"Don't blame yourselves. If anyone's to blame, it's me for not being strong enough to have dragged you all into this adventure with me. Alright, all of you, stay inside the spacecraft and wait for me to return."
After Ning Beichen finished speaking, he turned and walked out of the spacecraft, embarking on another round of desperate struggle.
However, he was only human, not an invincible war god. Liu Yilin and the others could see that Ning Beichen was in a terrible, terrible state. Their hearts ached for him, but they were powerless to help, which made them feel awful.
Ning Xiaoling was also working at full speed to repair the spacecraft, and her own body even appeared to be dimming considerably.
Meanwhile, Ning Beichen was already outside, being besieged by those mysterious creatures. Although he could kill them, their sheer numbers made it difficult for him to cope.
This gave Ning Beichen the feeling of a "tiger falling into flat ground, bullied by dogs." If not for this damnable environment, Ning Beichen would have torn them all to shreds by now.
But there were no "ifs." One couldn't expect enemies to play fair.
It was the same reason why, when he was a Heavenly Venerate dealing with others, he wouldn't offer them fairness either.
Yet, Ning Beichen knew he absolutely could not afford to lose or retreat. If he were to be defeated or fall back, the people inside the spacecraft would perish.
But the issue now wasn't whether he would lose or not, but how and when he would lose. For Ning Beichen was already surrounded by these creatures and could no longer retreat.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
Ning Beichen madly slaughtered these mysterious and detestable beings. Even if he were to be trapped and die, he hoped to increase their chances of survival by just a little more for Liu Yilin and the others.
Five minutes had already passed. By rights, Ning Beichen should have returned to the spacecraft to rest by now. The problem was that he was surrounded by these mysterious creatures and had no chance to go back.
Those inside the spacecraft also saw Ning Beichen's predicament and started crying and clamoring to be let out.
However, before he left, Ning Beichen had already sensed something and issued a direct command to the spacecraft: no one other than himself was allowed to leave.
No matter how much Liu Yilin and the others pounded on the spacecraft door, it refused to open. Even Ning Xiaoling didn't have that authority, as her permissions also needed to be granted by Ning Beichen.
Regardless of how heartbroken the women inside the spacecraft were, Ning Beichen could no longer pay attention to them. He had already exceeded his limits, and the surrounding mysterious creatures showed no signs of retreating.
They were like organized and experienced hunters, showing no haste, employing encirclement tactics to hunt Ning Beichen.
White frost had already appeared on Ning Beichen's body. This frost was like a gnawing pestilence, slowly spreading over his body.
The chilling cold caused Ning Beichen's movements to become extremely sluggish, and even breathing became incredibly difficult, making him feel as though every breath drained all his strength.
Gradually, Ning Beichen's consciousness began to scatter, and his mind became blurry. Even the strongest willpower was of no use at this moment.
Just as Ning Beichen was about to kick the bucket, he suddenly, vaguely, saw a colossal whale appear before his eyes.
Then, it seemed as if he saw that enormous whale, descending like a sovereign. It opened its mouth and inhaled, and all the mysterious creatures were sucked into its maw.
Then, perhaps intentionally, that gigantic whale suddenly sneezed, blowing Ning Beichen in the direction of the spacecraft.
"It's over. I heard that people see hallucinations before they die."
Ning Beichen's last vestiges of consciousness murmured to himself, believing it to be a pre-death illusion. After all, who would normally believe a giant whale would appear in a place like this?
However, after a while, Ning Beichen realized that not only was he not dead, but his consciousness was also gradually returning.
Ning Beichen, as if waking from near-death, immediately opened the spacecraft door. The women inside, who had been weeping, quickly pulled him back into the spacecraft with their own hands.
But Ning Beichen didn't stay conscious for long. After being pulled back into the spacecraft by the women, he immediately fell into a deep sleep.
He slept for several days, causing the women immense worry.
Fortunately, three days later, Ning Beichen finally woke up. Seeing that he was fine, Liu Yilin and the others finally wept with relief.
"I'm not dead?"
This was the first thing Ning Beichen said upon waking.
"No, no, Beichen, you're not dead."
Liu Yilin clutched his hand and said anxiously.
"Something's not right. I think I saw a huge whale swallow all those creatures. Did you see it?"
Ning Beichen asked them.
The women all shook their heads. They hadn't seen any whale at all, which left Ning Beichen utterly bewildered.
He had clearly seen the whale. If not for that whale, he would have been dead.
Furthermore, after the whale had devoured those unknown creatures, it had blown him back to the spacecraft. It was precisely because of this that he had managed to save his life.
But Liu Yilin and the others said they hadn't seen the whale, and they certainly wouldn't lie. Therefore, there were only two possibilities: either they truly couldn't see the whale, or the whale didn't want them to see it.
Regardless of which possibility was true, it made Ning Beichen incredibly curious.
He didn't know how the whale had appeared, nor why it had saved him.
However, he had no idea that the whale saving him was not some external species, but one that had always resided within his Sea of Bitterness, named Tai Jing.
Ning Beichen pondered for a long time, finding no answers. He could only assume it was a friendly creature living there, one that was benevolent towards humans.
The spacecraft had also been repaired. Now that Ning Beichen had woken up, they naturally wanted to leave immediately, as none of them knew if those mysterious creatures might reappear.
After a long journey, the spacecraft finally flew out of this death zone. The weather outside had returned to normal, and even Liu Yilin and the others emerged from the spacecraft to stretch their legs.
Ning Beichen also noticed that there were quite a few other spacecrafts navigating the void outside. These spacecrafts came in various designs and were generally more aesthetically pleasing than Ning Beichen's sarcophagus-shaped craft.
However, Ning Beichen felt no envy. Only he knew that his spacecraft originated from the Xi Du world, and was in no way comparable to these so-called "trash" vessels.
Ning Beichen also observed that the void before them was not the starry sky he was familiar with, nor was there a solar system. It was likely some form of dimensional space, rather than the cosmic expanse.