On the vast black ocean, a small black dot gradually appeared on the horizon. Stephen, who had already received the news and was waiting here, held an umbrella and slowly moved his gaze along with it.
Today he was wearing a top and trousers that resembled military protective clothing, which looked quite respectable in the entire district. Not to mention that he had taken a bath and perfumed himself the day before, and his neat figure made the people behind him secretly sneer.
They're just remnants of the old regime from there; they'll probably all be dead in a few years. Why treat them with such grandeur?
Stephen listened to the whispers of the people behind him with a blank expression. Under the huge black umbrella was a top hat, which would be appropriate on a well-dressed gentleman, but it looked somewhat comical when paired with that protective suit.
A man sat lazily on a shipping container, dressed simply in a t-shirt and shorts, but wearing a pair of huge boots. His tone was somewhat contemptuous.
"...It's no wonder they're in such a predicament over there. They're living comfortably while we're out there struggling to survive. Do you expect us to keep bowing and scraping and delivering things like before?"
The other man's hair was a mix of gray and yellow hairs of varying shades, making him look like a stray dog with messy fur from a distance. His voice was accompanied by an involuntary snoring sound from his throat.
"In the end, there's still the king over there. He was the one who led us..."
Before the scruffy dog could finish speaking, he was interrupted by another person who shook his mismatched oversized boots. The black leather of the boots seemed to be stretched into a sharp shape by something, which then quickly faded.
"Hahaha, you don't know that they've changed people over there, do you? I heard it's some nobody who's acting as their successor. The king is no longer capable, otherwise why do you think that guy would be so bold?"
As the ship gradually approached the shore, he simply jumped off the container. His boots were huge, but he moved quite nimbly and quickly reached Stephen, who was dressed in all black.
He said to the scruffy dog with a meaningful tone, "Otherwise, what do you think that guy surnamed Cen was doing here last month? Didn't Eric come here a few days ago too? Did he give in?"
The scruffy dog walked to Stephen's other side and, in a seemingly casual manner, pinned Stephen between the two of them. He didn't reply to Stephen but looked at the silent Stephen.
The scruffy dog growled in a low growl: "Stephen, Bigfoot is right. The King is gone, the potion is gone, and we should have our own lives too."
Upon hearing this, Stephen silently retracted the black umbrella above his head. Something inside the dark protective suit struggled for a moment, causing the suit to bulge.
The two people beside him were both silently on edge.
Seeing Stephen walk straight toward the docked ship, they exchanged a glance and followed.
Bigfoot whispered a reminder to Stephen from behind: "Don't forget our mission has changed. Whether it's the guy surnamed Cen or Eric, tie them up and take them back. That guy's experiment is about to begin."
There weren't many ships docked at the port of District 1; they were all old models that had been phased out decades ago. Ironically, their target stood out among the many ships.
No one paid any attention to the passing people; they simply walked past the ship as if it didn't exist.
The three were used to this and jumped directly onto the ship from the port without any external assistance. Stephen took the lead and glanced at the hull, his gaze lingering for a moment on the transparent window of the bridge.
Their expressions changed as soon as they boarded the ship; they hadn't sensed anything amiss on board.
There's no goods here, and no one here either.
The scruffy dog sniffed around on the boat and really did look like a dog.
Big Foot followed closely behind Stephen, the contents of his boots twitching restlessly, his eyes gradually taking on an inhuman gleam: "Is nobody here?"
Stephen didn't turn his head when he heard this, but this time he did speak: "There were people before we came up."
The scruffy dog also came closer, its eyes gradually shrinking into narrow vertical pupils, and nodded in affirmation of Stephen's words.
"It smells like a stranger."
Big Foot's expression changed slightly. How could there be anyone there that the stray dog wouldn't recognize? Aside from the woman they'd let pass through last time who had managed to escape, there was only...
That successor.
Big Foot's heart skipped a beat. They actually let that person out?
He gradually came to his senses, and a ferocious smile slowly spread across his face as the sound of his boots tearing echoed through the cabin.
Five thick nerves, connected to the toes, radiated outwards, still stained with crimson blood, and immediately began to climb and branch along the ground as soon as they appeared.
It quickly enveloped the entire ship, looking from afar like a giant steel creature growing out of dense nerves, and those twitching nerves quickly relayed information to Big Foot.
The scruffy dog and Stephen dodged the dense network of nerves. One of them moved directly from the window to the roof of the Zero One ship, while the other opened the black umbrella again. Under the invisible shadow, the nerves greedily and regretfully avoided his position.
Seeing that none of them had fallen for the trick, Big Foot's eyes flashed with regret, but as time went on, that regret gradually turned into disbelief.
The nerves wrapped around the ship kept branching and becoming denser, gradually obscuring the shape of the ship, but he still couldn't find anyone.
Could that person have escaped right under their noses?!
Bigfoot's search became increasingly violent, and the entire ship began to tremble with the spasms of his nerves. He gritted his teeth and looked at Stephen, who remained calm in the distance.
Do you have any leads?
Stephen emerged from the chaotic cockpit. Upon hearing this, he saw those unremarkable eyes looking at him, and the meaning in their gaze made the veins on his big feet bulge.
"I didn't see it. Don't waste your time. Let Li Gou come."
Just a few days ago, Eric killed the captain above him, which allowed Bigfoot to take over. Now he is extremely unwilling to give up the initiative.
Suddenly, a heavy blow came from behind. The curly-haired dog, who had somehow returned to the boat, landed heavily on his back, causing the flesh and bones under his feet to cave in.
His messy hair stood on end, and he looked around from the back of the big foot. The big foot, which was pressing on a dense nerve, twitched and let out a low scream.
The other two ignored his voice. When Curly locked onto the cockpit again, Stephen moved as well, stepping over the twitching, withdrawing nerves with his black umbrella in hand.
Like an arrow released from a bow, the black umbrella tip was not sharp, but the wall it touched immediately shattered into pieces.
Stephen only roughly destroyed the entire cockpit.
The curly-haired dog jumped in, sniffing around, its face showing increasing confusion and anxiety.
Stephen, dressed entirely in black, turned around after a moment: "He's gone. He's not on the ship."
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