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墨書 Inktalez
As we swam to the far end of the gap, I first used my Underwater Light to look around. It was then that I realized there was no ship's hull at the very back of this opening; we were essentially at the seabed.
The area of the hull that was damaged was quite large, so much so that even the light from my Underwater Light couldn't reach the end. Although visibility was low, I could still see a few meters ahead without any issue. It turned out that not only was there a gap at the bow of the ship, but there was also a significant breach in the hull.
During our exploration, I gestured to Mai Lao, indicating that "the hull is damaged, and we are in contact with the seabed."
Mai Lao's Underwater Light was also scanning the surroundings. He nodded to me to show he understood and then made a warning gesture, signaling us to be extra cautious as unexpected events might occur.
I gestured back to Mai Lao, saying, "I'm going to check on the left side; wait for me."
Mai Lao quickly signaled for everyone else to stop. I turned my body and swiftly swam towards the left. I wanted to see just how extensive the damage to the hull was. After swimming about ten meters, I finally reached the hull. However, the wooden structure had completely shattered, seemingly due to a severe impact.
I used my Underwater Light to examine the area closely but found no strange creatures or any sense of danger; aside from some microorganisms growing on the seabed, there was nothing else. It seemed like everything was fine.
I turned around and swam back. When Mai Lao saw me return, he quickly asked, "Did you find anything?"
I waved my hand to indicate that there were no issues. Mai Lao then signaled for everyone to continue moving forward, still leading with Big Guy.
Once Big Guy led us past, I noticed Jiao Ba's body was almost parallel to the seabed; he was nearly pressed against it. His hands were fiddling with something in front of him, his nerves highly focused as if he had discovered some secret.
I quickly swam over to Jiao Ba and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned to look at me and pointed downwards while gesturing, "There's a hole here."
I looked down with my Underwater Light and indeed saw a small hole in front of Jiao Ba. It was quite tiny, about the size of a bowl, bubbling up with air. The bubbles were rising in a regular pattern—one every few seconds—and their size matched that of the hole, which was quite peculiar.
What amazed me most was that when these bubbles reached a certain height, they would suddenly disappear, merging directly with the seawater as if they had never existed at all.
I gestured to Jiao Ba, asking, "What's going on?"
Jiao Ba shook his head, indicating that he didn't understand. He then turned his gaze toward Mai Lao, who stared at the cave entrance for a moment before gesturing, "Underwater creatures?"
I understood his meaning; he suspected that there were deep-sea creatures inside the cave, perhaps some crabs or shrimp that dig holes in the seabed and then live inside them. That seemed to be what Mai Lao meant.
Changshan reached out and felt around the cave entrance, then shook his head and quickly gestured, "Not a creature, unclear."
Next, Mantou pressed both palms firmly against the cave entrance. But after a few seconds, bubbles surged out, pushing against his hands. He quickly moved his hands away and gestured again, "The force is strong; I can't hold it."
Logically speaking, if it were indeed some kind of underwater creature, there shouldn't be such a strong force. Mantou's hands were forcibly pushed apart, and this strange cave continued to bubble up with air.
I knew the strength of a sailor well; for Mantou's hands to be pushed apart like that indicated immense power.
At that moment, Shunzi suddenly nudged me. I turned to look at him, and he gestured, "Volcano?"
I raised my hand dismissively, implying that he should stop playing around. At a depth of several dozen meters underwater, where would a volcano come from? This little hole hardly resembled one.
I glanced at Mai Lao and tilted my head, silently asking him what to do. Should we stay or go? It wasn't a solution to just linger here.
Without saying a word, Mai Lao leaned closer to the cave entrance. When the bubbling finally stopped, he suddenly thrust his right arm inside. His action startled me; I had no idea what he was doing.
Just as I was about to pull him back, Mai Lao waved his left hand, signaling that everything was fine. I hesitated but stayed put. Jiao Ba shot me a look as if he also didn't understand what was happening, and I could only shake my head lightly in response.
Now Mai Lao had extended his entire right arm into the cave; even his shoulder was nearly inside. We waited for about ten seconds but saw no signs of anything unusual.
According to Mantou's earlier actions, Mai Lao should have been pushed out by the force of the bubbles. Why hadn't there been any reaction after such a long time?
However, after half a minute passed, I noticed something was wrong. Mai Lao's face looked unusually pale; he braced himself against the ground as if losing balance and swayed from side to side. I stepped forward and steadied his shoulder. I could clearly feel him straining upward; it seemed there was a powerful suction coming from the cave.
Mai Lao turned to look at me, making muffled sounds as he shook his head vigorously. Without thinking much further, I grabbed his arm and pulled hard outward. Just as I suspected, there was an incredibly strong suction from inside the cave as if someone below was pulling with all their might.
As soon as Jiao Ba and the others realized something was wrong, they rushed over to help. The three of them grabbed Mai Lao's right arm, pulling with all their might. After a fierce struggle, there was a dull thud, and we managed to pull Mai Lao's arm free.
Once his arm was out, the enormous suction at the cave entrance began to pull water in with a whooshing sound, quickly forming a small whirlpool. We were all caught in its grip, spinning helplessly in place, unable to control our bodies.
I lost count of how many times I spun around; my head was spinning so much that I felt dizzy. I didn’t dare reach out for my companions since I was holding the flashlight and Spear. If I let go, those two items could end up who knows where.
Just then, the suction suddenly stopped, and we came to a halt as well. However, this pause caused several people to sway unsteadily in the deep sea. Even I found myself shaking my head continuously because the dizziness was overwhelming.
Jiao Ba had even closed his eyes, completely relaxed and floating motionless in the depths of the sea. The only sign of life was the bubbles rising from his Breathing Apparatus; at first glance, he looked almost lifeless.
I swam over and shook his body, hoping to wake him up. After some vigorous shaking, Jiao Ba finally opened his eyes, though he still looked dazed and unfocused.
I slowly gestured in front of him, asking if he was okay.
Jiao Ba nodded weakly and gave me an "OK" sign with his hand, indicating that he was fine. I patted his arm firmly and gestured for him to hold on.
I glanced at the others; on the surface, Shunzi and Big Guy seemed alright. They appeared to be in good shape since these professional sailors had strong physical constitutions.
I gestured to them to check on their conditions, and they all indicated they were fine and everything was under control. I signaled for everyone to look out for each other and keep a close eye on those nearby.
Since Mai Lao's arm had been pulled out, he had been clutching his right arm tightly with his left hand, looking even paler than before. It seemed he might have been injured; after all that commotion, it was likely that his right arm had been dislocated.
I quickly swam over to support him and asked softly, "How are you? Are you okay?" Although I couldn't articulate any words clearly, my meaning was unmistakable.
Mai Lao nodded vigorously and pointed at his right arm with his left hand before gesturing back at it—indicating that he had strained it.
Fortunately, it was just a strain; if it had been dislocated, we would have been in serious trouble. We would need to return to the Sea Surface immediately. With Mai Lao injured now, I had to take charge of directing everyone.
I signaled to Mai Lao, "What should we do now?"
Mai Lao's eyes were fixed on the opening, not responding to my question. At that moment, Jiao Ba swam over, gesturing urgently at me, 'There's movement around us.'
I quickly used the Underwater Light to check the surroundings, but I didn't see or hear anything unusual. I turned back to Jiao Ba and signaled, 'Nothing here.'
Mai Lao glanced at me and gestured with his left hand, 'There is definitely something. Listen closely.'
I focused intently, straining to hear the sounds around us. Suddenly, I realized there was a strange 'rumbling' noise. I immediately looked at Mai Lao and gestured, 'What is that sound?'
Mai Lao slowly shook his head, his expression serious as if something significant was about to happen. Shunzi and the other sailors hurried over, each indicating they had heard the strange noise as well. Big Guy was particularly vigilant, constantly signaling for caution.
The seven of us gathered together, using our Underwater Lights to scan the depths of the ocean, yet we still saw no signs of life.
Just as I was beginning to relax my guard, the seabed suddenly trembled slightly, causing the ground to shake. We all looked at each other in confusion, unsure of what was happening.
Mai Lao suddenly tapped me on the shoulder. When I turned around, he pointed toward the opening. It was then that I noticed the small entrance was beginning to collapse around its edges, and the size of the opening was gradually expanding. The 'rumbling' sound grew louder.
I finally understood; that 'rumbling' noise was caused by the ground collapsing. For a brief moment, it felt as if the sky were falling and the earth were caving in. The entire seabed shook along with it, and the wreck was also shifting. The collapse of the opening accelerated like a rushing stream, continuously widening.
In an instant, it had reached beneath our feet. I grabbed Mai Lao and quickly signaled for everyone to retreat; we couldn't stay any longer. We turned and swam rapidly away. However, when we burst out of the narrow passage, I realized one person was missing—Shunzi had vanished...
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