For He Jianxi, those four hours in the sea felt like hell. The night sea was icy cold; although it wasn’t the bone-chilling cold that could take a life, his feet were cramping uncontrollably. However, this plague god seemed to breathe in the water; when he could no longer swim, it could pull him along with one hand, maintaining the same efficiency. When he was cramping, it would grip his chin, allowing him to rest in the water.

Even so, those four hours felt unbearably long. He Jianxi’s consciousness blurred, and he couldn’t remember how he got onto the South An ship. He only recalled a massive sea palace approaching them, so enormous and beautifully lit, like a fairyland. For a moment, he thought he was dead and had sunk into a crystal palace.

The next sensation he felt was his back lying on a solid deck. Leaning against something so firm gave him a sense of security for the first time, and the most astonishing thing was that the deck was warm. The water was so cold that even the deck felt warm.

Zhang Haiyan dragged him to a corner and poured him a shot of strong liquor from a bottle the size of a finger segment. He Jianxi slowly began to come around. His whole body felt limp, as if all his bones had been extracted, and his muscles ached like they were being pricked by needles.

“Where is this?” he asked weakly.

“South An ship, steamship, heading to Xiamen.”

“Why are we going to Xiamen? I want to go to San Francisco! What the hell are you doing?”

“Saving your life.”

Zhang Haiyan thought to himself that this kid was indeed lucky; such a difficult plan had succeeded so smoothly. The ship was very quiet; the South An was not a warship, and there were no patrols on the deck. Zhang Haiyan was exhausted himself, having drunk a bottle of strong liquor. He began to observe his surroundings, and He Jianxi became more alert. Suddenly, he understood what Zhang Haiyan had just said and grabbed him: “You bastard! I want to go to San Francisco, not be a stowaway to Xiamen! My cousin is still waiting for me!”

Zhang Haiyan covered his mouth: “Shut up, or you’ll swim back yourself.”

He Jianxi completely lost it: “I will report you! I will report you!”

Zhang Haiyan took out his ticket and waved it: “Don’t be silly. On this ship, you’re the stowaway, and I’m the VIP. You can only report yourself.”

He Jianxi looked at the ticket, clutching his chest, nearly having a heart attack from the overwhelming injustice he felt.

Zhang Haiyan patted him: “Don’t worry, no one will believe that anyone could stow away on this ship in these waters. There are no bad sailors or con artists on board. Once we reach Xiamen, I will let you go to San Francisco. Don’t be afraid; it’s just a detour. We’ll go back to the cabin, and I’ll explain everything in detail. Be good.” As he spoke, he helped He Jianxi up and recalled the location of the first-class cabin, moving forward.

He Jianxi had no strength to resist and could only comply. As they walked, he asked, “Who exactly are you?”

After just a couple of steps, the two of them saw a dozen corpses piled up further back in their hiding place, all crew members, their throats slit.

They immediately retreated, and He Jianxi looked at Zhang Haiyan: “Did you not say there were no bad sailors or con artists? What’s going on?”

Zhang Haiyan was speechless. After thinking for a moment, he heard someone come onto the deck. A girl’s voice said, “Throw all the bodies into the water. That woman is very shrewd; we absolutely can’t let her have the slightest suspicion.” The two of them shrank their necks and hid in the shadows, and Zhang Haiyan saw two girls dragging a new corpse towards them.