Reborn in 1993, Dark Sea

After sailing north for a day, Uncle Xiao Hei found a small island and stopped.

The island is very small, but it has a simple stone pier. Uncle Xiao Hei said that there used to be a mountain spring on the island. Many fishing boats would stop here to replenish their fresh water when they passed by, so this simple pier was built.

The mountain spring has dried up for many years now, and hardly anyone comes to this small island anymore.

The main reason for choosing to dock the boat here was to deal with the marks on the hull. The patterns that had been painted on it had been washed away, but the bullet holes on the fishing boat were still too frightening.

The stern, in particular, is covered with dents and scratches, a shocking sight that needs to be addressed.

Yan Hong and Xu Tianyou were in charge of applying putty and paint, filling in dents and bullet holes, while Uncle Xiao Hei took tools and got some wood from the island to repair the wooden parts of the fishing boat.

They set up a tent on the small beach of the island and moved Xie Dan there, where An Xiaohai took care of her.

Xie Dan had a fever all day and was a bit delirious. Fortunately, the ship had enough antibiotics, and after two injections, her fever subsided considerably.

After resting on the island for another half day, Xie Dan's condition visibly improved. However, after waking up, he seemed to have some subtle changes in his demeanor. He was not as active as before and looked as if he had something on his mind.

An Xiaohai didn't bother him; some knots in one's heart can only be untied by oneself.

In just over a day, the small fishing boat was completely transformed.

There were patches everywhere, traces of paint filling everywhere, and the combination of new and old wooden parts created a strange harmony.

To avoid further damage, all the windows on the boat were removed before the battle began. However, due to the violent movement of the fishing boat, many of these windows were broken, and even when they were reinstalled, they were incomplete.

This small fishing boat now looks just like Uncle Xiao Hei, weathered by many storms, full of stories and vicissitudes.

Everyone was exhausted, so An Xiaohai decided to rest on the island for another day.

Xie Dan was a little silent, Yan Hong was even more silent, only Xu Tianyou was still the same as always, never idle for a moment. While everyone else was resting, he took a rake and dug for clams on the small beach, declaring that he would eat all the clams he dug by himself and no one was allowed to take them from him.

Perhaps because the tension in his heart had eased, Uncle Xiaohei seemed much more relaxed than before. His care for Xie Dan could be described as meticulous, and the kindness in his eyes was genuine.

An Xiaohai sat motionless on the beach watching Xu Tianyou dig for sand clams.

As the sun was setting, Xu Tianyou could no longer dig; the tide was coming in. He threw away his rake and lay down next to An Xiaohai.

"Hey, you always seem so preoccupied, aren't you tired?"

"You're always so energetic, aren't you tired?"

"Ha! It's alright! If my body is a little tired, my mind won't be so tired. I don't have the energy to be tired anymore."

"That's true..." An Xiaohai said, looking into the distance and letting out a long breath.

"I'm curious, who are you trying to fool by taking such a huge risk?"

"Is it that obvious? Then haven't I been working for nothing?"

"It's not that obvious, it's just that I know you better. I think you overdid it this time."

"How so?"

"Actually, everything was fine until the end. The key was that we shouldn't have turned around and attacked them again. Everything we did before was reasonable, but that last move was pure slaughter."

"You have a point, but I think the final blow is the real way to fool him. Like you said, it's not part of the whole plan, nor is it necessary; it's purely for killing."

"Oh, so the person you're trying to scam is pretty perverted."

"The word 'pervert' is used well."

I answered one of your questions; could you answer one of mine in return?

"You're so stingy! Okay, what do you want to ask?"

"Where did this thing come from?" An Xiaohai asked, pointing to the Buddha-face necklace around his neck.

"Of course it's made. We have someone who specializes in ordering these things." Xu Tianyou sat up on the beach. "I think you probably already guessed it. There's a locator inside."

Important figures within the Haifoye Group all possess such a necklace.

"Do people who own necklaces know that there's a tracking device inside?"

"Some know, some don't. The Haixi Forest is vast and boundless. With this, we can keep track of their movements at any time, which can also be considered a form of control."

"This thing is not simple."

"Yes, it's quite remarkable. The old man had it done by a foreign organization; the battery inside can last for 7 to 10 years."

"If it runs out of power, we'll just replace it."

"No need. Very few people in our line of work can last 7 to 10 years."

"..."

"You're not angry with me?"

"No, as your brother, I'm willing to accept your arrangements. You're only doing this to protect me. If one day I assign you a task, I hope you'll obey."

An Xiaohai turned his head and looked at Xu Tianyou, whose smile was slowly fading: "Is it that serious?"

"Yes."

"Alright, if that day ever comes, I will accept your arrangement."

"Remember what you said!" An Xiaohai turned his gaze back to the sea: "Do any of the gems on these stones have any special meaning?"

"Diamonds sell powder, rubies kill, topaz manages money, and sapphires are elders."

"Um...that..."

"You mean that old codger, right? He has one too, his has a purple gem on it."

Are there any other colors?

"As far as I know, they're gone."

"So, I'm actually an elder of Lord Haifo now?"

"You can understand it that way, but in reality, the necklace isn't as useful as you think."

That's just for identification; it probably won't be able to command anyone under normal circumstances. But if you carry it around in Haixi Province, you can practically do whatever you want.

"I understand. Where did you get this batch of weapons from?"

Are you afraid that the source will be traced?

"Yes, this matter has become quite serious, and it's going to be tough if someone finds out."

"Don't worry, this is a separate storyline, and it has nothing to do with Master Haifo. Do you remember the last time you were in the hospital, I found a foreigner to play a priest to visit you?"

"Was it that guy who set you up?"

Yes, it's him.

"How did you meet him? Did you contact him or did he contact you?"

"It can't be that scary, can it?!... " Xu Tianyou stared into An Xiaohai's eyes for a long time, but An Xiaohai gritted his teeth and didn't say anything.

hiss~

Xu Tianyou took a breath: "Xu Zhijie met this foreigner at a party. He would grab anyone and say that he had many good connections with them."

He said he knew many influential people in Europe, the Middle East, and North and South America who could get things people wouldn't even dare to dream of. Drugs, women, intelligence, advanced weapons, etc.—if you could name it, he could get it.

Everyone at the party thought he was crazy and ignored him. Xu Zhijie, being soft-hearted, chatted with him for a few minutes, but then the man started pestering him and became incredibly annoyed.

Xu Zhijie had no choice but to come to me, begging me to find a way to get rid of him, so I went to see him.

I found this guy to be quite interesting. He had a hard time distinguishing Asian faces, and for a long time, he thought I was Xu Zhijie.

I happened to need some weapon parts at the time, so I jokingly asked him to get them for me, and to my surprise, he actually got them very quickly.

The parts he sourced were not only of good quality but also very cheap. From then on, my business with him grew bigger and bigger.

"Does this person operate primarily within the country?"

"No, quite the opposite. He travels all over the world, and he really dislikes the domestic market. He says that wealthy people in China lack imagination and it's very difficult to do business there."

"Do you know where he got this batch of weapons from?"

"I don't know. I only care about whether something is good or bad, not where it came from."

However, I suspect these weapons originated from the Middle East; when I first received them, I found a lot of sand hidden in the crevices.

How do you usually contact this person?

"He gave me a phone number and a website, but you usually can't reach him by phone. You have to leave him a message in the chat room on that website, and he will definitely reply."

"Can you tell me the website?"

"Okay," Xu Tianyou told An Xiaohai the website address, "but knowing the address won't help you, you can't log in."

"How so?"

"You don't have an account or password."

"Don't you have one?"

"I can't give it to you."

They are very cautious; both accounts and passwords are one-time use and expire after a single transaction. Only after logging in and completing a transaction can you receive a new account and password, which are also one-time use.

"Is everyone like this?"

"Not everyone, I've heard that some VIP accounts and passwords are permanent."

"Aren't you a VIP yet?"

"I'm still a long way off, haha!"

"So, do you think that foreigner was a VIP?"

"I suspect so. On several occasions, he sent me the new usernames and passwords."

Do you know how this website identifies you?

"I think it's through my transaction password, which I've always used."

"I understand..." An Xiaohai fell silent after saying that.

Xu Tianyou's brows furrowed even more deeply: "Something's not right!"

"What's wrong?"

"I hadn't thought about it this way before, but after your analysis, I feel like that silly foreigner was after me."

It feels like... someone thinks I'm not strong enough, so they deliberately sent me an NPC who sells weapons.

Yes, that's the feeling!

Holy crap, that's terrifying! Who is it? Could it be that old geezer?

"I don't know," An Xiaohai shook his head gently. "Maybe it's all just a coincidence, and I'm overthinking it. By the way, what's this foreigner's name?"

"Anderson, he said everyone calls him Little Anderson."

"So, he also has an old Anderson in his family?"

"You rascal! Haha!"

-------

Turtle Islands

The area has been sealed off, and a large number of people from Country Y are cleaning up the wreckage in the harbor.

The flames on the sentry hill had not been completely extinguished; the entire sentry hill resembled a giant chimney, billowing thick smoke.

A small area in the port square had been cleared out, and the people from Country Y were constantly moving the useful clues they found to the square and piling them up.

The elderly man with gray hair was sorting through the clues, while the general from before was also standing in the square, his face extremely grim.