"Confirmed!"
Those two words.
Without any hesitation.
It was like sentencing the ship to a suspended death sentence, or like a desperate, all-or-nothing gamble.
Click—
Li Ruobing's finger slammed heavily onto the enter key.
In that instant.
The world went dark.
Truly dark.
All the lights went out completely.
The air conditioning stopped running.
The radar screen fell into dead silence.
Even the Mithril Shield Generator, which had been frantically operating and boiling the seawater, let out a dull sigh before shutting down completely.
The entire "President."
In that second.
Became an iron coffin floating on the sea.
Except for that groove.
Except for that gun.
Hum—!!
The originally pitch-black gun body suddenly lit up.
Not with light.
But with patterns.
Countless blood-red patterns spread from the stock, instantly covering the entire barrel.
Like blood vessels.
Frantically devouring the lifeblood of the entire ship.
"Warning! Energy input overload!"
"Warning! Barrel temperature reaching critical value!"
"Warning! Spatial anchor point locking in progress!"
Li Ruobing clutched the tablet; even in the darkness, the cold sweat on her face was visible.
"Qin Yu!"
"We only have one chance!"
"After firing this shot, we'll truly become sitting ducks!"
Qin Yu didn't speak.
He gripped the handles with both hands.
His eyes pressed tightly against the scope.
At this moment.
In his field of vision.
It was no longer the dark sea.
But a stream of red data.
[Shipborne Mode: Activated]
[Ammunition Loaded: High-Energy Particle Annihilation Bullet]
[Target Locked: Mutated Plant Core (Heart)]
[Charging Progress: 100%]
The wind stopped.
The waves calmed.
Even the green monster in the distance, wildly waving its tentacles, seemed to sense some fatal threat.
Its movements actually paused for an instant.
It was in that instant.
"For me..."
Qin Yu's lips curled back, revealing a row of stark white teeth.
"Die!!"
The trigger was pulled.
Boom—!!
There was no flash of light.
No smoke.
Only a jet-black beam, as thin as a finger.
Shot out from the muzzle.
It was too fast.
So fast that even the retina couldn't capture its trajectory.
It was too quiet.
So quiet it seemed to swallow all the surrounding sound.
Wherever it passed.
The air twisted.
Space collapsed.
All the parasitic flesh balls and wildly dancing vines that had been in its path.
Didn't even leave behind a trace.
They vanished into thin air.
Erased.
The next second.
That massive, pulsating red core.
Was pierced.
Pfft!
Like driving a red-hot iron rod into a block of butter.
There was no explosion.
But.
In the center of that core.
A black hole appeared.
That black hole spun wildly, devouring all the surrounding flesh.
One meter.
Ten meters.
One hundred meters!
In the blink of an eye.
That core, large enough to swallow a cruise ship.
Was completely consumed by this tiny black hole.
Leaving only a massive, hollow void.
So large you could even see the sky behind it through the hole.
Screech—!!
An extremely shrill scream erupted from the monster's remains.
Shaking the sea surface.
Countless vines instantly went limp.
Like machines that had lost power.
They crashed heavily onto the sea surface.
Stirring up hundred-meter-high waves.
"H-hit... did we hit it?"
Inside the dark cockpit.
Li Ruobing asked, her voice trembling.
"We hit it."
Qin Yu released his grip.
His entire body was drenched as if pulled from water.
Gasping for breath in ragged heaves.
That single shot.
Not only drained the ship's energy.
But also nearly depleted his mental strength.
The "Kiss of Death" rapidly cooled.
The red patterns faded away.
Returning to its cold, black, deadly form.
"Holy shit!!"
Over the communicator.
Came Qi Chun's hoarse, cracking shout.
"Brother Yu, you're insane!!"
"One shot to the head!!"
"Is this the power above S-Class?!"
"I want one too! I gotta get my hands on one!"
On the deck.
The female warriors who had been desperately resisting moments ago.
Stared blankly at the colossal creature that had just collapsed.
Each of them frozen in place.
Then.
They erupted into cheers of relief after surviving the ordeal.
"We won..."
Elena slumped to the ground.
The Close-In Defense Cannon in her hands still smoking.
She stared blankly at the massive cavity in the distance.
Her eyes glazed over.
This was Qin Yu.
This was the power of that man.
In this hopeless world.
He truly could create miracles.
However.
Qin Yu did not smile.
He continued to stare intently at that cavity.
His brow.
Furrowed tighter and tighter.
Something was wrong.
It was too easy.
Although that shot had devastating power.
Why hadn't the creature's life force vanished?
Instead...
It had grown stronger?
"Ruo Bing."
Qin Yu's voice suddenly spoke.
Softly.
But in the deathly silent cockpit, it was like a thunderclap.
"Immediately."
"Restart the energy."
"We're leaving."
"Huh?"
Li Ruobing hadn't yet snapped out of the joy of victory.
"Leaving? To where?"
"Isn't it dea—"
Before she could finish.
A sudden mutation occurred.
"Gurgle, gurgle—"
The previously calm sea surface.
Suddenly began to boil.
Not from heat.
But from... green.
A thick, emerald-like green liquid.
Surged up from the depths of the sea.
Instantly dyeing the surrounding dozens of nautical miles of ocean green.
Immediately after.
Those vines that had gone limp and were withering.
As if injected with stimulants.
Suddenly sprang back to life.
"Sizzle, sizzle—"
Countless fleshy buds.
Sprouted from the edges of the massive cavity.
They frantically intertwined, writhed, and grew.
At a speed so horrifyingly fast.
Even the naked eye.
Could see the wound healing.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
In just three seconds.
The fatal cavity blasted open by the "Kiss of Death."
Had healed.
Without even leaving a scar.
Not only that.
The core began pulsating again.
This time.
Beating more powerfully.
More violently.
Even.
Around that core.
Three additional layers of thick Chitinous Shell grew.
"Holy... fuck..."
Qi Chun's voice.
Was completely hoarse.
"Is this... cheating?"
"What kind of healing speed is this?!"
"This is an Abyssal Creature."
Qin Yu took a deep breath.
His gaze icy cold.
"As long as its roots remain in the sea."
"As long as this ocean still has nutrients."
"It is immortal."
Ordinary Mutated Creatures.
Die when their heads are blown apart.
But this thing is different.
It's not an animal.
It's a plant.
A mutated Abyssal Plant.
As long as a single cell remains alive.
It can regenerate infinitely.
That shot just now.
It seemed like the end of the world.
But in reality.
It was just a minor surgical procedure for it.
And it even enraged it.
"Roar—!!"
The monster went completely berserk.
If earlier it was just morning grumpiness.
Then now.
It was a rage that would not end until one of them was dead.
This time.
It wasn't just a few vines.
But hundreds, thousands of them.
Blanketing the sky.
Like a giant green net.
Ready to crush these few reckless little insects.
Completely.
"Ruo Bing!!"
Qin Yu roared.
"Power!!"
"Is it ready yet?!"
"Restarting now!!"
Li Ruobing's fingers were about to break from typing.
"This kind of cold start after a forced power outage."
"Requires at least thirty seconds of warm-up!"
"Thirty seconds..."
Qin Yu glanced upward.
That net would fall.
In at most ten seconds.
Wait thirty seconds?
It'd be too late by then.
"No choice."
Qin Yu yanked the sniper rifle out of its slot.
"Click!"
The weapon transformed.
Reverting back to its Individual Soldier Form.
He turned and ran outside.
"Activate the backup Thrusters!"
"Burn all the remaining fuel!"
"Don't worry about direction!"
"Just get us out of this damn place!"
On the deck.
Chaos erupted.
The female warriors who had just been cheering.
Had their smiles frozen on their faces.
That feeling of plummeting from heaven to hell.
Nearly broke them.
"It's... it's alive again?"
"How do we fight this?"
"It just won't die!"
Despair.
Spread like a plague.
Even worse.
Those Parasitic Flesh Balls that had been mostly cleared.
Were also strengthened by the Mother Body.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The remaining flesh balls all exploded.
Not the passive kind of explosion.
But active self-destruction.
Countless clouds of green poison instantly enveloped the entire deck.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!!"
Someone inhaled a mouthful.
And immediately collapsed.
Green grass sprouted on their skin.
Then.
They staggered to their feet.
And lunged at their companions nearby.
"Don't just stand there!!"
Elena kicked away a mutated person lunging at her.
It was her former deputy.
But now.
That face held only bloodthirsty madness.
"Captain..."
The mutated person she kicked down made an indistinct sound.
Elena's hand trembled.
That was her sister.
A comrade who had crawled out of a pile of corpses with her.
"Kill me..."
The mutated person seemed to have one last shred of sanity left.
Though their eyes were clouded.
At the corner of their eye.
A line of green tears flowed.
"Hurry..."
Elena gritted her teeth.
Biting her lip until it bled.
She raised her gun.
Pressed the muzzle against the other's forehead.
"Bang!"
The gunshot rang out.
The person fell.
No hesitation.
No time for grief.
"Everyone! Fall back inside the ship!"
"No matter what's outside!"
"Anyone who can still move!"
"Get the hell back in!"
Elena roared.
Firing to cover them.
While shoving those who were paralyzed with fear toward the dormitory building.
When Qin Yu rushed onto the deck.
He saw this exact scene.
He didn't speak.
Just gave Elena a deep look.
This woman.
Was ruthless enough.
And capable enough.
"Yu-ge! Save me!!"
Over the communicator.
Qi Chun was howling.
"I'm tangled up!!"
"This damn grass has wrapped around my propeller!!"
Not far away.
That battered Floating Fortress.
Was tightly entangled by over a dozen thick vines.
Like a fly caught in a spider's web.
No matter how much the Engine roared.
It didn't budge an inch.
Instead, it was being dragged closer and closer.
He was about to be dragged into that enormous green maw.
"This damn Fatty."
Qin Yu cursed under his breath.
But he couldn't just leave him.
Even though this Fatty was useless.
That S-Class vehicle was the real deal.
And besides.
Even though the guy was a coward.
At a critical moment.
He had indeed taken a hit for him.
"Get down!"
Qin Yu raised his sniper rifle.
This time.
Without the aid of the fire control system.
He relied entirely on feel.
"Bang!"
The first shot.
Accurately struck the main vine entangling the propeller.
"Absolute Penetration" activated.
The vine as thick as a bowl was instantly severed.
Green sap splattered all over Qi Chun's face.
"Bleh! Bleh! Bleh!"
Qi Chun ignored the disgust.
"There's more! Two more vines!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Two more shots.
Each shot precisely grazed the edge of the fortress.
Severing the restraints.
"Run!!"
Qin Yu roared.
"Are you waiting for the New Year if you don't run now?!"
He didn't need to shout.
The newly freed fortress.
Like a startled wild boar.
Spewed two plumes of black smoke from its rear.
Who knows what Fatty threw into the furnace.
Its speed actually doubled compared to usual.
"Whoosh—"
It shot straight out.
On the "President" side.
Power was finally restored.
"Rumble—"
The massive engine roared to life.
The ship's hull shook violently.
"Full speed ahead!"
"Hard to port!"
Li Ruobing's voice echoed over the broadcast.
The enormous warship.
Carved an extreme arc across the sea surface.
Avoiding the crushing blow from above.
"Splash—"
The massive vine crashed against the ship's side.
The waves it raised washed over the deck.
Several infected who hadn't made it into the cabins in time.
Were swept directly into the sea.
"We're leaving."
Qin Yu stood at the stern.
Watching the receding green giant.
His hands tightly gripping the railing.
In his eyes.
There was no fear.
Only unwillingness.
And a hint of... calculation.
"Can't be killed, huh?"
"Infinite regeneration, huh?"
"Fine."
"This debt."
"I'll remember it."
The current "President."
Was still too fragile.
Even with an S-Class main cannon.
Its endurance was lacking.
Its defenses weren't enough.
To go head-to-head with a true Abyss overlord like that.
Was suicide.
"Retreat for now."
Qin Yu spat out the cigarette butt in his mouth.
The butt traced a red arc through the air.
Falling into that churning green sea.
Instantly extinguished.
"Once I gather the Ocean Soul Heart."
"And upgrade the ship to Mothership Class."
"I'll come back."
"And uproot this damn weed."
"By its roots."
...
Half an hour later.
The sea had returned to calm.
Of course.
Only calm in terms of wind and waves.
The "President" sailed at full speed.
Already putting dozens of nautical miles between itself and that monster.
Though the green pillar could still be seen on the horizon.
At least.
That suffocating sense of oppression had vanished.
In the conference room.
The atmosphere was unbearably tense.
No one spoke.
Only the sound of heavy breathing could be heard.
Along with the hum of the air purifier running.
Elena sat in the corner.
Wrapped in a blanket.
Holding a cup of hot water.
Her eyes vacant.
Beside her.
Out of the original fifty-eight sisters.
Now.
Only forty-two remained.
The others.
Either dead.
Or...
Turned into those monsters.
Killed by her own hand.
"Don't look so grim."
Qin Yu pushed the door open and entered.
He had changed into clean clothes.
Holding that electronic roster in his hand.
"Those who died."
"I've already crossed their names off."
"Those who are alive."
"This week's resource rations are doubled."
He tossed the roster onto the table.
It landed with a sharp smack.
Breaking the dead silence.
"What?"
"Feeling wronged?"
"Think it's cruel?"
Qin Yu's gaze swept over everyone.
Finally settling on Elena's face.
"This is the apocalypse."
"This is Version 2.0."
"Those days of playing house are over."
"Over."
"That thing just now."
"Was only the beginning."
"From now on."
"There will be more and more of them."
"And stronger."
He walked to the window.
Looking out at the still overcast sky.
"If you want to survive."
"Stop thinking of yourselves as human."
"Be beasts."
"Be madmen."
"Only by being more ruthless than them."
"Do you earn the right."
"To see tomorrow's sun."
Elena raised her head.
Looking at this back.
Just now on the deck.
The man who shot through the vine to save Fatty.
The man who calmly directed the retreat in the toxic fog.
And now this cold-blooded, merciless tyrant.
Gradually merged into one.
She suddenly understood.
Why Odin lost.
Because Odin thought of himself as a god.
But Qin Yu.
Always thought of himself as a survivor.
Who would do anything to stay alive...
"Understood."
Elena put down her cup.
Stood up.
Though her legs were still trembling.
Her back was straight.
"I'll make sure the rest adapt."
"As soon as possible."
"Next time."
"We won't hold you back."
Qin Yu turned around.
Looked at her.
And smiled.
"Good."
"Go rest."
"Tomorrow."
"There's still work to do."
After everyone had left.
Li Ruobing hugged him from behind.
Pressing her face against his back.
"Just now."
"You actually felt bad, didn't you?"
"After all."
"That was sixteen workers."
Qin Yu was silent for a moment.
Pulled a cigarette from his pocket.
Didn't light it.
Just held it in his mouth.
"Feel bad?"
"Maybe."
"But."
"I feel worse about those 500 tons of S-Class Alloy."
"And that warehouse full of high-energy fuel."
"After this battle."
"We're back to scavenging junk."
Li Ruobing chuckled.
Pinched his waist.
"Stubborn to the end."
Qin Yu didn't argue.
He looked out the window.
In that direction.
Was the heartland of the Huaxia Region.
Also where that Fatty Qi Chun said.
There might be some "big business."
Since this road is blocked.
Then take another.
Anyway.
This world is so big.
There's always a place.
For Qin Yu to strike it rich.
"Notify Fatty."
"Rest for two hours."
"Then."
"We'll go meet up with him."
"I heard over there."
"There's some kind of ruins?"
"Perfect."
"Let's see if we can dig up something good."
"Make up for today's losses."
Have you ever seen glowing cuisine, and you dare to draw a food-themed series?