Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 9: Breathing Underwater
"There has always been such a legend among my people—the Cursed."

"We haven't always been like this. It's because we failed to protect our gods and lost our home. The gods cursed us before they died, and that's why we've become so ugly and disgusting."

"But the world has not completely abandoned us. New gods will appear on land and lead us to a new promised land, where we can escape the curse and rebuild our home."

The swollen monster bent down awkwardly and crawled on the ground.

"I believe you are the redemption foretold."

Xiu Si's eyes widened, and he said in disbelief, "Wait, you mean, there are a lot of you? It's always been like this. Have you never tried to go into the deep sea?"

The swollen monster nodded and said, "Yes, our tribe has been trapped in the shallow sea for various reasons. If you are willing, you can go to the sea with me and let me tell my people the truth about the curse."

"I'm not sure the water pressure is the cause of your curse."

"But this is a hope. Everything now is exactly as predicted. I firmly believe that you are the salvation we have been waiting for. Besides, my people have nothing to lose."

Indeed, it’s just a matter of trying it out in the deep sea. Even if it’s not right, there’s no loss. If he were in the opposite position, he would definitely try it.

Hughes glanced at the sea in the distance and said, "I may not be able to witness it. As you can see, I am not a god, and I can't breathe in the sea!"

Go to Underwater Symbiotic Contract
A bold guess suddenly emerged in his mind. The symbiotic contract gave him new senses and abilities. Could it include breathing underwater?

Breathe underwater and swim in the ocean!
Zeus' heart was pounding, and as he stared at the swollen monster in front of him, his fingers began to tremble slightly.

"I can sense the water, and I can sense your location, can't it be..."

"Yes, my lord. The symbiotic contract of our race allows us to survive in water. Whether it's the deep sea or the land, nothing will hinder your actions."

Blood surged from his heart, excitement boiling up to the top of his head. Hughes' eyes were filled with surprise. He was just an ordinary man, his knowledge of the ocean limited to aquariums, and now he could go down and see it for himself!?

This, this kind of extraordinary ability, have I really obtained it?
Go, you must go, even if you die it will be worth it!
Xiu Si turned his head to look at the sea in the cave, and a sense of familiarity came from the symbiotic contract, as if that was not an unknown land, but a kind of warm existence, like
hometown.

I took a few deep breaths to calm my restless mood.

"Where are your people? Are they in the sea?"

"My people are not far from here. We were planning to leave after signing the contract with you, but we didn't expect you to... uh."

It paused hesitantly before continuing:
"Your race is somewhat too weak. I'm worried that if you stay away, the contract will continue to drain your vitality, causing danger, so I've been waiting for you."

Zeus looked at the huge body of the swollen monster, then looked down at his own slender figure, which was considered slender among humans, and his eyes twitched.

There's no way around it. This body is just a noble who lacks exercise. He fainted right after signing the contract. I guess this monster was also frightened.

It was quite loyal and did not leave without caring about his life or death. It was still waiting for him here.

I guess they really think he is a god.

"Lord, there are indeed some dangers in the sea, but it is not difficult to circumvent them. Moreover, we are fulfilling the ancient prophecy, so everything will go smoothly."

Xius narrowed his eyes, rubbed his chin and began to think.

Putting aside the monster's blind enthusiasm for the prophecy, Hughes felt that he could go. Going to the sea to meet the monster's kin shouldn't be too risky.

At present, it seems that their values are relatively close to those of humans and they can communicate with each other. If they can become friends, they may help him develop his territory in the future.

Another thing is that he really wanted to go to the sea and take a look. Although he kept reminding himself to be careful, the temptation was too great.

At worst, I can come back again.

"Lead the way." Xius said.

"Please follow me, my lord." The swollen monster walked towards the sea first. "There may be some obstacles, but don't worry, I will protect you."

"We will not lose our gods again."

The two of them quickly entered the water. Zeus looked around curiously. The sea was much warmer than he had imagined. He was only wearing a simple set of pajamas, and he would feel a little uncomfortable because of the cold night when he was on land, but after entering the sea, he felt as if he had fallen into a warm embrace.

The visibility in the sea water is pretty good, but the sea is pitch black at night. Occasionally, some fluorescent mayflies gather on the sea surface, attracting schools of fish.

Zeus held his breath in his mouth, and after thinking for a while, he spit it all out, then took a big breath of sea water.

We are not far from the shore now, and we can climb up even if we get choked.

But the feeling of suffocation did not appear. He felt as if he had taken a deep breath in the early morning. He did not feel stuffy at all, but felt natural and comfortable.

Trying to spit out the water in his mouth, Hughes discovered that he was not swallowing water instead of breathing, but could breathe in the sea just like on land.

The sea water did not enter his nostrils, but he was still breathing.

This feeling was indescribably strange, but fortunately he found that as long as he didn't pay too much attention to it, his body would naturally take over his breathing.

Shaking his head, Xius found that he could no longer see the strange fish.

After thinking for a while, he focused his attention on his perception, and soon a familiar feeling spread. A figure that made him feel familiar appeared not far ahead.

He subconsciously wanted to move forward, but before he could think of how to move in the water, his body moved naturally. It was not like walking, nor was it quite like swimming. He floated towards the strange fish according to his thoughts, and compared with the fish swimming on both sides, his speed was surprisingly not slow.

"Lord, please follow me." The swollen monster's voice echoed in his mind. "You can communicate with me directly in your consciousness. This is brought about by the symbiotic contract. We call it a mind link."

Mind link?

Zeus was a little surprised. After trying it, he found that this ability was more useful than he had imagined. He could convey his thoughts just by thinking about it, and it was much more efficient than speaking.

Isn't this better than a phone?
But after the swollen monster's explanation, he realized that the range of this communication was very close, and it could only be successfully transmitted within the range of visual sight, and it could not be heard at a distance.

"And it can't be blocked. If it's in an open area, communication can be carried out over a long distance, but if it's blocked in the middle, the effect will be much worse."

The effect is within the visual range and spreads in a straight line. If blocked, the effect drops rapidly.
Xius's heart moved.

These characteristics gave him a sense of déjà vu.

(End of this chapter)