Why would a radio host be able to keep an entire ship's passengers from disembarking? Lin Sanjiu quickly understood the answer.
A few minutes after Eight-Heads De disappeared into a corner of the ship, the grand prize suddenly let out a soft "Ah" and said, "Sis, the ship has stopped."
Lin Sanjiu blinked in surprise and then noticed the wind had indeed died down. With no landmarks in the sky and only a blanket of lead-gray fog below, it was hard to tell if the ship was still moving while suspended in midair. Only by straining her ears could she faintly sense that the gentle hum of the engine beneath them had ceased.
"What's going on?" a posthuman sitting at a small table nearby muttered. "The ship doesn't seem to be moving."
Moments later, the cockpit door at the bow opened once again. The pilot poked his head out, wearing the same detached expression, and announced, "There's been an emergency near the Giant Gathering. We're temporarily halting the ship."
"Wait," a girl standing nearby called out before he could retreat. "What kind of emergency? How long will we be waiting?"
"The broadcast said a Level Two danger has been reported near the Giant Gathering. All ships are advised to stop and wait, and not approach the area for now," the pilot replied lazily, barely lifting his eyelids. "I don't know what the danger is or how long we'll have to wait."
"But I'm in a hurry!" someone shouted from the stern.
It was clear that getting this pilot to take a risk for posthumans was impossible.
"If you're in a hurry, buy your own ship. I don't have any evolved abilities," the pilot said, his tone unhurried. "Even if it were a 0.1-level danger, I wouldn't fly into it. I didn't learn how to pilot ships just to throw my life away. You'd better sit tight and wait."
An entire ship of posthumans, yet not one of them could do anything about an ordinary man. All they could do was grumble, mutter, and ask questions among themselves before settling back into their seats. The pilot, bombarded with questions, gave only one final response: slamming the door shut with a loud "thud."
Lin Sanjiu turned her head just in time to see Eight-Heads De reemerge from the corner of the ship. His face was flushed with a mix of nervousness and excitement. He nodded at Lin Sanjiu and mouthed the word 'hurry'.
"Let's start," Lin Sanjiu said, lightly tugging Ji Shanqing's sleeve. "He lied in the broadcast, so he probably can't hold it for long. Should we head to the bow or the stern first?"
She had caught a fleeting glimpse of Ah Quan at the center of the ship earlier. According to Ji Shanqing's analysis, the person holding Ah Quan's pocket dimension would definitely be as far from the center as possible—meaning it had to be either the bow or the stern.
"Sis, do you remember how Ah Quan described the last time his pocket dimension was activated?" the grand prize had said patiently when faced with her question. "Ah Quan said he was sitting in the middle of a narrow alley. A woman, his target, entered from one end. After he finished what he had to do, she left through the other end. From beginning to end, he didn't see a third person. This means the person holding the pocket dimension must have been especially careful to avoid appearing near Ah Quan."
Up until now, Ah Quan hadn't known who turned him into a pocket dimension. He only had a vague idea that it was an organization. This suggested that the person holding him was cautious and likely never revealed their face to Ah Quan.
"If we consider that the activation distance of the pocket dimension could be as far as an alley, then the person holding it doesn't need to stand near Ah Quan," Ji Shanqing continued. "The farther away they stand, the deeper they can hide within the crowd, making it easier to blend in. So, we can infer that the target might actually be among the people standing in the middle of the ship. It's crowded here, unlike an alleyway where the target might approach on their own. You need to get Ah Quan closer to the target instead."
"But why include women?" Lin Sanjiu asked, still doubtful. "In the memoir, it was clearly a man."
"It's just a precaution," the grand prize whispered, a bit embarrassed. "Think about it. The one who turned Ah Quan into a pocket dimension was part of an organization. This means that Ah Quan's pocket dimension belongs to that organization. Even though the person he spoke with was a man, it doesn't mean the current holder is always the same person."
"Ah, I see." Lin Sanjiu nodded. "Keeping it with the same person would be too risky."
This meant they couldn't rule anyone out. There were six seats at the front of the ship, with at least eight people seated or standing there. The back of the ship had even more; a quick glance showed at least ten people.
"So what's the plan? Are we just going to ask them one by one? I don't even know what to ask," Lin Sanjiu said as she moved closer to the front of the ship. Before she could get there, all eight of Eight-Heads De's eyes seemed to turn in her direction. She'd been the center of attention since the ship stopped.
Lin Sanjiu whispered to the grand prize, "What if they don't cooperate? Since you can create their currency with code and we have plenty of money, could we offer a reward?"
The grand prize quickly shook his head, and Lin Sanjiu immediately fell silent.
"Sis, you mustn't mention a reward. You've always been... well, let's call it persistent," he said carefully. "Use that persistence and ask your questions directly. The Twelve Worlds Centrum is more orderly, with established rules and a more structured way of life. People's guard isn't as high as it is in the wild worlds. If you ask ordinary questions—like where they're from, where they're going, or what their job is—they might not give detailed answers, but some will cooperate." РＡΝ𝘰𝐁Ěś
He paused before adding, "It's not the questions or answers that matter. What we need to observe is their attitude—whether they're willing to cooperate, if they seem friendly, or if they're pretending to be friendly."
Lin Sanjiu looked at him, a bit dazed. "Is that really all? The person holding Ah Quan's pocket dimension might not be unwilling to cooperate. They could just be bored or naturally helpful..."
Ji Shanqing shook his head. "Sis, the person holding Ah Quan's pocket dimension is definitely on guard. Think about it; we're almost at the front of the ship," he whispered quickly. "They're the only one on board who knows that our ship appeared alongside Ah Quan."