"If we can't dodge them there, we'll drive straight into the sea. That's our only chance!" Yaoyao declared with certainty, as if she had already planned this.
I glanced back at the Whale God in the back seat, and it suddenly dawned on me. Yaoyao knew that our group of humans and demons would have an incredibly tough time fighting fifteen experts at the Purple Qi realm. We had none of the advantages: no favorable timing, terrain, or human support. Therefore, she wanted to change the battlefield, dragging it from land into the water.
This way, firstly, Yaoyao's water-elemental spells could be put to good use. Secondly, the Whale God's power would be astonishing once in the sea. Last time in Changbai Mountain, the Mohe organization had dispatched over a dozen Purple Qi experts to hunt the Whale God, but one of their top experts was instantly annihilated by a single move from the Whale God, forcing the Mohe to retreat.
"Notify the cars behind us to keep up!" I shouted, already seeing the coastal dike.
"Already done," Yaoyao chuckled. I'd almost forgotten; she possessed sound transmission abilities.
A fork appeared ahead. To the left was an elevated road, which would lead to the coastal highway. Straight ahead, a few hundred meters away, was a T-junction. If we didn't change direction, we'd be heading straight for the ocean. However, I noticed a guardrail there, secured with chains.
Recalling my previous trips to the seaside, a sense of dread washed over me. Normally, beyond the guardrail at the beach, there wasn't a direct drop into the sea. There would be a breakwater – a "rocky shore" formed by massive, interlocking concrete tetrapods!
If the car were to crash directly into the sea, it might be manageable. Once in the water, Yaoyao would guide us in water evasion. But if the car broke through the guardrail and slammed into the reinforced concrete breakwater, it could be a fatal crash!
In that split second, without time to consult Yaoyao, I immediately activated the left turn signal and swerved onto the elevated road to the left!
"Huh? What's going on?" Yaoyao asked.
I quickly checked the rearview mirror. Thankfully, the other cars had followed. Only then did I explain the coastal structure to Yaoyao.
"I see. I thought we could just drive straight into the sea once we reached the beach," Yaoyao said.
I couldn't blame her. During her time as a princess, she had been involved in continuous warfare and likely hadn't seen the sea. Even as a reincarnation of Bai Ze, the previous Bai Ze would have at most seen naval defenses and steel battleships from historical records. Breakwaters didn't exist then.
As it turned out, my gamble paid off. After getting onto the elevated road, I downshifted and floored the accelerator. As the car plunged over the guardrail, I saw that the coastline had a breakwater at least ten meters wide. If we had attacked from below, there would have been no way to reach the sea. Everyone would have crashed into the concrete blocks, disoriented, and waited to be captured.
But it was different from the elevated road. With over twenty meters of potential energy gained from the height, even though the guardrail momentarily slowed the car, it could easily clear the breakwater in a parabolic trajectory and plunge into the sea.
However, it was still a rough landing. The impact of the seawater was significant, directly deploying the airbags. Instinctively, I shielded Chen Ke, who was in the passenger seat and not very skilled in martial arts, and we were both compressed into the gap between the driver and passenger seats by the airbags.
Yaoyao and the Whale God were fine. Before the car sank, they kicked open the windshield and pulled us out. The others also swam over. I looked back at the elevated road. The enemies had also begun their assault on the bridge. I wondered if they would fall into the sea as well and face us in battle.
Diana wiped the water from her face and asked Yaoyao, "Fight or not?"
"...It's best if we don't fight." Yaoyao looked at Chen Ke, Bingbing, Little Ginseng, Lu Qianxun, and the others. She said rationally, as some in our team, including myself, were not capable of combat.
Diana nodded and swam towards me, grabbing my shoulder.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"My demon core, give it back. I'll take you all away!"
Before I could react, Diana's underwater hand began to operate. In about three seconds, my body trembled, and the demon core was reabsorbed into Diana's body.
Immediately, Diana transformed into the North Sea Whale God and opened her massive mouth!
I understood. She intended to act as a transport ship, taking us away by water!
"Hurry, get into her mouth!" I immediately commanded. I had been inside before and knew it wasn't dangerous.
Everyone scrambled into the Whale God's gaping maw. Meng Meng and the others even brought their eight stolen treasures inside. I was the last to enter. As the whale's mouth closed, I saw a line of figures appear at the broken section of the elevated road, unleashing a barrage of fire towards us.