443. The Shifting of the Sea Begins

Angus’s plan to move the sea was scheduled for two days later, but at that time, Ye Feng was still three days’ journey from the cave. The Ocean Fortress’s defenses were formidable, yet its speed was lacking. The sea was vast, but with so many people, that advantage was lost. Under Angus’s command, the largest sea-moving army in history was mobilized: fifty million soldiers armed with five hundred million spatial rings marched toward the coastal waters.

Everyone believed Angus’s plan was madness—he intended to pour seawater into the basin. Andrea had quietly calculated the consequences: if all the sea were emptied into the basin, more than fifty percent of land area would be destroyed, and forty percent of resources would be lost. Even if the ocean were drained and the Heavenly Dragon’s inner core found, Earth would need centuries to recover.

Supported by manpower and technology, Angus’s progress was impressive; in just one day, he managed to move almost all the coastal waters. However, when he reached the deep sea, he encountered unexpected difficulties. He had not anticipated the ocean of this era being so deep.

When Angus was born, the ocean had long since been depleted, so he had never valued its history—this was also why he had avoided dealing with island nations, whose histories he did not understand. He believed they would inevitably disappear, and thus were scarcely worth his attention.

This fundamental misunderstanding caused a deviation in his plan. Two days later, as Ye Feng neared the cave, Angus had managed to relocate only thirty percent of the seawater. Including the two days spent manufacturing spatial rings, only five days remained. At the current pace, it would be nearly impossible to meet the requirements of Chi Fire within ten days.

Furthermore, Angus’s calculations were flawed. Even if every basin in the world were used, only sixty percent of the ocean’s water could be relocated; new reservoirs would be needed to accommodate the rest.

But before anything else, Angus had to address the issue of time. If Chi Fire lost its temper, the consequences would be dire.

Angus lowered his head and entered Chi Fire’s temporary palace.

Before Angus could speak, Chi Fire’s voice rang out, “How is the progress?”

“Chief Chi Fire, things are going well, but there’s been a minor issue,” Angus replied cautiously. He no longer felt as confident as when he had first agreed to the task.

As expected, Chi Fire’s tone turned cold at the mention of a problem. “What issue?”

“The ocean’s depth exceeds our estimate, so we’re running out of time,” Angus deliberately phrased it as ‘our’ estimate—hoping to share the blame.

“Useless!” Chi Fire hurled a fruit platter at Angus’s face, reddening his cheeks.

“Chief Chi Fire, we’ve done our best. Please grant us a few more days,” Angus pleaded, suppressing his anger, not daring to show the slightest disrespect.

After venting his fury, Chi Fire asked coldly, “How many more days do you need?”

“At the current rate, we need five additional days,” Angus said carefully. He dared not ask for more—judging from Chi Fire’s demeanor, a single wrong word could mean death.

“What! Five more days!” Chi Fire roared, rising to his feet.

Seeing this, Angus hurriedly knelt. “Chief Chi Fire, this is truly the fastest we can manage.”

Chi Fire was no fool. He knew it was not yet time to kill; if Angus were eliminated, the Heavenly Dragon’s inner core might never be found.

“Fine, I’ll give you five more days. If I don’t see the Heavenly Dragon’s inner core after ten days, prepare to die!” Chi Fire said coldly.

“Yes…” Angus responded, quickly leaving the palace. In his heart, he vowed that once he found the inner core, his first act would be to kill Chi Fire for daring to treat him so arrogantly.

...

During Angus’s three days of moving the sea, Ye Feng had been cultivating the technique given by Long Xuan. The technique’s circulation path was extremely complex; the simulated route provided by Huaihuai had seemed simple, but once Ye Feng began practicing, he realized its true difficulty, especially at the start, which was far tougher than Huaihuai had indicated.

Ye Feng’s cultivation progressed much slower than Huaihuai had anticipated; after three days, he had only recovered to Earth-level strength, though he was satisfied with this result.

Two days later, the Ocean Fortress arrived safely near the cave Huaihuai had mentioned, almost exposing itself in the process.

Huaihuai had chosen the shortest route, but unexpectedly, Angus began moving the sea right at their crossing point. As they passed by, the detection instruments nearly caught them, but Huaihuai quickly activated the invisibility function, narrowly avoiding disaster. The consequences, if they had been discovered, were unimaginable.

Before entering the cave, Ye Feng had Huaihuai scan the area again, and Huaihuai discovered something that thrilled Ye Feng: the cave was layered. The outer layer was ocean, while the inner was land—perfect for bringing the Ocean Fortress inside and sealing the entrance.

Soon, under Huaihuai’s control, the Ocean Fortress entered the cave. Madman then took a vehicle to the cave entrance and sealed it according to Huaihuai’s instructions.

Huaihuai’s method worked perfectly. The seal was made with a liquid gel—transparent from the inside, but indistinguishable from the surroundings when viewed from outside. It was an invention by a future voyeur—a camouflage liquid intended for peeping, of little use elsewhere, but ideal here.

The Ocean Fortress stopped at the entrance, and Ye Feng, with Madman and the others, boarded a submarine and headed toward the inner layer of the cave.

After launching a controllable artificial sun, the basic conditions inside the cave were revealed.

As Huaihuai had said, the cave’s land area was vast, far exceeding typical caves, and for reasons unknown, it contained some unique plants. How they grew without sunlight was a mystery.

There were no animals in the cave—at least none that Ye Feng could see, and Huaihuai detected no signs of life.

“Huaihuai, what kind of plant is this? How does it thrive without sunlight?” Ye Feng asked, standing beneath a tree resembling a coconut palm.

“I’m scanning and cross-checking now. It’s odd; it doesn’t make sense. There are plants on land that can grow without sunlight, but none so tall!” Huaihuai was equally puzzled.

“Still haven’t identified it after all this time?” Ye Feng inquired.

“Almost done. I’ve finished scanning modern and future species, just checking some ancient ones now, but my database isn’t complete…” As Huaihuai spoke, excitement suddenly filled his voice. “Ye Feng, I know how this cave was formed!”

[End of chapter]