The great flood descending upon Hippo Ancient City finally began to recede. Aside from Third Street, every living creature on the outskirts of Hippo Ancient City had been slaughtered by the flood. Remnant seawater slowly drained outward through the city gates, leaving plenty of krill and seaweed scattered across the ground.
Most striking of all were the whales hanging from the city walls—three in total, almost all of them having died after being stranded.
The pungent stench of the sea left the living creatures too overwhelmed to react. Even after sunlight once more blanketed the ancient city, many still did not dare venture outside.
Hippo Ancient City's administrators tentatively opened the protective barrier. Just as they had imagined, Hippo Ancient City was still inhabitable for now. Yet beyond the walls lay floating corpses after floating corpses, bleached white by saltwater and strewn carelessly along both sides of the roads.
The roads of old had long since been washed into ravines by the seawater, and thin streams still trickled through cracks in the walls.
"Thank Hippo Ancient City!" The creatures knelt on the ground and prayed silently. It was this city-state's ancient defenses that had saved them from disaster. Without this city-state, they would have died completely in such a catastrophe.
This sudden disaster had swept up nearly every living creature in Hippo Ancient City.
The sun began to shine upon the place. The Light Element dried the fish and shrimp, and the scent of roasted shrimp began to waft through the air. One creature even ignored the fishy smell on the krill and crammed it into his mouth, chewing fiercely.
A whole day of fright had left them somewhat hungry.
"This is edible, and it tastes pretty good!"
Perhaps it was a rare moment of release after so many deaths.