If there was anyone above that white-haired old man, that person must possess far greater divine abilities. Why is it that even after being on the boat for so long, we never encountered this individual?

The last question running through my mind as consciousness faded was just that. "Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…" Just as my spirit began to relax, on the verge of losing consciousness, several colossal sounds tearing through the air startled me violently back to awareness.

When I opened my eyes, I saw everyone staring upwards. In the sky, five long, slender objects streaked past at speeds exceeding the sound barrier.

They passed barely a hundred or two meters above our heads, the tremendous sonic boom and the resulting gale whipping a long ripple across the sea surface. These were clearly not airplanes, as they had no wings.

I must admit my ignorance; I had never seen anything like them. But Jie Yuting immediately shouted, "Damn it!

Those are Intercontinental Missiles! Quick, get underwater!" No sooner had the words left his mouth than Da Xiong, with me on his back, plunged into the water, swimming straight down toward the seabed.

I took a deep breath, feeling a fiery pain in my lungs, as if they were about to explode, but I had no choice but to endure it. Da Xiong carried me straight down for about thirty meters.

Then, I felt an intense turbulence rise through the water. Countless sand and stones, mingled with the remains of dead fish and water weeds, swept toward us—much like a sandstorm on land.

Da Xiong tried his best to stabilize himself, but the immense thrust still pushed us backward over ten meters, tumbling us over several somersaults in the water before he managed to regain control. Casually glancing toward the sea surface, I saw that the bright blue sky, moments before bathed in sunlight, had turned a terrifying crimson red.

Countless bubbles erupted from the upper layers of the water, resembling a pot about to boil. Any jellyfish or small fish caught near the bubbles would instantly recoil, die, and float upwards.

Even thirty meters below the surface, I felt the seawater temperature rise noticeably. Following this, the murky water obscured all vision.

I only sensed that we remained at the seabed for perhaps ten seconds before Da Xiong started swimming upward with me on his back. As we broke the surface, both Da Xiong and I choked violently, coughing loudly and gasping for air.

Next, Jie Yuting and Nie Chuan’s heads also emerged, and they looked in the same direction. That direction was where our ship and the enemy warships had been headed, but now, only rolling plumes of thick smoke covered the sea; there was no trace of any vessel.

After a long, long silence, Jie Yuting gritted his teeth and said, "It seems a very important figure wants us dead. They used Intercontinental —not only to kill us but to wipe out their own people too.

It shows how determined they are to eliminate us." None of us had ever witnessed something as formidable as a * before; it was something only seen occasionally on television. None of us expected to ever have the "honor" of being attacked by one in this lifetime, and I truly didn't know whether to call it luck or misfortune.

Everyone’s face wore an expression caught between a laugh and a cry. After a while, Da Xiong, his face alarmingly pale, said, "Jie, when is your friend’s ship arriving?

I’m quitting this business. I’m going back to Northeast China to farm two acres of land and retire.

Damn it, they’re using ICBMs now! Is there any way left for people to live?

Next time it’ll probably be nuclear weapons." Jie Yuting managed a wry smile and replied, "You don't need to worry about that. The Japanese don't have ICBMs." Da Xiong froze, unsure of what to say in response.

That earlier * had jolted me awake again, just as I was relaxing enough to pass out. Now, my nerves were taut once more.

Nie Chuan then spoke to Jie Yuting, "Which direction is your friend's ship coming from? We should try to meet them partway; this stretch of ocean is too dangerous." Unexpectedly, Jie Yuting pointed downward, beneath the surface.

We were all confused, but Da Xiong glanced into the water and immediately cried out in alarm, "Holy crap, there’s a huge fish in the water! We’re about to be swallowed by a whale!" Just then, we too saw a massive, dark, fish-like silhouette growing larger beneath the waves.

But upon closer inspection, we noticed that the enormous, monstrous fish was actually emitting lights from several spots across its body. In less than a minute, the behemoth burst forth from the sea with a colossal splash, sending up towering waves.

At this point, we saw clearly: it was a submarine. Jie Yuting first looked at the gigantic black object dripping water, then turned back to us and smiled triumphantly, saying, "My friends have arrived." Da Xiong looked back at me, then whispered in a low voice, "Damn, Jie Yuting’s friend drives a submarine!

When I was a kid, I dreamed of riding in a submarine. Today, this old man is going to ride one until he’s satisfied!" I couldn't speak, just shot him an exasperated look, but it did nothing to stop his boisterous laughter.

Then, we climbed onto the hull using a soft rope ladder lowered from the submarine’s top hatch and squeezed inside through a gate equipped with three watertight bulkheads. Da Xiong carried me, but his hands wouldn't stop moving.

He kept touching various components of the submarine, chuckling foolishly, constantly telling me, "Good stuff, Jie, only good steel used here. Listen to the resonance—just this section, sold as scrap metal, would fetch several hundred yuan." I had already sobered up, but his antics nearly made me faint again.

My awareness held on just long enough to see several Asians dressed in black uniforms walking toward us before I slipped back into unconsciousness. That was my absolute limit; I couldn't have held on for another minute.

What remained in my mind were a few fragmented scenes. The first was me lying in an operating room, where several doctors in white coats were extracting pieces of clotted blood and what looked like bone shards from my chest cavity.

I only glanced once before fainting again. The second time I awoke was late at night.

Da Xiong was asleep, leaning on my hospital bed with his phone in hand. I wanted to wake him, but the intense pain in my chest made me black out again.

The third time was still in the operating room; the doctor, drenched in sweat, was stitching my wound. I thought I was dying, but seeing the visible relief in the doctor's eyes, I too felt a wave of relief and closed my eyes, drifting off once more.

The fourth time, finally, was not a fragment. When I slowly opened my eyes, Da Xiong, Nie Chuan, and Jie Yuting were all there.

Nie Chuan, upon seeing me wake, immediately exclaimed with excitement, "Come quick, the * is finally awake!" Da Xiong had been peeling an apple by the bedside, while Jie Yuting stared out the window, lost in thought. Hearing I was awake, they all gathered around.

Da Xiong gently patted my shoulder and said, "," you’re lucky to be alive. Your entire left lung lobe was completely necrotic, so we had to remove it." I managed a grim smile and said, "I thought I was done for too.

Thank goodness for you all." Then Da Xiong sighed and added, "You got your life back, but you can never smoke again." Hearing this news, I wasn't overly disappointed; in fact, it felt like a forced way to quit smoking. I looked at Da Xiong, then turned to Nie Chuan.

I saw joy on his face, but it was overshadowed by exhaustion and a barely perceptible trace of sorrow. A bad feeling took root in my heart, so I asked, "What about Liang Qian?" Nie Chuan’s smile suddenly stiffened.

He rubbed his hair vigorously and sighed, saying, "You’ve been lying here for a month and a half, undergoing three emergency procedures, and you’ve finally woken up. But Liang Qian still hasn't woken up, and her vital signs are weakening." My heart ached, and for a moment, I didn't know what to say.

"That woman surnamed Liang might be salvageable," Jie Yuting interjected from the side. The three of us looked at him, slightly surprised.

Jie Yuting spoke calmly, "When I was interrogating Meichuan, I learned that the neurotoxin isn't a chemical agent, but a type of poisonous herb—I forget the exact name, it's recorded in the Compendium of Materia Medica. In ancient times, this herb was used to create sleeping incense—a small amount used to generate a stupefying smoke that caused brief paralysis.

But if the dosage is too high, the brain enters a state of deep slumber, lasting fifty or sixty years until the body fails. Understand?

It’s sleep, not necrosis. Because only a healthy brain can be modified into a Thunder Corpse; once the brain dies, the person is just a pile of meat."

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