Chapter 18 Let's Set Sail, ███! [You gazed directly at █...]
When Zhu Wen was being escorted away, Xue Chao complained that the kid was being pretentious by baring his teeth and making faces. But when it was his turn, he immediately understood Zhu Wen. Two guards held his back, forcing him to lean forward and lower his head. The light from above cast a crazy shadow on the ground. He was face to face with his own shadow, as if he was being forced to look at his own shame, which reminded him of when he was a student and his brain hadn't fully developed.
Back then he was meddling in other people's business, but now he's driven to desperation and has no choice but to find trouble for himself.
He suppressed his instinct to retaliate, relaxing his body as if boneless, forcing the guards to lift him up. But he still felt it wasn't enough. He glanced back at the cell at the far end and said something to cause trouble for others: "He's sneaked in several times, clearly with ulterior motives. Aren't you afraid of making a mess if we don't catch him?"
Which group are you in?
"Group E".
The guard glanced at him in surprise, not understanding how Group E could have such a "lively" prisoner. He scoffed, "If he wants to die, let him. Do you even know what 'E' means?"
“END.”
Before the guard could boast or intimidate, he was taken aback by the correct answer that slipped out: "How did you know?"
Half guess, half guess. There are six groups in total, with a not-so-narrow aisle in the middle. The three groups of letters on the left and the three groups of letters on the right are the conventional division method. However, this dungeon is divided according to front and back. The numbers on the left are arranged to the right of the row, and then a new row is started. Every three rows form a group - the ones near the door are "A" and the ones at the end are "E".
The mental state of people from A to E is also different. Although they are all half-dead, people from A still have some small, dying struggles, such as chewing fish bones, but people from E are basically no different from being dead.
Most importantly, in the deathly silent cell, he leaned against the dark blue wall, his unusually keen hearing hearing the low, wave-like sounds outside, like some kind of lullaby... The cell was built underground and seemed to be hidden, but in fact it was completely exposed to the sea, and according to current speculation, there was something in the sea that could make people disappear.
A to E is a sequence, from beginning to end, the order of death.
At the entrance to the guard unit, the team leader waited obsequiously for his superior to hang up the phone. Upon seeing them, his expression quickly changed, and he said impatiently, "Hurry up! Orders have come from above!"
"Team leader, what do we do with this lunatic...?"
"Enough talk, all personnel, enter Level 3 alert!"
Thump thump thump—
Gates descended from the sky, closing in from afar and completely isolating the cells at the end. All the lights were turned off, and the only technological equipment available was shut down.
The guards moved with practiced ease, but not in a neat and orderly attack or patrol formation. Instead, they resembled villagers rushing home and nailing shut their doors and windows before the full moon night of the werewolf's resurrection. They jostled and squeezed into the nearest room, even other cells.
The two guards holding him had no time to pay attention to him and ran away quickly. Xue Chao's shoulders were loosened, and he was free.
He moved even faster. Like a nimble wild beast weaving through the chaos, he seized the opportunity to block the door of the guard captain's office and unceremoniously slipped inside.
The team leader was caught off guard and didn't expect anyone to dare share a room with him. Of course, he was unhappy, but he still quickly locked the door and pulled down a heavy metal door as a second barrier—the thing that was about to happen was obviously much more important than the team leader's personal prestige.
But the team leader wasn't without temper. He turned around, raised his arm, and was about to teach this arrogant prisoner a lesson when the dark muzzle of a gun was pressed against his forehead. He froze, glanced down, and found that his waist was empty.
when!
"Officer, you can't bear to see your poor prisoner locked up outside, can you?"
How could he not want to? He couldn't be happier! But the guard captain, knowing when to nod, pressed his gun forward again without hesitation and said immediately, "Of course, even prisoners have a chance to reform!"
"How thoughtful." Xue Chao eased his grip on the gun, and just as the guard captain breathed a sigh of relief, he slammed the gun down on his head. The guard captain fell to the ground with a thud. "Then go to sleep."
He twirled his gun, tucked it into his waistband, pulled out a lifeline from the corner, and bound the guard captain tightly with a four-horse tether, ensuring he couldn't break free. Then, he straddled the captain's head and sat down in the leather office chair.
He touched his left forearm, where a bloody knife wound lay beneath the filthy fabric, the same one he had left on Wang Song's black trench coat. But while Wang Song's coat was torn, his skin and flesh were not injured; the wound, however, had returned to him in kind.
Wang Song hadn't taken off that trench coat since the start of the game. Even when he was playing the role of a guard, he wore it like it was made of clay; you'd think it had grown onto his body.
He also remembered that in the customs area, apart from Pu Fengchun, whose fate was still uncertain, and the bespectacled newcomer, all the other players were more or less involved, and the hackers were chased down a floor.
As a top ten player, Zhu Wen and Wang Song, as a killer-type player, should have naturally become the two main targets of the attack. However, Wang Song played the "indifferent as a chrysanthemum" card and avoided the attack, as if he did not exist in the eyes of the hyenas.
That tattered coat was probably not an ordinary trench coat, but rather a game-enhancing item, which is why Wang Song knowingly pushed this "important NPC" out despite the danger.
They weren't taking the risk alone; they wanted to reap the rewards alone. They thought he was in their way, but he's got a trump card.
He's a poor wretch who doesn't dare to be a hero; he thought that guy would only start killing him after he got out of the dungeon.
With a slight exertion of his leg, Xue Chao turned the chair, facing the direction of the cell at the end of the room. Through the camera on the host's panel, he quietly watched Wang Song, overcoming numerous obstacles.
Let's see what's going on. Why not take a free "war correspondent"?
He can simply sit back and reap the benefits.
*
Wang Song flung the prisoner's head away and stomped hard on his neck, but the prisoner seemed to be dead to begin with, his eyes wide open, only blinking normally, and making a gurgling sound like he was choking on a fishbone.
"Damn, is that one arrogant lunatic in the whole dungeon the only one who can talk?"
No one answered him. The numb prisoners sat motionless in their cages, like a group of dead goldfish slowly sinking into the fish tank, blowing bubbles upwards, as if spitting out their own souls.
Wang Song had previously infiltrated the VIP area on the second floor, where he used knives and blood to pry open the mouth of a fake gentleman and obtained the valuable clue that "someone in Yougang is abusing their power for personal gain and hiding many things." So he went through all sorts of hardships to get into this place.
Of course he knew that guy had clues, but he was so hateful, he deeply enraged him. Didn't that guy act like he had everything under control? Didn't he not want to go out in the first place? Go to hell.
He can find the true secret of the dungeon on his own without needing anyone else.
The VIPs on the second floor and the security team didn't get along well; they were practically enemies, and they were happy to expose each other's shortcomings.
According to them, the dead-faced gorillas actually have livers and gallbladders the size of rats. If there is even the slightest disturbance in the sewers, they will rush two miles away in the blink of an eye. Moreover, these disturbances are intermittent and have become especially frequent recently. It is probably because the sewers are not well-maintained; shoddy construction projects are prone to leaks.
Wang Song understood. This wasn't just a simple insult; it was a metaphor. When the "wind" came in, the dungeon guards would hide or evacuate. This "wind" was the key.
But with nothing to do while waiting for the "wind" to come, Wang Song used his old tricks to pass the time. He pulled out the jeweled longsword he had stolen from the second floor from his trench coat and began to vent his anger.
Blood splattered on the iron cage, winding its way down. The sound of knives hacking at flesh filled the dungeon. One by one, prisoners had their hands and feet severed, while the surrounding prisoners remained expressionless, not even glancing at them.
Occasionally, one or two prisoners who had been drawn to the scene would look on with envy, thinking they were about to be given a quick death, but Wang Song, caught up in his excitement, did not notice.
“Wang Song’s technique is a perfect match for his profession.”
"[Wang Song] Ahh, I've finally waited for this! Cut off his feet!! Quickly!"
"【Wang Song】Only cut off the hands and feet, is he trying to make a human pig? After Brother Shan did it once, I feel like there are so many imitators."
"[Wang Song] I thought we'd be targeting that NPC first, what a disappointment."
"【Wang Song】I wouldn't dare. What a pity, that NPC has such a hot body, killing her would definitely boost my contribution points, haha."
The camera immediately attracted a group of like-minded enthusiasts. Wang Song had a reputation in the sadomasochistic community and could be considered to have a "fixed audience," but after all, he was a numb NPC who didn't react much, which was not as popular as his usual popularity.
All camera positions in this room are now active.
[Number of seats: 5]
Your camera position is currently the last one available. Please keep trying!
Wang Song was furious to be ranked seventh on the leaderboard, let alone at the bottom among the players at the camera position. His eyes turned red with rage, and he swung the broken iron rod down with all his might—last place! Last place! How could this be! Are all these spectators blind?!
"ah--!"
A sharp cry interrupted Wang Song's assault. The boy at his feet clutched his bleeding leg, and a distorted scream suddenly squeezed out of what seemed like a broken throat, mixed with a wheezing sound.
The sound was not human; it was the mournful cry of an animal dying, bursting from the boy's small body and exploding into his euphoric mind.
"ah--!"
"ah--!"
...
The numb flock of chickens and ducks suddenly erupted in a cacophony of screams, as if awakened by the boy's prophetic cries, and joined in the squawking.
Their empty faces came alive, filled with genuine despair and panic—the expression of condemned men facing the muzzle of a gun.
They thrashed about in the iron cage like primitive animals, making a last-minute celebration, the sounds of slapping the iron and stomping the ground filling the air, creating utter chaos.
They saw Death, but it wasn't him.
Wang Song's first reaction was dissatisfaction at being slighted, but he was soon overwhelmed by greater excitement, which overshadowed his still rational unease. He realized that the "wind" had come.
He leaned against the door, the key in the lock, and turned it a crack, barely remembering to leave himself a way out.
Unlike the childish games between police and thieves on the surface, in the underground prison, truly valuable intelligence is about to arrive—intelligence he obtained from those nobles, whose "friends" reside in the sea.
It's highly unlikely to be human, and it's fraught with unknown dangers. No one else, not even him in the past, would have taken such a risk, but things are different now.
Wang Song wrapped his black trench coat tightly around himself, as if he were wrapped in a sacred cloak. The left sleeve had been restored to its original state, without any tear.
He no longer needs to be afraid.
"[Wang Song] Can you hear that? The sound of water..."
"[Wang Song] Giant Port is a port in the sea, a platform on the water, so the dungeon must be located there..."
"[Wang Song] is in the sea!"
Suddenly, the seawater began to churn on its own, creating small storm-like whirlpools. As if foreshadowing, something was approaching from afar, crawling along the current from the depths of the seabed, emitting a strange hissing sound. The sound mingled with the seawater, creating terrifying echoes that became chaotic and indistinct. It was the horn sounding from the abyss.
The waves crashed against the foundation stones outside the wall, one louder than the other, until they dented the outer wall of the dungeon. Wang Song suddenly snapped out of his excitement and looked toward Group E at the end of the dungeon with a chill running down his spine. It was the sound of the sea!
Thump—thump—thump!
The crashing waves grew louder and louder, like climbing stairs on a piano, echoing the wailing of demons dancing wildly in the prison, until the highest note abruptly stopped.
The waves stopped.
Wang Song's heartbeat also stopped, all sound left him, silence enveloped him, as if he were in a vacuum, leaving only the overloaded buzzing of his brain.
He remained in a world where he was deaf, watching as a crack suddenly appeared in the center of the wall at the end, and then spread out like a spider web!
A soft thing reached into the crevice, as wide as a man's waist, and stretched on and on, exceptionally long, with dense, dark green scales gleaming menacingly in the flowing seawater.
The creature's muscles deftly clung to the wall, searching for footholds. With a sweep of its tail across E01, the iron cage shattered into pieces. With another sweep, all the living creatures in Group E had vanished.
Fresh human blood dripped from the tip of its tail. With a sudden, forceful crack, as if chewing, the entire wall shattered.
He saw it.
Xue Chao, who shared the same eyes as him, also saw it.
"..."
The distant murmur is now close at hand; it is the siren of death in disguise. Come! Come! Crimson, gold, melting silver moon and fine steed! In exchange, offer your impurity!
[You stared directly at ████ in the sea, and your spirit was shaken.]
SAN value: 36/50
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