Chapter 3: Peril on the Ghost Ship

Zhang Wuxun had no time to bicker with Wu Xiaoxie now, for the Sea Monkey was about to emerge.

The iron door creaked open, and a bolt of lightning struck just as it did. It had begun to rain again.

As soon as the Sea Monkey poked its head out, Zhang Wuxun swung his blade with both hands, aiming squarely for its neck. No matter how tough its defenses were or how much punishment it could take, the neck remained a vulnerable point.

As expected, the Sea Monkey, which had been baring its fangs and reaching out with sharp claws to attack, froze, twisting its body to shield its neck. Zhang Wuxun’s strike had never been intended to kill it outright; with a flick of his wrist, he angled the blade to slash. One of the Sea Monkey’s claws hung limp, and a stream of foul-smelling green fluid sprayed from the severed limb.

The creature’s huge, scale-covered, ugly face grew even more hideous with intense pain. It roared and lunged at Zhang Wuxun with its remaining claw. Zhang Wuxun parried with his blade, leaped off the ground, and kicked his feet hard into the Sea Monkey’s stomach, forcing it back two steps. He then used the momentum of his landing to spin and deliver a whip kick against the heavy iron door, while simultaneously grabbing the round lock and twisting it shut.

Clang! The iron door slammed shut, seemingly colliding with something heavy.

Zhang Wuxun dared not delay. He quickly ran over to Wu Xiaoxie, who was standing frozen in place, and slapped him on the head. "Why are you still standing there like a fool? Waiting to be fed to the Sea Monkey?"

Wu Xiaoxie finally snapped out of his daze. Without daring to ask any more questions, he climbed onto the deck with Zhang Wuxun’s help and hauled up the unconscious A-Ning as well.

"Move! That iron door won't hold for long."

Baldy Zhang came running over, clutching a backpack he had scavenged from somewhere.

"Hurry up!"

Zhang Wuxun braced his hands on his knees and lowered his shoulder to give Baldy Zhang a boost. Once Baldy Zhang was up, he tossed the blade and the backpack to him, then grabbed the hand extended back to him and pulled himself up.

Baldy Zhang gestured for the boat captain to bring the vessel around. Once they were all back on the fishing boat, the engine was repaired, and the boat quickly sped away from that area. Zhang Wuxun looked back, but the ghostly, phantom ship had already vanished.

On deck, Baldy Zhang borrowed some ox hair from the captain and was busy dealing with the human-faced leech stuck to the back of A-Ning’s head. Zhang Wuxun glanced at them, then walked into the cabin with his blade, collapsed onto a cot, and fell asleep the moment his eyes closed. After all, between swimming in the waves and battling the Sea Monkey, his nerves had been stretched to the limit; once he relaxed, he couldn't hold on any longer.

He slept exceptionally soundly.

Zhang Wuxun was awakened by the aroma of fish. He sniffed the air—spicy and numbing. Damn, it smelled good.

He pushed off the jacket "Little Innocent" had draped over him, fished a toothbrush and towel from his pack to freshen up, changed his clothes, and poked his head out of the cabin with a yawn.

"Muyu, you're awake! Come over, the timing is perfect."

Wu Xiaoxie spotted him and waved enthusiastically, having already set out a bowl and chopsticks for him.

"Thanks," Zhang Wuxun nodded, walked over, and pulled up a stool. Sitting opposite him was a familiar face. "Huh? Long time no see, Fatty."

Wang Pangzi was pleasantly surprised to see him. "Yo, if it isn't our walking treasure chest! What a coincidence. Heh, with you here, Fatty feels a lot more at ease on this trip."

Zhang Wuxun curled his lips and picked up a piece of fish. "I'll take your word for it."

Fatty also picked up a piece of meat, slurped it down, and let out a satisfied sigh. "How about it? Fatty's skills aren't bad, are they? Pretty amazing, right?"

Zhang Wuxun gave a thumbs-up, nodding in agreement. "Indeed, it’s no less impressive than the cooking at Louwailou."

It was a bit of an exaggeration, but there was no denying that the meal Fatty had prepared was truly delicious.

Fatty looked smug. "Congratulations, you’ve discovered another one of Fatty’s virtues."

Baldy Zhang sat down between Wu Xiaoxie and Zhang Wuxun with practiced ease, grabbed a bowl and chopsticks, and started eating without a word.

Fatty looked bewildered and asked Zhang Wuxun, "Who is this?"

Zhang Wuxun was eating too quickly and burned his tongue, so he was busy sucking in air while looking up at the ceiling. Wu Xiaoxie stepped in to answer, "Zhang Hao, Professor Zhang. A consultant hired by A-Ning’s company."

"Oh~" Fatty gave him a strange, sidelong glance. "So, a professor. My apologies for my lack of insight; I really couldn't tell you were a man of culture. Don't take it to heart, Professor Zhang."

Zhang Wuxun chuckled out loud. When it came to needling people, Fatty was truly a professional.

Baldy Zhang seemed not to notice the subtext in Fatty's words and said cheerfully, "Not at all, not at all. Meeting is fate; we’re all friends. It’s my fault for being too low-key; it’s only natural Mr. Wang didn't notice right away."

The "Small Brother" was also quite sharp-tongued; he had parried the dig without leaving a trace. Fatty’s face darkened, and he looked ready to start a fight.

Yet, Baldy Zhang remained oblivious, continuing to ask, "Mr. Wang, what is your line of work?"

At this, Fatty glanced at Zhang Wuxun and Wu Xiaoxie, who were watching the show, coughed, and said, "Well... to put it plainly, I’m actually an underground worker."

Baldy Zhang immediately bowed with respect. "So, you’re a public security officer. My apologies, my apologies."

Wu Xiaoxie couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing, earning a glare from Fatty.

Zhang Wuxun smiled and smoothed things over. "Come, come, let’s stop talking. If we keep chatting, Little Innocent and I are going to finish all the fish."

Hearing this, Fatty immediately abandoned his interrogation of Baldy Zhang and dove into his bowl with his chopsticks to grab more fish. Baldy Zhang joined the scramble for the fish as well.

After eating their fill, they lay lazily on the deck, letting the sea breeze and the sun wash over them, feeling so comfortable they were on the verge of dozing off.

Wu Xiaoxie felt he couldn't keep slacking off. He rolled over, stood up, and returned to the cabin to check the backpack Baldy Zhang had retrieved from the ghost ship.

He had already seen the contents earlier; they were left by his Third Uncle. A-Ning had also confirmed that the ghost ship was indeed the research vessel sent out by their company previously.

However, the more he read his Third Uncle’s notebook, the more confused he became, and the fog surrounding him grew thicker. What exactly happened to his Third Uncle and Chen Wenjin at the undersea tomb all those years ago? And was the man named Zhang Qiling in the corner of that group photo really the same "Mute Oil Bottle" he had met at the Lu Palace?

Wu Xiaoxie’s head ached from thinking about it, but he couldn't make sense of anything. He let out a helpless sigh.