Lightning like slender white dragons struck frantically in the surrounding sea, twisting and flashing, emitting dazzling light.
And in the reflection of this white light, the mysterious cruise ship's lights were quietly lit.
"...What's going on, a ship appearing out of nowhere?" Fatty muttered, bewildered, "Could this be them coming to pick up Tian Zhen to take him to his coronation as Sea King?"
"Damn it, you fatso, don't jinx me!" Wu Tian Zhen was secretly suspecting that the ship's sudden materialization had something to do with his peculiar constitution. In his anxious state, he suddenly heard Fatty's exclamation, and goosebumps rose on his skin.
"What do you mean, picking me up for my coronation? This ghost ship looks like it's here to send me to the afterlife!"
...Although the cruise ship had been elusive before, it had at least been clean and appeared to be of the living world.
But after the lights were lit, the atmosphere instantly shifted to the underworld.
—Because these lights were blue-green.
Eerie, cold flames leaped within the ship's hull. The still empty cabins flickered with dark spots, giving the illusion of shadowy figures moving within.
Sensing something was wrong, Hei Yan Jing had already timely entered the cockpit to adjust the ship's course.
At this moment, the ship slowly veered away from the cruise ship, grazing past its side. During this process, the ghost ship, emitting blue-green light, showed no reaction at all.
"...That's it?" Wu Tian Zhen was a bit skeptical. Honestly, he had even imagined a horde of zombies suddenly rushing out from the ghost ship, but he never expected the cruise ship to be so quiet, appearing as if it were just a simple, harmless good ship.
It wasn't that he particularly liked scary things; it was just that, based on his experience, things encountered during explorations, no matter how normal they seemed at first, would eventually turn abnormal, especially since this ship was never a law-abiding entity to begin with.
As he was thinking this, his vision suddenly blurred. The blue-green lights on the cruise ship actually moved, expanding several times as if alive, illuminating that stretch of sea!
...Could this ship truly be innocent, and it was the light that was about to unleash its power? But what could a mere light do?
While he was contemplating these random thoughts, Zhang Qi Ling, who had been frowning and staring at the cruise ship beside him, suddenly spoke!
"Something's wrong."
"This isn't a ship!"
"Huh? Xiao Ge, what did you say? This is clearly—" Wu Tian Zhen turned his head in confusion, only to see Zhang Qi Ling drawing his saber after uttering those words!
With a clear saber's clang, he leaped up!
Just then, a bolt of lightning struck down fiercely. Under the white light, Zhang Qi Ling's figure cast a long shadow on the deck, creating an unsettling premonition of an impending storm!
Wu Tian Zhen and Fatty closed their eyes to shield themselves from the blinding white light. When they opened their eyes again—
The cruise ship before them had actually disappeared?!
...No, this cruise ship was also a projection?!
Then what did Hei Yan Jing's shot just hit—
Although the cruise ship's projection had vanished, the blue-green light remained, and was even more intense!
And within that fierce blue-green ghostly glow, several thin, pink tentacles were breaking through the mist and rushing towards the few people on the ship!
"Hiss—" With a sound, it was the blade of the Black Gold Ancient Saber meeting them! Despite being fleshy tendrils, they emitted a metallic sound upon impact, revealing their hardness!
Spinning his saber to cut off a pink tentacle, Zhang Qi Ling's peripheral vision located the others and he instantly turned, swatting away the remaining tentacles attacking the ship's hull with the body of the Black Gold Ancient Saber!
Although the tentacles were deflected, their momentum remained. They plunged heavily into the sea, stirring up massive waves.
If a human were to be touched by those tentacles, they would likely be killed or severely injured.
"Hiss—" Fatty glanced at the tentacles submerged in the sea around the ship's hull, still taut like steel bars, and gasped, "Damn it, this rigging skill, Dongfang Bubai would have to bow down in admiration!"
Wu Tian Zhen said nothing. He followed Fatty in drawing his gun, his eyes fixed on the intense blue-green light screen.
...For some reason, he had a feeling that something big was hidden behind it.
Presumably, Zhang Qi Ling felt the same. After landing, he gripped his saber hilt, his entire being entering a state of extreme readiness. The Qilin tattoo on his chest had quietly spread like ink, exuding a sharp aura.
At this moment, a few light footsteps sounded, and Hei Yan Jing walked onto the deck, tossing a short knife he had just retrieved from the pile of equipment.
Zhang Qi Ling didn't look at him, merely tilting his head slightly to inquire.
"We can't leave~" Hei Yan Jing walked up to him, tossed the knife high again, and then firmly grasped the handle. With his other hand, he casually pushed his sunglasses up.
"There's probably more of this thing below, and the sea area around the ship has been sealed off."
"No choice, it seems it's very enthusiastic and insists on keeping us here as guests~"
Hearing this, Zhang Qi Ling immediately dismissed the idea of driving the ship away. The current situation indicated that they could only confront it head-on.
"Rumble—"
Another thunderclap!
And this thunderclap was like the sounding of a war horn. In the sudden burst of light, the creature that had been hiding behind the cruise ship's projection finally revealed its true form!
At first glance, it resembled a sky-piercing pipe, entirely pink, its surface wriggling, covered in clinging tentacles!
A circular opening, about fifty meters in diameter, faced the ship. Its length was unknown, but the part submerged in the seabed was undoubtedly considerable. From the ship, the figures could vaguely see something moving beneath the inky black sea surface.
If the opening was the creature's head or mouth, then the part extending above the sea was raised high, its upper end hanging down and pointed directly at the small boat, appearing like a monstrous deep-sea dragon disturbed by the thunder, about to turn them all into its bloody feast!
"Damn..."
"Holy crap! What the hell is this?!" Fatty interrupted Wu Tian Zhen's muttering and continued himself.
"Is this some kind of sewer pipe for the Sea King that one of us broke, and now it's here for revenge?!"
Hei Yan Jing, however, managed a laugh. He rested his chin on his hand, seemingly observing the creature's appearance closely, and casually patted the tense Zhang Qi Ling.
"Mute, do you think it's inviting us in for a visit?"
"That's great, you look like you're lacking childhood memories, now you can directly experience an original underwater tunnel~ How about it, Mute, are you happy? Are you moved?"
Zhang Qi Ling didn't know if he should be moved. He didn't even look, directly swatting away Hei Yan Jing's hand. From the resistance transmitted through Hei Yan Jing's arm, he easily realized that this person was also fully on guard, and he felt speechless for a moment.
"Pyrosoma."
As soon as the creature revealed itself, Zhang Qi Ling recognized its identity.
Pyrosoma are colonial organisms that live in the ocean, meaning that this long, massive tube is not a single creature, but the final form assembled by thousands upon thousands of individual pyrosomas!
These creatures typically only grow up to thirty meters long, and are more like bells than tubes, with one end open and the other closed. They usually move slowly in the sea, filtering small microorganisms for sustenance.
...Why could this group of pyrosomas grow so large, develop a body as hard as steel, and bizarrely attack their ship from the surface?
As he was thinking this, he heard Wu Tian Zhen beside him also recognize the creature's identity and ask with confusion:
"...Even so, how did this Pyrosoma turn into this? It's too bizarre!"
Zhang Qi Ling: ...
Fatty: Hiss—
Hei Yan Jing: Woohoo~
The three of them simultaneously and tacitly cast their gazes towards the confused Wu Tian Zhen.
At this moment, though they said nothing, they all suddenly understood the reason why this place had become so absurd.