Chapter 109: The Phantom Leviathan (Part Two)

Qin Fei took out the newly found "Stasis Gun."

[Stasis Gun: Alters the magnetic field to suspend an object in a state of stasis for a limited time. Warning: Effectiveness not guaranteed on biologically or structurally complex organisms or industrial units!]

[Current Charge: 60%]

In the game, players could rely on this gun’s function to kill Leviathan creatures like Death Reapers and Phantoms directly with a dagger.

It was practically invincible.

Of course, this weapon had its limitations.

First, the trigger condition: the user had to accurately hit the target with the magnetic orb fired from the gun to immobilize it.

If the target moved too fast or the user’s aim was poor, the gun would fail.

Additionally, the area affected by the time suspension was limited—about the size of half a car.

The duration was also restricted.

Once the target was frozen in place, the effect lasted only about 15 seconds.

Finally, the most significant flaw of the Stasis Gun was that it couldn’t be used on structurally complex organisms.

By "structurally complex," it meant highly intelligent life forms.

For example, humans and Sky-Rippers were immune to its effects.

Nevertheless, it was still effective on low-intelligence Phantom Leviathans.

Qin Fei extended the four tentacles within his body and activated the underwater propulsion system of his Tech Armor. With incredible speed, he shot out from inside the Healer.

Phantom Leviathans could pass through walls.

If Qin Fei fought them inside the Healer, these two Phantoms could use their wall-penetrating ability to hide inside the ship’s hull and launch surprise attacks.

Thus, Qin Fei had to reach an open area to deny them the chance to slip through walls.

Once outside the Healer’s hull, the two Phantom Leviathans quickly spotted Qin Fei.

They charged toward him.

Their speed was as fast as, if not faster than, the Death Reapers Qin Fei had previously encountered.

As they rushed forward, Qin Fei raised the Stasis Gun and fired a magnetic orb at the closest Leviathan.

The moment the magnetic orb struck the Phantom Leviathan, it exploded immediately, forming a sphere roughly two meters in radius.

The Phantom Leviathan, upon contact, was instantly frozen in the water, unable to move.

This was the Stasis Gun’s time suspension effect at work.

While Qin Fei immobilized one Leviathan, the other had already closed in on him.

Qin Fei swiftly dove into the magnetic orb, enveloping his entire body within it.

When the second Leviathan charged, it collided directly with the orb and was immobilized in place as well.

Although Phantom Leviathans appeared transparent, they had physical bodies that could be harmed by physical attacks.

However, their tough, thick hides were impervious to ordinary iron weapons.

Therefore, Qin Fei drew the titanium dagger from his backpack and began slashing at the Phantom Leviathans’ heads.

The magnetic orb lasted about ten seconds.

Qin Fei had already calculated the intervals.

Every 8 to 10 seconds, he would fire another orb from the Stasis Gun, keeping both Leviathans frozen continuously.

After about an hour of relentless assault with his titanium dagger, the two Phantom Leviathans finally died in the water.

Their bodies gradually sank to the bottom of the underwater desert.

Qin Fei swam down to the seabed, retrieved his scanner, and scanned their bodies.

[Phantom Leviathan Juvenile: Large predators accustomed to living in deep-sea zones and dark caves. Highly aggressive.]

After reading the scanner’s analysis, Qin Fei felt puzzled.

Only adult Phantom Leviathans ventured into open areas.

Since these two were juveniles, they should have been in deep-sea caves according to normal behavior.

What had brought them to the seabed desert?

Phantom Leviathans had no natural predators.

They were apex predators, with almost no creatures able to drive them from their territory.

No, that wasn’t quite right.

It was possible there was indeed such a force.

Qin Fei thought it through carefully and came up with two possibilities.

The first was the "Father of the Shark Swarm Leviathan" mentioned in the main quest.

Its presence might have forced these juvenile Phantom Leviathans out of their territory.

The second was a mutation caused by the Kara Virus, which could have spawned a powerful new monster in the ocean depths.

These juveniles, unable to withstand it, fled.

Either way, none of these scenarios was good news for Qin Fei.

If a creature could drive Phantom Leviathans from their territory, it was definitely not something Qin Fei could easily handle.

After killing the two Leviathans, Qin Fei finally let go of the tension gripping his heart.

He returned inside the Healer to search for items and technology left aboard.

The pair of mechanical arms he found earlier was part of the Seashrimp’s mecha.

After further searching, Qin Fei found other parts of the Seashrimp mecha scattered inside the ship and assembled them into a complete unit.

[Seashrimp Power Mecha: A multifunctional exosuit designed for solo deep-sea exploration. Installing different modules grants additional capabilities.]

However, besides the mecha’s main body, no other functional modules were found in the warehouse.

He did discover a large stockpile of survival supplies—mostly compressed biscuits and bottled water.

Qin Fei also found several waterproof batteries to power his Stasis Gun, laser cutter, scanner, welder, and other equipment.

After finishing the search of the Healer’s warehouse, Qin Fei piloted the Seashrimp close to the Mothship.

He tied several iron wires and hemp ropes to the Seashrimp and anchored their ends to the Mothship.

Using the Mothship’s power, Qin Fei dragged the Seashrimp mecha back toward the escape pod nestled within the kelp forest.