Fan Xin didn't understand why her master would issue such an order. The disciples of Ice Heart Pavilion had practically never gone out to sea before, nor had there ever been any need for them to do so.
What surprised her even more was that her master had actually placed Yang Kai in charge of everything and instructed them to follow his commands. Yang Kai hadn't been at Ice Heart Pavilion for very long, yet he had already earned such tremendous trust from their master, who had entrusted her and her fellow disciples entirely to his care. Fan Xin truly had no idea what Yang Kai had done to inspire such deep confidence from her master.
Still, despite her doubts, Fan Xin didn't dare disobey her master's orders in the slightest.
"Let's wait here a bit," Yang Kai said, glancing toward the city gates.
"Oh." Fan Xin didn't ask any further questions. She gave a soft nod, found a spot, and stood there quietly.
Before long, Yang Kai noticed several familiar figures approaching through the city gates and couldn't help but smile knowingly.
"Sister Ling!" Liu Xianyun recognized Ling Yinqin the moment she appeared and immediately went to greet her.
After exchanging pleasantries, Ling Yinqin walked over to Yang Kai with a grave expression. "Senior Brother Yang, we're coming with you."
"Good." Yang Kai nodded with a smile. "I won't let you down, that much I can promise!"
His gaze swept across the crowd, and he noticed that only about a third of Ling Yinqin's crew had gathered here. The rest were nowhere to be seen. It was clear that even with Ling Yinqin's reputation, she hadn't been able to convince all of her crew to trust Yang Kai.
Jiao Yi, however, had come along with Ling Yinqin. He shot Yang Kai a series of meaningful looks and said, "Brother Yang, we're entrusting our lives to you. Don't let anything go wrong."
Yang Kai replied, "You'll see how it turns out soon enough. For now, let's board and set sail."
The docks were bustling with people and crowded with tower ships, so the departure of Yang Kai's group aboard their vessel wasn't particularly conspicuous.
Moments later, they were sailing across the open sea, gradually putting distance between themselves and Tongtian Island.
Though the Ice Heart Pavilion disciples had little experience at sea and knew nothing about sailing, Ling Yinqin and her crew were old hands. The tower ship cut through the waves with smooth efficiency, riding the wind and breaking through the swells.
After a full day of travel, the tower ship was already more than a hundred thousand li away from Tongtian Island.
Fan Xin made her way to the deck with a worried expression and found Yang Kai. "Alchemist Yang, where is my master? I still haven't seen any sign of her."
Yang Kai smiled faintly. "The Pavilion Master is a woman of extraordinary abilities—there's no need to worry. She needs to shake off someone before she can come and meet up with us."
"Shake off someone?" Fan Xin's delicate brows rose at these words, and she vaguely understood. She nodded and withdrew.
Just then, Yang Kai suddenly turned his head to look toward one side, as though sensing something. A streak of brilliant light was hurtling toward them from the horizon—impossibly far away at first, yet in the blink of an eye it had arrived right before them.
The rainbow light landed on the deck. As it faded, Bing Yun's figure came into view.
"Who goes there?!" Ling Yinqin and the others were shocked. They all cried out in alarm. Having someone board their ship without warning in the middle of the ocean was the gravest of taboos, and Ling Yinqin's group immediately snapped into combat readiness.
However, after sweeping their Divine Sense over the newcomer and sensing the unfathomable depth of Bing Yun's cultivation, their expressions shifted to alarm and they didn't dare make any rash movements.
Though none of them could gauge the true extent of Bing Yun's power, the overwhelming pressure they felt emanating from her was unmistakable. The barest probe of their senses sent their blood churning and left them with tight chests. This was undeniably a powerhouse they could not afford to offend.
"You've arrived, Senior." Yang Kai cupped his fists toward Bing Yun in greeting.
Bing Yun gave a slight nod.
"Master!" Fan Xin and the others hurried over to pay their respects, each of them looking visibly uplifted, as though they had just found their anchor.
"Senior… Master…" Ling Yinqin and her companions were completely dumbfounded.
Yang Kai was a cultivator at the third level of the Dao Source Realm. The only people he would address as "Senior" were Emperor Sovereign Realm powerhouses. And Ling Yinqin knew Fan Xin well enough to know she was from Ice Heart Pavilion. Hearing Fan Xin call this young woman "Master," Ling Yinqin instantly understood who she was.
This young woman was the renowned Ice Heart Pavilion Master—the only person on Tongtian Island who could stand as an equal to the Island Master!
Once they understood this, Ling Yinqin and her group were filled with inexplicable excitement. They all gazed at Bing Yun with eyes full of admiration and reverence, and their confidence in Yang Kai soared.
If Ling Yinqin had initially chosen to leave with Yang Kai simply because she didn't want to stay on Tongtian Island any longer and had decided to take a gamble, then now they had truly found hope.
With the Ice Heart Pavilion Master herself aboard their ship, what was there left to worry about?
"Are these friends of yours?" Bing Yun glanced at Ling Yinqin and the others and asked.