The Clashing Rocks and the Sea Monsters

The Argo sailed on, and soon two rocks came into view. Rather than rocks, they were more like two small islands. Jason could not help looking nervous. If those things slammed into the Argo, this wooden ship would meet only one end.

It would be smashed to pieces.

"Hey, Heracles, Bai Mo, if those things close, can you smash a way through?"

Jason quickly considered other possibilities. Looking at the two rocks, Heracles actually seemed eager to try. Strength had always been his greatest asset, and opponents like these were rare.

But he remained clearheaded. "If I were alone, I'm confident I could open a passage. With the Argo along, no. The ship would be destroyed."

Bai Mo assessed his stamina and said, "Probably not. If it were just me, it might be possible, but the Agor is too big. I wouldn't make it in time."

Jason looked at the nautical chart, seemingly considering a detour.

Atalanta glanced at the chart. Unfortunately, sea monsters inhabited the waters all around the Clashing Rocks. It seemed there was no avoiding them this time.

Then Jason put the chart away, took a deep breath, and said, "All right, it's decided. Bai Mo, you and Heracles go. We'll stay here."

Atalanta kicked Jason.

"Ow! Hey! I'm the captain! Atalanta, are you staging a mutiny?"

"Shut up. Sending Bai Ermo and Heracles ahead-how did you even come up with that? Will you hand over the throne to them afterward, too? Or have you already become that shameless?"

"If I have to hand over the throne, I'll turn around and go home right now."

For the first time, Atalanta was speechless. She also regretted ever speaking to this fellow.

Reflecting on why she was so impatient and where her usual composure had gone, she said, "Didn't Phineus already give us a way through? Don't tell me you couldn't even keep an eye on a dove."

"But you saw what that old man was like at the end, didn't you? I don't think that prophecy is reliable at all. What if the dove gets through, but we get crushed to death when we follow?"

Jason was different from most of the heroes here. He had his own aspirations. He was only just starting out and had no intention of dying for glory. He thought people who entertained such ideas were fools.

Jason valued his life dearly.

"We can't take a detour at this point. There are sea monsters all around us, and our supplies won't last until we reach a safe route. Jason, we have no way back. Let's go straight through."

The white dove landed on Bai Mo's finger. He gently stroked it, and with a thought, sent it flying toward the gap between the Clashing Rocks.

Everyone watched the dove until the Clashing Rocks slammed together. A few seconds later, a dove flew into the sky on the other side. Everyone cheered, and Jason immediately organized them to pick up their oars and prepare to sail.

Great. It looks like the plot hasn't changed.

Thinking this, Bai Mo rowed hard as well. With these immensely strong heroes working together, the Argo moved extremely fast. Even a layman could tell that, at this rate, they would make it through safely.

But when the ship reached the middle, it slowed. Everyone worked harder, yet it moved more and more slowly, making them anxious. Bai Mo also sensed something wrong and immediately activated his electric propulsion. A streak of electricity sank into the water, revealing everything beneath the surface to him.

"Something's wrong! Something underwater has grabbed the ship! Watch the port side! It's coming up!"

Bai Mo shouted at once. A tentacle covered in suckers reached up from beneath the sea, tugging at the Argo as though trying to overturn the entire ship. For a moment, everyone holding an oar was helpless.

Heracles took the lead. With no time to draw his bow, he gripped an arrow in his hand and drove it straight into the tentacle.

Got it. Everyone aboard the Argo had the same thought. The tentacle immediately began to rot and disintegrate.

"Everyone, pick up speed!" Jason was perfectly calm. Every second counted now. Everyone rowed hard again, but the ship remained slow.

"Damn it! What's going on? Is there really a monster in this world that can withstand the Hydra's deadly poison?"

"No, it's still down there. It bit off that tentacle, and it's still clinging to the hull with its suckers. We can't delay any longer."

Bai Mo was the only person who knew what was happening underwater, and someone who could fight at full strength beneath the surface. He immediately leaped into the sea.

Underwater, Bai Mo's eyes narrowed. It was an octopus with a hideous, enormous maw, its sharp teeth like swords. Of its seven tentacles, four clung tightly to the Argo, while the other three stuck to the rock walls, impeding the ship's progress. Its mouthful of sharp teeth glinted coldly in the lightless water.

Time is limited. I have to finish this quickly. Bai Mo seized his unfinished blade and shot through the water like a harpoon, aiming straight for the octopus's head. In that instant, he actually saw a trace of mockery in its eyes.

But that mockery quickly turned to shock.

The seawater became blades, like a shoal of deep-sea fish, severing all seven of the monster's remaining tentacles.

You thought my unfinished blade had no edge, so you could take the blow with your soft body?

Bai Mo saw that the creature had made no attempt to dodge, going against a wild beast's instincts, and that its eyes held an unmistakable gleam of intelligence.

The Olympian Gods.

It seems Heracles staying, along with my performance, made those gods increase the difficulty. No wonder Phineus looked so distraught. If things followed the original plot, this would probably be the end of the Agor.

As Bai Mo thought this, he sensed another gaze in the depths.

Right beneath his feet.

Another octopus emerged from below. Its limbs grabbed the severed tentacles, then wrapped tightly around the Agor. Like a giant hand, it gripped the Argo firmly.

Bai Mo swung his unfinished blade without hesitation, unleashing countless slashes. But the tentacles the creature had collected acted as a cushion, blocking the first wave of attacks. Meanwhile, the excessive fighting underwater had left Bai Mo feeling short of oxygen.

If I go up for air, I might not make it in time. Worse, this thing might overturn the Agor. Time is running out.

Then, fighting the dizziness caused by the lack of oxygen to his brain, Bai Mo prepared to battle again.

At that very moment, a figure plunged into the sea like a cannonball. He descended like a thunderbolt, striking the second sea monster directly on the head and twisting it grotesquely out of shape.

Heracles. It was him.

In Heracles's hands was an enormous, pitch-black greatsword. Like a lion charging into a flock of sheep, he began to slaughter.

The monster's blood spilled out. A close look would have revealed a faint gold tint within it.

With a splash, both men broke the surface. Bai Mo gulped air while looking around. The Clashing Rocks were less than fifty paces from the ship. Unless a god performed a miracle now, the Argo was doomed to remain trapped.

"Bai Ermo, what do we do?"

Heracles asked Bai Mo. The coolness flowing from the olive branch quickly calmed Bai Mo down. After thinking for a while, he told Heracles, "Bring the sea monsters' bodies over! Put them along both sides of the ship!"

Heracles trusted Bai Mo without hesitation. Soon, one dead octopus sea monster and one living octopus sea monster reduced to nothing but a head were pressed against the sides of the Agor.

"Those aboard, throw down some ropes!"

The heroes threw down ropes one after another. Bai Mo and Heracles tied them to the sea monsters' teeth. Then the Clashing Rocks began squeezing the Agor.

A figure immediately climbed aboard over the port side. It was Heracles.

"Where's Bai Ermo?" Atalanta asked anxiously. Heracles pointed below.

Everyone watched the sea monsters' bodies with a mixture of worry and expectation. Then the Clashing Rocks closed, instantly crushing the soft bodies into mangled flesh. But once crushed, the flesh was as slippery as lubricating oil. Amid that slippery pulp, the Agor soon avoided becoming wedged between the rocks.

Meanwhile, underwater, Bai Mo was hard at work on something.

He was trying to gather force in the seawater, then form it into a whirlpool to store that force.

Now.

Bai Mo immediately punched. The concentrated force supplied the final push. Together with the pressure from the Clashing Rocks, it lifted the Argo several meters upward. The final squeeze of the Clashing Rocks worked with the cushioning and lubrication of the mangled flesh to reduce friction.

The Clashing Rocks closed. The Argo was squeezed up on top of them.