Survival on the Internet: A Bizarre Start at Sea

The fungal carpet ceased its undulations in the dead of night, resembling a cooled, gigantic corpse.

Su Zhisu's fingertips traced the edge of the lab bench, and a faint light seeped from the cracks in the gray-blue anchor print.

Outside the window, among the three stars of the temple, the central one was emanating a thick green mist, which condensed into a vertical pupil overlooking the entire academy.

The amber from Cthulhu was burning hot in the pocket, while the stardust remnants given by Hydra were icy cold.

Alone, navigating the chessboard of the former rulers?

No, Nautilus must be awakened.

But the Temple archives during the day are probably already teeming with Cthulhu's spies.

As moonlight streamed through the River of Phobos, Lilia huddled behind a coral pillar, shivering.

Her long seaweed-covered dress was soaked with night dew, and her left hand gripped her right wrist tightly.

"Lilia?"

"Your Excellency..." She raised her head, her pupils gleaming faintly in the darkness like mother-of-pearl.

"The Titans are calling me." Withered fingers lifted the sleeve of his right wrist.

A gray-blue mark sits above the pulse, its pattern resembling an anchor mark, yet entwined with countless tiny chains.

"It said..." Lilia's throat bobbed, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

"It will make me... become..." The words caught between his teeth, as if an invisible hand was choking him.

She curled up in pain, the brand suddenly lit up, and the chain patterns crumbled and reformed inch by inch.

When I met Nautilus at the Deep Sea Forging Institute that day, its voice echoed in my mind.

Su Zhisu learned many things.

Therefore, he understood that the Deep Sea Titan wanted Lilia to inherit its qualifications and become a "player".

But Cthulhu's tentacles have spread throughout Atlantis, and any mention of "players" would likely arouse its suspicion.

The language barrier erected by the Titans is both a shackle and a protection.

"Stop talking." Su Zhixu pressed down on Lilia's trembling shoulders. "Where does it lead you?"

"East District... Seventh Corridor..."

Lilia, panting, pointed to the temple, "At the bottom of the archives, there's the key it left for the messenger."

"Let's go now."

Su Zhisu tore off the protective film and wrapped it around her wrist. "There are too many eyes there during the day."

The night road was more treacherous than I had imagined.

The glass lamps of Atlantis were all extinguished, the fluorescent corals withered and drooped, and the sound of the tides was muffled, like the breath of a dying man.

Lilia led the way through the abandoned alchemical corridor, where the living doors closed automatically as they passed, and the skeletal windows made a soft clicking sound.

"They are afraid."

"Lilia said softly, the branding of the chains illuminating her pale face."

"Lord Cthulhu's dream is eroding the entirety of Atlantis."

The entrance to the temple's lower archives was sealed off by a triple coral chain.

As Lilia bit her fingertip and a drop of blood dripped into the keyhole, the gray-blue brand shone with a brilliant blue light.

The chains slithered open like living snakes, revealing a deep passage behind the door.

"Lord Titan said that only contractors can open this place."

Her voice trembled, "But why me... I'm just a..."

There is no crystal stele forest inside the warehouse; instead, there are 365 luminous corals standing like tombstones.

Each plant has a suspended, solidified water sphere at its top, with a yellowish spool sealed inside.

Su Zhisu's anchor mark suddenly burned, drawing him toward the withered coral in the corner.

"here......"

Lilia pointed to the base, "The Titan's guidance ends here."

Withered coral crumbles at the touch.

The moment the water sphere fell, the two reached out simultaneously—the gray-blue anchor mark and the chain mark intertwined with light, and the water sphere transformed into a flowing star map.

An image from 850 years ago appears in the center of the star map:

Atlantis floated on the sea, with Oberon Serafim standing in the center of the altar.

Where the sky was torn apart, deep green tentacles descended, carrying stardust.

In the corner, Nautilus, transformed into a gigantic shadow a hundred meters tall, wielded a giant anchor, only to be entangled by the Star Chains and dragged into the deep sea.

A few lines of small text flashed across the edge of the screen:

"The deep-sea Titans intervened in the descent of the Outer Gods, and were suppressed for seventy-two hours. The sinking of Atlantis is inevitable."

"Note: I was once a 'player,' but I have lost that qualification. The core of the chains is located at the seventh drainage valve at the bottom of the temple, and can only be broken by the resonance of the contractor's blood and stardust."

The star map suddenly distorted, and Cthulhu's green eyes opened amidst the light and shadow: "Little insect, how dare you spy on my collection..."

"Close your eyes!" Su Zhisu pounced on Lilia.

The star map exploded into billions of points of light, and the coral bookshelf grew wildly, transforming into tentacled spikes that lunged at the two of them.

Su Zhisu drew his sword and slashed, the ghostly blue light of the Night Watch Heart Flame igniting on the blade.

"Your Excellency, no!" Lilia grabbed Su Zhisu's slashing wrist.

Lilia raised her wrist, and the gray-blue brand on the back of her hand lit up automatically. The blue light wove a barrier, and the tentacles turned to dust the moment they touched it.

"Lord Titan will protect us."

Panting, Su Zhixu helped Lilia up. "It's no accident that the Deep Sea Titan chose you. The chains in your mark... are the shackles that were forcibly removed when it lost its 'player' status."

Lilia's pupils contracted sharply: "You...you can say that word?"

"Because that's who I am."

Su Zhisu tore off a piece of his shirt and wrapped it around her bleeding wrist.

"Listen, though you cannot utter those two words, you will eventually become my companion. Now, we must find a way to awaken the Deep Sea Titan."

The withered coral turned to powder, revealing the hidden compartment at the base.

Inside lay a quiet anchor-shaped key, its material identical to the brand on the back of Su Zhisu's hand.

The moment the key touched the anchor mark, fragments of memory surged forth:

850 years ago, before Nautilus was dragged into the trench by chains, he inscribed a secret code on the seventh drainage valve.

Whenever Cthulhu suppresses the deep-sea Titans, the phantom of R'lyeh will increasingly overlap with Atlantis.

The final suppression will reach its peak at midnight on the Haiyue Festival.

The final scene: The deep-sea titan pours a ray of silver light into Lilia's childhood cradle.

"Why would Cthulhu give me this amber?"

Looking at the amber in his hand, Su Zhisu muttered to himself.

"Three more days..."

Lilia stared at the engravings on the key. "The Titan's aura is fading."

On the way back, the sound of flowing water was unusually viscous.

Su Zhisu suddenly grabbed Lilia and hid in the shadow of the pillar.

Around the corner ahead, a humanoid silhouette formed by a swarm of jellyfish is slowly swimming, each jellyfish tentacles draped with star-like threads.

"Cthulhu's Eyes".

Lilia pressed herself against the wall, breathing, "They can smell the messenger's scent."

The gray-blue brand and the chain brand both heated up simultaneously.

Su Zhisu shielded Lilia behind him, and the two exchanged a glance.

The moment the jellyfish-shaped figure turned the corner, Lilia unleashed a stream of blue water light, and the coral lamps on both sides of the corridor went out.

In the darkness, the star-like threads brushed past her ear.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Su Zhisu rushed into the core of the jellyfish swarm. The Night Watch Heart Flame ignited, and with a crackling sound, the jellyfish swarm disintegrated into countless points of light.

"Walk!"

He grabbed Lilia and rushed towards the back alley of the Nest of Life.

Only after shaking off her pursuers did Lilia lean against the fungal carpet wall, panting.

"Why are you helping me? The messenger was entrusted by Lord Titan..."

"Because it's a gamble, and also because we'll eventually be partners."

Su Zhisu tore off a piece of his shirt to bandage the abrasions on her arm.

"It's betting that Cthulhu doesn't know about your chain brand."

"Your chain mark is the right to inherit it; what it wants you to inherit is its identity."

Lilia stared blankly at the bandage.

The blue light from the chain brand flowed gently, echoing the faint light in the cracks on the back of Su Zhisu's hand.

In the distance, towards the temple, the green mist of the central star has condensed into a complete profile of Cthulhu, a strange smile curving at the corner of his mouth.

"Before the Sea Moon Festival," Su Zhisu pressed the anchor-shaped key into her palm, "take me to the seventh drainage valve."

The night wind swirled up seaweed fragments, like a tiny funeral.

Lilia gripped the key tightly, and the gaps in the chain branding subtly widened a little.