In this cyberpunk era, why are you still playing the traditional villain?

"You believe this? I certainly don't."

Xie Qingyan shook her head. "What good or bad luck? Feudal superstition is not advisable."

"Don't say it's unacceptable."

Xu Shi was both amused and exasperated, and simply waved her hand to tell her to stop talking.

"Why can't I tell you if I don't believe you? Would you cry for me if I died?"

The slut persisted, "If you say you will, then I won't say."

"...Say it or don't, it's up to you."

Xu Shi rolled his eyes at her. Really, all women are the same when they're being unreasonable. "Who cares if you live or die?"

"Okay, okay, I won't say anything more, alright?"

These words were unpleasant to hear, but Xie Qingyan laughed instead. "I was just expressing my feelings suddenly. Don't worry, I won't ask you to do anything... I don't have that right."

"Like you said, let's just keep it this way. It's actually quite fun, isn't it?"

As she spoke, she raised her glass. "At least you still care about me a little bit, I'm very satisfied... Cheers!"

Xu had no choice but to clink glasses with her.

Anyone could see that she wasn't as carefree as she seemed, but he didn't want to expose her forced smile.

That's when.

"...Do you smell anything strange?"

"It seems so, maybe a little."

Realizing something was wrong, the two of them turned their heads at the same time and looked out the window.

Visibly, the sea outside had changed slightly—the water had become darker, even faintly tinged with scarlet.

The strange taste comes from this; the ocean itself only tastes bitter and salty, but now it has an added nauseating stench.

Upon closer inspection, one can see many marine carcasses floating on the sea surface, their limbs and remains incomplete.

"This is……"

The two exchanged a glance and instantly came to their senses.

"Oh no, a fish swarm!"

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 231 Good disciple, you're not far from graduating!

The appearance of a fish swarm, apart from the unbearable stench, is not necessarily a bad thing.

This proves that they were looking in the right direction—this swarm of fish was mostly made up of fragmented corpses, obviously swallowed by something, and judging by the number, it must have been the work of something extraordinary.

The detectors on the warship also confirmed this—the concentration of "rust fog" here was much higher than in other places, and this was not caused by the seawater itself. On the contrary, it was because the concentration of "rust fog" here was too high that the seawater turned a deeper color.

"interesting."

Xu Shi's eyes gleamed with excitement as he ordered the ship's protective force field to be activated. "Get your spirits up, Qingyan."

Without him even needing to remind her, Xie Qingyan's face had long since lost its drunkenness, replaced by a fervor no less intense than his.

She took the initiative to pick up the microphone in the command room and shouted without hesitation, "All personnel, on high alert, ready to attack at any time!"

To be fair, the two have a lot in common, at least in this respect—fanaticism and obsession, showing no fear even towards a terrifying being like "Sea God".

Therefore, Xu Shi always said that no matter what, he admired Xie Qingyan, that bitch woman, and that the moment she showed this crazy state was the most charming moment in Xu Shi's eyes.

"...A large number of marine organisms have been detected approaching!"

Shortly after, Yu Xingchuan's voice returned, "The combat team is ready and can be deployed at any time!"

Xu Shi assigned her to that battleship to play her proper role. At the same time, Xia Wuyou and her group also arrived, waiting with serious expressions for Xu Shi's next deployment.

"No hurries?"

Looking at the dense red dots on the radar, Xu Shi simply waved his hand, "I've been their instructor for so long, it's a good time to see how good they are."

"indeed."

Xie Qingyan strongly agreed, "Let's slow down the ship and enter defensive mode. At most, we can send some people to make a show of it... We just need to protect ourselves."

The two looked at each other and burst out laughing at the same time.

To put it bluntly, this is an open conspiracy—it's true that we'll go to sea with you to fight the sea god, but that doesn't mean we'll actually work together as agreed... This isn't just aimed at the Papacy, but also at the royal family.

The reason is quite valid. In the end, we are outsiders, while the Sea God is an internal matter of your Hualan Empire. Even if I turn around and go home right now, what can you say?

And don't spout nonsense like Poseidon is a common threat to everyone. How do you know that without you, we can't beat him on our own?

But the people of the Hualan Empire cannot back down from war. Neither the Papacy nor the royal family can back down. If anyone is cowardly now, no matter the outcome, they will have given others ammunition to criticize them. When they return, public opinion alone will destroy them.

Furthermore, there is something else worth noting: who can be sure that the surging fish tide here means that the Sea God is definitely nearby? To be honest, no one wants to act without seeing the benefits, and it is very annoying to have their strength weakened by small fry... But under the current circumstances, only Xu Shi's side can remain unscathed.

He could also take this opportunity to observe the true strength of the Hualan Empire, especially the Holy See, which he had never had any contact with before.

"Master...he's always been this bad, hasn't he?"

Before Pan Feng could process what he was thinking, Pan Ling immediately understood his idea and then lowered her voice to ask the innocent Xia Ke'an.

"Yes, Dad has always been a big bad guy."

The older woman didn't deny it at all, nodding earnestly like she was pounding garlic.

"What are you saying? Itchy again, huh?"

Unfortunately, the whispers did not escape the ears of the big bad guy, who grabbed the white-haired loli by the back of her collar and pulled her up, questioning her in an annoyed manner.

"Little Ke'an doesn't lie, boohoo..."

Xia Ke'an struggled and tried to get away with it by acting cute.

Xu Shi wasn't buying it and gave her a few sharp raps on the head without any mercy. "Did you bring me out here just to cause trouble? Remember this: if it's really our turn to take action later, you'd better stay in the cabin and not go anywhere, understand?"

"Okay, I understand..."

The older woman rubbed her forehead. Honestly, don't say things like that while you're trying to show you care...

"But don't just sit there, do something for me."

Xu Shi wasn't finished speaking, but he lowered his voice so that no one except him and his beloved daughter could hear him.

"...Okay, I understand."

After he finished speaking, the old lady nodded repeatedly. Although it was the same answer, her tone had subtly changed.

"Then, Xiaofeng, you'll be in charge of their safety?"

Xia Wuyou didn't hear clearly either, but she didn't mind and just continued to give instructions as Xu Shi had said.

Not only is the white-haired loli incapable of fighting, but there's also Pan Ling.

Perhaps Xie Qingyan is also included? She's not very knowledgeable in this area either.

"Don't worry about me, just take good care of these girls."

The slut waved her hand in refusal, "Don't underestimate me, okay?"

Her abilities can still be useful. Now everyone knows that there are also creatures with superpowers among marine life. Xie Qingyan's "ability nullification" can also be used to create a halo effect, which can save everyone a lot of trouble.

"Huh? No way?"

Pan Feng frowned. "I'd rather go to the front lines with you, Master..."

"Definitely next time."

Xia Xiaomao patted her head. "You still need more practice. This time, focus on observing and learning."

"No."

Xu Shi chimed in, "Besides, we don't even know when it will be our turn to make a move. It's not good to be in such a hurry."

"So what do we do now?"

Xu Shi glanced out the window and uttered two words with a smile.

"Watch a show."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the sea began to surge as if boiling.

Amidst the commotion, a large school of fish surfaced and launched a rapid attack on the fleet!

……

"Get ready to meet the enemy!"

Not everyone can remain completely calm in the face of such a situation, just like Xu Shi.

At least the royal court's knight commander surnamed Chen was not; he was already fully armed and ready to go.

He glanced at Xu Shi's fleet and, seeing their half-hearted efforts, couldn't help but mutter a curse under his breath, "Damn it, I knew outsiders couldn't be trusted!"

"You are a Royal Knight Commander. When something happens, do you think of relying on others first?"

Cheng Gujian remained calm, standing with his hands behind his back at the bow of the ship, and sighed softly.

"My lord, I..."

"Save the nonsense for after the war."

Cheng Gujian waved his hand, "Didn't I teach you how to deal with this? Launch the small boats!"

"……Yes!"

The knight commander dared not say anything more and quickly began to make arrangements.

Clearly, Cheng Gujian had anticipated the current situation—Xu Shi and his group would most likely remain on the sidelines and not act until the crucial moment, and they certainly had the stance and the means to do so.

It would be strange if they actually came to be the vanguard... So, instead of denouncing the despicable outsiders, we should pay more attention to the Vatican delegation not far away and overshadow them; that's what we should be doing now.

Before anyone could react, the royal court's troops had already begun their operation. A large number of small boats were launched from the large ships, and the soldiers, in groups of several, formed ranks to meet the oncoming school of fish.

"shooting!"