God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Chapter 516: Gatherers and Drifters.

The wind lightly brushed up on the surface of the ocean, carrying its salty fragrance with it.

It was a delicate, but stark smell brought relaxation when one gazed at the wide, beautiful ocean.

The only problem, was that the ocean was no longer beautiful. That means this aroma could no longer be associated with the beautiful view, but the death and carnage beneath the waves.

However, it was too early to be thinking about things like that.

Trying to suppress a yawn, Steve stared into the distance, he could easily see past the horizon, but today, he wasn't staring at anything in particular.

Behind him, was a constant bustleof activity. He, together with Manny, Vincent, Blaze and Calio, were currently on the Northern Island with a rather large group of people.

Rather than following the ship, they had been left behind here. And for good purpose too. The Northern Island had slowly been transforming into a holy land for all sorts of herbs for making potions and special fruits that could grant all sorts of things, from extra stats, to resistances.

Although these things wouldn't make much of a difference to them who were already Tier 1, it would give those that were weak, a bit of an edge when fighting.

It had been weeks since they had been left here. There had harvested quite a lot, but at the cost of many lives.

For the most part, the island had been cleared of Mutant Creatures and Devils. However, the Mutant Creatures weren't completely eradicated.

And with how fast the Mutant Beasts procreated, it was only a matter of time before the entire island was ruled by the again.

As such, they had to fight everyday killing swarms upon swarms of rabid creatures. It was only natural that they incurred a few losses.

'It's been well over a month now. I think it's time we went back.' Steve thought to himself, his expression a bit bored.

"Steve..." Someone called out to him from behind.

Without turning, Steve answered,

"What is it? I'm really busy right now."

Blaze ignored him and walked forward, eventually standing right before him, blocking the harrowing view with his body,

"We've gotten all the Bloodlilly Bismuth we can get. Taking too much Silverfin grass and Thumbledore can damage the place too much, so that's all for now."

Steve sighed, "Then..."

Blaze nodded, his face a bit pale, "Let's leave this place. We have nothing to do here anymore!"

Steve wholeheartedly agreed. He sighed,

"Trust me. I'm done with this place as well. Everywhere damp, and there's something trying to kill you at every turn. Hell, even the plants are dangerous!"

Indeed, some plants had begun to mutant, turning into flesh-eating abominations overnight. When they had discovered this, some lives had already been lost by then.

Blaze shook his head, "If you are done with it, we have no reason to keep staying here."

Tears welled up in Steve's eyes,

"If I could, I would've left a long time ago. However, we can't. Not yet at least. We need to set up the Teleportation Gate Cain is working on before we can leave. Other wise, we might not be able to return here ever again."

Blaze snorted, "Who would want to return to this hellhole again anyways?"

Steve shook his head, "Resources might become a rather rare thing in the near future, so we have to secure as much of it as we can."

Blaze rubbed his hair ferociously, "Damn it. Fine! Then what's taking Cain so long."

Steve sighed mysteriously, "Heathen... Do you even understand how difficult it is to try descending the secrets of the arcane arts?"

Blaze rolled his eyes, "Whatever."

Seated on a segment of rock protruding from the outskirts of the forest that lines the island, directly facing the ocean, Steve had a gloomy look on his face.

Blaze turned to stare at the ocean as well.

"It's strange how things change. One moment, everything and everyone is just a shade of black and white, sometimes existing, sometimes not. Then suddenly... color explodes everywhere."

Blaze frowned, "I don't think I understand what you mean. But there's one thing I do know."

Steve raised a brow curiously, "And what's that?"

Blaze grinned, "I'm happy with the way things have turned out. It could have been worse."

Steve chuckled, "That's quite true. We've all played our parts well."

His face turned a bit dark, "The real question is how much longer will we be able to play this game? It's quite scary, isn't it?"

Blaze nodded, "It is indeed."

Suddenly, a loud yell came from deep within the forest. Blaze's body turned swiftly. Summoning his spear, he dashed into the dense foliage,

"I'm heading back."

Steve sighed, "I guess I will too."

With that, he picked the staff resting on a nearby tree root and walked back into the dark embrace of the forest.

***

Meanwhile, on an empty expanse of ocean, a small group of humans could be seen.

At any other time period, this would have been a rather strange, even eerie sight.

They sported strange looking boots that allowed them to ride the water current and waves. This way, unless something very unexpected happened, they would be able to keep their feet grounded.

These boots were a special equipment gotten from the system called {Wavedrifters}. Currently, in this drifter squad was Hunter, Dan, Susan, Li, Sue, Stan, and Jenny, alongside a number of Beastmen and regular humans.

They used these boots to hunt down Sea Mutants, and right now, they had just finished a big hunt.

Hunter had a grim look on his face, but these days, that was all the emotion he ever showed on his face.

And he had every right too. For one, travelling through this stretch of ocean was one of the most treacherous endeavors one could embark on.

Forgetting the ever present danger of Sea Mutants, one also had to be cautious of the Dead Spots.

"If we go closer, we'll get sucked into that Dead Spot. We have to make another detour." Jenny said, looking at a large area in front of them with a skyglass-looking magic equipment

"Damn this! Another detour!" Li cursed.

Not only was using the {Wavedrifters} tirimg, they had also not have a lick of rest since they left the ship. Unlike Steve and his entourage, they weren't very far away from the ship.

Mutant Creatures woudl always be drawn towards areas with a large concentration of human souls.

What this meant, was that Gwendolyn was a constant moving target...

It attracted the attention of the Mutant Creatures in the area, then tried to escape their range of detection. The slower ones were left behind, while the faster ones contjnito follow behind, hoping to get a taste of succulent human flesh.

This is where Hunter and the others came in. Hunting these Mutant Creatures was both necessary for the ships power supply and for its safety.

Hunter muttered something under his breath. Then he turned around and looked at the people behind him.

All of them looked incredibly exhausted. Since they left the ship three days ago, they hadn't had a moment's rest. They had been fighting all this time.

Those that could embark of these types of perilous tasks, apart from they who had access to the system, were those who showed incredible physical prowess, pr those with high affinity with Ki or mana.

These included individuals like Old Man Ling, who's body was now as strong as a bull. The old man had a rune that resembled a sharks jaws on his arm. With a hard look on his face, he stared into the distance,

"This kind of lifestyle can't be sustained for long. We have to find land. Without that, we'll tire out eventually."

Maya grumbled, "And we're all exhausted too. Can't we just take a break?"

Hunter snorted, "Finding a safe route back takes time. Be patient."

Stan frowned. He turned back to face Maya,

"Rushing things now will just increase our casualties. Best to play it safe."

Maya's face blushed, "Of course! As long as Stan is here, nothing bad can happen!"

Stan's face squeezed up. Li tried suppressing a laugh. Hunter sighed,

"Enough flirting around. Keep moving forward. Jenny, lead the way."

"Haha... Dude. That chick has been into you all this time. When will you make a move?" Li poked at Stan's side.

"Are you crazy? Why would I do something like that?!"

Li chuckled, "Since when did your standards get so high? She's quite the looker, isn't she?"

Stan snorted, "That's not what this is about. Pay attention, or you'll fall into the water." He tried deflecting.

Sensing something, Li wanted to press him for more, but was forced to stop.

"Something's coming." Jenny said, her tone filled with caution.

Hunter turned his head back, "Get ready. Stan, Li, take forward. Maya, Old Man... Support. The rest of you, stay clear of the area."

This was the way they had to battle on this dark ocean. Any delay could be fatal, and the slightest mistakes could cost them all their lives.

To prevent all of them from getting attacked at once, most of the time, when they were attacked by a school or Sea Mutants, Hunter would be forced to make a swift judgement, gauging the abilities and strength of the approaching monsters.

Once that was determined, a portion of their numbers would deal with the approaching abominations. If they weren't enough, or the monsters proved to be too much to handle, someone would be sent to assist. Most of the time, this was needed.

The main reason for this, was to prevent more monsters from gathering. Even now, the entire group was quite spread out. The closer theyw ere, the greater the attraction from the Sea Mutants. Plus, they might all be devoured at once by some creature from the depths.

Better to sacrifice a few and the whole...

As such, they made their way towards the ship just a few nautical leagues ahead.