But these measures could not guard against an insider.
With Luo Bing's current superhuman physique, he climbed and darted along the walls and narrow paths, quickly avoiding every camera along the way and reaching the side of the base.
A protruding cliff stood here, with the sea level directly below.
Looking in another direction, he could see the beach he had passed by during his first transformation.
Luo Bing did not hesitate. With his superhuman physique as protection, he was much bolder this time. Without any protective gear at all, he plunged headfirst into the sea.
A mountain-like shadow swept across the seafloor, like a dragon returning to the ocean.
Monsters Could Not All Be Treated the Same
The distant waters of the Sakurajima North Sea battlefield.
The salvage team was still working hard.
Quite a few of them had already sensed that something was wrong.
If the Serpent King's corpse had truly vanished without reason, an even more terrifying disaster must be lurking behind it!
If...
If they could find the Serpent King's corpse and prove that it had merely been swept away from its original anchor point by undersea currents...
Then everything would be fine, and all the previous hidden dangers would cease to exist.
Old Cao smoked one cigarette after another without stopping.
As the captain, he took the lead at this moment, guiding everyone in the search.
He had already considered the worst possible outcome.
Now, he only hoped that outcome would not come to pass.
Holding a loudspeaker, he shouted at the surrounding vessels.
"Stay sharp! Even if such a huge corpse was swept away by an undercurrent, it couldn't have gone too far. Spread out and search carefully!"
"As long as we bring that corpse back, our gains this time will be astronomical!"
"Don't doubt it. I'm telling you, I've already received authorization from Mecha Base. If we succeed this time, every one of our brothers back home will get a house, and our Sakurajima brothers will be able to buy plane tickets back home through the base's channels!"
"I'm sure you all know that Mecha Base commanders always keep their word, and they are never stingy with those who have rendered merit!"
"If we make it back safely this time and you keep following me, we'll become Mecha Base's unofficial personnel. You'll have full pockets without being bound by their rules!"
With such generous rewards on offer, morale immediately soared.
They had not found the Serpent King's corpse, and the mysterious monster had yet to appear.
That made Old Cao bolder. He prepared to expand the search area and make sure they returned victorious!
While Captain Cao encouraged everyone, he was thinking about other matters.
After he reported what had happened here, Mecha Base had clearly become much more cautious.
The follow-up fleet was also heading this way, seemingly preparing to impose military control.
Every sign indicated that the situation was becoming dire.
Old Cao was just an ordinary man and had not received much information, but years of experience more than made up for it.
After using the communicator to relay his voice to the other vessels, Old Cao was just about to end the transmission.
At that moment, a signal came through. Old Cao glanced at the number and saw that it was from a ship on the perimeter.
Had they found it?
Old Cao's heart leaped with joy, and he hurriedly connected the call.
Before he could speak, the panicked voice from the other end made Old Cao's heart sink to the bottom.
"Captain Cao! There's an island! A small island is coming from the north, but I don't remember there being any islands in these waters!"
Old Cao did not respond. Instead, he looked directly at the radar in the cabin.
Sure enough, within the large radar's scanning range, an island had appeared. It was ten kilometers north... no, nine kilometers.
It changed again! Eight kilometers now!
Old Cao was anxious, his blood boiling, but his mental fortitude was truly exceptional. He immediately shouted.
"Fall back! Change course!"
"That's a monster!"
The response from the other side came just as quickly, consisting of only one sentence.
"Too late! It's surfaced!"
Old Cao rushed out of the cabin and looked north. Sure enough, a colossal creature several miles away was slowly rising from the sea.
Vast sheets of seawater poured from its body, forming a cliff-like waterfall!
Its body was burly and ferocious, its arms strong and powerful, and the spikes along its back grew in reverse like thorns. After emerging from the water, its disdainful gaze swept across the sea as if it were patrolling its own territory!
It was him!
That Beast King!
The mysterious monster that had killed two monsters one after another the moment it appeared!
Hadn't he left? Why had he come back?
Old Cao's vision went dark, and he nearly fainted.
His first thought was that they were finished.
Not just him, but all the young people he had brought out to sea!
In the distance, the towering beast looked expressionlessly at the model-sized ships on the sea.
It moved across the water, but only calmly came to the middle of dozens of ships.
Other than the violently surging waves washing onto the decks, it caused no further damage.
The Beast King's broad, thick head looked around, and his nose occasionally twitched as though... as though he were searching for something.
Most importantly, this monster had not attacked the humans!
This completely surpassed Old Cao's understanding!
In Old Cao's impression, whether they were monsters he had encountered personally or monsters he had heard about through various channels, they all slaughtered humans without mercy!
It seemed that every living, breathing creature was the mortal enemy of these monsters. They would not be happy until they had wiped them out!
But!
This mysterious Beast King was not like that.
He moved his massive body, roaming across the sea. Dozens of model-sized ships floated beside him.
And on those ships were countless humans who had been frightened senseless or reduced to voiceless tears. There were even quite a few who had wet or soiled themselves.
Yet the mysterious monster remained unmoved and did not attack.
He merely circled the area once, snorted, then sank back beneath the sea and swam eastward.
This monster had actually let them go so easily?
Countless people wept with joy, overwhelmed by the exhilaration of surviving a disaster.
Only Old Cao stood with his right hand gripping the rail, his face full of disbelief.
"Impossible. This can't be possible!"
Someone beside him asked.
"Captain, we survived a monster. Why aren't you happy?"
"Yeah, we survived a monster..."
Old Cao suddenly raised his head.
"This monster is different from the ones we've seen before! Completely different!"
"He doesn't have intense hostility toward humans!"
As Old Cao spoke, he seemed increasingly convinced of this view. He kept nodding and repeating himself.
"Yes, yes, he truly isn't hostile. It was the same at the North Sea battlefield before, when he killed Scythe Head. After this monster killed Scythe Head, he left and didn't start a war with Wulei!"
"This monster is different from other monsters! Other monsters specialize in massacring humans, but this one—he seems to specialize in hunting monsters!"
"He... he came back here to look for the Serpent King's corpse. He must have discovered something!"
Old Cao shouted excitedly as though he had discovered a new continent, then yelled at the helmsman.
"Turn the ship! East! Follow that Beast King!"
"He knows more than we humans do. He must have discovered something! While he was lingering in this area just now, he must have found something!"
Everyone else was stunned by Old Cao's behavior!
Were you out of your mind?!
They had just escaped the tiger's jaws, and now he wanted to walk right back in!
Everyone shook their heads repeatedly and firmly refused.
Some trusted Old Cao, but there were only a scattered few.
Old Cao did not waste words. He immediately took those few people onto a small speedboat, pushed the engines to full power, and pursued the monster!
Few of the people left behind took Old Cao seriously. They all shook their heads and mocked him.
"After finally surviving by sheer luck, he's going to throw his life away. Old Cao is getting more muddleheaded with age!"
"Maybe the monster didn't attack us because it was already full!"
The Titan Beast Theory
Even though they were all monsters!
The image of monsters in Old Cao's mind had undergone a revolutionary change!
Monsters could not all be treated the same!
Old Cao was a survivor who had personally faced a monster attack. If the mecha had not arrived in time, he would have lost his life long ago.
But this Beast King was different!
Just moments ago, when the mysterious monster had floated on the surface and wandered around as though searching for something, it had come within mere dozens of meters of Old Cao's ship!
Yet aside from the huge waves it stirred up, making the ship sway, it made no other move.
Then, seemingly having discovered some trace, the Beast King headed east, swimming deeper into the Pacific Ocean.
Throughout the entire process, he had not harmed the humans in the slightest!
If Old Cao had heard someone say such a thing before, he would definitely have kicked them and cursed, "Bullshit! Stop making things up!"
But seeing was believing!
This monster was different from those he had seen before!
Even if others thought he had gone mad, Old Cao still took several people aboard a speedboat and followed behind the mysterious monster.
"He must have discovered something! Monsters possess detection abilities beyond human limits. He must have found clues that we failed to notice!"
Old Cao roared inwardly.
"I'm going to follow him! I want to see what exactly he plans to do!"
Before you continue