CH 161

The next day, after Lin Wen confirmed that the two ferries loaded with armed soldiers had already set off, he used the spell "Soaring Clouds and Mist" to fly nearby. He then used two spells.

"Harmony of Fish and Water"

A white Foundation Establishment stage spell that consumes 25% of spiritual energy. It grants the effect of harmonizing with fish and water, allowing control over water and the ability to see and breathe underwater. The effect lasts for 8 hours in this world's time.

"Strength of Nine Bulls and Two Tigers"

Consumes 15% of spiritual energy.

Natural state of Dao: Dao.

At the highest level, all spell consumptions are reduced by 50%, and one point of bad karma and good karma is reduced every day.

The total spiritual energy consumption of the three spells is 60%, but in reality, only half, 30%, was used.

Remaining spiritual energy: 70%.

The green light of the spells entered his body, and Lin Wen leaped down, jumping into the rolling river.

In an instant, the violent and turbid water engulfed him, but Lin Wen felt as if he had entered the world of cultivation. The air was filled with abundant spiritual energy, and he freely soared in this dreamlike world. The raging currents became gentle around him, and the chaotic world was clearly visible before his eyes.

He instinctively moved his legs, and his figure shot forward. Even when swimming against the current, he did not feel any resistance. The water flowed gently past him, like the delicate hand of a lover. Every movement he made in the water, this delicate hand would push him and assist him.

Lin Wen freely swam in this turbulent river, feeling a joyful and carefree mood.

After swimming for a while, Lin Wen swam towards his target. His figure in the river was like a phantom, rushing forward at an incredible speed.

With perfect control over water and immense strength, he reached the area below the two medium-sized cruise ships that were traveling on the Tianjiang River in just 5 minutes.

These were two 5,000-ton cruise ships, carrying a total of 1,600 fully armed bandits. The weapons were provided by the Council of Evaluation and were the most advanced in the empire.

Due to their constant warfare, they had military training. If the garrison troops of Changshan County were mobilized to eliminate them, there would definitely be significant casualties.

Now, the transformation of Fang Dashan's troops was almost complete. They had been working together with the disaster victims using the Three Disciplines and Eight Points of Attention, and had established a good relationship with the civilians. They no longer resisted the military's disaster relief and assistance efforts, and the few bad elements in the team had been eliminated through self-purification.

It could be said that they were already beginners in the combination of workers, peasants, and soldiers, and had formed a preliminary framework.

Afterwards, Lin Wen taught Fang Dashan the world's strongest light infantry tactics and training methods.

Three by three formation, four by four formation, mobile warfare, guerrilla warfare, including "big strides forward and backward," "leaping forward," "overtaking operations," "mushroom tactics," "tactical division, outnumbering the enemy in a local area," and so on.

These were the crystallization of wisdom condensed from countless battles, and they were like treasures to Fang Dashan. Every time they finished their work for the day, he would gather the soldiers for training.

He even reported to Lin Wen that he wanted to stop the construction work of the soldiers and focus on training new tactics, but Lin Wen firmly rejected it.

He told Fang Dashan that this was the art of spells, and that was the art of the heart. Without the coordination of the art of the heart, the deeper one practiced the art of spells, the more likely they would be possessed by demons. Even if one didn't practice the art of spells, if they practiced the art of the heart deeply, the art of spells would naturally arise.

One is the main, the other is the auxiliary, and they must not be reversed.

At this stage, Lin Wen couldn't let the growing soldiers sacrifice themselves. If they were to expand the army in the future, they would be the backbone of the team.

Therefore, he had to personally take action.

It would be difficult for Lin Wen to single-handedly eliminate a 1,600-person army, but if they wanted to attack Changshan County by water, they were seeking death.

Hmph!

I was expelled from my homeland and imprisoned in this world without spiritual energy for a million seconds. Now, you dare to intrude into my territory.

You are seeking death!

The speed of the cruise ship carrying the heavily armed soldiers was not fast, only 13 knots. Lin Wen easily kept pace with the ship, activating the spell "Observing Qi and Judging People." Looking up, he saw dark clouds covering the entire ship.

Perhaps not all of them were completely black, but it didn't matter.

Lin Wen's figure sank downward, directly touching the riverbed. He bent his knees and gathered strength.

With a muffled sound, a large amount of silt and sand erupted from the riverbed. Lin Wen, at an incredible speed, headed straight for the bottom of the ship. In the moment of approaching, he threw a punch, an unmatched force from bottom to top, piercing through the bottom of the cruise ship.

On the river surface, the cruising ship suddenly shook violently. A loud noise came from the bottom of the ship, and the people on board felt the ship tremble and jump. Even the most experienced sailors couldn't stand still, and the people on the deck fell over.

With a crashing sound, everything in the cabin was also not spared.

The first mate shouted in panic, "We hit a reef! The bottom of the ship hit a reef! Quickly go to the lower deck and check!"

The second mate looked incredulous, "How is that possible! This is the middle of the river, how could there be a reef? I've been sailing on this route for over ten years and have never seen any hidden reefs."

The captain grabbed his collar and pulled him closer, his fierce face right in front of him, "Then tell me, what the hell just happened?"

The first mate pointed a gun at the back of his head, "Speak! Did you do this on purpose, you bastard?"

Tears streamed down the second mate's face as he shouted, "I swear I'm innocent! I've been begging for food on the Tianjiang River for over ten years, why would I ruin my own livelihood? There are a few fierce people watching over my family, and I'm tired of living."

The captain pushed him away and immediately sensed that something was wrong, "The ship is sinking! How is it sinking so fast?"

At this moment, several sailors ran up like madmen, shouting, "Captain! It's not good! There's a huge hole in the bottom of the ship, a very big hole!"

"The water is rushing in like crazy, the lower deck is already full, and we can't block it!"

"The ship is about to sink, run! Let's transfer to..."

Before they could finish their sentence, it seemed like a chicken had been grabbed by the neck, because they heard a loud explosion. They saw another cruise ship shake, and the ship's body jumped like a drum. The people on board were thrown into the air and fell, and some fell into the river. The rushing water swept them away, and they disappeared in an instant.

The captain shouted, "Quick, send a distress signal! Get on the lifeboats!"

The water in the Tianjiang River is turbulent and dangerous, but there is no time to consider that now. The lifeboat is sinking faster than expected. If they are late, the whirlpool formed by the sinking ship will create even more complex currents. For the weak lifeboat, it would be a matter of life and death.

The lifeboat is not enough for everyone on the ship to escape. The captain and the first mate took another lifeboat and left first. The others could only jump into the river.

But before they could get far, the lifeboat suddenly stopped responding, as if something was pulling it. The first mate looked down and saw a dark figure firmly holding onto the back of the lifeboat in the muddy river water.

A terrifying chill crawled up the first mate's neck. He kept telling himself that it was just water plants or debris, trying to overcome his fear and use a hook to push it away. But suddenly, the dark figure surfaced, and a face emerged from the water, grinning at him.

The first mate was horrified and fell backward, completely scared.

The captain rushed over and shouted, "What's going on?"

With a splash, Lin Wen jumped onto the lifeboat and punched the captain, who had a face full of flesh, in the head, causing it to explode.

With his arms outstretched, Lin Zhongshan, the invincible Iron Fist, swept everyone on the lifeboat.

This lifeboat looked more high-end, and Lin Wen wanted to take it back to supplement the shortage of naval surface vessels in Changshan County.

Otherwise, he would just flip it over underwater.

But Lin Wen didn't know how to sail, so he could only jump into the water and manually drag the lifeboat to the shore before jumping back into the river.

By now, the cruise ship was no longer visible on the river. There were only five lifeboats floating in the rushing river. Two of them had capsized, and one was engulfed in flames, probably shot and exploded by a machine gun.

There were still two struggling lifeboats. Lin Wen went up and cleared all the pests, including the overturned lifeboats, and dragged them back to the shore.

Search tinyurl.com/2p9emv8w for the original.

In this way, Lin Wen had four lifeboats, but how to drag them back became a problem.

This should be in the territory of West Swallow State, far from Changshan County. It was not realistic to expect Qin Luoshuang to send someone to pick them up.

Lin Wen had a flash of inspiration and came up with a good idea. He tied the four lifeboats together with ropes, pushed them back into the river, and then jumped into the river to accelerate the lifeboats, manually adjusting their direction as needed.

This method worked better than expected. Lin Wen's acceleration ability in the water far exceeded his imagination. The perfect water control combined with his incredible strength allowed the lifeboats to reach a speed of 80 knots.

It was like a lightning bolt, speeding through the rushing river. Lin Wen stood on the connected lifeboats, facing the river wind and splashing water, as if they were just small obstacles on his path to becoming an immortal.

He joyfully spread his arms and embraced his imminent destiny of becoming an immortal.

The cargo ships, steamships, and passenger ships he encountered along the way were all stunned by this peculiar and airplane-like vessel traveling at 80 knots.

Generally speaking, a ship traveling at 20 knots was already considered fast, and high-end yachts could reach 30 or 40 knots, which was already astonishingly fast.

80 knots was twice as fast as that. For ships that could only travel at a dozen knots on the Tianjiang River, it was like comparing a sprinter to a tortoise.

Countless sailors, captains, and tourists were left dumbfounded. Lin Wen stood at the bow of the ship, raising his hands high in the wind and waves, a posture that was unforgettable.

Tourists with cameras quickly took pictures to commemorate the moment, while those without cameras regretted missing such a rare sight in their lifetime.

After the shock subsided, many people believed that this person was a thrill-seeking rich second generation. The four lifeboats tied together were valuable, and achieving such high speeds must have required modifications that could only be done with substantial funding.

They thought his actions were a display of his artistic concept, a great performance artist showcasing his ideas with his life.

Many people interpreted his actions in various ways:

The connected lifeboats represented unity.

Raising his hands high represented embracing the future.

Riding the wind and waves represented unwavering confidence.

Standing at the bow of the ship facing the strong wind represented fearlessness in the face of difficulties and obstacles.

Some believed that he was conveying the idea of fearlessness in life, that persistence would allow one to ride the wind and waves.

Others believed that he was saying courage is the most basic element of success.

Some even believed that he was using his actions to convey the message that as long as the empire united, it would overcome all difficulties, break free from stagnation, and develop rapidly towards a new future.

The advertising department of Yaojing immediately captured the last interpretation. They bought the best photo taken from a side angle, low to the ground, capturing the surging river water and splashing waves.

It was taken in the lower deck of the ship, and the lower angle vividly displayed the figure of the wave-maker, showcasing his tall stature perfectly.

In addition to the river water, waves, and ship, a part of the sky was also visible in the picture. Although the sky was slightly gloomy, the sun could still be seen behind the clouds.

The wave-maker's posture was like embracing the sun while riding the wind and waves.

It was an almost perfect photo, comparable to the award-winning "The Last Person on the Dike."

The advertising department of Yaojing treated it as a treasure and immediately started writing stories around the photo. They extended all artistic interpretations to Yaojing, claiming that Yaojing was the high-speed engine that would lead the empire out of its economic quagmire and provide strong impetus.

And this person was paying tribute to Yaojing with his actions.

This was also well proven. Yaojing was downstream from the Tianjiang River, and he was traveling downstream with the purpose of reaching Yaojing.

The advertising slogans were repeatedly refined, and top masters were even hired to write the lyrics. Then, a new wave of advertisements flooded the entire empire. Lin Wen's photo standing high at the bow of the ship could be seen in prominent locations in any major city.

The advertising department of Yaojing even bought a 120-meter long and 80-meter high billboard on the Twin Towers of the imperial capital, displaying this photo.

But Lin Wen was unaware of all this. Most of his time was spent in the water, pushing the boats and adjusting their direction. He only stood on the boats when they reached high speeds and didn't need to change direction.About two hours later, Lin Wen finally returned to Changshan County. He began to slow down, casually found a spot to beach his boat, and made a call to Qin Luoshuang to come and receive his spoils of war.