The Storm Has Stilled...

Navigating between the two giant worms was no easy task.

Especially when the two creatures were only five to six hundred meters apart, it felt like dancing on the edge of a knife. A slight misstep, and it would be catastrophic! Constant attention was required on their positioning and the impact of the storm on the ship's movements.

Lucas Hall kept his nerves taut, weaving in and out. After eight hours of sailing, there was a pile of vitality coconuts scattered around his feet.

The coconut juice had a refreshing effect that lasted for 24 hours, but the vitality coconuts didn't have that limitation. However, drinking them repeatedly would cause diminishing returns and a bloated stomach.

Thanks to this, Lucas felt like a machine, still at around 70% energy, though only he truly knew how miserable he felt.

"How far to the exit?"

Lucas' resolve wavered for a moment.

But his iron-willed determination quickly kicked in, and he shook his head, not allowing himself to dwell on the question, and pushed forward.

His private message channel kept lighting up with messages of gratitude from other players.

Over this time, many players had escaped the storm's grasp.

Their ships were generally slower and had been blocked by the giant worms near the exit.

After Lucas' advice, they'd found their courage, judged the distance, and managed to charge through.

As a result, many players had sent their thanks in private messages.

Of course, some players had been unfortunate and got eaten by the worms, but dead players couldn't send messages, so Lucas was unaware of those fates.

At the same time, Lucas learned some valuable information from the private messages.

The area near the exit was considered a buffer zone, spanning about fifty nautical miles, where there were no giant worms, and the storm was much calmer.

So, if he saw a large patch of open sea with no black dots, it meant the exit was close!

Lucas kept his eyes glued to the crystal ball.

There was no such sea in a hundred nautical miles—there would always be some worms scattered about…

The Nightmare was one of the faster ships, and with the help of the map, it should have been close to exiting by now…

Three more hours passed.

Finally, Lucas spotted a vast expanse of sea without any black spots on the crystal ball.

It was as if it had been erased with an eraser—clear and noticeable, about 80 nautical miles away from the Nightmare.

"Seraphina, we're almost there!" Lucas said, excitement in his voice.

However, she didn't share his relaxed joy. Instead, she reached out and seemed to sense something.

"Do you feel like the storm is dying down?"

Lucas immediately grew alert at her words.

Up until now, the sea storm had acted as a protective shield for the stranded ships.

If the storm weakened… it meant the range of perception for these giant worms would expand, and they would soon be fully active again!

Lucas quickly checked the weather forecast.

Today's Weather

The storm is subsiding. Surprised?

Location: Origin Sea (Storm Sea Region)

Sunlight Duration: Unknown

Temperature: 12-18°C

Wind Speed: Force 9

Sure enough, the storm had weakened. Lucas remembered that when he woke up earlier, the wind was Force 10!

And the sky didn't look as dark as before—it was gradually brightening.

Lucas had been so focused on sailing that he hadn't noticed the subtle changes until now, and a cold sweat broke out.

If this continued, the wind would soon drop to Force 8, then 4, and eventually 1.

By then… the giant worms would reveal their sharp fangs and tear apart all the ships in their path!

"Full speed ahead!" Lucas nearly shouted, immediately changing their route from cautious to aggressive.

He was now only about 80 nautical miles from the buffer zone. Rather than continue to cautiously dodge, he decided to take the shortest possible route, even if it meant higher risk!

Because no one knew when the storm would stop!

But Lucas was certain… this acceleration would come faster than expected, and it would inevitably lead to an attack by the giant worms!

So he had to move as quickly as possible!

After another hour of sailing, the Nightmare finally reached the edge of the buffer zone, with less than 40 nautical miles to go.

The density of the worms here was significantly lower.

But the wind had already dropped to Force 4, which almost didn't hinder the worms' perception anymore.

Curses flooded the world chat.

Though it was only a small handful of players, their mouths were running like honey, cursing the system like crazy.

"Fcking system!"

"Sht!"

"The worms found me! I'm f*cked…"

"Ahhhhh!!"

The same thing was happening on Lucas' side.

Two giant worms were trailing him, and the distance between them was closing.

He couldn't fathom how these worms managed to move so fast in the water with their long, segmented bodies!

Seraphina also noticed the impending danger and quickly ran to the stern.

"What are you doing?" Lucas shouted.

"I'm going to release the Starlight's claw hook. That will buy us some time!"

"That…"

Lucas was surprised but didn't stop her.

It was a smart move.

The giant worms lacked visual organs, so they would likely attack the uncrewed Starlight, which could delay them for a while.

But this meant Seraphina would be left without a ship…

He couldn't worry about that now—escaping was the top priority!

Seraphina decisively released the Starlight's claw hook.

The Starlight was already slower than the Nightmare, and without the hook, it quickly fell behind and became the prey of the two giant worms.

The worms weren't allies, and they fought over their prey.

This gave the Nightmare a chance to flee, and it quickly put distance between them.

But Lucas didn't relax.

With the Starlight gone, the crystal ball in his hands wouldn't show the map anymore.

He could only rely on his memory.

He remembered that there was one more giant worm ahead, and they had to face it head-on!

This route was the best option for Lucas!

Had he chosen another route, there wouldn't have been two worms tailing them—it would have been dozens!

Better to face one head-on than to be hunted down by many!

"Seraphina, you take over the helm. Just maintain course!" Lucas said with a serious tone. "If I tell you to jump into the sea later, do not hesitate. Jump immediately, and don't stand there like an idiot!"

Seraphina nodded and took the wheel.

Lucas stepped forward and stood at the prow of the ship.

The Nightmare had no weapons, and in the face of the giant worms, it was defenseless—just a sitting duck.

But Lucas didn't believe he could simply dodge their attacks through luck.

He was going to take a gamble—to see if the worm was tough enough to withstand his shot, or if his prized flintlock pistol was powerful enough!

He donned a sharkskin diving suit and stood at the front of the ship, preparing for battle.

Soon, a dark shadow appeared ahead.

Once they passed this shadow, the buffer zone would be relatively safe.

Lucas switched his flintlock to cannon mode and sneered.

"Come on, let's gamble!"

Without the storm interfering, the worms' sense of perception was unusually sharp. One of them quickly locked onto the Nightmare and swam toward them.

Lucas' nerves were on edge, and his grip on the gun tightened, making his fingers turn white from the strain.

He wasn't a sharpshooter by any means.

So he needed to be sure of the distance to ensure a hit.

There was only one shot—failure… and death!

As the giant worm approached to within 300 meters, Lucas could finally make out its size.

Its diameter was about three meters, which wasn't very large compared to other worms, but its length stretched about forty meters on the surface of the sea.

It lowered its body and charged straight at them, opening its four razor-sharp jaws, gleaming coldly like an executioner's guillotine, aiming to cleave the Nightmare in half with a single strike.

"Seraphina, jump into the sea now!"

Lucas barked the order, simultaneously aiming his gun at the worm's head.

He could clearly see the creature's mandibles—two rows of bristles, similar to arthropod limbs, curling in like a spider's mouthparts.

These limbs could shove their prey into its mouth, where the dense rows of sharp teeth would grind it to pieces.

And their target was the Nightmare.

Facing this life-or-death moment, Lucas managed to stay calm, taking deep breaths to steady himself.

He gazed at the worm, so close he could almost smell the briny, fishy scent emanating from its body…

And that meant their distance was now dangerously close!

Only about ten meters!

This was it!

Lucas pulled the trigger.

Boom!

The immense recoil sent Lucas flying backward, and his right arm, holding the gun, went numb from the strain, crashing into the ship's captain's cabin.

The gunshot was deafening, as if it were the roar of civilization itself, challenging the forces of nature.

Its power was monstrous, no less than that of a cannon.

The shot struck the giant worm's head, causing it to explode on impact.

Its mandibles and skull fragments flew into the air, scattering across the sea.

But the worm wasn't done—it still collided with the Nightmare.

[The Nightmare has been hit directly. Durability -600. The ship is breaking apart...]

The already fragile Nightmare was torn into two pieces by the worm's impact...