northernbook Chapter 217: The Great Ape Chapter
Chapter 217: The Great Ape Chapter
Under repeated bombardment, the ship-shaped shelter, trailing thick black smoke, slowly sailed away from the battlefield.
The ship was already badly damaged, with cracks and corroded pits covering its armor. The flames on the deck had just been extinguished, and the air was still thick with the smell of burning, mixed with the stench of gunpowder and seawater.
The crew looked exhausted, their faces filled with dishevelment and fear, but under Sakata's decisive command, the ship finally steered eastward, temporarily escaping the inexplicable shelling.
"Lord Tanaka, an island has been spotted ahead!" a lookout shouted excitedly. His voice was slightly hoarse from tension and exhaustion, but full of hope.
Tanaka immediately looked up, following the direction the crew member was pointing. In the distance, the outline of an island could be faintly seen on the sea.
It appears blurry in the sunlight, as if shrouded in a thin mist, but it is clear that the island is not small, covered with lush green vegetation, and with rolling hills faintly visible in the center.
"Full speed ahead, get closer to that island!" Sakata ordered decisively. His deep, powerful voice instilled a glimmer of confidence in the weary crew.
The ship-shaped shelter's engines roared heavily, and the hull, billowing black smoke, slowly accelerated, heading towards the island. As the distance decreased, the island's outline gradually became clearer.
Its shore is a fine white sand beach covered with low shrubs, and the waves gently lap against the shore, making a peaceful sound.
At the center of the island is a dense forest, with layers of deep green canopies that act as a natural barrier, hiding the island's interior in shadow.
However, as the ship drew closer, the island's tranquility was gradually replaced by a strange sense of oppression.
The crew members had a vague feeling that something on the island was watching them, with a cold and fierce gaze, like a hunter staring at prey that had strayed into a trap.
"Do you guys feel... something watching us?" Miki stood on the deck, looking around, his voice tinged with unease. His hand instinctively tightened around the weapon at his waist, his gaze warily sweeping across the island's direction.
"Shut up, don't scare yourself." Mei Chuan frowned, his words harsh, but his hand gripping the railing trembled slightly. His gaze was fixed on the island, as if trying to pierce through the dense forest to find any hidden threat.
Just then, the forest in the center of the island suddenly began to shake violently, as if something enormous was approaching. Trees were roughly pushed aside, making cracking and snapping sounds, the ground seemed to tremble, and even the distant seawater rippled.
"What is that thing?!" a crew member cried out in terror, his voice trembling.
The next second, a colossal creature slowly emerged from the forest; it was a huge wolf-like ferocious beast.
At the same time, behind the ship-shaped shelter, another enormous object slowly emerged from the water, facing the giant waves on the island across the water.
It was a giant octopus, but it was completely different from ordinary octopuses.
Its size is astonishing; its head alone is like a small mountain, covered with rough, dark red skin with crisscrossing patterns that faintly gleam with a metallic sheen.
Its tentacles are countless, each as thick as the trunk of an ancient tree, covered with a dense array of suckers. These suckers gleam with a cold, eerie light, as if each one possesses a powerful suction force capable of easily tearing through steel.
However, what's even more chilling is that this octopus doesn't just look like an octopus.
Its body also incorporates features of an ape—its chest is broad and thick, its muscles are as strong as steel, its limbs are thick and powerful, and its fingers have sharp claws at the ends, as if it could tear apart any enemy that dares to approach at any time.
Two enormous black eyes, cold and cruel, emanate from the center of its head, a blend of intelligence and savagery. Its mouth is covered with serrated fangs, and when it opens slightly, it reveals a bottomless black hole, seemingly capable of swallowing everything.
Its every step caused the ground to tremble, and its tentacles dragged slowly across the ground, producing a chilling scraping sound. Its body looked particularly ferocious in the sunlight, like an ancient monster awakening from the deep sea.
The crew of the ship-shaped shelter were all stunned; they had never seen such a huge and terrifying creature. Some were so frightened that their legs went weak and they almost fell to the ground; some gripped their weapons tightly, trying to hide their fear; and some even had rapid breathing, their eyes filled with despair.
"This...this is Vice President Sakata's pet?" Miki murmured, his voice filled with disbelief.
"Calm down! This is Lord Sakata's pet!" Tanaka shouted, trying to bring the crew back to their senses, but his own palms were already soaked with sweat.
The giant octopus slowly approached the ship-shaped shelter, gently reaching out towards the hull with one of its enormous tentacles.
The surface of its tentacles is covered with suckers, but its movements are surprisingly gentle.
"What...what is it doing?" Mei Chuan asked in a low voice, sweat sliding down his face.
The giant octopus's tentacles slowly wrapped around the hull of the ship-shaped shelter, then pushed hard. The entire hull immediately made a creaking sound, as if it would be torn apart by the force at any moment.
However, the octopus did not damage the ship. Instead, it used its tentacles to lift the ship and place it steadily on the island's beach.
This scene left everyone speechless.
As soon as the ship landed, the giant octopus slowly retracted its tentacles and stood silently on the beach. Its gaze remained cold. The next second, several tentacles swept across, binding the giant wolf tightly and quickly crushing it to death.
The crew members finally breathed a sigh of relief, but their hearts were still filled with unease.
The atmosphere on the island was oppressive and eerie, as if some undercurrent was lurking beneath the surface. Mei Chuan stood on the deck, his gaze fixed intently on the giant octopus, lost in thought.
Sakata nodded and said in a deep voice, "Repair the ship and replenish resources as soon as possible. We can't stay here for too long. Once we find a way to reach the sky island, I'll let my Mad Ape Octopus wreak havoc on the entire island, hahahaha!"
The giant octopus still stood quietly on the beach, its massive body casting a huge shadow in the sunlight, enveloping the entire ship-shaped shelter.
It made no sound, but the very existence of the Radiant Orange level already made everyone feel incredibly oppressed.
A breeze swept across the island, carrying with it the deep sound of crashing waves. The small group, forced back by Mo Ming's attack, found a temporary respite on this unknown land, plotting their next assault.