Chapter 210 Injured

Chapter 210 Injured

The icy seawater seeped through Lawrence's wetsuit, sending chills down his spine. He turned his head and saw a massive, tooth-filled maw rapidly approaching. Staying calm, he signaled, and the five divers quickly scrambled into the safety cage.

The great white shark charged at the cage, then abruptly swished its tail and changed direction, swimming back and forth in front of the cage as if to warn them. Lawrence glanced down at the whale carcass's belly, where the baby whale was hidden deep inside.

No one spoke as they watched the screen, the tense silence gnawing at their nerves. Alberta kept her eyes fixed on the cage, knowing that while there were sharks outside, the cage itself wasn't entirely safe either.

The fish, agitated by the shark, darted around wildly, creating turbulent currents. The five divers were tossed about in the water, struggling to maintain control of their bodies.

At that moment, a robotic fish in the distance released a packet of blood from its body, and the blood, spreading in the water, created a crimson bloom.

The scent of blood filled the water, driving the great white shark into a frenzy. After a tense wait, the shark was finally lured away, swimming towards the source of the blood.

With the danger temporarily averted, the six locks were quickly undone. The five divers worked together to push down an iron wall and hurriedly returned to the diving pod before the shark could come back.

As the diving pod disappeared from the screen, Alberta relaxed her clenched hands and wiped her damp palms. A faint smile appeared on her face.

Alberta instructed Kurt to continue monitoring the baby whale and quickly left to wait for Lawrence at the diving pod recovery station.

A dull sound echoed from the outer wall of the diving pod.

Lawrence walked to the window and shone a spotlight outside, but saw nothing.

"Probably just a fish bumping into us," Parker said optimistically, standing beside him.

In five minutes, the diving pod would dock with the recovery station. Honestly, this mission had been easier than he expected.

"Stay alert," Lawrence said.

"Got it," Parker replied, looking at Lawrence's stern expression. He couldn't help but say, "If you showed even a tenth of the kindness and patience you show Alberta to others, you'd make a lot of friends."

"I don't need friends," Lawrence said, putting down the light. Suddenly, there were two more thuds: "Thud! Thud!"

This time, everyone realized something was wrong. Finnegan, standing by another window, exclaimed, "It's something big! It's blocking the window, the light can't get through!"

Lawrence's ears perked up, and he quickly turned to look at the window behind him. The seawater he had seen moments ago was now replaced by smooth, dark purple skin, dotted with black spots.

"This color..." Parker began to say, noting the skin resembled that of the bloodthirsty creature they had encountered before. The next second, the view outside changed, and a massive, ugly head with a fist-sized, semi-transparent eye pressed against the glass, startling Parker so much he nearly bit his tongue.

"It's that monster!"

"Damn it, why is it here?"

"Mr. Marshall, it looks like we're surrounded!"

Suddenly, a piercing alarm sounded inside the pod, accompanied by flashing red lights. "Warning, warning! Hull integrity at 90%!"

Lawrence shouted, "Don't just stand there! Gideon, fire the torpedoes! Everyone, prepare to dive!"

The diving pod shook violently from side to side. Lawrence's calm demeanor influenced the others, and Gideon, sweating profusely, quickly fired the only two torpedoes they had. The monster was caught off guard and severely injured, causing a large cloud of dark red blood to explode in the water.

Before they could celebrate, the explosion's shockwave sent the diving pod tumbling. Lawrence crashed into the wall, groaning in pain.

The pod was completely deformed, and seawater began flooding in through several cracks.

"We're less than three hundred feet from the recovery station. We'll swim there," Lawrence said, putting on his breathing apparatus and leading the way out through the damaged hatch.

The murky, blood-filled water made it hard to see, with visibility less than five feet. Lawrence turned on a signal light and attached it to his waist, guiding his teammates as they cautiously moved forward.

A long tentacle suddenly appeared in front of him, drifting weakly with the current, seemingly harmless. Lawrence avoided it carefully and swam ahead for several yards.

Parker and the others followed closely, weaving through the tentacle-filled net.

Dorian calculated the distance in his mind. They had been swimming for a while now; why hadn't they escaped the monster's tentacles yet?

Had Lawrence led them the wrong way? Were they circling the monster?

Dorian slowed down and signaled Lawrence to stop, but Lawrence gestured for everyone to keep moving quickly.

Dorian gritted his teeth and noticed only a few tentacles floating behind him. He decisively turned around. Just as he was about to break through the crimson water, he realized his oxygen tank was nearly empty. He had checked earlier, and it had half its capacity; this rate of consumption wasn't normal!

Dorian quickly discovered his tank was leaking. He hesitated between continuing forward and rejoining Lawrence and the others. Lost in thought, he didn't notice a tentacle silently approaching him.

It wasn't until his leg was ensnared that Dorian snapped back to reality!

The tentacle, covered in suction cups and barbs designed to tear flesh, failed to grip the slippery surface of his wetsuit and angrily flung Dorian away.

All the previously still tentacles began to move, thrashing wildly. The water became even murkier, and Parker could barely see Lawrence's silhouette.

At that moment, Parker realized why Lawrence had been urging them to hurry—the monster was following them!

Finnegan and Gideon stopped anxiously, fingers poised on the triggers of their underwater rifles, scanning their surroundings.

Lawrence returned, and Parker signaled: Are we going the right way? How far to the recovery station?

Lawrence didn't ask about Dorian's whereabouts, indicating they were on the right path, with less than sixty feet to go. He urged them to swim faster.

The four divers set off again, while Dorian, flung away, felt a surge of despair. The next second, his eyes lit up with joy—the tentacle had thrown him close to Lawrence!

The tentacles blocked their path, and the five divers fired back without hesitation. Parker felt the salty water seeping into his mask, his temples throbbing, and an unprecedented sense of danger.

A tentacle whipped towards him at high speed. Instinctively, he turned to dodge, but someone pushed him hard from behind, causing him to crash into the tentacle.

Blood blossomed from Parker's left shoulder, and the excited tentacle immediately wrapped around him.

Parker struggled with his weapon, his movements growing weaker, his vision darkening, and his body wracked with pain.

Just as he thought he was doomed, a familiar figure cut through the bloody water and rushed to his side.

It was Lawrence.

Parker felt a glimmer of hope, but as he began to smile, he saw a dozen tentacles suddenly appear behind Lawrence, surging towards his back.