The submarine's wall lamps flickered faintly, their eerie green light casting the passengers' faces in shifting patches of light and shadow.
Xia Lun leaned against the companionway railing and smiled at the others.
From what they knew, something had most likely gone wrong at the Balance Net outpost. Sailing there would probably end in disaster.
Letting the submarine drift aimlessly at sea offered little chance of survival either, while heading for another company's outpost could go either way.
With no other options, returning to the Collection Facility to gather supplies really was their only possible way to survive.
As Xia Lun considered this, he saw a little hope return to their faces.
Suddenly, Manhunter broke the silence.
"I agree with Xia Lun. The Collection Facility has sunk, but the supplies probably went down with the whirlpool. Our lifeboat is a submarine, so we can dive deep enough to retrieve them. If we collect around ten crates, we should have enough to last until the major Cosmic Electromagnetic Storm passes."
Carson nodded approvingly. After their battle with the Wheel of Moxie, the distance between him and Manhunter had clearly narrowed.
"That really is our only way out. But there's something we need to consider. To remain functional, each of us needs at least half a unit of food and water every twenty-four hours. It'll take us at least five days to get back to the Collection Facility, which means we'll consume seventeen and a half units of each. We currently have fourteen units of food and water, so we're short by three and a half units."
"Wait, that doesn't sound right." Manhunter frowned. "It only took us three days to get here from the Collection Facility. Why would the return trip take five?"
Carson coughed and was about to answer, but