry outline, was now much clearer.

"It is indeed a huge island. If Chalme Island were in our country's coastal waters, it would be enough to build a naval base. It's just a pity that it's too far away, making it too inconvenient to transport supplies," Humphrey sighed.

Upon hearing this, Xia Liyang pursed his lips and said, "Don't worry, everything will be alright."

"After we establish a base in Yan Kingdom, the Emperor will send more reinforcements, but that will be next year. At that time, Chalme Island will become a transit point."

“Take a good look at this island. From now on, it will belong to us.” Xia Liyang’s eyes gleamed.

The fleet continued to sail forward in an orderly manner. Of course, surveillance of the fleet behind was also being carried out simultaneously. However, as time went by, the fleet behind did not shorten the distance; they remained just a blurry black shadow, which puzzled Xia Liyan.

"Did they reduce their speed?" Xia Liyan asked, puzzled.

Humphrey frowned, sharing the same doubt: "But their sudden appearance behind us means they're not slow, so why aren't they catching up?"

Everyone was completely baffled, but in any case, the Second Fleet was getting closer and closer to Chalmers Island ahead.

Since Xia Liyan did not intend to stay on Chalmers Island, the Second Fleet was currently sailing in a direction that avoided the island, that is, towards the southwest.

After sailing for some time, the outline of the island became clearer, and it was at this moment that everyone belatedly realized that something was amiss.

Holding a binocular, Humphrey frowned, his eyes fixed on the island without blinking.

"There are buildings on the island... are they... bunkers?"

What came into view were the outlines of simple fortresses built of stone, and even gun emplacements, a scene that left Humphrey puzzled.

Xia Liyang felt the same way. He knew that Chalme Island was huge and magnificent, with abundant resources. It was the largest island on the route to Yan Kingdom, but it was too far away from various countries, so it could not be used. He had never heard of any artificial structures built on it by the Sarri Kingdom. At most, there were simple docks on the east, south and north sides for ships to moor.

"When was it built? Was it built when they came this time?" Xia Liyang asked, puzzled.

"Shall we go up and take a look, Marshal?" Humphrey asked.

“No need. Just go directly to Yan Kingdom according to the original plan.” Xia Liyang put down the binoculars. Although he was puzzled, there was no need to waste time docking at Chalmers Island.

"Huh?" Humphrey, who was holding the binoculars, suddenly exclaimed.

"This is?"

"What's wrong?" Xia Liyang picked up the binoculars and looked ahead again.

The next instant, his pupils contracted, and his face showed a look of shock.

Several warships appeared to the left front of the fleet, in the waters northwest of Chalmers Island.

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