When the numerous ability users learned that the mission had failed, disappointment was evident on their faces. The meteorite had been practically within their grasp, about to be brought back. Who would have thought that the sea beasts would have already surrounded the Divine Realm and begun to snatch the meteorite? The mere presence of over a dozen sea beasts beneath the sea was enough to extinguish any desire to compete, let alone continue the mission. Gong Changfa's declaration of "mission failure" echoed the sentiments of everyone present.
Fang Qinghao's body was in immense pain. Apart from his right hand, all his limbs were immobile. Even after coming ashore, he still felt utterly miserable and couldn't help but exclaim, "Everyone, did anyone bring painkillers? Give me some, I'm in so much pain!"
They looked at each other, all shaking their heads. Upon entering the Divine Realm, besides satellite phones and rations, they had brought virtually nothing else. Who would have thought to bring painkillers? At this moment, everyone was powerless.
Without painkillers, Fang Qinghao would have to endure the excruciating pain himself.
However, Zhou Jiuxiang stepped forward at this moment and directly said, "I can relieve your pain, but I'm afraid you might not be able to handle it!"
Fang Qinghao was still enduring the agony of broken bones and torn muscles. He had wanted to sleep, but the pervasive pain made it impossible to do so, tormenting him both mentally and physically. If an ordinary person had sustained such injuries, they would have already fainted from the pain. But Fang Qinghao was an ability user. Despite his severe injuries, he couldn't fall asleep and could only grit his teeth and bear the suffering.
Upon hearing Zhou Jiuxiang's words, Fang Qinghao could only reply, "As long as it stops the pain, I can endure anything. I need to find a place to sleep."
Zhou Jiuxiang stepped forward, holding a paper cup. He first took a sip of water to rinse his mouth, spat it out, and then began spitting saliva into the paper cup: "Ptooey, ptooey..."
Once the paper cup contained a clear liquid, Zhou Jiuxiang handed the prepared mixture to Fang Qinghao and said, "Here, this is my method. Drink it, and the pain will stop!"
Fang Qinghao took the paper cup and looked at the clear liquid at the bottom. There seemed to be some bubbles present. This substance appeared harmless, but it was utterly disgusting. Fang Qinghao knew it was saliva, and his face immediately showed a look of disgust.
"You... are you kidding me?" Fang Qinghao found it hard to accept that this was a painkiller.
Zhou Jiuxiang said earnestly, "It's fine, this is a painkiller!"
Li Keyi, standing nearby, also chimed in. She said seriously, "I think this might actually work. Why do humans feel pain, and how is pain relieved? It's related to opioid receptors. And Zhou Jiuxiang's ability is to synthesize various hormones. He might be able to synthesize opioids, and there might be pain-relieving components in this saliva. You'll know once you drink it!"
"See? The doctor said so herself. Would I lie to you? Drink it quickly, it's my good intention," Zhou Jiuxiang said with a hint of schadenfreude.
In reality, Zhou Jiuxiang could have prepared the painkiller in a more convenient way, such as by dripping blood into the cup, as blood also contains pain-relieving components. However, having been thrown into the sea by Shen Feng earlier, and harboring resentment, he also found Fang Qinghao, who was aligned with Shen Feng, quite detestable. Therefore, he was deliberately trying to disgust Fang Qinghao at this moment.
Fang Qinghao looked at the contents of the paper cup, feeling a wave of nausea. Although Zhou Jiuxiang had rinsed his mouth, it was still bodily fluid. Just thinking about it made it unbearable. Yet, the pain continued to torment him relentlessly. He found himself in a dilemma.
Finally, Fang Qinghao gritted his teeth. Rather than continue to be tormented by the pain, it was better to endure a moment of disgust for a period of respite.
Fang Qinghao opened his mouth, brought the paper cup to his lips, and tilted his head back, drinking the painkiller. Immediately, his stomach began to churn. This was entirely a psychological effect. If he hadn't known that he was drinking saliva, Fang Qinghao wouldn't have felt so unwell. But Zhou Jiuxiang had prepared the painkiller right in front of him, which simply made him feel disgusted.
Soon, Fang Qinghao felt much more relaxed, and the pain in his body lessened. The others took this opportunity to apply splints to Fang Qinghao.
Qin Kevi also thanked Fang Qinghao, saying, "Thank you for not forgetting to bring me along when we escaped."
Fang Qinghao gently moved his right hand and said, "Alright, no need for thanks. If you really want to thank me, then take me to a quiet room. I want to rest."
Yue Hengyi volunteered, saying, "I'll do it. I'll take Fang Qinghao to rest."
Yue Hengyi was also very grateful to Fang Qinghao. If he hadn't brought Qin Kevi to the surface, Qin Kevi might have already been buried at the bottom of the sea. Once the copper chain broke, Qin Kevi, wearing a heavy diving suit, would have been unable to surface. But if Qin Kevi had opened her diving suit, the immense water pressure around her would have instantly crushed her into a pulp.
It could be said that Qin Kevi's survival from the deep sea was all thanks to Fang Qinghao.
Yue Hengyi was grateful to Fang Qinghao for protecting his beloved, and thus wanted to help Fang Qinghao in any way he could.
The ferry sailed north. In everyone's memory, the fleet was stationed to the north of the Divine Realm. To find the fleet, they would definitely have to head north.
However, after the ferry left the Divine Realm from the north, those on board were astonished to find nothing outside the Divine Realm. Fortunately, the satellite phone had regained signal, and they could now use it.
"Hello, hello, headquarters? Please contact the South Pacific fleet. This is Gong Changfa. We've exited the Divine Realm and can't find the fleet!" Gong Changfa immediately began contacting headquarters. This was the advantage of satellite phones; they could be used in most regions of the world, which was why teams like exploration teams carried them.
When Beijing received the call from the Heavenly Selection Bureau, their first question wasn't to contact the fleet, but rather, "Where is the meteorite? What about the meteorite?"
"The mission failed. The meteorite wasn't stolen by ability users from other countries, but it was fought over by sea beasts. We couldn't defeat the sea beasts, so we had to retreat," Gong Changfa quickly explained.
Upon receiving this news, headquarters fell silent. But then, they transferred Gong Changfa to the fleet's communication room: "Prepare to return. As long as the meteorite didn't fall into anyone else's hands, that's enough!"
While these words were spoken, Gong Changfa knew that they were merely words of comfort. If the meteorite wasn't important, headquarters wouldn't have immediately inquired about its whereabouts upon establishing contact.
The fleet, upon receiving Gong Changfa's contact, immediately explained: "Currently, all fleets are surrounded and under surveillance. The sea beasts have left a gap in the south, and we are preparing to exit through the outer gap of the southern Divine Realm. Where are you? Are there no sea beasts around?"
Gong Changfa looked at the surrounding sea. Apart from the waves, he saw nothing else. He then replied, "Report, we saw nothing. There are no sea beasts around. Perhaps the sea beasts have all followed the fleet. If possible, we will break through from the north and rendezvous later."
The fleet commander found it strange and said, "The sea beasts are so intelligent, how could they leave a loophole in their encirclement? Be careful, but if you can truly escape the sea beasts' encirclement, then go ahead."
Gong Changfa was about to reply.
Suddenly, the ferry was struck. "Thump!" The hull vibrated. Fang Qinghao, who had already fallen asleep, was instantly awakened. He was lying in the cabin, but in an instant, he saw a long, sharp spike piercing through from beside him.
"Pfft," a dark spike pierced directly through the steel plate and passed by Fang Qinghao. If it had moved twenty centimeters closer to Fang Qinghao, he would have been impaled on the spot.
Fang Qinghao, under the effect of the painkiller, had been feeling drowsy and was about to fall asleep. But now, with the spike passing right by him, nearly turning him into a candied haw, his sleepiness vanished completely, replaced by a surge of fear.
"Damn it, help! Assassins!" Fang Qinghao shouted loudly. With his combat ability almost nonexistent, facing such a dangerous situation, he could only call for help.
Fang Qinghao's cries alerted those on deck, and a group of people immediately entered the cabin. They then saw a dark spike slowly retracting downwards.
"Old Guo, check the bottom of the ship, see what's down there!" Shen Feng quickly ordered.
Following Shen Feng's instructions, Guo Pinming immediately went to the bottom of the ship. The ferry was three stories high, and Fang Qinghao was lying on the first floor below the deck. He had narrowly escaped a disaster. Shen Feng suspected there was something at the bottom of the ship.
Guo Pinming soon replied loudly, "City Lord, there's a large, circular hole at the bottom of the ship. It's been pierced through from the third floor to the first. The ship is already leaking water."
Everyone's expressions turned grim. They couldn't imagine what kind of attack could pierce through three layers of the ship's hull!
"Old Guo, repair it immediately! Qi Lingshan, you help too!" Shen Feng immediately took action.
Qi Lingshan immediately went down to the third-floor cabin to help Guo Pinming repair the leak.
Meanwhile, Shen Feng took the opportunity to ask, "Dr. Li, what do you think caused an attack that pierced through three layers of the ship's hull?"
Li Keyi frowned and thought, her mind in a state of disarray. She said, "I don't know either. Unless I see it with my own eyes, I don't know what's in the water. But it's certain that it's likely the work of sea beasts!"
Shen Feng pondered for a moment, then returned to the deck with Fang Qinghao. He then instructed Chang Haojie, "Fly up into the sky and see what's in the water. Fly high, and be extremely careful of what's underwater!"
Gong Changfa could only say into the satellite phone, "We've encountered a sea beast attack. If we can't break through, we will return to the Divine Realm and proceed from the south to rendezvous with you there!"
Gong Changfa had thought they would be able to leave this sea area, but reality proved otherwise. Beneath the seemingly calm waters, unknown sea beasts lurked. Not long after leaving the Divine Realm, the ferry was attacked. The damage that pierced through three layers of the hull was something even ability users couldn't withstand.
The fleet replied, "Please be advised, two days from now, between twelve and one o'clock, we will be stationed in the southern Divine Realm. We will depart one hour later. Please arrive within this hour, or fend for yourselves."
"Two days is enough time for us to reach the south. Don't worry!" Gong Changfa had great confidence in their speed. The ferry was now equipped with sails, making it quite fast. Within an hour, the ferry had exited the center of the Divine Realm. It would only take another two hours for the ferry to reach the south.
"I only hope that we don't encounter any sea beast attacks on our way to the south, otherwise..." Gong Changfa also began to worry. Speed was not an issue, but if they were attacked by sea beasts again, the ferry might sink.
Meanwhile, Guo Pinming and Qi Lingshan began repairing the hole at the bottom of the ship upon reaching it. The hole was over two meters in diameter and circular. Seawater gushed into the cabin like a fountain. It was impossible to simply plug it. Fortunately, Guo Pinming could control steel and quickly restored the steel plates at the bottom of the ship to their original shape. Qi Lingshan, on the other hand, compressed nitrogen from the air into liquid nitrogen, freezing the seawater at the bottom of the ship into ice blocks to stop the water flow. The bottom of the cabin also became extremely cold.
"Phew, finally finished repairing it. I'm almost frozen to death!" Qi Lingshan exclaimed, rubbing his hands to warm them after seeing the hole at the bottom of the ship repaired.
Guo Pinming asked curiously, "Isn't it cold at the bottom of the ship because of you? Why are you afraid of the cold?"
"I can use liquid nitrogen, but that doesn't mean I'm not afraid of the cold. I'm not an ability user who directly controls ice, so how could I not be afraid of the cold?" Qi Lingshan replied.