What do these zombie catfish want to do  

"How can you do this?" Charles, hearing this, turned pale with fear, never expecting to be abandoned so easily. "I can offer you more money, as long as you guarantee my survival!"

However, his words received no response.

Ava ran directly towards Clark, holding a laser dagger in each hand. The faintly visible blades moved like two mobile beams of light as she ran, leaving behind trails of light.

Feeling Ava getting closer, Clark had no choice but to toss Charles aside and turn to face Ava.

"Click!" The dagger and laser blade clashed, sparking a series of flames.

Ava was agile, with her hands constantly alternating, launching continuous attacks against Clark. Gradually, Clark found it a bit overwhelming. The longer he fought with this professional assassin, the more disadvantageous it became for him.

Seeing Clark and Ava in intense combat, Daniel, without even looking at Charles lying on the ground, charged towards Clark.

Dong!

A muffled sound, and Daniel didn't collide with Clark but with something transparent. He was pushed back several steps.

"Air barrier!" Daniel understood what had happened and waited for Richard. "You promised not to intervene, but now you dare to break your word!"

Richard stood on the side. The device on his back, like a pair of wings, had opened at some point, emitting two waves of air that intersected to form the barrier blocking Daniel.

"I haven't broken my promise. I pledged not to interfere within the fortress, but here, it depends on my mood!" Richard laughed, unafraid of Daniel. "I didn't intend to oppose you, but bullying him alone, I can't stand by!"

"You!" Daniel apparently did not expect Richard to suddenly intervene, seemingly wary of the other's strength, so he did not immediately strike again.

Meanwhile, Clark and Ava were still in battle, Daniel and Richard were on guard against each other, and Charles lay on the ground with blood still flowing from his neck.

Dong, dong, dong!

Several dull sounds came from the left, right, and below the Ark.

As if impacted, the Ark began to shake violently. Inside, people could not even stand steadily, and the ongoing fights came to a halt.

"What's going on?" Daniel hurried to the control room, opened the monitor, and several projections were displayed.

The underside and both sides of the Ark were being hit by unidentified objects, and the attackers were deliberately targeting the Ark, closely sticking to it, occasionally colliding but not launching too fierce attacks.

"I want to see who dares to trouble me!" Daniel manipulated the controls, and the searchlight of the Ark opened directly.

At this moment, everyone could finally see clearly that continuously colliding with the Ark were three gigantic zombie catfish. Among them, one of the zombie catfish's eyes seemed to have been injured, precisely the one Clark had previously wounded!

This fellow somehow brought two companions, sticking closely to the Ark.

"What do these zombie catfish want to do?" Richard was also a bit surprised. He usually flew in the air and knew little about underwater matters, let alone any experience in fighting zombie catfish.

Boom!

Another muffled sound came, and a dull noise echoed from beneath the Ark. The entire submarine was lifted a distance upward.

"These guys want to knock the submarine out of the water, so we'll lose our ability to move. Damn it, troublesome creatures!" Daniel had already seen through the plan of these beasts and directly controlled the Ark, accelerating forward.

However, even at full speed underwater, the Ark still couldn't shake off the zombie catfish!

"Cannons, fire at full power!" Daniel was furious and opened fire directly.

The cannon shot out like a meteor, illuminating the bottom of the river, but it had no substantial effect. The power of the cannon was greatly reduced underwater, and the zombie catfish moved quickly, easily avoiding the attacks.

"Enough, stop firing, save some energy!" Clark shouted at Daniel. He could clearly feel that the Ark's movements were slowing down. After the energy was depleted, being inside it was akin to a death sentence.

"Are you daring to shout at my brother?" Ava scolded and was about to take action, but Daniel stopped her.

"Do you have a solution?" Daniel had been controlling the Ark and naturally understood the situation the best. If they continued like this, it would become increasingly dangerous.

He wasn't too worried about himself. Once the device was activated, he was like a turtle shell, impervious to the zombie catfish. However, Ava couldn't survive in that situation.

"I'll lead these guys away, but there's one condition – give him to me!"

Clark pointed directly at Charles, frightening him nearly into fainting.

"Are you out of your mind? If you want to sacrifice yourself, don't drag us into it!" Charles directly cursed. Going out to distract the zombie catfish was nothing but suicide. He'd rather die at the hands of humans than be swallowed by the zombie catfish. Even in death, he wanted to maintain his dignity. A feeling more terrifying than death crept into Charles's heart, making him miserable.

"Ha ha!" In contrast to Charles's anger, Daniel suddenly laughed, although it was quite out of sync with his usual demeanor. Even Ava was a bit puzzled – when was the last time her brother laughed? She couldn't recall.

"If you're not brave enough or confident, then you really must be out of your mind!" Daniel stopped laughing, spoke with some disdain, and stated that he himself wouldn't have such thoughts about going out to attract the attention of three zombie catfish.

"Don't go. Going out there is just throwing your life away!" Richard also spoke up, instinctively feeling that going out meant death with no other possibilities.

"Thanks for your reminder!" Clark nodded at Richard. He appreciated Richard's quick intervention in stopping Daniel; it showed reliability in a critical moment.

"I've made my conditions clear. Decide quickly!" Clark said to Daniel.

Daniel stared at Clark for a few seconds, then nodded. "Since death is inevitable, might as well take a gamble. Besides, I don't have to do it myself!" Daniel removed his mask and looked at Clark. "If you really help us escape, whether you live or die, I'll respect you as a man!"

"Doesn't matter, but you have to guarantee that you two won't team up against him!" Clark made a request.

"Ha ha, don't worry. I'm not afraid of these two guys!" Richard laughed, showing complete indifference.

Daniel remained silent, offering no rebuttal. People who could work as mercenaries wouldn't lack means to ensure their own survival.

Deal accepted!

After firing a few more shells, forcing the three zombie catfish to retreat a bit, Clark emerged from the escape hatch. Tied to him by a long rope was Charles, wearing an oxygen mask and carrying an oxygen tank. Clark, on the other hand, did not have one.

At this point, Clark had activated his ability to move underwater. Within half an hour, he could move freely without hindrance.

Daniel and the others weren't surprised. Clark voluntarily proposed such a trade; he undoubtedly had his own cards and secrets. As for what they were, they no longer cared – they just wanted to leave as soon as possible.