The "World Tour" was supposed to be a low-effort disappearance. Chen Feng envisioned white sands, zero responsibilities, and a straw that stayed in a coconut rather than being used as a projectile. Naturally, because he was the "Sovereign of Salted Fish," the universe had other plans.
It started at "Eternal Rest Travel & Tours"—a pop-up agency that Gary had flagged because they offered a "Total Silence Package."
"Boss, look at this," Gary said, waving a flyer that smelled faintly of high-grade incense and C4. "Free private jet, unlimited snacks, and a destination so remote it's not on Google Maps. They call it 'The Void Isles.'"
Chen Feng squinted at the fine print. "Does it involve walking?"
"Door-to-door transport," Gary promised, his eyes twinkling with his former God of Wealth greed. He knew the agency was a front for the Internal Parasites. He also knew that their "Assassination Budget" was currently sitting in a high-interest offshore account—which he had already hacked and redirected toward a lifetime supply of premium strawberry milk.
"Fine," Chen Feng sighed. "But if I have to stand in a line, I'm leveling the building."
The morning of the flight, the VIP terminal at the International Airport looked more like a G7 Summit.
Chen Feng was slumped in a plastic chair, wearing a floral shirt and socks with sandals, holding a neck pillow like a sacred relic. Gary stood beside him, clutching a suitcase that clinked with the sound of "accidentally" acquired gold bars.
Suddenly, the sliding doors hissed open.
Su Meiling, Lin Xuerui, Mu Ronghuan, and Ye Qingxuan marched in like a four-woman apocalypse. They had tracked his passport (or in Xuerui's case, hacked the satellite feed of his apartment).
"Going somewhere?" Meiling asked, crossing her arms. Her "CEO glare" was set to Incinerate.
"Vacation," Chen Feng muttered. "Stress leave. Doctors say I have a deficiency in... Vitamin Sea."
"You're not going alone," Principal Ye said, her voice silky but firm. "The school board—which is me—has decided you need a 'cultural attache' to ensure you return for the fall semester."
"Actually," a small, determined voice cut through the tension. Lin Xia pushed past the four titans, her backpack bulging with high-school textbooks and a hidden diary. Her face was bright red, but her eyes were fierce. "I'm going too! I... I need a tutor! For... Geography! And Chen Feng is the only one who knows the 'terrain'!"
Xuerui looked at her younger cousin. "Xia, go home."
"No!" Xia shouted, clutching her straps. "He saved me! I'm going to... to tell him..." She trailed off, her courage wobbling under the collective gaze of the four most powerful women in the city.
The moment was interrupted by a subtle click.
From the shadows of the Duty-Free shop, twelve elite assassins disguised as "Janitorial Staff" and "Duty-Free Perfume Sprayers" moved in. They were the Association's best—men who could kill with a whisper.
One assassin lunged at Chen Feng with a monomolecular wire.
Chen Feng didn't even look up. He was busy trying to open a bag of airline pretzels. "Gary, the bag is stuck."
"On it, Boss." Gary stepped forward, tripped "accidentally," and swung his heavy suitcase in a wide arc.
CRUNCH. The first assassin was sent spinning into a display of expensive cognac.
SNAP. Gary's foot "slipped," kicking a luggage trolley that accelerated to Mach 1, pinning three snipers against the Starbucks counter.
The "Big Four" didn't even notice the bodies falling. They were too busy arguing about who got the seat next to Chen Feng.
"I have the highest frequent flyer status!" Meiling argued.
"I own the fuel company!" Xuerui countered.
"I have his medical records!" Ye Qingxuan added.
Meanwhile, Lin Xia grabbed the empty seat on Chen Feng's left while he was distracted by a pretzel. She leaned in, her heart hammering against her ribs. "Chen Feng... I have to tell you something. It's important. It's about how I feel when I see you..."
Chen Feng popped a pretzel into his mouth and handed her his neck pillow. "Can it wait? The plane has those little screens with the movies. I want to see if they have the one about the lazy panda."
Xia froze, her confession dying in her throat as she looked at his peaceful, oblivious face. She sighed, took the pillow, and sat down. Fine. I'll tell him in the Maldives. Or Switzerland. Or whenever he stops eating.
As the private jet taxied down the runway, Gary sat in the cockpit, having bribed the pilots with "luck" to let him play with the radio.
"Attention passengers," Gary's voice crackled over the intercom. "This is your purser, the God of—uh, Gary. We are currently flying at thirty thousand feet. To the left, you'll see the city we just saved. To the right, you'll see the three fighter jets the Association sent to intercept us. Please remain seated; the Boss is napping, and we wouldn't want to wake him. It would be... messy."
Chen Feng tilted his eye mask down. The "World Tour" had officially begun, and he was currently surrounded by a CEO, an Ice Queen, a Principal, a Student President, and a love-struck high schooler.
"Gary," Chen Feng whispered.
"Yes, Boss?"
"Is there any more strawberry milk in the galley?"
"Of course, Boss. I bought the whole cow. It's in the cargo hold."
"Good. Then let the world end. I'm sleeping."