"At first, we were a little hesitant, but then we realized the only way to survive was to follow him. And he’s not some tyrant," the man replied. He then asked cautiously, "Lord Yu... how is he?"
"He’s severely injured. Whether or not he can pull through is up to him now," Ren Yuanyang replied before walking out and returning to his speedboat.
After Ren Yuanyang left, Yu Ren’s underlings immediately started talking among themselves.
"If Lord Yu doesn’t make it, what do we do then?"
"It doesn’t look like he has any intention of executing us. For now, our only choice is to follow him!"
"He seems like a decent guy!"
"’A decent guy’? A beast in human skin can be more terrifying than a Mutant! Let’s not jump to conclusions. We’ll have to wait and see."
"Sigh... For ordinary people like us, our only option is to latch onto a major base. We don’t have a choice."
Back on his speedboat, Ren Yuanyang commanded, "Jiamei, go see if any speedboats are catching up to us."
"Yes, Chief!" Lu Jiamei turned and went to the stern. She scanned the waters carefully but saw no other speedboats.
Lu Jiamei returned to the cabin and shook her head at Ren Yuanyang. "Chief, I don’t see any speedboats in pursuit!"
Ren Yuanyang nodded, then pulled out his phone to check the map. After a moment of thought, he said, "Haonan, head for the nearby Third-level Wind Sea Region!"
"Yes, Chief!" Qin Haonan immediately steered the speedboat to port.
The two speedboats following them did the same, turning to port.
Just then, the captain of the Xi’an Base’s Sixth Squad arrived at the scene of the battle. When he saw Jim’s body floating in the water, his face paled, and he immediately reported the situation up the chain of command.
"What? Jim is dead?" Bao Mu’s shocked voice came through the phone. "How is that possible!"
"We’ve recovered Lord Jim’s body from the water. The fatal blow was a wound to the heart!" the captain reported, steeling himself.
"Impossible! Earth-Type Superpower Users have incredibly powerful defenses. How could his heart have been pierced?!" Bao Mu roared. "It must have been Wu Jin! He must have backstabbed Jim! Where is Wu Jin?"
The captain sounded helpless. "We found Wu Jin’s body in the water, too."
Hearing this, Bao Mu froze. "Wu Jin is dead, too?"
"Yes, along with all the soldiers of the Ninth Squad," the captain replied. "Every one of those soldiers had their throat slit with a single cut."
Bao Mu was silent for a long time before asking, "And their speedboats are gone?"
"Yes. We only caught a faint glimpse of three silhouettes heading off into the distance. It must have been their speedboats," the captain replied.
"Three?" Bao Mu’s brow furrowed. ’Looks like someone else swooped in and reaped the spoils.’
The captain hesitated for a moment before asking tentatively, "Could it be Peach Blossom Base, the one we’re looking for?"
Bao Mu didn’t answer. After a moment of deliberation, he commanded, "Keep pursuing them. Follow the direction those three speedboats went!"
"Yes, sir!"
After ending the call, Bao Mu immediately sent a message to Jing Shu. "Are there any other major bases or factions in your vicinity?"
Jing Shu was taken aback by the message. He quickly replied, "No! Did your team run into another faction?"
"Our base’s strongest Evolver has been killed," Bao Mu replied grimly.
"What?" Jing Shu was utterly astonished.
"And that’s not all. An entire, fully-armed combat squad was wiped out with him," Bao Mu continued. "Only an incredibly powerful faction could have pulled this off!"
"You mean Peach Blossom Base?" Jing Shu asked, his brow furrowing.
"It’s just a suspicion. Our team is already in pursuit, following their trail," Bao Mu said. Then, his tone shifted. "It wasn’t your team, was it?"
Jing Shu paused for a second, then immediately denied it. "Of course not! We don’t have that kind of capability!"
"Hmph. That’s for the best. Xi’an Base will not rest until we find who killed Jim," Bao Mu said coolly.
Jing Shu frowned but still replied, "We’ll also arrange for teams to search the area. If we find anything, we’ll let you know immediately."
"Then I’d appreciate that," Bao Mu replied. "If it really was Peach Blossom Base, then we can be almost certain their base is somewhere near the Seventh-level Wind Sea Region. They’ve been spotted around there far too often!"
Jing Shu considered this, then brought up his earlier theory again. "Do you think Peach Blossom Base could actually be *inside* the Seventh-level Wind Sea Region?"
Bao Mu dismissed the idea. "Unlikely. Even in a Second-level Wind Sea Region, a boat’s hull rocks slightly. Only a large vessel can mitigate that. If they stayed in a Seventh-level Wind Sea Region permanently, the constant motion would make anyone seasick! Of course, if you’re worried they’re really hiding in the Seventh-level Wind Sea Region, you’re welcome to send your people in for a look."
"That’s a good point. Our fuel supplies are tight, so we’ll just search the surrounding area," Jing Shu said. ’He was actually hoping Bao Mu’s team would go in for a look. After all, with the high winds and rough waves of a Seventh-level Wind Sea Region, entering would consume more than just fuel—it could very well cost them personnel and ships.’
After the call ended, Jing Shu was lost in thought. ’To be able to annihilate an elite squad from Xi’an Base... This enemy is truly powerful, and they’re right here in our vicinity. This is a potential threat!’
As much as he didn’t want to waste the fuel, he had no choice but to order his patrols to expand their search radius. He had no desire to get his throat slit in his sleep one day.
Meanwhile, Ren Yuanyang and his group, having already charged into the Third-level Wind Sea Region, were now making their way toward the Seventh-level Wind Sea Region.
’By taking this wide detour, their pursuers will most likely keep chasing straight ahead, following their original path.’
Once Lu Jiamei confirmed multiple times that there were no other speedboats in the vicinity, the three vessels plunged into the Seventh-level Wind Sea Region as one and sped toward their base.

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