Phi-Fic Chapter 1097
Chapter 1097
There were only a few gaps in the dormitory ceiling that were not filled by the water.
Their situation is extremely dangerous; they could be buried by water at any moment!
The dormitory door was blocked by two thick steel beams.
Zhou Shuwan suddenly opened her eyes, startling both the doctor and Wang Qian.
"You're awake. How are you now?"
Zhou Shuwan didn't bother talking to the doctor; she stood up and walked out.
"Hey..." the doctor called from behind.
Qi Mingyu quickly waved his hand: "Doctor, you go ahead and do your work. Wanwan must be worried about the survivors who fell into the water. I'll go take care of her."
He hurriedly followed Zhou Shuwan.
The doctor and Wang Qian behind them were completely bewildered.
Zhou Shuwan rushed to the deck, weaving through the people who had just been rescued, a large pile of miscellaneous supplies, and a group of maintenance workers running around, before finally arriving at the southernmost end of the deck.
The sea breeze, carrying a salty, fishy smell, rushed towards her. Zhou Shuwan leaned on the cold railing and looked down. In the murky seawater, only a small section of the cruise ship's top was still visible above the surface, like a piece of rotten wood about to sink.
She closed her eyes and concentrated all her energy to "capture" the location of that enclosed dormitory room.
Right in the middle of the hull, near the starboard living area, in the shadow of two intersecting steel beams.
"Wanwan, what's wrong?" Qi Mingyu caught up with her and grabbed her cold wrist.
Zhou Shuwan didn't turn around, her gaze fixed on the unseen area beneath the sea surface, and whispered, "There are still people inside, two women and two children."
She had to remove the steel beam blocking the dormitory door first.
It's easier to operate here than in the sealed cockpit.
Qi Mingyu didn't say anything more. He immediately stood in front of her, using his body to block the view of the surroundings, and whispered, "I'll keep an eye on things for you, don't panic."
Just then, an unusual ripple appeared on the sea surface, and the exposed section of the cruise ship wreckage suddenly sank and disappeared without a trace.
Zhou Shuwan's heart tightened, and with a sudden burst of strength, she finally managed to store the two steel beams into her spatial storage!
But the two women didn't even see that the door was already open.
Zhou Shuwan forcefully slammed the door shut inside the room, making a deafening noise.
One woman was already struggling to breathe. She opened her blurry eyes and finally saw that the door seemed to be gone.
Overjoyed, she tugged at another woman and frantically pointed towards the door.
However, she could no longer hold on.
She couldn't help but take a breath, and immediately, the icy seawater rushed into her mouth and nose.
She coughed, but more and more water poured into her stomach, and her body became noticeably heavier.
Just as she was about to faint, another woman swam up to her and stuffed something into her mouth.
Oxygen continuously enters the body.
She finally pulled herself out of that suffocating feeling, opened her eyes, and saw the woman and the two children's surprised expressions.
Each of them was wearing a mask on their face—an oxygen mask!
The woman was very surprised. Looking around, she realized that there were four oxygen tanks in the small dormitory room at some point.
In that extremely critical moment, it was the other person who turned on the oxygen tank and put the mask on her face.
She barely escaped with her life!
However, before they could even celebrate, the group was already in a state of excitement.
They then felt the cruise ship sinking.
The other woman pointed upwards, indicating that they needed to leave as soon as possible.
She nodded, and the two figures, holding the child, struggled to swim out of the door frame.
Just as they swam out of the doorway, a strong downward force pulled the four of them down.
The entire cruise ship is sinking into the deep sea at an even faster speed, creating a small whirlpool in the surrounding water.
The woman holding the child felt a pang of anxiety and immediately adjusted her position, pressing the child tightly against her chest. She then kicked her legs forcefully, trying to break free from the pull of the water.
The other woman was equally decisive, protecting the child's head with one hand while paddling through the water with the other, avoiding floating debris and broken power lines.
But the vortex's suction force grew stronger and stronger. They had only swum a few meters upward when their bodies were uncontrollably pulled back half a meter.
She glanced at the pale face of the child in her arms, and her anxiety grew even stronger.
Oxygen masks have limited lifespan, and if you get trapped in a whirlpool, even if you don't drown, the oxygen won't last long.
She suddenly spotted a broken life ladder not far away, immediately gave her companion a wink, and the two of them swam together toward the life ladder.
The woman used almost all her strength to finally grab the life ladder.
She had the child hold tightly to the ladder bars while she herself gripped the steps and climbed upwards.
With each step, you could feel the vibrations caused by the cruise ship sinking.
Their companion behind them also grabbed the ladder bars, and the two of them used each other's strength to move the child up little by little, avoiding the metal fragments that kept falling from above.
When they finally reached the top of the rescue ladder, they didn't dare to delay. They immediately took their children and left the rescue ladder, swimming towards the faint light above them.
That's the direction of the sea.
As we got closer to the sea, we could faintly hear shouts coming from above.
The woman was overjoyed and increased her paddling speed. Finally, just before she was about to run out of strength, she broke through the water with her child.
Fresh air filled her lungs, and when she looked up, she saw a lifeboat breaking through the whirlpool of the water, with three long rescue poles sticking out from the hull.
The soldier closest to them had half his body leaning out of the boat, his arm taut, and he roared, "Quick! Grab him!"
But the pull of the undercurrent grew stronger and stronger, and the woman's arms began to ache, while the child in her arms began to tremble slightly with fear.
Just as the lifeline was about to be handed to her, she was suddenly tripped by a piece of floating metal and her body plummeted downwards.
"Watch out!" a soldier on the boat shouted anxiously. Another soldier immediately handed over a second lifeline pole. The two of them worked together to press the pole down and finally touched the woman's wrist.
"Hold on tight! Don't let go!"
The woman gripped the lifeboat tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.
The soldiers worked together to pull her up, first lifting the child in her arms onto the boat, and then pulling her up as well.
Another mother and child, following closely behind, also boarded the boat smoothly with the help of the soldiers.
Four soaking wet figures collapsed inside the boat, panting heavily. The child finally couldn't hold back and buried his face in the adult's arms, crying softly.
"It's alright, it's alright, we're safe now." The soldier handed them dry blankets and unscrewed the thermos, pouring out warm water for them.
The woman held the water glass, and the warmth from her fingertips finally brought her back to her senses.
She looked up at the distant main ship and could vaguely see a familiar figure standing on the deck.
It was Dr. Zhou.
A man was supporting Dr. Zhou, who was pale-faced.
Dr. Zhou's gaze was fixed on the lifeboat, a faint smile playing on his lips.
The woman's heart skipped a beat, and when she looked up again, the two men had already turned and left.