"Target… target life signs have disappeared!" Simmons stared at the data that dropped to zero in an instant, her voice trembling with disbelief.
Before anyone could even properly breathe out, Dr. Fitz suddenly pointed at the ocean below and shouted, "Look! What is that?!"
The sea monster's massive corpse didn't sink into the deep. Instead, it floated on the surface in a bizarre way.
Even more chilling—those dark-purple energy threads that had been coiling around its body hadn't dissipated. They gathered like living creatures, twisting and converging until they formed a huge, complex, three-dimensional rune above the corpse, radiating a gloomy, sinister light.
The rune's shape was warped and ancient, exuding an indescribable evil and ominous presence.
"This… this is the same origin as the runes we found beneath that abandoned church…" Dr. Fitz's voice was filled with shock—and a trace of fear. He immediately adjusted his instruments, aiming a high-precision camera at the floating rune. "The energy readings are abnormal! It's… it's actively absorbing some kind of surrounding energy field, and… it seems to be sending a guiding signal toward a specific direction! Like… like a beacon!"
"Guiding?" Phil's expression turned grim. "Guiding what?"
"Something… far stronger! The energy reaction is continuously increasing!" Fitz's voice rose sharply.
As if to prove Fitz right, the sea—just barely calming after the monster's death—began to churn violently again!
This time, it wasn't just one.
It was dozens!
They were much smaller than the previous giant—about the size of a truck—but their forms were even more grotesque, and their movements were terrifyingly fast. Like black lightning, they tore through fog and waves, launching suicidal charges from every direction toward the Quinjet—and toward Saitama hovering near the sea monster's corpse!
Some spewed the same corrosive liquid from their mouths. Others swung razor-sharp bone blades, slicing through seawater.
"Hostiles! Large numbers!" Clint's arrows were already in flight.
Natasha's energy pistol spat fire.
The Quinjet's defensive weapon systems activated as well, unleashing dense barrages across the water's surface.
Saitama frowned slightly. These smaller sea monsters weren't much of a threat individually, but there were too many, they were too fast, and they attacked from every direction—making it impossible to wipe them all out instantly.
His body moved like lightning, weaving through the corrosive spray and bone-blade strikes. Every time he flickered, another small sea monster was shattered into chunks by his fist.
"Protect the aircraft!" Saitama's voice came clearly through the comms.
He became an unbreakable shield, intercepting most of the sea monsters charging the Quinjet. His movements were so fast they left afterimages. Every punch was precise and lethal, blowing apart the attackers midair.
Yet even while clearing these annoying mobs, Saitama's gaze never left the eerie rune slowly rotating above the sea monster's corpse.
Fitz's words echoed in his mind—"guiding a stronger force to descend."
What secret was hidden behind this rune?
Was it pointing to the same source as the runes from the church ruins?
A heavy question rose in Saitama's heart.
"We have to go down!" Fitz's voice came through the channel, more urgent than ever. "The source of the rune's energy fluctuations is on the seabed! That guiding signal points straight down! Readings show there's a huge, artificially constructed energy source down there—very likely the clue we're looking for!"
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For 20+ Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!] [[email protected]/Draumel]
[Thank You For Your Support!]