On the other side.
Leaning against the cabin door, watching a group of sailors orderly carrying out Beidou's commands, Bai Luo felt a sudden, inexplicable chill.
Was someone thinking about him?
But none of that mattered now. The immediate crisis demanded his attention.
"Ready the ship's ballistas! Ready the cannons! Combat units, cover the merchant ships! Have the merchant ships retreat first!"
Beidou watched the dark clouds, now looming close at hand, and calmly issued each command.
Currently, Osial was still suppressed at the bottom of the sea, and the Guizhong Ballista had not yet been repaired, so Beidou's ship only had the most traditional ship's ballistae and cannons.
She never expected these weapons to be able to harm the monster within the black clouds. When she had faced Haishan, these things had at most served as a distraction, unable to truly injure the fish-dragon.
What's more, this newly appeared creature was even more powerful than Haishan had been.
Honestly, if this were the past, Beidou would have charged into those dark clouds one way or another and engaged the monster inside in a man-to... well, a tomboy's battle.
But time had not only allowed her strength to settle and deepen; compared to before, she had also matured considerably.
When she had dealt with Haishan back then, she had made thorough preparations, and the ship was crewed by her most elite sailors.
This time was different. Their original purpose was to transport goods; they had only encountered this thing by chance.
Furthermore, many of these sailors were ordinary people with no experience fighting these giant sea beasts. To rush into a head-on confrontation with the opponent... the risk was too great.
"Rumble—"
Thunder, carried by a hurricane, raged within the black clouds, and the monster's body became more and more visible.
Beneath the dark surface of the water, its terrifying dorsal fin could be faintly seen. Its slippery body was devoid of scales, instead covered with veins resembling elemental organs, and it emanated a faint blue light.
"Another fish-dragon? No... it's a sea serpent!"
Relying on her experience, Beidou identified the sea monster's true nature.
She had encountered serpentine sea monsters before, but this was the first time she had seen one so ferocious.
What was most astonishing were the elemental veins on its body.
Because apart from elemental beings, it was very difficult for other creatures to develop elemental organs.
Humans also relied on Visions to manipulate elemental power.
In that case, the origin of this great serpent was worth investigating.
"A sea serpent? The Great God Orobashi of Watatsumi?"
Upon hearing Beidou's words, this name suddenly popped into the mind of Kaedehara Kazuha, who was standing beside her.
But he quickly dismissed it.
Orobashi had long since died under the Raiden Shogun's blade. He had seen its chilling white bones, which made one's spine tingle even in broad daylight. It was absolutely impossible for it to be resurrected.
If this truly were Orobashi, it would either have come to negotiate with them or have destroyed the fleet outright. Why would it be so slow and deliberate?
The wind grew stronger, and whirlpools even began to form on the surface of the water.
A rotten, fishy smell spread, lingering over the entire sea.
The sailors who had battled on the sea for years were fine, but the new sailors and the merchants hoping to make a fortune in Inazuma couldn't bear it.
Especially those sailing for the first time.
They were already feeling unwell due to seasickness. Now, with this stench, a chorus of vomiting could be heard throughout the fleet. Some were even on the verge of throwing up bile.
"Fire! Drive it back!"
The ship's ballistas and cannons were already prepared. Following Beidou's command, several warships began to unleash their firepower.
The strongmen chanted as they turned the capstans, drawing the ballistae's bowstrings taut.
Crossbow bolts as thick as an arm were placed on the ballistae and, with Beidou's command, were all fired.
The roar of cannons and the thrum of bowstrings were incessant.
Eventually, the rotten, fishy smell on the sea was covered by the smell of gunpowder, but the results of the battle were not very optimistic.
After the crossbow bolts and cannonballs were fired into the black clouds, there was no feedback whatsoever, as if some invisible great mouth had swallowed them all.
Seeing this, Beidou basically understood what was happening.
"Sea Drake."
"Captain."
Hearing Beidou call his name, the helmsman Sea Drake swallowed and responded.
Was he afraid?
Of course, he was afraid. Although he was one of the sailors who had followed Beidou to vanquish Haishan, this unknown sea serpent was much stronger than Haishan had been.
Haishan had at least inspired them to fight.
But this sea serpent...
Just looking at it, Sea Drake's legs couldn't stop trembling.
Even if his will was firm, it was difficult to control his body's instinctive reaction.
"Look at you, so pathetic. And you call yourself Sea Drake. You might as well call yourself Sea Worm."
"Captain, I was just..."
"Alright. Take a few new sailors and go to the other ships first to escort the merchant ships away. As for the route... we'll deal with that after we get rid of this sea serpent."
Letting the sea wind whip her cape, Beidou picked up her wine jug, took a huge swig, and spoke.
But in this wind and rain, whether she was drinking rainwater or wine was unknown.
"Captain! I won't go, I want to stay!"
Sea Drake had followed Beidou for so long that they had a certain tacit understanding. He could naturally guess what she intended to do.
He couldn't leave.
"You are the best helmsman on the Alcor. I'm more at ease entrusting those ships to you. Besides, do you think I will lose?"
She threw the empty wine jug directly into the sea and, holding the greatsword on her shoulder in one hand, Beidou declared with heroic spirit.
At the age of nine, she had dared to have the thought of slaying Haishan.
At the time, everyone had laughed at her, but to everyone's surprise, she later actually did it.
Now... facing this sea serpent, she could do it too.
Because she was Beidou! The Dragon King of these seas!
"I understand."
Sea Drake suddenly calmed down, and his constantly trembling legs gradually recovered.
This was the sense of security an excellent leader brings to her subordinates. Even if what they faced was a demon god on the level of Rex Lapis, as long as they followed this figure, they would dare to charge into even a dragon's den or a tiger's lair!
After receiving the order to retreat, all the ships except for the Alcor and two other warships turned around and sailed in the opposite direction.
Just as Beidou had said, a new route could be planned at any time. The most important thing now was to survive.
And the way to survive was to get away from this sea serpent.
The sea serpent also noticed the movement of the ships. It swept forward with thunder and dark clouds, wanting to bypass the Alcor and chase after the merchant ships.
Because compared to the very few humans on the Alcor, the larger fleet was a more attractive target.
But Beidou would not let it have its way.
"Hear my call, O thunder! I shall hew and destroy Haishan!"
Purple lightning coalesced on the Blackcliff Slasher, forming the image of a fish-dragon. Beidou leaped high into the air and struck at the giant serpent in the sea.
Just as she had once struck down Haishan.
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