Hogwarts Summoning Guide

Chapter 235 Zhang Maqiang

"Sea flying routes? What's that?" Bai Lin asked dumbfoundedly. He had never heard of such a thing before, because there were no sea flying routes built from England to France or Belgium, and of course, the English Channel wasn't that wide either.

Before Yan Nishuang could speak, Edogawa Hiroyuki explained in a mature manner, "It's because of the Mariana Trench. Some sea areas on Earth have many magical properties, or some kind of magical magnetic field, which causes great interference when space mages open up flying routes. For example, the Mariana Trench where Eurasia and the Pacific Ocean meet, and the Bermuda Triangle in the Americas. Ordinary teleportation spells cannot pass directly through these areas."

Therefore, the International Flying Net Association established some special Flying Nets, which essentially use Okinawa or Bandar Seri Begawan in Brunei as springboards to bypass certain points. These special Flying Nets span multiple countries and are therefore not connected to the general Flying Net network.

Bai Lin suddenly realized that such a complex network of flying routes must be strictly managed by a specialized agency, otherwise it would become a highway for criminals to escape. This is why Yan Nishuang mentioned "quota". It seems that either the number of people passing through each time is limited, or the cost is extremely high.

When everyone got off the car, they saw that the entire water airport was guarded by people in uniform. Bai Lin immediately recognized that they were all wizards and sorcerers from different countries.

Alex took the lead, waving his badge. The guard glanced at them and then let them into the building with a large sign that read "Bingu Seaplane Waiting Room".

The building was also built on the sea and had only two floors. But when you went inside, you would find that there was a row of elevators. Bai Lin looked over and saw that one of the elevators was stopped on "2F". He was immediately surprised. It turned out that the ground beneath his feet was not seawater, but a folded space. The Flying Road Network's station should be located on this folded second basement level.

However, there were already quite a few people standing in the hall, most of them wearing uniforms. Only one middle-aged man, dressed sloppily and with a full beard, was confronting several blond-haired, blue-eyed foreigners. Both sides looked red-faced and angry, probably having just had a fight.

Yan Nishuang, standing next to Bai Lin, lowered her voice and said, "That uncle is Lou Rong."

Bai Lin understood immediately. It was clear that Group Three had also received the news and was now at odds with Group One, which had caused some unpleasantness.

Yan Nishuang quickened her pace and walked to the front of their group. Bai Lin and Edogawa Hiroyuki suddenly felt that Yan Nishuang's entire demeanor had changed. If Yan Nishuang was usually a beautifully carved and decorated sword hidden in its scabbard, now that the sword was drawn, it was sharp and radiant, making it impossible for anyone to underestimate her.

"Captain Yan, you've come at the right time! This foreigner says that mainland mages are not allowed to use the flying net at sea! What kind of logic is that!" Lou Rong clearly felt insulted and appeared very angry.

Bai Lin, however, felt that Lou Rong's anger was feigned. As a seasoned lone wolf detective, he should be adept at navigating interpersonal relationships and江湖 (jianghu, the world of martial arts and chivalry) tactics. Why would he get so worked up over such a trivial matter? With just one sentence, he had united himself with Yan Nishuang's second team and shifted the blame to them. He probably knew that Yan Nishuang possessed certain privileges that he didn't, and he could conveniently intervene when Yan Nishuang used these privileges to gain an advantage.

However, although Yan Nishuang was young, she was not a novice who had just entered society. She first gestured to Lou Rong and said, "Captain Lou, please calm down..." She turned her head and asked the leader of the British team—a fat detective in his forties or fifties with a flat nose, "Mr. Yarlin, where is Captain Li?" The Captain Li she was referring to was her colleague who had come from the mainland with her and been assigned to the same group.

"Li Kang is unwell, so I've given him the day off," Yarlin said with an unfriendly expression. "I don't know what right you have to stop my men here. If this delays us, I will definitely complain to your superiors!"

While Arlin was speaking, Bai Lin silently assessed the strength of the group. Arlin and his deputy were likely renowned wizards, with magic power exceeding 70. Their five agents also possessed magic power above 60, indicating that the Hong Kong Magic Execution Team had fielded its elite forces. Lou Rong, however, had an astonishing 85 points of magic power, only one point lower than Snape's at the time of his death.

Yan Nishuang, neither humble nor arrogant, said firmly, "Mr. Yarlin, this case is not just a matter for Hong Kong, nor is it solely the responsibility of your Royal Enforcement Team. Team Leader Lou likely only wants to assist in the investigation. I'll make it clear here: if you insist on excluding Teams Two and Three and handling the case alone, then if this trip to Manila ends in failure, it will be entirely your responsibility, Mr. Yarlin, and I will also file a complaint with your superiors!"

Yarlin's face darkened with displeasure, but he was a cunning old fox. He thought about it again and realized that if he rejected these Easterners, he would end up empty-handed, which would be like slapping himself in the face. But if he recruited one of their people, it would be entirely beneficial. He could blame the mistakes and not share the credit. This was the best solution.

Yarlin feigned reluctance, gritting his teeth as he spat out, "There are only seven spots left today. I can only give up one at most. Take it or leave it!"

Yan Nishuang and Lou Rong looked at each other in bewilderment. At this moment, Lou Rong interjected, "Captain Yan, I'm used to going it alone. You have so many brothers here. Why don't you just let me have it? Don't worry, I'll share any clues I get with Team Two."

Yan Nishuang hesitated for a moment, when Edogawa Hiroyuki whispered to Bai Lin, "Let him go..."

Bai Lin glanced at him, because they had thought of the same thing again. He always felt that it was strange for the main villain to run all the way to Manila to do this. As the saying goes, there must be something fishy about things. If the other party had some other conspiracy, it might be better for them to stay in Hong Kong. They couldn't all leave. What if the other party was just luring them away and then launching a surprise attack? Wouldn't it be too late to regret it then?

Bai Lin walked to Yan Nishuang's side and whispered, "Let's give it to Captain Lou. It's not appropriate for any of us to go. Let's just stick to our original plan and continue our reconnaissance..."

Lou Rong squinted at Bai Lin. He didn't recognize the young man. He seemed to be very close to Yan Nishuang, so they must be friends. Bringing a friend into a mission was very unprofessional for Lou Rong, and he immediately looked down on Yan Nishuang.

Yan Nishuang and Bai Lin exchanged a brief glance, Yan Nishuang reading the message in Bai Lin's eyes. However, her acting was superb; she didn't need to be polite to Yarlin and Lou Rong at all. She simply snorted coldly and waved her hand dismissively: "Let's go!"

Yarlin sneered, and led his men and Lou Rong into the elevator with the Feilu Network manager who had been standing by without daring to interrupt. Actually, there were still more than ten slots available for teleportation today, but Yarlin wanted to give the mages from the mainland a hard time, especially that young woman who was so "arrogant".

The four of them sheepishly got into the car in the parking lot. Nicole started the engine and, while driving away, turned her head and asked, "Captain, where are we going now?"

"Go..." Bai Lin was about to speak when he suddenly saw a seaplane flying rapidly over from a distance.

Although this is a seaplane airport, seaplanes usually take off and land on the open sea about a kilometer away. After landing, the plane will slowly drift over to its position. However, this plane obviously did not intend to land at the take-off and landing point, but flew towards the airport without slowing down.

The loud roar of the seaplane's engine could be heard from afar, indicating that the pilot was still flooring the accelerator and showed no intention of slowing down.

"Not good!" Bai Lin and Yan Nishuang reacted at the same time. They immediately activated Phantom Shift and teleported to the rooftop next to the parking lot. But it was too late. The seaplane was already traveling at 400 kilometers per hour. Even if Bai Lin wanted to destroy it with Thunder Explosion, he couldn't. He could only watch helplessly as it crashed straight into the small building they had just come from.

Bai Lin saw that there was no pilot on the plane, so it must have parachuted out beforehand or it was actually piloted by a wizard who had used Apparition to escape at the last moment.

The plane's fuselage was like a missile that crashed into the building and exploded, with flames, roars, and shockwaves spreading outwards almost simultaneously.

Despite Yan Nishuang's powerful magic, Bai Lin immediately pulled her into his arms and had Sifu Jiaer activate "Divine Protection," instantly enveloping them both in a golden shield.

The flames and heatwaves were like a devastating storm. Even with their powerful shields, the buildings beneath their feet couldn't withstand the force. Bai Lin felt his footing give way, and he and Yan Nishuang sank into the ground.

The violent explosion caused Bai Lin's ears to ache, and he was temporarily deaf. The building beneath his feet was flattened by the shockwave and heat. He struggled to withstand the airflow and flying sand, stones, and metal fragments, holding Yan Nishuang in his arms. When the turbulence from the explosion subsided, they looked back and saw that the waiting room, which had just served as the departure point for the Flying Route Network, was gone. The entire floating building, along with the surrounding piers, lounges, hangars, and so on, had been completely destroyed, becoming charred fragments floating on the water.

Yan Nishuang quickly looked back at the parking lot. Fortunately, the parking lot was about 300 meters away from where they were standing. Although the shockwave knocked down some of the parking lot walls and caused some vehicles inside to shift and collide, there was no major damage.

"Are they trying to lure us away from our base, or are they planning to attack Hong Kong?" Bai Lin said through gritted teeth.

"Are they trying to lure us away from our base, or are they planning to attack Hong Kong?" Bai Lin said through gritted teeth.

Yan Nishuang looked at the mess in front of her, her face flushed with anger. She watched as the surviving staff, still in shock, began to put out the fire caused by the explosion and searched for survivors in the ruins. Just as she was about to go up to help, Bai Lin pulled her back.

"Teach them here that without the teleportation station, Team One and Team Three won't be able to return anytime soon. We need to get back to the city quickly to prevent them from launching a real second wave of attacks!"

Yan Nishuang gritted her teeth and nodded resentfully. The two returned to the car. Nicole suppressed her heart, which was still pounding wildly from the explosion, and with a graceful drift, she turned around and activated the passenger space driving function.

Before Nicole could ask, Bai Lin said directly, "Go to the West Ring Wharf; the enemy might land there!"

Looking at the setting sun, Edogawa Hiroyuki said, "At this time, there are many citizens loitering around the West Ring Wharf, making it a good place to cause a disturbance. However, there are many people in every square in the city at this time. Are you so sure it's the West Ring Wharf?"

Bai Lin stared at the scenery ahead, buildings, trees, and telephone poles all moving aside to let their car speed away. He replied to Edogawa Hiroyuki, "Do you think I fought for nothing? During the fight, I felt several very strong gazes fixed on me. They were from very powerful mages or some other kind of creature, probably coming from a ship. Could it be just a coincidence?"

"No way, Brother Bai, is this really so weird? You can sense when someone is looking at you?" Hiroyuki Edogawa said in disbelief.

"I've read Gu Long's martial arts novels, and they do say that martial arts masters can sense hostile gazes. Mr. Kelling actually has that ability?" Alex exclaimed in surprise.

Bai Lin ignored their comments and simply said, "When we arrive at our destination, the three of you must not get out of the car, especially you! If anything seems amiss, run! If they dare to poison us a second time, it means the virus has made a major breakthrough, and any dangerous monster could appear!"

Nicole and Alex exchanged a glance, both seeing fear in each other's eyes. The explosion was still fresh in their minds, and they felt as if they had been pulled back to reality from a detective story. They finally realized that the enforcement team was not sitting in an office or entertaining guests, but risking their lives to fight against dark wizards, monsters, or other evil forces.

Bai Lin looked at Yan Nishuang, but without seeing her make any move, she had already changed her outfit, from the ICAC uniform to a set of white soft armor. The crystal-clear jade pen was already in her hand, and a small leather pouch containing jade paper and talismans hung from her waist. At this moment, she took out a hair ribbon and tied up her silky hair, looking as if she were facing a great enemy and preparing for battle.

The tight-fitting soft armor accentuated Yan Nishuang's stunning figure, causing Bai Lin to momentarily lose his senses. When he turned around, Edogawa Hiroyuki's eyes were already bulging with hearts. He shoved the boy's face aside and said, "Little brat, don't look at things you shouldn't!"

Within twenty minutes, Nicole braked sharply and skidded, coming to a steady stop on the side of the road. Bai Lin looked up and saw that they had reached the road outside the Sai Wan Pier. Just as Edogawa Hiroyuki had said, this was the time when the locals would walk their cats and dogs on the pier. Sai Wan Pier was thus known as "the world of dogs." Hundreds and thousands of elderly people were chatting and laughing as they walked in groups toward the pier.

The cheerful barking of dogs could be heard from the dock from time to time. The explosion at the sea airport had obviously not yet reached this area. Under the setting sun, the Sai Wan Wharf was a scene of harmony and tranquility, with everyone enjoying themselves. The workers had finished their work, and many cargo owners or workers were setting up small stoves in front of their temporary accommodations made of shipping containers, cooking Cantonese hot pots, creating a lively atmosphere.

Nicole and Alex breathed a sigh of relief, seeing nothing amiss. However, out of sight of everyone, in one of the small mountains of containers, a black-painted container opened its latches one by one without anyone touching it, and then the hatch slowly revealed a dark crack.