Boom—
The President shattered the final layer of burning waves.
It had completely entered the icy, pitch-black deep-sea zone.
Its target was the fragment of the Ocean Soul Crystal Mother six hundred nautical miles away.
Inside the bridge, a deathly silence prevailed.
Only the monotonous beep… beep… of the omniscient radar broke the quiet.
"Brother-in-law."
Yao Qian suddenly spoke, her voice trembling slightly.
"The radar shows an ultra-large-scale energy reaction four hundred nautical miles ahead."
"It's not a sea beast."
"It's a fleet."
Qin Yu frowned.
"A fleet?"
"Yes!"
Yao Qian's fingers flew across the keyboard, switching the feed to the main screen.
"The numbers are enormous!"
"And… they're all red names!"
Red names.
Under the rules of the Wasteland Era, this meant hostile players carrying extremely high Plunder Value.
"Open the Regional Channel."
Qin Yu ordered coldly.
Zzzzt—
As soon as the channel connected, a cacophony of harsh, grating noise instantly flooded the entire bridge.
The screen was filled with foreign tongues, interspersed with broken, stilted Chinese.
Qin Yu watched the revelry on the screen.
His gaze turned utterly icy.
"I see."
"That Executive Officer hiding in the background realized he couldn't wear me down with monsters."
"So he issued a zone-wide bounty."
"Sharing my coordinates in real-time with all global zones."
He turned to look at the radar screen.
Around the light point representing himself, densely packed red dots were frantically converging.
Like a pack of hyenas that had caught the scent of blood.
From all directions.
A net closing in from heaven and earth.
"Fuck their mothers!"
Qi Chun's furious curse came through the communicator overhead.
"These damn foreigners!"
"Usually, they run like scared rabbits from sea beasts, but now, seeing a bounty, they all come crawling out to play the big shots?"
"Brother, what do we do?"
"There are too many of them!"
"Initial estimates suggest over a hundred warships of S-Class or above alone!"
Qin Yu didn't speak.
He lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.
The ember's glow flickered in the dim bridge.
"Li Ruobing."
"Here!"
Li Ruobing gripped the heavy alloy pipe wrench with both hands, her knuckles white.
"Go to the lower hold. Move all the reserve fuel and high-explosive materials onto the deck."
"Yao Xue."
"Get your scalpel ready."
"Today."
"We're taking no prisoners."
Qin Yu exhaled a plume of smoke.
"Since they want to trade my head for the bounty."
"Then I'll use their ships as nourishment to level up my System!"
At that moment.
Yao Qian, who had been staring intently at the screen, suddenly gasped sharply.
"Brother-in-law!"
"The Huaxia Region… the Huaxia Region channel is exploding!"
Qin Yu was taken aback.
He looked down at the secondary screen.
Countless familiar IDs had suddenly flooded into the global channel, which had been spammed by foreign players.
[Huaxia Region Channel]
[Zhang San (Zone 9527): Bullshit! If you want to touch Big Bro Qin, you'll have to get through us in the Huaxia Region first!]
[Li Si (Zone 1102): Back at the start, when I was almost dying of thirst, it was Big Bro Qin's affordable water that saved my life!]
[Wang Wu (Zone 7788): Even if every last person in the Huaxia Zone dies out, we won't stand by and watch our own people get bullied by foreign dogs!]
[Zhao Liu (Zone 999): Brothers! The coordinates are public! Anyone close to Boss Qin, full speed ahead!]
[Sun Qi (Zone 001): I may only have a piece-of-shit tin can boat, but I've got my life!]
The words on the screen scrolled by too fast to see who sent them.
But every single character bled with an unyielding ferocity.
"These idiots…"
The hand holding Qin Yu's cigarette trembled violently.
He immediately snatched the communication microphone.
Switched to the Huaxia Zone's full-frequency broadcast.
"Everyone!"
"This is Qin Yu!"
"Stop right the fuck where you are!"
"The fleet opposite is the main force from the major regions! Their firepower is something you can't withstand!"
"This is my personal grudge with the game!"
"No one is allowed to come here and throw their lives away!"
Qin Yu's furious roar echoed through the channel.
But.
No one listened.
Only one sentence came back in reply.
[Wang Qiang (Huaxia Region Solo Player): Boss Qin, you taught us that to survive on this sea, you have to fight, you have to kill.]
[But deep in our bones, we Chinese.]
[Still know two words.]
[Repaying a debt.]
"Beep—!"
On the radar screen, a blinding burst of green light suddenly erupted.
Green tags.
Allied Faction.
Quantity: Uncountable.
"Brother-in-law…"
Yao Qian covered her mouth, tears falling pat-pat-pat.
"They… they're here."
Qin Yu snapped his head up, looking out the porthole.
On the distant horizon.
The pitch-black sea area that had been blockaded by the foreign allied forces.
Began to light up.
It was the light of searchlights.
One.
Ten.
A hundred.
A thousand!
Countless beams of light tore through the deep sea's mist.
What kind of fleet was this?
No orderly formation.
No unified paint scheme.
Not even decent armor.
Some were large rafts cobbled together from wood.
Some were modified fishing boats welded with rusty sheet metal.
Others were simply assault boats with a few oil drums strapped on!
They surged in from all directions.
Like a torrent of steel flowing against the current.
Crashing headlong into that blockade line formed by top-tier foreign warships!
"BOOM!!"
The first deafening crash of impact rang out.
A dilapidated fishing boat from the Huaxia Zone, without slowing, without turning.
Slammed directly into the side of an American Region S-Class Cruiser.
"CRACK!"
The fishing boat shattered.
But.
"Huaxia Zone 9527, Designation 007!"
"Boss Qin! I'm going on ahead!"
"Blow!"
A piercing, desperate roar transmitted through the public channel, echoing across the entire scene.
From deep within the shattered fishing boat, a blinding red light flared.
It was a full hold of Inferior Black Powder!
"KABOOM!!!"
A massive fireball soared into the sky.
Directly blasting a huge hole in the once-arrogant American cruiser.
Seawater flooded in.
The cruiser began to list.
But this was only the beginning.
"Huaxia Zone 1102!"
"Coming to support Boss Qin!"
"Ram them!"
Dozens of small boats, like a pack of frenzied wolves.
Charged into the enemy's dense artillery fire.
Even as they were blasted to pieces.
Even as the people on their decks were torn into bloody mist.
They still clung fiercely to the enemy's warships.
Not retreating a single step!
"They're insane…"
"These Chinese are all fucking insane!"
In the channel, the voices of the foreign players who had been boasting moments ago had completely changed tone.
They couldn't understand.
Why would these bottom-tier players who can't even afford a full meal...
risk their lives for a fleeting set of coordinates?
"Weren't they here for the bounty?"
"Why aren't they firing at Qin Yu?"
"Retreat! Fall back now! They're all launching suicide attacks!"
The defensive line was thrown into chaos.
The once tight encirclement was torn open by these "mud-legged" players from the Huaxia Zone—using their lives as the price—ripping a gap over ten nautical miles long!
"Brother-in-law..."
Yao Xue's hand trembled as she gripped the scalpel.
She watched the bursts of flames erupting outside the window.
Her usually icy eyes were completely reddened.
Tears and fury mingled in Li Ruobing's eyes.
She slammed her fist against the bulkhead.
"Those foolish boys!"
"Who told them to throw their lives away like this!"
"Qin Yu!"
"Set sail!"
Li Ruobing turned her head, glaring fiercely at Qin Yu.
"Go slaughter all those foreign dogs!"
Qin Yu stood rooted to the spot.
The cigarette in his hand had burned down to his fingers.
But he felt no pain.
He watched the dilapidated ships sinking one after another, all to clear a path for him.
He listened to the voices over the comms, each with their own regional accents, calling out "Boss Qin."
His heart, hardened like iron by the apocalypse...
shook violently.
In this cannibalistic Wasteland Era...
he had always believed that only by being strong himself could he survive.
He saw everyone as NPCs.
As expendable resources.
As loot to be plundered.
But today...
these scattered Huaxia players he had treated as expendable...
taught him a lesson with their flesh and blood.
What it means...
to be the backbone of a nation.
"Alright."
Qin Yu flicked away the cigarette butt.
He tore off his tactical jacket in one swift motion.
Revealing a muscular, scar-covered torso beneath.
His eyes gleamed with an intimidating intensity.
"Since our brothers have paved the way..."
"Then today..."
"I'll lead you all..."
"to kill to our hearts' content!"
Qin Yu shoved the console aside.
Turning, he strode toward the cockpit door.
"Yao Xue, Yao Qian."
"Take over the ship's helm!"
"Max out all power furnaces!"
"Don't worry about wear and tear!"
"Follow the gap our brothers tore open!"
"Ram right through it!"
"Yes!"
The two sisters shouted in unison.
"Ruo Bing!"
Qin Yu grabbed the Kiss of Death hanging on the wall.
"Grab your gear."
"Follow me to the deck!"
"I've been waiting for this day!"
Li Ruobing hefted her heavy alloy pipe wrench and strode after him.
"Qi Chun!"
Qin Yu roared into the communicator.
"Brother's here!"
Above, all the searchlights on the Floating Fortress blazed to life.
"Stop turtling up in the sky!"
"Drop altitude to ten meters for me!"
"Link up with the President's fire control system!"
"Any ship marked red..."
"as long as it's in sight..."
"blast it to pieces!"
"Received!!"
Qi Chun's voice turned hoarse from sheer adrenaline.
"Floating Fortress descending!"
"Main cannon charging!"
"Today, we wipe out these foreign trash!"
"Vroom—"
The President let out a roar like an ancient behemoth.
The ion thrusters at its stern erupted with blinding blue flames.
The massive metal hull surged forward at a terrifying speed that defied the laws of physics.
"Boom!"
Amid the deafening sound of crashing waves.
The President plunged like a black sword.
Straight into the heart of the battlefield.
At the forefront of the deck.
Qin Yu stood tall and straight.
Facing the salty sea breeze and the hail of artillery fire.
He didn't use a scope.
The Kiss of Death in his hands.
Was held steady at his hip.
"Clear the way!"
Qin Yu barked coldly.
"Bang!!"
The shot pierced forth like a dragon!
A bullet imbued with the Absolute Penetration Effect tore through the air, leaving a visible trail of blue energy.
It directly penetrated the command center of an S-Class Ironclad Ship flying the American Region flag, located three nautical miles ahead.
"Pfft!"
Both the personnel and the command console.
Instantly vaporized.
"Tenfold Gravity!"
Qin Yu willed it.
"Boom—"
Before the wreckage of the ironclad ship could even explode,
it was flattened by a terrifying Gravity Field.
Like a crushed soda can, it instantly sank to the seabed.
"Beautiful!"
Li Ruobing stood slightly behind Qin Yu.
A rope secured her to the ship's railing.
Watching the enemy warships drawing closer and closer,
the heavy alloy pipe wrench in her hand was practically trembling with anticipation.
"Brothers of the Huaxia Zone!"
Qin Yu switched on the external broadcast.
Giant loudspeakers carried his voice across the entire sea.
"Fall back to both sides!
Clear the central channel!
Your support, I, Qin Yu, acknowledge it!
As for the rest.
Leave it to me!"
Hearing this voice,
the Huaxia Zone players, who had been locked in a desperate struggle, erupted into earth-shaking cheers.
"It's Boss Qin!"
"Boss Qin's warship is here!"
"Quick! Clear the channel!"
Whoosh—
Countless dilapidated fishing boats and Rafts,
like soldiers obeying inspection,
swiftly dispersed to both sides.
Amid the chaotic battlefield,
they forcibly opened up a straight, clear waterway leading straight into the heart of the enemy forces!
At the end of the channel,
twelve A-Class Destroyers were lined up in a row,
flying the flags of the Middle East Zone and the Nordic Zone.
"Stop him!"
"He only has one ship!"
"Concentrate fire!"
Hysterical commands crackled over the enemy channel.
Twelve main cannons
simultaneously aimed at the [President], charging forward at high speed.
"Concentrate fire?"
Qin Yu sneered.
He glanced up at Qi Chun in the sky.
"Blast them."
"Roger that!"
Qi Chun yanked the control stick hard.
The belly armor of the Floating Fortress hovering in mid-air suddenly opened,
revealing rows of pitch-black cannon barrels
pointed directly at the twelve destroyers below.
"Taste my Matrix Artillery!"
"Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat—"
Tongues of fire spat forth!
A dense barrage of shells, like a metallic downpour,
instantly blanketed that stretch of sea.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Amid the chain of explosions,
the twelve A-Class Destroyers didn't even get a chance to fire their cannons
before being blown into burning scrap metal!
"Holy shit!"
"That firepower!"
"Is Boss Qin's warship a monster?!"
The Huaxia Zone players on both sides were stunned.
The defensive line they had paid for with their lives
was like paper in front of Qin Yu!
"Continue forward!"
Qin Yu didn't even spare a glance at the sinking ships.
The President plowed through the burning wreckage,
continuing its deep thrust forward.
Closer and closer.
Radar showed that the coordinates of that [Ocean Soul Crystal Mother] fragment
were now less than fifty nautical miles away!
But at that moment,
the sea surface suddenly churned violently.
Not ships.
But...
Sea beasts!
"Rooooar————"
Accompanied by an ear-splitting roar,
three deep-sea behemoths, each over a hundred meters long,
burst forth from the depths, breaking through the water's surface.
They blocked the President's path directly ahead.
[SS-Class Corrupted Leviathan]!
[SS-Class Ironclad Frenzy Shark]!
[SS-Class Abyssal Tentacle Monster]!
Three SS-Class overlords!
And their eyes...
Everything was dyed an eerie blood-red.
"It's that backstage Executive Officer!" Yao Xue urgently called out in the channel.
"He forcibly rewrote the Aggro Mechanism of these three BOSSes!"
"They're not here to eat people—they're here to act as meat shields!"
Not only that.
Behind these three BOSSes.
An enormous black battleship.
Slowly emerged from the mist.
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