What's wrong with me, a powerful minister, supporting a few female officials?

Chapter 264 The terrifying strength of the Heavenly Infant Realm Empress!

Su Mo felt like he had been tricked by the Empress. He suddenly remembered a saying from his previous life: "High-level hunters always appear as prey!"
Seeing Su Mo's strange expression, the Empress quickly explained, "Don't misunderstand, Su Lang."

"This Fire Bead only lasts for three or four... no, only one or two hours, before it needs to reabsorb spiritual energy... hehe... hehe..."

In the end, even the Empress herself couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh, probably knowing that Su Mo wouldn't believe her!

Su Mo coughed twice, wisely choosing not to bring up the topic again.

After putting on his robes, he asked, "Sir, what should we do now?"

The Empress blinked: "No, my lord, are you asking what we should do?"

"I know nothing about the sea, but Su Lang knows that the land across the sea is a desolate wasteland!"

Su Mo's forehead creased with annoyance.

The empress was testing her own resolve.

I need to be careful what I say in the future, and avoid letting anything slip.

He thought for a moment and said, "Lord Nangong should invite the Prefect of Wanghai to this place. I will go and meet with the Prefect first to facilitate future actions."

"Also, go back to the fishing village and hire fishing boats to tow the warships out to sea."

After a pause, Su Mo continued, "The ship needs to be fully equipped with supplies and have enough fresh water, but I estimate that we can only purchase these in nearby counties."

The Empress nodded: "I will do as Su Lang says."

Su Mo finally discovered another advantage of the Empress.

I won't give orders about things I don't understand.

Perhaps they should listen to what they say: as an official, all you need to do is know how to use people; you don't need to do everything yourself.

I am the one she uses.

Su Mo brought a flying ticket with three thousand taels of silver.

This amount of money would be a huge fortune even in the capital, let alone in Wanghai County!
Two days later, more than fifty hard-sailed fishing boats of all sizes gathered densely on the shore of Shenluo Bay!
Thick hemp ropes connected the fishing boats and the large ships together.

Although this is not the most dangerous core area of ​​Shenluo Bay, it is still turbulent with hidden reefs and dangerous sharks that frequent the area. Fishermen usually do not come here to fish.

There's only one reason why so many fishing boats have arrived.

Su Mo gave too much.

If the towing is successful, the large fishing boat will receive ten taels and the small fishing boat five taels!

Su Mo personally stood in the captain's cabin, taking control of the ship's helm!

Leng Liuxi, Nangong Sheyue, Zhang Xuzu, and others stood solemnly on the beach.

There was also a man in his forties who was of decent appearance, tall and slightly plump, with three neatly trimmed long beards on his chin, wearing an official robe and a black gauze hat, and with a somewhat strange expression.

It was Ma Wei, the highest-ranking official in Wanghai County.

Ma Wei, the prefect of this prefecture, held a high official rank, ranking as a third-grade official.

However, Nangong Sheyue was not only a high-ranking official in the capital, but also one of the chief officials of the Fengming Division. He also carried a secret order from the Emperor. How could Ma Wei dare to disobey? Upon receiving the report, he rushed to Shenluo Bay without stopping.

The tide finally came in.

The ship, stuck deep in the silt, remained motionless.

The Empress frowned slightly as she looked at Nangong Sheyue: "Lord Nangong, do you think this ship can move?"

Nangong Sheyue thought for a moment and said, "It should be possible."

He paused, then added, "Even if it doesn't work, Su Xianzi will probably bring in more fishing boats to tow it."

The Empress laughed and said, "That's true. He has plenty of money!"

Ma Wei's expression became even stranger when he heard the two talking.

He had a feeling that the green-clad woman who called herself a centurion of the Fengming Division was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite place where he had seen her before.

In particular, the tone she used when speaking to Nangong Sheyue was quite strange, unlike how a subordinate would speak to a superior.

And that solitary peak.

It also gave Ma Wei an extremely strange feeling.

The title of county magistrate was one that had not been granted for a long time, and it was a fourth-rank official title, which seemed far inferior to his position as a prefect with real power.

The problem is that he is a marquis enfeoffed at the foot of the capital!

Ma Wei felt that all the civil and military officials in the court had gone mad; otherwise, how could they allow a fiefdom marquis to appear right under the capital's nose!
Even before he reached adulthood, he was entrusted with an important task by the sage: to go out to sea and capture followers of the Heavenly Mother.

Such a complex situation left Ma Wei, a seasoned official, completely baffled!
However, Ma Wei had his own way of dealing with it.

I don't care! I won't ask! Whatever!

Mind your own business, and you'll live a long life!
Su Mo, inside the captain's cabin, saw that the tide had risen quite high and the wind direction was also favorable.

Without further hesitation, the order was given!
Chen Qian, at the stern, waved his command flag.

All the fishing boats simultaneously raised their hard sails and worked together!
The ropes tightened instantly!

The massive 600-ton ship swayed slightly, as if it had loosened a bit!
Unfortunately, that's all there is to it.

For the better part of an hour, the warship still couldn't emerge from the mud and remained motionless.

How much power can a fishing boat in the near sea have? Now it's towing a super ship of six hundred tons.

Su Mo sighed inwardly.

This was all the hard-sailed fishing boats he had found in the vicinity.

It seems we can only go further afield to find more fishing boats to help us, and we might even have to wait for a windier day.

The tide is showing signs of receding.

Just as Su Mo was about to give up, suddenly, a green shadow flashed and the Empress flew onto the warship!
"I'm here to lend Su Lang a hand!"

The Empress smiled radiantly at Su Mo, then raised her delicate hand.

More than a dozen array flags, shimmering with multicolored light, flew out of the sleeves one after another and landed in the void around the warship!

After raising the battle flag, the empress's pretty face suddenly turned serious.

An immense amount of magical power, far beyond what Su Mo, a sorcerer at the Soul Fixation Realm, could imagine, erupted from the Empress's body!
The array flags shone brightly, almost blinding people, and then released countless golden threads that densely bound the warship!

The expressions of Nangong Sheyue and the others on the shore changed drastically.

Ma Wei, the prefect of Wanghai County, was dumbfounded and terrified, staring at the dazzling command flag in the void with disbelief!
"This is a Golden Core... no... it's... the Heavenly... Heavenly..."

After struggling for a long time, I still couldn't get the word "infant" out!

Leng Liuxi's pretty face suddenly darkened. She raised her slender hand slightly and softly called out, "Rise!"

As the word "rise" fell.

Su Mo felt a sway beneath his feet, and the warship suddenly shook!
Then, they lifted it out of the mud inch by inch!

Su Mo looked at the Empress in shock!
Now I finally understand what level the Empress truly is!
With just magical power, one can shake a 600-ton warship. In this low-immortal world, this is something that even a Golden Core cultivator cannot do!

The Empress is actually a super powerhouse at the Heavenly Infant Realm!

No wonder he was able to seize the throne of the Great Wu Kingdom by force, and none of the civil and military officials dared to disobey him!
Even with buoyancy assistance, the force required to lift a warship by force, given the tight grip of the silt, would probably be no less than lifting a 600-ton warship directly!
Such terrifying power was even more shocking and unbelievable to Su Mo, a transmigrator!
That's equivalent to lifting three hundred two-ton cars!
Clearly, it was extremely difficult for the Empress to use such a supernatural power!

As the warship rose inch by inch, the Empress's pretty face became even paler, and beads of sweat kept seeping from her forehead and neck!

Seeing that even the Empress's lips were turning white, Su Mo was immediately startled. He didn't care about disturbing the Empress and quickly said, "Your Majesty, please stop!"

"Next time..."

A resolute glint flashed in the Empress's eyes. She took a deep breath and turned to look at Su Mo: "It's alright!"

"A mere seagoing vessel is no match for me!"

Looking at the Empress, whose face was covered in sweat and pale, but whose eyes were filled with even more determination, Su Mo gritted her teeth and said, "Fine!"

"This humble servant is here to lend you a hand, sir!"

Leng Liuxi was originally trying her best to circulate her magic power and not be distracted, but at this moment she couldn't help but laugh: "Su Lang is just a novice... how can he help me?" "You just watch from the side and don't do anything useless."

With that, the Empress gritted her teeth and snorted, "This concubine can lift this ship!"

In the eyes of a powerful expert like her, there is not much difference between the entry level, the separation level, and even the return level.

Only a Golden Core Realm sorcerer could earn Leng Liuxi's slight attention.

How could Su Mo, with his mere Soul-Stabilizing Realm cultivation, possibly lend me a hand?
This is as ridiculous as an adult carrying a 200-pound load, and a toddler who has just learned to walk saying that he wants to help the adult carry the load!
If the Empress hadn't been using all her magical power, she probably would have been clutching her stomach and laughing!
Su Mo, however, had a serious expression and slowly said, "That's not necessarily true."

"That's not necessarily true?" The Empress was instantly taken aback.

Her pretty face was full of suspicion.

Su Lang rarely spoke falsehoods; in fact, he would hold back six or seven parts of what he said, being extremely cautious.

But how can he lend a helping hand?
Leng Liuxi, a powerful cultivator at the Heavenly Infant level, couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she tried!

Just as the Empress was puzzled, Su Mo took off the demon-subduing pestle from his neck, clenched it tightly in his palm, his face suddenly darkened, and he unleashed a magical power far exceeding that of a cultivator in the Soul-Stabilizing Realm.

He pointed his right hand towards the sea and shouted, "Call the wind!"

With the appearance of the word "calling the wind".

Su Mo felt an invisible vortex appear in mid-air, instantly sucking away 80% of his magic power!
The vortex grew at an astonishing speed.

then.

A strong wind is blowing in!

Su Mo stared in disbelief at the sudden gust of wind!
The Wind-Summoning Divine Power truly can draw upon the power of heaven and earth! What was originally a wind force of at most level five has now definitely reached level six!

A level 6 wind is strong enough to create waves up to three meters high. Fishing boats need to double-drag their sails to avoid being capsized by the strong winds.

However, not a single one of the towed fishing boats had its sails furled!
Because if the dragging fails, the only reward is a mere one or two taels of silver or even five hundred large coins.

Only by towing warships out to sea can you obtain ten times the profit!

The Empress glanced at Su Mo with surprise and suspicion, then gritted her teeth, took out a crimson pill, and swallowed it!
Her originally pale face instantly became much rosier!
The surrounding void trembled!
Even more immense magical power was poured into the command flag!
……

The people on the shore, including Nangong Sheyue, were already petrified.

Everyone stared in disbelief at the scene before them.

Under strong winds.

The colossal ship, twenty zhang long and seven or eight zhang wide, rose inch by inch.

Then, the ship suddenly lurched, and its ascent speed increased dramatically.

Nangong Sheyue's beautiful eyes narrowed instantly!
The warships have broken free from the suction of the silt!

Sure enough, the warship quickly rose seven or eight feet, rocked violently, and finally came to a steady stop on the water.

It's easy once the suction is gone.

A strong wind howled, and the warship's soft sails were billowed out. With the help of fishing boats, it slowly moved towards the deep water.

The Empress waved her hand, putting the array flags back into her sleeve. Then she looked at Su Mo suspiciously, her eyebrows slightly furrowed: "What my lord just used... was it a supernatural technique?"

Su Mo felt completely drained.

Besides consuming 80% of one's mana instantly to activate the supernatural power, maintaining it also requires consuming mana.

The power of the Vajra Pestle is almost exhausted!

Seeing that the warship had begun to move, Su Mo withdrew his supernatural powers and took a few deep breaths.

He met the Empress's gaze, hesitated for a moment, and finally nodded: "Indeed, his supernatural powers are quite impressive."

The empress blinked her beautiful eyes, then suddenly smiled, and smiled very happily.

Su Mo was taken aback: "My lord... what are you laughing at?"

The Empress scoffed, "Hmph, I won't tell you!"

The young master actually took the initiative to show off his skills, which is a great thing. He is trusting me more and more. But I definitely can't say anything, otherwise he won't take the initiative to show off his skills next time.

The Empress paused, then suddenly blurted out, "I haven't sweated in a long time!"

Su Mo...

He could only take out a handkerchief from his sleeve, step forward, and gently wipe away the empress's sweat.

The Empress's eyes suddenly narrowed, her gaze falling suspiciously on the face mask.

Su Mo's heart skipped a beat.

The Empress won't recognize me, will she?

That shouldn't be the case. How did she know that the face mask belonged to Nangong Sheyue?
Last time he caught a cold and sneezed, Nangong Sheyue wiped his nose. After Su Mo washed it clean, he wanted to find an opportunity to return the favor to Nangong Sheyue, but he never found the opportunity.

Su Mo felt a little guilty for some reason, so she quickly put the handkerchief away and glared at the Empress with a dark face: "Why are you so impulsive!"

"If the boat can't get going, we'll wait for Zhang Dachao and try again when there's a strong wind!"

"What would I do if you were harmed!"

After being reprimanded by Su Mo, the Empress immediately shifted her attention from the handkerchief, her eyes flickered, and she stammered, "This concubine is not so easily hurt."

Su Mo snorted: "Anyway, don't do that again next time!"

He wasn't joking with Leng Liuxi.

Previously, Leng Liuxi's lips had turned white, which really frightened Su Mo.

The Empress said softly, "Hmm... I will not act impulsively next time."

She paused, then couldn't help but explain, "I need to return to the capital as soon as possible... I also have a share of this warship... uh... I get a share of the catch of the Kun fish."

Seeing that Su Mo still had a dark expression, the Empress's eyes lit up: "Su Lang, when shall we go out to sea to catch Kun?"

"I've never seen a Kun fish before, but I've heard people say that Kun fish are bigger than fishing boats!"

Su Mo said irritably, "That's just an exaggeration. Even the largest Kun fish only weighs two or three hundred thousand catties."

Upon hearing this, the Empress was immediately shocked: "What? Two or three hundred thousand catties? Is there really such a behemoth in this world?"

Su Mo nodded: "That's true."

"However, a giant Kun of this size is probably rare."

This world is the same as the previous one in terms of most species, except for the addition of the rules for cultivating immortality.

Blue whales in my past life weighed over a hundred tons, so there must be some in this world too.

It might become even larger.

The Empress's eyes lit up, probably stimulated by Su Mo's mention of the 230,000-jin giant Kun: "Su Lang, let's hurry up and go out to sea to catch Kun!"

Su Mo was both amused and exasperated: "Going to sea isn't that simple!"

"This ship is different from ordinary hard-sided sailing ships, so the sailors will need to be retrained to operate it. Also... we need to prepare various supplies..."

The Empress blinked: "How long?"

Su Mo was speechless: "It will definitely take eight or ten days."

The Empress frowned deeply: "It will take that long?"

"There are only twenty days left until the Chinese New Year."

She looked up at Su Mo, her beautiful eyes full of hope: "Could you go faster? I really want to see the giant Kun with my own eyes!"

Su Mo...

Finally, he could only smile wryly and say, "If we don't go out to sea... three or four days should be enough, but I can't guarantee whether we'll see the giant Kun."

The Empress immediately exclaimed excitedly, "Then let's set sail in four days!"

"I...I want to personally capture a giant Kun and bring it back to the capital!"

(End of this chapter)