Ch 2: The World’s Number One Resort

“Tang.” Upon seeing Tang Huai, Hank put down the newspaper and stood up to greet him. Tang Huai nodded, and the two checked the necessary items before heading to the City Hall.

A gentle breeze blew as their red Ford drove past the solemn and majestic Constitution Square, and before long, they arrived at Mexico City Hall.

Tang Huai and Hank got out of the car. There were many tourists with cameras around the City Hall, and Tang Huai even spotted a few Asian faces. Hank went to the security office and spoke in Spanish. Shortly after, Hank gestured to Tang Huai. Tang Huai took out his visa and passport. After everything was verified, they were led by security into the office hall.

Inside the hall sat a middle-aged man in his fifties, dressed in a dark uniform. After Hank explained the purpose of their visit, the man efficiently handled the island transfer.

Verifying the will, signing and stamping, copying documents… the entire process took only an hour.

After carefully putting away the documents, Tang Huai looked at the small brown booklet in his hand. His previous temporary visa had now been converted into a permanent one—one of the benefits of his inheritance.

“Congratulations, you can now officially establish your own country,” Hank said with a wink as they walked out of the City Hall.

Tang Huai smiled. Sora Island was now entirely his, and technically speaking, he could establish a country. However, establishing a country required more than just land; it needed an army, a government, a constitution, and a declaration of independence to the world. Tang Huai had only fulfilled the first step. Plus, establishing a new country could trigger legal disputes and even military actions.

Tang Huai was just a fruit store owner and had no ambitions of founding a nation. He knew Hank was joking.

After exchanging a few jokes with Hank, the two set off in the direction of Guerrero.

Three hours later, they arrived at a small port called Fede.

The port was rather chaotic, with many shirtless workers unloading goods. The containers at the port gave off a strong fishy smell, as the port mainly dealt with seafood transportation.

Following the damp sea breeze, the two weaved their way through the port and arrived in front of a fishing boat.

A muscular man in a gray tank top stood on the boat, loudly giving instructions. At his feet were wet fishing nets and a few sardines flopping around.

Hank walked over, speaking fluently in Spanish. The muscular man glanced at Tang Huai with curiosity as they talked.

Tang Huai felt a bit helpless; the language barrier was truly frustrating.

“Tang, this is Captain Reno. He’s made all the preparations, and we can set sail now,” Hank said after a moment.

“This fishing boat… is it okay?” Tang Huai asked, choosing his words carefully.

The fishing boat in front of him was about ten meters long, with three levels—upper, middle, and lower. The boat looked old, with yellowing and peeling paint. It appeared to be at least twenty years old, and there were fish scales and nets scattered across the deck.

Tang Huai had serious doubts about whether this fishing boat could survive five days on the Pacific Ocean. After all, the distance from Mexico to Sora Island was around 2,000 nautical miles, equivalent to the distance from Mohe to Chongqing.

“Captain Reno has thirty years of sailing experience. This boat has made round trips to Hawaii with him. He’s in need of a large sum of money, which is why he took this job… Tang, Sora Island is not on any established shipping routes, and large ships rarely pass through there,” Hank explained.

There were many boats in Guerrero, but they all followed fixed routes. If Tang Huai wanted to reach Sora Island, he could only rely on small, privately-owned fishing boats like this one.

“Alright,” Tang Huai said reluctantly after thinking it over. At this point, he had no choice but to take things one step at a time. His trip to Mexico had already cost him 200,000 yuan, and backing out now would mean wasting all the preparation of the past few days.

He could only hope Captain Reno’s sailing experience would see them through.

The group bought some bread, compressed biscuits, mineral water, and other essentials near the port. After all the preparations were complete, at 3 p.m. Mexico time, the Storm set sail.

The Storm is the name of the fishing boat, symbolizing fearlessness in the face of storms and the conquest of the ocean. Aside from Captain Reno, the crew consisted of a helmsman, three sailors, and a repairman. Reno himself took on multiple roles, including captain, head chef, and chief engineer.

The Storm is divided into three levels. The lower level is the sleeping area, the middle level houses the cockpit, living room, kitchen, and deck, while the upper level consists of the lookout and bridge.

As the salty sea breeze blew by, Tang Huai stood on the deck, taking in the vast, endless blue ocean. It was his first time seeing the sea.

“Care for one?” Hank leisurely approached with a can of beer in hand.

“No, thanks.” Hank leaned on the railing and handed Tang Huai a white pill. Tang Huai glanced at it and politely declined with a smile.

It was seasickness medication, a necessity for seafaring.

Tang Huai was surprised by his resilience—he hadn’t gotten seasick, nor had he experienced motion sickness on the plane.

“Reno is a great navigator. My dream is to lead my own fleet across the Atlantic, just like him,” Hank said with a shrug, opening his beer and speaking wistfully.

Tang Huai nodded. Over the past two days, he had learned that Hank was born in Oaxaca, Mexico, and had graduated from the University of Washington. His family had been fishermen for generations. After graduating, Hank gave up a high-paying job in New York and returned home… to fish.

Hank’s life philosophy wasn’t easy to understand, not just in China but even in Mexico. He’d had many arguments with his family over his choice to pursue fishing, but he was fearless in his pursuit.

Hank’s family wasn’t wealthy, and building a fleet was no easy task. So Hank made a living by fishing and doing translation work.

Hank loved the sea.

After chatting for a while, they returned to the cabins to rest. Over the next three days, they spent their time aboard the Storm. At first, Tang Huai enjoyed watching the sea from the deck, but he quickly grew bored.

Compared to the endless ocean, lying in bed reading a magazine was far more entertaining. If his phone had a signal, he’d have posted on social media.

…

Tang Huai’s first adventure at sea passed uneventfully.

“Beep beep, beep beep…” On the fourth day, early in the morning, Tang Huai was jolted awake by a loud alarm. On top of that, he felt the fishing boat shaking violently.

“What’s going on?” Tang Huai hurriedly threw on a coat and rushed to the deck. The temperature difference between day and night on the sea was significant, and the Pacific Ocean at 3 or 4 a.m. was cold.

The deck was in chaos. Tang Huai’s pupils contracted when he saw the scene before him. In the distance, layer upon layer of waves were crashing in. Around the boat, countless fish were leaping out of the water.

The wind howled, and Tang Huai felt as if the sea breeze had become even saltier.

“It could be a tsunami! Damn, there was no warning!” Hank cursed, his hair disheveled, as he took in the scene before them.

The Storm had just passed Clipperton Island, and they were still more than 500 nautical miles away from Sora Island. If nothing went wrong, they would have reached it by tomorrow evening. But now, at this critical moment, they had encountered a tsunami!

There were eight people aboard the Storm. Amidst the chaos, everyone gathered in the cockpit.

Inside the cockpit, Captain Reno was sternly steering the boat. Various modern instruments—such as the radar, weather fax, and navigation system—were all emitting continuous warnings. As the group approached, Reno barked orders in Spanish.

Although Tang Huai couldn’t understand what was being said, it was clear that the situation was dire. He glanced around the cockpit and saw that the compass was spinning wildly.

This was a bad sign.

“Tang, it’s definitely a tsunami. An unexpected one with no warning…” Hank turned to Tang Huai after two minutes, speaking seriously. With today’s advanced technology, ocean disasters like tsunamis, rogue waves, and storm surges are usually detected in advance.

Although the Storm was a small fishing boat, it was equipped with all the necessary detection gear. Yet this time, there had been no warning signs whatsoever.

After Captain Reno gave some further instructions to the crew, Hank and the sailors ran outside. The automatic sail control was broken, so they had to manually lower the sails.

With a pipe in his mouth, Reno continued to solemnly operate the controls.

Tang Huai looked around and realized that in the face of this sudden disaster, he had become somewhat useless.

The ocean’s surface churned violently, and the ship tilted by 30 degrees. The sail seemed stuck, and the crew was struggling. Gritting his teeth, Tang Huai ran toward the sails.

If the sails couldn’t be lowered, they’d all end up in the ocean.

The second-level deck had already taken on a lot of water, soaking Tang Huai’s pants. Another wave crashed over, leaving half of him drenched. In the midst of the boat’s rocking, Tang Huai finally reached the sails.

Standing next to a crew member, Tang Huai mimicked their actions, pulling the ropes attached to the mast. His hands were quickly blistered, but he didn’t have time to worry about it. Another wave hit, and the ship tilted even more. Everyone gritted their teeth and kept working together until, at last, the sails were lowered.

“Tang, we should grab life vests… Tang!” The boat stabilized, and the crew breathed a sigh of relief. Hank turned around, about to say something, but his tone suddenly became urgent.

Tang Huai looked in Hank’s direction, following his gaze instinctively. After the recent commotion, Tang Huai had ended up standing at the edge of the boat. The railing was loose, and at that moment, a massive wave came crashing down without warning. Under the force of the wave, Tang Huai was swept overboard.

Hank reached out, trying to grab him, but missed.

Tang Huai thought, …As expected, there’s no such thing as a free lunch.

That was his last thought before losing consciousness.

…

[Ding, system update in progress. Body status: normal, identity: normal, fusion rate: normal…]

[35%, 62%, 86%… Update complete.]

Tang Huai was awakened by a cold, mechanical voice. His mind was hazy, and his body felt endlessly heavy and soaked. He wanted to raise his hand, but had no strength.

He didn’t know how much time had passed before his consciousness fully returned. Tang Huai opened his eyes, and a blinding ray of sunlight hit him. He squinted. The waves were gone, the storm was gone, the boat was gone.

Turning his head slightly, Tang Huai found himself locking eyes with a palm-sized black crab.

Tang Huai: …

With great difficulty, Tang Huai sat up, feeling that if he didn’t, the crab’s pincers would soon get a little too close for comfort.

After sitting up, Tang Huai surveyed his surroundings. He was now on a long, sandy shoreline. In front of him stretched a calm, mirror-like sea. Behind him was a jagged valley, with a dark, eerie atmosphere. The terrain behind him reminded him of China’s Loess Plateau—deeply eroded ravines and not a hint of greenery.

This was the landscape Tang Huai could see. As for what lay beyond the valley… that was unknown.

The soil of the valley was a deep brown, running from the coastline inward. The dark valley contrasted sharply with the bright blue sea in front of him, creating a striking and powerful visual.

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️