The " Deep Dive " team, like a drop of water merging into the ocean, silently infiltrated the island covered by a purplish-black fungal carpet. After sending them to the very edge, Allen concealed himself within the distorted folds of spacetime, like a silent Watcher, sensing every movement within the island, his heart pounding.
The squad moved with extreme caution. Karasu released camouflaged miniature reconnaissance Karasu that blended into the environment like real birds, transmitting real-time images from ahead. Sky Island scouts used Cloud Dial Gentle Breeze Shells to create visual and energetic camouflage, while the Fish-Man Karate Master sensed ground tremors and the direction of water flow (despite the water being contaminated).
The deeper they went, the more horrifying the scene became. The land was completely covered by a writhing, seemingly living, purplish-black fungal carpet, which decomposed and devoured the original vegetation and buildings, leaving only twisted remains. The air was filled with a nauseating sweet and fishy smell and a sense of depletion from which energy had been drained. Low-level monsters busied themselves on the fungal carpet like worker ants, transporting various substances and captured energy to the center of the island.
Through the scouting Karasu ' perspective, they saw the nest's true form—it wasn't a simple structure, but a gigantic living organ made of fungal carpet and unknown biomass! It pulsated like a heart, its surface covered with blood vessel-like energy conduits, constantly channeling energy and matter plundered from the surroundings into a massive, ovarian-like structure at its center. And that "ovary" was gestating a new monster! From energy condensation to materialization, the speed was incredibly fast!
Even more chillingly, several powerful purple demons ( Admiral Candidate level) guarded the core of the nest. They seemed to be more than just guarding; they were "monitoring" the birthing process. Occasionally, strands of tainted energy ( Tribulation Power ) gathered from the direction of the battlefield would be injected into the ovaries, accelerating the gestation process and even giving the newborn demons a deeper color!
"They're... mass-producing soldiers..." the squad members whispered through encrypted communication, their voices filled with shock, "And they can use that ' Tribulation Power ' to enhance newly born individuals..."
Just as they were trying to get closer to the core and find potential weaknesses, an unexpected event occurred!
A disguised Karasu seems to have touched some kind of invisible energy warning network!
Waaaaaah!!!
A sharp, piercing alarm, unlike anything from this world, instantly resounded throughout the entire island!
"We've been exposed! Retreat!" Captain Karasu immediately ordered!
But it was too late!
The purple monster at the core of the lair's eyes blazed red, emitting a sharp screech! All the lower-level monsters, like a startled swarm of bees, instantly went berserk, surging from all directions toward the team's hiding place! Even more terrifying, the fungal carpet on the ground seemed to come alive, extending countless viscous tentacles, attempting to entangle and bind them!
"Hurry!" The Sky Island scout activated the Jet Wind Dial with all his might, attempting to take off.
Two Fish-Man Karate masters roared as they shattered the surging tentacles and monsters, clearing a path.
The Karasu manipulated their flock to launch a suicidal attack, disrupting the pursuit.
However, there were simply too many monsters! And they seemed to share senses through the creep, allowing them to be quickly located no matter how the team changed direction!
A purple monster closed in at an astonishing speed, its mouth gathering terrifying energy as it breathed out!
"Watch out!" A skilled Fish-Man warrior shoved the Sky Island scout aside, but was himself struck by the edge of the breath attack, half of his body instantly corroded and dissolved!
"No!" another Fish-Man cried out, his eyes wide with fury.
"Don't stop! Go!" the wounded Fish-Man roared with his last strength, then charged towards the pursuers and detonated the high explosives on his body!
Boom! The loud noise temporarily halted the pursuers.
Taking advantage of this precious opportunity, the team desperately tried to break through to the edge. But another purple monster had already flanked them from the side!
At this moment of despair--
A flash of silver-purple light!
Allen appeared like a ghost, sweeping his hands across the screen. "Time-Space Rift - So Close Yet So Far!"
The space between the closest purple monster and the team was instantly stretched infinitely, as if an insurmountable chasm had been created between them!
"Come with me!" Allen said in a low voice, his voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible fatigue. Maintaining this large-scale spacetime distortion was extremely taxing on him.
He protected his squad and retreated quickly. The surrounding monsters attacked wildly, but their attacks were blocked and deflected by an invisible Space-Time Barrier.
Finally, they reached the edge of the island and saw the speedboat that had come to pick them up.
But the last purple monster recklessly broke through the barrier of Space-Time Barrier (although it was also injured), and a terrifying, corrosive energy breath shot straight to the rear of the squad!
"Watch out!" Karasu crow shoved its injured companion and the data-carrying Sky Island scout toward the speedboat, but was itself completely engulfed by the breath attack...
The speedboat engine roared as it plunged into the sea.
Allen watched the Karasu being overwhelmed by the monsters, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. In the end, he didn't turn back, protecting the remaining two as they vanished instantly, appearing the next moment in safe waters far from the island.
On the speedboat, the surviving squad members watched the island, shrouded in purplish-black darkness, rapidly recede into the distance, and the sea that had swallowed their comrades. Silence reigned, broken only by heavy breathing and suppressed grief. The Sky Island scout clutched the Image Dial containing precious data tightly to his chest, his fingers turning white from the pressure.
Meanwhile, Ace and Luffy, who were on "Operation Nail," also received orders to retreat. Covered in wounds and with the data they had collected on the outer defenses of the lair, they struggled to shake off the pursuit and return to the defensive line. They both encountered fierce Resistance, and Luffy even clashed with a purple monster for a few moves, confirming that its strength was indeed comparable to that of Admiral Candidate.
The atmosphere inside the command center was heavy.
The " Deep Dive " team paid a heavy price but brought back crucial intelligence: the lair is a living arms factory, Tribulation Power can accelerate and enhance production.
Operation " Nail " confirmed the strength of the nest's defenses.
The value of intelligence is immeasurable; it reveals the roots and methods of the invaders' continued expansion. But the cost is so bloody.
Sabo looked at the report, took a deep breath. "We must develop weapons capable of remotely destroying or paralyzing those 'ovarian' structures! Otherwise, we'll never be able to stop their massacres!"
Ace looked at his burning fist. "I need a power... capable of instantly achieving ultimate purification, or destroying its energy structure from within..."
Luffy, pressing down on his Straw Hat, was unusually silent, then looked up. "Next time, I'll just blow that disgusting lair to smithereens!"
Allen gazed into the distance, sensing the aura of the rift that seemed even more restless due to the infiltration operation, and slowly said, "Our actions... may have accelerated their progress. They know we've detected the core."
The war entered a new, more brutal, and more direct phase. Every step was accompanied by sacrifice, and every discovery meant an even greater challenge. But they had no way back; they could only continue forward, carrying blood-stained intelligence and heavy resolve.