The endless expanse of azure sea stretched before them, the roar of the fishing boat’s engine mingling with the crashing waves and spray. The salty, damp sea breeze brushed against everyone’s faces, and the feeling of freedom and comfort sparked excited cheers from the crew.
She leaned comfortably against the railing, clad in a pitch-black wetsuit that perfectly accentuated her full, graceful figure. Her delicate, fair face wore a bright, radiant smile, as bold and unrestrained as the wine-red hair she had casually left cascading down her back.
“Look!” a crew member shouted, drawing everyone’s attention toward the stern.
Zhong Xiwang and several other teammates bent over the railing, peering down.
On both sides of the fishing boat’s stern, countless massive orcas followed closely behind, leaping one after another from the sea, revealing their sleek, smooth bodies.
From time to time, mist sprayed from their blowholes briefly formed small rainbows under the sunlight—fleeting, ephemeral beauties in this vast ocean.
Zhong Xiwang’s eyes lit up, and she hurried to the stern.
“Wow! This is my first time seeing them up close!” she exclaimed in delight, turning to her teammates and using the English she had only recently begun to master.
Her teammates smiled as well, though compared to Zhong Xiwang, the novice crew member, they remained much calmer.
“You can even reach out and touch them,” said Jess, standing beside her. His eyes gazed gently at this excited young woman from the East.
Sure enough, after hearing his words, Zhong Xiwang’s clear eyes sparkled with even greater intensity. Her delicate, slender eyebrows arched upward, making her large, almond-shaped eyes twinkle like stars.
Zhong Xiwang immediately leaned forward, tentatively extending her arm bit by bit.
Jess spoke loudly near her ear, “Go ahead and stroke them freely—they enjoy human touch.”
Zhong Xiwang could clearly sense Jess’s intentions as he drew closer, but she showed no outward reaction.
Just as she was about to touch an orca near the boat’s side, another, larger orca suddenly surged from behind, crashing through the waves and pushing the one by her hand downward.
The massive body of the Great Orca emerging abruptly from the water left Zhong Xiwang utterly awestruck.
She had heard that the pay for overseas crab and sea urchin harvesting expeditions was exceptionally high. Driven by this, she had traveled thousands of miles, leaving her homeland behind to come to Australia. After enduring extensive training and overcoming language barriers, she had finally obtained the necessary certifications and joined this team for practical training.
This was her first time heading out to sea with the crew.
In the past, she had only ever seen orca pods from a distance—never this close.
Everyone knew that orcas liked humans and were very friendly toward them.
But the behavior of that orca just now—was it unwilling to let her casually touch its companion?
Seeing her stunned expression, Jess immediately laughed and said, “Haha, they’re competing for attention!”
Zhong Xiwang looked at him, puzzled.
Jess pointed toward the sea. “Look.”
Zhong Xiwang turned her gaze back. The orca she had almost touched had been driven to the back, and now the massive orca was the one close to the boat’s side.
Zhong Xiwang felt that, as it leaped, a round black eye beneath the large white patch on its side was fixed on her.
Zhong Xiwang ignored Jess’s comment about jealousy, her gaze captivated by the massive black-and-white creature before her. Delighted, she reached out again, attempting to touch it.
Seeing her hand approach, the Great Orca maintained a parallel course with the boat, its eyes hidden beneath the water staring unblinkingly at the striking red figure above.
Zhong Xiwang gently touched it a few times, overwhelmed with excitement.
Similarly, the orca she touched joyfully sank beneath the water, emitting a series of rapid, crisp, babbling calls.
Who would have thought that these creatures, nearly without natural predators in the ocean and standing at the top of the food chain, would sound like infants who hadn’t yet learned to speak, uttering contrasting coos and babbles.
As its companions, everyone heard the orca excitedly shouting, “Ahhh! The cute Finless Beast touched me!!”
“Ahahaha, she touched me!!”
“So tiny, with such tiny forelimbs! How adorable!”
As it called out, the Great Orca leaped from the sea, repeatedly displaying its majestic, massive body before Zhong Xiwang.
The companions it had chased away were also calling from behind, but not out of happiness for it.
Instead, it was a stream of unprintable curses.
The orca continued sailing alongside the fishing boat while exchanging insults with its teammates.
Hearing Zhong Xiwang’s exclamations of delight, it happily sprayed mist, conjuring rainbows like magic.
Across the vast sea, the woman’s soft laughter carried far. On a passing island, dense foliage cast the interior in dim light, creating an eerie, abrupt silence. The sprawling branches resembled countless menacing ghostly hands, adding to the sinister atmosphere.
A creature concealed in the shadows heard the sound and paused its feeding, lifting its head to gaze in the direction of the laughter.
In the dim light, only its massive form was visible, with what seemed to be a pair of particularly menacing horns atop its head.
Beneath it lay a creature whose original form was no longer recognizable, its abdomen brutally torn open to reveal soft, nutrient-rich, and fatty organs. Blood spread across the ground, the intense scent of blood permeating the air, yet no other creature dared approach to claim a share.
The entire island was terrifyingly quiet, forming a stark contrast to the liveliness nearby.
Zhong Xiwang played with the Great Orca for quite some time until the fishing boat changed course toward the targeted harvesting area, parting ways with these magnificent creatures.
The orcas lingered reluctantly behind, only turning away upon hearing the call of their matriarch.
They arrived at a bay where the clear water offered an unobstructed view of the seabed below.
A small boat nearby was being lowered by a crane. Zhong Xiwang and her teammates donned their diving helmets and checked their equipment.
Captain Parker was assigning roles to the crew.
“Xi, you’ll join Jess, Paul, and Chuck. Observe their procedures and practice alongside them.”
Zhong Xiwang nodded.
Jess stood beside her, his expression gentle. “Don’t worry, Xi. I’ll protect you!”
He openly expressed his closeness to her in front of everyone.
Zhong Xiwang forced a smile and thanked him. “Thank you!”
Such trivial male vanity and the need to show off.
The other team had already boarded their boat and set off.
To accommodate Zhong Xiwang as a beginner, their team began working not far from the fishing boat.
One person was responsible for receiving the harvested sea urchins above water and monitoring the condition of the divers, ready to provide timely assistance if anything seemed amiss.
The others dove down with nets and iron hooks to gather sea urchins.