At some point, waiting had gradually turned into despair.
Another half hour dragged by. Amid the endless tossing, Xu Yi's frayed nerves finally began to give way. His whole body was exhausted, his eyes bloodshot, and he clung on through sheer stubbornness, making one last stand.
By now, his Gangsha was nearly spent, and his strength was fading.
He had to drive his Gangsha at full force every moment, leaving him no time to take even a single pill. He had lasted this long on sheer reserves of stamina, but now he was nearly at the end of his rope.
Just as Xu Yi's mental defenses were about to collapse, a colossal shadow suddenly loomed before him.
He couldn't even see the shadow in its entirety. All he could make out was a thick black wall that appeared out of nowhere. The storm instantly weakened by more than half, then a heaven-shaking roar burst forth, so deafening it nearly knocked him unconscious.
Xu Yi bit down hard on his tongue. With one hand, he poured all his strength into driving his Gangsha; with the other, he gripped the Coral Horn tightly and hurled himself at the thick black wall.
"Roar!!"
A thunderous bellow rang out, and blood suddenly seeped from Xu Yi's eardrums.
Then a tremendous force struck. He summoned every last bit of strength and clung desperately to the Coral Horn.
The black wall swept aside the raging storm and plunged straight toward the seabed.
Xu Yi felt like a kite flung into the wind, flying through the depths at the speed of a shooting star. In an instant, he escaped the storm's terrifying force.
Before he could even finish celebrating, a black gate appeared before him. Rows of broad, sharp steel bars lined its lintel and threshold.
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