NFBE Chapter 53
Chapter 53
Heading east,
Time passed second by second, and the monster essence's duration decreased second by second.
After searching for about five minutes, Yu Wang found nothing.
He only saw vast stretches of star-shaped seaweed carcasses and even more sea urchins. The number of reefs was also increasing, meaning he was approaching the edge of the seaweed field; beyond that lay the deep waters and the edge of the instance.
Survivors are not allowed to wander around freely in the instance except for the mission area.
"Were they really all eaten?"
Yu Wang felt a slight unease, having already prepared himself for the worst.
When the "Monster Essence" effect has only three minutes left,
"Gah!"
Duck B, who had been quietly lurking among the sea urchins, suddenly let out a quack!
It stopped in a corner of a reef almost completely covered by sea urchins, and made urgent "caw" sounds towards a place where sea urchins were gathered, as if indicating something.
Yu Wang's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately swam over!
But upon closer inspection, a problem was discovered: there were simply too many sea urchins clinging to the reef! They practically filled the space around the crevices, their spines creating a dense canopy, leaving no room to step on or get close enough to observe them.
DuckB isn't afraid of being pricked, but he's made of flesh and blood.
Only from a distance could one observe, and vaguely see a narrow, dark slit, half a meter long and about the width of three adult fingers held together, in front of Duck B.
At a crucial moment, the things he had specially returned to the "Little Yellow Duck" to retrieve came in handy!
Yu Wang retrieved the giant lobster head, which reeked of a strong fishy smell, from his storage space. He quickly swam to a relatively open sandy area nearby and casually tossed the lobster head aside!
The rich aroma of meat spread rapidly with the flow of water!
With meat to eat, who would want to gnaw on half-rotten seaweed?!
Yu Wang was surprised to learn that these seemingly clumsy and slow sea urchins could run so fast when tempted by food!
The sea urchins on the rocks and sand turned around, waving their spines, and rushed toward the lobster's head! The scene was like a swarm of starving black beetles pouncing on honey.
In less than a minute, most of the sea urchins on the target reef were attracted away, revealing the rough surface of the reef and the narrow crevices below.
Only two or three sluggish or distant ones remained lying in place, but they could no longer stop Yu Wang from approaching to observe.
The monster essence has less than two minutes left to expire.
Yu Wang swam faster and peered into the crevice.
Got it!
Inside the crevice, there is a small cavity!
At the bottom of the cavity, a small clump of plants with a peculiar shape, star-shaped leaves, and a faint red glow are growing!
Star-shaped seaweed! And it's alive!
The only entrance to the cavity is this gap, less than three fingers wide. While the gap controls the sunlight, it also prevents the seaweed inside from being eaten.
Just as elation welled up inside him, the practical problems immediately confronted him.
The gap was too narrow. Yu Wang tried and found that his hand could not reach the "starry seaweed" at the bottom of the cavity at all. It was even more impossible for Duck B with its short arms and legs.
The long handle of the crab claw harpoon is fine, but it's very easy to damage the clump of seaweed inside.
Unless absolutely necessary, Yu Wang is unwilling to take this risk.
At this point, he noticed several large pebbles at the edge of the crevice, which did not seem to be very firmly embedded. The surrounding rock structure also appeared somewhat loose due to water erosion and the attachment of sea urchins.
Perhaps we could try widening the gap?
Yu Wang tried to use the long handle of the harpoon to carefully find a fulcrum that wouldn't damage the seaweed, and pried off one of the rocks that looked the loosest.
The stone is wobbling slightly; there's hope!
But just then, a prompt rang in Yu Wang's mind.
The effect of "Monster Essence" has ended!
Almost simultaneously, the area around the lobster's head, as well as the few sea urchins nearby that hadn't yet been attracted away, regained their senses of Yu Wang, the intruder who had suddenly appeared!
Their thorns began to stand up and tremble!
"It's too late!" Yu Wang's eyes flashed sharply.
Without hesitation, he took out the other half of the diluted [Monster Essence], pulled out the stopper, tilted his head back, and gulped down the thick, foul-smelling, dark green liquid inside!
Glug—!
A viscous liquid with the smell of rotting flesh slid down my throat.
The first half of the liquid had already entered my stomach, but the second half was still stuck in my mouth, causing a strong feeling of nausea!
Fortunately, it was diluted, and with some effort, it still slid smoothly into my stomach.
[You have consumed 'Monster Essence' (diluted)! Spirit -10! Sanity -30!]
[You have gained a temporary buff: Strength +1, Speed +1, lasting 1 minute!]
Because it's diluted, the duration is halved, but the negative effects are not weakened at all!
The intense mental shock and the dizziness caused by the sudden drop in rationality instantly overwhelmed me!
But at the same time, a violent sense of power suddenly erupted from my limbs and bones! My muscles seemed to swell instantly, and veins appeared on my arms!
"Roar—!" Yu Wang let out a suppressed roar that made the bubble helmet tremble slightly, and his eyes turned slightly red.
At this moment, his strength and speed increased once again!
Strength: 4.76+1+1
Physical fitness: 6.05+1
Speed: 5.8 + 1 + 1
All 6.76 points of power are unleashed!
He no longer hesitated, gripping the long handle of the crab claw harpoon with both hands like iron pincers, his whole body muscles tensing, and he exerted force suddenly!
"Open it!!"
With a silent shout, he unleashed astonishing power from his arms! The harpoon handle deformed!
"Crack! Boom—!"
He actually managed to pry the reef, along with the loose rocks around it, off the rock face!
Gravel and dust instantly filled the air, and the gap at the entrance was widened into a gap large enough to accommodate his entire arm!
The clump of star-shaped seaweed emitting a faint red glow inside the cavity was now fully exposed!
Yu Wang suppressed the discomfort of his reason plummeting, held the edge of the gap tightly with his left hand, and with his right hand as fast as lightning, he reached into the cavity, spread his five fingers, grabbed the clump of about seven or eight star-shaped seaweed plants, along with a small amount of mud and sand at the roots, and pulled them out!
The supple grass stems felt cool to the touch in my palm, and a faint red light seeped through my fingers.
[Successfully harvested: 8 Starry Seaweed!]
Become!
Almost at the same instant that Wang succeeded, the sea urchins that had been startled and returned from the lobster's head shot out their spines!
"withdraw!"
Without lingering in the fight, Yu Wang instantly retracted the Starlight Seaweed into his storage space and stomped hard on the rocks!
With the temporary boost to his speed attribute, his body shot off like an arrow towards the small wooden boat on the distant sea!
Duck B reacted extremely quickly, letting out a "quack" as it followed behind Yu Wang.
Using the same tactics employed during training in the West Zone, he moved back and forth, using his body to block Yu Wang's vital head area.
Yu Wang used all four limbs, unleashing all his potential, and swam toward the small wooden boat not far away!
"Whoosh! Whoosh whoosh—!"
Behind him, several poisoned thorns, trailing eerie blue afterimages, grazed his calves and sides, leaving behind a trail of fine bubbles.
Wherever they went, more sea urchins were alerted and joined the chase!
[Temporary buff 'Strength +1, Speed +1' Remaining time: 00:15...]
The countdown is rapidly approaching zero! The berserk power and speed boost from the drug's effects are quickly fading.
The following are the strong side effects of taking "Monster Essence": nausea, dizziness, and a slight sense of distortion in the surrounding environment after a sharp drop in sanity.
"Hang in there...we're almost there!" Yu Wang gritted his teeth, forcing himself to ignore the discomfort, his eyes fixed on the wooden boat in front of him!
Five meters... three meters... one meter!
"Splash—!"
He suddenly burst through the water!
Almost simultaneously, both hands gripped the gunwale of the small wooden boat! Yu Wang didn't even have time to catch his breath. With the last bit of strength in his arms and his waist and abdomen, he tumbled and crawled into the cabin!
"Clang clang clang—"
Several thorns shot onto the wooden boat, their tips almost piercing through the planks.
Not long after, Duck B arrived late, carrying twice as many thorns as before it went into the water, and was pulled back onto the boat by Yu Wang.