True Apocalypse Game

"GUUU—ROOOOAR—"

A long, drawn-out roar pierced through the mist, echoing from the depths of the Fog Sea. It was accompanied by waves that, once violent, had now grown much gentler. They rolled in one after another, rocking the speeding Sail Warship like a cradle.

A long time had passed since the island-sized World Beast had awakened. The Sail Warship, the *Hope*, had now reached the edge of the Fog Sea, and the beast’s roars could only be heard faintly from the depths.

Still, the people on board were shaken by a lingering fear. The sound of the roar made their faces turn pale, and their hearts pounded with shock and uncertainty. They all scrambled to grip the ship’s rails and ropes.

Old Bill turned to look toward the depths of the Fog Sea, a worried expression on his face as he asked Witch Tower, who stood beside him:

"Witch Tower, do you think the Captain... will he... will he be able to rejoin us?"

Although he had already come to a grim conclusion in his heart—after all, no one could survive an encounter with a World Beast—Old Bill still wanted to hear Witch Tower’s opinion.

No matter what, he wanted to hold on to a sliver of hope.

After all, a man as generous, forthright, and capable as the Captain was truly a rare find.

Witch Tower stood at the ship’s rail, gazing into the distant depths of the Fog Sea. She took a deep breath and spoke slowly:

"He definitely will... If he... if what he said was all true... then all we can do is believe in him..."

Shen Feng’s earlier words had made her consider a possibility she had barely dared to imagine: Shen, the Undersea Person, was very likely connected to the Savior!

After all, there was a line in the poetic prophecy: "He will come aboard an Iron Ship and breathe beneath the sea." ’Isn’t the Iron Ship in that line the very Sail Warship they are on now?!’

As for breathing beneath the sea, Witch Tower had always suspected Shen was a member of the Sea Race, who were rumored to be able to breathe underwater directly.

She hadn’t ruled out the possibility that Shen Feng himself was the Savior, but in her time with him, she felt that while he had all sorts of impressive skills, he was still just an ordinary person, lacking the world-destroying power spoken of in the legends of the Savior.

Therefore, she deduced that Shen Feng very likely knew some clues about the Savior!

If that were true, he would absolutely be able to survive.

’After all, how could someone connected to the Savior be weak!’

With this in mind, Witch Tower turned and walked to the bow of the ship. She looked out beyond the Fog Sea and gave an order:

"Full speed ahead! To the nearest Holy Corpse Market, the Steel Glory!"

Hearing this, the sailors’ spirits lifted, and they immediately bustled into action.

The most powerful and safest of the Floating Island Markets were the Holy Corpse Markets—maritime city-states built upon the remains of a dead Holy Armor.

Although the Holy Armor was dead, it still possessed some miraculous properties. Ordinary Sea Beasts and sea monsters dared not approach, and it was said that even World Beasts kept their distance.

Thus, a Holy Corpse Market was far safer than even an ordinary island.

Furthermore, they could provide extra energy, supplies, and the like.

As a result, every Holy Corpse Market was a center of human civilization for the surrounding sea region.

Everyone wanted to live in a Holy Corpse Market, but not just anyone could earn that privilege. Therefore, many of these sailors from the AN-13 Floating Island Market had never even set foot on one.

Now, under the guidance of the Minstrel, they had naturally obtained this privilege.

The closest Holy Corpse Market to their previous location, the AN-13 Floating Island Market, was the one built on the legendary Holy Armor No. 21—the Steel Glory!

The Sail Warship had now completely left the Fog Sea region. The surrounding sea breeze grew sharp, and the ship, with its sails fully unfurled, cut through the waves and charged forward.

「...」

"Shen Feng! Shen Feng... Shen Feng!"

Darkness, falling, intense pressure, and a coldness seeping in from all over his body.

Shen Feng felt as if his body were an insect trapped in amber. He struggled desperately but couldn’t even move a single finger.

His eyes were closed.

When he came to, he felt as if he had temporarily lost control of his body.

’I’m... falling...’

’Where is this place...?’

’The bottom of the sea...?’

’Why don’t I feel like I’m suffocating?’

The shouting grew louder. At first, it seemed to come from the edge of the heavens, but now it sounded right next to his ear:

"Shen Feng! Stop fucking sleeping! If you keep sleeping, I’m going to die here with you! Wake the hell up!"

It was Jingwei’s voice!

Shen Feng’s consciousness finally cleared completely. He snapped his eyes open, only to find himself in pitch-black darkness, with only a faint blue light filtering down from above.

He was submerged in seawater!

Shen Feng thrashed wildly and opened his mouth to breathe, immediately getting a mouthful of salty seawater.

But then he realized that even though he had choked on the water, he didn’t feel like he was suffocating!

He could breathe directly in the sea!

"Jingwei, what’s going on? I can breathe directly?" Shen Feng asked in his mind, astonished.

Not only that, but he was at least dozens of meters underwater, yet under such intense pressure, he felt no discomfort whatsoever!

This was not a reaction an ordinary human should have.

Jingwei’s voice was tinged with excitement as she said:

"I thought you were a goner for sure, kid. I didn’t expect you to turn into a fish. I don’t know if it’s the effect of the Genetic Enhancement Potion the game system gave you before, or the effect of the Quantum Force Field Core."

Shen Feng looked down at his right hand. He was still tightly clutching the blue metallic orb—the Quantum Force Field Core.

Around him, a faint Quantum Force Field still lingered.

When he was sucked out by the World Beast’s tentacle, aside from petrifying his entire body, his other life-saving method was to close his eyes and meditate desperately, imagining that he could breathe in the sea and that all the wounds on his body were constantly healing.

The impact of being thrown from hundreds of meters in the air into the sea by the World Beast was so immense that it knocked Shen Feng unconscious. Fortunately, his subconscious was still meditating.

It was because of this that he was able to preserve his physical body amidst that colossal force, avoiding having every bone in his body shattered.

However, after hearing what Jingwei said, he too became unsure whether this ability came from the Quantum Force Field Core in his hand or from the Genetic Enhancement Potion he had taken.

But regardless, this ability to breathe underwater and withstand the water pressure was simply too powerful.

Even now, his body was still sinking, yet he felt no discomfort at all.

Except for the fact that the water before his eyes was too dark, everything felt no different from when he was on land.

"Tsk tsk, when we get back, I’m going to have to study this properly and see what the principle behind your mutation is. It’s probably at the cellular level. You’re becoming less and less human, kid," Jingwei remarked with genuine awe. "A non-human creature being humanity’s Savior... what an exquisite irony."

Shen Feng gave a wry smile and said:

"Enough teasing. Help me figure out a way to get out of here. I can’t just swim my way out, can I?"

Although he was dozens of meters below the surface, the current here was still turbulent. Shen Feng had no idea where the water had carried him.

As for that enormous World Beast, it had clearly already left the area.

To the beast, Shen Feng was probably like a thorn stuck in its side; once it was pulled out, it couldn’t be bothered with him anymore.

Shen Feng had survived, but there was nothing around him. Even if he could breathe underwater and withstand the pressure, it was useless.

There wasn’t much food left in his backpack.

He would starve to death sooner or later.

Jingwei, however, ignored Shen Feng’s words and suddenly let out a startled cry:

"Huh... what’s that? Xiaofeng, something’s coming... just a few hundred meters ahead, and it’s getting closer... Holy shit, it’s a shark!"