CHAPTER 416: CHAPTER 416 ARRIVING AT THREE IMMORTAL ISLAND

"Everyone, no need to be so formal!" Wang Lan said, gesturing casually. "This time, we need to carry out a temporary investigation mission; there is no combat mission. Does everyone understand the specifics of the task?"

"Commander, we only know that we need to investigate a fixed Different Dimensional Space, but where and how to conduct the investigation... The higher-ups didn’t specify. They only said to follow your orders."

"Our mission is to investigate a fixed Different Dimensional Space. To be honest, I don’t know the specific direction of the investigation either. Once everyone has arrived, we’ll get in the cars and meet up with Yu Ruoyun."

After getting in their cars and leaving the Tianjian Bureau, they arrived at Modu City’s seaport. From afar, they saw a dozen luxury business vehicles lined up, drawing countless onlookers who were snapping photos.

Compared to his own two rugged off-road vehicles, Wang Lan instantly felt like dumping his when faced with such disparity. The gap is just too damn big, he thought. Although, in the eyes of ordinary people, my two off-road vehicles could also be considered luxury cars... But compared to the kind from the Yu Family, where one of their vehicles could buy ten of mine, mine just don’t feel luxurious at all.

After alighting from their cars, all nine people, including Wang Lan, were dressed in sharp, black military uniforms. This lineup immediately caused a stir of exclamations from the surrounding crowd.

In terms of sheer ostentation, the Tianjian Bureau was outshone. However, after stepping out of their vehicles, the presence of Wang Lan and his party instantly overshadowed the formation of luxury cars. A military uniform isn’t something just anyone can wear to look impressive, Wang Lan mused. It takes a certain bearing.

"Wow—I’m obsessed, totally obsessed!"

Not far away, a fashionable girl at the port was frantically taking pictures of Wang Lan and his group with her phone, shouting excitedly.

Her companion, perhaps thinking the girl was embarrassing herself, firmly pulled her away.

"So handsome... I’ve decided! I’m going to marry a Soldier in the future!"

"These young men look so sharp! But why are their military uniforms black?"

Ignoring the surrounding commotion, Wang Lan and his party walked straight toward Yu Ruoyun’s motorcade. A car door opened slowly, and Yu Ruoyun, dressed in a woman’s suit, stepped out, casually closing the door behind her.

"You’re here?" she asked.

"Yes," Wang Lan replied. "We shouldn’t delay. Let’s set off."

The group boarded Yu Ruoyun’s yacht, the "Princess," and departed from the port, heading toward the East Sea.

To call this a yacht, Wang Lan thought, it might as well be considered an oil tanker. Seventy meters long, with an area of over three hundred square meters, and three luxuriously decorated decks. This is basically a floating sea mansion.

This time, Yu Ruoyun had brought about two dozen people: five at the Star Sea Stage, and the rest all at the peak of the Galaxy Stage. Even though Yu Ruoyun was the cherished jewel of the Yu Family, she couldn’t mobilize more of the family’s power.

On Wang Lan’s side, apart from himself, there were two at the Star Sea Stage, and the rest were at the Galaxy Stage. This lineup would be more than sufficient even to support a Pioneer Space, let alone for this mission, which was merely to investigate the location of a fixed space.

The yacht cruised across the sea at seventy kilometers per hour, its journey remarkably smooth. There was a slight sway, but absolutely no bumping sensation. This was largely thanks to the comfortable and pleasant weather that day.

The sun shone warmly, the temperature around twenty-five or twenty-six degrees Celsius, and the sea was calm. Wang Lan leaned against the yacht’s railing, admiring the rare and beautiful seascape through his sunglasses.

"Care for a drink?" A voice suddenly interrupted Wang Lan’s thoughts. Yu Ruoyun, now changed into a casual dress, approached him with a bottle of red wine and two wine glasses in hand.

"We cannot consume alcohol during official duties," Wang Lan replied stiffly.

Yu Ruoyun rolled her eyes at him. "It’s *you* who can’t drink, right?"

The fact that Wang Lan couldn’t hold his liquor was no secret; both the Tianjian Bureau and his circle of friends knew. It’s rare to have such a romantic opportunity, in such a romantic setting, Yu Ruoyun thought, but Wang Lan just has to spoil the mood. It’s truly irritating.

"With the Yu Family’s capabilities, you must have uncovered something by now, right?" Wang Lan asked, changing the subject. "Do you have a specific target?"

Yu Ruoyun poured herself a glass. Holding it, she gazed at the distant sea and took a light sip. "Didn’t we discover in a Pioneer Space that the Lv Family was smuggling Space Stones? Afterwards, we couldn’t trace where their Space Stones ended up.

Even using the full capabilities of the General Staff, we couldn’t find them. This can only mean that the Space Stones they smuggled were never distributed. So many Space Stones... where were they used?"

"Are you saying you suspect the appearance of the South Heavenly Gate was caused by Space Stones?" Wang Lan asked.

"Isn’t that what you deduced?" Yu Ruoyun countered. "Coincidentally, the Lv Family has a tourism development project on Three Immortal Island in the East Sea. They’re planning to create an Immortal Sect tourism zone. This project was established seven years ago and construction began five years ago. To date, the Lv Family has invested over seven billion yuan."

"The location of Three Immortal Island?" Wang Lan asked.

"Four hundred kilometers east of Penglai."

"That far?" Wang Lan’s eyebrows furrowed. "A tourism project at such a distance? Who would take a boat four hundred kilometers just for sightseeing?"

"If the South Heavenly Gate incident hadn’t occurred in the East Sea, no one would have suspected this project," Yu Ruoyun said. "After all, this world is never short of people with more money than sense. Besides, as long as the advertising is good, the project is still feasible.

An Immortal Sect tourism zone, well, if it weren’t remote, it wouldn’t really feel like an Immortal Sect, would it? At least their Divine Palace project on Mount Tai is doing quite well."

"Then it seems very likely that’s the place," Wang Lan mused. "If it’s related to the Lv Family, then it’s man-made. And man-made is always better than it being the work of the Demon Clan."

"Let’s hope so," Yu Ruoyun said. "It’ll take at least seventeen hours to get there. Are you planning to just stand out here and daydream the entire time? Don’t you want to find some other way to pass the time?" As she spoke, she looked at Wang Lan with an expectant expression, her tone even carrying a hint of teasing.

"True..." Wang Lan pondered. "How about we play Fight the Landlord?"

"..."

Yu Ruoyun stared blankly at Wang Lan. Right now, I genuinely want to crack open his head and see what’s inside, she thought. How can he kill a conversation with a single sentence? And how on earth did he get Jiang Xinyu and Xie Sisi so infatuated with him?

"You don’t know how? Then you must know mahjong, right? Shall we play mahjong?"

"Get lost!"

In reality, despite how much fun yacht parties looked in idol dramas, or how tycoons seemed to enjoy their glamorous yachting escapades, being out at sea could actually be quite boring. There was the confined space, the endless ocean vista, and sometimes, not even a signal.

Fishing was about the only pastime anyone could think of.

The Tianjian Bureau’s special agents and the Yu Family’s Star Martial Warriors were doing just that—fishing on opposite sides of the yacht to pass the time. Compared to them, Wang Lan’s activities were far more thrilling and satisfying. This was the boundless ocean, the domain of Sea Demons.

His Gold-level Star Martial Skill, Sea Demon, allowed Wang Lan to become like a Ghost in the vast ocean. Once the skill was activated, his body entered a bizarre state; it seemed as if the water within a five-hundred-meter radius held a strange connection to him.

In this state, Wang Lan didn’t need to breathe or see. With a mere thought, he could appear hundreds of meters away, merged with the ocean. He thoroughly enjoyed himself, diving into the deep sea to forage for sea creatures or playing hide-and-seek with the fish.

「Seventeen hours passed unknowingly.」

As the red sun rose above the ocean, its light piercing the dimness of Dawn, Yu Ruoyun’s yacht approached the Three Immortal Island region. When they were still three kilometers from the island, three speedboats came roaring towards them.

The Lv Family had recognized Yu Ruoyun’s yacht as soon as they spotted it; after all, not many people in the Jade Country could own a vessel of this caliber.

"Ruoyun, what brings you here?" Lv Lai called out with a smile. He was standing on one of the speedboats, looking up at Yu Ruoyun, who stood by the yacht’s railing.

"I’m on vacation and decided to come see the Immortal Sect on Three Immortal Island, get a bit of an early tour. Is that a problem?" Yu Ruoyun replied.

"Of course not," Lv Lai said. "It’s just... isn’t the Immortal Sect still under construction? How about I give you a personal invitation to visit as soon as it’s completed, alright?"

"You’ve been building it for seven years. Even if it’s not completely finished, it should be close, right?" Yu Ruoyun said. "Don’t worry, you can continue your work. We’re just here to take a look around."

"Do you insist on going?" Lv Lai’s smile vanished, and he asked seriously.

"I absolutely insist! What, are you trying to stop me?"

"I wouldn’t dare. Grandfather said that if Princess Yu Ruoyun insisted on visiting Three Immortal Island, then I should personally lead the way. Princess Yu Ruoyun, please follow me. There are many hidden reefs nearby; it would be unfortunate if your yacht got damaged."

With that, he turned his speedboat and headed towards Three Immortal Island, which was faintly visible in the distance.

Although Three Immortal Island couldn’t be found on maps, that didn’t mean it was small. On the contrary, Three Immortal Island was a large island, comparable in size to a county in Suzhou City.

The island resembled a mountain peak floating on the water. The peak itself formed a regular triangle, perfectly symmetrical with its reflection in the water. From a distance, the sight was incredibly picturesque.

The shores of Three Immortal Island consisted of pebble beaches; though rugged, they possessed an ancient charm. Led by Lv Lai, the group docked their yacht and followed him ashore.

Initially, Lv Lai had thought it was only Yu Ruoyun and her entourage. However, when he saw Wang Lan and his group in their military uniforms among the crowd, a subtle glint flickered in Lv Lai’s eyes once more.

Black military uniforms... only the Tianjian Bureau uses such attire, Lv Lai thought, his heart sinking further. The Tianjian Bureau is involved. It seems this visit doesn’t bode well. Seeing Qiu Bo among the crowd particularly unsettled him.

Although Qiu Bo’s name isn’t well-known, and he isn’t officially ranked among the Jade Country’s Titled Strongmen, Lv Lai knew, Qiu Bo’s strength is definitely at the Titled Strongman level, and even among them, he’s a top-tier existence.

"Our construction camp is behind the mountain. We just need to go through the canyon," Lv Lai explained.

The island was encircled by high mountains; from the outside, one could only see a continuous range of towering, imposing peaks. However, after they traversed a rugged canyon nestled between two of these mountains, the scene that unfolded before them was, as the saying goes, like finding a picturesque village hidden amidst the willows after thinking all paths were exhausted—utterly breathtaking.

It turned out that a huge basin was hidden within the ring of outer mountain peaks. Inside the basin, a dense array of heavy machinery was operating at a feverish pace. Excavators carefully dug into the mountainside, and the excavated rock was then loaded onto trucks and transported away.

"Looking at your setup, this seems less like construction and more like an archaeological excavation," Yu Ruoyun murmured to Lv Lai, who was beside her.

"Wait until you meet my grandfather. Let him explain it to you," Lv Lai replied.

The group reached the worksite camp. An old man, supported by a young girl, slowly approached them. Wang Lan glanced over casually. The girl was glaring at his group with hostility, her displeasure written plainly on her face.

When she met Wang Lan’s gaze, she even let out a soft, cold snort.

"Sir Lv, hello! It’s me, Ruoyun," Yu Ruoyun greeted him. "It’s been a long time. Are you keeping well?"

"Ah, yes, very well indeed..." The old man’s face was wreathed in a benevolent smile, making him look like any ordinary elderly person. However, Wang Lan could sense the surging Star Power within the old man’s body.

With such vigorous Star Power, he’s hardly the frail, near-decrepit figure he presents, needing someone to support him, Wang Lan thought.

"Sir Lv, for you to come all this way to personally supervise the work at your age...?" Yu Ruoyun asked, her tone laden with implication.

"I had no choice," the old man sighed. "The Lv Family has been searching for thousands of years. Now that we’re on the verge of finding it, I couldn’t rest easy entrusting the oversight to the younger generation. I had to come myself."

"What is Sir Lv searching for?" Yu Ruoyun inquired.

The old man chuckled. "Isn’t that what you’ve come for? Little girl, since when did you learn to play dumb?"