The port had descended into chaos. Sea monsters swarmed into the harbor, clambering onto ships and attacking. Though brave sailors on board fought back with their weapons, none surrendered. To surrender or cease resistance meant assimilation by the sea monsters, transforming them into Fear Fish.
Where were the Navy? I sent Night Bird out of the repair dock and looked back. The shore had become a sea of fire, flames raging throughout the small town. The crucial cannon emplacements, especially the Command Platform where the Navy Officers were stationed, had been blown to pieces.
The remaining Navy, though still resisting, were in disarray. Not only had they lost their commanders, but a massive explosion seemed to have torn through their ranks, scattering their formation and causing numerous casualties.
Some of the Navy were trying to extinguish fires, others were rushing to rescue the town, some continued to attack the sea monsters pouring into the port, and a few were still searching for their officers. The scene was utter pandemonium, with everyone scrambling in every direction.
Upon closer inspection of the port, I realized the situation wasn’t as dire as I initially feared. The sea monsters’ offensive wasn’t particularly strong, and their individual strength had waned since before. Even ordinary sailors could manage to kill a few with effort.
Perhaps many had already been killed during previous attacks, or perhaps the Double Moon Convergence was nearing its end, causing their magical amplification to rapidly decay and their strength to significantly decline.
The current state of affairs was entirely due to a sudden, unexpected attack that had stunned the Navy, coupled with the relentless, unending appearance of sea monsters, which sent them into a panic.
However, these sea monsters weren’t truly powerful. The crew on the ships were still fighting fiercely, especially the pirates who lived by the sword. At this point, they no longer held back their true strength.
One sailing ship, constructed entirely from pale elder wood, emanated an aura of Black Magic. Any sea monster that attempted to board it had its blood sucked dry upon contact.
An Ironclad Steamship, nearly completely sealed and resembling a fortress on the sea, could sprout steel spears from various points on its hull. Sea monsters that managed to climb aboard were impaled into skewers of flesh for no apparent reason. Even the iron plates, with no visible seams, could extend iron spears – a clear indication of magical effects.
The pirates on a pirate ship had dropped all pretense. They charged out, brandishing knives, some even with knives clenched in their teeth. Every one of them was a master, their swordsmanship at least proficient, and their thrown knives incredibly accurate. Many had undergone physical modifications through Black Witchcraft, rendering them Invulnerable to blades and spears; even the sea monsters’ bone spurs could not harm them.
With these ships holding the line, they bore the brunt of the assault, relieving significant pressure on the fleet behind them. However, even with their efforts, the fleet behind could not be considered completely safe. In reality, the fleet had suffered considerable losses.
Firstly, due to the utter confusion, many armed civilian vessels, upon spotting the approaching sea monsters, fired indiscriminately, leading to numerous other ships being severely damaged by friendly fire. Secondly, many sea monsters were capable of drilling through ship hulls, causing several vessels to take on water and sink, further panicking the crew aboard.
Finally, there was the seaweed on the surface of the water. It spread and proliferated like a spiderweb across the sea, even crawling onto ships and growing along the gunwales. At a glance, it looked as if the ships were moldy, covered in a fuzzy, white slime.
I felt that on the ships infested by the seaweed, not only was the ship’s structure being eroded, but it seemed to develop a life of its own, developing hostility towards the crew within. One could imagine that if the ships were completely covered by seaweed, the crew would surely be consumed.
The current problem was, where was Older Brother Jayad? The incident had happened so suddenly. In my haste to assess the situation, I had forgotten to look for Older Brother Jayad. When Night Bird flew back to the shipyard, it saw that the seaweed had already spread beneath the exploration ship.
However, this exploration ship was enveloped by the divine magic of the King in Yellow. The seaweed, upon contact, would rapidly necrotize, as if eroded by a Terrifying curse.
The Yellow King believers on board were now in a frenzy. They fired pistols that shot illusory, non-existent bullets, yet could kill a sea monster with almost every shot. As long as the bullet hit a sea monster, it was almost always a guaranteed kill.
This was clearly the effect of Divine Spell, and a combined one at that. The shipyard now resembled a barrier, greatly enhancing their combat effectiveness.
Moreover, those few High-levels no longer hid their spellcasting abilities. The General Manager wore a ring on his hand. When he opened his hand towards a sea monster and clenched it, the monster’s flesh and blood seemed to boil, bubbling and exploding. In a short while, all its flesh and blood would detach from its skeleton, turning into bloody water.
The mental energy of those few Snake Priests seemed to condense into invisible whips. As soon as these spiritual whips struck a sea monster, the creature would die in extreme agony, its brain exploding.
These bizarre and powerful spells ensured that no sea monster could pose a threat to the exploration ship. They even had spare capacity to protect the workers in the shipyard, as no one would be there to repair the exploration ship if they died.
Yet, among these individuals, I did not see Older Brother Jayad. Although I could actually speak through Night Bird, I had never revealed it before, pretending to be just an ordinary pet. Would it startle these Yellow King believers if I suddenly asked?
Thinking of this, my main body suddenly slapped my forehead. How foolish of me! Older Brother Jayad’s main body was right beside me. Why didn’t I just ask him directly?
“Brother! Wake up quickly!” I reached out and gently pinched Older Brother Jayad’s face. With his eyes closed like this, he must have dedicated all his energy to the Atlantic Ocean.
Older Brother Jayad immediately opened his eyes and realized I had already woken up. He asked, “Parul, are you done with your meeting?”
“I’m done. What happened at the port while I was in the meeting? And where are you now?” I asked.
“I’m not entirely sure. There was a sudden explosion at the town and the Navy’s cannon emplacements. The frontline collapsed at that moment. As for me? I’m in the sea, just outside the port,” Older Brother Jayad replied.
“In the sea?” I was shocked. What was Older Brother Jayad doing in the sea?
“I’m still fighting sea monsters. I’ll talk later,” Older Brother Jayad closed his eyes again.
Only then did I focus my attention on the sea, and I discovered that the underwater world was no calmer than the surface, and the intensity of the combat was even greater.
Below the waves, a large number of sea monsters were locked in combat with a group of Mutants. Though these Mutants wore tight-fitting clothes suitable for swimming, their bodies were covered in various seaweeds and barnacles. Their heads had mostly mutated into those of marine creatures, and some had mutated not just their heads, but their entire bodies, barely retaining their human form.
They were the followers of the Sea Goddess. It was unclear when they had plunged into the sea and begun fighting the sea monsters. Their battle had dyed the seawater red.
