The time shifts back slightly.
Connecting the Old Continent, the Bantaan Archipelago, the First Circulation Zone of the Southern Continent.
Swarming heavenly fish reflecting vast coral clouds that mimic deep sea scenes obscure the dim starry sky, making it seem as if the entire world has sunk to the seabed.
As the Material World enters the Intertidal Zone, coral clouds appear more frequently, becoming a supernatural phenomenon that sailors are accustomed to.
At this moment, what appears on the sea is even more bizarre than these inexplicable coral clouds.
Ring, ring, ring...
The crisp sound of bells comes from afar.
Between the misty waves, two rows of carriages, adorned with orange lanterns, emerge, riding the waves from south to north.
Each wide, luxurious carriage is pulled by six tall horses, with hundreds of horses across seventy-two carriages all looking identical.
They lift their feet in unison and land in unison, moving uniformly as if sharing a single mind.
The Source Tides roll in, transformed into a solid force field staircase and an endless source of power under the miraculous transcendent ability of the Near-Zero Class Holy Relic [Key of Omniscience].
The carriages carry food and whale oil exceeding the capacity limits of ordinary cargo ship holds, yet travel faster than a carriage sprinting on land.
Although there isn’t much protective power, with fewer than a hundred Tamers guarding the dozens of carriages, this incredible mobility alone offers the strongest protection.
Other armed merchant ships and pirate ships, with a pitiful speed of only a few knots, wouldn’t even get a whiff of their tail dust, let alone catch them to steal the cargo.
This convoy from the [Key of Omniscience], akin to the flying clippers the North Sea Empire specifically builds for "triangular trade," can change the shipping history of the Material World through speed alone.
No weaponry needed, no transcendent abilities required, they easily surge to 14 knots, 26 kilometers per hour, outpacing any pirate ship.
Thus, only a heavy cruiser equipped with a Miracle Object Ship Figurehead, the [Pearl Bay], follows behind to bring up the rear.
During the last North Sea Defense Battle, the North Sea Empire reaped a bounty of Sea Monster carcasses.
The spiritually rich Sea Monster bones are excellent Miracle Object materials.
The Artisan-made Miracle Object Ship Figureheads, in standardized mass production, all possess [Water Jet Spurt] among their basic abilities, maximizing ocean currents to increase speed.
The combination of the two is foolproof.
However, there’s an exception.
That is when someone has preemptively detected the intended route, laying in wait quietly to ambush.
Just like now, about a nautical mile ahead of the convoy, a thick fog envelopes the area.
If one were to pierce through the fog barrier, they’d see a darkened fleet of sailboats inside, using a foremast and mainmast sail windbreaking mode, their duration unknown.
Each warship flies a navy flag with the Burgundy Blood Cross Flag, once the symbol of the Kingdom of Castilia, now of the Pyrenees Empire.
Also hoisting the regimental battle flag of the Invincible Fleet, indicating they are a squadron from the Pyrenees Empire’s Invincible Fleet.
In the captain’s cabin of the Fourth-Level Nominal Battleship [Twelve Apostles], serving as the flagship of the long-range fleet, officers tasked with this mission gather around a desk.
"Report to the Commander, the target is one nautical mile away from us and about to enter the encirclement."
"Report, the Seagull Messenger from our scouts reports that apart from sending a heavy cruiser for escort, the North Sea Empire has no other guard force.
This configuration is the same as the last two long-distance transports, no unexpected situations occurred."
"Commander, my [Meteorological Scepter] can maintain for another three hours, amply covering operational needs..."
On the table in front of the group of empire officers lies a visibly faded, decades-old navigational chart.
But this ordinary paper nautical chart cannot compare to it.
Besides crude lines barely suggesting the First Circulation Zone, it projects a real-time three-dimensional image of an entire sea area.
It can be magnified, reduced, even capturing a seagull crossing the sky vividly clear.
Moreover, it thoughtfully labels the names, titles, corps, and faction affiliations of enemies and allies on the route, comparable to a comprehensive combat information receiving and transmitting platform.
This is the strategic level First-Class Holy Relic [Henry’s Navigation Map], drawn after Castilian adventurers first set foot in the First Circulation Zone with the dawn of the Great Nautical Age.
The Kingdom of Castilia has been the leading maritime power for over a century. Its foundation is incredibly strong.
If Prince Henry, who inaugurated the Great Nautical Age, had Byron’s current order, the Demigod Promotion Ceremony [World Transformation] could equally have been easily completed with the age’s onset.
Its influence is self-evident.
The fleet commander aboard, the Fourth Order Heroic Rank Artillery Expert [Human-shaped Gun Platform] Franco Bampton, lowers his brass telescope and smirks coldly at the outside:
"Ever since the Freemason Society of the Netherland Kingdom shared intelligence, our system has noticed the North Sea Empire’s grain convoy.
After two scheduled probes, we are thoroughly prepared.
These bayfolk have been pirates for so long; do they truly believe they can rob others while remaining untouchable themselves?