Survival in an apartment, starting with a stroke of luck on a plane

Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!

Like three streaks of gray lightning, the three ghouls smashed through the stained-glass windows and decaying walls on the second floor, fleeing desperately in different directions outside the church at an astonishing speed.

Their goal at this moment was clear—not to confront Lin Yu and his terrifying evil spirits head-on, but to use their speed advantage to hunt down the defenseless "food" in the chaos below.

"Trying to run?!" Lin Yu's eyes turned cold, and he immediately wanted to give chase.

However, the screams from the hall below sounded like the death knell of hell, ringing out in rapid succession.

"No! Don't come any closer! Ah—!"

"Help! It's eating Old Wang!!"

"Run! Monsters are everywhere!"

The three ghouls, like tigers among sheep, unleashed a bloody massacre amidst the thick fog and chaos.

With their adaptation to the darkness and speed and strength far exceeding that of ordinary players, each of their attacks takes a life.

Lin Yu was speechless.

However, he didn't care and went downstairs to instruct Liu Xiangxiang to go forward and kill the ghoul.

"Roar—!" The ten-meter-tall Liu Xiangxiang let out a deafening roar, her massive body crashing down into the chaotic hall below like a meteorite.

The enormous ghostly claw, accompanied by a howling, eerie wind, slammed down on a ghoul that was tearing at a player.

The ghoul felt the terrifying pressure above its head and was so frightened that it dared not continue eating. With a strange cry, it dropped the "food" in its mouth and, like a startled rabbit, burst into speed, smashing through a side door and disappearing into the night outside the church.

The other two ghouls were also terrified by the terrifying evil spirit that had fallen from the sky. Seeing their companion flee, they did not hesitate to abandon their prey and turned into two gray shadows, crashing through different windows or walls and fleeing in panic.

Liu Xiangxiang's enormous body landed in the center of the hall, shaking the ground.

Her empty, bloodshot eyes scanned the outline of the heat source darting about in the thick fog, and she let out a low, threatening growl.

The surviving players were terrified when they saw this enormous evil spirit, which was ten times more terrifying than a ghoul, and they screamed and fled even further away.

The appearance of the evil spirits briefly repelled the ghouls, but also exacerbated the chaos.

Lin Yu did not allow Liu Xiangxiang to pursue them. One should not pursue a desperate enemy. Moreover, maintaining this form would consume a lot of energy from the Demon Sword. In addition, he had some things he wanted to test.

He quickly jumped down from the second floor and landed at Liu Xiangxiang's huge feet.

"Come back," Lin Yu said in a deep voice.

The enormous evil spirit glanced down at Lin Yu, its massive body rapidly shrinking and solidifying, transforming back into human form before flying back into the Demon Sword.

At that moment, the thick black fog that filled the church began to dissipate rapidly, like the receding tide.

After a few minutes, the black fog completely dissipated.

The pale moonlight shone again through the broken dome and windows, illuminating the hellish scene inside the church.

The hall was in a mess.

Broken benches, overturned candlesticks, scattered weapons and backpacks... but most shockingly, there were corpses lying haphazardly on the ground.

The ground was almost completely stained red with blood.

Some corpses were disemboweled, their internal organs spilling out; some were torn apart beyond recognition; and others were trampled or killed in the chaos by indiscriminate attacks from other players… At a preliminary glance, there were at least more than twenty bodies.

This doesn't even include the corpses that were taken away by the ghouls.

The strong smell of blood in the air was nauseating.

Most of the surviving players were slumped on the ground or leaning against the wall, their faces filled with bewilderment, fear, and deep exhaustion at the prospect of surviving such a disaster.

Many of them were injured and groaning softly.

Lin Yu's sharp gaze swept across the entire hall, his brows furrowing tightly. He immediately looked up towards the direction of the second-floor corridor—the very place where the shadow clone had disappeared and the sunny young man had been ambushed.

Lin Yu moved swiftly and leaped onto the second floor once more.

A large section of the corridor floor had collapsed, caused by Liu Xiangxiang's claw attack.

A large pool of dark red blood, already partially congealed, remained on the ground.

There were no bodies.

Lin Yu crouched down and carefully examined the bloodstains.

The bloodstains stretched deep into the corridor, but disappeared before a hole in the wall.

Outside the hole was a wasteland overgrown with weeds behind the church.

"This is...being taken away?" Lin Yu thought to himself.

Ghouls need to eat, so it's normal for them to take corpses as food.

The story of a bright young man who was critically injured and on the verge of death being killed, dragged away, and eaten by a ghoul is logically plausible.

But... the last image before the shadow clone disappeared flashed through his mind: the horrified look in the eyes of the sunny young man when he was ambushed, and the determined claw of the traitorous ghoul...

Given the strength and equipment that the sunny young man had previously demonstrated, was he really so easily severely injured and dragged away without any power to resist?

And the most crucial point—of the four ghouls, where did the fourth one come from?

Were they already lurking in the ranks, or hiding in the church? Or did they sneak in from the outside?

Lin Yu's gaze swept over the still-shaken survivors in the hall below.

Suddenly, an idea popped into my head: Could the sunny young man be the ghoul leader who was the one who was the most hidden and who had planned all of this?

He deliberately led his team into the trap, used the traitor's sneak attack to seriously injure himself, then released a distress signal to lure the main force in, then used the black mist of crows to create chaos, and finally let the ghouls take advantage of the chaos to slaughter them.

This would significantly weaken the strength of human players while replenishing the flesh and blood that the ghoul faction desperately needed.

This conjecture is reasonable and explains many doubts. But... where is the evidence?

Lin Yu looked at the pool of blood on the ground and shook his head slightly.

Until we witness his transformation firsthand or find conclusive evidence of him being a ghoul, these are all just speculations.

After all, the sunny young man has not done anything to betray the human camp so far, and his own fate is currently unknown.

Just then, the noise coming from the hall below interrupted Lin Yu's thoughts.

"This is mine! Old Wang promised to give it to me before he died!"

"Bullshit! I saw the dagger first! Get out of my way!"

"The keys! The apartment keys! Whoever grabs them keeps them!"

"Damn it! Don't push! This backpack is mine!"

……

Lin Yu frowned and looked over. He saw that some of the surviving players, who had just been immersed in fear and grief, were now like hyenas that had smelled blood, frantically fighting over the equipment, backpacks, and apartment keys dropped by the dead players on the ground.

They pushed and shoved, shouted insults, and some even fought over a bronze-grade short sword that looked decent.

Human greed and baseness are laid bare under the stimulation of death and the lure of profit.

Several players who were seriously injured and unable to move lay on the ground, watching helplessly as their "legacy" was looted, their eyes filled with despair and indignation.

The intimidating aura that the sunny young man had built up seemed to vanish at this moment—after all, in everyone's eyes, he had already been killed by the ghoul.

Seeing this farcical scene of looting, Lin Yu didn't feel much.

This was inevitable; without anyone to unite them, this group of players was nothing more than a mob.

However, there are ghouls eyeing them from the outside, who could return at any moment, and fools killing each other from within, each for a pittance.

Is there really any hope left for the human side?

Lin Yu shook his head, ignoring the chaos below, and turned his gaze to the dark, inky night outside the church, and to the direction near the abandoned dock area in his memory.

Now that the Sunshine Youth group is gone, there's no need for it to remain.

It would be better to seek news of other gods.

Ignoring the looting and chaos inside the church, though he wasn't stupid, he still picked up the apartment keys and backpacks of a few players who seemed to be relatively wealthy. When the other players saw him doing this, they didn't dare to stop him and quickly retreated.

Lin Yu didn't take everything. After looting a few players who seemed to have a little more money, he quietly jumped off the second-floor windowsill.

The town was fraught with danger at night. Lin Yu could hear faint sounds of battle from time to time, clearly indicating that the ghouls were killing lone players.

Lin Yu did want to hunt down these guys, but perhaps because of his growing fame, every time he encountered ghouls, they would run away without saying a word.

They were too fast and had terrifying stamina, making it difficult for Lin Yu to catch up, so he had to give up.

He quickly returned to his apartment.

Lin Yu locked the door and formed a hand seal.

"Shadow Clone Technique!"

Bang!

A flash of white smoke appeared, and another "Lin Yu" appeared in the room.

"Go to the study and continue to study the Thunder Technique," Lin Yu commanded succinctly.

"Understood." The shadow clone nodded without hesitation and turned to enter the Taoist study.

Lin Yu first took stock of his gains in the living room.

I looted seven or eight apartment keys, some ordinary equipment, and over thirty more game coins from the players who died in the church and the last two ghoul players.

After cleaning up these things, Lin Yu went to the Taoist study.

Lin Yu sat opposite his shadow clone and began to comprehend the lightning technique in his mind. Perhaps because it was bestowed by the True Lord and also because of His own insights, Lin Yu's progress was very fast. After only two nights of comprehension, he was already able to barely release a trace of lightning.

However, despite rapid progress, he still couldn't put his skills into practice.

Lin Yu and his shadow clone attempted to condense the simplest lightning seal. Their fingertips surged with magical power, producing a faint crackling sound. Occasionally, a barely perceptible arc of electricity would flash by, but it would immediately vanish.

Failures, adjustments, time flies by.

Several hours later, feeling mentally exhausted, Lin Yu knew that he had reached his limit in today's cultivation.

He and his shadow clone left the study together.

The shadow clone didn't need to rest and took the initiative to take on the duty of keeping watch at night, while Lin Yu's main body lay down on the bed and quickly entered a deep sleep to recover his exhausted mind and spirit.

The next morning, the sunlight dispelled some of the gloom of the night, but the town remained oppressive.

Lin Yu woke up feeling refreshed and full of energy.

He quickly devised a plan.

Obtaining divine blessings is of paramount importance, but understanding the activities of surviving players is also essential.

"Let's split up," Lin Yu said to his shadow clone. "I'll go to the dock area to look for clues about Pontos, the sea god."

Go to town and check how many players are still there, what the situation is, stay alert, and immediately resolve any danger.

"Understood." The shadow clone nodded, put on his hood, pulled up his mask, and left the apartment first, his figure quickly disappearing at the end of the street.

After tidying up briefly and checking his equipment and supplies, Lin Yu set off, heading directly towards the abandoned dock area of ​​the town.

The dock area remained desolate during the day, with the sea breeze carrying the salty smell and the scent of rotting wood.

The broken pier stretched out into the gray sea, and several dilapidated wooden boats lay aground on the beach, already rotting.

Relying on his memory, Lin Yu quickly found the trident pattern carved on the wall that he had discovered last time.

This time, Lin Yu made some other discoveries. Although the pattern was very old, its direction was very clear: the tip of the halberd pointed straight to the sea.

"Could it be in the sea?" Lin Yu frowned slightly.

He walked to the seaside and gazed at the gently rippling waves.

The seawater was not clear; in fact, it was somewhat murky, and the bottom could not be seen.

"If the clues are in the sea, how do we get them?" Lin Yu pondered.

He's not good at swimming.

However, he quickly came up with a solution. Liu Xiangxiang, being a ghost, did not need to breathe and was unaffected by water pressure, making her the best underwater explorer.

He walked behind a hidden reef and drew the Demon Sword.

"Xiangxiang, come out."

Amidst swirling black mist, the sword spirit Liu Xiangxiang quietly appeared, hovering silently before him.

"Xiangxiang, can you go into the sea? Go in this direction," Lin Yu pointed in the direction indicated by the trident.

"Investigate the seabed for anything unusual, such as shipwrecks, relics, or any unusual-looking objects. Be careful, and retreat immediately if there is any danger."

Liu Xiangxiang looked at the sea with empty eyes, then at Lin Yu, and nodded gently: "Okay, benefactor."

After saying that, she swayed and transformed into a faint phantom, silently merging into the seawater without stirring up a single wave.

Lin Yu remained on the shore, waiting patiently.

Time passed by, and the sea only saw the regular rise and fall of the tide.

About ten minutes later, just as Lin Yu was considering whether to take the initiative to contact her, the seawater in front of him rippled, and Liu Xiangxiang's figure emerged from the water.

In her arms, she was holding a heavy-looking, rusty tin box.

"My benefactor," Liu Xiangxiang placed the box on the beach in front of Lin Yu.

"In the direction you pointed, there is a large wooden shipwreck in a deeper part of the area."

I found the box inside; it was locked in a room that seemed to be the captain's cabin, and there was nothing else of note around it.

"A shipwreck?" Lin Yu's heart skipped a beat.

He stroked the cold, slippery iron box, which had a rusted lock hanging on it.

"You've worked hard, come back and rest." Lin Yu put Liu Xiangxiang back into his sword.

Then, he grasped the rusty lock and twisted it slightly.

Click!

The rusted latch broke off instantly.

Lin Yu took a deep breath and lifted the heavy box lid.

The inside of the box has been simply waterproofed, but due to its age, it is still somewhat damp inside.

The box was covered with a blackened and rotten velvet cloth, and in the center of the box lay a statue.

The statue is about one foot tall and is carved from some kind of grayish-white stone, with a craftsmanship similar to the stone statues at the bottom of the castle.

The sculpted figure is a majestic male deity with a resolute face, a thick beard, a crown resembling waves, and a robe that appears to be formed from seawater.

His most distinctive feature is the huge trident he holds tightly in his hand.

Although it is just a stone carving, it naturally exudes a vast, profound, and awe-inspiring aura.

"Pontos, the sea god." Lin Yu's lips curled up slightly.

The statue looks very similar to the sea god described in the Bible, so it's probably accurate.

He carefully took the statue out; it felt cold and heavy to the touch.

Based on previous intelligence and experience, this statue should be a witness to the sea god.

"Next, we need to find the sacrificial offering..." Lin Yu recalled the information about the sea god's sacrificial offering: "Deep-sea pearls, or blood-red coral."

Carefully retrieving the sea god statue from his personal space, Lin Yu gazed at the vast ocean and fell into deep thought.

Pearls and corals are clearly marine products, but that's a very broad category.

The deep sea? Which deep sea? Where exactly are the pearl oysters and coral reefs? If we just search blindly like this, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack.

"Standing here thinking won't do any good. Let's walk along the coastline and see if we can find any clues, such as fishermen's records, unusual ocean currents, or..." Lin Yu's gaze swept over the abandoned ships.

"Check if any information was left on those old ships."

He decided to search along the coastline.

Lin Yu walked slowly along the beach, his sharp eyes scanning every detail that might provide information: abandoned fishing nets, wrecked shipwrecks, and even drifting debris on the sand.

But most of the time they came up empty-handed.

As he passed through a dense patch of coastal bushes, a low arguing drifted on the wind.

Lin Yu immediately stopped in his tracks, his eyes narrowing.

He quickly activated the camouflage skill of his [camouflage pants], his figure seemingly blending into the surrounding scenery and shadows in an instant, and his aura was also concealed to the extreme.

Pushing aside the layers of branches and leaves, he saw two male players standing behind a hidden reef, arguing heatedly.

They looked somewhat disheveled, covered in sand, and their eyes were filled with anxiety and vigilance.

"...We can't go on like this!" a tall, thin player exclaimed excitedly. "It's just the two of us. We can only go out to hunt at night by transforming, and during the day we have to hide like rats."

If we're discovered by the main human force, we're doomed. It's better to find other humans and band together; that way, our chances of survival are much higher.

Another, shorter, stockier player immediately retorted: "Unite? Are you crazy! Who knows what the other ghoul players are thinking? Trust is the cheapest thing in this game! What if you go to other ghouls and they use you as cannon fodder? Go die if you want, I'll just stay here, be careful tonight, and maybe I can make it to the end!"

"You! How can you be such a coward!"

"This isn't cowardice! It's caution! Survival is the most important thing!"

Hearing their conversation, Lin Yu was slightly taken aback.

Ghoul players, and two of them alone at that, what a pleasant surprise!

Lin Yu instantly assessed the situation.

His title quest requires killing at least five ghouls. He has already killed the one that ambushed him in the church and the first one he killed, so he has completed two. He still needs to kill three more.

These two in front of him were the very targets of his mission, and since the ghouls couldn't transform during the day, their strength was about the same as the players', except that they couldn't be killed. But with the Azure Rose, he didn't have to worry about that at all.

Don't miss out!

Like a cheetah, Lin Yu silently removed his disguise and suddenly pounced from behind the bushes.

"Who?!"

Although Lin Yu made little noise, the two ghoul players were not newbies and were clearly very vigilant, so they quickly discovered Lin Yu.

The two were shocked; they hadn't noticed anyone nearby at all.

Lin Yu moved with incredible speed, instantly closing in on the short, stocky player and delivering a precise chop to the side of his neck.

The short, stocky player collapsed to the ground without uttering a sound.

The tall, thin player reacted faster, pulling out a dagger in terror and stabbing at Lin Yu, but his movements were full of flaws in Lin Yu's eyes.

Lin Yu easily dodged to the side, his right hand flashing out like lightning, grabbing the other's wrist and twisting it forcefully.

Click!

"Ah—!" The tall, thin player screamed as the dagger slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

Lin Yu then delivered a powerful knee strike to his abdomen, rendering him completely incapacitated and causing him to curl up on the ground, retching.

The whole process happened in the blink of an eye, and the two players who could not transform were subdued without any chance to fight back.

Lin Yu used the ropes and rags he found on them to tie the two men up tightly and gag them.

He then dragged the two men behind the rocks.

After a while, the two regained some consciousness and their eyes were filled with obvious fear after realizing they had been captured alive.

Lin Yu ripped the cloth out of the tall, thin man's mouth and asked coldly, "Tell me, where are the other ghouls? And how many other players' identities do you know?"

The tall, thin player was deathly pale, cold sweat pouring down his face, but upon hearing the question, he revealed a bitter, mocking smile: "Bah! Failure means death, why should I tell you? Not a single piece of information! Hahaha! Go ahead and kill me if you dare!"

The short, stocky player next to him also regained consciousness. Although he was twitching from the pain, his eyes were equally fierce and desperate as he stared intently at Lin Yu, determined not to utter a word.

Lin Yu frowned and tried various methods of torture and interrogation, including using pain and psychological pressure.

He even sent Liu Xiangxiang out to use the power of ghosts to suppress the spirit, but these two were extremely stubborn. No matter what Lin Yu did, they only screamed and cursed, and did not reveal a single word.

Clearly, these two were determined not to say a word, most likely because they believed Lin Yu couldn't kill them, since ghouls are relatively immortal.

Lin Yu scoffed, knowing he had to teach them a lesson.

Without further hesitation, he swiftly drew the Azure Rose and fired directly at the short, stocky player's head.

bang bang bang...

Soon, the short, stocky player's head was smashed into a bloody pulp, and he was dead beyond any doubt.

"this……"

Beside him, the tall, thin man who witnessed this scene was completely dumbfounded. The reason he was so stubborn was precisely because of the ghouls' immortality.

He never expected that Lin Yu had actually obtained equipment capable of killing ghouls.

"I'm giving you one last chance. Will you talk or not?"

Lin Yu pointed the Blue Rose gun at the guy's head and spoke with an icy gaze.