While the capital region was engulfed in war and chaos, Li Daoxuan himself was currently aboard the Wanli Sunshine.
At this moment, the sea was calm and peaceful. The Wanli Sunshine drifted gently across the waves, moving at its slowest speed.
The Water Specialized Dao Xuan Tianzun stood at the bow, breathing in the faintly salty sea air. A feeling of refreshment and joy filled his heart.
His true body was confined at home every day, trapped in the concrete jungle of the modern world. The oppressive atmosphere of the city was stifling. Being able to take a short journey at sea through his co sensing avatar was a rare and pleasant release.
Li Daoxuan turned his head and glanced toward Wang Zheng, who stood nearby.
Wang Zheng was busy operating a large device. A chronometer.
Among Gao Family Village's three great scientific figures, Song Yingxing focused mainly on civilian technologies. His inventions were aimed at common people, and he dabbled in many different fields.
Bai Gongzi, on the other hand, specialized in steam engines. In recent years, nearly everything he developed revolved around steam powered machinery.
Wang Zheng, however, excelled in all kinds of mechanical devices.
His works such as Illustrated Explanations of New Mechanisms and Illustrated Explanations of Remarkable Western Machines were centered on mechanical structures and engineering principles.
For this reason, Li Daoxuan had directly entrusted him with the blueprints for the most important navigation device, the chronometer, so that he could research and replicate it.
Wang Zheng did not disappoint.
He had successfully produced a functioning chronometer.
This voyage of the Wanli Sunshine was specifically meant to test the accuracy of his chronometer.
After adjusting the device for quite some time, Wang Zheng turned toward Li Daoxuan and said,
"Dao Xuan Tianzun, according to my calculations, our current position is 122.44 degrees east longitude and 30.01 degrees north latitude. I wonder whether this is accurate."
Li Daoxuan glanced toward the west, where Mount Putuo was faintly visible on the distant horizon.
He immediately shifted his perspective outside the box, opened Baidu Maps, and used the coordinate tool to check the longitude and latitude of the sea east of Mount Putuo.
Perfect match.
Returning his awareness to the box, he smiled and nodded at Wang Zheng.
"The coordinates you reported are correct. The error is no more than five li."
On the vast ocean, an error within five li was extremely precise.
It was incomparably more accurate than the crude methods used by labor reform pirate navigators, who relied solely on observing the sun to determine their position.
Wang Zheng was overjoyed.
Since joining Gao Family Village, he had worked diligently for many years, yet he had never truly produced a groundbreaking invention. Watching Song Yingxing and Bai Gongzi repeatedly achieve great accomplishments and receive praise from Dao Xuan Tianzun had filled him with deep envy.
Now, at last, he had created something truly meaningful and made a real contribution.
Wang Zheng burst into loud laughter.
"It finally worked. Hahahahaha. May Dao Xuan Tianzun bless us. May all gods and buddhas bless us. Amitabha. Infinite blessings. Hallelujah. I finally succeeded. Now our ships can finally venture deep into the great ocean."
Li Daoxuan was also in an excellent mood.
Although Gao Family Village had already taken control of Zhoushan Island, they had never actively launched large scale attacks against Liu Xiang's pirates or Western pirates.
There were two main reasons.
First was manpower. Gao Family Village only had river sailors, not true sea sailors. Sending men who had only navigated the Yellow River and Yangtze River into the vast open ocean would be sending them to their deaths. That was an unacceptable risk.
Second was navigation. There was no reliable method for long distance sea navigation. Relying on former pirate navigators to observe the sun was a primitive and dangerous approach. Countless Western sailors had died at sea for this very reason.
To solve these problems, Gao Family Village had been working tirelessly.
They had been actively recruiting and training true sea sailors. Every day, training ships departed from Zhoushan Dinghai Port and sailed the surrounding waters to help the sailors adapt to the open sea.
As for navigation, all hopes rested on Wang Zheng's chronometer.
Now that the chronometer had been successfully developed, Gao Family Village's navy could finally attempt to sail farther from Zhoushan Island and advance toward the great ocean routes.
Just as Li Daoxuan was thinking about this, a junk ship appeared in the distance.
The ship used signal flags to communicate with the Wanli Sunshine.
Shi Lang slid down from the lookout position and shouted to Li Daoxuan,
"Dao Xuan Tianzun. A Ming navy ship is approaching. They request to speak with us."
Li Daoxuan said calmly,
"Oh. A navy ship. Let them come closer. We can talk."
Soon, the opposing junk ship drew near.
As it came alongside the Wanli Sunshine, it immediately looked small and unimpressive by comparison.
On the deck of the other ship, a sturdy and agile man looked up at the massive hull of the Wanli Sunshine. Envy was clearly visible in his eyes.
Shi Lang tossed down a rope ladder.
"Come aboard."
The agile man grabbed the ladder with both hands and climbed up. His movements were swift and practiced. In just a short moment, he was already on the deck of the Wanli Sunshine.
He deliberately tapped his heel against the deck, clearly trying to determine what material the ship was made of.
Shi Lang saw through his small action and gave a wry smile.
"Do not bother. It is not wood. The materials of this ship are beyond ordinary understanding."
The agile man paused, looking a little embarrassed. He clasped his hands in greeting.
"Young man, you are quite young to be making a living at sea."
Shi Lang replied seriously,
"I am already fifteen this year. That is not young."
The agile man chuckled.
"Who is the captain of this ship. Who should I speak with."
Shi Lang said proudly,
"I am the captain."
It turned out that Jiang Cheng was now stationed at Zhoushan Dinghai Port and rarely went out to sea anymore. As a result, Shi Lang had been appointed captain of the Wanli Sunshine.
The agile man was greatly surprised.
A boy as captain.
For a moment, he felt reluctant to discuss serious matters with someone so young.
Fortunately, Shi Lang immediately added,
"Although I am the captain, you are fortunate today. Dao Xuan Tianzun is currently aboard. If you have important matters, you may speak directly with Dao Xuan Tianzun."
The agile man followed Shi Lang's gaze and saw the Water Specialized Dao Xuan Tianzun smiling at him.
He immediately stepped forward, clasped his hands respectfully, and introduced himself.
"My name is Zheng Zhihu. I am the second brother of Zheng Zhilong, the Coastal Defense Guerrilla General. The brothers at sea call me Python Two."
Li Daoxuan gave a soft sound of surprise, clearly interested.
"Zheng Zhilong's brother, Zheng Zhihu. Excellent, excellent. Truly a pair of Dragon and Tiger brothers."
Zheng Zhihu laughed lightly.
"More than just Dragon and Tiger. We also have a younger brother named Zheng Zhifeng."
"A younger brother." Li Daoxuan found the name slightly strange. "Should that not be a girl's name."
Zheng Zhihu chuckled and smoothly avoided the topic.
"May I ask your esteemed name. And what official position do you hold at court."
His question clearly showed that he believed Li Daoxuan to be an official of the imperial court. It seemed Zheng Zhilong had already received intelligence that the people of Zhoushan were considered part of the Emperor's side.
Li Daoxuan secretly laughed to himself.
"Since you believe that, I may as well play along."
He deliberately stroked the smooth chin of his silicone avatar and smiled playfully.
"Look at this face of mine. What kind of person do you think I am."