True Apocalypse Game

"On screen!"

At Zhao Weiguo’s command, the image from the undersea Wormhole immediately reappeared on the main screen.

All unmanned probes from the Hua Country fleet had been deployed, joined by detection equipment from other nations. They were all converging near the undersea Wormhole, trying to get a clear look at what was happening.

The previously destroyed sonar network was also redeployed.

Deep-sea probes are extremely advanced pieces of technology, with high barriers to development. Apart from Hua Country, only the equipment from a few other leading nations was up to the task.

But at this point, it no longer mattered whose equipment it was.

Facing an Exotic Giant Beast that held such intense malice toward all of human civilization, no one was withholding information. Everything was shared directly with the entire United Fleet.

The large screen, divided into a mosaic of feeds from various signals, showed the real-time scene at the undersea Wormhole.

The giant tentacle that had previously passed through the Wormhole was now nowhere to be seen.

However, through the shimmering portal, the beast—tens of thousands of meters long—could still be seen lingering on the other side.

Its entire body glowed with a faint blue light, wreathed in arcs of electricity, making it look like a mythical thunder beast.

Meanwhile, as if injected with some unknown energy, the Space Wormhole was emitting a sound like shattering glass as it slowly expanded outward.

Through the space visible behind the beast, the color of the distant star Shield UY seemed to have undergone a change. A patch of brilliant, bright yellow light had appeared on its surface, completely different from its natural color as a Supergiant Star.

"That looks like... a flare? Can a Supergiant Star even have flares?" Commander Gorn of the French Fleet muttered aboard his flagship.

He had always been interested in astrophysics, so he had some knowledge of celestial phenomena.

The current appearance of Shield UY looked just like a massive flare eruption.

The flare covered a full third of Shield UY’s surface. Considering Shield UY has a volume equivalent to 4.5 billion Suns, the flare itself was large enough to contain over a billion Suns.

Furthermore, stars that produce flares release intense streams of charged particles. It was unclear if the Space Wormhole’s sudden expansion was related to this event.

Whether the Wormhole’s expansion was related to the flare, however, was now irrelevant.

The physical aperture of the Space Wormhole had already widened by another dozen meters in diameter, and it was still growing.

At the same time, the Exotic Giant Beast on the other side seemed to have lost its patience. It extended two tentacles, forcing their tips through the Space Wormhole to grip the seafloor on this side. It then began to tear at the opening, apparently trying to rip it even wider.

The beast was so colossal that only the very tips of its tentacles could currently fit through the Space Wormhole.

The tips of these two tentacles crackled with powerful electric arcs, generating a massive electromagnetic field on the seabed that instantly disrupted the nearby deep-sea probes.

In an instant, more than half of the several hundred probes were fried, though a few fortunately survived to transmit blurry images.

Witnessing this scene, the hearts of everyone in the United Fleet sank to the depths.

If this Exotic Giant Beast made it through, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Zhao Weiguo’s face was grim, but he had already recovered his composure from the shock of the Eagle Country Fleet’s destruction. He issued his orders:

"Send a message home immediately! Tell them to begin construction of coastal fortresses. We may have to prepare to fall back... Also, get me Commander Korolev of the Russian Fleet!"

Hearing the first order, the communications officer was dumbstruck, his shock immeasurable.

’Coastal fortresses?’

’Building land-based fortifications!?’

’Has the situation really gotten this serious?’

’Is humanity really about to surrender the oceans and retreat to land!?’

Despite his shock, he faithfully carried out the order, simultaneously sending a signal to the nearby Russian Fleet.

Soon, the image of Korolev, the commander of the Russian Fleet, appeared on Zhao Weiguo’s screen. He was a general with a salt-and-pepper beard, a former key operative of the Soviet KGB. He had joined the military during the Russian era, risen to prominence during the Eastern Ukraine War, and become a top admiral in the Russian Navy.

"General Zhao Weiguo, hello. I’m Korolev." Korolev’s expression was equally grim as he spoke rapidly. "My fleet is preparing to return home. It will be difficult for your fleet to cross the Bering Strait now. If you’re willing, you can have your fleet head to our country to regroup. I’ve already cleared it with the President."

The Wormhole Sea Region was expanding along with the Wormhole itself. The Bering Strait now fell within the Wormhole’s zone of influence. Forcing a passage would be extremely dangerous and would risk an attack from the beast’s tentacles.

"Thank you for your kind offer, General Korolev," Zhao Weiguo replied with equal speed. "I just have one question: is your fleet carrying the ’Poseidon’ Super Cavitating Nuclear Torpedo?"

The water pressure in the deep sea is immense. Ordinary torpedoes or explosives can’t reach those depths; they are usually crushed by the pressure within a few hundred meters.

But the deepest-diving nuclear weapon in the world is Russia’s Poseidon Super Cavitating Nuclear Torpedo!

Korolev instantly understood Zhao Weiguo’s idea. His brow furrowed.

"You’re suggesting... we use a Super Cavitating Nuclear Torpedo to attack the Exotic Giant Beast directly through the Wormhole? But if the resulting energy reaction causes the Wormhole to expand further, human civilization is finished!"

Zhao Weiguo gritted his teeth.

"I know it’s a lot to ask, especially since the nuke belongs to your country, but this might be our only chance."

Trying might lead to failure, but not trying meant the Exotic Giant Beast would absolutely get through!

His eyes were firm as he stared at Korolev.

Korolev’s expression showed a moment of struggle, then he broke into a loud laugh.

"I won’t lie, I’ve been wanting to do the exact same thing. But those egghead scientists back home were completely against it. Screw it. Just like you said, if we don’t take this chance, we might never get another one."

He then turned and issued a string of orders.

A Russian submarine patrolling the area received the order and instantly launched a megaton-class Super Cavitating Nuclear Torpedo, sending it hurtling toward the undersea Wormhole.

The weapon was incredibly fast. In just a few minutes, it crossed over a hundred nautical miles and arrived in the waters above the Space Wormhole.

Through the camera of an unmanned Submersible, Zhao Weiguo could even see the torpedo strike one of the beast’s protruding tentacles head-on.

In the next instant, a brilliant white light flared, and all unmanned Submersibles lost their signal.

A few minutes later, a massive column of water nearly a kilometer in diameter violently erupted from the center of the Wormhole Sea Region, shooting toward the sky!

Every member of the United Fleet on site, along with the leaders of nations monitoring via satellites and communication links, knew what had happened. High-level officials across the globe held their breath, waiting for the outcome.

The last two available drones took to the air and dropped two new unmanned Submersibles into the sea above the Wormhole Sea Region.

Soon, a new view of the undersea Wormhole appeared on their screens.

The blast wave had scoured the area around the undersea Wormhole clean. But while the two tentacles showed signs of damage, they were still gripping the edges of the portal firmly.

On the other side of the Wormhole, the Exotic Giant Beast seemed to have felt nothing at all.

And the Wormhole itself was now half again as large as before, its physical diameter reaching nearly five hundred meters!

Seeing this, the hearts of Zhao Weiguo and everyone else sank to a new low.

It had absolutely no effect!

And the nuclear attack really had made the Wormhole larger!

Watching the scene unfold via satellite from within the cloud network, Shen Feng let out a sigh.

’Looks like it’s up to me after all...’

’The secret to this Exotic Giant Beast... perhaps it’s hidden within the Water World Apocalypse mission...’