10.000x Doomsday Survival

12. The Sacrifice of the Ocean Queen

CRACK!

The sickening sound of shattering glass completely drowned out the shrieking emergency alarms inside the submarine cabin. The heavy anti-pressure glass at the nose of the ship finally shattered into thousands of tiny pieces. Ice-cold seawater carrying thousands of tons of pressure per square meter instantly rushed inside exactly like a solid concrete wall traveling at the speed of a bullet.

Maya and Seraphina reflexively squeezed their eyes shut tightly. At a crushing depth of seven thousand meters, this massive water pressure was more than enough to completely pulverize their bodies into a bloody paste in a fraction of a second. They genuinely believed this was the absolute end of their lives.

However, the water never even touched their skin.

Right before the lethal seawater could make contact, Axel spread both his arms wide open. His dark brown eyes abruptly shifted color, transforming into a blindingly bright silver-white.

"God of Lightning Transformation," Axel whispered softly.

Instantly, a massive burst of cosmic electrical energy erupted violently from Axel's body. The silver-white lightning rapidly formed a perfectly spherical plasma dome that completely enveloped Axel, Valerie, Maya, and Seraphina. The exact moment the highly pressurized seawater collided with Axel's lightning dome, the liquid instantly evaporated into harmless gas bubbles.

Maya opened her eyes slowly. She gaped in sheer disbelief as she found herself floating safely inside a brilliantly glowing energy bubble. Outside that thin barrier, the crushing ocean water was held back with absolute perfection.

"Boss. Are you actually a god?" Valerie whispered with heavily ragged breath. She continued to hug her plasma rifle incredibly tightly against her chest.

Axel merely flashed a casual smirk. "I just did not want my brand new clothes getting wet. Seraphina, the submarine is completely totaled, right?"

"Yes, Boss. The engines are completely dead and the hull is already crushed by that monster's grip," Seraphina answered. She pointed directly at the gargantuan tentacle still tightly coiled around the wreckage of their submarine just outside the protective bubble.

The Zombie Kraken began squeezing the submarine wreckage in absolute fury, fully intending to crush Axel's electrical bubble trapped inside. Millions of Mutant Mermen swarming the surrounding waters also began swimming closer, entirely prepared to rip their trapped prey to shreds.

Axel glared at the highly disgusting tentacle with an ice-cold gaze. The Spear of the Thunder God materialized abruptly in his right hand.

"You girls know basic physics, right?" Axel asked his three goddesses. "Saltwater is the absolute best electrical conductor in the entire world."

Axel forcefully slammed the base of his spear directly into the plasma bubble beneath his boots. He unleashed the absolute full power of his first-stage Thunder God form straight into the open ocean.

KABOOM!

The deafening roar of thunder should have been completely impossible underwater, yet that is exactly what echoed. The dark ocean at a depth of seven thousand meters abruptly transformed into a massive sea of blinding white light. Millions of volts of pure, concentrated lightning spread outward at the speed of light in every single direction.

The Zombie Kraken unleashed an incredibly deafening ultrasonic shriek. Its gargantuan tentacles were instantly scorched to a crisp. Its rotting flesh blistered heavily and peeled right off the bone. The Level 5 monster was entirely incapable of withstanding Axel's cosmic lightning strike. In a blind panic, the Kraken completely released its grip and swam frantically away to hide in the pitch-black darkness of the trench.

The Kraken was not the only casualty. Millions of aquatic zombies surrounding them instantly went completely rigid. Their bodies were incinerated in a fraction of a second, completely reduced to black ash that drifted aimlessly through the water.

The continuous ringing of the system inside Axel's head exploded exactly like a fireworks display.

[Ding! 10,000 Water Zombies killed. Contribution Points +20,000.]
[Ding! 50,000 Water Zombies killed. Processing additional points.]
[Warning: Contribution Points have officially reached the absolute daily maximum limit.]

Axel pulled his spear back. The ocean immediately returned to its pitch-black state, leaving behind only the lifeless carcasses of aquatic zombies floating freely in the current.

"Far too easy," Axel muttered casually. He turned his head toward the gargantuan gate glowing with blue energy at the bottom of the trench just a short distance away. "Hold on tight. We are switching vehicles right now."

Axel expertly controlled his lightning bubble. The sphere shot forward with the speed of a bullet, completely abandoning the wreckage of their submarine, and pierced dead straight through the blue curtain of light radiating from the Abyssal Gate.

The exact second they passed through that curtain of light, the crushing sensation of the seawater completely vanished. Axel's lightning bubble fell freely through the open air and landed squarely on an ancient marble stone floor with an incredibly loud, heavy thud.

Axel instantly deactivated his protective bubble. Seraphina, Maya, and Valerie collapsed to the floor, gasping desperately for air as they steadied their breathing.

"There is breathable oxygen in there," Elena reported over the long-distance communicator from the Floating City. "All of your vital signs are perfectly stable. Thank goodness you survived the breach."

"Relax, Elena. As long as I am right here, they will never suffer a single scratch," Axel replied with a confident smirk.

He scanned his surroundings sharply. They were currently standing inside a massively colossal underwater temple. The walls were constructed entirely from solid black obsidian, meticulously carved with images of mythological sea beasts. Incredibly strangely, despite being located at the absolute bottom of the ocean, the temple was completely free of water. The room functioned exactly like an isolated pocket dimension.

Right in the dead center of the temple stood a circular stone altar. A gargantuan vortex of water spun ferociously upward toward the ceiling, emitting a highly terrifying, deafening roar. Dense blue energy radiated powerfully from the whirlpool, acting exactly like an energetic drill physically preventing the crushing ocean above from collapsing inward.

And right in the exact center of that massive vortex, Axel spotted his target.

An incredibly beautiful woman sat perfectly still on her knees. Her long, flowing hair was a brilliant, sparkling ocean blue. She wore an ancient white silk gown that was heavily torn in multiple places. Her skin was as deathly pale as a pearl. However, the detail that commanded absolute attention was her hands.

Both of the woman's wrists were tightly bound using chains forged purely from golden energy. The ends of those magical chains connected directly into the absolute core of the gargantuan whirlpool. Her face reflected an expression of agonizing pain, and cold sweat poured heavily down her temples.

Axel confidently stepped forward. The blue system screen instantly flared to life across his vision.

[Scanning Target Profile.]
[Name: Thalassa]
[Age: Unknown]
[Genetic Potential: SSS-Grade Queen of the Ocean]
[Status: Critical. Her life energy has been drained to 99% to stabilize the core vortex of the Abyssal Gate.]

"The ninth target," Axel whispered with a highly satisfied grin. "It turns out she has been holding this gate open the entire time."

Hearing the approaching footsteps of Axel and his team, the blue-haired woman slowly opened her eyelids. Thalassa's eyes were a brilliant, pure sapphire blue. She stared at Axel with an expression mixing utter shock with absolute panic.

"Humans? How is it even physically possible for humans to reach this place?" Thalassa's voice sounded incredibly melodic yet heavily saturated with pure despair. "You have to leave here right now! This place is incredibly dangerous!"

Axel completely ignored her warning. He continued his steady march toward the altar, gripping his Spear of the Thunder God. Valerie and Maya stood on high alert right behind him, meticulously sweeping every single dark corner of the temple for hidden enemies.

"I did not come all the way down here just to leave empty-handed, Miss," Axel replied in a highly casual tone. He stared down at the thick golden chains binding Thalassa's wrists. "I came here specifically to pick you up. By absolute coincidence, the massive swimming pool in my floating city is in desperate need of an expert lifeguard."

Thalassa widened her eyes completely as she saw the violent sparks of electricity dancing across the spear in Axel's hand. She realized instantly that Axel fully intended to shatter the chains binding her to the altar.

Thalassa's beautiful face turned deathly pale. She frantically yanked her hands, desperately trying to pull away from Axel with all her might. The golden chains creaked loudly under the intense strain.

"Stay away from me, human! If I am released from these chains, this massive ancient energy will instantly detonate! A tsunami over a hundred meters tall will completely level absolutely whatever is left on the Eldoria Continent!" Thalassa shrieked in absolute terror.