Something was wrong!
The two of them quickly ran toward the helicopter. They had to leave this place as soon as possible.
Fu Sizhe had a helicopter pilot’s license. Although they did not know why the glaciers were melting, they would be safe once they got into the helicopter.
Li Yiyi remembered that in the book, Fu Sizhe had followed Jiang Jibai to the research station that morning and taken the flight back with him.
It seemed that her arrival had changed the plot.
The thermometer showed 3°C, and the number was still climbing. Cracks were appearing in the ice beneath their feet from time to time.
They did not have much time left!
Finally, they saw the helicopter parked on higher ground in the distance. Just as Li Yiyi was about to head toward it, Fu Sizhe raised a hand to stop her.
“Leave this place. We’re going to get the inflatable boat.”
Li Yiyi was puzzled, but then she heard a loud bang.
A huge chunk of glacier broke away from the ice peak and crashed down, landing directly on the helicopter’s wing and the spot where she had been standing moments earlier.
Fragments of ice landed at her feet, and Li Yiyi could not help feeling a lingering fear.
Now, the only way for them to leave the island was by inflatable boat.
The situation was far from optimistic. The inflatable boat was parked on the ice. The once-impenetrable sea ice had become thin, and unknown creatures beneath the ice kept striking it. The ice could break apart at any moment.
Fu Sizhe was 187 centimeters tall and weighed 76 kilograms. The ice could not support his weight. He looked at Li Yiyi. She was the only one who could try.
Li Yiyi was a little frightened, but she had no other choice. This was their only chance of survival.
They had no rope. Fu Sizhe grabbed her right hand.
“Take it slowly. I’ll hold on to you.”
Li Yiyi placed her right foot on the ice.
Crack!
A fissure spread beneath her foot. She took a deep breath, lowered her center of gravity, and slowly climbed onto the inflatable boat.
She started the engine and broke through the remaining ice. Only then did she finally see the creatures beneath the ice.
Krill.
They were larger than her palm.
Fu Sizhe saw them too. “These krill are abnormally large.” He wanted to take a few back with them.
“Don’t touch them!” Li Yiyi said urgently.
These krill had already mutated. But that was nothing compared to what would happen later. Given more time, they would grow to an enormous size.
Li Yiyi did not know how to explain it to him. He would only believe her if he saw it with his own eyes.
Li Yiyi had lacked exercise for a long time. She had been running behind Fu Sizhe the entire time and had been frightened several times. Now she felt as though she could barely catch her breath.
“Why do you look so pale? I’ll drive. Stand up and walk around slowly. Don’t sit down right after running.”
Li Yiyi obediently stood up and walked around inside the boat. Sure enough, she felt much better.
They were now far from the island and needed a compass to determine their direction.
“How long until we get there?” Li Yiyi asked.
“An hour. Sit down quickly! There’s something beneath the boat.”
Li Yiyi felt it too.
The inflatable boat was bobbing up and down, but this was not the natural movement caused by changing currents. Something beneath them was expanding and moving. Its presence was even stronger than the waves.
Fortunately, Fu Sizhe kept the boat steady. Several times, it felt as though the boat was about to be overturned, but it always stabilized at the last moment.
Li Yiyi stared at the sea. She wondered if it was just her imagination, but the sea level seemed to be rising higher and higher.
The deep blue seawater was mixed with dark black and faint red streaks. She had no idea what they were.
Then a transparent tentacle rose in front of her.
She leaned forward and followed it downward with her eyes. Beneath the water was a gigantic black shape larger than the inflatable boat.
It stared directly at her.
That was the left eye of a krill.
Beneath the surface of the sea, it looked as though a vast blue fire had ignited. The flames grew brighter and more intense.
Li Yiyi realized that the water beneath their inflatable boat was filled with gigantic krill.
Fu Sizhe realized it too.
He calmly piloted the boat, but Li Yiyi stared at his broad back. The tense muscles in his biceps made it obvious that he was not nearly as calm as he appeared.
This was far too abnormal.
Li Yiyi took out her phone and checked the news, but there were no reports about it.
She kept scrolling down and refreshing the page. Finally, she came across a picture of a palm-sized krill.
However, it was a debunking article titled, “Giant Antarctic Krill Are Photoshopped by Netizens.” It had attracted almost no attention, with fewer than a thousand views.
Another post was titled, “Sea of Fire, A Polar Spectacle.”
That one had received plenty of likes, and the comments were full of office workers.
【Mom, life is wild.】
【What kind of grand future makes people miss spring, summer, autumn, and winter while sitting in a cubicle?】
【This will be my first stop after I quit my job at the end of the month. Anyone interested, follow me.】
The sea stretched endlessly. On the vast, bright blue surface, their inflatable boat was the only thing swaying toward land.
Li Yiyi looked around.
There was a small black dot ahead.
As they drew closer, she realized it was a fishing boat. Several fishermen had brought backpackers out to see the “Sea of Fire.”
“Danger! Get back to shore!” Li Yiyi shouted at them.
One of the backpackers was livestreaming on his phone.
“Let me show all you brothers and sisters our polar specialty, the ‘Sea of Fire.’ Thank you to Eskimo Duke for sending me a rocket…”
Li Yiyi was afraid they could not hear her and shouted even louder.
“There are monsters! Run!”
“This is a normal phenomenon here in the polar region. Every year during this season, the krill reproduce, creating this spectacular sight. What’s behind me? What is… Ah!”
Behind their small fishing boat, an enormous krill head the size of a building emerged from the water.
“Monster!”
Its furry legs wrapped around the fishing boat and shook it violently. Soon, the boat was dragged beneath the surface.
Li Yiyi pushed the inflatable boat’s engine to full power, racing toward land.
She looked back.
There was no longer any sign of the fishing boat on the surface.
It was as though it had never existed.
She had seen it clearly just now. The krill’s body was transparent, with red spots scattered across it.
And now, the sea beneath them was filled with krill.
Bang!
The inflatable boat reached the shore.
The two of them quickly climbed onto land. Afraid that the situation might change, they ran toward the base with all their strength.
Suddenly, a black bracelet on the beach caught Li Yiyi’s eye.
The bracelet was completely black and looked unremarkable at first glance.
But she clearly remembered the description from the book:
【Jiang Jibai had fair, bony wrists. He had never worn a watch or bracelet, but after the Apocalypse, the black bracelet never left his wrist.】
There were no spatial abilities in this book. There were only two storage bracelets.
This was one of them.
“Can’t run anymore?”
Li Yiyi put the bracelet away and looked up, only to see Fu Sizhe standing not far away with his arms crossed.
She looked back at him innocently.
“Your physical fitness is terrible. I really can’t stand you.”
Although he said that, he carried Li Yiyi on his back and continued running.
After all, the sandbags he had carried during weighted runs in the military had been much heavier than Li Yiyi. Besides, he was not completely blameless for what had happened yesterday.
Li Yiyi lay against his back. He was moving so fast that she was afraid she would fall.
She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck from behind.
They did not see anyone along the way, and the base’s main gate was tightly shut.
“Should we call Professor Jiang?” Li Yiyi asked as she dialed his number.
Beep… beep… beep…
She had been blocked by Jiang Jibai.
Fu Sizhe raised an eyebrow.
Jiang Jibai had always been measured and would not easily offend anyone.
What exactly had Li Yiyi done?
Fu Sizhe took an access card from his wallet and opened the door.
Under Li Yiyi’s shocked gaze, he calmly said, “I invested in this base.”
Inside the building.
Two people dressed as professors were arguing in front of a presentation screen. They did not even notice when the two of them entered.
The younger one, who wore glasses, said, “At this rate of expansion, the seawater will rise very soon. When that happens, every continent will be submerged.”
The elderly professor with white hair said, “The temperature won’t rise without limit.”
“Teacher, it’s not just a matter of temperature. I’ve been testing the seawater all morning. It’s the marine organisms. They’re expanding!”
He opened a recording.
Under an X-ray, in less than five minutes, the krill grew from the size of a tiny shrimp to the size of an adult human.