Evidently, after Muse’s repairs and upgrades, the Aska was truly, extraordinarily fast.
Yu Xian and Nora had just finished taking their baths when, through their hack into Hai Liwei’s Star Ring, they saw the feed of their own ship, the Aska, materializing out of thin air. Both had been planning to get some well-deserved rest, but at that moment, they fell completely silent.
The two let out a simultaneous sigh. Nora, on the other hand, was amused. She burst into a chuckle, rose to her feet, and said, "Alright, let's go back up Clan Leader Hai. You don't want to leave him to die either, do you?"
"*Sigh*, let's go."
Yu Xian took a deep breath. His pajamas instantly shifted into combat gear as he spoke with a helpless sigh.
They did not call Niman or the others. With the King of the Abyss Battle Armor, numbers no longer mattered, and differences in combat strength hardly made an impact.
***
Outside the Aska, aboard the Sea Clan warship, Hai Liwei’s heart sank the moment he saw the Aska appear out of nowhere.
If he perished taking down the Abyssal Combuster with him, and this warship of unknown allegiance launched an attack, not a single one of his remaining clansmen would survive.
Most critically, the Aska was positioned along the Sea Clan warship’s flank with its main cannon trained directly on them, whereas the Sea Clan vessel’s main cannon was pointed into the void ahead, entirely unable to target the Aska off to its side.
For a Star Rank warship of this class, its only ship-to-ship weapon was its main cannon.
If the Aska opened fire, it could easily punch straight through the Sea Clan warship, perhaps even cut it in two.
On the deck, Hai Liwei blocked the Abyssal Combuster’s claws with his greatsword, using the momentum to fall back a few steps. He couldn't help weighing the idea of drawing trouble elsewhere—luring the Abyssal Combuster toward the unknown warship.
Even if he did, he would still die. Without the protection of the warship’s barrier, the Abyssal erosion he would suffer would skyrocket, leaving him virtually no chance of survival.
Yet if dying could buy the others a chance to live, he considered it well worth it.
"Sea Rhyme Power, ocean currents, lend me your strength!"
Hai Liwei drew a deep breath. The Sea Rhyme Power within him erupted without reservation, instantly transforming the deck—and even the space beyond the barrier—into an ocean of energy.
Just as he was about to unleash his ultimate technique and use the ocean currents to shift the battlefield outward, he saw a mecha fly out from the opposing warship and streak toward him at astonishing speed.
*An ally?*
Hai Liwei froze, his mind racing to an immediate conclusion.
If the Aska had wanted to destroy the Sea Clan warship, a single blast of its cannon would have been enough. For someone to pilot an Abyss Battle Armor over here meant they were definitely coming to reinforce him, not to cause destruction.
Hai Liwei instantly changed his plan. Gritting his teeth, he let out a low shout and swung his greatsword at the Abyssal Combuster caught in the ocean of energy, roaring, "Great Spiral Maelstrom Slash!"
The ocean of energy began to churn violently. Countless torrents formed razor-sharp blades that rapidly slashed across the Abyssal Combuster. The monster's defenses were far from weak; though sliced a thousand times within the whirlpool, it suffered only injuries to its skin and vessels, while its bones remained intact.
Moreover, the flames covering its body continuously repaired the damage. Hai Liwei’s technique served primarily to keep it pinned down.
Still, that was precisely Hai Liwei’s goal. He knew full well how tenacious an Abyssal Combuster was. Given his strength, he could never kill it unless he took it down with his own life.
A distance of tens of thousands of meters took the King of the Abyss Battle Armor only a few breaths to cross.
Still fused, Yu Xian and Nora flew in and saw the Abyssal Combuster trapped within the vortex. Yu Xian immediately handed control of the body over to Nora, and the World gun materialized in an instant.
Brave Bullet.
*Clack.* Chambered.
Nora fired straight at the Abyssal Combuster’s head.
Over on the deck, Hai Liwei was down on one knee, propping himself up with his greatsword. Seeing the King of the Abyss Battle Armor draw a firearm, he was about to warn them that the Abyssal Combuster possessed incredible self-healing and that firearms caused mostly piercing damage, which had no effect on the creature. But before the words could leave his mouth, he watched Nora blast the Abyssal Combuster’s entire head to pieces with a single shot.
Before he could recover from his shock, Nora swapped to a Devotion Bullet and swung the muzzle straight at him. Before he could even react, he took a bullet to the chest.
"This..."
Only after being hit did Hai Liwei realize with a start that the injuries on his body had completely healed.
These were wounds inflicted by an Abyssal Combuster. Even back at Crescent Bay, it would take the most elite Abyss doctors to treat them, yet a single shot had cured him completely.
Immediately after, Nora continued firing at the Abyssal Combuster.
Fortunately, the Abyssal Combuster was not a technical monster like the Abyssal Tiger Lord. It hardly ever dodged an opponent's attacks, mindlessly lunging forward instead. Nora did not miss a single shot, eradicating it entirely in the blink of an eye.
Although the Abyssal Combuster would revive, its revival would cost nothing more than a few extra bullets.
Nora entered through the breach in the Sea Clan warship’s energy shield. Landing on the deck, she passed control back to Yu Xian, and the King of the Abyss Battle Armor shrank down in size.
"Clan Leader Hai, are you alright?" Yu Xian asked, looking at Hai Liwei as he rose from the deck.
Hai Liwei’s memory was sharp. The moment he heard the voice, his eyes went wide in shock. "Brother Yu, it's you?!"
"This isn't the place to talk. Let's head inside first," Yu Xian said with a nod and a smile.
Because of the breach in the energy shield, Hai Liwei was enduring constant Abyssal erosion on the deck. It was only because the opening wasn't too large, and his cultivation was decent, that he hadn't immediately sprouted a second head or suffered some other aberration.
Hai Liwei nodded. After ordering the surviving clansmen to clean up the battlefield, he led Yu Xian back inside the warship.
*Made it in after all.*
Stepping into the corridor and glancing around, Yu Xian couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.
Before, Hai Liwei had flatly refused to bring him along no matter what. In the end, he had still made it aboard.
"Brother Yu, that warship...?"
Hai Liwei brought Yu Xian to a lounge. Once they both sat down, Hai Liwei asked curiously.
Yu Xian hadn't removed the King of the Abyss Battle Armor, simply sitting down as he was. Hearing Hai Liwei’s question, he smiled and said, "Its name is the Aska."
"..."
The moment Hai Liwei heard the name, he understood everything.
He sighed and offered earnest advice: "The Abyss is far too perilous. Just look at us—traveling this far has already cost us heavy casualties, and no one knows what we'll run into next. Brother Yu, there's truly no need for you to take such risks. Shuishui is—"
"I've already caught up with the Primordial Water," Yu Xian interrupted with a smile.
Hai Liwei's jaw dropped. His eyes stared at Yu Xian in utter disbelief, all sound stripped from his throat.
*Caught up...*
*He caught up with it?!*
It took Hai Liwei a long moment to snap back to his senses. "Then... then what about Shuishui...?"
"She wasn't aboard the Primordial Water," Yu Xian replied.
Hai Liwei's brow furrowed, his heart sinking with a lurch. If Shui Yuetian wasn't on the Primordial Water, that spelled serious trouble.
With their only lead gone, were they left with nothing but searching for a needle in the boundless sea?
Chapter 305