Chapter 535. Surface

The harbor district of Annarles Island was filled with the piercing noise of steam whistles.

The first batch of explorers were all doing the same thing at the moment; their heads were thrown back, their mouths were agape, and their expressions revealed shock as they stared at the massive pitch-black hole above them.

The Governor of Hope Island had told them about it long ago, but there was a massive difference between hearing about it from others and actually seeing it with one's own eyes.

"Goodness! There's really such a massive hole above us? So there's actually another world above?"

"I've heard some stories about how we actually live inside this huge ball; we just have to dig out of that ball, and we'll be outside of it."

"You actually believe that? I mean, just think about it: what kind of ball can hold so many things? You definitely got deceived."

Joseph sporting a handlebar mustache was standing on his deck with a solemn expression. He seemed to be deeply contemplating something as he stared at the massive pitch-black hole above them.

"Well, well, look who's here! Is that you, Joseph? You're here, too?"

Joseph turned to look at where the voice had come from and saw a young man with a black eyepatch and a gold double nose ring on his right nostril.

Joseph's expression instantly became ugly upon seeing the young man. He was familiar with the young man. It happened three years ago; Joseph had just robbed a merchant ship when the young man—named Wilson—appeared out of nowhere and stole the batch of goods worth two million Echoes.

Wilson also ended up killing Joseph's first mate.

"Hey, hey, hey, what are you going to do? Are you going to make a move against me when the Governor of Hope Island is nearby? We're not out at the lawless sea."

Joseph had whipped out his relics and was getting ready to attack Wilson, but Wilson's words snapped him back to reality. He glanced at the Narwhale not too far away from them, and she was accompanied by massive warships.

Joseph had no choice but to forcibly suppress his fury.

"You better hide from me once we're on the surface, you brat! You're dead meat once I see you!!" Joseph threatened through gnashed teeth.

"I'm sorry, but I have no time to play house with you. I've come here to make money. The reward from a single exploration to the surface is equivalent to several trips exploring unknown islands, after all."

Just then, an exploration vessel painted purple approached them from the side.

"I see you're still as greedy as ever, Wilson. Brat, have you ever thought about what use is money once every single island is submerged? Even if you get to earn so much money, you won't be able to spend them once you're dead "

The words had come from a pregnant lady with a

very

large belly. She was clad scantily, and her face was covered with heavy makeup. She did not look like a ship's captain at all; she looked more like one of the prostitutes by the dockside.

"It's fine. I'm not the only one who's going to die by then, anyway. The world is going with me, so it's worth it, even if I end up dying," Wilson replied.

They chattered some more until a voice boomed through the loudspeaker on the warship next to them. "Announcement to all explorers! Disembark and gather at the Governor's Mansion of Annarles Island. The airship to the surface will depart in six hours, and we'll move out in batches!"

The Governor of Hope Island had spoken, so the captains complied immediately.

All of them had the same motive for coming here, and it was born from their familiarity with Charles, the Governor of Hope Island. Charles had never ceased his exploration despite having his own island, and he was also renowned for being the most powerful governor in the Northern Seas.

Every single explorer here was envious of Charles, and it was all because Charles had achieved their ultimate goal—conquer a habitable island and keep conquering other islands.

Splashing noises pervaded the air above the pier as the ships dropped their anchors. The captains of the exploration vessels made a beeline for the Governor's Mansion, which was still a humble-looking building.

The captains found Governor Charles standing on a high platform. An object that looked like a black rod connected to wires was on a podium before him.

Charles' black hair and black eyes were exceedingly rare features throughout the Subterranean Sea. The scar on his face made him look a bit vicious, and his left arm was a steel prosthetic; there seemed to be something wrong with his right eye, as his right eye was interspersed with black and red rather than the usual black and white.

The captains whispered among each other as they stared at Charles—a legendary figure of the Northern Seas.

"Everyone!" Charles' loud voice echoed from the nearby loudspeakers, instantly suppressing everyone's voices.

Charles adjusted the microphone in front of him and continued, "I've already told you the details on our way here, so I'm not going to repeat them. I just want to say—please go all out. This exploration will decide the life and death of mankind throughout the Subterranean Sea."

Charles was about to continue when he saw a hand in the air.

"What is it?"

The owner of the hand was Wilson, and he still had on a frivolous demeanor despite standing before the renowned Governor Charles.

"I just want to ask the esteemed Governor whether the Light God, who has slaughtered so many people down here, has truly died up there. If that's the case, then won't the surface be a hundred times more dangerous than exploring unknown islands?"

"No one knows for sure, but are you afraid of the danger level? Don't worry; we're not going to use all of you as cannon fodders. I'm also on the expedition."

Wilson chuckled and said, "If I were afraid of danger, I wouldn't have become an explorer and joined this mission. Anyway, I've heard that there are additional rewards once we've found the darkness that you've told us. From what I heard, the additional rewards are apparently three islands. Is there any truth to it?"

"Yes, it's the truth, and it's a promise. The first one to find the darkness will not only receive additional rewards, which are three islands, but those islands will also belong to the awardee forever.

"Moreover, Julio, Patriarch Harold, and I will reinforce those three islands if they are ever attacked. It is a promise from all three of us."

The explorers were instantly elated at Charles' remark. Who among these capable explorers didn't want to have their own island? In addition, the islands would belong to them and their descendants forever.

"

Ahem!

" Charles coughed, silencing everyone.

"I want to make one thing clear: my words are based on us restoring the Subterranean Sea to its original state. We have to find and retrieve the darkness in three years, or everyone is going to die!

"I'm not sure whether we're living on Earth or not, but there's a very high chance that we're the last humans on this seascape. If we die, then humans—our entire species will go extinct!"

An oppressive air immediately bored down on everyone. Charles' words were like massive boulders, weighing heavily on everyone's hearts.

The extinction of humanity was too serious of a matter for them to ignore.

Charles continued his speech, and he spoke about the details of their plan to approach the surface as well as their contingency plans.

Just as he was about to wrap up his speech, a distinct noise echoed from the sky.

Everyone looked up and saw two airships with massive gas bags descending slowly from the pitch-black hole in the sky.

"The airships are here! Everyone, get ready!"

The explorers gathered their crew and lined up. Then, they boarded the massive airships in an orderly manner.

There were too many people and not enough airships, so they could only go to the surface in batches. Fortunately, the trip to the surface wasn't that long. Every single trip to the surface only took six hours, but the six-hour wait was especially nerve-wracking, as the entire trip was spent traveling up a pitch-black tunnel.

Everyone sighed in relief once they were out of the long passageway.

A simple fortress had already been built next to the massive pitch-black hole, which spanned several dozen kilometers in length. A few engineers were outside, and they were busy working on the fortress.

The fortress had a straightforward and simple name—Colossal Hole Fortress.

There weren't that many people inside the fortress, but there were rows of brand-new cars inside, which were going to be the explorers' primary means of transportation on the surface.