Chapter Fifty-Nine: Shark at Sea

Donghai Harbor was no stranger to Wu Hua. His initial survival quest had taken place here, and as he entered the harbor, he made a point to glance at the landing pad. Now, a towering electronic screen stood there, displaying:
“Blue Ocean Company welcomes you!”
The harbor was currently under the jurisdiction of Blue Ocean Company. Although their engineers had not yet developed large warships and exploration of the sea remained uncharted, the company’s resources were nothing to scoff at. In just half a month, their engineers had managed to design Green Arrow-class speedboats, all of which were available for rent.
Players arriving at the harbor who wished to train at sea could leave a deposit of 5,000 credits, with a rental fee of 100 credits per hour. VIP members of Blue Ocean Company received a discount.
The young woman at the harbor’s service window worked with impressive professionalism, swiftly completing the procedures for Wu Hua and his companion, and even gifting them an instruction manual.
Wu Hua took out his Zippo lighter and set the booklet alight.
“Why would you burn the manual without even looking at it?” Yu Jialing asked in surprise.
Wu Hua replied, “Not burning it wouldn’t be professional. I’m a pilot now.”
In reality, these speedboats required little in the way of operation—just a manual gear shift and a steering wheel, powered by energy crystals. As soon as Wu Hua hopped on, the speedboat shot across the horizon like an arrow.
At present, the Eastern Sea was a paradise for gunslingers. All the monsters here were sharks, and each boat could only hold four people. Warriors and other classes found no use for their skills in this area.
After traveling several kilometers out, Wu Hua found the place surprisingly crowded. At a glance, one might think the players were out on a holiday beneath the blue sky and white clouds.
But most of the gunslingers here were poorly equipped. Many carried MP5s and G36 submachine guns. The M1 series was entirely useless, as a mere splash of seawater would jam them. Performance had always been a crucial standard for evaluating firearms.
Wu Hua lingered among the boats for a while, quickly discerning a pattern: the waters were teeming with schools of sharks, likely around level 30. Each shark had nearly 8,000 HP and high defense. Ordinary gunslingers using MP5s dealt only about 100 damage per shot. Since one player had to pilot the boat, it took at least three MP5s firing four full bursts to take down a single shark. The reason was simple: on the swaying boat, accuracy plummeted. Once the boat started moving, hit rates could drop below 20%, meaning only two out of every ten bullets would land.
Even the highly accurate MP5s only performed so well—other guns fared even worse.
Yu Jialing, experienced herself, chose not to act immediately, observing the situation instead.

These players formed groups of four, with about eight speedboats arrayed in a semicircle on the water. One boat would dash out to lure the sharks. The sharks, enormous and nearly as large as the boats themselves, had low AI. Once one followed a boat into the formation, the players unleashed a storm of bullets.
After watching a while longer, Wu Hua noted that these sharks were not the man-eaters of legend; they relied solely on brute force, aiming to capsize the boats. Anyone who fell into the water would be rammed again, each hit dealing over 2,000 HP. Most people could only survive two hits. The proper tactic was to swim back aboard quickly after being struck.
As the two were enthusiastically discussing tactics, a voice called out beside them, “Hey beautiful, want to team up?”
Turning their heads, they saw Crazy Sun Cactus standing on a distant yellow speedboat, sunglasses perched on his nose, XM29 assault rifle in hand, giving his head a confident toss—handsome and dashing in a way that was almost alluring.
Behind him, a dozen yellow speedboats lined up in a neat formation, likely all members of his Gun God Company.
Yu Jialing smiled graciously, “Thanks, but no need.”
Crazy Sun Cactus looked a bit put out, glaring fiercely at Wu Hua, his expression reading loud and clear: “How can a guy dressed so shabbily and looking so plain be with such a beauty? Damn it!”
Wu Hua couldn’t help but laugh, calling out loudly, “Still as smelly as ever, I see?”
Crazy Sun Cactus knew Wu Hua was mocking him and snorted, “I won’t stoop to your level, you pretty boy living off women. Not teaming up? Hmph, let’s see how you two manage!” With that, he signaled his crew and sped ahead.
Gun God Company did have some skill. They adopted the same semicircular formation as the other players, but Crazy Sun Cactus personally piloted a boat a kilometer out to lure five or six sharks back. Whenever a shark attacked a boat, that boat would quickly dodge while the others opened fire, sending water spraying across the sea.
“Wow, where did these guys come from? That’s some teamwork,” a player exclaimed.
“Looks like Gun God Company.”
“No wonder, impressive!”
…
The words reached Crazy Sun Cactus’s ears, and he glanced smugly at Wu Hua. “See what you’re missing out on? We’re racking up experience fast.”

In truth, his ability to lure so many sharks didn’t stem from teamwork, but from his weapon.
The XM series assault rifle looked much like a toy water gun—large in size, with an effective range of 280 meters. It was also equipped with a 20mm high-explosive grenade launcher. Its damage wasn’t particularly high, but its area of effect was broad, and the laser sight made it extremely accurate. That was why he acted so fearlessly, even firing a taunting shot at Wu Hua’s pilot seat.
The shot grazed Wu Hua’s cheek, drawing a line of blood and dealing -230 damage.
The message was clear: showing off the performance of his XM29 and warning Wu Hua not to mess with his girl.
“Forget it, not worth arguing with you.” Wu Hua started up the speedboat. Yu Jialing gave him an approving look—magnanimous, rising above petty squabbles, knowing that forbearance was key to greater plans.
But inwardly, Wu Hua sneered coldly: “Just wait, your time is coming.”
In full view of hundreds of players at sea, a blue speedboat suddenly shot forward like a bolt of lightning, carving a brilliant wake behind it. Someone gasped, “Is he crazy?”
Wu Hua pushed the boat’s speed to six meters per second—sixty knots per hour, its maximum. His piloting skills far surpassed those of Crazy Sun Cactus. He charged straight ahead, then pulled off a graceful sixty-degree tilt and a tail spin, weaving the boat in an “S” pattern—never slowing, the spray behind him rising in a captivating arc.
Yu Jialing braced her Type 95 rifle on the windshield, goggles on, helmet pulled down, hair streaming in the wind, and opened fire with a rapid “ch-ch-ch-ch” of shots. She was clearly no novice; as Wu Hua spun the boat, she leaned with the motion, maintaining perfect balance and a steady stream of fire.
Wu Hua estimated that her magazine held about sixty rounds, indicating the gun was either modified or of epic quality.
Sharks swarmed from all sides like torpedoes, but before they could even approach the boat, they flipped belly-up, picked off one by one.
“-1422, -1488, -1445…”
The string of damage numbers left everyone present stunned. Crazy Sun Cactus was dumbfounded; he had thought his XM29 was impressive but never expected the lady’s Type 95 to deal six times the damage.
“Domestic products are still the best,” Crazy Sun Cactus exclaimed with genuine admiration.