Chapter 52 Arguing, Anticipation, and Good Luck No matter how many times you ask...
"Dear guests, good evening. This wonderful sea voyage is coming to an end. Thank you for your company. Please take your belongings and disembark in an orderly manner."
An electronic female voice broadcast simultaneously from all the speakers inside the ship, repeatedly reciting various precautions and friendly reminders.
For the vast majority of passengers, it was a very enjoyable evening.
Especially in the final part, they, as Alexei's advisors, added fuel to the fire—or rather, devised strategies—for the enemy's "take down the executive officer in a month" operation.
Before disembarking, Alexei, confident of success, wanted to find an opportunity to say hello to Fu Ze and salvage his previously poor image.
No matter how much he wandered around and asked, he couldn't find Fu Ze. In the end, he had no choice but to disembark after repeated announcements urging him to leave.
As he was about to step down the last step, whether out of desperation or some kind of inspiration, Alexei subconsciously glanced back.
It was this one glance that finally allowed him to see Fu Ze once again.
At this moment, Fu Ze was leaning against the railing of the top platform of the cruise ship, with his back to the dock, in the same posture as when Alexei first saw him.
Seeing that Alexei was about to turn back to the ship on instinct, his companions stopped him and advised, "Alex, come on. There's still half a game waiting for you to show your skills."
"I got the internship address from the manager. When it comes to pursuing someone, there's always time to take your time. There's no rush."
Alexei had one indispensable advantage over other playboys—he could always distinguish between what was important and what was urgent at the most critical moments.
Knowing that the subsequent events could not be delayed, he left as planned.
Although during this time, he kept looking back at Fu Ze every three steps.
Judging from Fu Ze's actions, he seemed to be talking to someone.
It was less like talking and more like... arguing?
Alexei suddenly felt very jealous of the person standing opposite Fu Ze.
Compared to his previous composed demeanor in the face of various situations, Fu Ze's expression was now exceptionally vivid.
Besides, if they hadn't been arguing, he should have noticed my gaze just like last time, and turned his head to look at me.
Instead of not even exchanging glances like this.
If Fu Ze could hear Alexei's inner thoughts, he would surely offer a rare compliment:
You're not entirely useless; at least you're quite self-aware.
Fu Ze was indeed arguing, and the object of his argument was undoubtedly Yuan Jianxing.
Just a minute ago, Yuan Jianxing learned from Fu Ze about the changes in the plan to smuggle contraband.
However, the reason he was angry was not because Fu Ze deliberately delayed informing him of the news, but because of Fu Ze's unauthorized actions.
"Do you know how dangerous what you're doing is?"
If Fu Ze's location hadn't been monitored, Yuan Jianxing might have already grabbed Fu Ze by the collar.
Fu Ze clearly knew this, and thus became even more emboldened.
"You've asked this question many times in different ways already, how many more times do you want to ask it?"
"Keep asking until you admit you're wrong."
"Then no matter how many times you ask, my answer is always: I did nothing wrong."
Yuan Jianxing felt that it had been a long time since he had experienced the feeling of "being so angry that he laughed".
Fu Ze's actions today perfectly filled in this gap.
It's the kind of glue that you can't peel off even if you use super glue.
"To put it another way, whether it's right or wrong should be judged based on the results. At least right now, neither you nor I can make that conclusion directly." Pointing his finger to his temple, Fu Ze once again chose to back down first.
Isn't he spoiling Yuan Jianxing too much?
“I can do it.” Yuan Jianxing abandoned his usual “forgive and forget” attitude and not only refused to back down but also directly encroached on the room for speech that Fu Ze had conceded.
After he made concessions, Mihara Kensei actually took advantage of him, which made Fu Ze furious. He even planned to give the other party a black eye if necessary.
"Because I am absolutely certain that any strategy that requires people to risk their lives for a minuscule possibility is a bad strategy."
However, upon hearing the second half of the story, Fu Ze's clenched fist suddenly relaxed.
"So, actually... you're concerned about me?"
Eight parts of it was the usual glib and flippant banter, one part was a cautious probing, and one part was an emotion so chaotic that its content was impossible to discern.
“Yes,” Yuan Jianxing admitted quite frankly, “Never abandon, never give up, and work together towards a common goal. You were the one who proposed this first.”
Fu Ze chuckled to himself.
Some powerful figures believe in the saying, "I would rather betray the world than let the world betray me."
Therefore, they are ruthless and powerful figures, not heroes.
A true hero should be like Hara Mihoshi.
One, promise, a thousand, gold, heavy.
Fu Ze nodded: "That's right, it was my suggestion. I don't intend to go back on my word."
Yuan Jianxing sneered: "What's the difference between your 'acting first and informing later' behavior and going back on your word?"
"No, no, this is called 'if the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too.'" Fu Ze smiled cleverly, putting on an expression that said, "What? Are you going to beat me to death?" "I guarantee that as long as the superior sets an example in the future, I will naturally follow suit."
That's where the conversation really died.
Because what Yuan Jianxing likes to do most is to respect the rules according to his needs.
After thoroughly appreciating the subtle, bitter expression on Yuan Jianxing's face, Fu Ze continued, "Getting back to the main topic. Proceed with the tracking device according to my plan. I guarantee we'll all return safely."
"Your most important task right now is to disembark safely."
At this point, Fu Ze became even more angry: "You had to throw a tantrum at me just now, and now look what happened, you don't have a chance to disembark with those guests."
Yuan Jianxing closed his eyes heavily for a moment.
This person has truly mastered the art of "making trouble out of nothing".
"You think you can just sneak in like that? Given what happened before, Badger Tooth will definitely be keeping a close watch on me this time, afraid I'll escape. If they notice anything unusual, they'll take action on the spot." He suppressed his surging emotions and began to address the matter methodically. "Do you have a second room key this time?"
“There’s no need for a killer weapon like a room key.” Fu Ze waved his hand casually. “I guarantee that for a long time to come, Badger Tooth won’t be interested in catching you.”
-
Badger Tooth's mind is completely focused on the containers underwater; even if someone on board were to die suddenly, it wouldn't affect him at all.
If Fu Ze hadn't mentioned that the ship's center of gravity seemed off and suggested checking the containers underneath, he wouldn't have noticed that they had become twisted and crooked from the seawater, with the worst ones almost scraping the bottom.
Whether it's dragging to the bottom or not is unimportant; the key point is that their state affects how rhinoceros horns use [mirror image] for transportation.
With the system upgrade at Dala Port nearing completion, any unexpected delay could lead to the transshipment being caught red-handed.
The consequences would be unbearable not only for himself, but even for the rhinoceros horn.
Under Badger Tooth's fierce gaze, the engineers operating the robots immediately began sweating profusely as they assessed how to return the containers to their proper positions.
Soon, the lead engineer proposed a solution—to replace one of Icarus's powered legs with a heavy-duty robotic arm, which, together with the two existing original robotic arms, would be used to adjust and reposition the container using a three-point wheel mechanism.
"What do you think of the feasibility?" Badger Tooth asked Fu Ze.
Fu Ze affirmed, "Theoretically speaking, there's no problem."
If I put myself in his shoes, I would do the same.
The engineers cast grateful glances at Fu Ze, who clearly understood technology.
Fu Ze returned a polite smile, thinking to himself: You're thanking me too soon.
Just a few minutes later, a chorus of "Damn!" came from the engineers' end.
Upon hearing this, Fu Ze finally nodded with a barely perceptible expression of satisfaction.
After all, just a few minutes ago, he had sneaked into the room where Icarus was kept and personally loosened the positioning screws of the heavy mechanical arm.
Now that Icarus is missing a power leg, and given the extremely complex hydrological conditions in Port Dara, it is virtually impossible for Icarus to retrieve the heavy robotic arm on its own without human assistance.
Even in extreme cases, if some of these engineers were exceptionally skilled and daring enough to single-handedly retrieve the robotic arm using Icarus, they would only repeat the same desperate situation as Sisyphus if that screw wasn't tightened back in.
In other words, if you want to preserve the robotic arm, you basically have to pick it up manually.
Considering the current crew configuration on the ship, Fu Ze is the only suitable candidate for this position.
In this way, he could easily attach the tracker to the containers that would be transferred away.
I anticipated your prediction, and your prediction was the result of our deliberate manipulation.
How can it not be considered completely under control?
-
Seeing Fu Ze already undressing, one of them, adhering to the principle of safety, dared to speak up and object: "You're acting so rashly, you're courting death. Even if you're gifted enough to hold your breath for five minutes, what if you encounter turbulence or some other accident..."
Suddenly a dark shadow flashed by, followed by a chill that touched his brow.
After refocusing his vision, he realized that Fu Ze had stopped less than half a foot in front of him.
"I don't like hearing such unlucky words, take them back." After a warning smile, Fu Ze withdrew his hand from the other's forehead and turned to look at Badger Tooth. "Time is limited, let's finish this quickly."
If Badger Tooth's relationship with Fu Ze was previously one of ordinary cooperation, then this feeling has now evolved into one of appreciation.
At the same time, he suddenly understood why Rhinoceros Horn was so fanatical about "loyalty".
Who wouldn't want their subordinates to be at the forefront, overcoming all obstacles, even risking their lives, just to complete their mission?
Badger Tooth handed Fu Ze one end of the long rope with the five-point safety harness and an unopened canister of pure oxygen, saying sincerely, "If this mission is successfully completed, I'll cover your executive performance for the next year."
"I'll gladly accept such a precious gift." After saying that, Fu Ze, who had already put on his safety harness, took a few deep breaths of pure oxygen, then put on his diving mask, flipped over and went into the water, grabbed Icarus's leg and dived toward the direction where the mechanical arm had detached.
Most people can only hold their breath for a little over a minute without training, but if they mix pure oxygen into the air in their lungs beforehand, they can hold their breath for much longer.
The entertainment area in Port Dara wasn't deep, and with Icarus going full throttle, Fu Ze landed next to the mechanical arm in just over ten seconds.
Using the light from the Icarus spotlight, Fu Ze quickly saw the current state of the robotic arm.
He bent down to adjust the robotic arm, which was stuck in a tricky situation. In the instant it blocked Icarus's camera, he casually tightened the screw that he had loosened beforehand.
After completing these preliminary steps, Fu Ze turned around and gestured "come here" to the camera, then followed Icarus's movements to put the robotic arm back in.
With a crisp "click," the heavy robotic arm gradually lit up its indicator lights.
The engineers cheered as they watched the reconnected robotic arm begin to function normally on the screen.
The engineer who had previously criticized Fu Ze for acting too recklessly rubbed the spot Fu Ze had touched with his knuckles, looking embarrassed.
Fully equipped, Icarus once again attempted to put the tilted container back in its place after returning to its original position.
This time, the robotic arm, which was connected to the machine body in a pre-designed manner, performed its intended function as expected by both parties.
Icarus began working diligently and efficiently, and Fu Ze returned on his own as agreed.
As he swam across the container, he slipped the tracker behind his back and stuck it into the gap inside the container.
Considering the risk that the tracker might fall off during transport due to bumps, he pushed the tracker a little further in.
However, this push caused Fu Ze's right hand fingers to be pinched and cut by the sharp sheet metal seams of the container.
The wound initially hurt, but quickly became numb from the stimulation of the cold seawater.
Fu Ze pretended nothing had happened and continued swimming towards the spot where he had entered the water.
But just before reaching the finish line, he felt as if his internal organs had been struck by a hammer with a weight of a thousand pounds, almost causing him to lose consciousness.
Could it be...!
Fu Ze immediately looked toward the area where the container was located.
During the last test, he was on the ship and couldn't witness the activation of the [Mirror Image] like Yuan Jianxing, who was hiding in the ship's lower deck. This time, he was able to make up for it.
From the moment Fu Ze sensed something to the moment he turned around to look, less than a blink of an eye had passed. Yet, in that extremely short time, a quarter of the neatly arranged containers had disappeared.
Perhaps because Fu Ze was closer to the area affected by the [Mirror Image] than before, the resonance of the [Key] power within him was also stronger.
If last time Fu Ze was standing thousands of miles away from the epicenter of the earthquake and only felt its aftershocks, this time he was standing directly in the epicenter, personally experiencing the immense power emanating from deep within the earth's crust.
But with his previous experience, this time Fu Ze endured immense torment, forcibly suppressing the metallic taste that was almost rising from his throat, and continued to proceed with the evacuation step by step.
At the same time, he thought: if it weren't for those restrictions, and the fact that Rhinoceros Horn himself didn't seem to be keen on using such extraordinary abilities, L City would probably have been in turmoil long ago.
In addition, he also thought about several more chilling questions: Besides the [Mirror Image], how many other abilities does this key have, and how many people can these extraordinary abilities be distributed to?
What kind of being am I facing?
The surrounding seawater was cold, but it couldn't cool Fu Ze's heart at that moment.
The oxygen content in the blood, which was originally quite abundant, is consumed rapidly with the violent beating of the heart.
This means that Fu Ze must hurry back to the ship.
A dozen seconds later, Fu Ze broke out of the water and climbed onto the deck by pulling on the ladder on the side of the ship.
However, when he unbuckled his seatbelt and took off his fogged-up swimming goggles, he suddenly realized that the boat was completely empty.
Badger Teeth, the engineers, and even the other ship crew members all disappeared.
The cruise ship was still brightly lit, but in Fu Ze's eyes at this moment, it looked more like a brilliant but desolate wasteland.
Only the sweet, electronic female announcer's voice echoed in the cabin:
"The cruise ship has started automatic navigation mode. We wish you a pleasant journey."
-
On a distant residential building, Longji, shading his eyes with his hand, watched the cruise ship slowly depart from the harbor. Turning his head, he said to Xijiao and Huanchi, who had just received the news and rushed over:
"I thought about it, and since it's magic, it needs someone to cooperate to make it exciting."
With his hands outstretched at his sides, he displayed the cruise ship to the two of them like a top auctioneer, showing it to them as small as a child's toy from their current distance and perspective.
Fu Ze, who had just stood firmly on the deck, was only the size of a pinhead.
"Then let's have Mr. Fu Ze, who acted without permission and even broke the rules by getting along with the executive officer, be today's lucky audience member."
Badger Tooth instinctively wanted to plead for Fu Ze, but ultimately remained silent under the stern warning gaze of Rhinoceros Horn.
"However, given that this is my first time performing this magic trick, I cannot guarantee the safety of the audience."
Dragon Spine looked somewhat annoyed.
"If anything unexpected happens, we can only hope that this viewer..."
He slowly turned his head, smoothing out his furrowed brows, and said with a forced smile:
"May you have good fortune."
When he said this, Dragon Spine spoke in a very considerate and gentle tone, which was in stark contrast to the content of his words.
"Fortunately, this audience member's behavior during this period did not meet the standards of a qualified employee, so I do not feel guilty."
From the perspective of the rhinoceros horn and badger teeth, the dragon's spine at this moment resembled a Titan-level deity, casting a merciless gaze upon its creation.
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Author's Note: Fu Xiaozhe almost fell for Xingxing's feint! [doge emoji with rose in hand]
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