Above the mage

Chapter 404 The Great Success is Here

It got completely dark.

All that could be seen was pitch black, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. All that could be heard was the sound of rain and water. The surging water crashed against each other like a dense drumbeat, popping and clattering incessantly.

In such a situation, not to mention ordinary people, even magicians with extraordinary powers are no different from blind and deaf people.

Gao De activated his Mandora's Eye, running it at "minimum power" to prevent himself from becoming completely blind, thanks to his extremely high dark vision.

Underwater, the dumpling already showed signs of fatigue.

Its body swayed with difficulty in the swift current, and paddling was already proving quite strenuous.

Even if it were a creature of the earth's veins, dragging a small boat upstream in such a turbulent river would be exhausting.

If it weren't for following Gaode and consuming more flesh and blood from high-level ley line creatures, causing him to develop beyond his normal age, he probably would have died long ago.

Keep in mind that it was just a little over a year old capybara.

Gaode took out the Auckland area map again and glanced at it. The map was shaking violently in the wind, and the wet corners were gleaming. "We should be at the Royal River No. 3 flood control dike ahead."

The Loyal River, the waterway that Gaode is currently traveling on, is also the longest river in the Auckland area.

To protect the cities, villages, and fertile farmland along the Loire River from floods, the people of Auckland built a series of sophisticated flood control dikes.

"Hey, give it your all!" Gao De shouted into the water.

The small boat went even faster.

The closer you get to the No. 3 flood control dike, the louder the sound of the water becomes, until it becomes deafening, as astonishing as thunder.

A huge gap, hundreds of feet wide, appeared before them.

The once sturdy No. 3 flood control dike has collapsed.

The water gushed out of the gap, and even though the height difference wasn't significant, at that speed, the splashing water still created layers of white foam.

The turbid waves rolled and squeezed against each other, carrying large amounts of mud, sand, rocks, aquatic plants, and dead fish, rushing downstream like an earth dragon.

The dough twists and turns in the water, both to resist the current and to avoid the stones in the water.

Gao De's expression turned slightly stern.

He circled and marked the location of flood control dike number three on the map.

Subsequently, based on the course of the Royal River marked on the map, Gaode quickly determined that Yaxi Town would be the first town to be affected by the breach of the No. 3 flood control dike and the resulting flood discharge.

"Tuanzi, turn around." Gao De glanced at the now-defunct No. 3 flood control dike one last time before finally leaving the area.

Tuanzi's physical strength was nearing its limit.

This time, however, it is no longer necessary to go against the current, but to go downstream along the direction of the flood discharge.

Apart from needing to maintain a little balance, it doesn't need to exert any more effort, so it can keep going.

No longer needing to determine the direction, following the current downstream, in just ten minutes, Gaode arrived at a small village belonging to Yaxi Town.

But at this moment, the village was no longer visible; all that could be seen was water.

It was only when the dumpling surfaced and indicated that it had seen the remains of some houses underwater that Gao De was certain that this place had indeed once been a village.

"I wonder how many people from the village escaped." Gao De sighed slightly and continued to drift downstream.

He needed to quickly locate the current refuge of the survivors in Yaqi Creek, and then organize the fleet from Tyrrell to evacuate the victims.

The small boat was violently rocked in the turbulent current.

Gao De had sharp eyes and was closely observing the surrounding scenery.

Ahead, a slightly raised hill caught his attention, surrounded by some thick tree roots.

Gao De immediately ordered the dumpling to move closer to that high ground.

As the distance closed, Gaode could see that the high ground was actually a small mound that had been mostly submerged by floodwaters.

Several large trees originally grew on the mound, but now only half of their trunks are visible above the water, and their thick roots are faintly visible under the impact of the water flow.

Gao De timed it perfectly, and as the small boat approached, he swiftly used his magic to loop the rope around the tree root, then pulled hard, slowly drawing the small boat closer to the mound.

The small boat finally found a place to land and temporarily moored.

The dumpling floated to the side of the boat, and a fish leaped onto the boat, lying there like a dead fish.

I'm exhausted!

A pale green light flowed from Gaode's hand.

In an instant, 10 plump, round berries appeared in his palm.

Gao De handed it to Tuanzi's mouth.

The dumpling stretched out its head, curled its tongue, and swallowed all ten berries in one gulp.

Such high-intensity exercise requires a significant energy replenishment.

During his break, Gaode took out a map and marked the things he had seen along the way downstream on the map while frowning and thinking about his action plan.

In the murky water, besides the dead fish constantly surfacing belly up, Gao De also saw more than one bloated human corpse.

The corpses were pale and their clothes were torn. They floated in the water, a horrifying sight.

The extent of the disaster in the Auckland region this time is far more serious than expected.

The main problem is that the appearance of this super cyclone is completely contrary to the laws of nature. Both the timing of its arrival and the speed of its development and expansion are too illogical, which has led to a further increase in the severity of the disaster.

In just half a day, the Auckland area was turned upside down.

Rest for about half an hour.

Tuanzi also regained some strength, and her limp body showed some signs of life.

Gaode didn't delay any longer and set off again.

In this situation, let's just exhaust all our energy.

It may be tiring, but every extra minute gained could potentially save a life.

Soon after, Gaode finally arrived in Yaxi Town.

The Golden Flower Dynasty was extremely prosperous. As a coastal county, Bailuo County had a strong economy, abundant resources, and rich cultural heritage. Therefore, even in a small town, three- or four-story buildings were quite common.

Standing on the rocking boat, he glanced around and could already see the upper half of many buildings protruding from the murky water.

The buildings had broken doors and windows, and the walls were covered with marks left by the flood.

The walls are broken and the ruins are in ruins, with occasional pieces of furniture that have been washed away.

However, as far as the eye could see, there was still not a single living person to be seen.

Apart from the sounds of wind, rain, and flowing water, there was no other noise around.

Of course, it's impossible that they all died.

"It must have been moved," Gao De thought to himself.

Although the breach of the flood control dike was sudden, local officials, who are used to dealing with cyclones, could not have been unaware of this crisis. They should have considered the possibility of the dike breach after the cyclone made landfall and urgently evacuated the people.

If you don't even take this small step, you won't just lose your own head, but the heads of your entire family.

However, given how sudden the incident was, it would have been extremely difficult to directly relocate a large number of people to a safe area. They were likely only moved to nearby higher ground.

Gao De quickly reviewed the terrain of the Auckland area in his mind—by now, he had the map firmly memorized and no longer needed to frequently look it up.

He quickly determined the most likely place for the residents of Yaxi Town to be relocated.

The Golden Flower Dynasty is all flat terrain, but on the edge of Yaxi Town, there is a naturally formed highland.

It's not big, and it doesn't even have a name, but its terrain is much higher than the plains, which provides a certain level of safety and prevents it from being easily submerged by floods.

According to Gaode's speculation, this unnamed hill should have been formed on an alluvial plain due to long-term sedimentation.

Having confirmed the destination, Tuanzi, who had just caught his breath, started working hard again, pulling the small boat toward higher ground.

The small boat struggled forward amidst the turbulence, pulled by the dough balls.

The bow of the boat would sometimes rise high, almost perpendicular to the water, and sometimes be slammed down, with most of the hull submerged in the water, creating splashes several meters high. It was as if the boat could capsize at any moment under the force of the violent force.

However, after spending most of the day getting familiar with the "job," Tuanzi has gradually mastered the skills and learned to use the power of the water flow.

It's like an experienced sailor, keenly sensing every slight change in the water flow and skillfully adjusting the direction and intensity of its force.

The water was still raging, but the boat's course became increasingly stable thanks to its efforts. It no longer rocked violently and erratically as it had at the beginning, but instead navigated the crests of the waves without any real danger.

But danger lurks everywhere during floods.

Just then, an unexpected change occurred.

The dumpling felt a tremendous force coming from the boat along the ropes tied to it.

This force came without warning and was stronger than anyone could imagine. It was as if a huge force had grabbed its body, causing it to lose its balance and fall into the water.

And that immense force continued, pulling it to shift in one direction.

At first, Tuanzi was able to sway and struggle, but soon it felt the enormous force continuing to grow, making it completely unable to control its body. It watched helplessly as it was pulled by the rope to an unknown place.

In a critical moment.

Standing on the boat, Gao De realized something was wrong and immediately drew his sword to cut the ropes.

Without the rope, the boat beneath his feet spun wildly in the turbulent water like a leaf that had lost its control.

The ship rocked violently, and Gao De stumbled, nearly falling over.

He reacted extremely quickly, disregarding everything else, and immediately cast the [Jump] spell, stomping hard on the ship's deck and jumping outwards.

With a splash, Gao De fell into the murky water.

A powerful suction force came from the water behind, as if a pair of invisible, deadly hands were trying to pull Godra away.

Gao De was not like a dough ball; his strength was limited. Under these circumstances, his body was actually being pulled backward.

Just when things were at their most critical, Tuanzi arrived in time.

It swam down to Gao De's body.

Gao De, who already had a certain understanding with Tuanzi, instantly understood its meaning.

He lay prone on Tuanzi's back, his hands gripping Tuanzi's body tightly.

Meanwhile, Tuanzi struggled with all her might, swinging her body to carry Gaode and desperately escape from the dangerous waters.

call!

Finally, the pulling force behind him disappeared, and Gaode resurfaced to take a breath of air.

Looking back, they saw that the boat had been completely swallowed by the water during a violent spin.

It looks no different from other bodies of water, but in reality, it hides a huge whirlpool undercurrent that has come from nowhere.

The center is bottomless, like a black hole, devouring anything that approaches, which is terrifying.

Having narrowly escaped death, Gao De secretly memorized the location of the whirlpool and undercurrent. He lay prone on Tuanzi's body, gripping Tuanzi tightly in the fierce current, his knuckles turning white from the excessive force.

"Keep going." Gao De issued the command through [Beast Link].

Having come this far, it's impossible to give up halfway just because we encounter danger.

Without the small boat, clinging to the dumpling, Gao De's stamina increased significantly, but without the weight of the small boat, the dumpling's speed also increased considerably.

So in less than a quarter of an hour, Gaode Maps was already close to that unnamed hill.

In the darkness, with rain curtains hanging like a screen, he looked up, rainwater and river water streaming down his cheeks.

With just a squint, Gaode Maps could see scattered lights on the high ground in the distance.

The lights swayed uncertainly in the wind and rain, but they gave Gao De almost certain that the residents around Yaxi Town should all be concentrated on this unnamed highland stretching for nearly a kilometer.

However, as they approached the foot of the high ground, Gao De discovered that things were not peaceful there either.

Below the high ground, the water level is shallower, and there were originally some boats from the town.

It must have been after the flood that local officials assembled a fleet of boats to evacuate dozens of surrounding villages.

These boats varied in size, ranging from simple fishing vessels to slightly larger cargo ships, but they were all surrounded by a group of aquatic beasts and were in a predicament.

The ship was filled with mages, their expressions solemn, fighting and confronting the water beasts.

The water is too dangerous now. Regardless of their swimming skills, even those who are proficient in swimming would not dare to enter the water at this moment.

With the monks hesitant to enter the water and the sky so dark, the water beasts had the advantage of timing and location, and thus gained the upper hand for a time.

The boats were linked together, and hundreds of lights were raised high in an attempt to illuminate the water, but in such bad weather, it was simply impossible.

The monks of Yaxi Town could only make out the outlines of these water beasts underwater by the dim orange light.

These aquatic beasts are strange fish, each more than half a person's length long, and covered with a layer of rough scales.

Its triangular head was sharp and menacing, and its blood-red eyes were incredibly eerie in the darkness.

Their mouths are unusually wide and filled with sharp, inward-curving fangs.

Each fang is like a sharp dagger, with an astonishing bite force when it opens and closes.

These strange fish darted between the ships, launching fierce attacks on them time and time again.

They open their mouths wide, their fangs burrowing into the hull, and then bite down hard. With their astonishing bite force, they can tear off a piece of wood from the ship.

The sorcerers cast spells on the ship to attack the strange fish underwater.

These strange fish either dive into the water in time to avoid the magic attack, or they rely on their rough scales to withstand a magic attack without any problem.

Of course, there are also a few skilled individuals whose spells are so powerful that they directly inflict fatal damage on some of the strange fish.

A cloud of red foam suddenly surged up on the yellowish-turbid water, only to be swept away by the current in the blink of an eye.

Compared to the sheer number of the strange fish, this loss is insignificant.

"These beasts!" The monks on the ship kept cursing, but they knew in their hearts that this was just their own powerless rage.

"If this continues, all our ships will be destroyed. Although they can't land and don't pose a threat to us for the time being, without ships, we're cutting off our escape route. We don't know when rescue will arrive. We evacuated in such a hurry that we didn't have time to take any food!"

Some intelligent people have already realized that the current situation is extremely bad.

"How can we break this deadlock?" they wondered anxiously.

Yaxi Town is just a small town. The most powerful mage in the town is a third-ring mage who led another fleet out this afternoon to search for disaster victims and has not yet returned.

Among the mages who remained on the highlands, the strongest were only second-ring mages, and their numbers were not large; there wasn't even a single dedicated combat mage.

In this weather, in this situation, facing these hordes of aquatic beasts, one truly has no way to use one's strength and is utterly helpless.

"This can't go on!" On the bow of the ship, the temporary leader, the nobleman of Yaxi Town, Knight Hao, felt his heart burning with rage.

He could recognize these strange fish as first-tier aquatic beasts, blackwater sharks.

Normally, as a second-circle mage himself, Knight Hao is naturally not afraid of a mere first-tier water beast.

But the situation is different now.

Firstly, there are too many blackwater sharks, making them difficult to eradicate under harsh weather conditions.

Secondly, these blackwater sharks don't need to harm people; they only need to destroy all their ships, which will be unbearable for them.

What to do, what to do?

(End of this chapter)