“Suna, we have to climb the mast — that’s our only chance!”Yang Yi made his judgment quickly.He’d been watching the movements of the devil sharks and noticed that on the deck, they could only leap, using only their hind fins.That meant the devil sharks couldn’t climb. As long as they got up the mast, they’d be untouchable!No time for hesitation.Yang Yi gripped his flintlock in his left hand and the sea serpent’s fang in his right — ready for both ranged and close combat.But Suna had no proper weapon.A small dagger was far too risky against sharks.“There’s a bow in my cabin. When we run past, grab it — you can use it.”Suna nodded. The wild wind whipped her hair into a frenzy.There wasn’t a trace of fear on her face. On the contrary, she looked almost excited, glancing toward the devil sharks now and then.“I want one whole shark — and its eyes must be intact!” Suna suddenly shouted.“Let’s survive first!”The two of them darted toward the starboard side.Most of the sharks had gathered on the port side, so the right side was a bit safer.Crouching low, they ran forward through the howling wind.The captain’s quarters on the starboard side had no door, but Yang Yi could make one — with his flintlock.The weapon’s cooldown should just be up by now.He fired once — boom! — blowing a hole big enough to reach inside.Feeling around, he found a pirate longbow leaning in the corner, and over twenty crude wooden arrows — all tipped with poison.He handed the bow and arrows to Suna, and they rushed toward the central deck.The wind there was much weaker — the area between the captain’s quarters and the lower hold blocked most of it, making it perfect for shooting.But as soon as they stepped into the mid-deck, a devil shark lunged from the shadows.If Yang Yi hadn’t reacted in time, he would’ve been pinned to the ground.He drew the serpent’s fang, ready to strike — when an arrow whistled past his ear and struck the shark square in the eye.The eye — apparently a weak point for the double-headed devil shark — burst in a gush of black blood. The creature writhed on the floor in agony, completely losing its combat power.Yang Yi glanced back at Suna.“Your archery’s that good?”They kept running toward the mast.By now, seven or eight devil sharks were crawling over the mid-deck.They were mostly on the left side, but when they saw the two humans, they began leaping forward like grotesque frogs.Suna unleashed a dazzling display — drawing and firing in one motion, arrow after arrow piercing straight through the sharks’ eyes.Their eyes were large and luminous, easy to target — but hitting every single one was still incredible!“What did you used to do?” Yang Yi asked, swallowing hard.“Medicine student.But in high school, I was a provincial archery champion. Almost made the national team.”“You could’ve said that earlier!” Yang Yi groaned. “When we were fighting those sea demons, where was that?”“I got ambushed — dropped my bow into the sea…”“Uh…”If he’d known she was that skilled, he would’ve stocked up on arrows — those leaping sharks would’ve been nothing to fear.But now, their arrows were limited. They couldn’t afford a drawn-out fight.Some sharks had even swum around to the starboard side, preparing to attack from both directions.More kept jumping onto the deck.Fortunately, the two of them had already reached the mast.While the new sharks were still far off, they had to climb — fast!“You first! Once you’re up, cover me with arrows!” Yang Yi pressed his back against the mast, eyes locked on the approaching sharks.It was the best plan he could think of.If he climbed first, all he’d have was the flintlock — powerful, but too slow for this situation.Suna understood immediately. Without wasting a second, she stuffed the bow and arrows into her pouch and began climbing.Yang Yi took a stance below, the serpent’s fang in one hand and the gun in the other.The sharks reached him. One leapt forward.He’d studied them — they could only jump straight ahead.Before leaping, they picked a direction and committed. Wherever their head pointed, that’s where they’d go.Using that knowledge, Yang Yi sidestepped neatly, dodging the lunge.As it flew past, he thrust his blade upward — straight into the gill slit.The devil shark’s momentum carried it forward, splitting its belly wide open.When it hit the deck, its entrails spilled out — dead before it stopped moving.“Good!”Yang Yi evaded another leap, repeating the same move — thrusting the fang into the gills.In this way, he killed three that came at him.But Yang Yi wasn’t a seasoned fighter.Not long ago, he’d been bedridden — too weak even to stand.His “swordsmanship” came only from observation and composure — not training.And it didn’t always work...On the fourth try, he moved too late.A shark clamped down on his right shoulder.The pain was excruciating — white-hot, enough to make him nearly black out.But Yang Yi’s will was iron. He jammed the flintlock against the creature’s flat skull.This shot better fire!He pulled the trigger.Click.The gun misfired.“Damn it!”Yang Yi didn’t give up. He switched the fang to his left hand and stabbed wildly.At that moment, an arrow whistled past his cheek — straight into the shark’s eye.The creature shrieked and released him. Yang Yi staggered free, his right arm a mangled mess of blood and flesh.“Hurry up!” Suna shouted from above.She was perched on the crossbeam, about five meters high — safe from the sharks’ reach.Now she fired rapidly, covering Yang Yi as he climbed.“I’m running out of arrows! Hurry!”Yang Yi tucked the flintlock into his belt, gritting through the pain as he climbed.Suna’s arrows struck every shark that got close — for now, he was safe. But his pace was slow.He pressed his face and left arm to the mast, forcing his legs to push upward.“Faster! I only have three arrows left!”He’d barely climbed two meters when he heard that grim news.A moment later, the last three arrows were gone.Suna hugged the mast, leaning down as far as she could to try and pull him up — but the distance was too great.Then a shark below crouched, ready to spring — and leapt.Its jaws clamped around Yang Yi’s calf.Bone met teeth with a sickening crunch.“Yang Yi!” Suna cried out.Yang Yi froze, body trembling violently. The pain was nauseating, almost blinding.But he didn’t let go. He couldn’t.Because if he fell now — he was dead.The shark hung from his leg, tearing deeper into the wound.His vision blurred with tears.He looked down — into those two huge, crimson eyes.They seemed to be laughing at him.Mocking his struggle, his hopeless defiance.“Not... yet...”From nowhere, fury erupted in Yang Yi’s chest — searing and wild.Then — a message flashed before his eyes.【Condition met: Facing death 3/3. Talent unlocked — Defy Death!】【Defy Death: When HP drops below 10 or upon taking a fatal blow, HP will not fall below 1. You refuse death for 5 minutes.During this period: +2 to all stats except Mind, -2 Mind, -50 Sanity. Afterwards, enter a 24-hour Weakened state: -2 to all stats except Mind. (Defy Death cannot trigger during Weakened.)】PS: {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} Defy Death allows you to break mortal limits.【Your Sanity has dropped below 50 — entering Madness state. Immune to most mental effects. +2 Strength, +1 Agility, +1 Constitution, -2 Mind. You feel no pain, no fatigue, and no fear until Sanity recovers.】The overlapping buffs surged through him — his Strength shot up to a terrifying 8 points, his Mind fell to 4.His eyes turned blood-red, shot through with veins.The arm that had hung limp regained its power. He clung to the mast like a beast possessed.Then he reached down with his left hand — grabbed the devil shark’s glaring eye — and crushed it.The eyeball burst in his palm, spraying black fluid everywhere.

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