Alvin had good reason to be worried.

Under these conditions, continuing with the rescue could put the *River Beach* and its crew in even greater danger.

The ship’s equipment could malfunction in the harsh environment, and the crew faced both physical and psychological challenges.

If an accident were to happen, the consequences would be unimaginable.

However, from a moral standpoint, abandoning the rescue was difficult to accept.

Every life is precious. To see someone in mortal danger and not offer aid went against basic conscience and moral principles.

There was an unwritten rule of the sea: so long as it didn’t severely endanger their own vessel and the people aboard, a captain was obligated to do everything in their power to save lives at sea‌.

Moreover, as fellow Crab Fishermen, they all struggled together in these waters, forging a special bond of camaraderie.

Abandoning the rescue at a time of crisis would undoubtedly fill a person’s heart with guilt and unease.

When the Crabbing Boat *Yekaterina II* sank years ago, he had sent out a distress call by radio. The nearby crabbing boats received the signal and, without the slightest hesitation, had immediately turned and steamed at full speed in the direction of the *Yekaterina II*.

’If the *River Beach* were my own, I wouldn’t hesitate for a second.’

But it wasn’t just his crew on board; there was also the big boss and two buyers.

’It wouldn’t matter if something happened to me, but if anything happened to those three... I couldn’t bear the responsibility even if I had a dozen lives to give.’

Alvin was torn. On one hand was the call of morality; on the other, the pressure of their reality.

The next moment, the bow of the *River Beach* was swamped by a wave more than ten meters high.

The immense impact made the hull shudder violently. Feng Mountain felt as if he were trapped in a giant vortex. Water cascaded over the bow and flooded the pilothouse, soaking everyone to the bone. An icy chill ran through Feng Mountain, making him shiver.

The ship’s hull was then lifted high into the air by the wave’s pull.

Feng Mountain’s heart leaped into his throat. He gripped a nearby handrail, struggling to keep his balance.

Hearing Alvin’s suggestion to turn back, Feng Mountain wiped the seawater from his face. After a moment of thought, he shook his head. "We’ve come this far. We should at least go take a look. Every life we can save is a life saved."

The boss’s decision filled everyone in the pilothouse with a surge of admiration.

Since the decision was to continue the rescue, what more could Alvin say? He throttled up, charging into the furious waves.

「Elsewhere in the storm-tossed, frigid waters.」

The wind howled and the waves churned.

In the turbulent sea, the *Hollywood*’s lifeboat had long since been battered to pieces by the waves. Now, only its broken wreckage remained, bobbing precariously on the surface. It rose and fell with the swells, in constant danger of being swallowed by the sea.

The crewmen clung tightly to the wreckage, their knuckles white from the cold and the sheer force of their grip, as if it were their very last lifeline.

Fear and exhaustion were etched on their faces, but their eyes still held a desperate will to live.

The constant crash of waves brought a bone-chilling cold. As hypothermia set in, the crew members’ bodies grew numb, almost losing all sensation.

But no one dared to let go. They knew that the moment they did, death would be waiting.

Captain Old Hughes had a rope wrapped around his arm, allowing the wreckage to drag his body as he drifted through the turbulent sea.

Wave after wave crashed over his head, the immense force leaving him dizzy and disoriented.

Each impact felt like a sledgehammer to the skull, causing his consciousness to flicker in and out.

Icy seawater constantly flooded his mouth and nose, bringing with it a briny, bitter taste and the feeling of suffocation.

Captain Old Hughes struggled to stay conscious, but the power of the waves was simply too great for him to resist. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Just moments ago, he had watched helplessly as a wave dragged his chief engineer under the surface, never to reappear.

His heart filled with grief and fear—grief for his lost crewmate, and fear of the unknown fate that awaited him.

’Will I be the next one the waves claim?’

"Is anyone else there?!" Captain Old Hughes shouted, spitting out a mouthful of bitter seawater.

His voice was faint against the roar of the wind and waves, but he yelled with all his might, desperate for a response.

"I... I’m still alive."

"Me too!"

"Me... me..."

A few weak voices answered from the darkness, threatening to be drowned out by the waves at any moment.

The voices were laced with exhaustion and fear, yet they carried a faint flicker of the will to live.

A sliver of hope surged in Captain Old Hughes. He strained to pinpoint the direction of the voices, trying to locate his living crewmen.

’As long as someone is still alive, there’s hope.’

’We just have to hold on together until rescue arrives.’

Soon, however, another voice cried out in despair. "Captain, Adrian... he’s been washed away!"

The words struck Captain Old Hughes’s heart like a hammer blow.

A flicker of grief crossed his eyes, but this was no time for sorrow.

’I have to stay calm. I have to lead the rest of them. We have to survive.’

Captain Old Hughes took a deep breath and bit his lip until he tasted blood. He forced the pain to suppress his grief, struggling to make his voice sound confident.

"Don’t panic, everyone! We’re going to make it! Grab onto the lifeboat and wait for rescue! The *River Beach*... is almost... here!"

The *River Beach*!

A spark of light lit up in the exhausted crewmen’s eyes, only to fade a moment later.

They were all Crab Fishermen. They knew in their hearts that once you fell into the Bering Sea, your chances of survival were slim. Their only regret was that they wouldn’t have a chance to leave a final message for their families.

One crewman’s frozen, rigid fingers could no longer grip the icy lifeboat.

His fingers had long since lost all feeling, the numbness spreading from their tips throughout his entire body.

The moment his fingers slipped, his body slowly slid away, plunging into the icy sea.