Inside the Aska's sunroom.
Yu Xian and the others sat in a row on beach chairs, surfing the internet via their Star Rings.
Because the food conjured by Little Nora had nearly smashed through the Aska's bridge, Muse was currently repairing and upgrading the ship. The sunroom was the first compartment to finish upgrading, so everyone retreated here to idle away their time in luxury—after all, they had already been idle, and now they had even less to do.
After finishing a movie starring Emma, the human megastar from Crescent Bay, Yu Xian rested for a moment. His thoughts turned to Shui Yuetian's situation, and he hacked into her Star Ring once more.
Presumably Zhi'er had used some ability on her, as Shui Yuetian remained unconscious. After looking around and finding no new clues, Yu Xian simply exited her Star Ring.
"I wonder how Hai Liwei is doing right now?"
Yu Xian's thoughts then shifted to Hai Liwei. Hai Liwei had departed first and was using stable pocket dimensions to perform spatial jumps, moving far faster than they were.
In theory, Hai Liwei should be very close to Zhi'er's battleship. If Zhi'er were delayed even slightly, Hai Liwei might catch up to him.
Pondering this, Yu Xian immediately searched for Hai Liwei's name.
Fortunately, Hai Liwei had registered his Star Ring under his real name. Yu Xian easily found Hai Liwei's profile picture, but it showed a face full of fury, and there was even blood across his forehead.
Seeing this, Yu Xian promptly hacked into Hai Liwei's Star Ring, peering through it to observe the situation on Hai Liwei's end.
"Boundless Ocean Surging Wave Palm!"
On the battleship's top deck, Hai Liwei thrust a palm toward the countless massive mosquitoes before him. Surging Sea Rhyme Power transformed into deep-blue waves that instantly engulfed the swarm.
Beneath that single palm strike, the mosquitoes all burst apart within the waves, while the Sea Clan members swept into the surge were right in their element, using their weapons to slaughter the mosquitoes trapped in the water.
Yet even more mosquitoes poured onto the deck through a breach in the top barrier. Several Sea Clan members were pierced by the mosquitoes' long, rigid proboscises, their bodies instantly withering into desiccated corpses.
The mosquitoes then swiftly burrowed inside the mummified husks, adopting another form to attack the surrounding Sea Clan members.
"Those mosquitoes are huge."
"In terms of power, though, they're probably only at 1. In any other environment, Hai Liwei could wipe them all out single-handedly."
Yu Xian observed closely, assessing their strength. Unfortunately, these mosquitoes were invading the Sea Clan's battleship inside the Abyss; Hai Liwei couldn't very well blow up the ship along with them.
Precisely because he had to protect the battleship, Hai Liwei fought with his hands tied, allowing the mosquitoes to gain the upper hand through sheer numbers.
After a moment's thought, Yu Xian synchronized the feed to Nora, Niman, and the others, asking, "Niman, do you know what kind of monsters these mosquitoes are?"
"Those are abyssal giant mosquitoes. The Sea Clan is in deep trouble this time," Niman answered immediately, glancing at the feed while cradling Little Nia.
Without waiting for Yu Xian to ask further, she explained, "Abyssal giant mosquitoes are abyssal creatures that travel in swarms. Aside from demons, they are the most numerous creatures in the Abyss. Fully grown abyssal giant mosquitoes generally possess Heaven Rank strength, and both males and females feed on blood.
"What's most disgusting is that the females also possess parasitic abilities. After draining their prey dry, they burrow into the prey's skin and flesh, where they not only lay eggs, but also manipulate the hollow shell to attack surrounding creatures—even unleashing whatever strength the body possessed in life.
"Once targeted by a single abyssal giant mosquito, you're essentially targeted by countless of them. Aside from the Abyss itself and demons, abyssal giant mosquitoes are one of the greatest threats to navigating the Abyss."
"That's terrifying. Good thing we didn't run into any abyssal giant mosquitoes," Little Nora said fearfully.
Watching the feed Yu Xian shared, she noticed a female Sea Clan member being ambushed from behind. In an instant, the once young and pretty girl shriveled into a dried corpse, and then the abyssal giant mosquito quickly burrowed into her skin, which immediately bulged outward.
The sight gave her goosebumps all over.
In the feed, Hai Liwei watched his kinsmen fall one after another. His strikes grew faster and faster, his attacks increasingly ferocious, showing that his heart was far from calm.
Deep-blue Sea Rhyme Power surged violently, sweeping back and forth across the deck. Yet the abyssal giant mosquitoes could fly, and each time, some managed to dodge Hai Liwei's attacks in the air. Yet Hai Liwei didn't dare pursue them too aggressively, terrified that a careless slip might damage the barrier.
If he shattered the barrier himself, then even without the mosquitoes lifting a finger, every last one of them would turn into floating corpses in the Abyss.
Seeing casualties mount continuously, Yu Xian asked Niman, "Niman, is there any way to drive away abyssal giant mosquitoes?"
"None. Aside from brute-force extermination, abyssal giant mosquitoes basically have very few weaknesses. Furthermore, they carry numerous abyssal viruses. Even I can only cure a dozen or so types. Right now, all we can do is pray for Hai Liwei and his people, hoping they can repel the abyssal giant mosquitoes without getting infected by abyssal viruses," Niman said with a wry shake of her head.
Hearing this, Yu Xian couldn't help sighing. They were too far apart right now; even if he wanted to lend a hand, there was no way.
Afterward, they silently watched the death match between the Sea Clan and the abyssal giant mosquitoes. The Sea Clan suffered steady casualties to prevent the mosquitoes from destroying the battleship, but at the same time, countless abyssal giant mosquitoes were blasted apart by Hai Liwei and the other Sea Clan members.
Corpses of all kinds piled densely across the deck.
Whenever Hai Liwei swept the field with Sea Rhyme Power, the deep-blue waves instantly turned into a dark, suffocating tide of blood.
Such was the battlefield. There was no room for mercy; even the corpses of fallen comrades had to be caught in the crossfire. Holding back would only lead to more comrades dying.
Fortunately, Hai Liwei was powerful enough. After attacking for a full half hour, the abyssal giant mosquitoes finally retreated.
Mainly, the mosquito leader lurking behind the scenes realized Hai Liwei's combat strength was simply too overwhelming. Even when the mosquitoes managed to kill one or two Sea Clan members, Hai Liwei would ruthlessly obliterate them, making the assault entirely unprofitable.
Having lost vast numbers without bringing back much blood, and with the battleship desperately defended by the Sea Clan to sustain minimal damage, there was no hope of victory in sight.
Thus, the abyssal giant mosquitoes retreated en masse.
Hai Liwei stood on the deck, breathing heavily. Watching the abyssal giant mosquitoes depart completely, he finally ordered, "Medical team, get up here and treat the wounded! Repair crew, patch the breach! Logistics, get up here and disinfect!"
Many had died in this battle. In a foul mood, Hai Liwei turned and walked toward the battleship's interior.
Yu Xian also logged out of Hai Liwei's Star Ring, feeling a heaviness in his heart. It was fortunate they hadn't encountered abyssal giant mosquitoes earlier, or they might not have been able to defend their ship.
With so many people, the Sea Clan had still suffered heavy losses just to deny the abyssal giant mosquitoes a chance to destroy their ship; with even fewer hands on his side, holding out would have been much harder.
For now, Yu Xian could only pray that the Aska, having become a miraculous item, would permanently retain its physical attack immunity and energy attack immunity. That way, as long as they didn't encounter conceptual or rule-based attacks, the battleship would remain safe and sound.
Chapter 288