The entire seabed had been "pushed" above the surface by an average of over a meter, with the most pronounced section rising as much as three meters above the sea.
The seabed, which should have been deep underwater, had suddenly risen into dry land. Vast stretches of submerged reef lay exposed, and the abalone, lobsters, crabs, and other marine creatures that lived among the underwater rocks were suddenly out in broad daylight.
Thousands upon thousands of abalone clung to the reefs. Usually hidden among submerged rocks, they were now all exposed to the sun.
Small green lobsters swam around the underwater rocks, making the crabs seem hardly worth mentioning by comparison.
Mother Ye stared wide-eyed at the scene before her, too stunned to speak. Only after a long while did she say, "Did... did all of this suddenly appear?"
"Yes. When our third son and I came here last time, this reef island wasn't here. The earthquake must have pushed the submerged reef up," Father Ye said, rubbing his hands gleefully.
The reefs were all pitch-black, without a trace of vegetation except for some swaying seaweed. One look was enough to tell that they had only recently emerged from the sea.
"An earthquake can do something this good, pushing the reefs up? All... all these abalone and small green lobsters have been exposed..."
"Who cares? Start catching them! We've struck it rich, holy shit..."
Beaming, Ye Yaodong climbed straight off the boat and gingerly stepped into the water near the reef. The seawater instantly reached his knees, startling the nearby small green lobsters and crabs into scattering. Agile as they were, they quickly scurried back into the sea.
The ground underwater was uneven, but fortunately, he was wearing rubber boots, so the rocks wouldn't hurt his feet. If he got