Chapter 1331: Escape Route
Of the four problems, the first and second could essentially be treated as one. To solve them, they had to enter Sophia’s residence.
However, once he entered Sophia’s residence, whether he took the key or destroyed it, it would inevitably alert her. That meant there would be no turning back. He would have to leave St. York immediately. Therefore, before infiltrating her residence, Qi Xuansu needed to resolve the third problem first and plan an escape route as well as a backup plan.
There were many routes from St. York to the Southern New Continent. The most convenient was by sea. St. York was located at the mouth of the sea. The Richmond District was an island surrounded by water, facing the King’s District across the harbor. The Central District lay north of the King’s District, and to its west was the Hudson River, which led directly out to the sea.
After setting out to sea, one would travel south along the coastline, pass Cape Hatteras, enter Onslow Bay, circle the entire Florida Peninsula, pass through the Florida Strait between Andros Island and the Florida Keys, and enter the Olmec Gulf. This was the boundary between the northern and southern parts of the New Continent. No matter how far Sophia’s reach extended, it could not touch the Southern New Continent. From there, one could either land directly on the Yucatan Peninsula or pass through the Yucatan Strait and continue sailing south.
Flying there was also an option, but it would be far too conspicuous and would easily expose their location.
Qi Xuansu had nothing to fear if he were alone. He had even considered striking down a floating island with a single palm and escaping amid the chaos. The problem was that he had Audrey with him. Though her body was sturdy and could probably withstand some blows, she had little combat ability. Thus, Qi Xuansu had to take this into account and avoid unnecessary battles as much as possible.
However, there was one problem. While the sea route was the most convenient, Sophia would also expect this. So, if something happened, her first response would be to seal off the ports immediately and pursue along that route.
The best-case scenario would be for Qi Xuansu to act on Friday without alerting anyone, then leave that very night. Sophia would remain unaware, as she would be on her pleasure island. She would only discover something amiss upon returning home Sunday evening. Those two days would be more than enough for Qi Xuansu and Audrey to quietly escape to the Southern Continent.
But this scenario was far too idealistic.
Even if Qi Xuansu made no mistakes and managed to deceive everyone, would Audrey’s disappearance for two days go unnoticed? Their plan would be exposed if someone reported her disappearance to Sophia.