The sentries had good eyesight and hearing, and they would quickly spot intruders even if they approached silently.
In the distance, on the coast, a group of powerful sentinels were lurking quietly.
By the time they discovered them, those figures were already standing far away, blocking their retreat.
At the bottom of the sea, there was an even more powerful creature who had swam very close to the sentinels at some point.
Shanan Bay is a crescent-shaped bay, and the figures are standing in the part of the bay that is deepest into the sea.
They were powerful and all high-ranking sentinels. Some were standing or squatting, their eyes gleaming with a cold glow as if they were in combat readiness.
The dark and silent shadows of the sentinel spirits were reflected in the sea water.
The veterans in the sentry post all know that when walking in a contaminated area, sometimes the most dangerous thing is not the monsters, but the greater danger may come from their own kind.
Especially when you find the treasure and are accidentally discovered by someone.
This is a dark forest, a place where gods are silent. Human life seems especially cheap in this place without laws and supervision.
"They are all good fighters with strong equipment." Dahu lowered his voice and said to Xiaoniao, "They are different from us. They seem to have come from the White Tower."
"Especially the one coming from underwater." Da Hu took off his coat, "You keep an eye on it, I'll go down and take care of it."
The sentry transformed into a gorgeous tiger and dived into the water.
Xiaoniao held the gun on his waist and stared at the people by the water.
We are no match for them.
It's not just because of the pressure brought by the other party's powerful mental power, but also because of the weapons those people are equipped with.
What those people were carrying were all electronic pulse guns, which were products of different eras compared to the guns in their hands that needed to be reloaded with bullets.
It was a consensus among everyone that the White Tower sentinels were far stronger than the local soldiers. The main reason was that they were supported by the strong economy of the empire and equipped with the strongest weapons collected from all over the country.
The people standing on the beach seemed far away, but considering the speed of the sentinels, they were already at a distance that they could hardly escape by running away.
With the vision of a bird, you can see the relaxed and indifferent eyes of the people by the water, and the corners of their mouths raised in mockery.
Presumably, those people could also see that she was tense as if facing a great enemy, and even saw the cold sweat running down her forehead.
Xiaomu at the bottom of the sea was completely panicked.
When he was at the bottom of the sea, his perception was extremely sharp.
He knew that he was being targeted. In the depths of the ocean, a huge monster was approaching him.
Silently and at amazing speed.
In just a few breaths, it approached him, as fast as a ghost in the deep sea.
It was a sentinel. Xiaomu had seen many powerful sentinels, but it was the first time he felt such a strong one.
The overwhelming pressure from the sentinel permeated the entire sea, making it almost impossible for him to even think of escaping. For the first time, he felt how pitifully young he was.
It just so happens that the sentinel's spirit is the seal's natural enemy.
Oh my god, it turned out to be a killer whale.
The unique calls of killer whales came along with the surging waves.
He was so excited that his tail went limp and he almost went crazy.
There's no escape.
Being watched.
Should I just beg for mercy
It was over. He could almost see the huge dark figure.
[It's fine]
Don’t be afraid
[Come on board]
The voice that sounded in his mind from time to time sounded again at this time, like a life-saving straw, immediately soothing his panicked heart.
Xiaomu saw the bottom of the boat which was very close to him, and saw Brother Hu coming down from the water to pick him up.
The little seal regained his courage and swam towards the surface of the sea with all his strength.
Several huge and mysterious tentacles emerged from the ocean around him, surrounding him protectively and separating him from the huge shadow approaching only from the water.
Tentacles? Where did the tentacles come from
It was clearly a mysterious and strange creature, but Xiaomu felt inexplicably at ease.
These creatures he had never met before actually gave him a sense of security.
It was as if they had walked with him all the way and had talked to him.
The young seal jumped high out of the sea and jumped into his own cabin.
Lin Yuan handed him a blanket. He wrapped himself in it, regained his human form, and poked his head out of the blanket.
When he saw that the people standing around him were all fully armed, and saw Lin Yuan's calm face, he finally calmed down a little from his trembling.
The shared perspective between Lin Yuan and him had ended. He subconsciously went to look for the guide sister.
The sister was sitting on the oar, sticking her head out to look at the bottom of the water, as if she knew what kind of huge monster was at the bottom of the dark sea, but she was not afraid, just a little curious.
Now that he was a little calmer, Xiaomu figured out what had just happened.
Those tentacles that appeared last and protected him were Sister Lin Yuan’s spirit body.
It turns out that guides also have such powerful and reassuring spiritual bodies.
In his heart, he still believed that guides could only have soft and cute little animals.
No, Sister Lin Yuan’s spiritual bodies… are also very soft and cute, but just a little bit bigger.
Xiaomu actually knew this too. He had seen many advertisements and film and television works about guides that were frequently broadcast in the Empire.
He knew that the guide's spirit could calm the sentinels, but it didn't have much combat capability.
As a sentinel of the empire, he had been told since childhood that the sentinels had the responsibility to protect weak guides.
Unexpectedly, today he was protected by a guide from the White Tower.
Thinking of how he trembled with fear in the sea, the boy with a strong sense of self-esteem blushed with shame.
But he had to admit that at that moment, when he was suppressed by the powerful Sentinel and almost wanted to surrender, the strength of the huge mysterious tentacles helped him.
The way they swayed in the water and pointed toward the enemy gave him an infinite sense of security.
Fortunately, the killer whale stopped at the end.
It’s strange, why did that powerful killer whale stop and not attack us
At the bottom of the sea, the starlight from the sky shines through the sea surface, interweaving in fine detail on the black back of the killer whale.
Ni Ji saw a small seal while lurking in the sea.
He wasn't even an official sentry, just a little boy in his teens.
Although it was still far away, his perception ability was unmatched on the seabed.
He didn't even need to enhance his vision to perceive that the boy was coming out of the cruise ship with a wooden box in his arms, swaying the broad tail fin of a seal and swimming happily upstream.
"Kill him and get what the teacher wants." Tan Shu's voice came from the diving headset, "We will deal with his companions."
Things were a little bit troublesome. The box in the boy's arms might be what Cao Junmin had asked them to come all the way from the White Pagoda to find.
The wreck of the Mary was discovered in the No. 5 pollution area.
The things carried in this old ship that had been sleeping on the seabed for many years seemed to have been looted by the expedition team.
But the most valuable thing it actually carries has not yet been discovered. It is a box of ancient and rare energy stones, stored in a very secret place in the captain's bedroom. Currently, only a few people in the White Tower know this news.
No one wanted to report this news to the empire. Everyone was just trying to use their own tricks to quietly put these rare treasures into their own pockets.
Cao Junmin wanted to establish his image in front of his new backer. He was determined to get the contents of the box. He sent out almost all of his best fighters.
Just by chance, someone was one step faster than them.
Unfortunately, these people didn't have time to escape.
Ni Ji knows that there are many unfair things in this world, but now he has become indifferent to them and is no longer the passionate and impulsive young man on campus. But there are some things that he will never touch if he doesn't want to touch them.
For example, using a boy's life to pave the way for Cao Junmin's promotion.
Just scare them a little and get the stuff.
Just as he was about to get closer, the sea water surged around the panicked little seal, and a familiar feeling that frightened Ni Ji suddenly appeared in the undercurrent of the sea.
It was like a flower suddenly blooming in the dark night, or like ghosts and gods extending their hands from a hidden place.
The tentacles suddenly appeared and protected the panicked little seal in a protective posture.
They were huge and powerful, all facing him in a warning posture.
Is it her? The guide.
Ni Ji slowly stopped in the sea.
Such a coincidence
Just two days ago, he and she were fighting side by side in the sea of clouds.
But now, the tentacles that were guarding him at that time were protecting another sentinel, and their sharp tips were all pointing towards him.
He took an attacking stance towards himself.
This is actually a very normal thing.
It was not uncommon for Ni Ji to have friends who had fought side by side with him suddenly become his enemies.
Tan Shu was once his brother who had fought side by side with him. But now Tan Shu was deliberately trying to kill him. Ni Ji didn't feel anything about this, he just felt a little disgusted.
What's more, he and the girl had never had any real friendship. They had never even had a complete conversation.
It's just that, it's just that the tentacles were coiled on the seabed, pointing at him sternly as if they were an enemy.
For some reason, Ni Ji felt a little sad.
It was like there was a very soft place that was pricked by the sharp tentacle, and he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. He thought that there was no such place in his heart.
What can you do if I insist on going against you
Ni Ji narrowed his eyes, and a little anger inexplicably rose in his heart. He knew it was unnecessary, but he couldn't control his emotions.
If it was with that person...
He realized that if he did that, the man might hit him hard, just like last time, but this time it might not be on the back of the hand.
The huge killer whale stopped.
He did not move forward. Half of his body turned into a human form, swam upwards, and floated to the surface, revealing half of his head on the choppy sea.
He saw the guide on the rippling sea.
The man was sitting on a small boat, under the starry sky, on the sea not far away from him.
She was carefully guarded by several sentries, and she looked a little surprised, as if she had just discovered herself.
Lin Yuan saw the sentry emerging from the water.
It turned out to be that person, what a coincidence.
The sentinel surfaced from the bottom of the sea, his hair wet, with water droplets flowing over his jawline and down his Adam's apple.
Only his head was visible on the sea, and through the water some black markings on his body could be vaguely seen.
But inexplicably, Lin Yuan had a very familiar feeling, as if she knew what the invisible part under the sea was without even looking. There was a beautiful black back, smooth lines, and a smooth tail.
I don’t know why, but it feels so familiar, as if I have touched it before.
This sentry was very strange. Every time Lin Yuan saw him, he would feel both novel and familiar.
They hadn't even spoken a single word to each other.
But it seemed like they were already familiar with each other.
The last time, which was two days ago, on the airship in the sky, Lin Yuan heard this man’s arrogant laughter.
He laughed and jumped down from a great height, cutting off the monster's huge head with one knife, showing that he was a well-deserved strong man.
That kind of laughter was delightful at that time.
When they met this time, he swam up quietly from the bottom of the sea, without saying hello, and just looked at her from afar.
Lin Yuan vaguely felt that he had discovered a strange emotion, a complex human emotion called "resentment".
It was like a mermaid princess who had been let down by the prince, looking at the ship where the prince was, feeling aggrieved and almost crying.
Lin Yuan thought she must have made a mistake. The tentacles had been a little slow lately, often bringing her things she couldn't understand.
"Did you bully him just now?" Lin Yuan quietly asked his spirit body.
[No]
[You gave the first order to protect the seals]
[We followed the first instruction and didn’t have time to notice the big fish]
Ah, it’s a big fish.
[Big fish, let me see.]
[I just say hi]
[The little fish seems to be in a bad mood]
[It's okay, I'll jerk him off in a little while... Ugh, who's covering my mouth? ]
While the tentacles of the forest garden were making a lot of noise, the sentinels' boats had already reached the shore.
For them, land is a better choice if they want to fight.
The guy floating in the water, who was extremely powerful but didn't approach them and kept looking at them sinisterly, was really scary.
"It's really rare to meet a guide in a contaminated area." Tan Shu, who was guarding the shore, smiled at the sentries who got off the boat. "There's no need to be so nervous. We won't do anything for the sake of the guide who came out of the White Tower."
When he smiled, he looked like one of those aristocrats who were particular about etiquette at a banquet in the upper class society. Smiling, polite, and like a reasonable person.
But the birds didn't buy it at all. They held their weapons as if they were facing a powerful enemy.
This man had a smile on his face, but his men scattered in all directions, stepping on the ground very hard, blocking all the retreat routes.
The safety of their pulse guns was on, and the full energy bar on the gun was glowing with an obscure fluorescence. They were ready to kill people at any time.
"I won't be disrespectful to a guide." Tan Shu bent down slightly and extended his hand to Lin Yuan, "As long as Miss Guide is willing to give me the box."
Lin Yuan was not very willing. She pouted and hugged the wooden box that Xiaomu had brought back with great difficulty.
The box was very worn out and looked worthless, but inside the slightly cracked opening, a fascinating colorful luster shone.
Bird's mind quickly ran through many escape plans. None of them worked.
Da Hu's face turned red and he clenched his teeth.
"Sister Lin Yuan." Xiao Mu gently pulled the corner of Lin Yuan's clothes.
They all felt a deep humiliation, but there was nothing they could do.
They knew that in the face of such a powerful enemy, they had no capital to act rashly at the moment.
When there is no other choice, life is of course more important than completing the mission.
Lin Yuan gritted his teeth and stared at Tan Shu in front of him, with an expression of shame and anger on his face.
In the end, as if he was extremely helpless, he had to endure the humiliation and angrily threw the wooden box in his hand towards Tan Shu.
She was a guide, her arms didn't have much strength, and in her anger, she smashed the box to the ground.
The five-colored, precious energy stones in the box rolled on the golden beach. Even the yellow sand could not hide the bright and attractive luster.
The tattered wooden box containing the gems bounced a few times on the beach and fell far to the side, leaving a gaping hole with nothing inside.
Tan Shu spread his hands, indicating that he understood the behavior of a delicate guide when she was angry, and he didn't bother with Lin Yuan.
He opened his backpack and put all the beautiful energy stones into the bag without missing a single one.
Of course, I didn't go out of my way to pick up the empty wooden box that had fallen far away. Maybe I had thought about it briefly in my mind, but some unknown creature swam quietly by at this time, which took away that thought.
"How is it? Did I learn it well?" Lin Yuan asked in his heart.
[It looks a bit like a human, like how a human looks when he's angry]
[Not very similar, the teeth should be clenched more tightly, and the cheeks should be puffed up]
[The eyebrows are about to be wrinkled, and the center of the eyebrows is wrinkled]
[It’s too difficult. How many muscles do I need to control?]
[Look at the bird. Copy her expression.]
[Never mind, as long as the plan works. ]
Tan Shu put away the energy stone, clapped his hands, turned around and walked back.
It seemed as if he was really prepared to keep his promise and leave after taking the things.
At the moment when everyone felt a little relaxed, Tan Shu, with Xiaoniao and the others on his back, sneered and made a thumbs-down gesture in front of him.
As we all know, this is a gesture of extermination.
But before his thumb tip could turn vertically, his wrist was grabbed by a hand wet with sea water.
"Ni Ji!" Tan Shu gritted his teeth and shouted in a low voice, "What are you doing?"
"Let them go." Ni Ji said lightly.
Here he comes again, this guy comes again, Tan Shu thought angrily.
He is always like this, going crazy suddenly.
Do whatever you want.
He doesn't take me, the captain, seriously at all.
Tan Shu tried to break free from Ni Ji's hand, but the hand around his wrist was like an iron clamp. No matter how hard he tried, the hand was as solid as a rock and could not be moved.
His face turned pale and blue, and the superficial demeanor he had pretended to have was long gone.
Ni Ji, who was beside him, pinched his wrist, raised his eyebrows, and smiled with ease, "I say, let them go, Captain."
He had just come out of the sea, his body was wet, his legs were bare, one hand was holding the bath towel around his waist, and with the other hand he clamped Tan Shu.
This guy is just this kind of person. No matter how well-behaved he pretends to be, when he is determined to do something, he rarely gives people room for negotiation.
Tan Shu knew that if a fight broke out here, he would not be able to beat Ni Ji, and he might even not be able to get rid of Ni Ji's hand that was holding him.
He can't afford to lose this person.
He could only grit his teeth, wave goodbye, and lead the team away, thinking over the plan of killing Ni Ji over and over again in his mind.
Ni Ji walked at the end of the team.
He didn't even glance at the few people left on the beach.
As he walked forward barefoot, he stepped on a wooden box sunk in the sand.
He hesitated for a moment, and a tiny tentacle emerged from the shadows, hooked his bare ankle and climbed up, the tip of the tentacle gently touching the sandy skin and hooked it.
Ni Ji's whole body froze.
Very reluctant to admit it.
But he found out with a little sadness that he had been longing for this.
When that person gives a little hint and quietly says hello to me, my whole gloomy heart becomes happy.
It turned out that what she really wanted was this wooden box.
Ni Ji exerted a little force with his feet and pushed the box into the soft sand to cover the man.
Without stopping or looking back, he lifted his sandy feet and followed the person in front of him.
Thin tentacles slid from his ankles, dived into the yellow sand, and wrapped around the small wooden box.
(End of this chapter)