Later, they still made mackerel dumplings.
Fatty seemed to treat the poor mackerel as a substitute for venting his anger at the sea hand. While eating dumplings, he gritted his teeth with every bite.
Even so, he loudly declared that he didn't care about this so-called appearance evaluation at all. I guess he wasn't dipping his dumplings in vinegar, but in his dignity.
"...Damn it, when Fatty picked it up just now, I thought it was an octopus!"
"If I had known it was this broken thing, I should have just sat on it and crushed it!"
Zhang Qiling ate his dumplings quietly, not participating in this sea hand critique session.
Wu Tianzhen hesitated for a moment, and then, as if thinking of something, his face gradually showed an expression of gasping in shock.
"That sea hand really wasn't an octopus... Holy crap, could it be Patrick Star?!"
"Could it be the prototype for Patrick Star? Then what is SpongeBob?!"
With a "poof," Fatty spat out a mouthful of water onto the ground.
He wiped his mouth, "Uh, Tianzhen."
"Maybe we shouldn't be so explorative. Fatty can't handle it anymore."
Wu Tianzhen: ...
Last night, everyone was fighting the storm and didn't get any rest. One day without sleep didn't affect Zhang Qiling and Hei Yanjing much, but Fatty and Wu Tianzhen were struggling.
So tonight, Zhang Qiling and Hei Yanjing would take the first watch, and they would rotate tomorrow.
Around three in the morning, darkness enveloped the sky, the wind grew stronger, and thunder rumbled faintly within the dense clouds.
Zhang Qiling leaned against the bow of the boat, holding the Black Gold Ancient Sword, and gazed intently at the purple arcs of electricity flashing in the distant sky.
The air was filled with the moisture of the sea, but it showed no signs of becoming any wetter, indicating that it wouldn't rain tonight.
Without waiting long, a fierce arc of electricity pierced the sky from top to bottom, thick and incomparable, as if a god had shot his spear into the depths of the sea, a truly awe-inspiring sight!
The seawater reflected a large expanse of white light with the electric arc, leaping violently on the surface, mirroring the heavenly spear. For a moment, it was like a thrilling battle between heaven and sea.
The deafening thunder arrived belatedly, its roar echoing all around, making even the seawater seem to tremble under the might of heaven.
The boat moved slowly along its set course, appearing to head directly towards the lightning.
Hei Yanjing, having finished his patrol from the stern, came to Zhang Qiling's side. The flash of lightning reflected on his sunglasses, making him appear exceptionally cold and stern.
"Mute, pay attention, something's wrong."
He seemed to have spotted something in the distance where the lightning struck, and his hand had already reached for his gun.
Zhang Qiling's eyesight wasn't as good, but his long-standing tacit understanding made him instantly alert. The Black Gold Ancient Sword hummed in the lightning, its blade pointing towards the sea ahead.
And just a few seconds later, the previously calm sea ahead began to churn violently!
Countless water ripples surged from the distance, densely covering the sea surface. Zhang Qiling had already prepared for the boat to be hit, but to his surprise, these ripples suddenly changed direction just before impact, heading towards the rear of the boat at an even faster speed!
The violent change in direction caused the waves to scatter. The distinctive black scales of fish flashed on the water's surface for a moment before disappearing back into the sea.
This was actually an unprecedented mass migration of fish from the seabed!
...They were coming from the direction of the lightning strike. Could these fish be afraid of thunder?
Zhang Qiling instantly dismissed this conjecture and peered forward—
Just then, a bolt of lightning descended with a roar! The white light enveloped them like a flood of apocalyptic destruction, stinging their eyes.
And after the white light dissipated, a colossal cruise ship appeared in the far distance!
The cruise ship was painted white and was dozens of times larger than their small boat. Hei Yanjing frowned as he looked at it, then suddenly chuckled.
"Yo, this ship is quite new~"
Zhang Qiling couldn't see the newness of the ship clearly, but since Hei Yanjing said so, it was likely as good as brand new.
Yet, despite being such a new cruise ship, its cabins were completely dark, as if there were no living souls aboard.
"Avoid it?" The ship was eerie. Zhang Qiling stared at it intently and quietly asked Hei Yanjing.
Hei Yanjing didn't reply immediately. He seemed to have discovered something, and after a few moments of recognition, he turned to Zhang Qiling, as if about to say something.
But at that moment, another bolt of lightning, parting the clouds and water, struck down fiercely!
This time, the lightning didn't strike in the distance but landed precisely a few dozen meters in front of their boat. Zhang Qiling instinctively tilted his head to dodge, but in the instant he turned his gaze back—
That eerie cruise ship had silently appeared before them?!
The thunder roared, and coupled with the sudden appearance of the ship, it struck their hearts, sending a chill down their spines.
The cruise ship was only about thirty meters away. It was now too late to get to the cockpit and steer the boat to a stop!
Just as Zhang Qiling lowered his body slightly, gathering his strength, intending to charge forward and physically deal with this ghost, Hei Yanjing suddenly reached out and stopped him.
"Wait, Mute." He looked at the cruise ship again, then chuckled softly.
"This is just a projection."
The cruise ship looked incredibly real. Now that it was close, Zhang Qiling could even see the tiny barbs on the hemp ropes hanging on the fishing nets on its side.
But Hei Yanjing wouldn't speak without certainty. Zhang Qiling pressed down his outstretched hand and looked even more intently at the cruise ship that was now within arm's reach.
Closer, closer—
The two ships collided, silently!
Their small boat passed directly through the cruise ship. The scene before them distorted and flickered, and when it cleared, they had already broken through the projection!
Lightning struck again, and the image of the cruise ship reappeared at the lightning's landing point on the side.
"Magnetic field," Zhang Qiling stared intently, suddenly recalling a rumor.
It was rumored that tourists in the Forbidden City had seen ancient palace maids walking by during thunderstorms, but that was actually because the magnetic field formed by the iron tetroxide within the Forbidden City's walls under lightning was playing back previously recorded images of palace maids.
With countless reefs on the seabed, it seemed quite simple to form a magnetic field to play back the image of a cruise ship.
Hei Yanjing grunted beside him, indicating his agreement.
Just then, Wu Tianzhen and Fatty were finally woken up by the successive thunderclaps. They had intended to ignore the thunder and continue sleeping, but the sound was too loud to ignore. So, they put on their clothes and decided to swap watch.
Zhang Qiling briefly explained what had just happened, and the two marveled at it. Just then, another bolt of lightning struck, and the cruise ship reappeared not far ahead!
"Good heavens!" Fatty leaned over the side of the boat, looking closely. "This thing really looks exactly like the real thing, hahahaha!"
Zhang Qiling glanced at the cruise ship indifferently and decided to lower his head and stare blankly at the sea.
But the moment he lowered his head, the water waves stirred up around the cruise ship caught his attention.
The waves rippled, and the sound was clearly audible.
...A projection, how could it stir up such large waves?!
Hei Yanjing also noticed the problem. He tensed up instantly and fired a shot!
A metallic clang exploded, quickly drowned out by the thunder!
...This cruise ship, is it real?!
And under their cautious gaze, the lights within the dark cruise ship were suddenly lit up!!