Chapter 1594: Getting A Boat

They arrived at a slum tucked against a narrow strip of harbor, where the air smelled of salt, rust, and something faintly rotten beneath it all. Small fishing boats bobbed lazily against worn wooden docks, their paint chipped and faded by years of neglect.

The place was alive, but not in any welcoming way.

Clusters of fishermen lingered near the piers, their voices kept low as they spoke with people who clearly did not belong. The outsiders stood out at a glance—well-dressed, burdened with large bags and heavy suitcases that seemed out of place in such a rundown harbor.

Their movements were stiff, their composure strained; cautious eyes flickered from one corner to another, as though weighing every shadow, every passing figure, every possible threat. Tourist perhaps...or something else.

Lory’s gaze swept across the area, sharp and observant. It didn’t take long for her to notice the pattern, too many unfamiliar faces, too many people trying too hard to look casual.

It seemed they all had the same idea.

"We can’t leave our car here," Lory muttered under her breath.

Zhao Li Xin’s eyes shifted subtly, catching movement from the corner of his vision.

A few men lingered nearby, their attention far too focused on the vehicle. They whispered among themselves, their gazes calculating, predatory.

"Mm," he murmured lightly. "It seems quite a few people are interested in our car."

Lory nodded faintly. "Yeah. Places like this... they attract all kinds." Her voice lowered. "Sketchy people, criminals, those with nothing to lose. Normally, outsiders wouldn’t even step foot here, but with all the blockades..." She exhaled softly. "Desperation makes people take risks."

Her grip tightened slightly on the steering wheel before she released it. "But... We can’t leave the car here."

Zhao Li Xin tilted his head slightly, as though considering something simple. "Then why not store it in my spatial ring?"

Lory blinked, her composure slipping for a fraction of a second. "You can do that?"

A hint of guilt crossed Zhao Li Xin’s face. "I may have forgotten to mention it." His tone remained calm, almost casual. "My array skill has improved quite alot. So, I was able to expand the sizes of my spatial ring." He paused briefly. "Though it’s still not as vast as when Huo Long was there."

"Well, that’s convenient..." Lory let out a quiet breath, processing that information. Then, without another word, her eyes darted around, scanning the surroundings with renewed urgency.

"Hold on." She turned the wheel and guided the car into a narrow alleyway between two crumbling buildings. The space was tight, half-hidden from the main path, shadows stretching long across cracked pavement.

After stopping, she didn’t move immediately. Instead, she checked left and right to ensure no eyes lingered where they shouldn’t. Once she was certain there were no prying eyes, she gave Zhao Li Xin a signal to step out of the car.

"Alright, this place is good," she said quietly, glancing at Zhao Li Xin. "Do it now."

Zhao Li Xin raised his hand. There was no flash, no sound, just a subtle distortion in the air, like a ripple across still water, and in the next instant...The car was gone.

Lory nodded in satisfaction. "O-kay."

"Let’s go." Zhao Li Xin took her hand, and together they stepped out of the narrow alley.

As soon as they stepped into view, the atmosphere tightened. People watched them with thinly veiled curiosity, as though they had already decided Lory and Zhao Li Xin were outsiders. Murmurs rippled through the crowd, eyes tracking their every move.

Lory brushed off the weight of their stares without a second thought. She had no time for idle curiosity; her attention was fixed on securing a boat.

Even so, she felt the weight of probing eyes linger. Some men leaned against posts, pretending to be nonchalant, but their acting cracked the moment Lory and Zhao Li Xin walked past them. Others made no effort to conceal it, their gazes lingering a fraction too long, quietly assessing, carefully calculating.

Not far off, a group of tourists argued in hushed agitation with a fisherman, their restraint slipping as their voices rose. Money changed hands in hurried flashes, fingers unsteady with urgency, yet the fisherman’s expression only hardened, unmoved and unyielding.

Not far from them, a young couple pleaded desperately, clutching their child between them. The little girl clung to her mother’s hand; she looked confused, perhaps wondering why her parent was so anxious.

Elsewhere, small groups huddled together, whispering anxiously, while the locals lingered at the edges, watching... grinning in a way that made Lory’s skin crawl.

He knew these types of people all too well: con artists, thugs, and profiteers. The kind of people who would procure anything, legal or illegal, so long as the price was right. But that wasn’t where the real danger lay.

The real danger was their lack of integrity. People like them spoke only one language, which is money. Trust meant little in the face of the right price. Furthermore, once you step onto their boat, your life will be placed in their hands. Would you dare risk not only your own life, but the lives of your loved ones?

Lory couldn’t understand what drove them to take such a risk, but she thought the Dark Age War should have taught them better.

Lory shook her head and continued forward, her steps measured and steady. Behind them, the glances did not fade, lingering with unsettling persistence, as if already weighing them as prey.

At the same time, Zhao Li Xin also noticed the intrusive gazes directed at them, most of all are pointed at Lory. Even though she had altered her appearance to be ordinary, people still couldn’t help but be attracted to her somehow.

Just as when she disguised herself as an unremarkable maid at the Lao Manor, she was still able to draw attention. Thankfully, in that world, people placed great importance on status, so no one approached Lory.

Zhao Li Xin’s gaze turned cold. A murderous aura exudes from him, like a dark mist that threatens to engulf everyone nearby. In an instant, it felt as if their souls had been sucked from their bodies.

The moment he cast a warning glare at them, they subconsciously held their breath. Some even slipped from their seats, stumbling awkwardly onto the wooden planks, but no one laughed... no one said a word.

Meanwhile, the oblivious Lory is still scanning the harbor, thinking about how to get aboard. Most of the boats had already been taken—or were in the process of being bargained over by desperate outsiders.

Her gaze once again lingered on the family she had seen earlier. The little girl still clung tightly to her mother’s hand, her small fingers trembling as the discussion between her father and the boatman heated up. The little girl’s shoulder trembles, her small face etched with fear.

Beside him, the old man continued to speak in a low, hurried voice, while a boatman smiled slyly; there was something off about him.

No... not just that, Lory could smell danger from that man.

A faint crease formed between Lory’s brows as unease settled deep within her chest, heavy and suffocating. It was like watching someone unknowingly step toward the edge of a cliff, each step certain, inevitable. She could already see the fall... and yet, she stood powerless to stop it. ℓ.

No—she wasn’t powerless.

She couldn’t act at all. If she intervened now, she would only incur the wrath of all the thugs and criminals roaming this place. That was fine for her, but what if she alerted the authorities because of this? Worse, the people he was trying to save might turn against her.

To them, she was as much of a stranger as the boatman. And they seem quite desperate, and desperate people tend to be paranoid and suspicious of others, especially when hope, however fragile, is within their grasp, and the boatman was their hope.

Lory’s gaze drifted back to the little girl, and for a fleeting moment, her resolve wavered. Her fingers curled slightly at her side as she wrestled with indecision.

Zhao Li Xin, ever observant, caught the subtle shift in her expression. His voice, when it came, was low and calm."Something troubling you?"

Lory lifted her eyes to him, then exhaled slowly, fatigue lacing her tone. "Yeah... everything about this place is troubling me."

His gaze followed hers, sharp and perceptive. It took him only a moment to understand. "You’re worried about them."

Lory clicked her tongue softly. "Mn. They have a small child with them."

A trace of knowing flickered in Zhao Li Xin’s eyes. He was well aware of her soft spot, especially when it came to young, innocent girls.

"Sadly, you won’t be able to stop them without a proper reason," he said evenly. "They’re desperate. To them, you’re no different from that boatman... perhaps even worse. They might think you’re trying to take their place."Lory ran a hand through her hair in frustration.

"I know... that’s exactly the problem." Her gaze swept across the pier, where groups of people huddled in tense clusters, voices low but edged with urgency.

Every single one of them wore the same look, desperation, raw and unguarded. They all wanted the same thing. A way out. And everyone here knew it.

"So," Zhao Li Xin continued, his tone light, almost teasing as he turned back to her, "what’s your plan, wife?"

"I don’t know..." Lory murmured, biting her lower lip. Then she saw it. The father discreetly handed over a thick envelope. The boatman accepted it without hesitation; his grin was slick, greedy, and unmistakably insincere.

Lory’s heart tightened."I can’t let them get on that boat!"She stepped forward abruptly, intent on stopping them, but before she could take another step, a firm hand caught her wrist.

"Wait."Zhao Li Xin’s voice was quiet, yet it carried an unshakable authority. Lory turned back, startled, only to find a faint smile playing on his lips, calm, assured... and laced with something sharper.

"I think I have a better idea," he said softly. "Why don’t you let me handle this?"He met her gaze, steady and reassuring. And just like that, the tight knot in her chest loosened. Lory hesitated only for a moment before nodding.

"Alright... I trust you."A low chuckle escaped him, warm yet tinged with amusement. "Silly girl," he murmured, a glint of cunning flashing through his eyes, "it’s actually a very simple solution."

As if it were nothing more than an idle gesture, Zhao Li Xin slipped his hand into his coat. To any onlooker, it seemed he was merely reaching for something ordinary. In truth, his fingers brushed against the hidden space within his ring, and in the next instant, a thick stack of banknotes rested neatly in his grasp.

Without the slightest pause, he flicked his wrist and tossed it toward the boatman."Twenty million Rohm," he said calmly, his voice smooth and unhurried. "If you can get my wife and me out of here."

The boatman froze, clearly caught off guard. For a heartbeat, he simply stared. Then his gaze dropped to the money now in his hands, and his eyes widened—greed flaring up, bright and undisguised.

"Ah... but..." he began, scratching his head as though troubled. "I’ve already taken on a client." His tone shifted, feigning reluctance. "If you don’t mind sharing, you can come along."The act was clumsy at best.

They all know that if Zhao Li Xin said he minded it, the man would cast that family aside without a second thought. The small family had realized it too. Their faces drained of color, ashen beneath the dim light. The mother instinctively pulled her daughter closer, as if she could shield her from something unseen.

The father stiffened, but his composure was fragile; his eyes showed an obvious panic as they darted between Zhao Li Xin and the boatman. Because they understood what was at stake.

Zhao Li Xin, however, remained unhurried. His gaze drifted to Lory, quiet and questioning, as though seeking her unspoken approval.

Lory has already make decision, she will not allow this family to be cast aside, not here, not in a place like this, where a single misstep could send them straight into the hands of someone far worse.

She had no intention of playing the hero. The world was far too vast, danger was everywhere, and human life can be so cheap; she long understood that she couldn’t save everyone.

But this family... at the very least, she could save them. Lory drew in a slow, steady breath, as if anchoring herself, then lifted her gaze and gave Zhao Li Xin a small yet resolute nod.

Zhao Li Xin then turned back to the boatman, his expression returning to one of easy indifference. With a casual shrug, as though the matter held no real weight for him, he said, "Sure... I don’t mind."