However, Andrei's actions immediately made me reconsider his earlier statement that taking Ziyu Ting's boat would pose no danger.

Andrei followed me all the way out of the courtyard and stood at the gate, watching us depart.

The Rabiloviches also emerged from the house, waving continuously at us.

Clearly, Nie Chuan had already said his goodbyes to them.

I took a careful look at the Rabiloviches; the silver rings on the middle fingers of the elderly couple gleamed brilliantly under the combined light of the sun and the white snow.

Nie Chuan obviously noticed it too, but said nothing, simply patting my shoulder as a signal not to dwell on it.

I managed a wry smile, feeling that his current behavior was indeed in keeping with my own personality.

To be honest, leaving Durban Village felt a little difficult to bear.

After all, I had lived here for nearly three months, and the things that had happened here included romance, strangeness, and, of course, mostly leisure and contentment.

Gazing at the snow-laden, medieval European-style houses lining the street, I thought that in the future I would surely miss the tranquility here, the brilliant sunshine by the sea, and the sound of the ocean breathing.

After walking a little further, I spotted Zhuoli, her small face flushed red from the cold, playing in the snow with a group of children.

She didn't know we were leaving, only staring intently at the luggage in Nie Chuan's hand, her running nose having just dripped out again after she inhaled.

Nie Chuan and Liang Qian both bent down to pat her head, waving goodbye, and promising to buy her candy next time they returned and to take her to China for a visit.

Unexpectedly, Zhuoli didn't seem sad at all; she waved goodbye to us with a giggle.

As I passed her, I also offered Zhuoli a slight smile and touched my small mustache.

The smile vanished instantly from Zhuoli’s face; instead, she looked at me with intense seriousness.

I was certain that I hadn't exchanged more than a few words with Zhuoli before; we were not familiar with each other at all.

Yet at this moment, I saw an unusual light in Zhuoli's eyes.

I didn't know what she had perceived, nor did I feel it appropriate to ask; I merely winked at her and said, "Goodbye." Zhuoli extended her small, tender hand again, waved, and said to me in Russian, "Goodbye, Uncle." For some inexplicable reason, a sudden pang of sadness hit me, much like when parting from the Atlanteans; my eyes grew slightly red, and I stopped looking at Zhuoli.

We hurried through the lightly snow-covered streets, arriving at the doorstep of the house where the witch Long Jia resided.

Nie Chuan rubbed his reddened hands together, knocked a few times on the wooden door, and called out, "Witch...

Miss, could you please open the door?

We need to speak with you about something." I found his hesitation between "Witch" and "Miss" amusing, as he still didn't know Long Jia's name and was unsure how to address her.

As I smiled internally, the door opened.

Long Jia stood in the shadows inside the room, exuding an air of profound mystery that perfectly embodied the role of a witch.

She spoke in her signature detached tone, "You have arrived.

Come in." Hearing her suggest she expected us surprised me slightly.

Everyone exchanged glances, sensing something was amiss.

Despite our confusion, we eventually filed into the room one after the other.

As soon as I stepped inside, I heard a man's voice, neither warm nor cold, state, "So you did come.

It seems the divination arts of the Witch Cult are still quite accurate." I recognized Xie Yuting’s voice and felt a jolt of shock.

At that moment, Nie Chuan spoke up, his voice laced with confusion, "You...

weren't you already gone?" While Nie Chuan was speaking, I got a clear look: Xie Yuting was seated in the recliner next to the table in the main room, looking at us with an impassive expression, just as he had the last time we saw him.

"I returned to escort you," Xie Yuting said, standing up from the recliner, offering a slight smirk like all the villains on television.

But his smile always gave me the impression of a failed disguise.

The situation was now clear: the warning Xie Yuting had sent me through Long Jia must have been because he had visited her home in person.

And since Xie Yuting had apparently guessed that we would take his boat back, he had returned to Durban Village beforehand to collect us.

Judging by this, even if we had ultimately decided against his boat, we would likely have been forcibly taken, as we were already factored into his plans.

This suggested that Xie Yuting was being far more polite this time; at least he had offered us a choice, rather than simply kidnapping us outright.

Although that choice was, of course, orchestrated by him.

I felt a flush of embarrassment, realizing I was once again being toyed with in the palm of his hand.

Daxiong was more volatile than I was; he charged forward in two powerful strides, his fist the size of a casserole dish swinging out.

We didn't have time to stop the enraged giant bear; we only heard him shout as he threw the punch, "Don't hold me back!

Even if I don't take his boat, I need to smash this guy's nose to get some satisfaction from the last encounter!" I knew that if that punch landed on Xie Yuting’s nose bridge, the situation would become impossible to salvage, so I stepped forward, intending to restrain Daxiong.

Unexpectedly, Xie Yuting’s body proved more agile than a rabbit's; at such close range, he instantly shifted sideways by over a foot, then extended two fingers from his right hand to tap Daxiong's punching wrist, neutralizing the force.

Daxiong cried out as if struck on an acupoint, and his grip loosened.

Xie Yuting seized his hand in the motion, using a subtle technique that leveraged minimal force for maximum effect, leaned his shoulder in, and sent Daxiong flying backward.

Daxiong landed precisely on the table situated behind him.

With a loud bang, the table instantly shattered into countless fragments.

Daxiong cried out again, rolled a few times on the ground, and then managed to stand up.

When we were underground in Heizhugou, I had observed that Xie Yuting was skilled, and Daxiong possessed brute strength; I hadn't known which of them was the better fighter.

Now, the result was painfully obvious: Daxiong lost in a single move.

I covered my eyes with my hand, unable to bear watching Daxiong’s miserable state.

Daxiong yelled at me, "*Ah!

You just stood there watching, not even helping!" I looked up at the dirt-smudged Daxiong, thinking to myself that although I had a face like a dog, I certainly didn't have the fighting prowess; if I had stepped in, I’d probably have had my legs broken immediately.

Realizing this, I gave an awkward smile and said, "If you really want to take his boat, then stop causing trouble." After speaking, I winked at Daxiong, implying that we would settle scores with him once we returned home.

Daxiong seemed to understand my coded message.

Whether it was because he couldn't swallow the insult or felt embarrassed, he slapped his thigh and said, "Alright, alright!

I'll go out for a while to clear my head.

Call me when you’re ready to leave." After watching Daxiong exit the door, I turned back to Xie Yuting and asked, "How did you know we would definitely take your boat?" Xie Yuting smiled and replied, "That’s a secret!" In truth, since our past grievances were unresolved, there wasn't much else to say.

After a brief silence, I asked, "When do we depart?" Xie Yuting said, "If you don't mind, we'll leave tonight.

We should reach the Sea of Japan around midnight, refuel at a port in Hokkaido, and then continue toward China." I had no objection to this; he had made several trips along this route and was clearly more familiar with the itinerary than I was.

However, Xie Yuting added, "This time, I am bringing her back to the country with me.

I believe you have already met?" His gaze was directed toward Long Jia.

We all looked at Long Jia, who maintained a neutral expression.

Although I didn't know Xie Yuting’s exact purpose in taking her back, she was certainly a capable assistant, especially concerning Witch Texts; perhaps she could be of some help to us.

Still, she was Xie Yuting's person, so whether she would actually assist us remained a question mark.

No one else said much.

Following Xie Yuting, we each picked up our luggage and headed toward the port.

When we arrived at the harbor, we saw a large, three-story luxury cruise ship already waiting there.

Everyone present gasped in admiration at the sight of the vessel, wondering when Xie Yuting had suddenly developed such generosity to offer us such preferential treatment.