Chapter 32 Desperate Struggle Amidst a post-apocalyptic landscape, the remaining raft...
A slow, heavy heartbeat came from the depths of the sea, making the entire Black Sea seem to boil.
The most terrifying scene appeared before her eyes, and Fang Zhiyi's thalassophobia was about to flare up. Her fingers trembled slightly, and she could barely breathe. Just one glance was enough to rob her of all courage to fight back, leaving her to be swallowed up by despair.
When fear reaches its extreme, it turns into numbness.
Since there's no way to resist anyway, and death is inevitable, I might as well fight to the death.
Dying is no loss, living is a huge gain.
Fang Zhiyi took a deep breath and forcefully pulled down the power system switch.
The power system spun at high speed, red lights illuminated on the control panel, and a continuous stream of energy surged into the propeller. With a beep, the propeller blades spun wildly, leaving a long, snow-white trail on the sea surface.
The Black Sea has fully awakened, its waves surging and roaring furiously from the depths, attempting to engulf everything in chaos, to crush and devour.
The quantity of materials is decreasing rapidly.
A vast amount of wood was used to repair the holes in the deck, the damaged sails, and the wrecked propeller... Chu Zhao methodically repaired the raft, keeping it in good condition so that Fang Zhiyi could focus on controlling the rudder without having to worry about anything else.
The two worked together skillfully and smoothly across the Black Sea.
Just then, the front of the raft suddenly lurched and began to lurch upwards uncontrollably. It was as if something had emerged from the seabed and was now pressing against the bottom of the raft.
As they drove along the bumpy road, the raft continued to creak and groan, sparks flew, and wood fragments were carried away by the waves.
The sea level has risen.
No, it wasn't just raised; Leviathan raised its entire massive body. On its jet-black skin, enormous scales resembled mountains, and its fins slowly and heavily lifted, causing an earthquake that threatened to overturn the sea.
All Fang Zhiyi could do was speed things up.
Beep beep beep!
The power system emitted an alarm.
We're already moving at full speed; any further acceleration would cause the power system to short-circuit due to overload.
Chu Zhao: "Here you go!"
A bottle of medicine landed in Fang Zhiyi's hand. Without even looking at it, he bit off the cork with his teeth and poured it all into his mouth.
[Advanced Speed Potion]
The potion's effect: the raft speed is increased by 50%!
Ghost Ship
Passive speed boost of 10%.
Musical Bonsai
A high-energy symphony begins, speed +10%.
...Faster, faster, faster! We haven't reached our limit yet!
The wind howled and lashed violently against our faces. The sails billowed to their maximum size in an instant, transforming into long arrows that shot out and sped past Leviathan the moment it raised its fins.
Bang!
The fish fins fell heavily, and before the aftershocks subsided, the violent shaking caused a fine waterfall of water to splash onto the raft with a "whoosh".
Fang Zhiyi was soaked to the bone. She wiped the water droplets from her face and put on a bright smile.
Successfully passed!
As we drew closer to our destination, a long, drawn-out whale call suddenly came from behind.
A giant wave burst forth from the air vent on its back, transforming into a massive, sky-covering wave in mid-air.
In the deep sea, a blue-green dragon's eye silently opened. From above, it looked as if the sea had split open, the pupil contracted and elongated, and from its center, circular waves surged in all directions.
The raft hovered right in the center of his eye, as if it were about to plunge into the abyss at any moment.
"Buzz—"
The seawater was leaping and surging, making a loud crashing sound.
The raft was pushed up and down, and swayed from side to side.
Fang Zhiyi subconsciously held her breath. The raft glided a distance with the waves, trying to shake off Leviathan's gaze.
Leviathan stared coldly, and in an instant, a maddening whisper echoed in his ears.
Fang Zhiyi's vision blurred, the raft swayed and rocked uncontrollably, turning around and rushing headlong into the towering waves.
【ma!】
The little sea monster's puffing sounds pushed aside the frantic murmurs, bringing Fang Zhiyi back to her senses. But it was too late; the waves were upon her.
Fang Zhiyi realized what was happening and used the active skill of the [Ghost Ship] skin.
Will-o'-the-wisps whistled around the ship's sides, the raft appearing and disappearing, ushering in another world. In ghost ship form, one is immune to all damage for one minute. However, before the countdown ends, one must emerge from the waves, or the skill will expire, and one will be instantly crushed to pieces by the surging sea.
With time running out, Fang Zhiyi's shoulders slumped, and he gripped the rudder tightly, jerking the ship sharply to one side in an attempt to escape the dangerous waves.
The undercurrent stirred, causing the raft to bob violently. No matter how hard it tried, the rudder was stuck in the middle and couldn't be turned.
Fang Zhiyi gritted his teeth and pressed down with all his might.
The little sea monster, Pupu, jumped out of my arms, hanging on the ship's rudder so tightly that its tentacles were taut.
"Gah!"
The parrot flapped its wings and jumped up, as if to cheer itself on.
Just a little bit more—
Chu Zhao traversed the swaying deck and grabbed the rudder on the other side.
The two people and the sea monster worked together.
Amidst the harsh, grating sound of gears grinding together, the rudder slowly turned to the left, the port side slid down, sending a spray of water flying as it brushed past the waves. A sharp turn later, it glided across the sea in a beautiful semi-circular arc.
He escaped death.
"Gah!"
The parrot happily started dancing.
The little sea monster, Pupu, also raised its tentacles and twisted along with it.
Fang Zhiyi had no heart to celebrate. The instant the [Ghost Ship] effect disappeared, he swung the rudder in his palm to straighten it, exhaled a long breath, and continued forward.
The Eye of the Abyss slowly rotated, its muffled sound echoing across the seabed.
Insect!
Leviathan was enraged. How dare this insect-like being repeatedly disregard its majesty? A smooth, jet-black body emerged from the seabed, its scales refracting distorted light and shadow.
Splash—
A gaping maw opened wide, obscuring the entire sky and instantly darkening the light and shadows before our eyes. The surging waves were swept into its mouth, and various objects such as logs and shipwrecks crashed against the raft, causing it to sway precariously backward.
All Fang Zhiyi could do was try to escape the suction of the torrent.
He had already used all his speed-up items and skills, and they were on cooldown. He grabbed the [Large Battery] from his backpack and pressed the activation button.
A surge of electricity coursed through him, a tingling sensation spreading from his palms to his limbs. The skill's cooldown was refreshed, and he could use it again.
Without a second thought, Fang Zhiyi unleashed all his skills.
I'm going to get first place!
Accelerating to 100% again, the power system spun wildly, and the high temperature generated by the overload was transmitted up the deck, emitting a series of buzzing sounds.
Fang Zhiyi's palms burned as he struggled against the torrent for a moment before finally leaping out of the shadow cast by Leviathan with a flick of his tail.
The raft was severely damaged.
If Chu Zhao hadn't modified the raft's defenses, it would probably have been smashed to pieces. Even so, the raft was still in a dilapidated state.
Chu Zhao's voice cut through the rain: "We don't have enough wood."
Fang's meaning: "I have it."
He shared access to the storage box with Chu Zhao.
The storage box contained basic materials. Chu Zhao glanced inside and saw that it was crammed full of several sets of wood.
Chu Zhao: "..."
Chu Zhao: "Just how much wood have you hoarded?"
Fang Zhiyi: "I just picked it up."
On the sixth day, after upgrading the raft's speed system, he collected all the wood from the nearby sea area as a precaution, just in case the raft was damaged and there was no wood to repair it.
There were 99 pieces of wood per set. Chu Zhao took out a set and seized the opportunity to repair the raft.
As the amount of wood decreased, the potholes on the deck disappeared, and the damaged tail fin was restored to its original condition. Even during the repairs, the raft maintained a high speed.
As Fang Zhiyi took the helm and controlled the direction, he looked back and saw that Leviathan had gone completely mad, as if all its hatred was focused on them, relentlessly chasing after them.
roar--
The raft rocked along with the shouts.
The sky was overcast, lightning flashed, and torrential rain poured down. Whirlpools and undercurrents appeared on the sea, volcanoes erupted, and gales raged, blurring the view and slowing the speed of the journey.
The Black Sea surged and silently caught up with them.
The waves rolled to both sides, like Moses parting the sea, and a dark "land" suddenly appeared in the middle. The land was covered with ancient patterns, and barnacles and seaweed grew on it. One of the patterns split open, revealing a row of fine, sharp teeth.
There's no escaping it.
There's no way to avoid it.
Fang Zhiyi made a decisive move, steer the raft toward a bubbling, boiling sea. With a deafening roar, an underwater volcano erupted, and the force of the impact sent the raft soaring into the air, narrowly missing the gaping maw of the abyss, before crashing heavily back onto the sea.
Fang Zhiyi nearly crashed into the ceiling, grabbing the rudder tightly to maintain her balance amidst the violent shaking. When she came to her senses, she found her palms and elbows scraped, and her face bruised.
【Injuried】
[Stamina-10]
There was no time to think about that now. Suppressing the pain, and with the raft still unstable, he accelerated again. Once he reached his destination, he could clear the level and escape this world, and now he was only a short distance away from that goal.
Leviathan seemed to know this as well, its fins slapping heavily against the sea surface, and gusts of wind blew in from all directions, transforming into a tornado that stretched straight up to the sky by the time it reached him.
The wind sucked in the water, the water whipped up a whirlwind, and from within came a deafening roar. The tornado attacked from both sides, swirling and howling around the raft.
Is it really necessary to make it this big?
Fang Zhiyi was sweating profusely. The raft was trapped in place by the tornado, unable to move, and could only watch helplessly as the finish line of the race grew further and further away.
Even if Chu Zhao modified the raft's defense system, it wouldn't be able to withstand the tornado.
Chu Zhao reminded him: "Protective shield!"
Fang Zhiyi realized what was happening and clicked into the survival shop to search for protective shields.
【Protective Shield】
[Price: 50 Survival Points]
[Effect: Resists attacks for 30 minutes]
Fang Zhiyi hadn't used his survival points until now, but he redeemed them without hesitation.
As soon as the protective shield landed in my backpack, I immediately chose to use it.
A faint light enveloped the raft, keeping all the wind and waves at bay.
Fang Zhiyi braved the tornado and rushed forward in one go.
...before they could rush over...
The shield could withstand the damage, but it was still blown left and right by the tornado, spinning wildly inside, and occasionally flying into the air to experience a high-speed pirate ship ride.
Fang Zhiyi was so dizzy from all the spinning that he barely managed to escape the tornado, only to have another shadow fall over him as Leviathan opened its massive maw and swallowed the raft.
It became completely dark all around.
I couldn't see anything, only hear clanging sounds coming from the protective shield, like something was hitting it. Fortunately, it was a product from the survival shop, and it was definitely not shoddy. No matter how fierce the attack, it withstood it safely.
Leviathan: Bite... Can't bite it, ptooey!
Spurting out with a current, the raft spun on the sea. After several entanglements, the protective shield appeared and disappeared, and 30 minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
Chu Zhao has initiated a transaction request with you.
[Acceptance or rejection]
accept!
Another protective shield has arrived.
Fang Zhiyi clicked "use," and the light screen that was about to disappear lit up again. Despite the harsh weather and Leviathan's onslaught, he charged towards the finish line.
The white light was right in front of me.
Leviathan went berserk and stirred up waves in an attempt to stop it.
The protective shield countdown is on, 5 minutes.
When the tsunami struck, the world turned upside down, forming a bottomless vortex in mid-air that tossed the rafts upside down.
Countdown: 3 minutes.
Leviathan raised its tail fin, like a wall spanning the sky, blocking the raft.
Countdown: 1 minute.
The raft relentlessly pushed its way over the barrier, its sails billowing high, closing the distance to the finish line. But then a sudden wave tossed it high into the air.
Countdown: 30 seconds.
The protective shield was about to disappear; there was only one last step to reach the finish line.
...Is it too late?
Fang Zhiyi took a heavy breath. Even when forced into a desperate situation, she did not give up. Her amber eyes shone brightly, filled with a resolute determination: "Do you believe me?"
Chu Zhao didn't hesitate for a moment: "I believe you."
While traveling at high speed, Fang Zhiyi suddenly swerved the steering wheel sharply, deliberately colliding with Leviathan's tail fin. This was practically a suicidal impact. The moment the protective shield shattered, Leviathan remained motionless, while the raft began to break apart, flying backwards through the air under the immense impact.
The raft broke apart and swayed in mid-air.
Undercurrents surged, and the wind howled fiercely.
In a post-apocalyptic scene, the remaining wreckage of a raft crashed into a beam of white light shooting into the sky.
-----------------------
Author's Note: I need to use a clipboard. The update on Saturday (the 18th) will be after 11 PM.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com