Chapter 178

Chapter 178: Exploration

"The Bibow family sent an evening party invitation."

"Decline."

"The Qianye family sent an afternoon tea invitation."

"Decline."

"The Sear family sent a fishing competition invitation with lavish gifts."

"Accept the gifts. We shouldn’t appear inflexible. But decline the invitation."

As various factions hidden in Faero Bay reacted differently, Midi—now part of the West Coast’s elite—found himself overwhelmed.

Invitations piled up like snowflakes, chance encounters during outings, and the predatory gazes of noblewomen made Midi question if he’d gone too far. Maybe he should’ve dragged out his sparring match with Liufeng for dozens of rounds before deciding the outcome.

Yet all he could do now was reject every invitation.

One letter stood out from the mountain of requests.

"An invitation to the Sea King Festival?"

Midi studied the plain parchment.

The Sea King Festival, true to its name, celebrated the West Coast’s maritime heritage. For a region built on trade routes and ocean resources, its rituals and festivities—shops, balls, prayers—held little novelty. What mattered were the attendees.

This annual event served as the battleground where maritime families reshuffled their rankings through open rivalries and hidden schemes. The Yunlang family’s status as the first maritime family? Decided here. Flying Sail’s secondary position? Also determined during these waterside games.

Now Midi and Lionheart Arena had earned their qualification to join this dance. But so had Zhenlu Arena, backed by the Delos Empire and entrenched longer in the West Coast. What moves would the Empire make?

Midi’s brow furrowed.

The festival gathered every major power—a military strategist’s dream chance to capture all family heads at once. Even Midi felt tempted by the idea, let alone the combat-obsessed Zhenlu Arena.

In his past life, the Delos Empire had lured maritime families with promises of shared prosperity, only to take them hostage. Then they’d struck simultaneously through Belmar and their homeland to seize Faero Bay. History might repeat itself at this festival.

Preparations were essential.

Yet Midi knew better than to match the Empire’s brute strength. Competing with Zhenlu Arena in every clash would drain resources in a futile battle of attrition.

The Empire sought to dominate the West Coast, blockade seas, and monopolize Sky City with its Awakening Ground. Zhenlu Arena’s aggressive expansions served this ambition.

But Midi cared nothing for monopolies. His past life proved such blockades unsustainable. Now firmly established, his goal wasn’t attack but strategic defense—securing Sky City’s entrance first would render coastal politics irrelevant.

"Speed up ironclad ship construction. Survey the festival’s surrounding waters. Spread rumors about Zhenlu Arena being the Empire’s puppets, then monitor reactions. Strengthen ties with major maritime families—build our network. Kelvin, handle this." Midi turned to the meticulous magic scholar.

"What about me?" rumbled Dickson, the bald mountain of a man across the room.

"Join me in preparing to explore the southern seas." Midi answered the paladins’ question without hesitation.

At his order, new three-masted full square-rigged ships launched one after another, sailing into the boundless southern waters. Twenty ships originally scheduled for delivery in a month were ready within a week. This wasn’t due to sudden improvements in the Flying Sail Family’s shipbuilding techniques—they’d simply pulled vessels reserved for their own use from the shipyard early to strengthen ties with Midi.

Such were the benefits of demonstrating power. Rules could be bypassed, and unimaginable advantages seized.

Crew members posed no issue—Midi summoned them directly from Belmar, drawing experienced elites from the Hamilton family instead of training newcomers. This allowed Belmar’s factions to penetrate the West Coast while accelerating maritime exploration, serving two purposes at once.

Yet twenty ships meant almost nothing across the endless Southern Sea. Midi didn’t rely solely on visible numbers. Secretly, he’d ordered Red Lotus Arena and Wells to deploy eighty more ships. Combined with Lionheart Arena’s twenty, a hundred vessels spread like a net across the southern islands!

Midi maintained his routine—training at Lionheart Arena, attending high-profile tea parties, while secretly analyzing daily intelligence. Still, progress crawled.

Sky City proved elusive. Even with his reincarnator’s memories, Midi couldn’t pinpoint its location. The Southern Sea’s vastness defied even Faero Bay’s most seasoned fleets. Ships wandered aimlessly, finding nothing but occasional reefs or tiny deserted islands visible from deck. Weeks passed with explored zones marked by red crosses, yet no traces emerged.

"Where’s Sky City’s entrance?" Midi muttered, staring at the marked map. He recalled its two-phase emergence from his past life: first the "connection" phase where rifts linked Sky City’s small realm to Arad, then "manifestation" when the realm collapsed, revealing the city’s towers.

Last life, he’d entered with Fina and Alice post-manifestation via secret routes through the Delos Empire’s blockade. Now, seizing the initiative meant finding rifts during "connection" to secure the best Awakening Ground for perfect awakening before others reached level 50.

Though he knew Sky City’s eventual location, rift positions differed entirely. His dragnet search kept expanding—some fleets now scouted areas days beyond Sky City’s future coordinates. Rifts couldn’t be that distant, lest people in Faero Bay get sucked in accidentally. Something was wrong.

Reincarnators weren’t omniscient. Maritime affairs weren’t Midi’s strength, nor Fina (Queen of Magic) or Alice’s (Mist Sorceress). Butterfly effects from his rebirth complicated matters further.

A gruff voice interrupted his thoughts. "Boss, need to handle exploration team trouble." Dickson entered, bald head gleaming with poorly concealed excitement. Stuck in money-scented Faero Bay with few fights, the Lionheart Arena disciple felt rusted.

"Situation?" Midi raised an eyebrow. If Dickson volunteered, it involved their ships. Who dared cause trouble now?

"Pirates!"

"Pirates?" Midi repeated—then everything clicked.

Of course. Pirates.