Hearing that Qi Xiaotian had already arranged everything that would follow, Fang Chenyi felt a little more at ease.

Out here in the vast, open ocean, the danger would be immense if they jumped without any hope of rescue.

This area of the sea was only a half-hour flight from Dubai. He believed that with the power of the Ocean Harmony, it would take two or three hours at most to reach their position.

He did a full check of his gear: parachute, combat knife, and life vest. Attached to the vest was a backpack containing fresh water and food.

Factoring in the rapid-deployment inflatable boat Qi Xiaotian was holding, he was confident the risk factor for the next few hours would be quite low once they were down there.

"Brother Fang, you take the satellite phone. Here’s a glow stick, let me attach it for you. I’ll deploy the inflatable boat the moment I’m down. When that happens, you have to try your best to keep the glow stick above the water."

It had to be said, ever since the last hijacking incident, Fang Chenyi had made sure the plane was stocked with more than enough survival supplies. He never thought they would actually end up using them this time.

Fortunately, the wait for rescue wouldn’t be long this time, so no one was carrying an excessive amount of food. After all, too much weight would just restrict their mobility.

After handing the items to Fang Chenyi, Qi Xiaotian quickly explained how to open the parachute and how to detach it after landing.

Though the explanation sounded long, the whole process was actually completed in about three minutes.

Once they were all set, Char and Smith had also finished gearing up on their side. Compared to Fang Chenyi, these two, despite their age, had far more skydiving experience than he did.

"Oh, Boss, do we really have to jump? If we go, this plane is really done for."

’Logically speaking, Char and Smith have weathered their share of storms before. If there was really danger on the horizon, it’s unlikely they wouldn’t have sensed it.’

Seeing the pained looks on their faces, Fang Chenyi waved his hand dismissively, his own expression blank.

"Jump. A plane is nothing. I’ll get you a better one when we get back!"

With that, he took the lead and walked toward the boarding gate at the tail of the aircraft.

At this point, it’s worth noting that Fang Chenyi’s plane, the Chen Meng, was a Boeing 727. The most distinct feature of this aircraft compared to others was that it actually had an exit at the tail.

The advantage of this design was that such an exit served as a perfect jump hatch, greatly increasing their safety.

Typical passenger planes aren’t designed for skydiving, so the placement of their doors doesn’t account for jumper safety.

As a result, a person jumping out has a high probability of being sucked into an engine or colliding with a wing or the horizontal stabilizer.

It’s no exaggeration to say that even ignoring the issues of altitude and speed, the survival rate for jumping from a standard passenger jet is close to zero.

But it was different on this plane. Opening the rear exit turned it directly into a ’transport plane from PUBG’.

"Xiaojin, don’t be nervous. Make sure you listen to Brother Xiaotian once you’re down. Heh heh, and when you open the life raft, don’t forget to pick up your big bro first, okay?"

The rear exit of the plane slowly opened, letting in a powerful gust of wind. Fang Chenyi looked at Fang Jinjin, who was now securely strapped to Qi Xiaotian, and gave her an encouraging smile and a fist pump as he shouted.

Though Fang Jinjin was scared to death, she just bit her lip tightly and nodded.

Qi Xiaotian glanced at Fang Chenyi, nodded, and then, without the slightest hesitation, jumped from the plane with Fang Jinjin.

Watching Qi Xiaotian and his little sister instantly disappear from view, Fang Chenyi gritted his teeth and waved Char and Smith over.

At this point, Char didn’t hesitate either. He gave Fang Chenyi a thumbs-up, took a large step, and jumped. Smith did the same, nodding before following him out.

After they had both jumped, Fang Chenyi turned back to look at the plane. ’Was I just overreacting?’

THUMP. His heart clenched for no reason. Fang Chenyi’s brow furrowed. Not daring to hesitate any longer, he took a running start and leaped from the plane.

All this time, that feeling hadn’t faded; instead, it had only grown stronger.

The instant his body left the plane, the heart-pounding sense of dread vanished, as if his entire being had relaxed.

’Phew, what was that all about? Was the plane really about to malfunction?’

As he wondered, Fang Chenyi, wearing his goggles, began searching the area around him.

Just then, a patch of dark clouds passed overhead, completely blocking the moonlight. The glow sticks weren’t particularly bright either.

He could only vaguely make out a faint, flickering point of light somewhere below him. He had no idea who it was.

He was falling fast. Two thousand meters wasn’t particularly high, but it wasn’t low either. After falling for a little over ten seconds, Fang Chenyi had no idea how far he was from the sea’s surface.

Remembering Qi Xiaotian had told him to open the parachute at around one thousand meters, Fang Chenyi figured he was close enough. He reached out and pulled the ripcord.

PFFT! As the parachute deployed, Fang Chenyi felt his whole body jerk, and his rapid descent finally slowed to a gentle glide.

’Phew~ good thing I didn’t pull the wrong cord. The parachute opened safely.’

This was actually Fang Chenyi’s first time skydiving, and he was quite pleased with himself for successfully deploying the parachute on the first try.

However, just as he was feeling satisfied with his performance, a massive fireball suddenly flashed across the sky not far away, followed by the sound of a tremendous explosion.

Suspended in midair, Fang Chenyi froze. He turned his head to watch the massive fireball as it began to plummet. What else could it be but his own plane?

’Something really happened?! An explosion? Was a bomb planted on board?’

A wave of post-disaster relief washed over Fang Chenyi. A dozen seconds. It had only been a dozen seconds since he’d jumped from the plane!

If he had hesitated for just ten more seconds, all of them would have been finished.

’Who was it? Who the fuck would plant a bomb on my plane? Demo Did? Was it because he didn’t want to pay for that painting? That can’t be right. Isn’t being on my good side worth more than a painting?’

PFFT~ RRRIIIP~~

Just as Fang Chenyi’s mind was racing, he heard a loud tearing sound. Immediately after, he felt a powerful gust of wind slice past him. At the same time, his entire body began to spin uncontrollably in the air.

’Holy shit! Debris from the plane tore through my parachute!’

PS: Thanks to brother ’Hui’ for the 999 book coin donation!