The deep, dark thunderclouds crackled with lightning, beneath which the black void sea churned with surging waves, as if intent on destroying anything that dared to intrude.
Amidst this apocalyptic storm, a small mountain that should have rested on the seabed slowly rose to the surface.
Thick, grotesque tentacles thrashed back and forth on the sea's surface, moving in unison towards a single direction.
Ye Yun's cross-sea fleet had appeared magnificent when they were still at the void port.
But as they gradually ventured deeper into the void sea, they transformed into mere duckweed, seemingly on the verge of being destroyed by the terrifying storm.
Continuous void storms battered each fleet repeatedly, causing the ships to shake with every impact.
Only Ye Yun's Shen He warship sailed on, as steady as a rock.
"This defense is truly formidable!"
On the vast deck, everyone stood by the railing.
Watching the surrounding light shields being struck by the void storm, only to ripple slightly, they were all awestruck.
Ye Yun, after giving instructions to Delisa for automatic piloting,
was leisurely enjoying the rare seascape. In fact, since entering this place, the surroundings had been a hazy gray.
As sunlight could not penetrate, everything in sight resembled a dark world with extremely limited visibility.
Zhao Wangsheng sighed beside him.
"Alas, it's only on your warship that I feel safe. It feels like as long as we don't encounter any unprecedented danger, we'll be fine."
To his praise, Ye Yun's lips twitched slightly.
"I say, you shouldn't make such pronouncements casually. Be careful you don't actually encounter unprecedented danger."
"Heh, how could that happen? My luck isn't that bad."
Zhao Wangsheng grinned, completely unconcerned.
After a while, Ye Yun noticed Ye Yao beside him.
Seeing her seemingly unusual expression, he couldn't help but ask.
"What's with that look? What's wrong?"
Hearing this, Ye Yao came back to her senses, glanced at Ye Yun, and said with pursed lips.
"It's nothing, it's just that the scenery here reminds me of the Abyssal Continent. No sunlight, no light..."
"You mean the Abyssal Continent is like this?"
"Yes, if it were on land, it would be exactly the same."
"That's truly terrible..."
Ye Yun sighed softly.
The scenery of the void sea was novel enough to see occasionally.
But to be trapped in this dark world continuously would likely drive a person insane.
Just as he was about to say something, a startled cry suddenly rang out.
"Master, quickly look, what are those over there?!"
The voice belonged to Chen Lingyi. Ye Yun couldn't help but look in the direction of the sound.
Besides him, everyone else on the warship also gathered.
After all, they were all on the same ship. If anything truly happened, none of them could escape.
"What is it, Lingyi? Why are you so startled?"
However, Chen Lingyi pointed in one direction and said somewhat timidly.
"Just now, it seemed like something flew past over there."
"Hmm?"
Ye Yun blinked and looked in the direction she pointed, but saw nothing.
As for spiritual energy detection, it seemed to be suppressed in this void sea, and he couldn't discern anything.
It was Zhao Wangsheng, among the crowd, who calmly said.
"Don't worry, it's probably just some flying void beasts."
"Is that so... Will we be in danger?"
"There's basically no danger. We're not in the deep parts of the void sea yet, so they're mostly weaker void beasts, and they almost never attack us."
"Uh..."
Ye Yun expressed doubt regarding Zhao Wangsheng's statement.
Then, he took a deep breath and couldn't help but ask.
"Elder Zhao, are you sure?"
"Isn't that obvious? I've been here more than ten times."
Zhao Wangsheng shrugged and then casually glanced elsewhere.
"Let me tell you, the void beasts in this place, they..."
But before he could finish speaking, his body stiffened.
Meanwhile, Ye Yun took a deep breath and said, "How is it? Do you understand now?"
"How is this possible?!"
Zhao Wangsheng was stunned by the scene before him.
Not only him, but everyone else also gradually noticed that something was amiss around them.
On the once calm sea surface, hundreds of black monsters had gathered at some point.
They had wings, each with a cultivation level of Xuan Immortal or even Earth Immortal. Led by a Heavenly Immortal-level creature, they surrounded the entire fleet.
What was critical was that their numbers were still increasing.
Concurrently, ear-piercing enemy alarms sounded on all warships in the fleet.
On the decks of each warship, their respective Xuan Crystal-powered broadside cannons were gradually revealed.
However, even their hundred-meter-class warships were equipped with only three to five gun turrets, and their power was quite ordinary...
In fact, after a warship engaged an enemy, its primary reliance was on the cultivators on board for attack and defense.
The cultivators who were originally inside the warships began to gather on the deck, each one standing ready for battle.
"Black Feather Beasts, why would we encounter Black Feather Beasts here?!"
Zhao Wangsheng stared in astonishment at the ever-increasing number of void beasts surrounding them.
Seeing this, Ye Yun frowned and asked.
"Why, are Black Feather Beasts not that powerful? Is there a problem?"
"There's a big problem!"
Zhao Wangsheng's face turned grim.
"Although it's not confirmed, some different types of void beasts seem to fight in coordination."
"And while Black Feather Beasts alone aren't a threat, they are equivalent to a vanguard reconnaissance team for other void beasts."
"The appearance of these creatures is usually accompanied by other powerful void beasts nearby."
After speaking, he took a deep breath and said.
"But this shouldn't be the case. Black Feather Beasts inhabit the deepest parts of the void sea, and they shouldn't appear here."
Ye Yun raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but ask.
"Then, do you think they might have been brought here by other void beasts?"
"There's a possibility, but let's hope it's not the reason..."
"Hmm? Why?"
Zhao Wangsheng revealed a look of apprehension and slowly said.
"If it was indeed a void beast that brought these Black Feather Beasts this far, then that void beast's strength would likely be terrifying!"
He then looked at Ye Yun and said seriously.
"Elder Ye, I suggest we prepare for battle, just in case of any unexpected developments."
In fact, the reason for the strong reaction from the other warships was precisely this.
Those who had crossed the sea many times understood how critical the situation could become when such an unexpected event occurred!
"Alright, I understand."
Ye Yun nodded and immediately called out into the open space.
"Delisa!"
As soon as his voice fell, Delisa's projection instantly appeared before him and bowed.
"Captain, I am here."
Ye Yun took a deep breath and said, "The fleet is to prepare for battle. You will be in charge of the attacks."
"Yes."
Delisa nodded.
Immediately after, warning sirens flashed again both inside and outside the Shen He warship.
[This vessel will enter combat status. Weaponry authority has been activated!]
Following this, crude yet highly technological cannons were deployed from the edges of the warship, resembling remote-controlled turrets...
At this moment, Delisa, standing beside Ye Yun, suddenly spoke.
"Captain, it's detected that this vessel is being locked onto by a powerful psychic force."
Ye Yun froze, but before he could speak, Delisa continued.
"Detected: Super-large anomalous biological entity approaching!"
Upon hearing this, Ye Yun couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and ask.
"Super-large? How large?"
Then, Delisa conjured a projection, or rather, a comparison chart.
On it was the 1200-meter Shen He warship, and below was a blurry comparison to the target's silhouette.
After seeing it, Ye Yun's expression froze.
"My goodness, this is... the big one is coming!"