Chapter 507 - 504: Heartache

Chapter 507: Chapter 504: Heartache

The storm arrived with terrifying ferocity!

In what seemed like an instant, raindrops the size of beans pounded down like a barrage of pebbles, quickly merging into a curtain of rain that blurred all vision.

The gale carried the downpour, unleashing a shriek like the wails of ghosts and wolves. Trees as thick as bowls were snapped with ease. Monstrous waves, like frenzied beasts, slammed against the island’s shores again and again, as if trying to devour it whole.

The world dissolved into chaos, leaving only the roar of the storm and the furious howl of the ocean.

"Quick! Find shelter!" Zhu Xiu made a swift decision and roared.

The males immediately began to search, bracing themselves against a gale strong enough to knock a man off his feet as thunder and lightning crackled around them.

Yin Ze faced the storm, spreading his wings to shield the females and young ones beneath them.

"Ahead! There’s a cliff face on the leeward side. There should be a place to take shelter there."

Hearing Yin Ze’s words, the males immediately changed direction and headed for the location he mentioned.

This time, they were lucky. On the leeward side of the island, they found a naturally formed recess in the cliff face. It was like a shallow, narrow cave with a small entrance, but it was deep enough to offer some meager shelter from the storm.

However, the space inside was limited and couldn’t accommodate everyone.

Without a word, the males came to a tacit understanding.

"Yin Ze, you go with Wanwan to look after the young. Have the Merfolk go inside and rest as well."

Hearing this, one of the Merfolk males immediately refused. "We’re fine. We can just stand guard out here. You all go rest."

After all, they had already saved their lives. In the face of a storm like this, they couldn’t bring themselves to huddle inside with the females and the young.

"You need to recover. That way, you won’t be an extra burden on the way back," Zhu Xiu said bluntly.

Xin Feng quickly added, "You’re not well, and you have females and young to look after. We aren’t injured, so we’ll stand guard."

The Merfolk males were intimidated by Zhu Xiu’s powerful presence and couldn’t find the words to argue. They had no choice but to follow the arrangement, leading their females and young into the recess with Bai Wanwan and the others.

Zhu Xiu, Yan Lie, Xin Feng, Jin Yi, and Hua Han turned without hesitation. They used their own bodies to block the narrow entrance, standing like five silent reefs, holding back the most violent wind, rain, and treacherous waves.

Bai Wanwan was squeezed into the relative safety of the recess, her ears filled with the terrifying, apocalyptic sounds from outside.

The gale sounded as if it could rip the very mountains apart. The downpour hammered against the stone walls with a loud POUNDING, interspersed with the heart-stopping BOOM of waves crashing against the reefs.

Every tremendous clap of thunder made the young one in her arms tremble with fright.

Through a crack, she could see the tall, blurry figures of her Beast Husbands. They were completely exposed to the storm. Rain cascaded from their soaked hair and robes like waterfalls. The powerful wind threatened to topple them, but they stood as if nailed to the ground, not yielding a single inch. With their bodies, they formed the last line of defense for those inside.

Her heart felt as if it were being squeezed by an invisible hand, aching with sorrow.

’This moment of peace we have,’ she thought, ’is being bought by my males, who are enduring this with their own flesh and blood!’

Worry and heartache crashed within her like the turbulent waves outside.

She didn’t know how much time had passed, but one by one, the others around her fell asleep.

Bai Wanwan couldn’t bear it any longer. She rose carefully to her feet, took a waterproof cloak from her system, and wrapped it tightly around herself. Tiptoeing past the sleeping figures, she made her difficult way toward the cave entrance.

The moment she neared the entrance, a savage gust of wind, thick with the briny smell of the sea, slammed into her, carrying with it a torrent of icy rain. She stumbled, nearly losing her footing.

The situation outside was a hundred times worse than she had imagined!

The world was pitch-black, illuminated only for a flash by the lightning that occasionally tore across the sky, revealing the churning, monstrous waves outside.

"The wind and rain are weaker over here! Come closer!" she screamed with all her might, but her voice was instantly swallowed by the roar of the storm, sounding impossibly faint.

But Jin Yi, who was standing guard closest to the entrance, still caught the sound of her voice.

He whipped around. Seeing her slender figure in the storm, his heart clenched. He immediately strode over and, without hesitation, shielded her with his broad back, blocking the worst of the wind and rain.

"The wind is so strong and the rain is so heavy out here! Why did you come out? Go back inside, quickly!" his voice was fraught with anxiety and concern as rain streamed down his chiseled face.

"I was worried about you..." Bai Wanwan’s cold fingers clutched his soaked robes. She tilted her face up to look at him, rain dripping down her own cheeks.

Just then, the other males noticed the commotion and gathered around, instantly forming a solid human wall around her with their bodies.

"Don’t stand so far away. Stay here, at the entrance. At least... at least you can block a little of the wind and rain..."

Her gaze swept over the males’ soaked bodies. It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought of taking out a tent, but in a storm of this magnitude, an ordinary tent would be instantly ripped to shreds. It would be useless.

Even her cloak was no use. She had only been standing here for a moment, but the cold wind had already driven the heavy rain down her collar.

"Alright, we’ll stay right at the entrance. We’ll listen for any trouble and block the wind. Now you get inside before you catch a cold."

Xin Feng soothed her gently, reaching out to wipe the rain from her face. Her skin was ice-cold to the touch, making his heart ache.

Seeing the deep, unwavering worry and pain in the female’s eyes, Zhu Xiu felt his own icy heart being gently cradled.

"A little wind and rain like this is nothing to us males. Don’t worry about us." His voice was steady and strong, carrying a reassuring power.

Yan Lie grinned, though his face was pale from the cold. "Exactly! What’s a little storm like this? Wanwan, you should go back and rest. Don’t mind us."

The rest of the Beast Husbands nodded as well, their gazes firm yet gentle, signaling for her to hurry back to the dry, safe interior.

When Yan Lie saw she wasn’t moving, he simply put an arm around her cloaked shoulders and guided her back into the cave.

"It’ll be better by morning. Don’t worry about us. Get some sleep."

After seeing her inside, Yan Lie didn’t linger, heading back out with a trail of cold moisture.

Bai Wanwan had no choice but to take off her cloak and lie back down beside Yin Ze.

The male beside her immediately opened his arms, pulling her cold, trembling body into his warm embrace.

"Was it too loud outside? Did it wake you?" Yin Ze asked in a low voice, gently rubbing his chin against the top of her head, trying to warm her with his own body heat.

Bai Wanwan shook her head from within his warm, dependable embrace. She wrapped her arms around his lean waist and buried her face in his chest. "No... They’re out there, suffering through this. I feel so unsettled... It hurts..."

Yin Ze couldn’t help but lower his head and kiss her cold cheek tenderly. "It will be alright."

He comforted her softly. In the darkness, his gaze upon the female in his arms grew deeper, more profound.

’A storm like this was hardly a life-threatening trial for them as males,’ he thought. ’And yet, because of this "small matter," their beloved female was worried sick about them, her heart aching for them so deeply.’