As someone in sequence 001, I also want to give up today.

The Pacific Ocean, deep in the Mariana Trench.

This is a place known to humans as the "deepest part of the Earth".

At a depth of 11,000 meters, in eternal darkness, the pressure is enough to crush steel into thin sheets.

There was no light, no sound, only the dull, sigh-like vibrations from the earth's crust moving.

That was true at least until 3 a.m. on October 31.

Then, that thing woke up.

There was no warning, no prelude to energy fluctuations; it was as if it had always been there, only that humans had never noticed it.

The first to detect the anomaly was the "Deep Abyss 7" monitoring buoy, which was suspended 300 meters above the trench.

This cost is equivalent to the cost of sophisticated equipment for a destroyer.

Equipped with the world's most advanced energy sensor array, its original mission was to monitor the residual energy in the "Abyss Singer" seal site.

At 3:07 a.m., all the instrument pointers inside the buoy simultaneously jumped to their maximum values.

It didn't climb slowly; it exploded in an instant.

Temperature sensors showed that the surrounding seawater rose by 15 degrees Celsius in 0.3 seconds—not just locally, but as a whole within a 500-meter radius of the buoy.

The pressure sensor recorded three shock waves that were very close together and in completely opposite directions.

It looked like some enormous creature was turning over under the seabed.

The data transmitted back by the sonar array is even stranger:

A huge sound source suddenly appeared at the bottom of the trench, with an estimated volume of over three kilometers in diameter.

Then, the sound source began to rise.

Speed: 80 meters per second.

Direction: Vertically upward.

Target: Sea surface.

The buoy's main control AI completed the threat assessment within 0.5 seconds, concluding that it was "SS-level - report immediately".

It was indeed reported.

All data is packaged and sent to seventeen pre-set receiving terminals via a quantum-encrypted channel:

China's Supernatural Abilities Bureau, the Western Alliance's Supernatural Response Department, the Arctic Federation's Anomaly Management Bureau...

Then, the buoy disappeared.

It wasn't destroyed, it wasn't sunk, it "disappeared".

In the last transmitted footage, the seawater around the buoy suddenly became clear and transparent.

It's as if all the suspended particles, microorganisms, and minerals were instantly "stripped away" by some force.

Immediately afterwards, the buoy itself began to disintegrate.

It wasn't an explosion, but rather like a sandcastle being blown away by the wind.

It gradually transforms into the most basic particles and dissipates into the seawater.

The total time from the occurrence of the anomaly to the disappearance of the buoy was 4.2 seconds.

---

China, Beijing, the underground command center of the Supernatural Abilities Bureau.

3:12 AM.

The piercing alarm ripped through the stillness of the night. It wasn't an ordinary alarm; it was the highest level, "Sky Rift."

This alarm has only sounded twice in the seventy years since the General Administration was established:

One was the landing of an S-class alien beast in the East China Sea thirty years ago, and the other was the awakening of the "Abyss Singer" ten years ago.

This is the third time.

The command center was instantly illuminated.

All off-duty personnel were awakened by the emergency call system and rushed to their posts in their pajamas and with messy hair.

No one complained, because everyone knew the significance of the "Crystal Shattering" sound.

On the main screen, the latest data from "Abyss 7" is scrolling.

Next to it is a satellite surveillance image—in a certain area of ​​the Pacific Ocean, a huge, irregular black shadow is rising from the deep sea, leaving the sea surface eerily smooth like a mirror wherever it passes.

"Confirmed."

At the control panel, a pale-faced young technician spoke in a trembling voice.

"Energy reading...exceeds the current range limit. Overall assessment: SS level."

The command center fell into a brief silence.

SS level.

These two letters do not represent "very strong" or "extremely strong".

Rather, it is a mobile natural disaster that, theoretically, should not exist within Earth's biosphere and is capable of unilaterally rewriting the continental plate structure.

The last confirmed SS-class alien beast was the "Abyss Singer," which awakened in the depths of the Pacific Ocean ten years ago.

If 004 ​​hadn't predicted it three years in advance, allowing S-class superhumans worldwide to deploy resources ahead of time and seal it away at a heavy cost.

There may no longer be any human cities along the Pacific coast.

This time, however, there was no warning whatsoever.

"Code name".

Zhou Zhengguo, sitting in the center of the command platform, spoke, his voice so calm it didn't sound like he'd just been woken from a dream.

"Tentatively titled 'Echoes of the Abyss'."

The technician operated quickly.

"Based on energy characteristic comparison, it has a 67% similarity to the 'Abyss Singer,' but... it's more 'pure.' Like..."

"Like what?"

"Like the complete form of 'Abyss Singer'."

The technician struggled to articulate this conjecture.

"Or rather, the 'Singer' might just be the...infant, or clone of this thing."

Zhou Zhengguo's pupils contracted slightly.

He recalled the fierce sealing battle ten years ago.

Twenty-three S-class warriors participated in the battle globally; seven were seriously injured, three suffered permanent damage to their ability cores, and one... died in action.

Is that only dealing with a "larva"?

"Predict the route of travel."

He commanded.

A holographic map unfolds on the screen.

A scarlet dot of light emerged from the Mariana Trench, extending upwards in a straight line—15 degrees due west and north.

This line first passes through a chain of islands, and then, twenty-four hours later... arrives at the coast of the East China Sea.

Where is it going?

Someone asked in a low voice.

"unimportant."

Zhou Zhengguo stood up.

"The important thing is that it must never be allowed to get close to the mainland."

He looked at the first landmass the red line on the map passed through—a string of island nations arranged in an arc, with a total area of ​​about 370,000 square kilometers and a population of 120 million.

If "Echoes of the Abyss" lands there...

"Contact the island's Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

Zhou Zhengguo gave the order.

"On behalf of the China Supernatural Abilities Bureau, a top-level warning has been issued. Content: An SS-class alien beast is expected to arrive in the eastern waters of your country in seven hours. It is recommended to immediately activate a national state of emergency and evacuate the coastal population."

"yes!"

"at the same time,"

He took a deep breath.

"Activate the third phase of the Great Wall Protocol. Notify all registered S-class ability users—state of war, stand by immediately."

Once the order was given, the command center began operating at maximum efficiency.

The encrypted communication channel connects to seventeen major global organizations with supernatural abilities, enabling the sending of data sharing requests and the retrieval of joint action plans...

During this process, the black shadow on the satellite monitoring screen had risen to 3,000 meters below the sea surface.

Its true appearance was finally captured by a high-altitude reconnaissance satellite.

It is not a living organism.

It is at least not a living organism in the traditional sense.

It was a huge, irregular geometric shape.

Its surface is covered with a constantly flowing dark blue luster, like liquid metal or condensed seawater.

Its shape is constantly changing.

Sometimes it stretches out like a shuttle, sometimes it unfolds like a fan.

However, the core area always maintains a spherical region with a diameter of about 800 meters.

Inside that spherical region, satellite thermal imaging showed a temperature... close to absolute zero.

minus 268.2 degrees Celsius.

The seawater within 500 meters of it has a temperature of 95 degrees Celsius.

Extreme cold and extreme heat coexist in a way that defies the laws of physics.

"The energy reading has risen again."

The technician's voice was filled with despair.

"It is still accelerating... The current estimated time of arrival in the eastern waters of the island nation is 5 hours and 47 minutes."

It was an hour faster than before.

Is this thing learning? Is it adapting?

Nobody knows.

---

At the same time, all the major supernatural organizations around the world received the final data from "Abyss 7".

Western Alliance, Brussels, the underground command center of the Supernatural Response Department.

"My God..."

An elderly man with white hair, dressed in military uniform, was looking at the screen when his coffee cup fell to the ground and shattered.

"Another one?"

"Sir, China has sent a request for joint action."

"Approved! All approved!"

The old man practically shouted it out.

"Tell them we'll mobilize all available forces! The Sky Fortress fleet has already taken off—though I don't know if those things will be effective against SS-class ships!"

During the Battle of the Abyss Singer, the Western Alliance deployed three carrier strike groups and launched over two hundred missiles of various types. Result: All ineffective.

The energy field of an SS-class alien beast is powerful enough to distort the laws of physics, rendering conventional weapons ineffective before they can even get close.

Ultimately, it was only by sacrificing his life to detonate the power core within its body that a sealing window was barely created.

And this time...

"How many S-class destroyers do we have left to deploy?" the old man asked.

The staff member was silent for a few seconds: "We need at least three people to stay on the mainland, and five people cannot be recalled for overseas missions... We can mobilize a maximum of four people."

"Four..."

The old man closed his eyes.

"Inform them to prepare for...sacrifice."

"Yes."

---

Arctic Federation, outside Moscow, Anomalous Phenomena Management Bureau.

The reaction here is more direct.

A middle-aged man wearing a heavy military overcoat and with a scar on his face stared at the screen for ten seconds before turning and walking toward the armory.

"Chief Yuri, where are you going?"

"Pacific Ocean."

Yuri didn't even turn his head.

"Get me the fastest plane."

"But the order from headquarters is—"

"The General Administration's order is 'standby'."

Yuri pulled open the heavy iron door of the armory, inside which were displayed various specially made equipment.

"My order is: keep it off the coast of others before it gets close to our shoreline."

He took down an oversized sniper rifle with a barrel as thick as a wrist and slung it over his shoulder.

"But Chief, you're all alone—"

"Who said I wanted to be alone?"

Yuri grinned, a smile as ferocious as a wild beast's.

"Signal the 'Ice Wolf' squad. Tell them it's time to hunt."

The Ice Wolf Squad is the Arctic Federation's most elite supernatural combat unit.

All members are A-level, and the team leader is an S-level member who is among the top fifty in the sequence.

They are known for their fearlessness and valor.

But facing SS-class...

No one dared to imagine the ending.

---

An island nation, Tokyo, the underground shelter of the Prime Minister's official residence.

An emergency cabinet meeting was held at 4 a.m.

"...In conclusion, the credibility of the warning from the Chinese side is extremely high."

The Defense Minister turned pale.

"Their 'Abyss Seven' buoy transmitted complete data before disappearing. That thing... was indeed approaching us."

"scale?"

The Prime Minister asked, his voice remaining relatively calm.

"Preliminary estimates suggest that if it releases all its energy in the nearshore waters, the resulting tsunami could be enough to inundate the entire Kanto Plain."

The Defense Minister paused.

"Moreover, its energy field will interfere with all electronic devices. Our missiles, fighter jets, and even communication systems... could all malfunction."

The conference room was deathly silent.

"What about the superhumans?"

The Prime Minister asked, "Can our kamikaze troops stop it?"

The Defense Minister remained silent.

The Kamikaze Force, the strongest superhuman unit in the island nation, boasts two S-rank and seventeen A-rank members. They are considered elite in East Asia.

But facing SS-class...

"We need help."

The Defense Minister finally said.

"We have sent emergency requests for assistance to China, the Western Alliance, and the Arctic Federation. China has indicated that it will provide full support, and their S-class ships are currently assembling."

"And the cost?" the finance minister asked astutely.

"It wasn't explicitly stated."

The Defense Minister shook his head.

"But... this level of aid can't be free."

The Prime Minister closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.

He knew what the price would be—to completely side with China in future international affairs.

They may have to make concessions on the allocation of supernatural resources, and even... relinquish some sovereignty.

But compared to the destruction of the nation, these costs seem acceptable.

"Approve all aid requests."

The prime minister opened his eyes, his gaze resolute.

"In addition, we will launch the 'Cherry Blossom Project'."

All the cabinet members' expressions changed drastically.

"Prime Minister! The 'Cherry Blossom Project' is a last resort—"

"This is the final moment."

The Prime Minister interrupted him.

"If that thing lands, if all aid fails... we must at least let the world remember that this nation fought to the last moment."

"Project Cherry Blossom" - When the country is about to fall, all A-level and above ability users gather and launch a suicide attack by self-destructing their ability cores.

In theory, enough A-class self-destructions would be powerful enough to severely injure or even kill S-class alien beasts.

But facing SS-class...

Nobody knows.

The meeting ended in a somber atmosphere.

---