These strange "corals" were gathered here feasting, while the sea fireflies, still drawn by the scent from below, foolishly swam upwards. For a moment, both sides seemed to be at a buffet, a bloody peace achieved.
Zhang Qiling judged that the "corals" were most likely an unnamed deep-sea insect. If he used his Qilin blood, he could probably drive them away easily, but now he was completely encased in his diving suit, making it less convenient to bleed.
Hei眼镜 approached and took a look. The interior of the tower had now become an ocean of white, viscous matter. This sticky substance squeezed through the cracks in the stone bricks like mud, instantly growing into the shape of "corals." It was likely that the sea fireflies that had gone down to scout earlier had directly blundered into their nest.
The mud, in its eagerness to snatch the sea fireflies, scrambled to emerge. In an instant, the corals on the entire tower grew more numerous, larger, and more luxuriant, truly transforming into a tree.
Hei眼镜 indicated that entry was impossible at the moment. He swam to the side, lifted a broken red roof tile from a fallen palace, and placed it neatly on top of a "coral."
The "coral" tried to bite him, but he slapped it away, nearly knocking its head askew.
The red roof tile drifted downwards, but Hei眼镜 caught it in time and placed it back on the "coral."
The "coral": ...Fine, I'll wear it.
Although Zhang Qiling was no stranger to Hei眼镜's eccentricities, this person always managed to push his boundaries, doing things that were difficult for normal people to comprehend.
Despite what he said, Xiao Zhang actually understood this time.
...Hei眼镜 wanted to reminisce about his childhood, taking the opportunity to decorate this freshly baked, snow-white "Christmas tree."
...How to put it, it was a bit morbid.
Hei眼镜 intended to drag Zhang Qiling along to reminisce about his childhood, but was cruelly refused by Xiao Zhang.
This person didn't know how long he had lived. It was uncertain if he even had Christmas trees during his childhood, and this current action made him seem like he was trying to act young.
Zhang Qiling remained in place with a sliver of remaining camaraderie, but just as Hei眼镜's Christmas tree reached the seventh layer, a sudden, abrupt undercurrent surged around them!
Underwater currents were common, but they usually followed a pattern. This current was sudden, carrying a force as if stirred by the movement of some creature.
By this time, many of the sea fireflies had been eaten by the "corals." The remaining survivors finally realized something was wrong and moved further away from this area, causing it to become much dimmer.
Hei眼镜 dropped the tile he was holding and gazed into the distance. In the area not illuminated by the sea fireflies, a point of crimson, like a will-o'-the-wisp, sped towards them!
Zhang Qiling instantly extinguished the searchlight on his diving suit. Without a word, the two of them dove down and circled behind a towering palace.
And almost the moment they hid, an extremely violent current, carrying immense force, surged towards them!
The sea fireflies scattered under the intimidation of this terrifying monster. The scattered starlight flickered, illuminating the monster and revealing its ferocious appearance in its entirety.
Two sharp, spiny, black-striped crimson claws broke through a stone wall, slowly grinding against each other amidst the turbulent debris.
Their sharp tips were covered in barnacles and diatoms, layered one upon another, like protruding, festering skin. The black patterns intertwined with the crimson shell, creating a dazzling, disorienting spectacle, vaguely forming the shape of eyes.
And from behind the dust and smoke, a pair of segmented eyes slowly emerged...
They twisted strangely and instantly locked onto the direction of the tower. As they crawled, sand and soil flew up from the ground. They actually had six or seven abdominal plates, each with a pair of short legs, exceptionally hard, easily piercing the cracked bricks and tiles below!
Only when it was fully exposed did Zhang Qiling recognize it: this was a mantis shrimp, about twenty meters long and three meters high?!
...Is this what mantis shrimp in this world look like?
Is this an endangered species?!
Hei眼镜, on the side, gently patted Zhang Qiling and made a "thumbs up" gesture, indicating that this creature was very delicious.
Zhang Qiling didn't know when this guy had tasted it before, but he assumed it wasn't an endangered species when he ate it.
He felt a touch of speechlessness, unsure whether to be more speechless about "Prehistoric Overlord Endangered Mantis Shrimp" or "Hei眼镜's Arrogant Tasting of a Twenty-Meter-Long Marine Creature."
At this moment, this extremely delicious mantis shrimp was unaware that two people were contemplating whether its meat or a dog-headed eel would be superior. Its two lead-ball-like eyes were fixed only on the tower.
...More accurately, on the cluster of "corals" on the tower.
This giant mantis shrimp actually fed on this unknown substance. It was no wonder they were endangered; their food was simply scarce.
Seeing such a large patch of "corals," its eyes lit up with joy. Its many short legs flailed rapidly, and it practically flew through the water.
The "corals" could have transformed back into mud and retreated into the tower, but the sea firefly buffet they had just enjoyed was too abundant. Their bodies were stuffed with undigested chunks of flesh, making it impossible for them to escape through the cracks. For a moment, they could only remain stuck there, quietly awaiting death.
Within this short half-hour, the two of them had witnessed the formation of a food chain: "corals" ate sea fireflies, and mantis shrimp preyed on "corals."
The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. This principle was fully demonstrated here.
At this moment, the scent from the tower reappeared, and bubbles gushed out. Seeing that the mantis shrimp was focused on the "corals" and had no attention to spare, countless sea fireflies boldly swam back.
And it was this scene that caught Zhang Qiling's attention.
...Earlier, they had speculated that these white mud-formed "corals" were parasitic organisms of the thing at the bottom of the tower, but it was mostly a guess, not a certainty.
But if they were truly parasites—
Is there a possibility that the sea firefly swarm was deliberately lured by a targeted scent emitted by the creature at the bottom? The purpose was to make the parasites unable to resist hunting, while simultaneously using the light of the sea fireflies to attract the mantis shrimp that fed on the "corals"?
If such a thing truly existed, how intelligent was the creature below?
And at this moment, a faint rumbling sound was heard through the thick seawater!!
...The palace complex beneath their feet had actually moved?!