Chapter 1 A Yellowed Booklet

A booklet with a yellowed cover, riddled with creases, looked as if it had been carried around for a long time.

Zhang Yuanqing flipped to the first page and discovered that it was a nautical diary. The first entry was dated March 1987. The diary was filled with pointless drivel.

*A few days before setting sail:* "Ah, the sea, I see you again! Each time I drift on the waves, it feels like returning to my mother's embrace, as if a warrior has arrived on his battlefield."

*Half a month at sea:* "I'm vomiting from eating so much fish. Life at sea is monotonous and dull. I miss Julie from the Pink Champagne Bar. Her ample breasts and plump white buttocks constantly appear in my dreams. Her moans are so lovely."

*One month at sea:* "Damn it, today even the boatswain's ass looked round and tempting. When will this mission end? I want to go home."

As expected, people who write diaries are never serious… Zhang Yuanqing flipped through the pages "swish, swish," occasionally glancing at the doorway, listening for movement in the corridor.

Soon, he saw the diary entry for August 12, 1900: "This voyage's mission is to salvage a comet that crashed into the southern ocean. The soldiers' morale isn't good. Although the joint government is manipulating public opinion and suppressing the legend of sea monsters, rumors of a South Sea monster are circulating in the coastal towns, fishing villages, and trading companies of the South. They say that the comet is the devil's wine spilled upon the human world, and that creatures near the comet will be corrupted by demonic power."

"Others say that extraterrestrial life is hidden within the comet, and that the sea monster was created by aliens as the first step to destroy Earth."

"In any case, this mission is terrible. Fortunately, before returning to the team, I sprayed Linda six times, a full six times. An unimaginable feat! Even if I die on this mission, I will have no regrets."

"There's one very strange thing: why use a cruise ship for deep-sea meteorite salvage? Although the cruise ship has been modified and equipped with torpedoes, it's not heavy enough to carry large salvage equipment. Are we relying on frogmen to salvage from the deep sea?"

*August 19:* "So boring, oh God, today's encounter is unforgettable. We encountered merfolk in the South Sea. They possess an appearance similar to humans, but are too ugly. Their bodies are covered in scales, with hideous fish heads and eyeballs about to pop out of their sockets. Their hands and feet are covered with sharp claws, and they can climb up the hull of the cruise ship."

"I finally understand why they deployed a modified cruise ship instead of a warship, let alone a heavy salvage vessel. It's because the nuns and priests of the Holy See are angels blessed by God. They possess the ability to fight demons, capable of stirring up storms, churning the ocean, and unleashing lightning. Those ugly and terrifying merfolk are as fragile as children before them."

"I yearn to possess the same abilities as them, to have the same powerful body. That way, I can sleep with women every night. No, I want to sleep with six women a night."

The following content was uninteresting, just some daily routines and Stephen Simpson's evaluation of the Holy See nuns. Zhang Yuanqing knew that the Holy See's Lingjing Xingzhe team had two nuns, a wind mage and a siren. This was Zhang Yuanqing's deduction based on the abilities displayed by the two nuns. In terms of level, they should be Saints.

The Spooky Cruise Ship instance was a "small" instance, with only a small number of Lingjing Xingzhe NPCs, who should all be important characters.

In a Level 6 Saint-level instance, there couldn't possibly be Extraordinary-stage NPCs. The Level 5 wind mage who attacked her last night was named Isabella. Stephen’s evaluation of her was: "An angelic face, full of holiness, that makes one want to desecrate her."

The other thunder mage was named "Paige." Stephen's evaluation was: "A devilish figure, with a peach-like ass that makes me want to go to the bathroom to release nucleic acid."

Both beauties with excellent looks possessed extraordinary powers, so the soldiers on the ship could only secretly relax and fantasize late at night, silently saluting under the covers.

It wasn't until August 25 that Zhang Yuanqing finally saw some valuable information: "I survived a thrilling day. An octopus bigger than the cruise ship, sky-covering tentacles, schools of fish-men, sea snakes more than twenty meters long, with baby-like hands and feet, fish that can spray venom, shells that emit women's cries and stir up desires. God, no one will believe today's battle, but I swear in my grandmother's name, it's all true… I survived entirely by luck. God bless me, and of course, the cruise ship's abundant weapon reserves."

"The meteorite at the bottom of the sea has been salvaged. It is definitely a demonic seed that Satan threw into the human world. It resembles an egg, fully five meters tall, its surface covered with pores and blood vessels, pulsing like a heart."

"The moment I saw it, I felt a second personality emerge within my body, as if my flesh and blood were emitting strange sounds, as if it had its own thoughts. I wasn't the only one who felt this way; many soldiers on the ship vomited on the spot or convulsed while holding their heads."

"Fortunately, the Holy See's angels quickly splashed holy water on it, and the blessed holy water purified it. The cardinal took it to the bottom of the ship and strictly forbade the sailors from approaching. It will be sent to the Holy See to be guarded by God. I hope the return trip goes smoothly!"

*August 27:* "What's going on? I've been hearing strange whispers for two consecutive days, hearing people pacing in the corridor outside the door. The footsteps are very mechanical, like a corpse that isn't aware of its own condition. I told the captain about this phenomenon. The captain comforted me, saying that it was a sequelae of the demonic aura infection from a few days ago, and that it would be fine after a night's sleep."

*August 28:* "I heard at lunch today that Anton suddenly fell ill and went to heaven. It was so sudden. Such a young life was lost in this way. He didn't die in battle, but from illness. May there be no illness in heaven. I wanted to go see him, but the captain said that Anton died of a contagious disease and his body has been thrown into the ocean. Alas, he can't even go home. I hope I won't hear strange noises tonight."

*August 29:* "Last night, I heard footsteps coming from the corridor again, dense and numerous, as if some kind of arthropod was crawling. I didn't dare go out to look. In the morning, I found saliva on the walls of the corridor… I told the captain about my discovery. The captain took this matter very seriously and promised to investigate it thoroughly."

*August 30:* "The captain suddenly changed his attitude today and said that I was in poor mental condition and hallucinating. How is that possible? He didn't investigate it properly…"

*August 31:* "Two more comrades have died of illness. The captain ordered the crew to go to the infirmary every day for physical examinations to prevent infection. I think the disease may have been brought by the demonic seed. Didn't the Holy See's cardinal purify the demonic seed? I'm going to take a good bath and maintain personal hygiene these few days. I want to go home alive. The mucus in the corridor is getting thicker and thicker..."

*September 1:* "Another person died of illness today. Also, everyone is becoming very strange, I can't explain it. They are clearly familiar comrades, but they feel very unfamiliar. When I was patrolling at night, I saw Justin and William standing on the deck in a daze. I sent them back to their dorms. Their condition was a bit strange, as if they were under a demon's charm, unfamiliar and frightening. There was mucus where they were standing… Monster…"

*September 2:* "Justin and William have turned into monsters. I secretly followed them to the public bathroom just now. I saw scales growing on Justin's body, and I saw a smooth tentacle growing from William's tailbone. God, they're like sea monsters, they've turned into some kind of terrifying creature. I have to tell the captain..."

*September 3:* "There's something wrong with the captain, there's really something wrong with him. God, bless me…"

The diary ended here. The last, short entry was written crookedly. When Stephen wrote this sentence, he must have been mentally collapsing and unable to hold the pen steadily.

"Hiss…" Zhang Yuanqing substituted himself into Stephen's perspective and felt a bit of despair for him.

After reading the contents of the diary, the timeline of events became very clear. After the demonic seed was salvaged, the protagonist, Stephen, heard mysterious and terrifying whispers every night, and discovered that familiar crew members were being corrupted and undergoing bizarre changes.

This included Lieutenant James, the captain. Yes, and most likely also the Holy See team in the bottom of the ship. They were closest to the "demonic seed" and were definitely the first to be corrupted.

Zhang Yuanqing suddenly remembered the cruise ship's telegram with naval headquarters. The captain exchanged telegrams with naval headquarters on August 30. But in the diary, on the 29th, Captain James was still vowing to investigate the mucus problem. Yet on the 30th, he did an about-face and brushed off Lieutenant Stephen.

The details matched up. The captain was corrupted on the 30th, becoming a monster who seemed normal but was actually insane.

"The diary stopped on September 3, and September 4 was the day I entered the instance, which was yesterday. Hiss, Stephen probably died on the 3rd. I've taken his place."

"The captain has been corrupted, and the Holy See team has probably also been corrupted, along with some of the crew. This is the most conservative estimate. The worst case is that the entire crew of the ship has been corrupted…" Thinking of this, Zhang Yuanqing felt his scalp tingle.

"I've fallen into a wolf's den! So, if I had been reckless yesterday and forcibly opened the captain's drawer, or forcibly stabilized the dream, it might have broken the current balance and the crew would have begun to transform."

"Fortunately, I was smart and didn't act rashly, and I figured everything out in just one day. If the entire crew has already transformed, then my situation is a bit bad. The nuns are all Saints, so the cardinal is at least a Level 6 peak, plus the demonic seed in the bottom of the ship… Tsk, no wonder it's an S-level instance, it sent me straight to the wolf's den."

"Should I reveal my hand directly, or pretend I don't know anything and hide for a few more days? Let me think…"

In the bottom of the ship, James, wearing a double-breasted captain's uniform and a naval cap, descended the steps to the entrance.

The two knights did not stop him, allowing him to enter the bottom of the ship.

James walked through the piles of sundries, cargo, and tools. Illuminated by the dim gas lamps, he stopped in front of the small mountain of flour.

James said in a deep voice, "I tested him. He seems to have noticed something is wrong."

From behind the flour mountain came an old voice, "Faster than I expected… Begin the ritual!"

James thought for a moment, then tentatively said, "Tonight, then! I've arranged for him to patrol tonight. I'll arrange for people to forcibly control him then."

"I'll have the knights outside cooperate with you," the old voice replied.

"The big boss is probably the demonic seed, the small boss is the cardinal, the Holy See's Lingjing Xingzhe are elite monsters, and the other mutated crew members are ordinary monsters. Before fighting the boss, I should clear out the small monsters first."

"Then I can't reveal my hand yet. I need to find a chance to kill the captain and the crew, or kill the Holy See's elite monsters, and then go to the bottom of the ship for a final battle with the boss."

"Isn't it patrol tonight? I'll take this opportunity to kill some of the monsters." Zhang Yuanqing was a decisive person and quickly came up with a plan.

The Holy See's Lingjing Xingzhe team probably wouldn't leave the bottom of the ship, and they were the enemies that needed to be faced last.

Kill the crew and the captain first, and then concentrate on dealing with the enemies in the bottom of the ship.

Based on the situation on the ship, the demonic seed should be playing the role of a powerful source of corruption in the instance, with the ability to amplify the mutants and corrupt Lingjing Xingzhe, rather than a direct enemy.

Otherwise, the demonic seed would have already transformed into a monster and started a massacre.

So, he still had to be wary of the demonic seed's mutation abilities and guard against being corrupted himself.