Crossing the wilderness to survive, starting with a broken kitchen knife.

It was Zhao Feng who took action. Since the battle began, he and Ge Dalong had been keeping a close eye on Zhang Shi's position, ready to provide fire support at any moment.

Chen Baomu fell heavily to the ground, groaning in pain. Seeing their leader severely injured, his men immediately fell into disarray. Meanwhile, the soldiers on the island were greatly encouraged, shouting and fighting even more bravely.

Zhang Shi didn't give Chen Baomu a chance to breathe. He quickly stepped forward, holding the Old Duan high in his hand. It gleamed coldly in the sunlight, and with a determination to kill, he slashed at Chen Baomu. Chen Baomu's eyes widened, filled with fear and despair. He desperately tried to dodge, but his injured body refused to obey.

At this critical moment, a figure suddenly rushed out from the side and blocked the fatal blow for Chen Baomu. It turned out to be Chen Baomu's men. He used his body to protect Chen Baomu, but was also deeply cut by Zhang Shi's knife, killing him on the spot.

Chen Baomu looked at his confidant who died for him, and the expression on his face was very strange. There was neither anger nor sadness or emotion, but more of a panic.

"Zhang Shi, you're courting death!"

Chen Baomu endured the pain and struggled to get up from the ground. He held the black dagger tightly in his hand and rushed towards Zhang Shi frantically, muttering: "There is no way out, Zhang Shi, you must die today!"

Zhang Shi snorted coldly, his eyes full of disdain. He easily dodged Chen Baomu's attack by turning sideways, and then kicked Chen Baomu on the knee. Chen Baomu's legs suddenly went soft and he fell to his knees.

"Your struggle is in vain, Chen Baomu. You brought this upon yourself." Zhang Shi said coldly, holding the Old Duan in his hand against Chen Baomu's neck.

Chen Baomu looked up at Zhang Shi, his eyes filled with hatred, yet also a hint of helplessness and despair. "Zhang Shi, do you think you're invincible just because you're number one in the world? Do you think killing me will solve all your problems? The people behind me won't let you go!" he said viciously.

Zhang Shi raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a sarcastic smile: "So what? I'll send you on your way today, and I will deal with the future matters myself." After that, he swung the knife in his hand hard, and Chen Baomu's head rolled to the ground, and a pool of hot blood spurted out, dyeing the surrounding land red.

With the death of Chen Baomu, his fleet was completely out of command and the soldiers fled in all directions. The soldiers on the island took advantage of the victory and pursued the fleeing enemies one by one.

After the battle, Zhang Shi stood by the sea, gazing at the smoke-filled ocean, a wave of emotion washed over him. He began to wonder whether opening the island to the outside world was a good idea. While the establishment of the seaport had brought him considerable wealth, it had also brought with it various troubles. After the incident in the City of Mist, he felt exhausted and lost interest in fighting.

Ge Dalong and Zhao Feng limped over to his side, standing in tacit silence under a tree, gazing out at the azure sea. After a long pause, Zhang Shi sighed and opened a private message to notify Wang Wu's team, asking them to come to the island tomorrow when they had time. He had something to discuss with them.

The development of the island must continue. Zhang Shi knows that he is not alone. He has brothers and soldiers behind him. For these people, he must not stop.

"Oh!"

A loud bang came from the coast, followed by a second and a third.

Zhang Shi looked out and saw that the explosions had come from Chen Baomu's fleet. They had all self-destructed at the same time. Stunned, Zhang Shi wondered if there were still some fish on board that had slipped through the net.

After a while, the explosion stopped and all the ships moored on the coast sank. The powerful explosion destroyed many facilities on the dock and even the sea station was affected. Cracks appeared on many buildings, and Zhang Shi had to send people to repair them. The back and forth trip would take a lot of time.

After this incident, Zhang Shi immediately went to Wu Qing's botanical garden and personally inspected her room. After confirming that there were no abnormalities, he called in others, sealed the room, and assigned someone to guard it day and night, demanding that any abnormalities be reported to him immediately. Later, Zhang Shi discovered the giant sunflower. This plant had become spiritual, and Zhang Shi was worried it might become a hidden danger. He hesitated to remove it, but considering its previous efforts in protecting the shelter, Zhang Shi suppressed his urge.

……

In the days that followed, Zhang Shi returned to his daily routine. After consulting with Wang Wu's team, business at the Sea Inn continued as normal, though customer traffic had decreased significantly. Initially, Zhang Shi and Wang Wu didn't take it seriously, believing it was due to the recent intensification of conflict. Until one day, Liu Yu, posing as the leader of the Bright Alliance, posted a video in the chat channel.

In the video, several survivors are driving a fishing boat, apparently heading out for some fishing. Suddenly, dozens of monitor-like creatures, roughly the size of humans and even taller than humans when standing upright, swarm out of the water and leap onto the boat's deck. Without further ado, these monsters attack the survivors.

But these survivors were obviously not pushovers. Facing the sudden attack of the monsters, they showed no panic at all. They picked up their weapons and launched a counterattack. After fighting for a while, the monsters saw that these survivors were not easy to deal with, so they began to retreat. The leading monster screamed, and a giant turtle-like vehicle appeared on the sea in the distance. The vehicle was finely crafted and looked like a submarine.

The monsters, resembling giant lizards, leaped from the boat into the sea and quickly swam to the vehicle, apparently attempting to evacuate. The survivors, of course, refused to let them go, and each unleashed their own skills. One mage used an energy net to restrain a monster that hadn't yet escaped, capturing it alive.

The video ends here, followed by a text message from Liu Yu.

"Recently, members of our Alliance of Light have been frequently missing. Upon investigation, we've determined that most of these are the work of these lizardmen. We've interrogated captured lizardmen and learned that the land we once inhabited, now the seabed, has been occupied by these alien races. They have their own civilization and frequently come to the surface to plunder and kill. Survivors, please be careful and stay safe while sailing."

Zhang Shi frowned, finally understanding the reason for the recent sharp drop in visitor traffic. This incident wasn't a minor one; it could even be considered a dangerous event on par with natural disasters. The appearance of alien races was often accompanied by bloody conflict and fighting. It seemed the island needed to be on guard.