I've been transported to the orc continent.

Chapter 328 Storm

A summer afternoon should be sunny and bright, but now the sky is as dark as midnight, the whole earth is pitch black, thunder rumbles in the sky, and lightning strikes one after another.

Lightning flashed like silver snakes through the clouds, and only when it appeared could it bring a glimmer of light to this world shrouded in darkness.

The wind howled and the rain poured down. The strong winds blew the rain into the cave, and the orcs moved all their belongings to places where they wouldn't get wet. They also went deep into the cave.

The orcs huddled around the lit campfire, which still swayed precariously despite the strong winds that didn't reach it directly.

The beastmen were talking in hushed tones. Xiao leaned close to Yue and whispered, "Yue, the ocean is so scary."

When the weather is clear, the sea is calm and the blue sky, white clouds, seabirds and sandy beach look like a beautiful and quiet painting. Not only is the scenery beautiful, but you can also find a lot of delicious seafood. He really thought the sea was lovely at that time.

But once the wind picks up, the sea changes completely. Even from this distance, he can hear the roar of the waves, as if countless huge beasts are enraged together. The whole world is filled with their anger. Even if he is far away, even if he closes his eyes and covers his ears, he can still be frightened by their anger.

Xiao didn't even dare to walk to the cave entrance to take a look. Just sitting there and glancing towards the cave made his body tremble slightly.

It's terrible!

This is a biological instinct; not only the orcs, but all the creatures on the entire island hid themselves, some even trembling with unease.

*

Yue gently patted Xiao's shoulder and whispered to comfort her friend, "It's okay."

“I know it’s okay, we’re safe in the cave, but I’m just a little scared.” Xiao talked more than usual. “Yue, the wind outside is so strong. I’ve never seen such strong winds before. Luckily we’re in a cave. If we were in a house, I think the wind would have blown the house away.”

He glanced out of the cave just now, and the lightning in the sky illuminated the earth. He saw a big tree fly up, just like a blade of grass, being swept around by the gale.

He also saw something far away, like the sea, or a dark cloud of smoke that rose and fell, fell and rose again, rushing towards them like a menacing beast, but remained forever stationary.

Just thinking about that scene made Xiao tremble with fear, but the warm campfire and the tribesmen sitting around it quickly brought him back to his senses.

"Moon, no wonder the Grand Elder said the sea is terrifying. I didn't believe it before, but now I finally do. The sea really is terrifying. With such a strong wind and rain, even the Sky Beastmen wouldn't dare to act at this time."

Although the moon's voice was faint, the orcs still heard it. One of the sky orcs said, "Even if the wind and rain aren't this strong, once the weather changes, we won't be able to fly at sea. We'll find a place to land immediately."

Xiao asked again, "With such heavy rain, what will those aquatic beastmen do? Aren't they afraid?"

One of the Sky Orcs said, "If it rains heavily, they will take shelter in caves like us. But if it's a very strong storm, they will take shelter in the sea."

The orcs sitting around were all surprised. With such a strong wind and rain outside and such high waves, why did they hide in the sea? Weren't they afraid of being blown away by the waves?

The speaker was the Sky Beastman who had a friend among the aquatic beastmen. He noticed everyone's questions and said, "This is what my friend said: No matter how big the storm is at sea, the sea is calm beneath the surface. They will lead the elders and children of their tribe to swim underwater. The seabed is calm, and they will swim back up after the storm has passed."

The orcs listened intently, barely paying attention to the wind and rain outside. Afterwards, they still had many questions, such as how could the sea be so calm when the wind and rain were so strong and the waves so high? Or how did the aquatic orcs know which storms required sheltering in caves and which required sheltering underwater?

There were many questions, but none of the orcs asked them, because they knew that even if they asked the aquatic orcs, they might not know the answers.

*

The orcs were temporarily relieved, but soon another thunderclap exploded in the sky.

The thunder seemed to be right above their heads, louder and louder than any thunder before, and even the cave they were in trembled.

The orcs, who had just been joking, all fell silent again.

The campfire seemed startled, and the flames quickly dwindled, dimming the light in the cave and plunging most of it into darkness.

Just as the thunder roared, Bai Ling reached out and pulled Yue into his arms, covering her ears with his hands.

In the dim light, Bai Ling's eyes were warm and bright. He smiled at the moon and opened his mouth to say two words.

Bai Ling simply opened his mouth without making a sound, but Yue still knew what he said: "I'm here."

Yue wasn't actually afraid. Because he had been hunting for many years, he had truly experienced the brink of death many times. Today's wind and rain were indeed very strong, and the raging sea was really terrifying, but it hadn't reached the point where it could threaten his life, so he wasn't afraid.

He wasn't afraid, but some people were afraid of him. When the deafening thunder roared, some people's first thought was to pull him into their arms and cover his ears with their hands.

Yue nestled in Bai Ling's arms, looking down at the face he knew so well: full, beautiful lips, a high, straight nose, eyes as black as night yet only his eyes, neat eyebrows, a smooth forehead—every part of him was beautiful, every part of him was pleasing to the eye.

Yue whispered, "Ling, I'm not afraid of thunder."

Bai Ling: "Hmm, then I'm afraid of you, especially when it thunders."

As the two were talking, another clap of thunder exploded, and Bai Ling's hands remained on Yue's ears.

Yue buried her face in Bai Ling's arms, feeling the strong heartbeat in her ear, which made her face blush quietly.

*

As the thunderclap sounded, Chen covered Xiao's ears with his hands: "Xiao, close your eyes."

Xiao was a little scared. He wanted to lean close to Yue like before, but unexpectedly, a pair of warm, dry hands covered his eyes.

Chen's voice wasn't loud, but it rang clearly in his ears. Xiao didn't have time to think about anything before he closed his eyes.