National destiny: Starting with a coffin, building an aircraft carrier is broadcast live globally.

"It's an illusion."

Klaus couldn't tell whether he was relieved or terrified.

He first picked up Renyi's arm and spun it around—

It's intact.

Then I checked the Newton again and found that there was no mud on it at all; it was as clean as if it had just come out of the factory.

Aurora's hands glowed with a soft white light, but Sita was unharmed and did not wake up. She had no choice but to help Sita up and let her lean against the wall of the cabin.

Ethan belatedly realized...

My scalp feels a little tight.

It feels like something is stuck to the top of my head. It's not heavy, but it's soft and seems to be moving.

He raised his eyelids and looked up, his eyes meeting those of a yellow blob.

Those two black bean-like eyes curiously sized him up.

"Clatter".

Two tentacles drooped down.

Ethan's pupils slowly focused and dilated—

"what!"

Ethan shook his head violently, and the ball of something flew out with a "whoosh," only to be caught steadily in Renyi's hand.

Little Nine rolled around in Renyi's hand, then pointed its tentacle at Ethan with a wronged expression, complaining.

"Oh my God!"

Ethan, still shaken, smoothed his hair.

The once meticulously styled slicked-back hair was now a mess, torn apart by the yellow creature, which also seemed to have left behind some mysterious slime!

"Stop ripping him," Ivan grinned, gloating. "If you keep doing that, you'll end up with a bald patch!"

Klaus shook his head seriously, "No, octopus mucus is rich in protein, natural and additive-free, and theoretically it's good for hair."

Ethan: "..."

The unexpected small theater performance eased the tense atmosphere, but everyone knew in their hearts that the crisis was not over yet.

They didn't even know when they fell into the illusion just now.

Ivan recalled the tactile sensation of slashing in the illusion; it felt so real that his fingertips were still numb. He rubbed his face vigorously.

"It was only because the boss blocked it quickly..."

"If that shot had landed squarely, we might not be able to get out!"

Bro, that chop of yours was definitely a solid one.

He could silently grumble to himself without any expression on his face.

[What? Did Ivan just beat up his teammates in the illusion?]

[There are only so many tricks to illusions!]

[Based on my experience as a bookworm for ten years, the boss you defeat in the fantasy world might be a major lifeline for someone in reality...]

[Why didn't Xiao Jiu enter the illusion? Species discrimination! (doge)]

Hallucinations may seem real,

However, once you realize something is wrong and look closely, you'll find it riddled with errors. So, aside from the possibility of making them fight each other, the main purpose should still be—

procrastination.

He casually held Xiao Jiu up in front of him.

This little guy has been restless ever since they woke up. His tentacles sometimes seem to be directing traffic, and sometimes they twist into big waves like Squidward.

"Hmm?" Ren Yi raised an eyebrow. "You said there's something going on?"

Xiao Jiu nodded frantically, jumped onto the deck, quickly climbed to the ship's side, and stretched out its tentacles to slap the green water.

"Splash... splash..."

Renyi walked up to Xiao Jiu and looked down at the river. His reflection was mirrored on the green water, and he looked perfectly normal.

If you could zoom out to a height high enough to overlook the river, you would see a truly chilling scene—

In the middle of the wide expanse of water, their boat looked like a fallen leaf on a pond.

And beneath the fallen leaves...

It was a dark shadow that almost filled the river channel, winding its way along the riverbed, closely following the small boat.

If this is a horror movie,

The background music that broke the strings (Sarone's Last Stand) should be played here.

The director should give everyone a slow-motion close-up of their faces with dilated pupils and cold sweat dripping down their temples, and the last person shown on camera should be the first cannon fodder to die.

Unfortunately...

【The Ocean Era】is not that fancy.

So the only sound at the scene was Ivan swallowing hard, "gulp..."

It was a feeling that was hard to describe.

It's like when you're washing your face alone at home late at night, your face covered in foam, your eyes closed, ready to rinse it off, and the hairs on the back of your body stand up one by one, feeling a chill from the indescribable, unsettling sight of someone peeping at you from the side.

Ivan nearly broke the oar in his grip, but he didn't even dare to breathe too heavily:

"...If I were to row with the same effort I would put into navigating a minefield... is there any hope for us?"

"Theoretically, there is hope."

Klaus glanced at the water's surface, which was gradually darkening and then revealing patterns.

Then I quickly looked away, no...

I feel nauseous!

Ivan's face turned green: "And what about in reality?"

"Actually?"

Arbitrary states are strange.

Facing west, his forehead was covered in a fine layer of sweat, as if he were doing something extremely energy-consuming.

He could sense the situation of the [Deep Sea Shadow], but simply sensing it wasn't enough. He tried to actively contact and connect with it, but it was always like looking at flowers through a fog.

never mind......

Enduring the stinging pain in his mind, he joked:

"I suggest you strike a cooler pose."

"After all, this is our first time dining at a restaurant of this caliber—"

Before he could finish speaking...

The boat, which had completely stopped drifting, began to spin in place, as if the water surface was being scooped up from below by a basin of water.

Hold on tight!

Klaus's Newton transformed into a hinge dozens of meters long, binding several teammates and the boat together as a makeshift safety harness.

Immediately afterwards, the small boat was like a rubber duck being swept into a sewer.

"My God! What is this—"

A gaping maw shoveled up from the bottom of the water. All they could see was a blood-red fleshy wall covered with tiny, barbed teeth. The next second, all the light disappeared.

"Smack."

The sound of mouths closing came from above.

"ah--!"

"May God bless us..."

"Wuhu!"

"..."

The boat, about ten meters long, slid down the esophagus of this unknown creature, with only the sounds of splashing water and thuds of collisions filling the air.

I don't know how long we were falling, but just when I started to feel nauseous, the bottom of the ship finally shook as it hit the seabed.

"Bang!"

"Click."

The bottom was soft, muddy flesh, but due to the excessive impact, the bottom of the boat was severely damaged, and it would sink if it were to be swept away by another wave of water.

It was pitch black all around, and the air was even hotter and more humid than a tropical swamp.

"Are you all alive?"

The speaker was Renyi, and his voice still sounded steady and calm.

"...Something slippery just now...touched my face...ugh—" Klaus's voice rang out.

"Snapped!"

"Those are my legs!"

"It...it touched me again!"

"Mr. Klaus, it's Xiao Jiu." Aurora took the angry Xiao Jiu and then made herself glow to act as a human-shaped light source.

"Oh, that's all right now."

He retrieved the chains and transformed them back into wrench shapes.

Using the light, the group surveyed their surroundings. Just as they had imagined, it was a cavity inside a living organism.