Chapter 88: Can You Still Go On?

No matter what kind of creature it was, this was not good news.

If what Limingbo and the others saw was, as they understood it, a massive marine animal, then that meant Korbei had already been eaten—reduced to nothing more than food. Such an outcome was, naturally, the worst possible scenario.

Yet, according to Fang Yuan’s understanding, Korbei was now inside the machine. For any rescue attempt, that was undoubtedly the hardest barrier to break through—also, in its own way, the worst possible result.

Limingbo immediately understood what Fang Yuan meant by "inside." He looked deeply at Fang Yuan, searching his eyes for any sign of deception, but found none; only then did he withdraw his gaze.

Just moments before, had Fang Yuan shown even a hint of careless arrogance, he would likely have become their third "depth charge," sent overboard without hesitation.

Still, Limingbo didn’t fully trust Fang Yuan’s words. Before acting, he wanted to personally confirm that Korbei had absolutely no chance of survival.

"Prepare immediately. Send down two divers. Once the situation is confirmed, proceed with an all-out attack. I want the thing that ate Korbei to be obliterated—so thoroughly that not even a trace remains."

"Yes, I’ll get everything ready right away."

Seeing the fury on Limingbo’s face, Li Fu did not argue. He took another man of similar build and set off to prepare their gear.

Moments ago, Limingbo had seemed gentle, but now the force of his presence was so overwhelming that even Fang Yuan, standing several meters away, felt shaken to his core. It was the kind of aura possessed only by those who had looked death in the eye and survived.

After Li Fu donned his specialized diving suit, he strapped two knives to his thighs.

Underwater, some weapons are ineffective; blades, however, are perfect for close combat in the depths.

"Could I have one of those suits?" Fang Yuan asked softly, watching as Li Fu finished preparing.

Though the suit was of little practical use to Fang Yuan, he didn’t want anyone around him to think he was some sort of monster.

"You want to go too?" Li Fu looked him up and down. "Forget it—it’s too dangerous. You should stay here and wait for our return."

Li Fu glanced at Fang Yuan’s thin frame. Courage was admirable, but reckless bravery without concern for one’s own safety was simply foolish.

Men like Li Fu, who lived constantly in the shadow of danger, were unafraid of death, yet more cautious than most. If they lacked confidence in an operation, they would take every possible precaution. He supposed Fang Yuan had been lucky when he managed to save those people earlier—good luck was not something to be counted on repeatedly. In his heart, Li Fu saw Fang Yuan as nothing more than a brave youth, but one whose actual combat experience and skills were negligible.

"If you’re sure you want to go, there are diving suits and oxygen tanks over there," Limingbo interjected, not refusing Fang Yuan outright.

After all, Korbei’s predicament had arisen, in part, because of Fang Yuan. If the boy insisted on going down, Limingbo would not stand in his way.

His consent, however, was not because he wanted Fang Yuan to pay with his life for Korbei’s misfortune. Rather, Limingbo wanted Fang Yuan to remember this moment deeply. As for anything else, Limingbo glanced at Li Fu, who understood at once that the boss wanted him to secretly ensure Fang Yuan’s safety.

He had expected Fang Yuan to hesitate, but to his surprise, the young man picked up a suit and began putting it on without a word. The suit and oxygen tank were meant as a cover for Fang Yuan—otherwise, his extended time underwater would be difficult to explain upon his return.

Seeing this, the resentment in Limingbo’s heart finally eased.

Their quarry had long since vanished. Time was short—if the thing got too far away, it would be even more troublesome to deal with.

With a series of splashes, the three of them plunged almost simultaneously into the sea.

Li Fu and his companion proved themselves to be highly capable; once in the water, they moved with remarkable speed.

After swimming down roughly two hundred meters, they caught sight of the creature. It was entirely motionless in the water.

Strange—how could it remain so calm in this situation?

If it truly was a giant squid, it ought to be trying to escape. No matter how strong or weak it was, a cunning squid would never linger and wait to be surrounded.

They were still some distance away, and Li Fu could make out only an oval-shaped body, reminiscent of a giant squid. At this point, Li Fu was almost convinced that the creature before them was the legendary giant squid.

However, the closer he drew, the more doubts gnawed at him.

This couldn’t possibly be a squid! Even a dozen squids combined couldn’t be so enormous.

In the water, the thing seemed to shrink itself at a distance. From afar, it looked merely the size of a giant squid, but as they approached, it became clear that it was some sort of optical illusion.

By estimation, the creature stood about two hundred meters tall and over a hundred meters wide. From above, it resembled an upright, oval-shaped pebble—albeit an unimaginably huge one.

Upon seeing the surface of this colossal "pebble" riddled with holes the size of an adult’s palm, Li Fu’s companion’s face twisted in horror. If not for the fear of drowning, he would have vomited then and there.

Li Fu’s own face was not much better. Only Fang Yuan seemed unperturbed, calmly circling the creature and examining it closely.

If Korbei was truly inside this thing, then where was its mouth?

Fang Yuan hadn’t spotted the creature’s mouth, or perhaps its "door," earlier.

After making a full circuit and returning to Li Fu’s side, both of them finally began to adjust to the overwhelming visual shock of the monster before them.

The behemoth was eerily still—whether it hadn’t noticed them, or simply didn’t care, was impossible to say. It allowed them to swim around it at will.

Fang Yuan circled the creature several times, but saw neither a door nor even a window. Aside from the countless holes punctuating its surface, there was nothing else.

Li Fu, ever bold, was not intimidated by the giant. He drew a short sword from his leg and struck with all his might at one of the holes.

He had hoped this would help identify the material of the creature’s body. Instead, the result was startling: not only did he fail to discern what it was made of, but his fine sword dissolved instantly.

Li Fu watched in disbelief as his prized weapon, forged by a master blacksmith—not sharp enough to cut iron as though it were mud, but easily able to score ordinary metals—melted away upon touching the creature’s outer shell, as if it had come into contact with a powerful acid.