Chapter 829 - 371: Pirate and Taino Cave Maze (Part 2)

Chapter 829: Chapter 371: Pirate and Taino Cave Maze (Part 2)

This means that what they are about to embark on is a secret expedition in the truest sense, requiring a dual challenge against both law and nature!

[Bahamas Time, 9:30 PM, Polaris Lounge]

The freshly acquired treasure still carried the warmth of history, making the Nassau night exceptionally enchanting at this moment.

After the excitement, the three of them sat down again around the wide teak dining table in the lounge.

The joy of discovering the treasure was temporarily set aside, replaced by a focus and seriousness as they prepared to head to a new battlefield.

Captain Mike lit a cigar that Lin Yu’an had given him, "Now, let’s talk about the real issue—navigation itself."

He spread out the large paper chart, covering the entire northern Caribbean on the table, and picked up the professional parallel ruler and dividers, officially entering his domain.

"From Nassau to Los Haitises, and then to Havana..." He measured the long distance on the chart with the dividers, "This is over a thousand-nautical-mile V-shaped expedition!"

"We must plan every step to perfection." He began the oldest and most reliable "chart work."

"Our first leg of the journey is from here," he pointed at Nassau, "sailing south along the western edge of the Exuma Islands chain."

"Here there’s a shallow area known as Yellow Shoal, with depths of just 3 to 5 meters, and the seabed is covered with coral reefs."

"During daytime sailing, we’ll need someone constantly at the bow to keep watch, reading the water through changes in the color to avoid those damned coral heads."

Riven took out her iPad, pulling up the latest Navionics electronic charts and satellite images to modernize Mike’s traditional planning.

"Dad, look here," she zoomed in on a small area in the Yellow Shoal.

"Satellite images show that after last year’s hurricane, this sandbar shifted, moving approximately half a nautical mile west from where it’s marked on the paper chart. We need to circumnavigate it from the west side."

"Got it." Mike immediately made corrections and notes on the paper chart.

"After passing Yellow Shoal," he continued, tracing southward on the chart with his finger.

"We will enter the deep waters of the Exuma Strait. Here the depth exceeds a thousand meters, and when calm, it’s one of the most beautiful sailing routes in the world; we can increase our speed to the maximum."

"Then, we’ll pass here—Big Major Reef, where the legendary Pig Island is nearby. If time allows, we should really go see those swimming pigs."

This oceanic planning that combined decades of experience with modern technology, achieved through a father-daughter relay, left Lin Yu’an like a sponge, eagerly absorbing the invaluable knowledge never found in books.

While Mike and Riven were excited about the challenging and adventurous treasure-hunting route, Lin Yu’an remained silent.

His gaze remained fixed on the laptop connected to the Starlink Network in front of him, with furrowed brows.

"The plan is good, but we might have a more urgent and deadly problem to solve first."

Mike and Riven looked at him in surprise.

Lin Yu’an turned the laptop screen towards them, showing the weather maps he had just paid to download and cross-reference.

From the European Weather Center and the United States Global Forecast System, two top global meteorological centers, the ultra-high precision weather prediction models for the next ten days.

In the southeast of the Bahamas Islands, near the Turks and Caicos Islands, a spiral cloud formation representing a low-pressure system was clearly marked by a continuously flashing red circle, its form more defined and organized than when Lin Yu’an first discovered it a few hours ago.

"Remember the potential tropical disturbance we mentioned in the sailing plan before we set out?" Lin Yu’an’s voice turned grave.

"Just this afternoon, while we were diving, both the European and American models upgraded its probability of developing into a tropical cyclone within the next 96 hours, from 30% to 70%."

He switched to another sea surface temperature map, where the area showed a glaring deep red.

"Look at the sea surface temperature here, 29.5 degrees Celsius, well above the 26.5-degree Celsius threshold needed for storm formation. It’s like a boiling boiler providing continuous fuel for this ’little monster.’"

"And look at the wind shear at high altitudes; both models show that within the next 72 hours, the wind shear in this area will be very weak."

"Weak wind shear provides a stable vertical ’chimney’ for it to develop structurally without being torn apart."

Lin Yu’an’s analysis was calm, objective, and filled with scientific rigor, each piece of data nailing itself into Mike and Riven’s minds.

"In conclusion, there’s more than a 70% chance that a tropical storm will officially form on our route to Los Haitises in four to five days. And its initial forecast path..."

He dragged the timeline, and on the screen, a dashed line representing the future path extended.

Like the scythe of Death God, it seemed to cut right through the red cross they had just marked on the chart, where the treasure of Los Haitises is located!

This movie-like, ironically filled scene made the smiles instantly vanish from Mike and Riven’s faces.