Chapter 27: Sworn Brother Wang Haifeng, First Encounter with the Jiao Dragon Aura

“How could you all…”
Even someone as broad-minded and unconcerned with trifles as Huang Yuanzhou could not help the surge of fury in his heart at witnessing such a blatant display of opportunism.
Especially when several of the eight great ship leaders, who had once called him brother, now turned their backs on him—his vision darkened with rage.
The governance of the Eight Ship Leaders had collapsed. The grand geomantic arrangement of “All Winds Gather at the Pavilion” was no longer secure; Moon Harbor’s defenses were now down, and unless one side achieved total victory, there could be no turning back.
Realizing this, his anger could only dissolve into a powerless sigh:
“It’s not just the already loosely allied Intermarket Faction that’s in disarray—even the Five Peaks Banner, the old master’s own closest men, are restless.
Traditionalists, avengers, marauders, the ambitious, the independent… All the ship leaders have their own agendas; how could we possibly unite to fend off the predatory gentry?”
A profound sense of isolation and betrayal welled up within him. He almost wished he could take his own men and leave, letting those foolish enough to trust the landed gentry fend for themselves.
After all, for the past three years, Huang Yuanzhou, known as the Mirage Commander, was hardly the only one guarding this treasure trove that was Moon Harbor.
Even though the Five Peaks Banner had learned from the destruction of Shuangyu Island and Liegang, and had refrained from provoking the imperial court by ruling Moon Harbor directly, instead choosing to share authority with other factions, they had always stationed at least three or four top ship leaders of the Twenty-Four Generals or Thirty-Six Braves rank.
Among the eight great ship leaders, nearly half were from their ranks, and with allied forces in support, their strength had been unmatched.
But times had changed.
Now, the Five Peaks Banner was led by the old master’s adopted son, the Black Qilin, Mao Haifeng, who had originally been called Wang Haifeng. When the heir, Wang Cheng, started growing up, the old master had him revert to his original surname.
During the last upheaval, the Black Qilin had led the naval fleet that accompanied the Prince of Jinghai to accept the court’s surrender, and fought the ambushing imperial navy.
Afterwards, he ordered most of the ship leaders guarding the southeastern coast, the East Sea, and the South Seas to return to their main base on an island at the southern tip of Yingzhou.
He was preparing to muster his forces at the start of the year to attack the provincial capital of Minzhou, vowing to kill at least one prince of the Han imperial clan as a blood offering to avenge the old master.
As a result, only Huang Yuanzhou—who, like a giant clam, preferred seclusion and hated relocating—remained in Moon Harbor, while the other two Twenty-Four Generals had been summoned away.
Their control over this international trade center had sharply diminished, giving the gentry faction the chance to slip in and seize power.
If the other great ship leaders had stayed, who would have dared trespass on the tiger’s domain?
“I chose to stay behind to hold Moon Harbor—the last bridgehead within the empire—and to be ready, at the critical moment, to help the young master escape overseas.
But events have deteriorated far faster than we ever anticipated. The imperial court eyes us hungrily from without, while the gentry and sea merchants collude with the authorities to stab us in the back from within.
Now, even this most basic goal has become a distant luxury.”
Though Huang Yuanzhou had resolved that, if necessary, he would become a marauder himself to teach the gentry and officials a lesson, he could not help but blame the Black Qilin, Mao Haifeng, for his decisions.

Vengeance for the old master was important, but what of Moon Harbor and the young lord?
Looking around, he saw that, among the eight great ship leaders, two of the Five Peaks Banner had left, one was absent, and including himself only five remained; yet of those, only one steadfast ally still stood at his side.
This was Han Zezhang, known as the River-Turning Rat, a marine officer dubbed the Sea Dredger.
Though not of the Five Peaks Banner, his father and Huang Yuanzhou’s were sworn brothers. At this moment, Han Zezhang withstood the pressure, his face just as grim.
Nearby, Wang Cheng, without much hesitation, led a group of Tanka to stand behind Huang Yuanzhou and Han Zezhang, naturally joining the commoners' faction.
They were one of the fuses for the conflict, with no other choice.
Yet, seeing the surging crowd opposite and the intimidating circle of ship leaders, his heart skipped a beat:
‘You must have as many friends as possible, as few enemies as you can. The neutrals must not all be cowed into submission.
Otherwise, if I want to stay in Moon Harbor to maneuver, it will become dangerous indeed.’
Wang Cheng thought it was worth the risk.
He looked up at Old Shen, the neutral Straight Duty Hall official, who watched coldly from the beacon tower atop Treasure Mountain, saying nothing, seemingly truly impartial.
Taking a step forward, Wang Cheng forced himself to appear composed as he addressed the assembly:
“Though Prince Jinghai was lured and killed by the court, his spirit is undying.
After the shendao ritual sent him off in the king’s boat, the ‘Twenty-Four Solar Rites’ acknowledged him as the rightful earth deity of the imperial dynasty, a status that even the chief state gods cannot strip away.
Though his power was still weak just after being installed, in a few years, as worship grows, his might will surely increase.
Unless we never go to sea again, how can any ship upon the Eastern Sea escape the jurisdiction of the Prince and his peers?
Even if you seek shelter with the neutral Shanhai Society or the Sea Goddess, surely you know that the distant cannot come between the close.
They are all sea deities; if Prince Jinghai punishes you, would the Sea Goddess still grant her blessing?”
Every official present, after igniting their inner lamp, was sharp-eared and keen-sighted.
Upon hearing this, the gentry’s confidence faltered; their ranks, which had just begun to steady, fell into chaos again.
Xie He, standing not far from Wang Cheng, turned ashen with rage:
“That brat deserves death, sabotaging my plans!”
He had struck blow after blow, and already had the crowd cowed.
In the confusion, he had forced them to choose sides, using momentum to seize control and monopolize Moon Harbor, this world trade hub.

Now, suddenly, it all went awry—someone had exposed the crucial flaw they had deliberately concealed.
Xie He wished he could tear this “Scholar Wang Fugui” apart.
As one of the plan’s executors, he knew better than anyone that the destruction of the Cai Shui Wang family was not merely about profit as outsiders believed.
There were at least three parties involved: local gentry officials, a powerful ship leader within the Five Peaks Banner, and some enigmatic figure whose identity even he did not know.
And it wasn’t just the Cai Shui Wang family.
In the past six or seven years, the Four Brothers of Shuangyu, the Tiger Flood Dragon Jin Zhi the Elder, Sea Yaksha Li Baldhead, the “Heaven-Sent Admiral” Xu Hai…
One by one, these pirates, merchants, and ship leaders, all with the aura of flood dragons and the potential to transform, had met untimely deaths, sent off in king’s boats to fill the sea’s eye—
All as part of some mysterious ritual.
Several of these pirates had even been killed by the Prince of Jinghai himself, abetted by government troops—a case of dogs eating dogs, as their hidden masters saw it.
None of these incidents were mere coincidence; they were all moves in a grand game played by that unknown figure.
Xie He did not know the precise plan.
He only knew that the shendao ritual to send the prince’s spirit had succeeded only halfway.
They had failed to cast the Prince of Jinghai into the sea’s eye, which left lingering threats: the Cai Shui Wang family retained the means to stir up more trouble, and the sea merchants who depended on the tides were left in a precarious position.
Worse yet, the prince’s heir had escaped, taking with him a portion of the flood dragon energy they had spent years gathering.
They had to recapture this sacrificial offering at all costs!
If not for this fatal error, they could have simply waited for the Five Peaks Banner to collapse from internal strife—it would have taken no more than a year or two.
But first, the Waterworks Supervisor sent by higher-ups mysteriously disappeared, and now today the Shanhai Society’s Straight Duty Hall official had intervened to prevent further bloodshed.
And just now, even an unheard-of minor character had stabbed them in the back. How could he not be enraged?
Wang Cheng, reading Xie He’s darkening expression, also used his “Commodities Are Precious” talent to see through his strongest obsession:
“Seize Moon Harbor, capture the Prince of Jinghai’s heir as an offering, help the great one gather all the flood dragon energy, and complete the ritual.”
His mind made up, Wang Cheng decided that after the credential ceremony, he would immediately act—take Xie He, pry open his secrets, and finally uncover the true enemy.