Those enormous crimson eyes resembled two searchlights hanging in the abyss.
Even through the screen.
The terrifying pressure from the top of the food chain still made the air in the control room freeze.
Li Ruobing, who had been mocking the unlucky souls turned into mincemeat outside, now unconsciously held her breath, her fingers clutching the gun turning pale.
"Is this... the final boss?"
Yao Qian trembled as she hid behind her sister.
On the screen.
The thing moved.
As its massive body swayed slightly, terrifying undercurrents stirred visibly in the deep waters.
The originally turbid water was churned, revealing its true outline.
It was a whale.
But definitely not any known species of whale on Earth.
Its body length was estimated to be over three hundred meters.
Covered entirely in thick, metallic black bone armor.
Especially its head.
It wasn't rounded flesh, but a massive, jagged ram-like bone structure, even adorned with wreckage of several sunken ships like medals casually hung.
"Gulp."
Someone swallowed audibly.
The sound was particularly loud in the deathly silent control room.
"Analyze the data."
Qin Yu narrowed his eyes, a faint glimmer flashing deep within his pupils.
[Scanning target...]
[Interference from high-concentration energy magnetic field detected, scanning progress slow...]
[Scanning complete]
[Target: Abyssal Demon Whale (Mutated Entity)]
[Level: SS]
[Status: Dormant/Awakening]
[Abilities: Deep Sea Pressure, Bone Armor Ram, Sonic Oscillation, Devouring Evolution]
[Weakness: Unknown (Extremely high defense from surface bone armor, immune to conventional physical and energy attacks)]
"SS level..."
Qin Yu looked at the data on the panel, the habitual playfulness fading from the corner of his mouth.
This was his first time seeing a living SS-level creature.
The S-level Zhang Nanhai from before would probably be insufficient to even fill its teeth gaps compared to this thing.
"Yu Ge, are we taking it on?"
Li Ruobing licked her dry lips, the fighting spirit in her eyes suppressed but not extinguished.
She was a madwoman.
The stronger the prey, the more it stirred the brutality in her bones.
She patted the A-grade pulse laser gun she had just acquired.
"This thing packs a punch. Combined with the battle suit and these grenades we have, we should be able to blast it open, right?"
Qin Yu looked at her as if she were an idiot.
"Blast it open?"
He pointed at the bone armor on the demon whale's back on the screen.
"Yao Xue, zoom in on that area."
Yao Xue immediately complied.
The image closed in.
They could see that embedded in the black bone armor were not only shipwrecks but also several massive torpedoes.
The kind of heavy torpedoes used by old-era submarines.
But.
They hadn't exploded.
Instead, they were stuck like rusty nails in the crevices of the bone armor, without even leaving a dent.
"See that?"
Qin Yu's voice was calm.
"That thing can withstand even heavy torpedoes."
"Do you think that water pistol in your hand would even make it flinch if you tickled it with it?"
Li Ruobing froze.
Though arrogant, she wasn't stupid.
Against defenses that could withstand torpedoes, their personal weapons would barely qualify as polishing tools even if they emptied all their ammunition.
"Then what should we do?"
Li Ruobing slammed her gun onto the console in frustration.
"Leave a treasure trove empty-handed? This is an SS-rank monster! Whatever it drops would absolutely be divine artifacts!"
"Moreover..."
Yao Xue spoke up, pointing at a data bar on the edge of the screen with a furrowed brow.
"The labyrinth's defense system can't reach there."
"This shows the deepwater zone below is a 'non-defense coverage area.'"
"Meaning those Gatling firewalls that shredded Zhao Gang's team don't exist there."
"Not even laser grids."
This was awkward.
If they were on land or in shallow waters,
Qin Yu might have been able to use the labyrinth's mechanisms to deal with the beast.
But in deep water,
that was its domain.
Once underwater, even with his S-Rank Battle Suit, Qin Yu's mobility would pale against this three-hundred-meter leviathan.
A single graze from it,
or one swipe of its massive tail,
would mean certain annihilation.
The S-Rank Battle Suit had impact absorption limits.
Against SS-rank brute force, the suit might survive, but the person inside would be pulverized.
"Brother Yu, maybe... we should give up?"
Yao Qian whispered, her legs trembling just from looking at those crimson eyes.
"We've already obtained the core control hub. This trip has been plenty rewarding."
Qin Yu remained silent.
He stared at the screen, fingertips lightly tapping the desk.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Give up?
Those words didn't exist in Qin Yu's dictionary.
Letting an SS-rank care package slip away would haunt his dreams.
But this was indeed a tough nut to crack.
A direct confrontation would shatter their teeth.
"Individual combat won't work."
"Labyrinth defenses won't work either."
Qin Yu's mind raced.
Suddenly,
his gaze fell upon the golden [Labyrinth Control Hub].
A wild, audacious plan began taking shape.
The corners of his lips curled into that smile that made even Li Ruobing's spine chill.
"Who said we have to fight it here?"
Qin Yu turned away from the terrifying beast on the screen.
"This place is too cramped. No room to maneuver."
"If it's a whale, it should swim in the ocean."
The three women stared blankly.
"In the ocean?"
Yao Xue caught on first, adjusting her glasses as shock flashed in her eyes.
"You're thinking of..."
"Luring it out?!"
Qin Yu snapped his fingers.
"Bingo."
"Correct, but no prize."
Qin Yu approached the console, planting his hands on the surface, eyes sharp as blades.
"This labyrinth ruins are about to close."
"When the mist disperses, this area will return to the sea."
"Then the shackles restraining this beast will disappear."
Li Ruobing still didn't understand.
"What's the point of luring it out? Won't it move faster in the ocean?"
"And we'd be at even greater disadvantage out there!"
"Who said anything about close combat?"
Qin Yu looked at her as if she were a fool, rapping his knuckles against her helmet.
"Use your brain."
"What are we?"
"Refugees?"
"We have a warship!"
His voice carried immense confidence.
"My 'President' is still docked outside."
At the mention of the "President," Li Ruobing's eyes instantly lit up.
That wasn't just a ship.
It was Qin Yu's sea fortress, built with countless resources!
After several rounds of expansion and upgrades,
the current "President" was no longer the small raft it once was.
The firepower it carried...
"You plan to bombard it with the ship's heavy artillery?!"
Li Ruobing was so excited she nearly jumped.
"Right! Why didn't I think of that!"
"Our ship is loaded with heavy firepower!"
"No matter how thick its hide is, can it withstand saturation bombing?"
Qin Yu sneered.
"Isn't it fond of devouring?"
"Then I'll let it eat its fill."
"I refuse to believe its appetite is good enough to digest my armor-piercing rounds."
"Yao Xue."
Qin Yu immediately issued orders.
"From now on, adjust the maze's drainage system through the control hub."
"Gradually raise the water level in the lower layers."
"Pave a way out for this big fellow."
"Understood!"
Yao Xue began operating at once.
"Li Ruobing, gather all the explosives Zhao Gang and the others dropped earlier, plus all our remaining high-explosive mines."
"What for?"
"Making bait."
A glint of cunning flashed in Qin Yu's eyes.
"You can't go fishing without bait, right?"
"Since this thing is a Mutated Entity, it must be sensitive to energy."
"Tie those Rank A mechanical cores to it as well."
"I'm going to create an 'irresistible delicacy' to hang at the maze exit."
"Once it catches the scent and comes out..."
Qin Yu made a chopping motion with his hand.
"The President's artillery has been thirsting for action."
...
Ten minutes later.
Maze exit.
Qin Yu held a large waterproof cloth bundle
stuffed with high-explosive mines and several Rank A cores emitting enticing energy fluctuations.
He stood before the silver door.
From deep within the maze behind him came muffled, low roars.
The water level had begun to rise.
The demon whale that had slumbered for who knows how long was awakened by the sudden change in water flow.
It was restless.
It craved freedom and blood.
"ROAR——!!!"
An ancient-sounding roar echoed through the passage.
The entire maze trembled slightly.
Dust rained down from above.
"Getting impatient already?"
Qin Yu hung the "bait" on a hook by the entrance.
He set up a delayed release mechanism.
"Don't rush."
"The main course is yet to come."
After completing these preparations,
Qin Yu dusted off his hands and turned to the three women who stood ready.
"Retreat."
"Back to the ship."
"Prepare to receive our distinguished guest."
...
Meanwhile.
The external fog had begun to thin.
The thick gray curtain that had enveloped the sea surface was gradually dissipating.
Through the clearing visibility,
a massive warship resembling a steel behemoth could be seen
anchored calmly on the sea surface in the distance.
This was Qin Yu's "President."
It loomed larger and more imposing than all surrounding vessels.
On both sides of the ship, the dark muzzles of cannons reflected a chilling gleam under the sunlight.
Especially the massive S-grade main cannon at the bow—the [Deep-sea Guardian] Plasma Cannon.
"Hah..."
Seeing his ship, Qin Yu finally let out a long sigh of relief.
The nerves that had been constantly tense inside the labyrinth finally relaxed somewhat.
"Being back on my own ship feels more secure."
Li Ruobing jumped onto the rescue speedboat, starting the engine while glancing back at the labyrinth entrance slowly sinking beneath the sea.
"Yu-ge, will it really come out?"
"It will."
Qin Yu stood at the bow, the sea breeze rustling his clothes.
His gaze remained fixed on that stretch of ocean.
"A predator of that caliber."
"Once it catches the scent of blood and energy."
"Even if hell lies ahead, it will charge out."
"And we."
"Are the ones sending it to hell."
The speedboat cut through the waves, rapidly approaching the "President."
Just as they stepped onto the deck—
"BOOM!!"
The ocean behind them suddenly erupted.
The dissipating Mist Ruins seemed torn apart from within by some tremendous force.
Countless structural debris was hurled into the sky.
Then.
A suffocatingly massive black dorsal fin slowly broke the surface.
Like a small black island.
Seawater cascaded from the gaps in its bony armor, forming countless waterfalls.
"ROARRR——!!!"
An ear-shattering whale cry instantly swept across the entire sea.
The shockwaves created massive swells that even rocked the "President" several kilometers away.
"It's out!!"
Yao Qian covered her ears in terror.
"Heavens... it looks enormous even from this distance..."
Under the sunlight.
The true form of this SS-grade Abyssal Demon Whale was even more awe-inspiring than it had appeared on screen.
It wasn't just about size.
It was a pure, primal aesthetic of violence.
It opened its colossal mouth and swallowed the "bait" Qin Yu had left behind in one gulp.
Along with hundreds of tons of surrounding seawater.
"BOOM!"
The bait detonated inside its mouth.
But for a monster of this size, the explosion felt like popping candy.
Apart from making it pause momentarily, it caused no damage.
Instead.
The smell of explosives enraged it completely.
Those crimson giant eyes instantly locked onto the only large target on the sea surface—the "President."
It could sense it.
That ship carried a scent it despised.
And also contained the powerful energy reaction it craved.
"SPLASH!"
The demon whale's massive tail fin slammed against the sea surface.
Its three-hundred-meter-long body shot forward like a torpedo, cutting through the waves as it charged toward Qin Yu's position!
The speed was astonishing!
Behind it stretched a white wake several kilometers long.
"It's coming!"
Li Ruobing shouted, rushing toward the secondary cannon control station.
"Perfect timing!"
Qin Yu stood on the command platform, completely unshaken.
His hand rested steadily on the main cannon's firing lever.
The great battle.
Was about to begin.