Chapter 66: Intuition
Dark clouds pressed down from above, and torrential rain slanted down diagonally. Unlike the rainstorms on land, the tempests at sea were far more terrifying.
As a massive sailing ship, the Bashalo displayed its majesty. Even as waves crashed onto the deck, it still plowed forward, its bow crushing sprays of water over ten meters high from the swells.
Creak~
The ship's wooden planks rubbed against each other, emitting harsh sounds.
With a thunderous roar, a wave slammed into the port side. Seawater surged across the deck, washing over the bodies of desperadoes and sailors alike.
The mainmast let out a hollow cracking sound that made everyone's heart sink, as if it might snap at any moment. All the sails were fully billowed, stubbornly sailing against the storm.
In this weather, the Bashalo hadn't dropped anchor. Instead, it sailed against the tempest, mainly because the storm had already lasted two days.
That's right, Su Xiao had been at sea for two days. The morning of the first day was calm and sunny, but by noon, the storm arrived.
The sailors suggested dropping anchor first, waiting for the storm to pass before continuing. But who would have guessed? The storm lasted until evening without any sign of stopping—in fact, it grew even fiercer.
At six that evening, the sailors hauled up the anchor, unfurled the sails, and continued sailing. They knew this storm wouldn't stop.
Cold raindrops fell on Su Xiao's face. He was sitting atop the cabin. Compared to the nearly flooded cabin below, this spot was clearly more comfortable.
Not far away, Amu, tied to the mast, was snoring loudly. Higher up was Bubu Wang, lying in a hammock, swinging back and forth with the Bashalo's rocking motion.
As the ship's planks creaked and groaned, the Bashalo began to list to starboard. Seawater surged high, swallowing the entire ship. But the Bashalo wouldn't sink—at least, not until it was smashed to pieces by the waves. This ship, which had already taken on a life of its own, refused to go down.
In the seawater, a swordfish darted past Su Xiao's face. A few seconds later, the water receded, and the Bashalo emerged from the waves.
After two days at sea, over half the crew had gone missing. For an ordinary fleet, this would have meant collapse. But the desperadoes and sailors on this ship were used to it. Hunting supernatural sea creatures was far more dangerous than this.
"See it! East side! Hard to starboard!!"
A faint shout came through. The helmsman wiped the rain from his ears and let out a confused, "Huh?"
"Hard to starboard!"
Voices rang out one after another. The helmsman, a dirty turban wrapped around his head, hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and began spinning the wheel. In this kind of storm, losing direction meant sailing who knew where.
Crack, crack...
Large splinters of wood burst from the Bashalo's port side. In this weather, turning the wheel hard was obviously damaging the ship.
A red bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, silent at first, followed seconds later by a deafening thunderclap.
The storm suddenly stopped, as if wiped away by a giant hand. The billowed sails went slack, and the wind died.
The dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed. A ray of sunlight pierced through a gap in the clouds, illuminating an island about a nautical mile away.
The sea calmed. A few broken planks fell from the Bashalo's side, rotting into debris the moment they hit the water.
The helmsman at the bow laughed, revealing a mouthful of rotten teeth. He even kissed the worn, polished wheel.
"Ha ha ha..."
Bursts of laughter rang out. The half-naked sailors knelt on one knee on the deck, eyes closed, muttering something under their breath.
With a whoosh, even without wind, the sails filled again, and the Bashalo sailed toward the distant island.
Soon, the Bashalo reached the island's edge. The desperadoes sitting on the gunwale said nothing, just watching Su Xiao, waiting for his opinion.
"Sail around the island."
The moment Su Xiao spoke, one of the desperadoes shouted in acknowledgment.
The Bashalo turned at a 45-degree angle and began sailing along the coastal waters. Getting any closer risked running aground.
The island was lush green, covered in dense vegetation. Birds could be seen flying above the trees.
After circling half the island, a gap appeared at the shore. Several desperadoes leaped from the ship. They entered the water like fish, disappearing instantly beneath the surface.
A short while later, these same desperadoes climbed back aboard using grappling hooks. They had been measuring the water depth. Their conclusion: it was deep enough. The ship could approach.
The Bashalo advanced toward the gap in the island. Within half a minute at most, the ship stopped before the gap.
The gap resembled a "split sky" terrain. Below was seawater, and the rock walls on both sides were covered in green moss and vines.
The split was about ten meters wide. Sunlight streamed down from above, casting rippling reflections on the azure water.
A small boat was lowered into the sea. After completing this task, the desperadoes fell silent. From start to finish, they tried to avoid interacting with Su Xiao as much as possible. The less said, the fewer mistakes. Though these men were brutal, they were also clever enough—no flattery, just following Su Xiao's orders when appropriate.
"Amu, stay on the ship and be ready to alter the terrain at any moment. Baha, you handle aerial early warning. If any contractors come to interfere, kill them without exception. Bubu Wang, reinforce if you get the chance; if not, just provide your aura abilities."
"Moo."
"Understood."
"Woof."
Su Xiao stripped off his black leather coat, baring his upper body. After countless high-intensity battles, the durability of the Wild Hunt Night had dropped below 10 points. Its protective capability was limited—it could withstand at most one more hit before being completely destroyed. Before it broke entirely, getting it repaired by Reid would restore it to full condition.
If the Wild Hunt Night weren't an Epic-grade piece of equipment, it would have failed long ago. This showed just how brutal Su Xiao's battles in the Wizard World had been. He had been surrounded by large groups of Violators at least twice.
After arranging his squad's formation, Su Xiao, bare-chested, leaped onto the small boat. The sheathed Dragon-Slaying Flash hung at his waist.
"Bai Ye, what are you doing?!"
Xia looked at Su Xiao in shock.
"Going to deal with Azathoth."
"That's not what I mean. You're going to solo the final boss? Shouldn't you be ganging up on that boss? Going solo is just..."
Xia couldn't find the words to describe Su Xiao's actions.
"Oh."
As Su Xiao spoke, he stamped his foot on the small wooden boat. Amu, who had already jumped into the sea, gave the boat a push, sending it drifting into the split.
Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha each had their own roles. If the situation matched Su Xiao's speculation, Amu would need to expend all his energy to freeze the seawater. Once his internal energy was depleted, Amu's combat effectiveness would drop significantly.
Baha was the insurance. Su Xiao wasn't afraid of a one-on-one fight with the Dark Source Azathoth. He was more worried about someone interfering—that would be far more deadly. Su Xiao could accept dying in battle against the Dark Source Azathoth, but he couldn't accept being ambushed and killed by a contractor.
As for the desperadoes, they had all been injected with magic potions and couldn't fight against an Ancient God.
The small boat advanced forward. Su Xiao stood on it, his eyes scanning left and right as the scenery slowly receded behind him.
The split terrain wasn't long. After drifting about ten meters, the boat entered an open area. This area was circular, surrounded by steep rock walls. By rough estimate, the surrounding cliffs were a hundred meters high, with seawater below.
The water was azure blue. The rock walls were covered in vegetation. Sunlight streamed down from above. The scenery was beautiful. This had once been a circular valley, but as the island sank, the lower part was flooded by seawater, creating this landscape.
Compared to the beauty of the sea valley, Su Xiao was more focused on a massive creature inside it. It was pitch black, sitting on a stone platform. Even while seated, it was at least seven meters tall. Its standing height was unimaginable. This was the Dark Source Azathoth.
The Dark Source Azathoth was roughly humanoid. Its back was covered in jagged bone spurs. It had no mouth or nose on its head. Instead, there was a row of air holes near the lower part. Higher up were three eyes, their pupils twisted and distorted.
As if sensing Su Xiao's approach, the Dark Source Azathoth slowly raised its head. Its three eyes held only coldness and cruelty.
Su Xiao's small boat came to a stop. He slowly drew the long blade at his waist. Cyan Steel Shadow energy surged along the blade. The moment he saw the Dark Source Azathoth, Su Xiao had a feeling—this thing was terrifying. If that millstone-sized, black-scaled giant hand caught him, he would almost certainly die.